08/15/19: ESPN ups its Wager

Good morning. It’s Thursday August 15, 2019 and this is your first early morning Sports briefing.

ESPN is paying the odds, shifting its sports betting news and information program Daily Wager to a new, permanent home on ESPN2 in addition to adding sports betting news, lines and information to the feed on ESPNEWS. Starting Aug. 20, Daily Wager will make the move in addition to adding a new Sunday morning edition to air during the upcoming football season. The Sunday morning edition of Daily Wager, which debuts Sept. 8, will feature up-to-the-minute analytics, point spreads and discussion of how the day’s news will affect sports betting. The one-hour program will air at 9a on ESPNEWS for the first three weeks and then move to ESPN2 beginning Sept. 29. As part of a new deal announced earlier this year between ESPN and Caesars Entertainment, Caesars is serving as ESPN’s official odds data supplier.

PROGRAMMING

NBC Sports Group and Mecum Auctions cemented a multi-year partnership extension to continue coverage of Mecum car auctions across NBC Sports through 2024. The new agreement includes media rights on all platforms in all U.S. territories, as well as the Sky territories in the U.K. and Europe and will see NBC and NBCSN collaborate to feature at least 12 of Mecum’s annual car auctions including the Kissimmee and Monterey Auctions, with approximately 200 hours of premiere coverage. NBC Sports presents more than 24 hours of Mecum Auctions coverage this week from its iconic event in Monterey. Scott Hoke will host NBCSN’s Mecum Auctions coverage on-site in Monterey this weekend, alongside analysts John Kraman, Stephen Cox, Bill Stephens, and Katie Osborne.

ESPN detailed plans to enhance its storytelling content offerings this fall with a mix of series debuts and scheduling developments, including E:60, Backstory, ESPN Cover Story and ESPN Daily. E:60 will move to a prime-time slot on ESPN on a monthly basis beginning in October. Sunday will see Backstory premiere on ABC and delve into last year’s controversial US Open title match between Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka. In addition, the new monthly presentation, ESPN Cover Story, debuts this fall, featuring access-driven profiles of athletes and major storylines among sports fans.

Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Consumers Energy 400 from Michigan International Speedway handed NBC Sports with a Total Audience Delivery of 2.919 million viewers on NBCSN for a markup of 14% over last year’s race (2.566 million) and the best for a Cup Series race on cable in nearly two years, For TV only, the race delivered a 1.79 household rating and averaged 2.897 million viewers, according to Nielsen.

NHL Network’s NHL Tonight: The Social Show hits the channel this evening at 6p, co-hosted by Jackie Redmond and Mike Johnson. Using #NHLNFanShow, NHL Network is asking fans to submit their favorite moments from last season to discuss and analyze throughout the show. In addition, fan polls on NHL Network’s Instagram and Twitter handles are being featured throughout the week and the results will be revealed during the show.

Charter Communications and The Walt Disney Company announced a comprehensive distribution agreement to continue to deliver Disney’s lineup of sports, news and entertainment content to Spectrum customers. The new agreement includes Charter’s future distribution of Disney’s streaming services, including Hulu, ESPN+ and the soon-to-be-launched Disney+. Spectrum TV will also offer customers access to ESPN’s upcoming ACC Network when it launches on August 22.

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE

Mark Your Calendars!

The 7th Annual Cynopsis Digital Awards will take place on Friday, November 8th at Tribeca’s ThreeSixty in NYC.

Finalists will be announced in mid-September and winners will be celebrated at the ultimate party for digital media’s leading teams and individuals.

Entries close @ midnight tonight. Click here to get started.

SPONSORSHIP & PROMOTION

CAA Sports and Polaris Sports, a sports marketing management company, extended their global partnership. Led by CEO Luis Correia, the companies will work collaboratively to create global commercial opportunities for its shared athlete clients in the areas of endorsements, licensing, publishing, speaking engagements, motion pictures, television, video games, and digital media. “For over a dozen years, our strategic alliance with CAA Sports has been very successful, which makes this partnership renewal so special and relevant,” said Correia. “We have developed deep personal and business relationships throughout this period, which have enabled us to create and develop fantastic opportunities for our clients.”

Google is reportedly set to lift it long-running ban on advertisements for fantasy sports services, according to Adweek. The shift will roll out to select states at the end of this month and now allow media buyers to have access to audiences via Google Search, YouTube and more.

Oakley announced a new partnership with Derwin James Jr., a free safety for the Los Angeles Chargers. Derwin becomes the third football player to join Team Oakley, alongside Kansas City Chiefs’ quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Pittsburgh Steelers’ wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and will wear the brand’s lifestyle and performance eyewear.

