What will NFL Fans do when they have simultaneous access to live NFL games via TV and Web? The answer(s) to that question will start to flow in this season now that the NFL and NBCU are working together to put NFL games live to the Web.
From Paid Content: The National Football League, which has been very protective of its online usage rights, has opened up a bit, and is going to webcast 17 regular-season games, mostly Sunday night matchups, in conjunction with NBC Sports. NBC, which broadcasts “Sunday Night Football,” will make its TV feed—including Al Michaels’ play-by-play and John Madden’s commentary—available on websites run by both the network (NBCSports.com) and the league (NFL.com), reports LAT It will start with the NFL Kickoff game on Thursday, Sept. 4, between the Washington Redskins and New York Giants. More
From WSJ: The NFL owns the online rights for its games but its broadcast TV deals have restricted the league from streaming footage of those games while they are in progress. The NFL approached NBC in recent months to hammer out a deal to stream its games, in part, it says, because NBC’s nationwide broadcasts, which averaged 15.9 million viewers last season, make for a clean test of whether online availability will boost or shrink viewership.
The move will help the NFL demonstrate how much value there is in the online rights to its games, potentially giving it another bargaining chip when its broadcast deals next come up for negotiation.
Sports Marketing 2.0: It’s anyone’s guess whether the Web will canabalize or extend the NFL TV audiences. My guess is it will enhance the overall fan experience, increasing engagement, and bolstering the value of NFL content and opening up the door for a slew of digital sponsorships. How much that combo-content will fetch from the networks and giant Web media players, or how much the NFL Network might generate on its own, going direct to the consumers, is also in question.
I have noticed that in recent months my friends have started watching TV on their phones on a regular basis. With the advent of the mobile TV, this just might be the perfect time to take the NFL streaming. This will allow viewers to tune in while they are traveling or otherwise out of reach from the TV. Once the viewers come, the advertisers will follow.
Pat,
My name is Andrew and I am a Sports Management Major at Cal State Long Beach. I am writing to you through your blog because for one of my classes this summer I am making a presentation on Online Sports Marketing. I have been reading through your blogs and figured you might be able to give me some good insight. If you could please email me at aveis@csulb.edu, hopefully we can chat about the topic.
Thank you,
Andrew