Copyright Infringement involving Live Streaming of Sports

I wanted to discuss today about various live-streaming websites that have been seized for copyright

infringement of sporting events. In the past year there have been numerous sites that offer a live stream

to Internet users wanting to watch their favorite sports team. For someone that wishes not to pay for

cable this is definitely a great way to watch sports or even your favorite t.v. show or movie. The

problem is the legality involved with this, due to the fact that this method of viewing is considered

pirated and illegal viewing of sporting events.

This past year prior to the Super Bowl ten popular video streaming websites were shutdown due to

over the Internet financially hurts leagues and broadcasters who then must increase tickets prices and

pay-per-view events to compensate for their losses. I see where law enforcement partners are coming

from to protect copyrighted material but speaking from personal experience using these various sites; I

still think it is not fair. The sports industry is a multi-billion dollar industry and they are worried about

fans watching a free stream of their favorite sports team. I feel by letting fans watch the event this can

drive up revenue in other areas such as apparel, beer/alcohol, and increase popularity for that specific

team.

The government has actively been shutting down these streams during NFL Sunday, which I too have

experienced. You would be lucky nowadays to even get 5 minutes of a game before the site is shut

down, as they have been getting stricter on live streams of sporting events. Another tactic the

government is employing is asking domain names to be forfeited and users are being re-directed to a

banner stating the sites have been seized due to copyright infringement. It seems that the only option is

to either get cable or watch the game at a friend’s house or bar. Eventually a person will give in and end

up getting cable, which is directly tied to sports franchises, which ultimately will increase revenue for

these leagues.

References:

http://www.livestream.com/zero_tolerance_on_piracy

http://www.big3news.net/blog/2011/02/03/super-bowl-seizure-ten-live-streaming-websites-seized-for-copyright-infringement-of-sporting-events/

http://torrentfreak.com/streaming-and-bittorrent-sports-links-site-declared-legal-090724/

28 October, 2011 // // 0 comments //

Social Media Presentation on Tom Brady

I recently had to put together a Social Media Presentation on Tom Brady's use of social platforms. Enclosed are my thoughts, recommendations, and overall impact of implementing these new ideas. Hope you enjoy, just click on the youtube link for the video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcYKqocHIg4

Anthony Reeser

16 October, 2011 // // 0 comments //

Interview with Kelli Masters Sports Agent

Interview with Kelli Masters

I was fortunate enough to interview owner/ceo Kelli Masters with Kmm sports. She is a partner at her law firm practicing business litigation and runs her own sports agency as a separate entity. Growing up she was one of the top baton twirlers where she had traveled the world to compete, which gave her a sense of athletic competition. After working in the legal field since 2000, Kelli branched out and in 2004, she registered to become a sports agent where she first represented Olympians, then eventually expanded out to baseball and the NFL. Currently Kelli’s NFL client roster consists of 3^rd round draft pick of the 2010 Gerald McCoy who plays for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. She also has other notable clients that play for the Dallas Cowboys, and Indianapolis Colts.

I spoke to Kelli on October 14th2011, as she was wrapping up duties with her law firm.

I was curious to see how Kelli first got started in the industry and she had stated at first she never intended to become a sports agent, but knew she wanted to practice law. She had represented Olympian Guard Young where she had met through college and was able to secure endorsement deals and various public speaking appearances for him. She stated, “ I really enjoyed the inner-workings of the business aspects of sports and wanted to expand in other sports arenas”. I notice you have signed Gerald McCoy which was a top 5 draft pick in this past draft, how did you recruit him? Kelli actually met Gerald McCoy about 5 years ago at a high school church function where he was the guest speaker. Kelli had a chance to meet with the parents and gave her business card to them stating if he ever needs representation down the road call me. Gerald ended up going to Oklahoma Kelli’s alma mater where eventually Gerald’s parents gave her a call. Kelli stated it was highly competitive to sign him because she had to compete with a lot of other agencies trying to sign him. In the end it was between another firm and Kelli so to make things work, Kelli and the other sports agency partnered up to help Gerald in the draft.

Kelli went on to describe the draft as one of the most exciting and nerve racking experiences because of the anticipation, but really enjoyed seeing Gerald’s family proud of their son being picked so early in the draft. What is the NFLPA process for someone that wants to be certified to become an agent? Kelli stated you have to go to the www.nflplayers.com website where you have to register and pay the fee for the exam which is offered once a year in Washington D.C. The deadline runs from January 1^st to January 31^st the fee runs around $1300, once you pass the exam you have to take out liability insurance which varies from state to state in price, and pay another additional fee to represent athletes in a particular state. Kelli really stressed that starting out especially on your own can get really expensive. A perfect example of this would be when you sign a player they need additional training before entering the NFL combine which can cost upwards from $15,000 to $20,000 and hopefully if they make an active roster you might break even.

