Twitter is at it again. The social media company’s push into live sports content continues with an announcement today that they will be streaming weekly out-of-market games from Major League Baseball (MLB) and the National Hockey League (NHL).
Additionally, 120 Sports will also produce a new exclusive highlights show called ‘The Rally’. This will be the first show streamed live on Twitter and it will include highlights and expert perspective from multiple sports exclusively for Twitter users in the United States.
All of these new content offerings were acquired through Twitter’s new partnership with MLBAM and present an intriguing new revenue driver for Twitter, a social network that has consistently struggled to monetize their news-craving, in-the-moment audience. “Twitter is the fastest way to see what’s unfolding in MLB and the NHL,” said Anthony Noto, Twitter’s chief financial officer. “MLBAM has pioneered streaming live digital video and we could not be more excited to partner with them on live games as well as ‘The Rally’, giving our audience the live sports events they are already talking about on one screen on Twitter.”
Twitter has recently struck live streaming deals with the NFL, NBA, Wimbledon, Campus Insiders and now the NHL, MLB and 120 Sports. They are reportedly aiming to sell ads to their ten Thursday Night Football game streams for over $50 million. If this type of ad revenue can be achieved then the more live sports content they can use from different leagues – that are seeking the cable cutting crowds – the better.
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In response to the Campus Insiders deal with Twitter, Mountain West Commissioner Craig Thompson shared with us that he is excited about what the possibilities of the new deal mean for his conference. “To be included in a landmark distribution deal such as this for college sports events, particularly Mountain West football, is very significant. We applaud Twitter for this visionary approach and alignment with the progressive thinking of the MW. We are thrilled to be the first FBS conference to be showcased on Twitter.”
For MLBAM, this continues to play into their cord-cutting-fighting mentality as they have positioned themselves as the go-to streaming resource for numerous leagues and brands. MLBAM’s recent success is also highlighted by receiving a multi-billion dollar investment from Disney, a media company that simply must position itself to prepare for the internet’s continued absorption of television viewers. “Twitter has long been a great partner and platform for both baseball and hockey fans as they follow their favorite teams and players every day,” said Kenny Gersh, MLBAM’s executive vice president, business. “We know fans will embrace what this wide-ranging partnership brings – expanded and reliable access to live baseball and hockey and the introduction of Twitter’s first daily live highlight show delivered intuitively to a platform where they’re actively engaged with the games.”