The NEWMAC has now officially joined the Landmark in signing with Flo Sports for a paywall stream of all of its games.
https://newmacsports.com/tournaments/?id=39
QuoteWestwood, MA (February 28, 2024) – The NEWMAC and FloSports, a global independent sports media company and streaming platform, today announced a historic five-year media rights agreement under which FloSports will become the exclusive media partner of the NEWMAC beginning in the 2024-2025 academic year. By providing the NEWMAC with a national platform and additional resources, the agreement will enhance the NEWMAC's standing as a preeminent NCAA Division III conference.
"As a conference, our mission is to be at the forefront of the evolving landscape of college athletics to create the best possible experience for our student-athletes," said Patrick B. Summers, NEWMAC Executive Director. "Our partnership with FloSports enables the NEWMAC to continue building on our success as a conference by providing our student-athletes and institutional brands with increased exposure and a national platform."
Under the terms of the agreement, FloSports will distribute more than 1,100 regular season and postseason NEWMAC events live and on-demand across 17 sports, with member institutions having the option to post full games free of charge on their institutional platforms 72 hours after each contest. FloSports investment into the conference will enhance overall production quality and media operations of member schools throughout the term of the contract. FloSports will also leverage the nationally and internationally recognized brands of the NEWMAC member institutions by producing original content and social media programming throughout the conference over the five-year term.
"This partnership will allow the NEWMAC to continue to elevate its brand and highlight our most valuable asset – our student-athletes. We are proud to be a leader among athletic conferences, and our NEWMAC Presidents Council is unanimous in its belief that this is the right path forward for the NEWMAC," added Stephen Spinelli Jr., President of Babson College and Chair of the NEWMAC Presidents Council.
With 90 percent of the revenue from the agreement going back to the NEWMAC member institutions, the agreement will enable the implementation of improved broadcast production standards and continued equity in production quality between corresponding men's and women's sports.
I don't think this will be the last conference to sign up with Flo Sports. With Landmark and now NEWMAC, it's pretty clear that their plan is to sign up as many conferences as possible so that the value proposition for D3 fans will shift in favor of subscribing. See the statement below from Flo Sports:
"We are committed to providing the comprehensive destination that NCAA Division III conferences, schools, student-athletes, and fans deserve, and are proud to make an investment in the NEWMAC to serve this mission," said Mike Levy, Senior Vice President, Global Rights Acquisition & Partnerships at FloSports. "We remain steadfast in our belief that there is significant value to be unearthed at the Division III level, and the NEWMAC's combination of athletic excellence and nationally recognized member institutions makes the conference a significant addition to our platform."
Ironically, I don't think this move will be a good one for D3 sports' argument for avoiding employer status in the eyes of the NLRB and the law. Any new revenue streams are going to make D3 look closer and closer to D1, even if the amount of money is minuscule in the overall picture. Plus, a media partner is going to impose requirements and restrictions on students that add to the argument that colleges are exercising control over the students-athletes for purposes of determining whether they are employees.
When news of this broke earlier this month, D3hoops' Ryan Scott did a very in-depth dive into the Flo-nomenon(tm):
https://d3hoops.com/columns/around-the-nation/2023-24/d3-go-with-the-flo
The SCIAC has announced (https://thesciac.org/news/2024/6/4/general-sciac-taps-flosports-as-exclusive-media-partner-through-multi-year-rights-agreement.aspx)it has signed an agreement to broadcast all games on Flo Sports. They did negotiate to give free access after three days on the school's individual platforms (which may mean it depends upon the individual school as to whether it is provided), but otherwise their games will now all be behind a paywall.
QuoteLAGUNA NIGUEL, Calif. - June 5, 2024 - The Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a multi-year media rights agreement with FloSports, a global sports media company, making it the exclusive digital platform for the SCIACtv Network beginning with the 2024-25 academic year.
"The SCIAC and its nine member institutions are thrilled to begin a partnership with FloSports," SCIAC Commissioner Jenn Dubow said. "This agreement provides opportunities to enhance our conference and institutional efforts to provide a quality streaming experience for our student-athletes, alumni, family and fans. FloSports has demonstrated a significant and sincere commitment to providing funding and exposure for small-school college sports in a collaborative way that can help each of our institutions' unique approach and goals to streaming and athletics communications. This is a direction DIII is headed as a whole and the SCIAC will continue to position itself as a leading conference while ensuring we maintain a primary focus on our student-athlete experience in all endeavors."
The SCIAC becomes the third Division III conference partnering with FloSports after the Landmark Conference announced an agreement in July 2023. It is home to three national championships in the 2023-2024 season, including two from California Lutheran for Women's Soccer and Men's Volleyball along with Pomona Pitzer for Men's Cross Country.
Over the length of the five-year partnership FloSports will stream all live and on-demand SCIAC events, including the conference's 21 championships. The SCIAC and FloSports have developed a shared vision for enhancing broadcast production standards and athletics communication efforts across all nine member institutions, with FloSports providing annual investment in the conference and each member.
