Two years ago, bombastic ex-Microsoft exec Steve Ballmer dropped $2 billion to buy the Los Angeles Clippers. Part of what made it look like a good investment at the time was that it was projected that the local broadcast television rights might be worth north of $100 million per year once the team’s long-term contract came up for renewal—but as the negotiations worked out in recent months, the top offer was a paltry $60 million.
Instead of settling for that, the Seattle Times has reported that Ballmer is going a pretty dramatic and new route. The team will be the first in the league to keep their own online streaming rights, separated from a local television broadcast deal, and they’ll be using those rights to launch an extensive online-only content channel.
The Clippers online network, created in collaboration with LA-based sports-data company Second Spectrum, will provide more than just typical game footage. Some concepts suggested include POV cameras of specific players, real-time data analysis and options for experience customization.
“The real opportunity, if you will, is to augment reality as people are watching the game,” the Times quotes Ballmer as saying at a recent public event. “Can you put yourself in the position of [Clippers power forward] Blake Griffin? What does it look like? What does the game in question look like in real time from his perspective?”
While that type of viewing experience might still be a bit down the road, the basic idea makes sense. Sports broadcasting deals can be for a decade or more—and team owners back in 2006 did not account for how many of us would end up cutting the cable cord by the point. Holding on to the streaming rights for the coming decade seems like a sound call for the Clippers.
Ballmer has gone on to hint that the team could potentially go online-only and not cut a broadcast deal at all, opting instead for an in-house subscription service, perhaps priced around $12 per month, but it’s expected he will ultimately work something out with Fox to keep the team on the air, while owning the ‘second screen’ himself. Whatever happens, if the move works out, you can expect lots of other team owners to follow in the coming seasons.