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T-Mobile to provide free MLB.TV subscriptions to customers through 2028

T-Mobile announced today that it has extended its partnership with Major League Baseball to allow its customers to continue receiving free MLB.TV subscriptions through 2028. An MLB.TV subscription typically costs $150 per year. The extended partnership comes as T-Mobile has offered MLB.TV as a free perk for its customers for the past eight years. MLB.TV lets you stream out-of-market home and away games live or on demand. The service also gives subscribers access to pregame and postgame shows. T-Mobile notes that for the first time, MLB.TV now also provides fans with access to their favorite team’s affiliates’ games in the MLB app. Fans can catch games on their favorite supported devices and enjoy live game DVR controls to pause and rewind the action in HD.
“T-Mobile and MLB are embarking on a six-year journey to deliver breakthrough fan experiences, and it’s all thanks to our leading 5G network,” said T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert in a press release. “We’re enhancing the game on and off the field to give fans across the country even more ways to enjoy the game we all love — on top of showing our customers love with free MLB.TV.”
It’s worth noting that the deadline for this year’s free signup period for MLB.TV has already passed, unfortunately, as the last day to sign up was April 4. T-Mobile notes that more customers redeemed their free MLB.TV subscription this year than ever before.
T-Mobile also announced that it will work with the MLB to test an automated ball-strike system (ABS) powered by the company’s private 5G network during some Minor League games. The carrier says real-time ABS data and video will be transmitted securely to help prevent signal interference via devices and the ABS application.

Here’s how to stream Major League Baseball games in 2023

T-Mobile to provide free MLB.TV subscriptions to customers through 2028 by Aisha Malik originally published on TechCrunch
T-Mobile to provide free MLB.TV subscriptions to customers through 2028

Hackers access DoorDash data, T-Mobile teams up with SpaceX, and eBay buys TCGplayer

Hello, hello! We’re back with another edition of Week in Review, the newsletter where we quickly break down the top stories to hit TC in the last seven days. Want it in your inbox? Sign up here.
Our most read story this week was about Stable Diffusion, a “new open source AI image generator capable of producing realistic pictures from any text prompt” that is quickly finding its way into more projects. But, as Kyle Wiggers notes, the system’s “unfiltered nature means not all the use has been completely above board.”
other stuff
T-Mobile + Starlink: Can Elon’s Starlink satellites keep your phone connected even when there’s no cell tower around? That’s the idea behind a newfound alliance between SpaceX and T-Mobile. If it works, T-Mobile phones should able to send messages (but probably not calls) over the Starlink network in a pinch, albeit with a delay of up to 30 minutes.
Google’s noise reduction AI: Smartphones have gotten better and better at low-light photos, but at a certain point the obstacle preventing further improvements is … well, physics. Is an algorithm that uses “AI magic” (as Haje puts it) to eliminate visual noise and “figure out what footage ‘should have’ looked like” the eventual only answer? No idea, but the examples are pretty friggin’ impressive.
DoorDash breached: Remember the Twilio hack a few weeks ago? The ripple effects continue. This week DoorDash disclosed that hackers were able to obtain access to internal DoorDash tools, accessing “names, email addresses, delivery addresses and phone numbers of DoorDash customers.”
Meta’s new accounts: If you’ve got a Quest VR headset and don’t want to tie it to a Facebook or Instagram account, this’ll be the route you take. If you’re still using an old pre-Meta Oculus account, know that support for those ends on day 1 of 2023.
eBay buys TCGplayer: If you’re a collector of any trading card games — think Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Magic, etc. — you’ve probably heard of TCGplayer, which eBay is buying “in a deal valued up to $295 million.” We’ll chat with TC writer Aisha Malik about the deal (and why eBay wants it) in the writer spotlight down below.

