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FOX Sports Averages 3.01 Million Viewers for Mountain West Championship

BSM Staff
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FOX Sports Averages 3.01 Million Viewers for Mountain West Championship

The FOX Sports broadcast of the Mountain West Conference championship game featuring the Boise State Broncos and University of Las Vegas Rebels averaged 3.01 million viewers and a 1.6 rating, representative of the largest audience in the history of the matchup. The previous high for the contest took place in 2022 when the matchup between Boise State and Fresno State averaged 1.94 million viewers, albeit it aired opposite power conference championships on Saturday. Data from Nielsen Media Research demonstrates that the Friday night game peaked at approximately 3.51 million viewers from the 9 to 9:15 p.m. EST quarter-hour.

Viewership of the game was up 139% from last year’s matchup between these two teams, which aired at the same time of the SEC Championship Game, according to Jon Lewis of Sports Media Watch. The first iteration of the matchup averaged 1.26 million viewers and a 0.7 rating on FOX as Boise State defeated UNLV by a final score of 44-20. The Broncos achieved a double-digit victory for the second consecutive year over the Rebels in the championship game, securing a 21-7 win that propelled them into the No. 3 overall spot that comes with a first-round bye.

When the game was previously held, the matchup had not determined part of the bracket within the College Football Playoff. Since the tournament has now adopted a 12-team format though, at least one team within the Group of Five conferences is guaranteed to be selected by the committee. The Mountain West game outdrew the American Athletic Conference Championship on ABC between Army and Tulane, which averaged 2 million viewers and a 1.2 rating. Lewis notes that it is the eighth time in 40 head-to-head windows where FOX has outdrawn ABC. Nonetheless, ABC garnered an 11% rise in ratings and a 7% boon in viewership.

FOX Sports is currently in a six-year media rights deal with the Mountain West Conference through which it carries all Boise State home games and the championship matchup. The network’s deal with FOX and CBS is reportedly worth a combined total of $270 million. Earlier in the year, the Mountain West Conference came to a multiyear agreement with TNT Sports in which it gained rights to broadcast 14 live college football games on truTV and Max this past season.

Boise State, along with Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State, will be departing the conference ahead of the 2026 season to join the Pac-12. Gonzaga will also be joining the conference for all sports except football. Nonetheless, the Mountain West will remain together upon its six full members giving a commitment and subsequently adding Hawaii. The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) requires a minimum of eight teams to remain a conference under the governing body.

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

Mike Ricordati: Kirk Herbstreit ‘Makes His Living Talking Down to You’

BSM Staff
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Mike Ricordati: Kirk Herbstreit ‘Makes His Living Talking Down to You’

Kirk Herbstreit, the former quarterback for the Ohio State Buckeyes, has received criticism over the years from fans of his alma mater for the means in which he discusses the program and its supporters. Ahead of the College Football Playoff Selection Show, in which it was revealed that Ohio State would be ranked No. 8 overall and host No. 9 Tennessee for a first-round matchup, Herbstreit expressed that after last year, he learned that he does not have any opinions about anything. Speaking to studio host Mike Greenberg, Herbstreit explained that he does not want punishment for eight months on social media from Florida State University fans on social media, nor does he want to receive any death threats.

Herbstreit has been a member of College GameDay on ESPN for 28 years and has worked as the lead analyst for live game broadcasts of college football since 2006. Outside of these ventures, he also works on Thursday Night Football with Amazon Prime Video alongside Al Michaels and Kaylee Hartung during the National Football League season. Yet Mike Ricordati, the co-host of Common Man & T-Bone on 97.1 The Fan, has emphasized his aversion for Herbstreit despite his platform and mentioned him early on Monday afternoon’s program.

“By the way, I like how everybody’s just discovering now that Kirk Herbstreit’s a douchebag,” Ricordati said. “Like I’ve been talking about this for 20 years. Welcome to my world. Now there’s stuff behind the scenes and there’s personal stuff that goes into my story, but this is a guy who’s always been ashamed of college football fans. This is a guy who makes his living talking down to you. For some reason, people still eat it up.”

