Posts for 'Sports'

As many of you know, in general I'm a big-time advocate of syndication as a strategy to permeate broadband video into all the "nooks and crannies" of the Internet. Many content providers have embraced this path, most recently Hulu and CBS (with its Audience Network). The purpose of syndication is to ensure that content reaches users where they currently visit, as opposed to requiring them to come to a new destination. That "destination-centric" approach was of course the way the traditional media industry worked.

But the NFL shows that syndication isn't right for everyone. In instances where there is genuinely unique content, it can make sense to pursue a pure destination strategy.

To illustrate, yesterday I missed part of the Patriots-Colts game. Though I did catch the end, I was eager to see the big plays. During the parts of the game I saw there were several promos for video available at NFL.com. So post-game I started pinging the NFL's site and it turned out that within about 1 1/2 hours of the end of the game, there was a 5:13 edited montage posted. It included most of the big plays and was available exclusively at NFL.com.

The NFL caused a kerfuffle earlier this year when it issued highly restrictive rules governing use of and monetization of its game video. But having had this experience, I think they made the right call. When you have must-see content and own all the rights, I think it is indeed better to pursue a destination strategy. You get all the views. You get all the monetization. You get all the site loyalty and cross-promotion opportunities. You get everyone linking to you. And you have the exclusive archive.

It's rare to own something as valuable as NFL game video. But if your video does have similar attributes, then I would encourage considering destination over syndication. If you go this route though, being highly proactive to serve users' interests, as the NFL is doing, is essential to success.

Ok, no gloating, but hey, maybe time to spell D-Y-N-A-S-T-Y?

Ok, pardon me for a minor diversion from the all-important subject of broadband video.

But up here in New England, in Red Sox Nation, there's no more important priority. We're all sleepy but exuberant after our awesome Sox came back from being down 3 games to 1 to crush the Indians 11-2 last night. Next stop Colorado. Hey, Sox in the Series, Patriots 7-0 and by the way it's going to be 79 degrees on Monday. Alright, enough gloating.

And just to prove that everything comes back to broadband, credit to FoxSports.com for its post game show that continued the celebration after the game. For fans the opportunity to see the player interviews, catch the replays and just bask in the glorious win, FoxSports.com delivered a great package.

Yesterday's news that World Championship Sports Network (WCSN) has sold a majority interest to Leo Hindery's InterMedia Partners shows that the company's success in aggregating the Long Tail of sports is succeeding. In addition, it shows there are slivers of success in paid subscription models. To be sure, WSCN also sells plenty of ads, but the core of the company's model is its $4.95/mo or $49.95/year subscriptions.

Hindery, who in his past life headed former #1 cable operator TCI, knows from TCI's old Liberty Media affiliate, as much as anyone about creating programming value, and this move should certainly be read as a major endorsement of WCSN's strategy. The company has come a long way quickly, I recall speaking to CEO Claude Ruibal about 18 months ago when he was first fleshing out his distribution strategy. Kudos to him and his team for doing deals with many of the majors (MSN, AOL, Yahoo, FoxSports, ESPN.com, etc.) and no doubt driving dramatic traffic gains.

For those not familiar with WCSN, their model has focused on aggregating exclusive Internet rights from key Olympics sports associations, whose sports are generally not well-covered on broadcast or cable TV.

WCSN has been remarkably successful in aggregating these rights. The site lists at least 20 association partners and says "WCSN’s sports coverage includes over 200 live annual events, offering more 2,000 hours of annual original event programming and more than 10,000 hours of archival programming..." One can only imagine the frequent flyer miles that have been racked up by WCSN executives getting these deals done.

A key lesson to WCSN's subscription success is the incredible allure of sports programming. No matter how niche, there seems to always an audience of rabid fans. And their willingness to pay for coverage is insatiable. Now it looks like WCSN is going to ramp up its ad sales as well. In doing the spade work to aggregate this long list broadband rights with clear monetization opportunities, WCSN has created substantial value. No doubt as the business continues to grow it will be an attractive acquisition candidate. If I had to bet, I'd expect an exit to ESPN, the sporting world's 800 pound gorilla, will be in the offing down the road.