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NBA League Pass Finds Success By Cutting Back Commercials, Including In-Arena Feeds

NBA League Pass this season is showing viewers "what people inside the arena see: the kiss cams, the dancing squads and especially the halftime acts," according to Ben Cohen of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. The goal is to "make viewers at home feel like they’re at the game." It has also "made stars out of certain halftime performers." Until now, games that streamed on League Pass were "filled with static images of basketball statistics at halftime." But starting two seasons ago "with the ad-free, international version of League Pass, the NBA began experimenting with uninterrupted coverage using feeds from inside the arenas." It worked "so well that the NBA decided to bake the idea into its domestic League Pass service this season." League Pass is "still a source of frustration," as it "suffers from streaming lags and widespread outages that irritate fans." Complaints about League Pass are "as common on social media as Russell Westbrook highlights." The success of the "peculiar arena feeds, however, has been a pleasant surprise." The halftime acts are "getting more attention at a time when NBA teams are rethinking the in-game experience" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 1/6).

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