Twitter has entered into an agreement with Pac 12 Networks to make the platform the main partner for Pac 12 Plus, a broadband network that will stream live events from UCLA, USC and the other 10 schools in the meeting, as announced on Thursday. During the 2016-17 academic year, no fewer than 150 playoffs are to be streamed live to fans over Twitter.
More exposure for sporting events
Games will also be available to watch live on university athletic sites and pac-12.com. The proclaimed deal with Pac 12 covers school-produced Olympic sporting events, which typically don’t get the same level of income for a school as football or men’s basketball. Such Olympic sporting events include baseball, volleyball, gymnastics, swimming and diving.
“The Pac-12 Networks’ collaboration with Twitter reflects our ongoing commitment to increasing exposure for Pac-12 universities and their live, school-produced events,” Pac-12 Networks President Lydia Murphy-Stephans said in a statement. “By expanding our digital footprint, Pac-12 Plus also allows us to connect more fans with more, live Pac-12 sports content through a platform they use every day.”
The timetable of the Pac-12 events to be streamed live on Twitter will be settled near the start of the college sports season.
Twitter expanding live-streaming portfolio
This is the third live-streaming deal Twitter has cracked to enlarge its platform this week. The San Francisco-based company with Bloomberg Media declared a deal on Tuesday to live-steam multiple Bloomberg TV programs and the media network’s hourly market coverage. On Monday, a deal with CBS to live-stream this month’s Republican and Democratic Conventions was made public.
“Twitter is the best ever way to find out what is happening in live sports,” Twitter’s chief financial officer Anthony Noto said in a statement.
The Pac-12 deal likewise extends Twitter’s inclusion in live-streaming sports. A week ago, it live-streamed the Wimbledon finals, and in the spring, it entered into a $10 million deal with the NFL to live-stream its Thursday night football games.
Since the NFL agreed to stream a live game on Yahoo last season, live-streaming has been maintaining its growth on social media. In November, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and San Francisco 49ers Chief Executive Jed York visited Silicon Valley to discuss additional opportunities with several platforms.
On Thursday, Twitter shares closed up 1.24% at $17.96. Year to date, the stock is down more than 19%, while in the last year, it is down almost 49%. The stock has a 52-week high of $37.09 and a 52-week low of $13.73.
