FOX Sports San Diego to Televise "Battle on the Midway"

FS San Diego Picks Up TV Rights To Hoops Game On Aircraft Carrier

By John Ourand, Staff Writer

FS San Diego picked up the rights to the "Battle on the Midway" men's basketball game that will take place Nov. 9 on the flight deck of the USS Midway aircraft carrier. Rights fees for the game were not disclosed. Syracuse and San Diego State will play in the game, which will be carried on FSN networks and its affiliates. Fox will produce the game along with Syndicus Entertainment. Because it is a neutral-site game, it is not subject to existing TV contracts, making it available to Fox. Last year, ESPN telecast the "Carrier Classic" between North Carolina and Michigan State on the USS Carl Vinson.

FOX's Sun Sports goes LIVE for Miami HEAT Championship Celebration

With the Miami HEAT being crowned NBA champions for the 2nd time in franchise history, it was only fitting for FOX’s Sun Sports to party on— Miami style. On Monday, June 26, Sun Sports culminated a historical championship season for the Miami HEAT by airing the Miami HEAT Championship Celebration victory parade.

Fox Denies Report of New TV Deal with the Miami Heat

FEELING THE HEAT: Fox Sports is disputing a Forbes report that alleges the company is close to negotiating a local TV rights extension with the Heat that would be worth between $80M and $100M. "There's no truth to the report whatsoever," said Fox Sports VP/Communications Chris Bellitti. Sources told THE DAILY that Fox Sports-owned Sun Sports is in the middle of a long-term deal with the Heat that is not scheduled to end for several years. Forbes quoted "sources familiar with the negotiations" in its report (John Ourand, SportsBusiness Daily)

FOXSportsOhio.com Coverage of Kent State University's College World Series Appearance Drives Traffic

FOXSportsOhio.com has been following Kent State University's journey to the College World Series.

When the Golden Flashes defeated No. 1 seeded Florida 5-4 on Monday, the website's coverage got national attention. Writer Zac Jackson's latest article, "Another unlikely hero for Kent State," was featured on MSN.com. With 10-12 times more unique hits than the average daily traffic on the site, Jackson's piece received the most hits so far for the month of June.

The article tells the story of Kent State's Jason Bagoly, DH and junior back-up catcher, who had gotten 2 hits in Monday's big game. He was preparing to head home the following Tuesday to attend his mother's funeral service. You can read the full story here.

Kent State's success has also driven a lot of positive social media conversation.

"Freeway Series" Gives Boost to Dodgers and Angels Ratings

With interleague play in full swing, the Angels and Dodgers play each other twice during the month of June.  The two Los Angeles area teams played in Los Angeles from June 11 to June 13^th with a return series in Anaheim June 22-24.  Two of the three games last week aired on PrimeTicket, averaging a 2.49 (+23% vs. the Dodgers season average of a 2.02).  All three games aired on the Angels’ home RSN (FOX Sports West), averaging a 1.65, up +62% compared to the Angels’ season average (1.02).

(Courtesy of Gavin Laurie, FSN Research)

Recent FSOhio Social Media Hits

FOX Sports Ohio has created a hashtag campaign: #SawItOnFSOhio

Tweet gives network marketing props in promoting Joey Votto’s guest appearance on the Dan Patrick Show.

FOX Sports Ohio Girls attended the Reds-Indians game at Cleveland’s Progressive Field and got some Twitter recognition from Indians 2B Jason Kipnis. They also met Cleveland Browns RB Trent Richardson.

FOX Sports Ohio Girls unveil new “I ‘like’ FSOhio” shirts as gift to Dad for Father’s Day.

Reds Ratings Sizzle on FOX Sports Ohio

The TV ratings for the Cincinnati Reds on FOX Sports Ohio continue to heat up.

Here is an article posted in the CincyBizBlog of the Cincinnati Business Courier.

Cincinnati Reds fans flock to TVs, ratings soar

By Steve Watkins

Winnings has its rewards.

The Cincinnati Reds Cincinnati Reds Latest from The Business Journals Bench, MiLB head talk baseball before All-Star GameBig Red Machine makes up core of all-time Reds teamCincinnati Reds attendance jumps, ahead of MLB pace Follow this company have generated one of the top three TV ratings among Major League Baseball Major League Baseball Latest from The Business Journals Independence steps up to the All-Star plate, seeking economic winKansas City suburbs largely sit out of All-Star Game flurryCelebrities join lineup for baseball’s All-Star weekend Follow this company teams, a little more than a third of the way through the season.

Reds games have averaged an 8.4 household rating this season through 58 games, according to Fox Sports Ohio. That means an average of more than 8 percent of all local households tuned in to some part of the Reds’ games this year.