Statespace landed $2.5 million in seed funding as its first product, Aim Lab, prepares to hit 1 million users. Funding was led by FirstMark Capitals, according to TechCrunch, with additional participation from Expa, Lux Capital and WndrCo to up the company’s total funding to $4 million. Aim Lab mimics the rules of a game in order to give gamers a practice space where they can improve their skills identify weaknesses.

DIGITAL, DATA & TECH

NBC Sports Gold launched four rugby passes, providing rugby fans with access to exclusive championships and tournaments throughout the year, including this fall’s 2019 Rugby World Cup from Tokyo. In addition, the NBC Sports Gold rugby passes feature coverage of Six Nations Championship, multiple international championships and tournaments, exclusive studio and original programming, highlights and more.

ESPORTS

In this week’s edition of Cynopsis Esports…

Magic: The Gathering expands esports entities
FIFA eWorld Cup scores big numbers
ESL’s record year
Super League Gaming & Tencent get cozy
Xbox Game Studios shifts Gears to EBS
Twitter’s newest insights
LCS puts Echo Fox slot on the docket

THE MAIN EVENT

BMW Championship on Golf Channel at 3p.

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE

“ The emergence of ‘audience graph’ within the OTT space (similar to what FB relies on or what’s in existence on the Data Management side) will be the single most impactful enhancement to audience measurement.”

— Albert Thompson – Walton Isaacson

(Featured speaker at That Big TV Conference on Sept. 9 – 10 in NYC)

DON’T MISS OUT

Sponsors: Gamut – Sinclair – NY Interconnect – FriendMTS – iSpot.tv – ListenFirst Media – NCC Media – TV Time – Tubi – a4 – Simpli.fi – TVsquared

ON THIS DAY in 1999: Tiger Woods wins the PGA Championship.

In the Know: What position did Tommy Lasorda play as a pro? (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your company and city).

Answer to Our Last Sports Trivia Question: The first College GameDay (1993) took place in what city? Answer: South Bend. Kudos: Synda Kollman-Charter Marketing Group/Boca Raton; John Kukla-KDFW/KDFI/Dallas; Andy Pittman-TAMU/College Station; John Tingue-hulu/Chicago; Rich Wolfe-Lone Wolfe Press/Scottsdale; Tom Moore-Kalt Productions/LA; David Westberg-SAG-AFTRA Credit Union/Burbank

Later — Chris

Chris Pursell @VegasandVine
Kerry Smith Division President Access Intelligence Roberta Caploe Publisher @robertacaploe	Cynopsis Ad Sales Mike Farina 203-218-6480 Albert Nassour 917-545-3129	Cynopsis Job Listings Sales Trish Pihonak 203-899-8459 Director of Operations

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DIRECTOR, DISTRIBUTION
Fremantle
Canada International
Maximize revenue across Canada for all Fremantle Int’l proprietary programs towards the achievements of targets. Proven/ demonstrable exp of Sales exp w/in TV licensing enviro, either working within brdcst or wider ent industry/competitor.
Full info HERE

SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR >>
Hallmark’s Home & Family/LA: Tech-savvy, self-starter professional, exp’d in SM to support strategic social media initiatives set in place. Able to multi task many projects; 1-2yrs SM exp w/previous writing/editing/creating exp; strong knwlg SM platforms & social community mngmnt. Full info HERE (8/29)

DIRECTOR, DISTRIBUTION >>
Fremantle, Canada International: Maximize revenue across Canada for all Fremantle Int’l proprietary programs towards the achievements of targets. Proven/ demonstrable exp of Sales exp w/in TV licensing enviro, either working within brdcst or wider ent industry/competitor. Full info HERE (8/28)

SR DIRECTOR, IT OPERATIONS >>
GSN/Santa Monica: 10+ yrs. Lead & manage infrastructure & applications teams. Active Directory, Azure, VMWare, AWS, SQL Server, Citrix, Telephony, storage, networking. OS: Server 2012, 2016, Windows 10, Mac OS. Manage SOX-404 audits. This is a hands-on technical position. Full info HERE (8/23)

SPECIALIST, AFFILIATE OPERATIONS >>
MLB/Secaucus NJ: Spearhead affil tech/operational efforts (incl launch authorizations, blackout implementation, VOD & TV Everywhere +) for MLB & NHL Networks. Able to work w/prod, engineering & brdcst depts; Min4-6 yrs exp cable affil sales & mktg, sports media, &/or media ops req’d. Full info HERE (8/23)

MGR, RECRUITING >>

A+E/NY: Manage the day-to-day recruitment function for a defined set of clients to identify, acquire, assess and hire candidates to fill roles required to meet company business goals. 5+ yrs hands-on recruiting exp, preferably within a media environment; strong HR network of recruiters Full info HERE (8/23)

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER >>
PointsBet/Denver: Exceptional candidate with broad, hands-on operational skills to lead our US company through our next stage of growth. Min 10+ yrs of operational exp; proven operational success in gaming, sports or technology sectors a +. Strong written/comm skills. Full info HERE (8/22)