Image Credits: Getty Images
audio stuff
Commuting? Cooking? Just wearing headphones to discourage people from talking to you? Come hang out with us in Podcast land! This week the Equity team talked about the legal battle going on over at Black Girls Code, Jordan and Darrell talked with comedian/Super Trooper Jay Chandrasekhar about his app on Found, and the Chain Reaction team caught up with two investors from the relatively new web3-focused firm Haun Ventures.
additional stuff
What’s behind the TC+ paywall? Here’s some of the most read stuff this week. Want more? Sign up for TC+ here and use code “WIR” for 15% off your annual pass. 
Manchin’s ultimatum: Can the Inflation Reduction Act and lucrative tax credits help “turn the U.S. into a battery powerhouse”? Tim De Chant explores the possibilities.
Should this metric be your team’s North Star?: The team from Battery Ventures proposes that ARR per employee (or “APE,” as they’ve dubbed it) should be your team’s guiding light.
3 views on Flow: Last week we found out that WeWork founder Adam Neumann is back with a new thing and had already raised over $350 million from the likes of a16z. Good idea? Bad Idea? Tim De Chant, Dominic-Madori Davis, Amanda Silberling share their takes.
writer spotlight: Aisha Malik
Image Credits: Aisha Malik
As noted last week, we’re experimenting with the idea of highlighting one TechCrunch writer per newsletter to learn a bit about them and what’s been on their mind lately. This time we’re catching up with the outstanding Aisha Malik, one year almost to the day since she wrote her first TC post. 
Who is Aisha Malik? What do you do at TechCrunch?
Hi, I’m a senior consumer news writer and the second Canadian on the TechCrunch team! I write about the latest changes to platforms and apps, and how they affect the average consumer. My team and I also uncover upcoming app features ahead of their official release. I also get the chance to chat with founders about their app launches and latest funding rounds.
What’s interesting in your beat right now? Any trends we should know about?
One thing we’re seeing and likely will continue to see is just how often apps are copying each other. Just this week, we found out that Instagram is testing a BeReal clone feature that challenges people to post candid photos within two minutes. Over the past year, we’ve seen Instagram copy numerous TikTok features, we’ve seen TikTok copy Snapchat with its Stories feature, and we’ve also seen Twitter copy Instagram with its close friends “circle” feature.
There are countless similar examples. It’ll be interesting to see just how this trend progresses. People are already calling on Instagram to go back to its roots, so what happens when every app is trying to be like another one? At some point, these apps are going to be overcrowded with features, and that might not be something that consumers want.
Right?! It’s absurd. And who wants to build the next cool thing when the giants of the app world will just clone your key features as soon as they start to prove popular?
Since you’re on the consumer/apps team: what’s the most used app on your phone that didn’t come pre-installed? What eats up your battery every day?
I have no shame in admitting this (okay, maybe just a little) but the answer is TikTok.
I find myself opening the app when I want to take a quick break or when I’d rather not commit to watching a movie or an episode of a TV show, but still want some sort of entertainment. I know people who haven’t download the app claim it’s filled with dancing videos, but the truth is you’ll only end up seeing dancing videos if that’s something you’re actually interested in. TikTok formulates its “For You” page in a way that’s based on your interests, so I see it as a great way to discover and engage with content that you care about. As someone who enjoys baking and reading, the majority of the content I see on TikTok revolves around baking recipes and book recommendations.
I also think TikTok clearly has an impact on culture, whether it’s memes, music or political movements; there’s a chance that it’ll appear on TikTok first. I see the app as a fun and easy way to stay up-to-date on all sorts of trends.
I get it. I had to delete TikTok off my phone — every time I’d open it, my eyes would go all Hypnotoad and I’d be gone, only snapping out of it 20 minutes/100 videos later. The algorithm is too good. It feels like the final boss of the internet; the algorithm in its most evolved/efficient form. I’m probably getting a bit too in the weeds here. Back to the questions!
One of the most read stories this week was your post on eBay’s acquisition of TCGplayer. What is TCGplayer, and why does eBay want it?
TCGplayer is one of the biggest online marketplaces for collectible trading card games. The acquisition essentially marks eBay’s latest push into the trading card market, which saw a huge boom during the pandemic. eBay says trading cards are currently showing substantial growth.
To put things in perspective, eBay says the trading cards category is growing significantly faster than its total marketplace and that the category saw $2 billion in transactions in the first half of 2021. Considering that eBay has long been a destination for trading card enthusiasts to buy and sell, acquiring one of its biggest competitors better cements the company’s place as the go-to marketplace to seek out these collectibles.
It’s kind of wild how collectibles saw a massive surge throughout the pandemic — something, perhaps, about lots of people spending a lot more time at home around their own stuff. Collectibles-focused companies like Whatnot just exploded in popularity, going from a pre-seed round to a valuation in the billions in two years. Are you a collector of anything, trading cards or otherwise?
Do rocks count? [Laughs]
Yes!
I have a small collection of rocks and stones that I’ve collected from beaches and forests I’ve visited in Canada and the U.S. I don’t know much about different types of rocks, so the ones in my collection aren’t extraordinary or anything. I just think collecting them is a nice way to feel connected to specific locations I’ve enjoyed visiting!
Fantastic. Thanks, Aisha!
Hackers access DoorDash data, T-Mobile teams up with SpaceX, and eBay buys TCGplayer