On-demand access will last for a period of 72 hours following each contest, after which video will be archived on the SCIACtv Network and member institutions will be able to provide access free-of-charge through their institutional platforms. FloSports will also leverage the local, national and international brands of SCIAC member institutions by producing original content and social media programming.
Does that mean I will need to wait three days to watch for free? Some of the current broadcasts are very bad.
This appears to be a near identical deal to what the Landmark and NEWMAC have, which means it comes with some minimum requirements for broadcasts that increase over the five years. I agree, some of the SCIAC schools will have to step up more than others.
I also wonder what pressure Flo is getting from their current partners. I know there was a lot of complaint about the mid-major D1 baseball coverage. The schools are responsible for that, of course, but the customers complain to Flo. I'm not sure how that affects things.
I know there's a review period after two or three years, where either side can back out of the deal. We'll have to wait to see how the conferences and Flo feel about this arrangement.
I'm not a huge fan of this arrangement, but I appreciate why conferences do it and, ultimately, monetization is going to have to happen, so we can chalk this up to the learning process as we figure it out.
This is info I was just sent by Oxy Women's Basketball:
Hi , if you are referring to watching our games online
Occidental Women's Basketball
they will no longer be free, no
You'd have to subscribe to FloSports. You can get a monthly or annual subscription. The subscription will give you access to everything on FloSports, not just SCIAC competition
Quote from: Gray Fox on June 05, 2024, 11:23:16 PMThis is info I was just sent by Oxy Women's Basketball:
Hi , if you are referring to watching our games online
Occidental Women's Basketball
they will no longer be free, no
You'd have to subscribe to FloSports. You can get a monthly or annual subscription. The subscription will give you access to everything on FloSports, not just SCIAC competition
Yes, but you should be able to review the gamesd 72 hours after completion on the school's site. At least that is the landmark model.
Quote from: NEPAFAN on June 06, 2024, 07:05:51 PMQuote from: Gray Fox on June 05, 2024, 11:23:16 PMThis is info I was just sent by Oxy Women's Basketball:
Hi , if you are referring to watching our games online
Occidental Women's Basketball
they will no longer be free, no
You'd have to subscribe to FloSports. You can get a monthly or annual subscription. The subscription will give you access to everything on FloSports, not just SCIAC competition
Yes, but you should be able to review the gamesd 72 hours after completion on the school's site. At least that is the landmark model.
The same for the SCIAC according to the excerpt of the press release I posted earlier on this thread. So, if you want to watch a game to see a team's style of play (e.g., if you are a recruit) or to gauge the quality of a team or a particular player (e.g., for rankings or all american team selections), you can just wait until it's available for free. If you want to watch it live because you are interested in the outcome of a game, though, you have to subscribe. My guess is the biggest group in the latter category are the followers of the opponent of a Landmark/NEWMAC/SCIAC team in a non-conference game or diehard fans of a particular DIII sport (which, to be fair, is probably limited to the people on this board)
Another conference, the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference, joins (https://www.scacsports.com/news/2024-2025/scac_flosports)the FloSports bandwagon, although this one is messy.
QuoteThe Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) announced today it has entered into a multi-year, seven-figure media rights agreement with FloSports, a global sports media company, making it the fourth Division III conference to be featured on the upcoming FloCollege platform. The agreement will also fuel productions for the soon to be created SCACtv Network beginning in the 2024-25 academic year.
The messy part is that not all the conference schools are participating
QuoteOver the length of the five-year partnership, FloSports will stream all live and on-demand SCAC events from participating members Centenary College, Colorado College, Concordia University (Texas), University of Dallas, McMurry University, University of the Ozarks, Schreiner University and University of St. Thomas, including the conference's 18 championships on FloCollege. On-demand access will last for a period of 72 hours following each contest, after which video will be archived on the SCACtv Network and member institutions will be able to provide access free-of-charge through their institutional platforms. FloSports will also leverage the local, national and international brands of SCAC member institutions by producing original content and social media programming.
Only 8 schools are listed, when the conference currently has 12 members. The fact that Trinity and Southwestern aren't listed makes sense because they are moving to the SAA next year, but that still leaves 2 other schools opting out - Texas Lutheran and Austin College.
On the schools not signing this deal, it raises real questions about Austin College and Texas Lutheran. Three possible explanations:
1. Austin and TLU held out on principle to the idea of selling their games and were willing to forgo the revenue (even from the championship games) to do so. Seems unlikely Flo Sports would go along with that because it hurts the value of its product. It makes it less likely everyone will sign up because some games will still be streamed for free and it sets a bad precedent for future conferences.
2. Austin and TLU are going to the SAA. The SAA has 10 members with Southwestern and Trinity and without Birmingham Southern and this would give them 12 (although they are losing Hendrix in 2025). If you were going to identify teams that might make sense for the SAA, from both an academic and geographical perspective, it might be those two. You could start thinking about a western and eastern division of the SAA, with maybe Millsaps moving to the West, which alleviates some of the travel burden for most schools.
3. Austin and TLU are going to the ASC. Seems unlikely, but the ASC could have lured them away in a last ditch effort to stay alive. They would both bring football teams, which is the biggest issue for the ASC, and maybe they have agreed to cover enough expenses to make it worth their while.