Jonathan “T-Bone” Smith, co-host of the program, expressed that Herbstreit has one of the worst character traits in the business. Elaborating on his point, he divulged that Herbstreit is someone who is superficially nice to other people but will speak badly about them behind their backs. The assertion is consistent with opinions he has gleaned about Herbstreit over the years, outlining a purported dichotomy between the fans and those who work with him. Nonetheless, Ricordati has discerned scorn for fans at Ohio State.

“He has disdain for fanbases like ours – he really does – and you can hear it when he talks, and then he plays the victim card,” Ricordati said. “Like, ‘Well, that’s what I get for having an opinion.’ How many shows you need to be on douche?”

Smith emphasized that Herbstreit could follow the paradigm set by play-by-play announcer Chris Fowler in which he declines to give his opinion or selection for matchups since he is broadcasting the action. In fact, Smith articulated that if he cannot stand the heat that comes with the freedom to editorialize on these shows, he should get out of the proverbial kitchen. Later in the segment, Smith relayed Herbstreit’s opinion that it may be better for Ohio State to play on the road during the College Football Playoff rather than hosting the matchup at Ohio Stadium. Ricordati called the discourse asinine and proclaimed that Herbstreit played badly at the university and should know what it is like.

“If you don’t go out and play an awful football game and call an awful football game, that place is the biggest advantage that you have,” Ricordati said. “You want to go to Neyland Stadium for a night game on a Saturday night? You think that’s going to be better than playing in front of your home crowd, you moron?”

Smith added that there is an apparent condescension within Herbstreit’s commentary with an implicit expectation to always give credit to the college football coaches. Furthermore, he conveyed that Herbstreit makes it seem that the fanbase is too stupid to make certain judgments about how the coaches carry out their roles.

“I guess Herbie wants you to come into the game and know nothing about what has happened previously, have no context for what has ever occurred in the stadium,” Smith said. “‘Just get out there, sing your fight song, shut the hell up and then watch this team go out there. You know what? If for four quarters they fumble around and end up not playing well, you shouldn’t be mad about that because don’t you know Ryan Day’s a good coach? Look at his record, you idiot.’”

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

SiriusXM Names Wayne D. Thorsen As Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer

BNM Staff
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SiriusXM Names Wayne D. Thorsen As Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer

SiriusXM has announced the addition of Wayne D. Thorsen as its new Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer in a newly created role.

In his new role, Thorsen will oversee product and technology functions for the satellite broadcaster. He will also oversee the return on marketing and technology investments, according to a statement from the company.

“As a long-time SiriusXM subscriber myself, I have always admired SiriusXM’s platform and its commitment to providing listeners with unmatched content. It is an honor to join this Company as it enters its next phase,” said Thorsen. “This is an important time for SiriusXM, and strong execution will be critical as the Company implements its new strategy. I’m excited to work alongside Jennifer and the rest of the SiriusXM leadership team to turn the company’s vision into results-driven, efficient action, and capture the opportunity ahead.”

Wayne D. Thorsen joins the company after previously working at home security giant ADT. He also previously held executive positions at Google, SoFi, VViacom, and Microsoft, among others.

“We are pleased to add Wayne to the SiriusXM team at this pivotal time for the Company,” said CEO Jennifer Witz. “Wayne is a seasoned leader who brings significant experience driving business development and innovation, and he is well-positioned to help guide the Company through this next chapter as we sharpen our focus on delivering meaningful results alongside greater efficiency.

“While at Google, where Wayne led business development for the devices and services division, Wayne was a wonderful partner for SiriusXM, and I look forward to working closely with him to drive SiriusXM forward.”

The company added that Chief Product and Technology Officer Joseph Inzerillo has departed effective immediately. He was instrumental in the launch of the company’s new streaming app earlier this year.

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

Mark Onwiler Exits 1620 The Zone PD Role to Manage Mizzou Student Media

BSM Staff
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Mark Onwiler Exits 1620 The Zone PD Role to Manage Mizzou Student Media

Mark Onwiler is joining the University of Missouri as the manager of Mizzou Student Media, he revealed on social media late Monday. Under his new role, Onwiler will be responsible for overseeing an organization that features the student-run radio station, digital newspaper and podcast network at the university. As a result, he will be leaving the state of Nebraska where he has resided for 37 years working in a variety of media roles.

