The NCAA, in conjuction with CSTV and MLB.com, will provide live streaming Internet video broadcasts of all out-of-market NCAA Tournament games absolutely free of charge this year. Users who sign up now are given “VIP” status that will apparently mean shorter wait times to access the streaming video during the tournament.

Slant: It’s surprising to see the NCAA offering this free of charge, considering their March Madness television package costs around $60. Perhaps they’re not confident they’ll be able to meet demand and quality will suffer, so they want to test it out for free before they try to charge money for it. The “waiting rooms” aren’t likely to be a big hit with people accustomed to getting immediate access to streaming video feeds, but it will be hard for people to complain too much about something they’re getting for free.