Media
Features
Malaysian Football League targets comeback from challenging 2019
The Malaysian Football League had a tough 2019, which saw clubs suffering revenue shortfalls after two big commercial partners backed out of their deals. In the wake of making some significant commercial deals starting in 2020, Kevin McCullagh talks to MFL's chief commercial officer, Winnie Chan, about how the league is trying to recover.
The race to become sport’s Spotify is slower than expected
DAZN and Eleven are striving to please consumers with their flexible, multi-platform, low-cost products. But they are finding that fans generally want sports content the way they've always had it: live and in their living room.
Navigating the payments minefield is crucial for Asian OTT services
The English Premier League’s plans for an OTT service are focused on the Asian market, but the sheer variation in market conditions means existing OTT broadcasters are still figuring their way in the region.
Under the radar to over the top | Simon Denyer on the rise of DAZN
Four years from its launch, OTT broadcaster DAZN is blazing a trail for sports streaming services around the world. Chief executive Simon Denyer reflects on the first years of operation and the potential challenges from tech companies moving into sport and major rights-holders going it alone.
Hearn awaits clarification on closed-doors events in move for live TV content
Matchroom Sport’s Barry Hearn is continuing to look at ways to stage live sports events behind closed doors despite the UK being in a state of ‘lockdown’ due to the spread of the Covid-19 virus.
H
Karajica to advise esports platform after ProSiebenSat.1 exit
Željko Karajica, a leading figure in the German sports media-rights industry, has taken up a position as consultant to #loggedinfestival, the new online esports platform.
Karajica recently left ProSiebenSat.
Globo ‘to renegotiate ad deals worth $114m’ after Tokyo 2020 postponement
Brazilian commercial broadcaster Globo is facing up to the prospect of having to renegotiate advertising deals worth a reported R$580m (€103.6m/$113.7
Centralisation of archive allowed Fifa to offer matches free says commercial chief Thomas
Fifa’s chief commercial officer Simon Thomas has said the decision by the governing body to take its audiovisual archive services in-house has enabled it to offer more than 30 historic matches free of c…
Mushrooming OTT market struggles under the weight of its own choice
As more and more streaming services come to market, industry research suggests sharp resistance to consumers carrying more than three each, heightening the race for customer acquisition. US Editor Eric Fisher reports.
How NFL Game Pass uses data to conquer fans around the world without hurting TV revenues
NFL Game Pass is the fastest-growing single-sport OTT service in the world, targeting both casual and avid fans. Frank Dunne speaks with representatives from some of the service's major stakeholders on how Game Pass fits into the league’s global media-rights strategy.
Q&A: Sam Jones, chief executive, OverTier, global distributor of NFL Game Pass
NFL Game Pass is the fastest-growing single-sport OTT service in the world, targeting both casual and avid fans.
Q&A: Sameer Pabari, managing director of international media, the NFL
NFL Game Pass is the fastest-growing single-sport OTT service in the world, targeting both casual and avid fans.
Q&A: Dan Cohen, senior vice-president, Global Media Rights Consulting, Octagon
NFL Game Pass is the fastest-growing single-sport OTT service in the world, targeting both casual and avid fans
B.League helps basketball bounce back in Japan
Kevin McCullagh looks at the growth of the B. League, Japan's domestic basketball league, and considers whether it might be the country's biggest sports expansion of the Reiwa era.
Chris Russo | Key considerations for media companies in sports betting deals
Chris Russo, founder of Fifth Generation Sports, takes a look at what media companies need to think about before making deals with sports betting organizations.
“We will not accept putting our content behind a paywall” | Jamie Lewin, Riot Games
Media rights are the fastest-growing revenue stream in esports – particularly in Asia – but, according to Riot Games’ head of strategic partnerships Jamie Lewin, they’re still a secondary target for game publishers. Kelvin Tan reports.
“We don’t just put logos on things” | Amazon Web Services on its Six Nations sponsorship
Amazon Web Services (AWS) has developed a new suite of fan statistics to activate its sponsorship rights for this year’s Six Nations rugby championship.
Unsuccessful initial tender raises questions over K-League’s domestic media strategy
Pooling media rights to Korea’s K-League with national-team matches was supposed to create a property more valuable than the sum of its parts. John Duerden investigates why it isn’t working yet.
Automated production and user-generated content will help FIH monetise new OTT service
Fifa's former director of marketing and current FIH chief executive Thierry Weil looks back on a year in which the hockey federation launched its own OTT platform and outlines his plans to monetise the new service. Ben Cronin reports.
2019 – a year in sport business
Four Inside Track contributors from around the world reflect on what they saw as the key industry developments of 2019 .
Uefa and Team get off to winning Champions League start but caution prevails
Media rights increases for the Uefa Champions League in the UK, US and France have vindicated Team Marketing's decision to start its sales process early in these markets. But the agency won't be getting carried away just yet, writes Frank Dunne.
As global piracy starts to bite, Asian solutions need cooperation and government
Surveys show that public attitudes to content piracy are positive and ingrained in Southeast Asia. Kelvin Tan asks broadcasters and rights-holders what can be done to head off a growing problem.
Sinclair president Ripley: “There’s a real commercial logic” behind buying more RSNs
The Maryland-based owner of local TV stations has rapidly become a major player in the US sports media landscape, and has aggressive goals for more growth.
OTT viewership is increasing steadily, but linear still rules
A greater variety of sports are now available due to OTT offerings but OTT rights fees still fall well short of those paid by linear TV companies. Eric Fisher asks how soon it will be before live streaming makes up the majority of the sports media landscape, if ever.
The Athletic: Friend or Foe?
Jon Tibbs, chairman and founder of JTA considers the impact of The Athletic’s first move outside its US homeland.
After Leoz’s death, South American football is still battling the ghosts of its corrupt past
The death of former Conmebol president Nicolás Leoz has brought South American football one step closer to closing the book on an era of corruption. As global agencies and investment funds are taking advantage of the power vacuum, Callum McCarthy examines the current landscape and asks if and when that book can be closed for good.
Stills life | Photography as important as ever in the digital age
In association with Getty Images