I think the SAA explanation seems most likely, but that's just a guess.
As I posted on the SCAC football board, the failure to include TLU and Austin is a *huge* eye opener. The conference has basically opened itself up to treating members differently (and sharing revenue only with the eight noted).
Dwayne Hanberry (who I see watching as I enter this) does so many things right that you have to wonder if the conference presidents (or eight of them) are the ones driving this. Does not bode well.
Quote from: Ron Boerger on July 11, 2024, 05:19:53 PMAs I posted on the SCAC football board, the failure to include TLU and Austin is a *huge* eye opener. The conference has basically opened itself up to treating members differently (and sharing revenue only with the eight noted).
Dwayne Hanberry (who I see watching as I enter this) does so many things right that you have to wonder if the conference presidents (or eight of them) are the ones driving this. Does not bode well.
I modified my post to go over the possible explanations for why Austin College and Texas Lutheran aren't included. To me, an unannounced conference move seems most likely.
Agreed. And this time the ASC might be just as likely as the SAA given both came from there and the travel would be much simpler.
Quote from: Ron Boerger on July 11, 2024, 05:24:51 PMAgreed. And this time the ASC might be just as likely as the SAA given both came from there and the travel would be much simpler.
For what it's worth, TLU just posted about it
https://tlubulldogs.com/general/2024-25/releases/20240710dy20yp
QuoteIn a decision made with its fan base in mind, Texas Lutheran has decided to opt-out of this agreement initially - deciding to continue to offer all home games and matches to Bulldog fans for free on their YouTube Channel, TLU+, for free with immediate access to all. TLU games will still be housed on the conference's new SCACtv Network with road conference games being found on the paid subscription service at every institution this season but Trinity, Southwestern, and Austin College. TLU can still choose to opt-in to join the FloSports platform at a later date.
That's kind of a non-answer to the question in mind, because I don't see why FloSports would want to allow it if there wasn't a better reason than we just don't want to participate. Pomona-Pitzer and CMS are much richer than TLU and Austin and not participating would have made more sense for their families and alums, but they are going along with the other SCIAC schools. Either the SCIAC has a different governance structure and majority rules or FloSports was getting desperate for more content and caved when the SCAC couldn't get all schools to sign on to the deal.
There's a fourth explanation, or a variant of the previous ones I mentioned upthread, as to why Austin and TLU didn't sign on to the SCAC's FloSports deal.
It may be that they are not confident that the SCAC without Trinity and Southwestern will be to their liking and they want to remain flexible for a possible future move (whether or not they have had any discussions with the SAA and the ASC already about the possibility of a move). If these FloSports deals are being structured as grant-in-rights deals by the schools, then schools should take a close look at the litigation involving the ACC and Clemson/Florida State. In a world in which conference membership is constantly changing because of schools closing or cutting certain sports, the last thing a school wants is to limit its ability to be nimble and adjust to changing circumstances by moving elsewhere.
For a SCAC school, this seems particularly relevant because there are potentially three conferences that have overlapping geographical coverage now and membership has shifted back and forth repeatedly over the years. For a SCIAC school, that may have been less of an issue because there are no other DIII schools or conferences nearby and it would take a massive shift of a bunch of NAIA or DII schools to DIII for a new conference to develop. Indeed, in the SCIAC, some of the wealthier schools may have signed on because they needed to help the poorer schools create more revenue flows to make sure they stick around and keep the conference viable.
Good on the schools who are not upending their entire model of access for a piddling sum — the initial article on the D3hoops mentioned something revenues of like $27,000 a year per school, which is LOL.
As I was told by someone at my institution, that basically covers three road trips for football. It's a drop on the revenue bucket
IC, I suspect that most DIII athletic directors would bite off your hand for 27K in annual income.
Quote from: Little Giant 89 on July 12, 2024, 08:31:58 AMIC, I suspect that most DIII athletic directors would bite off your hand for 27K in annual income.
I agree. But I still find this very obnoxious. The people most likely to pay FloSports are those already paying for their child to play sports at a D3 school. It's just an appalling double dip on those parents.
Quote from: jknezek on July 12, 2024, 09:10:12 AMQuote from: Little Giant 89 on July 12, 2024, 08:31:58 AMIC, I suspect that most DIII athletic directors would bite off your hand for 27K in annual income.
I agree. But I still find this very obnoxious. The people most likely to pay FloSports are those already paying for their child to play sports at a D3 school. It's just an appalling double dip on those parents.
How much are they going to charge us?
Quote from: Little Giant 89 on July 12, 2024, 08:31:58 AMIC, I suspect that most DIII athletic directors would bite off your hand for 27K in annual income.
The hand they bite might actually be the hand that feeds them though.
1. If I donate money every a year to IC's athletic department on Giving Day, and now, I've got to give money to Flo Sports watch IC athletics, I may decide that my personal budget doesn't allow me to do both.
