© John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune/TNS David Ross shakes hands with Theo Epstein as Jed Hoyer looks on at Ross' first press conference as Cubs manager.

It has been more than a month since our last Q&A session regarding Marquee Sports Network, the cable TV channel the Cubs and Sinclair Broadcast Group look to launch in time for spring-training games in February.

So, we’ll skip an opening statement and open the floor to questions.

Does my TV service have a deal to carry Marquee yet?

We don’t know which TV service is yours. But unless you subscribe to AT&T’s DirecTV, U-verse or AT&T TV; Charter Communications or Mediacom Communications, the answer is no.

Do you think Comcast’s Xfinity will hold out?

© John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune/TNS Theo Epstein hands David Ross a Cubs jersey at the press conference to announce Ross' hiring as the team's new manager.

No and yes. Xfinity, which is in more Chicago-area homes than the other services combined, might have been more inclined to flex its muscles before AT&T cut its deal.

© John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune/TNS Theo Epstein, David Ross and Jed Hoyer at the press conference to announce Ross as the new Cubs manager on Oct. 28, 2019.

With a legitimate rival in DirecTV coming to terms, it will be harder to hold out. But it’s not impossible, and Comcast could choose to drag its heels and not complete a deal before Marquee’s scheduled launch.

How about Dish Network?

Don’t hold your breath.

Why would Comcast or anyone else drag their feet on a deal?

Not reaching an agreement until opening day rather than the start of spring-training games could save a carrier (and/or its customers) several million dollars.

© John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune/TNS The Cubs introduce David Ross as the 55th manager in franchise history on Oct. 28, 2019.

If you figure conservatively, there are more than 1.5 million Xfinity subscribers in the Chicago area, and the monthly carriage fee will be several dollars apiece. It adds up.

But doesn’t Xfinity risk losing customers to DirecTV in that case?

It’s a hassle to change services, and how many people really care that much about spring-training games?

Once regular-season games begin, however, the fact that Marquee already is on DirecTV — and undoubtedly at least a streaming service or two — will become more of a factor.

If there were money to be saved by not rushing to sign a carriage deal, why did AT&T agree to a deal so far ahead of Marquee’s launch?

There are several reasons. Chief among them may have been that AT&T’s agreement to carry Sinclair’s 191 local stations had expired. That meant subscribers in those stations’ markets stood to lose those channels temporarily.

Coming off a quarter in which AT&T lost 1.4 million TV subscribers, more than 5% of its total, and already under pressure from an activist investor who did not approve of how it was running its TV business, it could hardly risk more disruption.

So, Sinclair could push hard for an all-inclusive carriage deal covering not just the stations, but the Tennis Channel and the more than 20 regional sports networks it owns, including the soon-to-launch Marquee.

Do we know what AT&T agreed to pay or what it will mean to consumers’ bills?

No and not yet. The carriage fee isn’t publicly available. Comcast and other major carriers are sussing it out, however, because it will figure in their negotiations. Once AT&T and others have to start paying for Marquee, the impact on bills should be evident, if not right away then soon enough.

So, whatever DirecTV agreed to pay for Marquee was important for everyone?

Absolutely. AT&T’s negotiated price of what it will pay monthly per each of its customers sets the market price.

For Comcast, it sets the ceiling because Comcast will leverage its size to insist on a “most-favored nation” clause in its eventual deal, which ensures the terms of its Marquee carriage agreement are equal to or better than those for any other carrier, including DirecTV.

What about people who have relied on MLB TV or the At Bat app for their Cubs baseball because they don’t live in the team’s expansive designated TV market?

© John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune/TNS New Cubs manager David Ross takes reporters' questions at the American Airlines Conference Center next to Wrigley Field on Oct. 28, 2019.

We answered that last month, but it keeps coming up. Again, nothing changes. Marquee holds exclusive TV rights to games the Cubs control — in other words everything but the games plucked by ESPN or Fox — but only in the Cubs’ designated market. Outside the market, the games will still be available through MLB subscriptions.

© John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune/TNS New Cubs manager David Ross poses for photographs at the American Airlines Conference Center next to Wrigley Field.

Where is Marquee with hiring on-camera talent?

Nothing new to report. Contracts with announcers Len Kasper and Jim Deshaies are being finalized. A lot of names have been mentioned for other roles, but Marquee only this week got around to announcing MLB Network’s Michael Santini as head of programming and productions.

© John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune/TNS Theo Epstein, David Ross and Jed Hoyer pose after Ross was introduced as the new Cubs manager on Oct. 28, 2019.

Look for more hires both behind-the-scenes and on-camera to follow.

What about Kelly Crull, who has left NBC Sports Chicago, where she did in-game Cubs reporting. Is she headed to Marquee?

Maybe. Crull’s NBC Sports Chicago contract expired, and it’s a certainty she and the Marquee people will entertain that possibility. The hire would make sense.

But, like we said, a lot of names have been mentioned. There’s been a longstanding rumor Marquee might pick up some content from Cubs flagship radio station WSCR-AM 670. We’ll just have to see.

How about David Ross? During the World Series, Fox talked to managers live during game action. The Cubs hired a manager who’s been a game analyst for ESPN while he was also working in the Cubs front office. Do you think Marquee will put a headset on Ross and let him do live commentary during games?

No idea, but why not? If it’s not too much of a distraction during the World Series, it can hardly be a problem during the regular season.

It would be great if Marquee slapped a headset on Ross for in-game interviews with Len and J.D.

Even better would be if he answered questions and criticisms from fans — or maybe sports writers. That would be appointment viewing.

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