Copyright © 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. Working with Broadcasters Sports Event Management and Marketing Playbook Play 13

Copyright © 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. Working with Broadcasters: Overview The ability of a broadcast to make an event available to an exponentially larger audience than the live crowd alone can position a sport like no other promotional tool The vast majority of the sports events currently being staged will never enjoy broadcast coverage

Copyright © 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. Working with Broadcasters: Overview With broadcast rights fees rising at incredible rates, it is important that the broadcast meet all parties’ expectations, needs, and goals There are a variety of business relationships that sports event organizers and broadcasters can enter, each with different fee structures

Copyright © 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. Key Terms Ratings Market share Rights fee Fee-based rights holder Fee-free rights holder Time buy provider

Copyright © 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. Broadcasters In the business of making money while serving their viewing and/or listening audience Majority of their revenues come from selling commercial time or advertising space –Additional revenue from subscriber fees from cable providers and in-program recognition of partners Formats can be local, regional, national, international, Web-based

Copyright © 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. Ratings vs. Market Share For TV broadcasters, profit potential is driven by how many viewers they can attract Ratings – Percentage of total households tuned to a specific program – whether TVs are on or off –By Nielsen standards, one ratings point is equivalent to one percent of total U.S. households (current approximately 116 million) Market share – percentage of televisions tuned to a particular program compared to all of the televisions being watched during the same time period

Copyright © 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. What Broadcasters Want From Sports Events Viewers –High ratings and market share –Exclusive, superior programming Commercial Sales Potential –Cash from event sponsors –Attractive programming for advertisers Exclusivity –No other real-time broadcasters (TV or Internet)

Copyright © 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. What Broadcasters Want From Sports Events High Quality Production –Intimate, unobstructed camera positions –Behind-the-scenes access Profit Potential –Opportunities to drive revenue through sponsorship and advertising before, during, and after broadcast

Copyright © 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. What Sports Events Want From Broadcasters Broadcast Exposure –Establishment or reinforcement of the event’s cultural relevance –Promotion of the featured sport and event –Coverage in a timeslot when the most viewers can watch the event Rights Fees –Additional revenues from any and all associated commercial partners

Copyright © 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. What Sports Events Want From Broadcasters Sponsorship Value –Increased value to existing and potential sponsors –Easier to sell sponsorship –Ability to charge higher prices Broadcast Costs –Coverage provided by the broadcaster with no or few incremental costs to the event

Copyright © 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. Broadcaster – Sports Event Business Relationships Fee-based rights holder –For extremely high value properties – global or national importance –Offer broadcasting rights to interested bidders in exchange for a cash payment, or rights fee Fee-free rights holder –No rights fee paid; take advantage of the broadened exposure for promotional purposes –Potential opportunity for commercial sponsorship sales by the organizer to be included during broadcast

Copyright © 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. Broadcaster – Sports Event Business Relationships Time buy provider –Purchase a timeslot in return for a flat cash payment –Releases the broadcaster from all risks of having to generate viewers and advertising revenue –Organizer assumes the significant financial risk Owner or co-owner –Broadcasters themselves are becoming event organizers and owners of original sports programming made for television (i.e., ESPN and the X Games)

Copyright © 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. Working with Broadcast Producers The broadcast should capture the excitement and dynamism of the live event experience Communication between the event organizers, broadcaster, and production director is key Everyone must be on the same page regarding production needs – from equipment to expectations of successful broadcast

Copyright © 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. “One Event – One Audience” Production mantra based on concept that there may be two productions being presented simultaneously (i.e., television/Internet and live), but there is still only “one event and one audience” Both parties must remain flexible and understanding of each other’s objectives: –A segment may need to be moved to provide a broadcaster with time to break for commercial –Another may need to be shortened or lengthened to accommodate other requirements and realities

Copyright © 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. Summary Broadcast coverage of sports events can exponentially increase the audience that witnesses a competition and provide much additional value to event sponsors Decide which broadcast partnership works best for your event: rights fee, fee-free, time buy or ownership It is essential to simultaneously serve the needs of both the live and television/Internet audiences