The ACC and YouTube, in the wake of their recently announced content partnership, yesterday hosted a "hang out" on the ACC Digital Network YouTube channel. The session consisted of a digital chat hosted by Jeff Fischel and featured guests such as ACC Commissioner John Swofford, Wake Forest QB-turned-digital reporter Riley Skinner and UNC football coach Larry Fedora. Joining the conversation from London were YouTube Global Head of Sports Content Claude Ruibal and YouTube Dir & Google Head of Sport for North America Frank Golding. Golding: "It's a pretty magical platform you're about to come on board. … This is the first time you'll be able to interact really easily with your fans. You'll be able to reach out to them, whether they're watching a game and doing a hangout like this. … In your case, you're doing an incredibly deep and coordinated offering as far as your content." Ruibal said YouTube has been "working hard to get college content on the platform, and you guys are the first in. We're so excited about that. It's a tremendous win for us." Ruibal also noted the site is launching a new video player for the London Games, and ACC content "lends itself really well to that." Ruibal: "Hopefully we'll have a lot of live content from you. Our new video player is just really engaging. It's got the ability to share content on the fly, instant replay, DVR and indexing of key moments." Swofford said, "We've tried to be very strategic as a league in getting ACC content anywhere and everywhere. ... This just is a further enhancement of that ... making sure fans have access to all things ACC worldwide." When asked about what ACC content on YouTube would consist of, Swofford said, "What we'll be starting with is live studio shows on Saturday morning, hangouts like this one, highlights that will be available going forward. So this is a very important piece of an overall strategy." Fischel asked Golding about YouTube's future plans in the sports space, and said, "I take it this is a first big step for you guys." Golding: "This is a pretty coordinated offering. It's a lighthouse of sorts. I think you will start seeing other colleges and conferences emulate what you guys are doing. We intend to be a one-stop shop for college content, and this is just the start." The ACC Digital Network is a joint venture between Silver Chalice Ventures and Raycom Sports, the conference’s longstanding media and marketing partner.
