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| N.F.L. Will Stream Thursday Games on Twitter | N.F.L. Will Stream Thursday Games on Twitter |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Eager to reach the growing number of younger fans without televisions, the N.F.L. has signed a deal with Twitter to broadcast 10 Thursday night regular-season games free over the Internet. | Eager to reach the growing number of younger fans without televisions, the N.F.L. has signed a deal with Twitter to broadcast 10 Thursday night regular-season games free over the Internet. |
| The partnership will allow Twitter to push furtherinto the sports world to attract new users now that the growth in its core business, an instant messaging platform, has slowed. | The partnership will allow Twitter to push furtherinto the sports world to attract new users now that the growth in its core business, an instant messaging platform, has slowed. |
| At the same time, the N.F.L. has recognized that more fans are forgoing traditional cable and satellite connections and relying primarily on the Internet to watch video. | At the same time, the N.F.L. has recognized that more fans are forgoing traditional cable and satellite connections and relying primarily on the Internet to watch video. |
| The league also wants to maximize its revenue by selling the streaming rights to its games separately, a strategy that initially might have alarmed its traditional broadcast partners, who spend heavily for the right to show games over the air. | The league also wants to maximize its revenue by selling the streaming rights to its games separately, a strategy that initially might have alarmed its traditional broadcast partners, who spend heavily for the right to show games over the air. |
| In this deal, though, Twitter will show the networks’ ads and only sell ads during the spots normally sold by for local affiliates. This allowed Twitter to pay less than it might have otherwise and it will allow NBC and CBS, which recently bought the rights to show Thursday night games, to reach more viewers. | In this deal, though, Twitter will show the networks’ ads and only sell ads during the spots normally sold by for local affiliates. This allowed Twitter to pay less than it might have otherwise and it will allow NBC and CBS, which recently bought the rights to show Thursday night games, to reach more viewers. |
| Twitter and the N.F.L. have not decided on the specifics of how the games will be displayed online. Along with appearing on Twitter’s mobile and desktop apps, the company said it will show on video game consoles that use Twitter apps, such as Microsoft’s Xbox. | |
| N.F.L. Commissioner Roger Goodell announced the deal, appropriately enough, on his Twitter feed, his first Tweet in 19 months. It is unclear how much Twitter paid for the streaming rights, but Joe Lockhart, a league spokesman, said that other bidders had offered more money. | N.F.L. Commissioner Roger Goodell announced the deal, appropriately enough, on his Twitter feed, his first Tweet in 19 months. It is unclear how much Twitter paid for the streaming rights, but Joe Lockhart, a league spokesman, said that other bidders had offered more money. |
| “The attraction wasn’t just revenue, it was a reach decision,” Lockhart said. | “The attraction wasn’t just revenue, it was a reach decision,” Lockhart said. |
| At the N.F.L.’s annual meeting last month, league executives told team owners and executives that the biggest opportunities for new revenue will come from digital and international businesses. Selling the streaming rights to live games appears to fill both of those categories. | At the N.F.L.’s annual meeting last month, league executives told team owners and executives that the biggest opportunities for new revenue will come from digital and international businesses. Selling the streaming rights to live games appears to fill both of those categories. |
| The league experimented with live streaming last season when Yahoo paid about $20 million for the rights to show the Buffalo Bills-Jacksonville Jaguars game played in London in October. In a sop to its broadcast partners and fans, the Bills-Jaguars game was still shown on television in the Buffalo and Jacksonville markets. The Thursday games shown on Twitter will continue to be broadcast nationally on television. | The league experimented with live streaming last season when Yahoo paid about $20 million for the rights to show the Buffalo Bills-Jacksonville Jaguars game played in London in October. In a sop to its broadcast partners and fans, the Bills-Jaguars game was still shown on television in the Buffalo and Jacksonville markets. The Thursday games shown on Twitter will continue to be broadcast nationally on television. |
| But streaming the game free to 185 countries will let fans in places where the N.F.L. does not have major broadcast partners to see a live matchup. | But streaming the game free to 185 countries will let fans in places where the N.F.L. does not have major broadcast partners to see a live matchup. |
| Both sides deemed the Yahoo trial a success, which prompted the league to expand its offerings. Facebook, Verizon and Yahoo were also considered to be candidates for the N.F.L.’s expanded streaming offerings. | Both sides deemed the Yahoo trial a success, which prompted the league to expand its offerings. Facebook, Verizon and Yahoo were also considered to be candidates for the N.F.L.’s expanded streaming offerings. |
