Tuesday, September 23, 2008
National Hockey League Targets Online Viewers with GameCenter Live
Due to many factors, the National Hockey League's TV ratings have plummeted during the past three years. Following the league lockout three years ago , ESPN declined to renew a broadcasting deal. As a result, a comparatively small sports market was reduced to the niche audience category, and the NHL signed with the Outdoor Network (Now known as Versus) for live broadcast coverage, with a few games occasionally broadcast on NBC.
Despite the fact that most American NHL fans are strongly outnumbered by NFL,MLB and NBA fans, most sports fans in general will admit that hockey's base is among the most passionate and loyal of any, and, unlike the NFL, the NHL's markets include Canadian cities such as Toronto and Calgary. Stadium attendance is usually high, but the numbers don't carry over to network of cable TV.
To fill the TV void, the NHL is going straight to its loyal fan base at www.nhl.com, to offer an alternative for live broadcasts: Gamecenter Live. For $169, fans can access streaming video of live games throughout the season. The NHL will offer a free,two-day trial will be available during the first three nights of the season.In today's Wall Street Journal story, John Collins, the NHL's chief operating officer,said:
We're not encumbered by big national rights. Aggressive moves in digital are essential to our success. We have a lot of active avid fans that are looking for very specific information.
GameCenter Live will also boast a special highlight each night, where one game will be rigged with six extra camera angles, including goalie cams. For the fans who don't want to dish out the big dollars for Gamecenter Live, a scaled-down version, simply known as Gamecenter, is free to any fan. It will include home and away radio broadcasts,fan chat,game highlights, Action Tracker- which provides vital stats such as shots, goals and penalties.
For the NHL's sake, Gamecenter must generate a tidal wave of new enthusiasm with hockey's online community. According to the WSJ's article, AKQA is retooling the website. Ironically, AKQA's former clients include ESPN. The article also points to a troubling stat- a monthly average of only 2.4 million unique visitors for the year, (Ending in July). Not even Sarah Palin (The VP hopeful,world's most famous hockey mom) - can save them if those numbers don't improve.
By Matt O'Hern at 12:39 PM | Comments (1)
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