The St. Louis Cardinals St. Louis Cardinals Latest from The Business Journals 10 Minutes with Wally AltesSt. Louis Character: Kent SkorniaPhillies announce next Wall of Fame entrant Follow this company , Detroit Tigers and the Reds lead the pack among the 30 MLB teams, Fox Sports Ohio said, with each within 0.1 rating point of each other as of June 15.

The Reds’ recent hot streak has boosted ratings. They’re 10-6 in June and have opened a 3 1/2-game lead in the National League Central Division. That helped lift TV ratings to 9.5 in June. Monday night’s opener of a three-game series against in-state rival the Cleveland Indians generated a 12.8 rating, their highest since Opening Day, Fox Sports Ohio spokeswoman Kate Buddenhagen said.

Additional media has taken an interest in Reds ratings, including the Cincinnati Enquirer, Yardbarker.com, and Redleg Review. (click each to see their coverage.)

Contest to Select New FOX Sports North Girl Receives 150 Applicants & Over 18,000 Votes

FOX Sports North is excited to introduce Kaylin and Angie, the new FOX Sports North Girls who joined Jenny to make a trio.

Jenny’s former partner Paige stepped down to pursue further education, so FOX Sports North launched a public search for the “new FOX Sports North Girl” via FOXsportsnorth.com.

With so many great applicants (150 total) and an outpouring of fan support (over 18,000 votes!) the regional sports network decided to go with TWO new girls.

• The new Girls were introduced on June 7
• Kaylin from St. Paul, Angie from Minneapolis
• Jenny has been a fan ambassador since October 2011

The new threesome has already had a busy few weeks:

FOX Sports West Secures Long-Term Deal With Stanley Cup Champion LA Kings

To cap off an incredible Stanley Cup Championship run by the eighth seeded Los Angeles Kings, FOX Sports West delivered 4.5 continuous hours of live parade and rally coverage to Southern California sports fans. The live broadcast and web stream aired just one week following a new rights announcement between the long-time partners.

(l-r) TV Analyst, Jim Fox; TV Play-by-Play & Hockey HOF Member, Bob Miller; Host, Patrick O'Neal

Reds Ratings Continue to Sizzle on FOX Sports Ohio

The hottest team in the NL this past week was the Cincinnati Reds who have won 6 straight games on two consecutive series sweeps. The Reds are now a season best 11 games over .500 and continue to maintain a 4 game lead in the NL Central.  On Sunday the Reds delivered a 10.2 HH Rtg. on FOX Sports Ohio from 1-4:15p and was the #1 sports program of the day (#2 overall) ahead of the Final Round of the U.S. Open on NBC-WLWT and Game 3 of the NBA Finals on ABC-WCPO, both of which aired during primetime. This rating marks the highest rated daytime game for the Reds this season and has helped the June average to a 9.2 HH Rtg. If that rating holds up, that month would be the highest rated ever for the Reds on FS Ohio. 


(Courtesy of Brian Traynor, HTS Research)

FOX Sports North Hosts Social Media Night with Twins; #MNTwins Hashtag Trends Nationally

FOX Sports North teamed up with the Minnesota Twins to host a social media night on Friday, June 15 from Target Field. 

With approximately 25 local social media ”experts” in attendance at Target Field (hosted on the Twins private deck) the goal was to generate online dialogue with fans  inside AND outside the ballpark.
FOX Sports North's Twins telecast was turned into a multi-media platform.

• Multiple live in-game hits from the social media deck
• Special guests, including the FOX Sports North Girls, interviewed on the current social media conversation
• Twitter crawl with fan tweets scrolling at the bottom of the TV screen
•  Conversation exploded online - #MNTwins was trending nationally (above “US Open”) by the sixth inning.

Additional details follow...

The Conversation

FOX Sports North promoted multiple social media topics, encouraging everyone to find a reason to join the conversation:

• #MNTwins: Join the conversation surrounding tonight’s game, your tweet might show up as part of our telecast.
• Ask @thisisspan: Have questions for Denard Span? Post them with #MNTwins, we might ask him your question in tonight’s postgame show.
• #Postgame: Tweet your suggestions for tonight’s post-game instructional and stay tuned for Twins Live post-game to see which we choose.

Graphics / Mentions

The FOX Sports North producers promoted the #MNTwins conversation via custom graphics and in-game mentions

Tweet Crawl: #MNTwins tweets appeared at the bottom of the screen. (Direct to Lyric, through Phizzle, implemented by FOX Sports North)

Custom Graphic: Created to educate fans about Twitter, drive awareness. (including a list of all of current Twins players and  FOX Sports North on-air talent on Twitter)

Live Hits / Interviews

FOX Sports North Girls: Jenny, Kaylin and Angie joined the conversation live at the top of the 3^rd.

Minnesota Twins Corporate Communications Manager: Chris Iles was interviewed from the social media deck

Twins Players: Outfielder Denard Span answered questions submitted by fans via Twitter during Twins Live postgame

Others Social Media Experts: Including a number of local media personalities, mentioned and interviewed throughout the telecast

Fox Sports Launches Media Campaign in San Diego: "Our Home. Our Team."

