Interviews with Digital Media Thought Leaders
National Hockey League & Online Video
Podcast Audio | Posted by Phil Leigh on April 19, 2008
If you would like to learn how the National Hockey League is generating revenue from advertising-supported video online, this interview is for you.
Subject: Our guest today is Larry Gelfand who is Senior Vice President for Media Sales at the National Hockey League. Recently the NHL launched its Internet-based NHL Network Online which provides a number of free video shows that are advertising supported. Initial sponsors include Cisco, Budweiser, and Dodge.
Partly owing to the game’s roots in Canada where CATV and broadband penetration has been high for years, the typical NHL Hockey fan is Internet savvy. As a result the NHL has been one of the most aggressive of professional sports leagues in promoting online video.
NHL Network Online offers three shows.
Cisco is sponsoring NHL: Live Wire which is composed of live clips of breaking news. Since the clips are short, they are also archived, but the “channel” will tend to have the latest videos.
Budweiser is sponsoring The Hockey Show which is a daily talk show about hockey with action clips.
Dodge is going to sponsor The Playoffs Channel which is becomes active during the playoff season.
Phil’s Take. There are three significant points about the NHL Network Online.
First, it is advertising supported. That means it is free to the viewers and the initial sponsors are prominent companies.
Second, the network plans to minimize disruptive ads. The software player has a skin that can be customized to each sponsor. It can display rotating ads that are contextual to the screen action, but do not interrupt it as do conventional commercials.
Third, the content takes advantage of important digital characteristics. For example, it is searchable. Thus viewers can isolate shows about their favorite players and teams. Also, the NHL permits the videos to be easily, and legitimately, shared by providing email links and embedding codes for blogs.
In short, NHL Hockey Online is a glimpse into the future of television. Since it its basically video entertainment, users are likely to become increasingly cognizant of the potential future viewing experience that would result if only we could get our TVs jacked into the Internet!
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Online video is one of the best ways to engage an audience. It enables you to send a message at multiple levels including visual imagery, the spoken word, and music. This is the way people learn and the way TV advertising built legendary brands.
As a case in point, when was the last time a banner ad got you excited enough to forward it to anyone else?
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Categories: Podcast Audio
Tags: digital media, Hockey, Internet video, National Hockey League, Professional Sports
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I love hockey so much!!! Canada best! This is really good news! Thank you!
I have a 25-year-old son who is absolutely “nuts” about hockey too, even though he grew up in Florida. He is physically challenged and plays on a sled hockey team sponsored by the Tampa Bay Lightning.