CampusLore, the fledgling video platform, will start working with IMG College for sales and distribution.
The original content produced by CampusLore primarily focuses on NFL players talking about their college days — for example, the Oklahoma-Texas rivalry, the coaches, recruiting battles, etc.
The business launched in 2017 using social media channels on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube to distribute and test the video content last football season. It performed well enough that CampusLore, which was founded by the triumvirate of the NFL Players Association, college licensing agency Brandr Group and production arm ACE Media, was able to form a partnership with IMG College, which owns the multimedia rights to 80 schools.
IMG College will distribute the content on the official athletic websites for schools that are mentioned in the videos, as well as sell sponsorships and advertising against it.
In its debut last season, CampusLore created 400 pieces of video content from interviews with 70 players representing 250 schools across all divisions. Those videos were viewed 30 million times covering 15 million minutes of consumption in the first nine months.
Rick Barakat, IMG College’s senior vice president, sales strategy and operations, worked with CampusLore on the new relationship. IMG College will sell pre-roll and post-roll advertising and sponsorships across episodic programming. He said CampusLore’s videos fit well with IMG College’s initiative to upgrade original and behind-the-scenes content on the sites.
CampusLore and IMG College have a revenue-share arrangement based on what is sold.
The content, which will include player interviews, game analysis, on-campus visits and other long-form series, will be distributed to the school sites under the CampusLore brand. Some of the quick-hitting interviews will last a minute or less, while the series will go 25-30 minutes.
“What viewers get is a feeling like they’re in the huddle with Deshaun Watson as he talks about playing against Alabama,” said Lee Bushkell, CampusLore’s president.
Bushkell formerly directed the digital business for the PGA Tour, which included the creation of Skratch TV. He’s working with Wesley Haynes from Brandr, the licensing agency that manages college business for the NFLPA, which ranges from college jerseys to trading cards and now video content.