“I could not be more excited to work with students who are striving to become the next generation of journalists, broadcasters, and storytellers,” Onwiler said. “Doing so at the university that is home to this country’s first journalism school is icing on the cake. Leaving is hard. I’ve made a great life here with so many people I now consider family. I love you all. I’ll be around. This isn’t goodbye. New adventures await. M-I-Z!”

Onwiler was formerly the program director of 1620 The Zone in the sports talk radio format and News Talk 1290 KOIL in Omaha, Neb. After nine months in the role, he shared on social media that he was unexpectedly in the market for a new job. The NRG Media-owned stations continue to operate under operations manager Steve King and market manager Keely Byars. Before serving as the program director of these outlets, he had worked at 93.7 The Ticket in Lincoln for 10 years, eventually rising to station manager. Onwiler is a graduate of Truman State University and received his Master’s degree attending the University of Nebraska at Kearney.

Dave Tepper, who is the program director of iHeartMedia-owned KOA in Denver, Colo., previously worked in the same role at the station for three years before his departure in August 2018. Mike Thompson succeeded him in the role managing the cluster of stations in the Omaha area, but he chose to step down in 2021 amid the pandemic. David Adams most recently ran the station prior to Onwiler and currently serves as the brand and content manager of 97.9 WRMF and Party 96.3 in West Palm Beach, Fla.

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

Matt Gaetz Slated to Host New Show with OAN

BNM Staff
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Matt Gaetz Slated to Host New Show with OAN

After resigning from Congress and turning down the nomination for Attorney General, former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) is reportedly joining One America News (OAN) for a cable news show.

A report from CNN’s Kristen Holmes says Gaetz is preparing to announce he is joining the cable news channel for a new program simply dubbed The Matt Gaetz Show.

The network has declined to comment on any potential developments, but a show page exists on the channel’s website promoting that a show from Gatez is “coming soon.”

The program is expected to be slotted into the 9 PM ET timeslot, with a launch date in January.

Matt Gaetz resigned from his post in Congress amid the release of an investigation into potential sexual misconduct with minors. He was tabbed as the nominee for Attorney General by Donald Trump after winning victory over Kamala Harris in the 2024 election.

However, after intense public pushback — from both sides of the political aisle — Gaetz subsequently shared he would not seek confirmation and also resigned from the current and incoming Congress after winning re-election himself.

A cable news future would not be out of the realm of possibility for Gaetz. He has previously guest-hosted a primetime program on Newsmax, leading many to openly question whether or not he was interested in a post-political media career.

OAN has at times professed itself to be one of the most ardent supporters of Donald Trump. The network was founded in 2013. At its height, it was available in roughly 35 million homes. However, that figure has dwindled dramatically in recent years as it is no longer has distribution on DirecTV.

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

Luigi Mangione, Alleged Assassin of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson, Has Ties to WCBM 680 in Baltimore

BNM Staff
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Luigi Mangione, Alleged Assassin of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson, Has Ties to WCBM 680 in Baltimore

Police have identified Luigi Mangione as the potential shooter of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson last week. Mangione has ties to the talk radio world due to his family’s involvement at WCBM 680 in Baltimore.

Brian Thompson was shot several times by a person, who police have alleged was Mangione, lying in wait last week outside a Manhattan hotel where United Healthcare was preparing to hold an investor meeting. The shooter then vanished, leading authorities on a chase before Mangione was arrested in Altoona, Pennsylvania on Monday morning.

The station is owned by the estate of Nicholas Mangione, who purchased the station in 1988. Mangione, who died in 2008, had nine children and 37 grandchildren, including the father of the alleged assassin.

The Mangione family is a prominent one in the Baltimore area. Nino Mangione, a Republican state lawmaker in Maryland, previously hosted a show on WCBM 680 before taking office in 2018.

Luigi Mangione is a graduate of the prestigious Gilman School, as well as the University of Pennsylvania. Authorities have identified that the potential motive for the killing stems back to issues related to the death of Mangione’s grandparents.

When reached by Barrett Media for comment on the development, the station offered their condolences to Thompson’s family.

“Unfortunately, we cannot comment on the news reports regarding Luigi Mangione,” a statement from the Mangione family read. “We only know what we have read in the media. Our family is shocked and devastated by Luigi’s arrest. We offer our prayers to the family of Brian Thompson and we ask people to pray for all involved. We are devastated by this news.”