2. Reducing the audience for your college's events is almost never good. The goal should be to increase your audience.
3. Forcing people to jump through monetary hoops for your formerly free product is not going to make them happy. (Heck, jknezek sounds annoyed on behalf of
other people.) They may still do it, or they may say "all they ever ask me to do is give them money" — because even if the money technically goes to FloSports, that's not how everyone is going to read it — and it may sour them on their relationship to the college.
My family has been around higher ed for a really long time, and between that and my own personal experience being in the thick of it since 2016, most people outside of the philanthropy/development offices, have no idea how hard it is to establish genuine connections with the community the college depends on for support, be it students, alumni, family of students, etc. and how easy it is to alienate them.
Ithaca once got a $17 million dollar gift from someone who wasn't even an alum. Why? Because every year he gave money to the Communications school IC and another college. Every year, the student at IC who benefitted from his gift (the money was given to them to help them cover the costs associated with producing a films), along with the Dean, hand wrote a thank you note to this person.
When this individual died, his lawyer called our dean and said that the reason IC was getting so much — and the other school almost nothing — was because every time this person got a thank you note from us and not the other school, he took some of the money he had earmarked for them and put it with the money he earmarked for us. Over the years, it added up and...the rest is history.
And that $17 million understates it. That's just what he *gave*. The dean created an endowment with some of the initial money, and now, more than 30 years later, the comms school is getting more than $800,000 a year. All for probably 20 bucks worth of stamps and envelopes and paper.
The point is, everything you do has consequences, and you may not realize it until too late.
It's entirely possible I'm overstating the potential negative impact of making people pay to watch D3 sports. Maybe everyone will ultimately just complain like I am, and then pony up anyway. Maybe it won't materially impact anyone's relationship with the college.
But $27,000 a year — the equivalent of 0.013% of Ithaca College's 2023-24 operating expense budget — is not enough money for me to want to find out. But maybe that's why I'm not an AD. Maybe I am completely misreading this.
IC7
If I give to the school I can get matching money from my employer. If I give to Flo that will not happen. I have a budget of my own.
I think you're missing one of the most basic things. When schools first started broadcasting over the internet it became so much easier for parents to follow their kids and see games, even if the school was far beyond driving distance for every game. Lots of schools benefitted by recruiting athletes from areas they were less likely to score from before, all because now family could still participate more than one or twice a season.
Now along come some of these schools thinking, "it's only a few more bucks, parents will pay it." And for the most part I think they are correct. But there will be some who say school A isn't much better than school B, and school B is closer and isn't going to charge me to watch my kid play the sport I'm already paying for him to attend and play.
And I hope those parents make it known that this nickel and dime crap isn't worth it from a competitive or enrollment point of view. It doesn't take a whole lot of prospects saying "nah, I'll stick with B" before that $27K starts to look real expensive instead of really like a benefit.
Unless, of course, FloSports can do such a good job as to make it worthwhile. My limited experience with FloSports is they haven't, and I suspect it would cost too much to make it worth it on their end to make the production improve to make it worthwhile.
So I hope a few parents put these schools on blast. It's not a huge amount of money, but it's one more thing. Maybe a few parents and a few prospects turning away with this as a mentioned factor will make the whole stupid idea die.
Or maybe a few athletes will get the bright idea to say "if you are going to make money off of us, maybe you need to start paying us benefits" and watch those D3 schools cave in a hurry.
It's not like D3 can use any of the excuses about free education that D1 finally failed at.
Quote from: Gray Fox on July 12, 2024, 01:09:34 PMIC7
If I give to the school I can get matching money from my employer. If I give to Flo that will not happen. I have a budget of my own.
Right, that's my point. It's not a free $27,000 they found on the ground. That's what the school gets from Flo for pushing a cost to its audience. And its audience may take the $50 (or whatever) they give to Flo and treat it like a donation to the athletic department — after all, they're giving money in exchange for access to athletics. And then they don't give that $50 when the school comes calling for money. So now, they've actually only made $26,950
Quote from: jknezek on July 12, 2024, 01:12:51 PMNow along come some of these schools thinking, "it's only a few more bucks, parents will pay it." And for the most part I think they are correct. But there will be some who say school A isn't much better than school B, and school B is closer and isn't going to charge me to watch my kid play the sport I'm already paying for him to attend and play.
And I hope those parents make it known that this nickel and dime crap isn't worth it from a competitive or enrollment point of view. It doesn't take a whole lot of prospects saying "nah, I'll stick with B" before that $27K starts to look real expensive instead of really like a benefit.
Very well stated, and yes, another example of the long-term relationship damage that can be done.
Ithaca Volleyball has a roster consisting of players from
Texas (X2), Washington, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, Florida, North Carolina, California, New Jersey, Wisconsin, and Pennslyvania.
Just two players are from New York, and one of those is from Ossining. I suspect all of those parents are going to have to watch their daughters online, and, were IC one of the schools that made them pay to do so, it might bother them, and you know what, Wisconsin Whitewater is less than an hour from Madison.
