CYNOPSISSPORTS
01.08.15 Good morning. It’s Thursday, January 8, 2015, and this is your first early morning Sports briefing.
MLS opened the books to season 20, announcing its 2015 schedule which marks the first of an eight-year television and media rights partnership with ESPN, FOX Sports and Univision. The new season will offer a record amount of nationally televised games, two more weekends of “high-profile rivalry games” and for the first time in league history a final day of the regular season that will see key games played simultaneously to decide which teams live to play another day in the MLS Cup Playoffs. In addition, the league also announced that the playoff field will expand to 12 teams in 2015, as the sixth-place teams in both the Eastern and Western Conferences will qualify for the postseason. The Knockout Rounds will now consist of four single-elimination matches on the road to MLS Cup in early December.
The Univision game of the week will run on Friday nights while an ESPN and FOX Sports double-header is slated for nearly every Sunday all season at 5p and 7p. Both ESPN and FOX Sports will simulcast their games on their Spanish-language networks (ESPN Deportes, FOX Deportes) and their authenticated digital offerings (Watch ESPN, FOX Sports GO). On Sunday, March 8, fans will see six-and-a-half hour block of nationally televised soccer, starting with expansion clubs Orlando City SC and New York City FC on ESPN2 at 5p.
ESPN announced a series of programming initiatives, with programming in the books that will include a new documentary short series, Versus, executive produced by Eva Longoria. The series will spotlight “moments of inspiration, when the world of sports transcended the action on the field.” Longoria also directed the first short, Go, Sebastian, Go!, that will kick off the series in May. Versus will consist of five films that will premiere monthly from May through September. Each film will premiere on a Friday episode of SportsCenter followed by a tiered rollout to the SportsCenter app and additional digital platforms, with a second season of Versus in 2016.
In the same vein, ESPN’s SportsCenter will debut a new weekly segment beginning Friday, Feb. 6, dubbed Friday Night Movie Night, in which a short film from one of ESPN Films’ documentary series will air in the 6p episode each Friday. "We’re thrilled to provide a showcase for these fantastic films, and we’re confident that fans will be dazzled by the ingenuity and insight in every story," said Rob King, Senior VP,SportsCenter and News. The slate begins with Ray Allen/AKA-Jesus Shuttlesworth, the first short from a new collection of films executive produced by Spike Lee.
Completing the documentary trifecta, Marvel and ESPN Films are joining forces for the first time for the feature-length documentary, 1 of 1 Genesis, and short film series, 1 of 1 Origins. The projects will offer a “unique look at some of the world’s most successful athletes by mixing the award-winning non-fiction style of ESPN Films with classic Marvel comic book art, design and creative animation to truly bring a unique perspective to the journeys of these key figures” and explore the connections between Marvel’s Super Heroes and the world’s greatest athletes. Participating names include Russell Wilson, Alex Morgan, Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, Henrik Lundqvist, Tim Howard, Colin Kaepernick, Brandi Chastain, Danica Patrick, Cal Ripken, Jr., Albert Pujols, Tony Hawk, and Manny Pacquiao.
NBCSN’s Pro Football Talk is hitting Super Bowl week with a full slate of Football Night In America and Sunday Night Football commentators joining the show throughout the week leading up to Super Bowl XLIX. Pro Football Talk will air Monday through Friday (Jan. 26 Jan. 30) at 5:30p during that period and will be co-hosted by Mike Florio and Paul Burmeister. They will be joined by PFT contributors Jason Taylor, Kevin Gilbride, and Ross Tucker on-site at “Super Bowl Central,” NBC Sports Group’s primary home for studio programing during Super Bowl week, located in downtown Phoenix. In addition, Football Night In America analysts Tony Dungy, Rodney Harrison and Hines Ward, Sunday Night Football color commentator Cris Collinsworth, and NBC Notre Dame football analyst Doug Flutie will appear on Pro Football Talk throughout the week, beginning on Monday, Jan. 26.
As part of ESPN Deportes’ 11th anniversary celebration today, the network announces that Hugo Sanchez was joining the team as on-air talent. Sanchez joins ESPN Deportes to serve as an analyst for Futbol Picante and other platforms, starting January 15.
CBS Sports is bringing back the original series, Northwestern Mutual Presents Men of March, spotlighting some of the most successful and influential college basketball coaches in today’s game. In eight half-hour programs, the series profiles top college coaches Mike Krzyzewski (Duke), Bill Self (Kansas), Jay Wright (Villanova), John Thompson III (Georgetown), Thad Matta (Ohio State), Josh Pastner (Memphis), Sean Miller (Arizona) and Johnny Dawkins (Stanford) via all-access footage and at-home interviews. The series debuts on Saturday at 12:30p with John Thompson III.
