Facebook, Twitter and Snap are "seeking online rights to video highlights" from the '18 FIFA World Cup, according to sources cited by Lucas Shaw of BLOOMBERG NEWS. Sources said that the companies have "offered 21st Century Fox tens of millions of dollars for rights to highlights from the Russia-hosted games that air in the U.S." Fox, which paid a reported $400M in a multiyear deal for World Cup media rights in the U.S., "hasn't decided whether to sell exclusive rights to one buyer or to spread them around." Social media's "growing interest in video, including sports, gives Fox a potentially significant new revenue source for the games as well as a tool to promote its coverage." The World Cup is an "attractive target for social-media companies eager to exhibit more premium video and attract advertisers." With many of the '18 matches at "odd hours because of the time difference in Russia, highlights may be in greater demand." Facebook and Twitter "hosted very little video" during the '14 World Cup, while Snap "created a video, called a live story, of user-generated footage from the World Cup final." Sources said that Fox will "retain the rights to use highlights on its various shows," and count on Facebook, Snap and Twitter to "entice more casual sports fans to show an interest in the tournament." The companies could also "produce highlight shows and other original commentary programs to complement the highlights" (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 7/6).