Kelli it seems like the business can be very tough and challenging to break in especially if you do not have the financial means or support, knowing what you know now, what advice can you give someone looking to get into this field? Your best bet would simply be getting an internship with a team, union, or a sports agency. That way you can see first hand behind the scenes what really takes place as a business point of view, ideally if you can get hired by a sports agency which will back you in recruiting players even better.

After speaking with Kelli I found out invaluable information about the sports industry world where sometimes you have to partner up with another firm just for a deal to work. More importantly the challenges one must face when going into this line of work. Kelli told me that this is not an overnight business endeavor, but takes years of hard-work, patience, and consistent dedication in order for it to work. For Kelli she stressed that in the end it was well worth it because of her passion in the field and how far her company has come. Having this opportunity to speak with Kelli was an eye-opener on what kind of financing, challenges, and paperwork you must do in order to licensed by the NFLPA. More importantly being strategic about starting off in the field. Kelli brought up a good point on being able to identify talent because you do not want to waste money on a client that never gets drafted or signed onto a team. It can be a very expensive lesson which especially starting out you have to be extra careful. I’m glad I’m doing extensive research into this field because I now have a basis of the costs, roadblocks, and challenges I have to face just getting started in the field.

14 October, 2011 // // 0 comments //

Ideas In Increase Attendance at Stadiums and Arenas

After reading the following article “Sports Still Draw Fans Despite Recession” I was not surprised especially in the South that despite a bad economy fans were still attending games of their favorite college or professional team and still doing well financially. Bigger well know colleges such as LSU, Alabama, and Florida have a huge following from always being in the hunt for a national championship. Over the years they have created fan loyalty that despite tough times, fans make it a priority to attend or watch games. A major sporting event for many people is a release from everyday life and a way to bond with friends and loved ones. Being able to have a beer, yell at a your favorite team, hi-five your buddy during the game is a definite stress reliever for most.

Unfortunately for the not as popular teams or teams that struggle to win across the spectrum of sports, are struggling to generate revenue in many different ways. Thus resulting in poor attendance at games, job layoffs, and in some cases shutting down of the whole league, such as the Arena Football League. Even Nascar and Major League Baseball have felt the effects of the economy and have to figure out creative ways to keep the fans coming back. Being an owner or investor of a team can be a headache due to the large overhead to pay for the stadium, players, concessions, etc. But by strategically thinking outside of the box even unknown losing teams can sustain the recession and bring fans to watch the game.

One concept teams can incorporate would be the use of specialty discount websites such as Group on. Consumers are cutting back more than ever and are conservative on what and how they spend their money. By create a partnership with these vendors, fans can still get tickets for a discounted price which in result they will feel they are getting a deal to attend the event. Most of the time it is getting the fans inside the stadium where they end-up spending more money on memorabilia and concessions. By strategically offering this limited deal will drive business to arenas and stadium thus resulting in additional revenue.

Another concept would be to offer additional extra curricular activities outside of the sporting event. Maybe build a mini entertainment center in the arena where people can go to eat at a restaurant, watch a movie, or even go dancing. This will generate more revenue and put in the consumers mind, hey we cannot also watch a sporting event here but also catch a movie and some dinner. By marketing subconsciously to the consumer that this specific arena or stadium is a place to go for all our entertainment needs will not also spread the word but make it a regular destination.

Lastly another option is seek additional help in advertising and marketing by hiring a new consulting agency. Sometimes fresh, innovative ideas can kick start revenue streams, due to the fact that fans have not seen that type of promotion, sponsorship, or event. Arena Advertising expresses there is never an idea too old or that has not been tried before, sometimes it comes down to understand the market and thinking out of the box. Which with the economy nowadays, one must be strategic in order to fill the seats in the stadiums and arenas. According to NCAA.org you have to convince the public that the product being promoted is a commodity that they either want or need. One must be able to understand key trends, interest of the audience, and opportunities to bring back fans, alums, and students.

Even though the economy is not as good as it has been in the past decade, people our passionate about sports and dedicated to their favorite teams whether college or the pros. It is getting them to come back on a consistent basis even though the team is not doing as well is the hard-part. But by offering various incentives, deals, and specials will entice even the hardest critiques. Ultimately it is creating that special experience for that person in attendance that will want to come back for more.

*You can watch a video on Youtube about this article*

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKOEZ1LlSlo

Resources:

www.arenaadv.com

www.frbatlanta.org

www.ncaa.org

08 October, 2011 // // 0 comments //