Straws, camels, and all that
I've seen it from both sides, one season of an ESPN+ subscription when my son was playing soccer at a D1 school and then the ability to watch a free, but clearly not same quality output, when he moved to Amherst. Being in Australia, I know that if the only way I could watch him play was to pay, that I would be jacked off, but do it. I guess in the case of NESCAC schools where I suspect most of the soccer programs probably don't operate on extravagant budgets, they might like the extra cash, but I would expect given endowment sizes at many of them, it would be a very difficult decision to justify for a modest outcome.
Quote from: EnmoreCat on July 13, 2024, 03:29:15 PMI guess in the case of NESCAC schools where I suspect most of the soccer programs probably don't operate on extravagant budgets, they might like the extra cash
$27,000 for 25 sports at Amherst would be an extra $1,100 per sport a year.
The college has a $3.3 billion endowment.
Quote from: EnmoreCat on July 13, 2024, 03:29:15 PMI've seen it from both sides, one season of an ESPN+ subscription when my son was playing soccer at a D1 school and then the ability to watch a free, but clearly not same quality output, when he moved to Amherst. Being in Australia, I know that if the only way I could watch him play was to pay, that I would be jacked off, but do it. I guess in the case of NESCAC schools where I suspect most of the soccer programs probably don't operate on extravagant budgets, they might like the extra cash, but I would expect given endowment sizes at many of them, it would be a very difficult decision to justify for a modest outcome.
I have seen a handful of NESCAC football and baseball games. They have a good quality and don't actually need Flo. But they already have money.
Quote from: IC798891 on July 12, 2024, 12:53:41 PMmost people outside of the philanthropy/development offices, have no idea how hard it is to establish genuine connections with the community the college depends on for support, be it students, alumni, family of students, etc. and how easy it is to alienate them.
Holy moly, bold and double underline this.
FloSports is never ever going to sustain an athletics program or an institution. But the people schools are holding up for FloSports subscriptions do. Worth that risk for $27k? Aren't there ways to raise $27k and make your donor base feel energized about it instead of making them feel like they need to pay a ransom to be one of dozens of people to watch a Wednesday night basketball game where the single swivel camera is going to miss 10-15% of the game? I absolutely get the need for more resources for broadcast support, but I'm not sure this is the way.
Quote from: wally_wabash on July 18, 2024, 03:33:40 PMQuote from: IC798891 on July 12, 2024, 12:53:41 PMmost people outside of the philanthropy/development offices, have no idea how hard it is to establish genuine connections with the community the college depends on for support, be it students, alumni, family of students, etc. and how easy it is to alienate them.
Holy moly, bold and double underline this.
FloSports is never ever going to sustain an athletics program or an institution. But the people schools are holding up for FloSports subscriptions do. Worth that risk for $27k? Aren't there ways to raise $27k and make your donor base feel energized about it instead of making them feel like they need to pay a ransom to be one of dozens of people to watch a Wednesday night basketball game where the single swivel camera is going to miss 10-15% of the game? I absolutely get the need for more resources for broadcast support, but I'm not sure this is the way.
I agree with the sentiments raised in this thread and am glad that my alma mater opted out on this deal. However, I do think there is a decent reason why schools/conferences are partnering with Flo Sports.
I strongly doubt that the approximately $27K of revenue is why schools/conferences are choosing to partner with Flo Sports. However, Flo Sports eliminates the costs and expenses the schools incur to video and broadcast their events. A school could very easily reason that the costs and expenses to broadcast events that a few dozen will watch is not worth it but, if a third-party is paying those costs and expenses, at least the school will have its events broadcasts and their alumni/supporters/fans have access to the events without traveling to the event site.
The ability to watch DIII sporting events anywhere but in person is fairly new. When I was attending TLU (98-02), there was no internet broadcast of their games. Maybe there was a radio broadcast but, if you wanted to watch the game, you had to go to the game.
We have been extremely fortunate that access to DIII sports through internet broadcasts have been, mostly, free of charge. What other professional/college teams could we watch for free in the history of sports, except for over-the-air television (and we all know that DIII sports will never be broadcasts over the air)?
I am not saying this is a compelling reason for a school/conference to partner with Flo Sports. I agree that building good will with your alumni/supporters base likely outweighs the benefits a school receives from the Flo Sports deal. All of that said, I can also see where a school weighs those pros and cons and determines that having a third party incur the costs and expenses to broadcasts its sports event is more or equally beneficial, especially if it means that the school will continue to have its events broadcasts where alumni/supporters will have access to it besides in person. What if the alternative is no internet broadcast? How does that continue to build goodwill?
Quote from: wally_wabash on July 18, 2024, 03:33:40 PMFloSports is never ever going to sustain an athletics program or an institution. But the people schools are holding up for FloSports subscriptions do. Worth that risk for $27k? Aren't there ways to raise $27k and make your donor base feel energized about it?
If your philanthropy and development people know what they're doing, then yes
As I have mentioned elsewhere, $27,000 is roughly 6% of what Ithaca athletics raised (https://givingday.ithaca.edu/leaderboards) in the college's annual Giving Day last year.