X Games Aspen 2015 will see ESPN and ABC carry a combined 16 hours of live competition with an additional 18 hours of competition and music performances being carried exclusively on ESPN3 and supported across ESPN digital platforms from January 21-25, 2015. Following X Games Aspen, ABC will deliver four hours of anthology programming on Sunday, January 31 and a one-hour special on World of X Games: Best of Aspen on February 7. The X Games Aspen 2015 telecast officially kicks off on ESPN with the Men’s Snowboard SuperPipe competition on Jan. 22 at 9p.
A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE
To register for this webinar, please contact
Trish Pihonak.Anheuser-Busch booked its Super Bowl plans, announcing that the brand will feature three ads during the NBC broadcast on Feb. 1 featuring Budweiser and Bud Light. Budweiser will debut a 60-second ad that highlights the brewing credentials for the lager with a second Budweiser ad, Lost Dog, bringing back the iconic Budweiser Clydesdales. Meanwhile, Bud Light, aka the “Perfect Beer for Whatever Happens,” will have a 60-second ad, Coin, features “an everyday Bud Light fan who experiences an unforgettable night with ‘80s iconic old school fun.”
Speaking of the Super Bowl, NBC is reportedly 95% sold out and "much further along" than it was in 2012, according to multiple outlets. The 30-second slots are selling for a record $4.4 million to $4.5 million, according to executives, and the network still expects to "meet or exceed our sales goals" and be sold out by kickoff despite the number of auto-related ad slots sold off-pace by nearly half this year while 15 rookie Super Bowl advertisers will take part this time around.
Getty Images renewed its agreement to serve exclusively as the Official Photographic Agency of the United States Olympic Committee. Through the terms of the agreement, Getty Images will hold the commercial rights for the licensing of Team USA photography to sponsors and licensees of the USOC. “Getty Images has been a proud partner to the USOC for over 25 years and we are honored to continue providing our best-in-class coverage through 2020,” said Janey Marks, Senior Director of Olympic Programs and Strategic Alliances for Getty Images. “With an elite roster of specialist and award-winning sport photographers and an unrivalled heritage of capturing the Olympic and Paralympic Games, we are excited to further build on a proud history of service and deliver more iconic images as the official Photographic Agency of the USOC.”
BigTeams, the website and software systems for high school athletics programs, announced the company has closed on a $5 million Series B raise and has bought high school scheduling software provider, Schedule Star, from Gannett. “The acquisition of Schedule Star, one of the iconic brands in high school sports for more than half a century, along with this additional funding, puts BigTeams in great position to accelerate our business in 2015,” BigTeams CEO Clay Walker said. “We are looking forward to serving an even larger and deeper list of schools with our combined product offering. In just a short time we have seen great interest from both high school athletics administrators in the BigTeams web platform and content management system. Now, we will have an even more robust package to offer high school athletics programs.
Charles Barkley will appear in a special two-part episode to tip-off the second half of season 2 of The Seth Davis Show on Campus Insiders. The show premieres today and will see Barkley speak on a variety of topics from his controversial comments regarding Ferguson to his strained relationships with Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan.
Sports editor Leon Carter has been named VP and Editorial Director for ESPN’s upcoming site from Jason Whitlock where he will oversee all editorial content and the site’s staff; he will also assist in implementing the overall vision of the site, reporting to Whitlock, the site’s editor-in-chief. Carter joined ESPN in 2010 as a VP and Executive Editor of ESPNNewYork.com.
PodcastOne named Kris Smith as its Chief Technology Officer. Smith replaces Rob Greenlee who will be starting his own consulting firm, with PodcastOne as its first client. “I am excited to join PodcastOne in this important role at such a profound time. This is a growing company in a rapidly growing industry. PodcastOne is what podcasting has always needed to achieve its potential as a market-changing technology. In this role, I have an opportunity to help build on the amazing work that Norm and team have done,” said Smith.
Heat/Trail Blazers at 10:30p on TNT.
A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE
Get Up Close & Personal at the events that have the industry hopping!
Every afternoon, our Upfront coverage will keep you informed:
Where was the event held, who was there and what was the response?
What new shows are most likely to hit it big?
How will new measurement tools impact ratings?
What was the net’s first breakout program?
And more….
