NBA and BroadbandTV launch NBA Playmakers to encourage user-generated video creation
Long ago, the NBA decided to take a laissez-faire approach to cracking down on YouTubers’ unsanctioned use of game film. This was in direct contrast to leagues like the NFL and the MLB – but it has certainly paid off. The league has more than one billion likes globally across social platforms, and fans have had the liberty to create – and discover and engage in – well-produced mixtapes and highlight reels that have, in aggregate, been good for the NBA.
Today, the NBA takes this concept one step further with its launch of NBA Playmakers in partnership with BroadbandTV, a multi-platform network that generates more than 15.1 billion views per month.
NBA Playmakers will be a video network aimed at millennials that enables fans to produce NBA-related content and share it the network, YouTube, and the NBA’s digital assets.
Select videos will appear on a new YouTube channel, also named NBA Playmakers, to launch later this year. One can also imagine ways in which NBA.com and NBA TV integrate these videos into articles and segments. Again, this is already taking place, but with the blessing and full ownership from the league they can reduce production costs and at the same time have a trove of engaging content.
“Sports is a passion-driven content vertical that offers exciting opportunities for video creators, media companies, brands, and advertisers; it’s a market with massive potential,” said BroadbandTV Founder & CEO Shahrzad Rafati. “NBA Playmakers brings all of the constituents together to deliver a powerful ecosystem that millennials care about. We’re empowering creators to build the future of sports entertainment by partnering with one of the most renowned sports leagues in the world, and arming them with the content, tools and solutions they need to be successful.”
The NBA and BBTV first partnered in 2009, with the latter managing fan-uploaded NBA content on social platforms. Current creators in the BBTV network include TGN, the largestgaming network on YouTube, and Opposition, the largest hip-hop music video network.
The NBA channel now has more than 3.4 billion video views, the most among U.S. professional sports leagues.