On the latest Sporticast episode, Eben Novy-Williams and Jacob Feldman discuss some of the biggest sports business stories of the week, including the bidding wars between legacy sports media broadcasters (like ESPN) and deep-pocketed streaming services (like Apple).
The two groups are increasingly bidding against each other for live rights to everything from NFL and college football, to F1 and professional tennis. It’s created a interesting debate over what each of those companies brings to the table, in addition to the money and the actual broadcast platform. ESPN, for example, has a number of well-watched studio shows, a popular app and the most-visited sports website. Apple, on the other hand, has a huge podcast app, a massive network of smartphones and a news service with more than 100 million active users.
The hosts also discuss the rise of alternative broadcast options. The Manning brothers have broken through with their Monday Night Football stream, and the NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers just announced a new service for local fans that will incorporate a similar option utilizing former players. The technology exists to create nearly infinite options, Feldman says, it’s now just a matter of who’s willing to dedicate the money and manpower to developing them.
Lastly, the hosts discuss the future of sports NFTs. The white-hot market of 2021 has cooled, and now executives and fans are trying to figure out where the industry goes from here.
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