BCS – Page 3

National Football Foundation Debuts Website, Mobile Applications

September 5, 2012 by James Raia Leave a Comment

The National Football Foundation (NFF) and XOS Digital Inc. have jointly announced a new website and corresponding mobile and tablet applications to provide fans with multiple access points to NFF content in various formats. Among other tasks, the NFF runs the College Football Hall of Fame.

The new website, www.footballfoundation.org, marks the completion of the NFF Digital Network and is managed by XOS Digital, which serves more than 300 sports organizations with myriad technology solutions.

The foundation’s official website offers exclusive video content and original programming and connects to multiple digital platforms, including a dedicated NFF OnDemand store, Smart TV content, YouTube channel and mobile applications.

The NFF OnDemand store features DVD and Blu-ray content as well as classic college football documentaries, available for purchase for the first time. Fans can access this exclusive video content through a digital account where they can select videos to watch online and access them for viewing on tablet and mobile devices.

Every NFF event will be streamed live on all compatible platforms, including the NFF Annual Awards Dinner, the Annual Enshrinement Show, and the annual announcement of FBS inductees into the College Football Hall of Fame. Fans can download the official NFF mobile application for free, and the official NFF tablet application for $4.99.

The NFF Digital Network also features an originally produced video series, This Week in College Football History, which highlights a memorable historic football event each week throughout the football season. All NFF historic content and original productions are accessible though the XOS College Sports Smart TV channel.

For more information, visit www.footballfoundation.org or www.xosdigital.com.

James Raia is an editor and publisher in Sacramento, California. Visit his site: www.tourdefrancelife.com

Filed Under: Android, Apple, BCS, Live sports via mobile Tagged With: College fotball, James Raia

Friday Grab Bag: Apple/Samsung Jury Forms, NFL Cutdowns, Kindle Loses Big Sale

August 24, 2012 by Greg Quick

Major League Baseball

Now that it has decided to test expanded replay, Major League Baseball is testing a pair of systems to see which will better meet its needs which will now include examining fair/foul calls and trapped balls.

MLB will have one system installed at Yankee Stadium and the other at the Mets' Citi Field in order to conduct tests. The systems are expected to be up and running by the end of this month and will be used in September games, according to Yahoo Sports.

Google Nexus 7 sales to hit 7 million
A report has surfaced from Tech-thought.net that said it estimates that Google will sell as many as 7 million of its Nexus 7 tablets this year, an amazing feat that would put it in among the leaders in tablet sales.

That number would be more than twice what Google had originally estimated it would sell, but demand has been strong and in the first weeks it sold out of its entry level model that starts at $199.

Look to Awful Announcing for your NFL broadcast news
Now that the NFL season is around the corner its time to look at one important aspect of the games — the announcers. I find most announcers to be pretty grating and often watch games on mute rather than expose myself to their blather.

Some brave souls not only listen, but rate them with the pros. So head over to Awful Announcing and lend a hand. The site also does nice work covering many aspects of sports.

Microsoft to build 3 million Surface tablets in 2012?
Market research firm IDC said that it expects Microsoft to build 3 million Surface tablets in 2012, according to an interview run in C/net. The estimate includes tablets that run Windows 8 Pro and Windows RT.

In the interview with IDC analyst Bob O’Donnell C/net reported that he believed that the entry level price of at least one version of the tablets would be in the $199 range, putting it in a head to head price competition with the smaller 7-inch tablets and making it much less expensive than offerings from Apple and Samsung.

America’s Cup World Series mishaps
One captain at this week’s America’s Cup World Series races predicted carnage due to the sailing conditions on San Francisco Bay. Well the San Francisco Chronicle has done a nice job of providing a photo essay on that topic.

Dell not as enthusiastic on Surface sales
Dell executives said that the company expects that Microsoft’s Surface tablets will represent a very small percent of the overall PC units in the next year. Michael Dell, founder and CEO said that he expects the numbers to be between 1% and 2%.

The company has reported that its PC and mobility sales were down 14% for the most recent quarter and sees tablets as eroding that space. The company will be among the hardware developers expected to deliver Windows 8-based tablets in the fall.sales have been

ESPN bids on BCS playoffs
Now that the BCS has altered its championship format to now feature a playoff, the next step is of course to sell the rights to broadcast those games. ESPN has been broadcasting the BCS Championships the past few years and it has the opportunity to continue.

It has been reported that starting Oct 1, ESPN will have an exclusive 30-day window in which to purchase the playoff rights from the BCS. The BCS is also working on a new revenue-sharing plan to work out how the playoff money will be divided.

Think you are well informed re Apple vs Samsung — look at Jury form
The form that the jury is using for the case is 20 pages long and looks like a college exam. I really feel sorry for the jury and expect that they will need to constantly have to get refreshers on what all of the varied elements are in the case.