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

Disney Has Streaming Advantages With ESPN That it Must Lean Into

Demetri Ravanos
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Disney Has Streaming Advantages With ESPN That it Must Lean Into

Remember back before the pandemic when streaming television was still “the next big thing”? It was no doubt popular, but it wasn’t as ubiquitous as it is now. 

Back then, just having a streaming service was seen as an essential. Now, you need a streaming strategy and after a whole lot of plans and experimentation, ESPN made a big move last week when it popped up as a tile on Disney+.

This doesn’t mean that ESPN+ will no longer be a standalone service…at least it doesn’t mean that yet. More on that in a minute. It also doesn’t mean the long-planned Project Flagship is dead and buried. It’s merely the best move for the network right now.

Simply put, there are just too many streaming TV services out there. Netflix is the gold standard in terms of reach, but right below it are Prime TV and Disney+. After that, there is a big dropoff to the Apple TVs, Maxes and Peacocks of the world. The drop to the next tier? It’s so much bigger.

I always thought ESPN+ was kind of a hard sell. There weren’t enough exclusive events from the likes of the NFL, NBA, and Major League Baseball. The college sports products were rarely the must-see matchups. ESPN+ definitely had appeal. It just wasn’t particularly broad.

That isn’t a problem though when you have Disney+ at your disposal. The Walt Disney Company knows that it is a super weapon. It’s why, despite the very family-unfriendly nature of shows like Shogun and Say Nothing, Hulu was introduced as a tile on Disney+ a little over six months ago.

ESPN’s streaming future was always somewhat convoluted. Jimmy Pitaro had talked about a number of radically different visions for how fans could stream the network’s content and promised that all of them would be available. 

One of those options, VENU, the proposed skinny bundle partnership with FOX and WBD, has been sidelined by Fubo’s antitrust lawsuit. There are still a lot of digital offerings either coming or available from ESPN. Could the network, and thus the Walt Disney Company, benefit by letting Disney+ do the heavy lifting?

Most people across the industry believe that whenever a fully over-the-top version of ESPN launches, it will be priced at a premium. Streaming’s biggest disadvantage compared to cable is there is still no way to pay one price for everything. It’s a math problem of what gets you the most. For sports fans, outside of Sunday NFL games, a streaming version of ESPN would get them most of the biggest play-by-play properties. That won’t come cheap.

But what is the market for that? Right now, a subscription to Hulu + Live TV is $82 per month. A base subscription to YouTube TV is $73 per month. Neither one is cheap, but for a sports fan, they are good values compared to the rumored $30 or more per month Disney may ask for access to just the ESPN networks. 

Whatever the cost, a fully digital ESPN will be priced at or near the highest end of the streaming spectrum. That will turn some potential users off. Making it a premium add-on to Disney+ instead of its own product may not solve that problem entirely, but it does create the advantage of convenience.

Every time a new Star Wars or Marvel show comes out, there’s the tile encouraging you to buy. Every time your kid asks to watch Moana for the 1000th time, there’s the tile reminding you that you rarely watch cable anyway. 

I’ve always thought that the Walt Disney Company should do a better job of incorporating ESPN into its entertainment universe. (Don’t get me started on the missed opportunity to reopen Epcot’s Wonders of Life Pavillion with an ESPN overlay!) What ESPN+ has to offer right now fits the Disney+ model perfectly. Are you telling me the same person that streams Star Wars: Skeleton Crew wouldn’t give Peyton’s Places a shot?

The top three players in the streaming TV game can offer users the ease of discovery. It’s how their content finds an audience. Hot Frosty doesn’t even become a thing if not for people being on Netflix anyway. That is an advantage Disney should lean into as it gets set to take one of cable’s most valuable properties fully digital.

News Talk Radio Hosts and Sports Talent Have a Tendency to Murder Pronouns

Peter Thiele
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News Talk Radio Hosts and Sports Talent Have a Tendency to Murder Pronouns

I have been listening to a lot of radio these days: different formats, and different disciplines. Radio has been invaded by an epidemic of personal pronoun abuse. Pronouns are a common part of the English language but can lead to confusion to the radio audience. I will give you a few examples of things that have been broadcast in major cities by superior talents. I will keep the names of the pronoun addicts private. I won’t be calling out anyone by name… This Time!

