The baseball game-changer By embracing the digital revolution, America’s Major League Baseball is burgeoning. The formation of full-service media entity MLB Advanced Media, together with live streaming services to various platforms, has brought not only soaring profits but means fans can engage with the sport anywhere, anytime By Aarif Morbi, Interbrand New York merica’s national pastime is dying. Or so you might think if you read much of the commentary surrounding baseball these days. Those who Abelieve baseball is on the decline, point to the growing dominance of the National Football League (NFL) with its record-setting national viewership, massive TV deals, exploding revenue, and the cultural importance of the 100% increase from 2000 – and it is expected there are a handful of games per week Super Bowl. These negative forecasters also to top $10 billion in 2015. Meanwhile, MLB that are nationally broadcast, it is primarily point to declining national TV ratings for the commissioner Rob Manfred has set a revenue consumed locally, with fans tuning into their World Series, a lack of general awareness of goal of $15 billion for the next decade. local teams on a nightly basis through a some of baseball’s biggest stars, and the fact Strong attendance also suggests that MLB regional sports network. Contrast this with that baseball doesn’t dominate the American is doing better than some might realise. In the NFL, which hosts 16 regular season sports conversation anymore. It’s also no 2014, game attendance for the season hit games from the early fall into winter, with secret that many fans are turned off by the nearly 74 million, with the past ten seasons the games broadcast nationally. Those high cost of attending games – and with the ranking as the most-attended of all time. making dire warnings about the state of the proliferation of cable channels and other So what are those who have a dim view of sport miss that baseball is enjoyed locally content services, they have no shortage of the state of MLB today missing? over the course of a season, while NFL fans alternative entertainment options. First, they’re overlooking the way people spend Sundays watching national coverage But is this true? How well is Major League engage with the sport. The baseball season of multiple teams they’re not necessarily Baseball (MLB) doing today? The reality is is a marathon: from the early spring and rooting for. Simply put, baseball is consumed that it has never been healthier. MLB revenue into fall, MLB teams play 162 regular season and enjoyed regionally, while football is exceeded $9 billion in the 2014 season – a games before the post-season. While consumed and enjoyed nationally. Admap propogates thought leadership in brand communications and is published monthly in print. To subscribe visit www.warc.com/myadmap But what’s most important to note Another is data. One thing that separates fans with nearly unlimited content, reams is the digital revolution going on behind baseball from other sports is its wealth of data, and a better shot at beating their the scenes, one that has fundamentally of statistical information. The sport is, friends in their fantasy baseball leagues. It altered how baseball engages its localised in essence, a series of discrete events in can also make the experience of any fan, audiences – both casual and passive fans, as which the outcomes can – and have been – casual or committed, better at the ballpark. well as the more active. MLB has embraced measured since the sport began. In 2012, MLB introduced a new app digital channels to further engage with its The measurement process has become called At The Ballpark. It provides users audiences everywhere. These efforts started more and more sophisticated over time, with a customised ballpark experience: they in earnest in 2000 when the league launched with MLB actively encouraging innovation. can ‘check in’ when they arrive at a game to MLB Advanced Media (BAM) with funding It started by adopting PITCHf/x, a system access ballpark maps, concession options, from all 30 teams. Initially created to run created by Sportvision, which tracks the and interesting team information. But the mlb.com and the individual team websites, movement and velocity of pitches thrown, real value comes from the ability to upgrade BAM is now a full-service media entity using cameras installed within baseball seats in real time. offering news, stats, live streaming, radio stadiums. Not only does it feed into All of these recent initiatives prove broadcasts, mobile apps, and more. BAM Gameday – the live game tracking system how ahead of the curve MLB is in terms of was an almost immediate success, paying out that allows users to see an animated using technology to drive fan engagement dividends to the owners within a few years. visualisation of how the game is unfolding – and safeguard the sport from declining With the formation of BAM, MLB it also creates a database of highly accurate interest. In fact, mlb.tv was an early player management realised it was sitting on a information pertaining to speed, movement, in the streaming game, and BAM had to highly valuable content engine. Consider and type of pitches. This is a boon for those become extremely capable in building out this: if you were a Boston Red Sox fan living interested in detailed statistical reports the platform’s infrastructure to house a in New York before 2003, you would only on pitchers: what they throw, how they high volume of programming. As a result, be able to enjoy watching your team when throw it, and what happens when they do. mlb.tv has become one of the most adept they were in town to play the Yankees, or PITCHf/x represented a leap forward in streaming providers out there. According if they were one of the featured teams on terms of making information available to to Forbes, by 2015, mlb.tv will pass 2 billion a national telecast station such as ESPN or fans, particularly the ones with the deepest games live streamed in 720p HD per year. FOX. Many of MLB’s most engaged fans interest in the sport. So now, when other sports or content could not even watch their favourite teams More recently, MLB introduced Statcast, providers need to stream, BAM has before – which is the way most fans enjoy an advanced tracking technology that, become a provider of choice for backend baseball. Thanks to BAM, the MLB seized an according to MLB, is capable of gathering infrastructure. Not only has the NHL opportunity to bring a 19th-century sport and displaying previously unmeasurable partnered with BAM to stream their own into the 21st century, in partnership with all aspects of the game. Similar to PITCHf/x, games (with BAM providing some equity to of its teams. it uses high-resolution cameras, now the NHL as part of the deal), BAM has also In 2002, BAM launched mlb.tv, baseball’s augmented by radar, and it precisely tracks provided infrastructure for ESPN, the 2014 online streaming service, offering to stream all the action on the field. It can measure World Cup, March Madness, WWE, and feeds of out-of-market pennant race a pitcher’s release point, pitch timing, and more. matchups so that engaged fans could follow the spin rate of the ball. For hitters, it can BAM is now much more than just a the most exciting part of the season. In measure the exit angle, velocity, and flight digital operation for MLB. It has expertise 2003, mlb.tv expanded to offer a full list path of a batted ball. On the defensive side, and experience in the streaming space that of regular season out-of-market games, the technology can track fielders’ top speed, is highly coveted. This will now pay off in streaming to PCs. The real breakthrough first-step timing, and the efficiency of the a big way for MLB, beyond increasing fan came in 2009 when BAM launched its At Bat route taken to arrive at the ball. engagement. Reports say that BAM will be app for the iPhone. The app, now available With the explosion of participation in spun off from MLB into its own independent for other platforms, includes baseball news, sabermetrics – the empirical analysis of company (BAM Tech), potentially with a scores, live game tracking, videos, and, baseball through advanced statistics – and value over $5 billion. yes, allows the streaming of games directly fantasy baseball leagues, the audience with By having foresight, making a to mobile devices. In 2014, the app was an appetite for data has never been bigger. commitment to try new things to engage downloaded 11 million times and 2 billion Sabermetrics has begun to facilitate a whole with fans, continuing to improve its product, live games were streamed to various devices new way of analysing events on the field, and and finding novel ways to give people more over mlb.tv. Today, MLB At Bat is the provides even more accurate data to teams of what they want, MLB may be in for a highest-grossing iOS app of all time. for evaluating players. It is still in its early windfall that sceptics of the sport have With these initiatives, BAM became a stages, but what it is capable of – and how considered unimaginable. pioneer in monetising streaming content it may change the game and analysis of the and ensuring that fans who wanted access game – remains to be seen. This article was first published in to their product were not denied. But this However, technology and digital channels Admap magazine February 2016 ©Warc is just one piece of the engagement puzzle.