Huge U.S. Government Kindle purchase killed
ITWorld is reporting that the U.S. Department of State has canceled a large order for Amazon’s Kindle Touch tablets along with additional content. The order was valued at $16.5 million over the course of its lifetime.

The department said that it was taking a second look at the requirements of the program and was conducting additional market research. The contract originally called for an initial 2,500 e-readers and 50 titles of content.

NFL roster reductions start Monday
For NFL fans some of the most interesting days, prior to when they actually start playing, will be coming up over the next week as teams will have to reduce rosters from the current 90 player level to 53 by Aug. 31.

Teams will be looking to shore up perceived weak areas as a flood of players hit the market with the first cut down next Monday to 75 and then again later in the week. I wonder how many might find a place in the USFL or other alternative leagues?

Filed Under: Android, Apple, Awful Announcing, Baseball, BCS, Dell, ESPN, Kindle, Major League Baseball, Microsoft, NFL, Samsung, Smartphone, Surface, Tablets, Windows 8 Tagged With: Apple, Dell, Microsoft, Samsung

YouTube Deal Will Enhance ACC’s Digital Network

July 24, 2012 by Greg Quick 1 Comment

The Atlantic Coast Conference’s digital network has introduced a channel on YouTube that will deliver live content from the ACC as YouTube continues to grow as a force in live sports broadcasting with deals such as this.

We have long talked about the emergence of YouTube as a de facto channel for sports, and YouTube has been working hard to cement that position with the ACC deal as one of its more notable deals. However in case you missed it will also be serving up some nice Olympic moments via a deal with NBC that will enable it to show highlights and live events from the London Olympics.

The ACC and YouTube have been partners to a degree for several years and provided exclusive, but not live content at its site since at least 2009, however this takes it a significant step further.

Between that time and now the ACC started a deal with Silver Chalice that enabled it to launch the ACC Digital Network that provided broad coverage of the ACC schools including news conferences, highlights and analysis that could be delivered to both Apple and Android mobile devices.

Now it will also present live events as well as on demand videos that are created by the ACC as well as a live weekly studio program during football and basketball season. There will also be condensed replays of ACC Network productions of football and basketball games.

The current deal will call for the ACC to provide fan access and interaction to its analysts via Google’s Google Hangout. Fans can view, comment upon and share the programming by visiting youtube.com/accdigitalnetwork, or by searching for ACC Digital Network on YouTube.

Of course others are also working on attracting digital partners. The Big Ten Networks recently expanded to support Android in its broadcast and the Pac-12 is increasingly involved in digital media. Still it is nice that the ACC will be presenting live sports to its fan base and other interested parties.

Filed Under: Android, Apple, Apps, Atlantic Coast Conference, BCS, Big Ten Network, Google, iOS, Live sports via mobile, Live Sports Video Consumption, NCAA Football, NCAA Hoops, Pac-12, YouTube Tagged With: ACC, Big Ten, Pac-12

BCS Playoff Gains Approval while ESPN Extends its Rose Bowl Relationship

June 29, 2012 by Greg Quick Leave a Comment

Earlier this week the second round of approvals needed for the creation of a playoff to decide the BCS Championship made it with flying colors as conference commissioners and university presidents and chancellors came to an agreement on the topic.

There are still a number of issues that need to be decided, but most of these are simply housekeeping issues. Among the topics are: Ink a new TV deal and work out how the revenue sharing will work, and of course what is the new name for the playoffs. The composition and election of the selection committee that will determine the playoff teams is also a topic that needs to be worked out. I wonder if they will also create a new trophy?

The move will end the reign of the BCS Championship Series after next year, when the four team playoff is scheduled to begin. There are a number of people that have called for a larger number of teams to be allowed in the playoffs, but that seems unlikely at least in the near term and the current playoff plan is slated to run for 12 years starting in 2014.

The semifinals will rotate between six bowl games and the final game will be put out to bid for host cities just like the NFL’s Super Bowl. It had appeared earlier that the bowl games had already been decided but it now looks like that is not true. The marketing activity to be included should be tremendous in the upcoming year.

At the WWL ESPN the news is that it has reached an agreement for a 12 year extension of its broadcasting the Pasadena Tournament of Roses with the Pas-12 and the Big Ten Conferences. Starting in 2015, after the current deal expires, the deal will continue ESPN’s broadcasting of the Rose Bowl.

ESPN could, and most likely will, get a nice bonus from the deal if the BCS Playoff system selects the Rose Bowl as a playoff site, as the agreement is expected to cover that opportunity as well. The Rose Bowl is the site of the 2014 BCS Championship already.

All of the games will be played on Jan 1 at 5 pm ET except for the years that the 1st is on a Sunday. The broadcasts will span much more that television and will include, ESPN Radio, ESPN Mobile TV and can be seen on smartphones, tablets, online and on Xbox LIVE via WatchESPN and will be available on ESPN 3D .

