GoPro and Red Bull just announced an official partnership in the form of a multi-year deal that will include distribution, product innovation, content production and much more.
The two companies have been linked to one another for a long time. They are both giants of the action sports community, and for years they have cross-promoted their brands. In March of 2013, Red Bull and NBC Sports made GoPro an official partner of the Red Bull Signature Series, which included using some GoPro footage on every television broadcast throughout the 2013 season.
They will partner to distribute and sell content, which they will now co-produce. Their media productions will be distributed across all of their platforms, online and television – The GoPro Channel, Red Bull TV, Red Bull.com to name a few.
For GoPro, who has been struggling a bit financially lately, Red Bull’s new equity stake in their company will help, and it already has. The action camera maker saw a 7% increase in their stock, overnight. Their deal also makes GoPro the only point-of-view action camera provider Red Bull will use. To put the magnitude of this into perspective, Red Bull hosts over 1,800 events every year, in more than 100 countries.
.@RedBull + @GoPro are bringing a new POV! @PaulRabil knows what’s up! Where should we put a #GoPro next? #RedBullhttps://t.co/NrEaGkk1To
— GoPro (@GoPro) May 24, 2016
Nicholas Woodman, founder and CEO of GoPro is very excited about this new partnership, “This is a content-sharing partnership that is dramatically expanded from anything we’ve done before… inclusion across all of these properties—and consistently so—is enormously powerful for our brand and our business.”
The two companies have amassed huge followings over the years across social media channels. Between Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Twitter they reach over 80 million fans. GoPro and Red Bull will now be able to share each others content across the array of channels, to create even more engagement and brand awareness.
We’re teaming up w @redbull for more #GoPro POVs from the best athletes (like @rendawgfmx) https://t.co/Xhf4PMnEFx pic.twitter.com/Y7h1LBO54Q
— GoPro (@GoPro) May 24, 2016
We have covered GoPro on numerous occasions and the action camera giant helped start a whole new industry, which really did not exist previously. Now they are facing competition in the marketplace. When Red Bull started in the late 1980’s, they were one of the first energy drink companies, and since then they have helped spark a massive rise in that market.
Dietrich Mateschitz, founder and CEO of Red Bull sees their partnership as one that will help to amplify both brands.
“First person perspectives, breathtaking images and cutting edge cinematography are the hallmarks of every story told within Red Bull’s portfolio of productions and live broadcasts… As partners, Red Bull and GoPro will amplify our collective international reach, the power of our content and ability to fascinate.”
GoPro recently announced their delay of their new drone, and due to underperformance they have laid off a small amount of their workforce. This deal will help them try to remain financially stable as they continue to invest in new products, which should help them grow in the future.
Red Bull now has the ability to help GoPro in product development, and when they do launch new products they can help them reach a huge audience, very quickly. Additionally, Red Bull sponsors hundreds of athletes around the globe. They are synonymous with action sports, and even own their own MLS team, the New York Red Bulls. GoPro has also made inroads in major North American professional sports, after partnering with the NHL.
The two companies share a very unique philosophy, helping to push the limits of human achievement through sport. Red Bull and GoPro both provide platforms for showcasing a wide variety of sports, preformed at their highest levels. Together they should be able to take the action sports industry to a whole new level.