If you're in such dire financial straits that you really need that piddling sum...you're probably in a death spiral anyway
Quote from: TLU02SA on July 18, 2024, 04:23:07 PMAll of that said, I can also see where a school weighs those pros and cons and determines that having a third party incur the costs and expenses to broadcasts its sports event is more or equally beneficial, especially if it means that the school will continue to have its events broadcasts where alumni/supporters will have access to it besides in person. What if the alternative is no internet broadcast? How does that continue to build goodwill?
This doesn't happen with Flo, to be clear. Each school is still responsible for all production of events to a very basic standard laid out in the contract. When I did my piece for d3hoops, it was pretty clear to me this is an okay deal for schools who already meet the broadcast standards and probably not a very good one for schools who will have to use the money to invest in upgraded broadcast capabilities.
As for the money - my understanding is that the deal is an overall for the conference which they divvy up as they see fit. There's really no way to know what each school in each conference is going to receive.
Quote from: Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan) on July 19, 2024, 07:50:48 AMEach school is still responsible for all production of events to a very basic standard laid out in the contract. When I did my piece for d3hoops, it was pretty clear to me this is an okay deal for schools who already meet the broadcast standards and probably not a very good one for schools who will have to use the money to invest in upgraded broadcast capabilities.
Thanks. I had not caught that previously. So, Flo is only providing the platform through which events are broadcasts? Each school is still responsible for providing cameras, announcers, graphics, mics and other on location equipment?
Quote from: TLU02SA on July 19, 2024, 11:40:41 AMQuote from: Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan) on July 19, 2024, 07:50:48 AMEach school is still responsible for all production of events to a very basic standard laid out in the contract. When I did my piece for d3hoops, it was pretty clear to me this is an okay deal for schools who already meet the broadcast standards and probably not a very good one for schools who will have to use the money to invest in upgraded broadcast capabilities.
Thanks. I had not caught that previously. So, Flo is only providing the platform through which events are broadcasts? Each school is still responsible for providing cameras, announcers, graphics, mics and other on location equipment?
Yes. Flo has done some promotional stuff, too. They covered the Landmark day at the Palestra in person (a college gameday kind of setup), did some preseason video hits promoting teams, and written pieces on the website - but those aren't contractual, as far as I know.
Quote from: TLU02SA on July 19, 2024, 11:40:41 AMQuote from: Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan) on July 19, 2024, 07:50:48 AMEach school is still responsible for all production of events to a very basic standard laid out in the contract. When I did my piece for d3hoops, it was pretty clear to me this is an okay deal for schools who already meet the broadcast standards and probably not a very good one for schools who will have to use the money to invest in upgraded broadcast capabilities.
Thanks. I had not caught that previously. So, Flo is only providing the platform through which events are broadcasts? Each school is still responsible for providing cameras, announcers, graphics, mics and other on location equipment?
Exactly. Each school is responsible for every aspect of the broadcast except for where it winds up being broadcast to. Which, obviously, some schools can handle pretty easily. Others are not. The Lone Star Conference (D2) is apparently on the verge of making the move, and sounds like even they are worried about being able to handle the requirements, at least at some of the schools.
Quote from: jekelish on July 22, 2024, 05:20:28 PMQuote from: TLU02SA on July 19, 2024, 11:40:41 AMQuote from: Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan) on July 19, 2024, 07:50:48 AMEach school is still responsible for all production of events to a very basic standard laid out in the contract. When I did my piece for d3hoops, it was pretty clear to me this is an okay deal for schools who already meet the broadcast standards and probably not a very good one for schools who will have to use the money to invest in upgraded broadcast capabilities.
Thanks. I had not caught that previously. So, Flo is only providing the platform through which events are broadcasts? Each school is still responsible for providing cameras, announcers, graphics, mics and other on location equipment?
Exactly. Each school is responsible for every aspect of the broadcast except for where it winds up being broadcast to. Which, obviously, some schools can handle pretty easily. Others are not. The Lone Star Conference (D2) is apparently on the verge of making the move, and sounds like even they are worried about being able to handle the requirements, at least at some of the schools.
If nothing else, Sul Ross should be worried.
It's official that the Lone Star made the move.
The NEWMAC announced (https://newmacsports.com/news/2024/8/6/general-newmac-releases-options-for-2024-2025-flosports-subscriptions.aspx)subscription options for their FloSports package
This seems like it's missing information. What if you're a fan, but not with an actual NEWMAC school .edu address? What's the discounted rate for signing up through their landing page? And what's the difference between FloCollege and the regular package? Does not getting it mean you only get NEWMAC games? If so, then fall sports are kind of screwed since they would sign up before Oct 1, unless they only want the games of their school, which makes the whole thing pretty pricey. If this is how the roll-out is going to be explained at all conferences signing up with Flo, it's already a bad sign.
QuoteFans with a NEWMAC member institution .edu email address will be able to sign up for a discounted subscription price of $9.99 per month or $71.88 per year ($5.99/month). A standard FloSports subscription costs $29.99 a month or $150 for the year ($12.50/month), however NEWMAC fans can gain a discounted rate by signing up through the NEWMAC's Landing Page on FloSports by October 1, 2024.
