Where does Jordan Brand success leave Nike in basketball?

Ad Age did a brief case study on the Jordan Brand last week, revealing that it has eclipsed the sneaker sales of Reebok and addidas. That surprised me for a minute, but not when you look deeper at the roster of athletes it has assembled. Dwayne Wade, Carmelo Anthony, and Chris Paul are arguably the [...]

Basketball Local Streaming Launches, Still Missing Key Target

Earlier this year the NBA became the first league to officially hand over local digital rights to its teams and local media providers, contrary to the tight control that MLBAM has kept over local rights. After no movement last season, and a trial run by the Yankees and Padres during baseball, the Sixers and Blazers [...]

NBA Cinches Critical Cable Carriage Deals

Rumors surfaced last year, following the NBA partnership with Turner about a compromise of lower affiliate fees for expanded coverage on Time Warner Cable. It made sense given the Turner relationship, and as I continue to harp on, is critical as league-owned networks near a make or break tipping point.
In advance of last week’s Opening [...]

Should Sports Change Revenue Sharing to TARP-like Program?

Last week’s SBJ cover story on the state of Detroit’s sports teams battling through the recession further illuminates how hard the recession has hit that part of the country. Sports teams are the least of Detroit’s problems, yet they remain one of the few refuges for an area fraught with unemployment and failing businesses.
Three key [...]

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 [...]

What to Make of the NHL Network

Earlier this decade starting 24-hour cable networks became the cool thing to do for major sports leagues – NBA TV, NFL Network, more recently MLB Network, and of course the NHL Network. The first three have sustained notable successes and failures, nonetheless most people are aware of the three networks and what their position in [...]

Nets Ownership Bid Opens New Doors, May Change Buyer Profile

What has already been an active off the court off-season became even more intriguing over the past week with the bid and sale of majority interest to Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov. It’s and unprecedented deal on many levels – the focus is on the first foreign owner of major US sports team, but the motivation [...]

CBA Talks Start to Hit Stride – What to Expect

SBJ last week did a cover story on the upcoming CBA negotiations for the four major sports, each whose contract expires in a different quarter in 2011, making 2010 a big year for negotiations. Less linked to the big four, but still worth watching, MLS enters what could become a ground changing CBA negotiation this [...]

Nets Ticket Deal Defies Marketing Principles

Below is an adaption of the previous post with edits and more structured arguments:
Nobody will ever accuse Nets CEO Brett Yormark of lacking creativity or innovation. However, the recently announced “Match-Up” 10-game ticket plan raised eyebrows and drew some criticism. The plan bundles arguably the ten biggest draws on the Nets schedule – Lakers, Celtics, [...]

Nets Ticket Deal: Inappropriate or Innovative?

The Nets set off a buzz around NBA and sports marketing circles last week when they released the Match-Up ticket plan – 10 games against the NBA’s biggest attractions and 5 reversible jerseys with Nets player on one side and opposing superstar on the other side. Traditionalists didn’t know where to start, with promoting opposing [...]