OVERTIMEbacked by $35 million in fundingfrom NBA luminaries such as Kevin Durant and Carmelo Anthony,
former NBA commissioner David Stern
and VC heavyweights including Spark Capital, Andreessen Horowitz and Sapphire Ventures
- and is
generating millions of views among Gen Zers.
Generations of sports fans always have been obsessed with the oohs and aahs of the game the one-handed catch for a touchdown, the three-point buzzer beater, the deft dribbling and goal kick, the walk-off grand slam. They're endlessly looped on TV's sports highlights shows, the boo-yah stage for ogling superstars and up-and-comers.
But now Gen Z has arrived and is flipping the channel. Move over, SportsCenter, Overtime is making a major play to win over the 24-and-under crowd, who watch sports-action videos on YouTube, Instagram and other social media platforms where the all-digital cord-cutters hang out.
This revolution centers around a nontraditional sports media strategy. Instead of ponying up big bucks to professional leagues and athletes and college conferences for rights to air live games and highlight videos broadcast and cable TV's hardwired model Overtime contracts with nearly 2,000 smartphone-toting, nominally paid stringers who travel mostly to high schools across the country and nearly a dozen foreign countries to film games and workouts starring Gen Z athletes, many hoping the exposure will garner them college scholarships and pro contracts.
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Excerpts from Bob Woods, CNBC, 13 Nov 2019