Sports networks develop apps to allow mobile streaming

Over the past few years, cable companies and sports networks have agreed to contracts that allow people to stream their channels from their smartphones, tablets, and other mobile devices. The streaming service benefits the user, the cable company, and the sports network.

Since the smartphone has become popular over the last decade, people all over the world have become more demanding of instant access to news. Social media has become a part of daily life for many, with websites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram drawing millions of users per day. As the amount of information that users can retrieve from their phone increased, so has the desire for people to watch television on their devices.

Growth of video streaming / Business Insider

The business of video streaming has become an immensely rich industry over the past few years. Since the beginning of 2012, the revenue has more than doubled, as people are eager to watch their favorite television shows right from their phones. Sports fans desired the same ability to watch their teams from their mobile devices.

To accommodate its fans’ wishes, ESPN launched WatchESPN in April 2011, an app that allows viewers to watch ESPN networks on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, as long as they have a subscription to a cable company that carries ESPN. Executive vice president of sales and marketing for ESPN Sean Bratches attributed the service to the demands of the consumer.

“We strive to serve the sports fan wherever they consume sports,” Bratches said in a 2011 ESPN press statement. “I can’t think of a better way to do that than making our networks available to fans whenever and wherever they might be.”

With ESPN launching a service that allowed users to stream their channels on their mobile devices, they gained an advantage over other sports networks because people could now instantly access ESPN’s content. To regain an edge other networks developed their own mobile apps that allowed on-the-go streaming. FOX Sports invented their own app allowing users to watch sporting events that are on FOX, FS1, and the FOX sports network that is in the region of the viewer. While FOX Sports saw a decline in the viewership in Super Bowl LI than in years past, many more people streamed the game from the app than in previous Super Bowls.

“[FOX Sports Go] averaged 1.72 million viewers per minute for New England’s 34-28 win,” said Taylor Soper in a 2017 article for Geekwire. “Last year, an average of 1.4 million viewers per minute streamed the Super Bowl.”

Broadcasting sporting events from mobile devices has benefits for all parties involved: the streamer, the sports network, and the cable company. Streamers do not need to rely on a TV to watch a sporting event. Sports networks now have another outlet for viewership, which makes its advertisements more valuable, as more people are able to see them. These sports networks still require a potential streamer to have a cable subscription that carries their channels. Cable companies may even gain subscribers from people who wish to watch sporting events on the go. As the demand for instant media access increases, streaming services will continue to grow and benefit all parties involved.

By Bruce Mayfield and Michael Stern