Starting October 1, 2024, FloSports is launching FloCollege, a new destination to stream nearly 12,000 Division I, II and III games through leading web, mobile, and Connected TV applications. Subscription plans will be available at $19.99 per month or $107.88 per year (8.99/month). Subscribers with a NEWMAC member institution .edu email address will still be able to sign up for a discounted subscription price of $9.99 per month or $71.88 per year ($5.99/month). NEWMAC fans are encouraged to sign up using the NEWMAC's Landing Page on FloSports in order to receive any discounts.
Watch NEWMAC on FloSports on AppleTV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV or by casting.
North Carolina Wesleyan agrees to a deal with FloSports, which appears to be a standalone deal not with USA South conference
https://x.com/bishopsports/status/1828919707086278996?s=46&t=uXiupHZfR0TxrRyWF9BmRg
Quote from: Kuiper on August 30, 2024, 05:48:02 PMNorth Carolina agrees to a deal with FloSports, which appears to be a standalone deal not with USA South conference
https://x.com/bishopsports/status/1828919707086278996?s=46&t=uXiupHZfR0TxrRyWF9BmRg
The jerks won't let anyone reply to their tweet, either. Classy.
Quote from: Ron Boerger on August 30, 2024, 06:01:20 PMQuote from: Kuiper on August 30, 2024, 05:48:02 PMNorth Carolina agrees to a deal with FloSports, which appears to be a standalone deal not with USA South conference
https://x.com/bishopsports/status/1828919707086278996?s=46&t=uXiupHZfR0TxrRyWF9BmRg
The jerks won't let anyone reply to their tweet, either. Classy.
North Carolina Wesleyan had, hands-down, the worst football broadcast in the USA South last season. It'll be a steep learning curve for them to live up to the standards.
Quote from: Pat Coleman on August 30, 2024, 09:05:29 PMQuote from: Ron Boerger on August 30, 2024, 06:01:20 PMQuote from: Kuiper on August 30, 2024, 05:48:02 PMNorth Carolina agrees to a deal with FloSports, which appears to be a standalone deal not with USA South conference
https://x.com/bishopsports/status/1828919707086278996?s=46&t=uXiupHZfR0TxrRyWF9BmRg
The jerks won't let anyone reply to their tweet, either. Classy.
North Carolina Wesleyan had, hands-down, the worst football broadcast in the USA South last season. It'll be a steep learning curve for them to live up to the standards.
Does anybody who already has a FloSports account want to help me out and watch some of the NC Wesleyan game tonight and let me know how it goes so I can decide if it will be worth it to pay to watch one game next week?
On the Men's Soccer board I observed that I had to shell out $14.99 to watch Amherst play WPI, where there was no commentator and camera work which wasn't 100pct good at keeping up with the play. I do hope the Athletic Department there spends my contribution carefully. I emailed the Athletic Department at WPI to complain, being fully aware that the response, if any, will likely be unsatisfying.
From what I understand PBP for soccer is not required until the second year of the contract.
So I did pay the $14.99 for a month subscription to FloSports to watch Huntingdon play at NC Wesleyan. The broadcast exceeded expectations. The picture was clear and had two camera angles that they switched between with one behind one end zone. The only negative to the end zone camera was because of the structure that it's in, it couldn't see the left side of that end zone. The announcers were good. They kept it fairly even and did a good job of not being complete homers.
The oddest thing that happened was part way through the 4th quarter when it seems like the HC roster they were using somehow switched to last year's roster. They started calling Aiden Cox(wearing #3 at QB), Aiden Quinn, who was a freshman listed as #3 last year. On a punt return they called #12 Ryheem Quinney, Kyler Chaney and freshman RB #24 De'Roderick Hepburn was called Jaden Hester. Chaney and Hester were both seniors last year.
Quote from: Pat Coleman on August 30, 2024, 09:05:29 PMQuote from: Ron Boerger on August 30, 2024, 06:01:20 PMQuote from: Kuiper on August 30, 2024, 05:48:02 PMNorth Carolina agrees to a deal with FloSports, which appears to be a standalone deal not with USA South conference
https://x.com/bishopsports/status/1828919707086278996?s=46&t=uXiupHZfR0TxrRyWF9BmRg
The jerks won't let anyone reply to their tweet, either. Classy.
North Carolina Wesleyan had, hands-down, the worst football broadcast in the USA South last season. It'll be a steep learning curve for them to live up to the standards.
Who would watch a NCW game, anyway? Back in the day I attended a road game there. I literally counted the fans in the stands. 84. So, they get a deal with Flo so that 3 people can watch? Who makes these decisions?
FloSports Launches New 'FloCollege' Streaming Service (https://thestreamable.com/flosports-launches-new-flocollege-streaming-service?utm_source=www.d3playbook.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=flosports-launches-new-flocollege-streaming-service&_bhlid=2a39a84afeb3c00357b22eeebd454583e6d9f281) [thestreamable.com article]
Excerpts:
Quote[...]