Filed Under: BCS, ESPN, ESPN Radio, ESPN3, Live sports via mobile, Live Sports Video Consumption, NCAA Football, Rose Bowl, WatchESPN Tagged With: BCS, ESPN, NCAA Football

BCS Playoffs Coming-Will Anybody be Happy?

June 22, 2012 by Greg Quick 1 Comment

The drumbeat for a playoff in the Bowl Championship Series in college football has been growing over the past few years and talks have been ongoing recently to establish a playoff system appear to be in the final stages of planning.

According to ESPN and numerous other outlets the BCS commissioners and Notre Dame athletic director have ironed out a plan that would create a four seeded team playoff for the BCS that would begin in 2014. There is still more approvals needed before that becomes a reality. The proposal goes to the BCS presidential oversight committee, meeting next week in Washington D.C.

The model would have the four teams picked by a committee that would use the usual criteria such as strength of schedule and how the teams performed in their respective championships. The playoff format would put the two semifinal games into existing bowl games on a rotating basis between the Rose, Orange, Fiesta and Sugar bowls. The championship would be treated like the Super Bowl is currently and have cities bid on the game to determine where it is played.

One big benefit to college football is the huge extra income that is expected to come from the playoffs, which have been estimated at anywhere from $300 to $500 million annually. With a number of the bowl teams losing money when they play in lesser bowls and the probably elimination of some of the poorer performing bowls, this is a nice way for schools to bolster their bottom line.

I like the idea of a playoff but with so few teams involved I am worried about who will get in. You already see the favoritism in the voting system and voters blatantly leaving teams off the top 20 or pushing teams higher than they seem to deserve.

I heard one of ESPN’s commentators already saying that the playoffs would be no good unless it put two SEC teams in the playoffs. I guess he did not watch last year’s BCS Championship game. Yet that is what the SEC has been pushing, along with the Big 12, according to Sports Illustrated. It also reported that Pac-12, ACC and others are very much against that stance.

Since nothing has been finalized it is still too early for the various partisan groups to start their campaigns but I imagine that who gets on the selection committee will be very interesting and very heavily examined for bias for or against select conferences.

Filed Under: BCS, NCAA Football Tagged With: BCS, NCAA Football

Pac-12 Digital Network Ready for Primetime with help from Ooyala

June 8, 2012 by Greg Quick 2 Comments

The Pac-12 has finally taken the wraps of its pending network effort in time for the advent of the 2012-2013 BCS football season with the revelation of the Pac-12 Digital Network that it created in partnership with Ooyala.

We reported on the early plans of the Pac-12 at the start of the start of the year as the conference started filling out its management team for the Pac-12 Enterprises, the body that will be handling the network and now more details have come forth.

This is part of an ongoing trend in schools as networks that support your sports teams, and academics are increasingly important as a source of coverage and revenue for the institutions and more and more conferences are forming them.

From its inception the goal has been to make the network more than simply a television broadcast arm of the Pac-12 and instead make it a tool to reach fans in a manner that meets their needs. SO it includes capabilities for tablets, smartphones and the Internet as well as the more traditional television broadcasts that we have all come to know and love.

To bring video and broadcast to all of these devices the Pac-12 teamed with Ooyala, a company that develops cross platform broadcast video solutions and also has a great deal of expertise in monetizing the resulting video.

The two will be developing customizable content that users can use to create a platform that meets their viewing needs. The initial plans are to develop for both Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android platforms.
The various capabilities that will be offered to subscribers of any of the Pac-12 broadcast partners and will enable them to view sports, highlights and other content anywhere in the world. There will be both ad-free and ad-supported content.

The network will broadcast an estimated 850 live games in both men’s and women’s sports and all of the men’s football and basketball games that are not carried nationally. Its broadcasting team will feature celebrities Ronnie Lott, Rick Neuheisel and Summer Sanders.

The Big Ten Network recently expanded to provide a very similar service to its fans with the development of BTN2GO and I suspect that when I take a look at other conferences around the legue we will see similar efforts. What sets this one appart is that it was part of its basic concept and built-in from the ground up rather than added later.

I wonder if this means that there will be a big build-out in wireless networks at stadiums around the league. Once you provide the capability on video I am sure fans will want to see replays and highlights of plays at events they are attending.

Filed Under: Android, Apple, Apps, BCS, Live sports via mobile, Live Sports Video Consumption, NCAA Football, NCAA Hoops, Pac-12, Smartphone, Tablets

National Football Foundation Debuts Website, Mobile Applications

Friday Grab Bag: Apple/Samsung Jury Forms, NFL Cutdowns, Kindle Loses Big Sale

YouTube Deal Will Enhance ACC’s Digital Network

BCS Playoff Gains Approval while ESPN Extends its Rose Bowl Relationship

BCS Playoffs Coming-Will Anybody be Happy?

Pac-12 Digital Network Ready for Primetime with help from Ooyala

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