Will Reds' games stream live locally?

The Cincinnati Reds are among 15 MLB teams whose local media rights belong to Fox that could offer fans the opportunity to live stream games locally - on desktop, mobile or tablet app - starting next season, according to a report from SportsBusiness Journal.

The publication reports that MLB is "drafting deal documents" with Fox, and an agreement "to offer authenticated local streaming of live games" expected to occur by the start of the 2016 season.

The Reds' games air on Fox Sports Ohio.

The Toronto Blue Jays currently are the only MLB team to stream live games locally. Local streaming takes place on MLB.com and MLB.TV, which costs subscribers up to $25/month.

More from sportsbusinessdaily.com's John Ourand & Eric Fisher:

MLB moved off of its insistence that it host local games through MLB.com, something league executives wanted so they could ensure the quality of the video streams is high. But that stance proved the biggest roadblock to a deal, as cable operators would have needed to share subscriber data with the league during the user authentication process, something they were not willing to do.

Under the proposed Fox agreement, fans will be able to access games on Fox Sports RSN websites and the FoxSportsGo app, plus distributors' websites and apps.

As part of the deal, MLB is requiring that Fox's RSNs use MLB Advanced Media as the vendor to manage the live streams through its new stand-alone BAM Tech operation. Sources said the requirement, in addition to a rights fee that is around 4 percent of a team's overall media deal, would cost RSNs in the mid-to-high seven figures per team.

For MLB, the requirement to use BAM Tech will ensure that the streams' video quality will be secure.

The other 14 MLB teams whose games air on Fox include the Arizona Diamondbacks, Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians, Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles Angels, Miami Marlins, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, San Diego Padres, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays and Texas Rangers.