Can Fans Handle More Fantasy? Teams Should Find Out

Nobody can debate the power of fantasy sports and the value of the marketplace, currently dominated by football. Following typical economics, as customers showed their appetite for more fantasy, competitors have flooded the market with countless products, each claiming a different fantasy experience, or unique prizes. In the end, most of the products are similar [...]

Pac-10, ACC Logical Media Partners

Here’s the lay of the land for college conference media deals: the ACC, Big 12, and Pac-10 will all vie for new contracts over the next two years, the two models are partnership [with established media networks for substantial rights fee] or ownership [of your own network].
The partnership model yields lower risk, however few options [...]

Antiquated NFL Blackout Rule Looms Over 2009 Season

Dating back to a time when team owners felt TV viewership cannibalized ticket sales, the NFL blackout rule is now a legacy, antiquated rule that the league should revisit. The rule essentially states that if a team does not sell out (or reach a certain number of tickets sold) a home game, the networks black [...]

Essence of SEC New Media Policy What Content Owners Need

The SEC partnered with XOS Technologies last month to form the SEC Digital Network, and the conference didn’t execute the deal for charity purposes – they intend to generate revenue, potentially lots of it. Put aside the mega 15-year television rights packages with ESPN and CBS Sports, the SEC, as many major college conferences do, [...]

ESPN Makes Local Splash, While CBS Flies Under the Radar

Last week’s confirmation of the inevitable – that ESPN will expand its locally focused web sites into additional major markets provides a major threat to the digital component of RSNs and seriously jeopardizes the long-term sustainability of local sports coverage in newspapers.
However, lost amid the ESPN announcement was CBS Radio announcing the launch of local [...]

TV Everywhere, Anywhere, Somewhere…

Programmers and cable operators, other than CBS of course, tout it as the savior, putting the proverbial “genie back in the bottle”. But the $64,000 question is if the TV industry is already too late to the game and if this plan is what can save them?
One key concept from Chris Anderson’s “The Long Tail” [...]

Favre Pushing the Limits of Overconsumption

Will he play or stay retired? Will Favre report to Green Bay or wait out a trade? He’s flying on his private jet from Mississippi. Wait, no, he’s go back home. For weeks the American public was inundated with Brett Favre news, even when there was none. ESPN staked out Packers camp just to say [...]

Perfect Storm Damages PGA Tour

When Tiger Woods announced he was done for the season after an historic US Open performance, all eyes were on golf to see if any eyes would watch without Tiger. Greg Norman helped boost generate some interest at the British Open, yet SUnday ratings still tumbled 15% without Woods.
Back in the States, the final major [...]

CBS Makes Fantasy Breakthrough Amid Controversy

CBS Sports will unveil the first College Football fantasy game this season using actual player names. The NCAA they oppose CBS’ decision in no uncertain terms, which makes for interesting bedfellows since CBS holds a lucrative college basketball television contract with the NCAA, plus broadcast with multiple college football conferences.
Opponents argue using the names violates [...]

NFL Makes Bold Move Streaming Sunday Night Games Online

Broadcast & Cable reports that the NFL and NBC will announce this week a plan to stream the entire Sunday night package online at NBCSports.com and NFL.com, a bold move for a league that has kept its digital content close to the vest.
It’s called a one-year experiment, probably to defuse the outcry from the other [...]