I was listening to a top 10 market NFL play-by-play team. This group was terrific. I was listening to a descriptive presentation of the game, and it was easy to follow along. (I cannot believe how bad some play-by-play teams can be. I swear that I listened to one broadcast where nothing was described or explained…I have another article on that coming up).

The sad thing is that the broadcast team referred to the team that they cover as…’Us, We, Them, They’…The broadcast team often did this in the same sentence. Pronoun dependance can make any broadcast difficult to follow along. I turned on the other team’s play-by-play and it was markedly worse. Pronoun city, plus, zero description of the action. It was horrific that the second crew referenced was one of 32 radio broadcast teams on the radio.

Ok, people listening to any game on the radio or app cannot see the action. The play-by-play voice has a simple job (not simple to do, but to define). That job is to explain everything that is going on in the game with efficient storytelling. Less is more. Stop the clichés. I decided to listen to another team’s broadcast, and it was excellent. I will name this group. The Atlanta Falcons broadcast team is one of the best that I have heard in a while. I knew everything on each play. No clichés. It was strong.

I love jumping into talk shows as I monitor them in the middle of a segment. Why? PPM has clearly demonstrated that at any moment, listeners are turning the show on. Are you keeping people in the loop?

So, I started listening to a major market talent. Again, I won’t say who it is or give the slightest hint of this very capable broadcaster’s identity. The host was telling me about a huge local story. This again was a pronoun-palooza session. The host did toss in the last name of the local official a couple of times. I hate to say this, but most people in that community probably have not heard of this individual except for perhaps local politics junkies.

Being the insider show is a recipe for your broadcast to become a flaccid mess. The host must repeat the name of the person and the subject of the discussion constantly. Resetting is counter intuitive for human beings. If we are at a diner or The Waffle House, the conversation’s original context has already been established. When you are on the air, it is not. The audience is constantly changing.

The job of the host is to lock in every person to keep them listening to the show. If you are a diary market, the data says that the average person may be listening for 40 minutes or more per listening occasion. I can assure you that these numbers are not accurate. While there are major challenges with PPM, the methodology is much more accurate than recall. The average listening time for PPM on a News Talk or Sports Talk station is about 13 minutes per listening occasion. PPM Data also shows us that people are equally likely to start listening at any moment of the hour. Obviously, allowing your new listeners to understand the conversation quickly is a must.

So, here is what you can do. Unless you are using words like me or I, avoid pronouns. The best way to change is with aircheck sessions. You can listen to your show or request that your Program Director help you eliminate pronouns. If you are the Program Director seeking to maximize the footprint of your station’s locally originated programming, start listening for pronoun abuse. It is a thing.

The elimination of pronouns will seem counterintuitive. It just will. You must do that task. Instead of listening to your station or show, the listeners have a myriad of options. It is not just the other radio stations. The listener can easily choose an audio book, a personal playlist, satellite radio, YouTube and more.

If you are the host, I get it. There are mental gymnastics that most hosts put themselves through for a legitimate and wide variety of reasons. But as I have stated often in this column, the worst lie that you can ever tell is the one you tell yourself. I can spend ten minutes with any host and figure out those self-told affirmations that are just not true. I have been in front of wonderful hosts. I have been asked to provide airchecks for many hosts, and yes, some names that you know. I always do this privately. 

I actually love breaking down shows. How long has it been since you airchecked yourself? You don’t need to listen to every show. You don’t even need to listen to one show. Pick an hour, any hour. Start it at 11 minutes after and listen to the rest of that hour. Ok, if a listener was joining you at 11 minutes after the hour, how long would it take for that listener to understand what the heck you are talking about?

It is always about a Listener-Focused Experience.

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

10 Things To Consider When Starting A Podcast

Kevin Robinson
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10 Things To Consider When Starting A Podcast

“Opportunity does not waste time with those who are unprepared”  Idowu Koyenikan in Wealth For All

The NFL season is now past the halfway point, with playoffs on the horizon.

Adjustments to be made – injuries to cover – quarterbacks in question.

Hundreds of hours have been invested in training camps, between game practices and film evaluation.

