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Team Owners Continue To Invest In Tech Startups With Potential Sports Applications

Venture capitalist is the "newest job in professional sports," as the ownership groups behind the Mets, Cavaliers and Capitals have "all announced the founding of new venture firms," according to Reed Albergotti of THEINFORMATION.com. Others, such as the Dodgers, "launched incubators for startups." Investing in tech "gives the team owners a chance to better understand how the sports business may evolve." TV audiences have "stagnated, or in some cases declined, as streaming services erode traditional TV viewership." Sports also are "increasingly threatened by new options like video games and e-sports."  Attending games has "lost some appeal for average fans," which is one reason why the Wilpon family, which owns the Mets, have started Sterling.VC. Doppler Labs, one of the Sterling.VC investments, "makes a Bluetooth earbud product called Here One," which the VC fund believes "can link up with audio technology in sports stadiums." Exclusive content, "like on-the-field sound and play-by-play commentary, could be sent to fans." The Mets believe this "might entice fans to attend games." Meanwhile, several owners have "invested in drone firms." Cavaliers Owner Dan Gilbert's firm Courtside "invested in a company that programs drones to fly autonomously." That tech "could also be used" to film sporting events. Courtside has also invested in VR companies that "could be used in sports broadcasts, such as LiveLike." Courtside helped that company "ink a deal with Fox Sports." Tech companies and VC firms also "get value beyond just the association with professional sports." Teams can "offer assistance with marketing and sponsorships and have relationships with large corporations that buy advertising and box seats." 76ers VP/Strategy Akshay Khanna said that the club's fund, "launched about six months ago, has made inroads in the tech industry by lending sports industry expertise" to VC firms. The club also has a "technology incubator" (THEINFORMATION.com, 1/18).

A GOOD CAUSE: In Boston, Olivia Vanni reported Causeway Media Partners, a Massachusetts-based VC firm led by Celtics Managing Partner & CEO Wyc Grousbeck, is "looking to raise its second fund." A regulatory filing shows that the firm is targeting $175M. The firm "focuses on working with companies in sports media or sports technology." The firm "closed its first fund" in October '14 at $125.6M. Causeway's investments to date include Minneapolis-based coaching software startup SportsEngine and N.Y.-based SeatGeek (BOSTINNO.STREETWISE.co, 1/18).

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