Mobile apps score with fans on the move

Posted By IAN BUSBY, QMI AGENCY

With spring upon us, Canadians can now basically combine two great loves at the same time: Playoff hockey and the outdoors.

No longer is the hockey fan glued to the television set during the Stanley Cup playoffs as the increasing technology gives mobile device users a chance to watch games while on the move.

The CBC has launched live streaming games to itsHockey Night in Canadaapplication through iTunes, while TSN has teamed up with Bell Mobility to provide its games in real time to those subscribers.

The catch with CBC’s app is the games will cost $2.99 for single-use or $14.99 for the entire post-season.

TSN debuted its Masters app for last week’s tournament and the reviews have been positive. It followed a featured group, Amen Corner and holes No. 15 and 16 among other highlights available on demand and it was available for free.

Sampling these apps isn’t easy for those of us who aren’t tech savvy, but there are few free programs out there that will help sports fans keep track of the scores at least.

CBC’sHNICapp is easy enough to navigate and quickly updated the NHL playoff scores starting Wednesday night.

The ScoreMobile iPhone Edition has the easiest screens to navigate, while TSN Mobile is also user-friendly with the added advantage of a ticker at the bottom of the screen.

Both provide enough updates that baseball fans can read boxscores and get a good view of what’s happening, butThe Score’sapp provides a couple more features such as detailed scoring plays and preview stories.

There are plenty of other apps for users willing to spend some cash, but there is enough content out there for free seekers. It might not always be that way, as this is more of a promotional tool for networks than a way of making money directly.

For instance, TSN is working on a CFL app for this season, but live streaming games will have a fee attached to them.

CBC had first pick in choosing playoff series and at first it looked like a tough decision. Montreal against Washington would be intriguing if it was expected to be a long series, so the mother corp. made a good choice in taking Pittsburgh against Ottawa instead.

The Canadiens will likely draw higher ratings for TSN, but with Sidney Crosby and the rest of the defending Stanley Cup champions getting upset in Game 1, the series now becomes must-see. It also didn’t hurt that Crosby notched three assists in a thrilling 5-4 win for the Sens.

TSN is the real winner from the first round of games, basically because it now has the side network TSN2.

That allows the network to still show games in entirety while some might have to be joined in progress in case of long overtimes.

One of the most exciting first-round series will start Friday night on TSN2 as the Nashville Predators faceoff against the high-flying Chicago Blackhawks.