All for – 11 minutes.

The aggregate number of game-play minutes in the NFL is – 11 minutes.

That’s offense – and defense.  11 minutes of lightning-quick – play.

11 minutes is also the amount of time any one player is on the ice in a hockey game (goalie excepted).

Also – as discovered through digital measurement – the amount of time music radio is exposed to the listener is approximately 11 minutes. 

The same goes for local television breaks (AM Drive) during – say – The TODAY Show.

In audio creation in the podcasting space, experts tell us that superior on-demand storytelling takes about an hour of research for 11 minutes (OK- 10 minutes) of content development.

Non-radio people do not grasp the time investment to build quality audio content and are surprised when we outline the commitment.

When anyone – radio or non-radio – approaches us about developing a podcast, we take them through the following short but effective questionnaire:

1.         Why Podcast

-What is motivating you to Podcast

-What are your goals for the Podcast

-Do you realistically have time to Podcast

2.         Commitment

-Create the TIME to commit to it long-term – consistent schedule

-Prep each cast so there’s no ‘winging it’

-You’ll also need time for post-production and distribution

3.         Practice

-Create a few real-time demos of your Podcast

-After editing the demo play for a few trusted ears – be passionate about the topic

-Develop many topics before launch as a few ideas will multiply with time

4.         Followers

-Do you have a social footprint or database to get followers

-Find one social media platform to dominate initially – add more later

-Which platform is best for your content – Twitter – LinkedIn – Spotify

5.         Respect Time

-Be intentional and focus your Podcast to ONE topic

-No perfect length – TEDx Talks are 20 minutes – less than that

-Write the END first – then work backward

6.         Audio

-Audio is more important than video as sonics ‘print’ better than pictures

-Invest in quality set up – sound soak – microphones – no phone guests

-Use audio effects if necessary to ‘punch’ the audio for consumption

7.         Target

-Define a target podcast consumer and how they need to hear the product

-Who else is in your lane – if crowded, develop further niche

-The smaller or boutique the product – creates passionate first adopters

8.         Promote

-Develop a marketing plan to promote your Podcast

-Partner with other Podcasters (or guests) to megaphone the product

-Utilize web partners to link your Podcast in their blog

9. Distribution

-Create a unique landing page for your Podcast on an existing website

-Decide ONE place for consumption – iTunes – Sound Cloud – Buzzsprout

-E-Blast to your existing database about your Podcast

10. Story

-Tell a story that has a strong OPEN to hook the consumer

-Story should have an open–middle–strong end with pre-sell

-Take a situation that was solved with your service – testimonials

Lukewarm reception on any of these points will likely lead to what is termed Pod-Fade – losing interest — after a few episodes. Most shy away from this sort of preparation thought or lose motivation, experience burnout, or find the time commitment too demanding

Our teams play every day. But what if we had talent invest just 10% of what professional athletes devote to each game, there would be no outcry for ‘compelling content’ and ‘engaged talent.’

Before launching any ensemble media show, have them prep and practice offline in real time on several occasions. We have talent do this in the studio or overnights. You’ll get funny looks, but your brand is certainly worth the hours invested.

The Army calls it The 5 P’s – and the disparity of time in battle engagement vs. training hours is enormous. 

Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance.

British forces comically add two additional – P’s.

Good news!

Crosstown competition isn’t prepping – or preparing like this – either!

Getting your players battle – ready for their 11 minutes.

In those 11 minutes, the listener will hear a world of difference.

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

Amazon Black Friday Game Uses Sports to Move TV Shopping Towards Goal Line

BSM Staff
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What do you give to someone who already has everything? Amazon delivered several gifts to the National Football League as its streaming Black Friday game appeared to firmly establish a new football franchise and a new venue for shopping  at the beginning of the holiday season.

The NFL helped Amazon by scheduling the Chiefs for the day after Thanksgiving. Not only are the Chiefs emerging as the league’s most-watch team, partly because of a devoted Taylor Swift army tuning in for glimpses of their idol as Swift watches her boyfriend Travis Kelce catch passes from Patric Mahomes. The Chiefs are also playing close games, keeping viewers tuned in to see how Kansas will pull off its weekly last-second victory.