DIRECTOR, OTT ADVERTISING STRATEGY >>
NBCU/NYC: Work w/Business Operations & Strategy group & impact new rev generation across the NBCU portfolio by identifying growth opps; 8 yrs work exp; this could incl professional services (e.g., consulting, investment banking) or media exp at a large network/publisher/agency. Full info HERE (8/22)

SR ANALYST, AD SALES STRATEGY >>
NBCU/NYC: Design/execute strategic sales initiatives in the NBCU Digital Partnerships team along w/the wider Ad Sales org. Min 2 yrs exp @ either a leading investment bank, mngmnt consulting firm or in strategy/finance role at a major TMT corp. Full info HERE (8/22)

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE >>
Trifecta Entertainment/NYC: Dynamic individual to focus on developing new and growing business among major agencies via strong relationships and superior client service. 5+ yrs sales exp w/syndication, national cable, broadcast ad sales or media buying background req’d. Full info HERE (8/21)

PRODUCER/SHOOTER/EDITOR >>
Overtime/NYC: Applicants should have a min of 2 yrs filming doc and/or reality content. Exp functioning as a one-person-band is mandatory since it will be a standard part of the job. Full info HERE (8/21)

CONSUMER INSIGHTS MGR >>
Gamut – Cox Media/NYC: Lead data-driven rsrch projects that align w/sales objectives & client needs. Thru analysis of mult rsrch sources, he/she will support the media ad sales team to consult clients on their ad strategies. 6-9 yrs of exp in a rsrch or insights role at a media agency. Full info HERE (8/20)

MEDIA INSIGHTS ANALYST >>
Gamut – Cox Media/NYC: Perform data runs & analysis through the use of multiple rsrch sources to support the media ad sales team & consult clients on their media plans. 1+ yr exp in a rsrch or insights role at a media agency, brdcst/dig co., or media rep firm. Full info HERE (8/20)

MGR, AD SALES MARKETING >>
Gamut – Cox Media/NYC: Lead planning/execution of multi-channel mktg strategies designed to drive ad sales revenue for the co. Must possess a demonstrated ability to comm & collaborate with all levels of the org; 5+ yrs of exp in Ad Sales Marketing at a Media, Brdcst or Ent co. pref’d Full info HERE (8/20)

DIGITAL ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE >>
AMI Entertainment Group/NYC: Secure digital advertising from a diverse list of Entertainment, CPG, Beauty, Fashion and misc. Strong knwldg NY based digital advertising mkt. 2+ yrs of exp selling online advertising; recent online sales req’d. Full info/apply HERE (8/20)

DIRECTOR, BUSINESS STRATEGY >>
FX/LA: Work cross-functionally w/FX leadership team, while also being resp for creating models, performing analyses around talent term deals, orig prgrmng costs, back-end profit participations, ancillary rev streams, content windowing & AdHoc projects. 5+ yrs relevant exp. MBA req’d. Full info HERE (8/17)

BUSINESS ANALYST, INT’L & DIGITAL SOLUTIONS >>
A+E/NY: Analyze existing business processes & systems functionality; propose new or updated solutions to changing business needs; be an active member of Technology Team. 5+ yrs exp working w/applications & technology solutions that are vendor supported, strong analytical skills, project mgmt exp, detailed oriented, strong communication skills, exp w/HTML, CSS or WordPress preferred. Apply HERE (8/17)

SALES PLANNER, DIRECT RESPONSE >>
Hallmark/NYC: This position is responsible for providing sales and analytical support to the Direct Response sales team for Crown Media Family Networks: Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, and Hallmark Drama. Must have a minimum of 1 years of industry-related experience. Apply HERE (8/17)

DIRECTOR of SALES, USA >>
NHNZ: Generate and maximize sales for NHNZ in the USA through proactive, business orientated, results driven client management. Self-starter with a clear creative vision and an understanding of all things TV. Full info HERE (8/17)

DIRECTOR, PRICING & PLANNING >>
Fuse Media/NYC: Play a critical role in the design, development, planning & execution of our comprehensive product & services pricing strategy. 10+ yrs ad sales exp w/strong understanding of pricing a variety of inventory, within the NY mktt (Nati’l Broadcast/Cable ntwrk) Full info HERE (8/16)

SALES ASSISTANT >>
REELZ/NY: Responsible for providing service to clients on a daily basis, maintaining sales orders and supporting Account Executives and the Management team. BA/BS & Wide Orbit experience preferred. Full info/apply HERE (8/16)

DIRECTOR OF TEAM SALES >>
Momentous/Remote: Responsible for building relationships with professional teams, colleges and universities, coaches, trainers and dietitians to sell our products on a long-term basis. 3+ yrs of team sales exp, preferably in food or supplements. Full info/apply HERE (8/16)