When American Andy Roddick lost to Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro at the US Open yesterday, his defeat ended his career as a tennis player but did not diminish the public’s fascination with him. The match sent the Twittersphere into a frenzy–and analysis of the results reveals some surprising truths about social media. According to IBM’s […]
How well do you know your fans? The answer to that question is what will determine profitability and success for sports franchises in the very near future. The last decade brought a tsunami wave of new technology into the home: HDTV, hi-speed internet, DirecTV, LCD flat screens, you name it. That all of a sudden made watching from home a solid alternative to actually going to a game for most fans. Teams responded by investing hundreds of thousands of dollars in infrastructure. We saw the most beautiful stadiums in the world built, larger than life LCD screens and increased Wi-Fi connectivity. Basically, teams did these things because they “thought” fans would want it. That’s where things are beginning to change....
