NBA fans are arguably the most tech-savvy around. They have been receptive to virtually any medium introduced or utilized by players, teams, or the league itself. Whether it was Shaquille O’Neal’s Tout retirement announcement, the Sacramento Kings’ Twitter breakthrough, or the NBA’s Sina Weibo and Tencent QQ volume of 52 million, these examples represent the natural affinity and synergy between the NBA and its fans.
“We think there’s a 24/7 appetite for this sport that needs to have a destination. We have to provide an overall immersive experience,” Christina Miller, Senior Vice President and General Manager of NBA Digital, told MarketWatch.com.
One of the “destinations” to which Miller refers is mobile. As Sport Techie recently discussed with Atimi’s Scott Michaels, this sector has been largely untapped amongst major professional sports teams.The NBA, however, continues to penetrate this marketplace and users have consumed the content in droves. Their free mobile app, “NBA Game Time,” had over 1 million downloads in 2010. And last year, the app was downloaded 2.5 million times, a unique user uptick of 149 percent.
Due to its significant growth and popularity, NBA Digital and Turner Sports have expanded this season’s version of the NBA Game Time app. This property’s three newest distribution platforms are: Microsoft’s Xbox 360, Amazon’s Kindle Fire HD, and seven-inch Android tablets. Previously, the only devices carrying the app were: Apple TV, iPhone, Google TV, Roku, and certain Android devices. The prominent features belonging to this app are: complete video highlights, real-time stats, scores, and standings.
These latest platforms have some distinct aspects:
For the Xbox 360 console, NBA Game Time has a presenting sponsor in 2K Sports, and is only accessible with a valid Xbox LIVE Gold membership. Fans can compete with other Xbox friends to make picks on what teams will win on a given night.
With the Kindle Fire HD and other seven-inch Android tablets, fans have instant access to the up-to-date individual player and team performance. Additionally, the app’s information architecture is showcased in a visually appealing form in order to directly serve as a true second screen experience. The courtside interface, improved video quality, and live news ticker all provide a better, more thorough look at the games on tap.
On mobile devices, the new features are the video alerts, close game and player updates, and the “peruse option” around pertinent social media information of a live game. There’s a NBA Game Time Plus upgrade for those interested in on-demand video and additional content, which is also instantly available for free to Sprint account users.
Through the increased accessibility of the NBA Game Time app, the league is building ongoing strides with respects to its all-inclusive, technological reach.
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