Looking to Advertise? Contact Mike Farina 203-218-6480 | [email protected]
.
ON THIS DAY in 2000: The Tennessee Titans win in the Music City Miracle.
In The Know: Who scored the only Giants touchdown in Super Bowl XXXV, against the Baltimore Ravens? (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company, city and time zone. Unofficial rules: Only the second four correct answers from each time zone will be mentioned; and once you’ve been mentioned in any of the Cynopsis editions, you can’t be mentioned again that calendar week.)
Answer to Our Last Sports Trivia Question: Which NFL star had to run for his life during a cameo on The Dark Knight Rises? Answer: Hines Ward. Kudos: Jeff Day-NHL/NY; Andrew Feingold-Nielsen/NY; David Stern-BARD Entertainment/NY; Scott Jenkins-Gracenote/NY; J. Barry McMullin-WWE/Stamford; Chris Mccloskey-NBC Sports Group/Stamford; Liz Eng-NBC Sports Group/Stamford; Chris Faulds-Bell Media Digital/Toronto; Jeremy Bowman-ESPN/Chicago; Paul Tarrants-Conway Data/Nashville; Tom Moore-Kalt Productions/LA; David Westberg-SAG-AFTRA Los Angeles local/LA; Damon Parry-MediaVest LA/El Segundo; Jordan Cohen-Southport Marketing/LA.
Later — Chris
Chris Pursell for Cynopsis | Sports @VegasandVine
01.08.15
Roberta Caploe: Editorial Director @robertacaploe
Diane K Schwartz: Senior Vice President, Media Communications Group
Cynopsis Ad Sales: Mike Farina | VP, Sales | 203-218-6480
Classifieds Sales: Trish Pihonak | Director of Operations | 203-899-8459
Cynopsis CLASSIFIEDS – For More classifieds, visit the Cynopsis.com classifieds page here.
JOB OPENING: VP, ASST CONTROLLER/AMCN/NYC: Oversee acct’g of all nets domestically, w/Int’l exposure as well. Ensures integrity of bal sheets, income statements, etc. 10+ yrs exp. CPA req’d. MBA a +. Exp in content dist acct’g w/in media/cable req’d. Apply HERE (1/15)
JOB OPENING: DIG AD OPS TRAFFICKER/A+E Networks/NY: Execute daily tasks as part of Ad Ops team incl testing, exec, optimization & troubleshooting of all A+E non-linear ad campaigns. 2-4 yrs dig. ad operations as campaign trafficker. Full Info/Apply HERE (1/14)
JOB OPENING: MKTG SOLUTIONS MGR/BROOKLYN NETS: Develops custom solutions for potential partners & creates sellable sponsorship platforms. Focus: project management, rsrch, writing & editing for brand. 4+ yrs exp mktg/sales or mktg & advrtsng Info/apply HERE (1/14)
JOB OPENING: DIGITAL CMS SPECIALIST: 2 yrs + digital media exp with 1 yr in digital product management. Knowledge of Drupal, HTML, CSS a must. Full info/apply HERE (1/14)
JOB OPENING: MGR, STRATEGIC MARKETING/NYC: Develop multiplatform campaigns for USA Network. Self-starter & strong presenter. Digital & on-air mktg exp required; cable exp preferred. Full info/apply HERE (1/14)
JOB OPENING: DIR, BUSINESS AFFAIRS (DCE)/Warner Bros/Burbank: Negotiate deals incl. talent, distro, film, tv, merch. and other media. 7+yrs exp in bus. affairs at large media co., publishing or equiv. Full info/apply HERE (1/14)
JOB OPENING: SR. DIRECTOR PRODUCTION OPS/OXYGEN/LA: Oversee programming through production including Pre-Prod, Prod, Post, and Delivery. Min. 5 yrs Line Prod., or EP exp req. Full info/apply HERE (1/14)
JOB OPENING: MKT RSRCH ANALYST (Advrtsng Insights)/WebMD/NY: Mng design/execution, delivery of results to internal/external stakeholders. Highly self-motivated & proactive. 1-3+ yrs dig. &/or tradit’l rsrch agency &/or mkt rsch vendor enviro. Info/apply HERE (1/14)
JOB OPENING: RESEARCH ANALYST/NBC BROADCAST/LA: The NBC Broadcast Network seeks individual to support quantitative research for the network’s entertainment properties and competition. Full info/apply HERE (1/14)
JOB OPENING: PRODUCTION ADMINISTRATION DIRECTOR/IFC/NYC: Mng all aspects of Prod Admin for this "slightly off" network’s expanding slate of Orig Prgrmng. Strong background in series prod models, dvlpmnt, & prod accounting. 7+ yrs. exp. Full info/ APPLY HERE (1/14)
