Top Execs Talk Digital Media At Inaugural EconSports Conference

Bowman Says Sports Will See Sharp Increase In Simulcasting

ContentNext’s inaugural EconSports conference wrapped early yesterday afternoon in N.Y. after an expected focus on the effects of the battered national economy on the digital media industry. “I think we can officially say the Web 2.0 exuberance bubble has burst,” said SI Digital President Jeff Price. “But the fundamentals behind it, namely the passion and interest of the consumers and how they’re consuming media, have not gone away.” On the venture capital front, Fantasy Sports Ventures CEO Chris Russo said, “It’s tough right now for early-stage companies. The companies that are getting funded are a little more mature, ones where you can say better what the business model really is.” But SB National Chair Jim Bankoff, who recently garnered a mid-seven figure sum of venture capital, added, “The quality bar has risen. It’s not impossible to get funded. But there is more scrutiny. And that’s not a bad thing.” Meanwhile, MLBAM President & CEO Bob Bowman predicted a sharp rise in the next five years in simulcasting of major sports events between TV and the Internet. “Everybody’s going to be doing it. The idea is how you collectively share the upside as opposed to blocking people out,” Bowman said.

HOW DOES YOUR GARDEN GROW? NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, when asked about the league’s ongoing legal fight with MSG, as compared to the total owner unanimity helping drive MLBAM’s success, said, “Twenty-nine out of 30 isn’t bad. ... It comes down to an issue of what is a sports league. Is it a partnership where you have individual clubs working together toward a common purpose, which I believe it is, or a situation where each individual does whatever they want.” Bettman expressed confidence in the league’s legal position, but acknowledged the battle is “a bit of a distraction” (Eric Fisher, SportsBusiness Journal). Meanwhile, Bettman said that the league "has sold tens of thousands of subscriptions for its new Game Center Live streaming package," though he did not provide many specifics (PAIDCONTENT.org, 10/29).

YOU ARE LOOKING LIVE: ESPN Exec VP/Content John Skipper addressed his network’s expected bid for the 2014 and 2016 Olympics rights, hinting strongly ESPN would not tape-delay some content as NBC does. “We don’t believe we’re serving sports fans by making them wait four or five hours to see an event,” he said (Fisher). Skipper added that technology issues "have complicated ESPN's online ad plans." Skipper: "We're still working on the technology, because it's a bit complicated when it comes to advertising. There were 3,000 live games shown on ESPN360 in the last year, but all the games are produced for TV and sometimes the ads need to be stripped out ... but we're close to figuring out how to put the right commercials in" (PAIDCONTENT.org, 10/29).