T-Mobile will pay out $350M to customers in data breach settlement

If you were one of the nearly 77 million people affected by last year’s T-Mobile breach, you may have a few bucks coming your way. The company has just announced the terms of a settlement in a consolidated class action lawsuit, and it isn’t cheap: $350 million to be split up by customers (and lawyers), plus $150 million “for data security and related technology.” Let this be a lesson to all companies: If you stay ready, you don’t have to spend $150 million to get ready!
The breach apparently occurred sometime early last year, after which collections of T-Mobile customer data were put up for sale on various criminal forums. Estimates of how many people were affected varied, with T-Mobile claiming less than a million had accounts and PINs fully exposed (still not great), and somewhere between 40 and 100 million users total with some data taken.
The settlement, described in an SEC filing and court filing (PDF) first spotted by Geekwire, doesn’t appear to have separate terms for people affected differently by the hack — but that might have been handled separately for all we know. For now, the class defined by the settlement document is “the approximately 76.6 million U.S. residents identified by T-Mobile whose information was compromised in the Data Breach,” with a little extra legalese for Californians, where class actions are handled slightly differently.
As is common in these giant lawsuits, lawyers take a huge bite and then the company must alert the class members they’re owed money, so you can expect a postcard if you were a T-Mobile customer in August of 2021 (in the interest of full disclosure, I was). Then the money gets split up, depending on how many people respond and how much the lawyers take. The final settlement terms could be approved as early as December.
Chances are you won’t even be able to cover a single monthly mobile bill with what you get, but these days a $9 check might be the difference between “dinner” and “no dinner” for quite a few people, so let’s not mock these small sums — except that it’s kind of insulting to have five serious breaches in as many years and all customers get is enough to order off the value menu.
The company, which merged with Sprint just before the breach, said in its SEC filing that it will be dedicating $150 million to improving its security, so maybe it’s taking things seriously now. Guess we’ll find out soon.

To guard against data loss and misuse, the cybersecurity conversation must evolve

T-Mobile will pay out $350M to customers in data breach settlement

Sprint 5G is no more, as T-Mobile focuses on its own network

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A day after formally completing the sale of Boost, Virgin and other Sprint prepaid networks to Dish, T-Mobile is pulling the plug on Sprint 5G. The move is one in a long list of issues that need sorting out in the wake of April’s $26.5 billion merger. And like a number of other moves, it’s set to leave some customers in the lurch.
The end of Sprint’s 2.5 GHz 5G comes as T-Mobile opts to focus on its own network. T-Mobile already started the process in New York City, a few weeks after the merger and has since completed it in a handful of other cities, including Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Washington, D.C.
As CNET notes, while most of the Sprint 5G handsets won’t be able to make the transition, Samsung Galaxy S20 5G users are in the clear here. For everyone else, T-Mobile is offering up credits on leases for new 5G handsets.

T-Mobile officially completes merger with Sprint, CEO John Legere steps down ahead of schedule

T-Mobile told TechCrunch in a statement, “We are working to quickly re-deploy, optimize and test the 2.5GHz spectrum before lighting it up on the T-Mobile network.”
Along with the sale of Boost, 5G was a big selling point for T-Mobile’s Sprint acquisition. The carriers argued that the deal was necessary to keep them competitive with first and second place carriers AT&T and Verizon when it came to the next-generation wireless technology.
At the time FCC chairman Ajit Pai agreed stating, “This transaction will provide New T-Mobile with the scale and spectrum resources necessary to deploy a robust 5G network across the United States.”
Earlier this week, OpenSignal awarded T-Mobile the top spot in availability, noting, “In the U.S., T-Mobile won the 5G Availability award by a large margin with Sprint and AT&T trailing with scores of 14.1% and 10.3%, respectively.”
Update: The language of the post has been updated to reflect the impact on specific unsupported devices, rather than user base figures.

Sprint 5G is no more, as T-Mobile focuses on its own network

Dish closes Boost Mobile purchase, following T-Mobile/Sprint merger

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T-Mobile today announced that it has closed a deal that divests Sprint’s pre-paid businesses, including Boost and Virgin Mobile. The news finds Dish entering the wireless carrier game in earnest, courtesy of the $1.4 billion deal.
The whole thing was, of course, a key part of T-Mobile’s bid to merge with Sprint. It was a relatively small concession to those worried that such a deal would decrease competition in the market, as the number of major U.S. carriers shrunk from four down to three. The $26 billion T-Mobile/Sprint deal was finally completed in April of this year, and has already resulted in hundreds of lost jobs, as reported last month by TechCrunch.

T-Mobile officially completes merger with Sprint, CEO John Legere steps down ahead of schedule

The deal gives Dish a nice head start in the pre-paid phone game, with north of 9 million customers and access to T-Mobile’s wireless network for the next seven years. It also finds current Dish’s COO John Swieringa stepping in to lead the new subsidiary. Oh, and there’s a new Boost logo, too:

Dish
See? It’s basically the old Boost Mobile logo, but with the little Dish wireless symbols in the middle, to really show you who’s boss.
Dish used the opportunity to announce a new plan for Boost users with 15GB of data for $45, and has already begun switching consumers with compatible devices over to the new T-Mobile-backed network.

Dish closes Boost Mobile purchase, following T-Mobile/Sprint merger