JOB OPENING: VP/DIR. OF SALES, CONSUMER PRODUCTS/JIM HENSON CO/LA: Manage domestic licensing business for multiple brands/develop new consumer products-related business opportunities. 5 years of related experience Resume HERE (1/14)
JOB OPENING: SENIOR ANALYST/BRAVO & ESQUIRE/AD SALES RESEARCH/NYC: The Senior Analyst for Bravo & Esquire Ad Sales Research should possess a strong ability to analyze data and communicate insights in visually compelling formats. Full info/apply HERE (1/13)
JOB OPENING: MANAGER, CONTENT OPERATIONS/Immersion/San Jose, CA: (NASDAQ:IMMR) Drive content operations & account support. Mng video content operations, from haptic creation to QC. 5+ yrs video mngmnt exp. 3+ yrs of process /operations exp Apply HERE (1/13)
JOB OPENING: SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER/NBCU/Burbank CA: Manage social media strategy/execution for Access Hollywood/Access Hollywood Live. Min. 3 years social media/digital exp required. Full info/apply HERE (1/10)
JOB OPENING: SR. DIRECTOR PRODUCTION OPS/OXYGEN/LA: Oversee production management of programming through pre-production to delivery. Min. 5 years line prod./prod. exp required. Full info/apply HERE (1/10)
JOB OPENING: MGR, AD SALES RESEARCH/Lifetime/LMN/A+E Networks/NY: Assist in development and execution of ad sales research initiatives and strategies that help in positioning Lifetime/LMN in marketplace. Full Info/Apply (1/10)
JOB OPENING: DIR SOCIAL MEDIA MKTG/AMC/NYC: Serve as liaison to AMC social comms & dvlpmnt of social mktg initiatives to engage & est social presence. Find new social opps in mkt. Dvlp partnerships & foster relationships w/all social media platforms. Res to: http://tinyurl.com/l7gtffv (1/10)
JOB OPENING: PRODUCER TCN/NBC SPORTS GROUP/EAST COAST: Line Produce 2-hour morning show Develop daily and weekly show ideas Full info/apply HERE (1/10)
JOB OPENING: AUDIO OPERATOR/NBCU/EAST COAST: The Audio Engineer will prepare show audio requirements and operate equipment to integrate audio sources and create a full program mix for air. Full info/apply HERE (1/10)
JOB OPENING: PROD/DVLPMNT/TALENT & CASTING/Nashville TN: Oversee budgeting, staffing, & overall prod process from pre-prod thru wrap for CMT’s Creative Services group & others internal depts as needed. 3-5 yrs exp as prod mgr TV or film. Full info/apply HERE (1/10)
JOB OPENING: PERS FINANCE WRITER/NBCUniversal/East Coast: Work closely with the Personal Finance Editor to execute content strategy, development, and programming of personal finance content on CNBC.com Full info/apply HERE (1/9)
CASTING CALL: Companies can showcase their casting notices/casting calls here. For information on rates and specs for posting a casting notice, please email Trish at [email protected]
EXPERT SERVICES ADS: These ads are for companies or people who offer an expertise in the field of media by way of production, voice over artistry, writing, set development, etc. For information on rates and specs for posting an Expertise Service ad email Trish at [email protected]
INTERNSHIPS – These positions are for credit only – nobody gets paid here. These ads are always posted for free, and students work for school credit only. For more information on the specs for posting an Internship ad, email Trish at [email protected].
INTERNSHIP CREDITS ONLY: Creative Agency specializing in movie trailers is giving a talented student the opportunity to learn the promotions business. Editing required. Send resumes to: [email protected] (1/14)
SITUATION WANTED ADS, POSTED BY THOSE LOOKING TO BE HIRED… There is no charge for placing your Situation Wanted ad… for more information contact Trish Pihonak at [email protected]
E-mail [email protected] or call Trish Pihonak at 203-899-8459 for rates and specs for Job Openings.
Are you looking for a job? Post your Situation Wanted Ad here — Email [email protected] for specs.
To subscribe to any Cynopsis edition(s) click here.
To unsubscribe from this edition, click here. Or for further assistance please email [email protected].
Copyright Cynopsis 2015
All outgoing e-mails are scanned and sent out virus free. Copyright Cynopsis 2015
