Earlier today, the NBA announced news of a major content and marketing partnership with Verizon. The deal crowned Verizon as the Official Wireless Service Provider of the NBA and all of its respective branches (WNBA, NBA D-League, and USA Basketball). In addition, Verizon became the title partner of the NBA All-Star Slam Dunk Contest, ousting Sprite—a brand loaded with big name NBA endorsements such as LeBron and Drake—as the titleholder for one of the league’s most exciting events of the year. With the advent of this deal, Verizon also became the presenting partner of the NBA All-Star Balloting Program, NBA Draft, NBA Summer League, and Jr. NBA.
While this deal has successfully saturated every facet of the NBA with Verizon’s brand name, what’s also important about the partnership are the advancements in mobile streaming that the company has made possible for NBA fans. Through the development of go90, a mobile video service and social entertainment platform, fans will be granted access to games, players, and coverage in ways they have never experienced before.
According to today’s official release, “[G]o90…will feature extensive NBA content including daily highlights, original content and access to live out-of-market games through NBA LEAGUE PASS. Additionally, all go90 users will have access to exclusive NBA-related content and will be able to Cut & Share select clips and highlights via text (SMS), Facebook and Twitter. The NBA and go90 will collaborate on bringing a number of original exclusive series to the go90 platform, offering unique perspectives and voices from around the NBA.”
Having access to exclusive NBA content on the go is a fantastic advantage for fans and a significant leap in terms of streaming sports on mobile devices. It’ll be interesting to see how the new technology will impact how fans consume the sport.
In the digital era, the ability to cut and share specific clips straight to any social media platform directly from your mobile device is an invaluable feature. At any moment, anyone and anything has the potential to go viral, and the people of the Internet Age never miss an opportunity to capitalize on that potential. This holds especially true in the world of sports. For instance, consider how rapidly the footage of Odell Beckham Jr.’s miraculous catch deluged the Internet last year. Go90’s new Cut & Share feature makes it that much easier for fans to share breathtaking plays and sports moments like that with their friends.
The NBA is a league with quite possibly the highest concentration of big plays and exciting moments. Every trip down the court is an opportunity for thunderous dunks, glass-shattering blocks, and ankle-breaking crossovers, making Verizon, go90, and its Cut & Share technology a perfect fit for the league.