FloCollege will launch for subscribers as of Tuesday, Oct. 15. The streamer will carry two main subscription options: a monthly plan for $19.99, or a yearly option for $107.88 — around $8.99 per month, though of course, the entire subscription price is due upfront with the annual plan.
Students with a .edu email address from a partner institution will be able to sign up for FloCollege for $9.99 per month or $71.88 per year.
[...]
In addition to the BIG EAST and CAA, FloCollege will provide games from schools in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC), Landmark Conference, New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC), South Atlantic Conference (SAC), California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), Lone Star Conference (LSC), Gulf South Conference (GSC), Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC), Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) and Northeast-10 Conference (NE10).
The article does not mention that not all schools in a conference will participate. The SCAC has four schools that have opted out and there may be schools in other conferences who will not.
Quote from: Ron Boerger on September 25, 2024, 11:02:55 AMFloSports Launches New 'FloCollege' Streaming Service (https://thestreamable.com/flosports-launches-new-flocollege-streaming-service?utm_source=www.d3playbook.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=flosports-launches-new-flocollege-streaming-service&_bhlid=2a39a84afeb3c00357b22eeebd454583e6d9f281) [thestreamable.com article]
Excerpts:
Quote[...]
FloCollege will launch for subscribers as of Tuesday, Oct. 15. The streamer will carry two main subscription options: a monthly plan for $19.99, or a yearly option for $107.88 — around $8.99 per month, though of course, the entire subscription price is due upfront with the annual plan.
Students with a .edu email address from a partner institution will be able to sign up for FloCollege for $9.99 per month or $71.88 per year.
[...]
In addition to the BIG EAST and CAA, FloCollege will provide games from schools in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC), Landmark Conference, New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC), South Atlantic Conference (SAC), California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), Lone Star Conference (LSC), Gulf South Conference (GSC), Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC), Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) and Northeast-10 Conference (NE10).
The article does not mention that not all schools in a conference will participate. The SCAC has four schools that have opted out and there may be schools in other conferences who will not.
I thought these stats from the article announcing the new platform were interesting
https://www.flosports.tv/2024/09/24/flosports-launches-flocollege-on-october-15-a-new-home-for-college-sports-featuring-more-than-12000-live-games-across-division-i-division-ii-and-division-iii/
QuoteSince the start of the 2024 college sports season, FloSports has seen a 37% increase in viewers for football and a 45% increase for soccer.
It's not surprising since the number of conferences using the service has increased, but it means people are buynig and using the service rather than going without their favorite teams and it probably means people who buy it for their favorite teams are using it to watch other games too.
Yeah, they have an "increase" because if you want to see broadcasts for dozens of schools you have no choice.
Quote from: Ron Boerger on September 25, 2024, 07:48:06 PMYeah, they have an "increase" because if you want to see broadcasts for dozens of schools you have no choice.
Yep. Honestly, the fact that it's only 37% with the number of schools that have gone behind their paywall feels lower than I would have expected.
Penn State Behrend has a button to donate to support streaming. The minimum is $10, but it's optional.
Quote from: ADL70 on September 26, 2024, 01:25:51 PMPenn State Behrend has a button to donate to support streaming. The minimum is $10, but it's optional.
Even if it is per game and optional, it is good.
FloSports sent a survey to my email account today that covered my experience so far.
Little East Conference signs a deal with Flo Sports (https://littleeast.com/news/2025/4/3/general-little-east-conference-secures-five-year-media-rights-agreement-with-flosports-will-join-flocollege-platform-beginning-in-2025-26.aspx)
QuoteFollowing unanimous approval of the Little East Conference (LEC) Presidents Council, Commissioner Albert Bean, Jr. announced the LEC has entered an exclusive five-year media rights agreement with FloSports that will begin in the upcoming 2025-26 academic year. The seven-figure partnership makes the LEC the fifth NCAA Division III conference to join the FloCollege portfolio.
"We're very excited about our new partnership and five-year media rights agreement with FloSports," said Bean. "This agreement will greatly enhance the visibility of the Little East Conference, assist us in telling the truly great stories and achievements of our student-athletes and team, and provide access to an international platform for those who choose to subscribe. Working with our conference members and FloSports, we look forward to delivering outstanding live video streaming and value added extras, which includes our content being available alongside other prominent NCAA Division I, II and III conferences."
The LEC will add over 1,000 broadcast events annually to the internationally available FloCollege platform, which features a growing number of NCAA conferences. In addition to the LEC, FloCollege subscribers will have access to events broadcast by the Division I Big East Conference and Coastal Athletic Association (CAA), and DIII Landmark Conference, New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC), Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference.
FloCollege will deliver live and on-demand coverage for the majority of the LEC's 23-sponsored championship sports, and will invest in original content and storytelling initiatives online and across social media aimed at elevating the profile of the LEC's student-athletes and institutions. Sports not offered by the LEC (football, gymnastics, wrestling, etc.) may be opted into the FloCollege platform based on institutional decisions.
These FloSports articles are always written with such a slant.
They use the term "seven-figure deal", which is accurate, but is clearly done to underscore how little money each school receives each year. Funny that they don't mention the cost to consumers in that same article.