Does the NBA Believe its Download Store Will Work?

Authored by Scott Goldberg on May 10, 2007 - 5:51pm.

So I’m supposed to pay $3 to watch a game from last season on my computer? And $13 for a playoff game? But hell, I can get the entire playoffs for $80, so why not? What a joke. Who knows if we’ll ever find out the level of success achieved by the NBA download store, which was introduced today. And what would define its success? It’s just another revenue stream, after all, not a business model.

Of course David Stern, the Commish, will tell us it’s a hit. And NBA execs will pat themselves on the back for being so tuned in to new media. On its YouTube channel launched in February, more than 14 million clips have been streamed. Note to the NBA: People streamed those clips because they were free.

At his “State of the NBA” speech this year, Stern spoke of the league’s plans to explore new mediums for marketing. One question: What’s wrong with giving away old content for free? Doesn’t that market your game just fine? We don’t pay for live games, so we’ll pay for old ones because…why?

Okay, so a handful of “classic” games will make up for the 99% that stunk (and even the playoffs, for the most part, have stunk).

The model doesn’t make sense. Why are entertainment providers like the NBA so bent on nickel-and-diming fans when the free model has proven time and again an excellent way to market? Check out this idea for free marketing and tell me it isn’t brilliant: Japanese vending machine offers free drinks for watching ads

The other valuable thing about free content is you can control the product and manipulate its presentation without pissing anyone off. People say the NBA game is garbage and it hasn’t been the same since Magic, Larry, and MJ ran the league. So make some classic 80s games available and place them prominently. Add some commentary and show young fans how the game ought to be played. And why let the Pistons-Pacers and Nuggets-Knicks brawls become the most downloaded games, as they certainly would? Give away the gems, leave out the crap. Put together a Steve Nash highlight film to demonstrate the value of the pass. Show why Marcus Camby is one of the best shot blockers the league’s ever had. This isn’t rocket science, is it?

But if you have to charge, make it juicy. Charge me a buck for a clip of the best looking NBA wives and girlfriends to ever attend a game. Cut together the 10 greatest coaching rants of the last twenty years. Show good players getting dunked on. Give me Marv Albert’s 10 best quotes.

All we want is a little creativity. You have so much footage, there has to be a better and more lucrative way of showing it. Don’t cram a turd sandwich down our throat with no dessert to follow and hand us a bill for $10. Give us something special. Go beyond expectations. That can’t be too much to ask.

Scott Goldberg

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Comments

It's a shame too. I'd

Submitted by Tim (not verified) on May 12, 2007 - 4:39pm.

It's a shame too. I'd probably buy quite a few of these games - if not for the DRM and the poor resolution (400 x 300). But what good is video of a whole game if you can't watch it on a TV. I'll watch clips on a computer, but not a 2-hour game.

Very true...

Submitted by Tan The Man (not verified) on May 13, 2007 - 11:18am.

Clips create better buzz appeal anyway.