Amazon has also done its part. In its years carrying the NFL’s Thursday Night Football, Amazon’s technical expertise has proved that streaming games need not be interrupted by buffering delays and other hitches (Has Netflix, which will stream two NFL games on Christmas Day, reached out to Amazon for tips?) For another thing, Amazon has put together a top-notch broadcast team, with Kirk Herbstreitand Al Michaels in the booth and Charissa Thompson, Ryan Fitzgerald, Tony Gonzalez, Richard Sherman and Andrew Whitworth in the studio.

Already, football fans expect to see a game on Black Friday and will be looking forward to watching year after year, just the do while stuffing themselves with turduckens on Thanksgiving. Viewership was up 41% to 13.5 million, according to Nielsen. Next year, sports fans will have even more to stay home to watch on Black Friday because following football Amazon plans to stream an NBA game as part of a new contract with the league that starts next season.

Moreover, Amazon is good at selling things, and it’s brought this knowhow to the NFL and sponsors.  

According to EDO, which measures the effectiveness of ad campaigns, commercials during Prime Video’s Black Friday game were 6% more effective than the average primetime NFL ad, 51% more effective than ads that aired in Thanksgiving Day NFL games. In addition, they were 74% more effective than the average primetime commercial in primetime broadcast or cable content.

Because they are so effective, Black Friday commercials could be a bargain at the $650,000 to $750,000 advertisers paid for each 30 second spot..

On top of that 30% more Black Friday advertisers used interactive and shoppable ad formats during the game. 

Among the advertisers using interacitve ads was Tostitos. Viwers chould push a button and chips would be added to their Amazon cart. Pressing a button during a State Farm would get you a quote for insurance. Lego, Arby’s, Snyders, Microsoft Surface, Polo, Coca-Cola, Solo Stove also used Amazon’s bells and whistles.

Even the advertisers who didn’t use interactive commercials promoted special black Friday offers and used football related creative with players from the game and announcers from the Amazon Prime Video booth.

“The Black Friday game is changing consumer behaviors for both fans and advertisers as a new sports holiday on one of the biggest shopping days,” said Danielle Carney, Head of Live Sports and Video Sales for Amazon Ads, said in a statement. “Prime Video’s leaned-in audience came ready to engage with our Black Friday advertisers through clicks, scans, and search which resulted in our highest customer engagement on record.”

For decades, the TV business has drooled over the prospect of being able to sell Friends viewers the weather Jennifer Aniston was wearing on the show through some sort of home-shopping gizmo.. Over the years, home shopping technologies have come and gone.

If anyone can get people to skip stores, even on Black Friday, it’s Amazon. And now, Amazon is using the power of the NFL to add fuel to shopping on TV by putting interactive ads in forefront om of more viewers than ever.

Michael Bologna, an interactive ad pioneer who is now chief accelerator at Brightline, watched the Black Friday game and thought it was great.

“It was very clear during that program that the ads were interactive, that there was something different,” Bologna told Barrett Media. “Whenever you see any type of new format in a tentpole event, it’s always going to resonate better.”

Bologna said that with Amazon’s push, “it gave consumers a chance to see the power of interactivity. Those consumers are also advertisers, so I thought it was good for the business and good for the industry.”

It’s not clear whether or not viewers are more or less likely to interact with an ad while watching sports compared to other types of programming.

“People always say that sports is great for anything new, but they really don’t mean sports is great for anything new,” Bologna said. “They mean scale is great for something new, and sports brings scale. Sports brings a large audience and any time you’re trying to introduce a new type of format in the media business, you want as many people to see it as possible.”

Bologna warns that there are still obstacles to widespread adoption of ads by the TV industry. The formats need to be standardized, so they can make one ad that can appear on every platform. There also needs to be transparency about whose watching and what they bought. He warns that some platforms are reluctant to share data.

But the technology will inevitably evolve.

“Amazon is just starting the scratch the surface of that they could potentially do, Bologna said. “They own the e-commerce back end and they own the subscriber on Prime, so merging the two of them is a piece of cake.” He added that now that it owns TV set maker Vizio, Walmart could ramp up interactivity. And Brightline has its own method for working with streamers who want interactivity in their ads.

“We’ll see just how much interactive functionality the average viewer has an appetite for,” Bologna said.

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