COMMENT: A $9 billion bet on the wireless future of live sports

THE RECENT SPORTS CONTENT AND SPECTRUM acquisitions made by Rogers Communications falls squarely into the category of “they had better be right”.Adding up the $3.3 billion it paid for 700 MHz spectrum in the just-finished auction, last fall’s $5.2 billion NHL rights deal and the $650 million for its portion of Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment in 2012, that’s nearly $9.2 billion spent or committed in less than 24 months – largely due to the belief that delivering live sports (especially hockey and baseball) to any and every electronic device, any and everywhere in Canada, is the key to future...