| Yahoo and the league said the game attracted more than 15.2 million unique users, nearly five times more than the previous record for a streaming audience, the 2014 World Cup match between Belgium and the American national team. | Yahoo and the league said the game attracted more than 15.2 million unique users, nearly five times more than the previous record for a streaming audience, the 2014 World Cup match between Belgium and the American national team. |
| By comparison, 1.4 million viewers watched the streamed version of this year’s Super Bowl by CBS and the N.F.L. | By comparison, 1.4 million viewers watched the streamed version of this year’s Super Bowl by CBS and the N.F.L. |
| But after a mathematical conversion that Yahoo disputes, the 15.2 million unique users for the Bills-Jaguars game turns into the television equivalent of 2.36 million average viewers, about 1.6 million in the United States. | But after a mathematical conversion that Yahoo disputes, the 15.2 million unique users for the Bills-Jaguars game turns into the television equivalent of 2.36 million average viewers, about 1.6 million in the United States. |
| A unique viewer is defined as a person who has watched a minimum of three seconds of a program. A viewer has to watch one to six minutes on television to be counted by the Nielsen rating service. | A unique viewer is defined as a person who has watched a minimum of three seconds of a program. A viewer has to watch one to six minutes on television to be counted by the Nielsen rating service. |
| The N.F.L. appeared to have little trouble attracting interest from some of the biggest companies in Silicon Valley to bid for a bigger slate of games. | The N.F.L. appeared to have little trouble attracting interest from some of the biggest companies in Silicon Valley to bid for a bigger slate of games. |
| The league may have had a receptive ear at Twitter. The company’s chief financial officer, Anthony Noto, held the same position at the N.F.L. from February 2008 to October 2010. | The league may have had a receptive ear at Twitter. The company’s chief financial officer, Anthony Noto, held the same position at the N.F.L. from February 2008 to October 2010. |
| Bloomberg was the first to report Tuesday morning that Twitter was chosen by the league. | Bloomberg was the first to report Tuesday morning that Twitter was chosen by the league. |
| In February, the league sold the rights to Thursday Night Football to CBS and NBC in a two-year deal worth an estimated $450 million annually. Thursday night games will continue to be shown on the NFL Network as well. | In February, the league sold the rights to Thursday Night Football to CBS and NBC in a two-year deal worth an estimated $450 million annually. Thursday night games will continue to be shown on the NFL Network as well. |
| At the same time, the league was looking for a partner to stream the games. Twitter beat out other digital media companies for the rights, including Facebook, which made its interest in the deal public last month, as well as Amazon, according to a person directly involved in the negotiations. Facebook and Amazon did not immediately respond to early morning requests for comment. | At the same time, the league was looking for a partner to stream the games. Twitter beat out other digital media companies for the rights, including Facebook, which made its interest in the deal public last month, as well as Amazon, according to a person directly involved in the negotiations. Facebook and Amazon did not immediately respond to early morning requests for comment. |
| Despite increasing competition from Facebook promoting sports-related discussion on its platform, Twitter has long been the public forum of choice for sports fans, journalists and athletes on game day. | |
| The move is a significant strategic shift for Twitter, which last month celebrated its 10th year of existence. While Twitter has grown to host hundreds of millions of regular users, for years the company has been on a quest to boost its slowing user growth by making significant changes to the product and spending millions in marketing campaigns. | The move is a significant strategic shift for Twitter, which last month celebrated its 10th year of existence. While Twitter has grown to host hundreds of millions of regular users, for years the company has been on a quest to boost its slowing user growth by making significant changes to the product and spending millions in marketing campaigns. |
| “We wanted to focus on what we do best,” Noto said. “That’s live.” | “We wanted to focus on what we do best,” Noto said. “That’s live.” |
| So far, little has helped. Twitter user growth was flat at the end of 2015, compared to the third quarter of the year, at 320 million users. | So far, little has helped. Twitter user growth was flat at the end of 2015, compared to the third quarter of the year, at 320 million users. |
| “Streaming N.F.L. games is about boosting their user numbers, maybe hoping people will take a second look at them,” said David Pakman, a venture capitalist at Venrock Partners and an early veteran of digital rights and entertainment. | “Streaming N.F.L. games is about boosting their user numbers, maybe hoping people will take a second look at them,” said David Pakman, a venture capitalist at Venrock Partners and an early veteran of digital rights and entertainment. |
| Shares of Twitter rose to $17.74, up nearly 4 percent in after-hours trading on the news. | Shares of Twitter rose to $17.74, up nearly 4 percent in after-hours trading on the news. |