Update:  NORTH COUNTY TIMES

MAFFEI: Fox Sports San Diego turning up heat on Time Warner

FS San Diego Takes Aim At Time Warner Cable With Ad Campaign

By John Ourand, Staff Writer

Mobile billboards are part of FS San Diego's campaign against TWC

FS San Diego has launched a marketing campaign aimed at Time Warner Cable, the area's second-biggest cable operator. TWC has not reached an agreement with Fox to carry the channel, which launched at the beginning of the MLB season. Using the campaign theme of "Our Home. Our City.," Fox Sports bought ad time in print (the San Diego Union-Tribune and the North County Times), radio and mobile digital billboards. Fox also is employing street teams and staging public events. The network would not say how much the campaign costs, only calling the cost "significant."

"We want to remind Padres fans that they have choices if they are being blacked out and can¹t see the games," said FS San Diego Senior VP & GM Henry Ford. "At the end of the day, we're hoping Time Warner Cable values San Diego sports as they clearly seem to value sports in other markets, including Los Angeles."

FOX Sports South Gives Social Followers Exclusive, Behind-the-Scenes Access to Braves Alumni Weekend

Throughout Braves Alumni Weekend, which began with the John Smoltz Hall of Fame Luncheon on Friday, June 8, and ended on Sunday, June 10, with alumni photo sessions before the game, we wanted to give our social followers behind the scenes, exclusive access to John Smoltz and the many alumni taking part in the events surrounding the weekend.  We posted live ceremony quotes, Instagram pictures and Viddy videos, giving our fans a look “behind the curtain” throughout all of the weekend’s events.

TWITTER SENTIMENT:

Below are some examples of the responses we received on Twitter, reflecting fans' overall sentiment that they really enjoyed the content we were producing and the coverage we gave them of the Smoltz Ceremony and the entire weekend.          

• @FOXSportsSouth thank you for all the#Braves coverage. watching you now, NOT missing Smoltzie's number retirement#FSBraves
• @FOXSportSouth Dale Murphy [was my fav alum] by far. It didn’t matter if the #Braves lost every game, me and my dad would watch every game to see Murph perform
• @FOXSportsSouth Great Viddy look-in! (viddy.com/video/ee3ad70b…)
• @FOXSportsSouth Great Viddy clip of John Smoltz. Can't wait to see more! (viddy.com/video/63aa1c3d…)

METRICS:

TWITTER:

424 mentions of #FSBraves in 3 days (two days of which were games on Peachtree TV in metro Atlanta so had no #FSBraves on air promotion)

191 new @FoxSportsSouth followers

76 new @SportSouth followers

FACEBOOK REACH:

Total Reach: 40,908 (# of impressions based on Likes, Comments and Shares and each participant’s social reach)

New Followers: 176

Total Content Likes: 807

Total Comments: 62

Total Shares: 10

SAMPLE ALUMNI WEEKEND POSTS from our FACEBOOK PAGE: facebook.com/FoxSportsSouth

Leo Mazzone talks Bobby Cox and Smoltz. Catch the Smoltz ceremony live! 7:00 on Fox Sports South.

Reach: 2426 

Likes: 16, Shares: 1

John Smoltz's #29 now hangs with the Braves greats at Turner Field.

Reach: 2576

Comments: 11, Likes: 109, Shares: 1

Braves Allstars in red led by Dale Murphy vs. 1992 Braves in white led by John Smoltz at the alumni softball game at Turner Field. Who will win?

Reach: 1666

Comments: 6, Likes: 32, Shares: 1

If you missed last night's pregame special on FS South, you can watch the entire Smoltz number retirement ceremony on our website.

Reach: 1292

Likes: 29

Francisco Cabrera delivered the big hit to drive in Sid Bream with the winning run in Game 7 of the 1992 NLCS. He signs autographs for the fans on Sid Bream Bobblehead Day.

Reach: 3511

Comments: 3, Likes: 76

Phil Niekro picks out his lumber.

Reach: 5794

Comments: 2, Likes: 138, Shares: 1

Bream, Cabrera, and Marsh are honored at Turner field for one of the greatest plays in Braves history. The slide on October 14,1992 that won the National League Championship series against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Truly unforgettable!

Reach: 1583

Comments: 1, Likes: 28, Shares: 1

Joking around after Sid Bream threw the ceremonial first pitch for today's game against the Toronto Blue Jays.

Reach: 1633

Comments: 1, Likes: 18

Last day of Braves Alumni weekend at Turner Field! Photo booths are set up around the park for fans to get pictures with their favorite former Braves. These two are all smiles with Dale Murphy, Marquis Grissom, and other Braves alumni!

Reach: 2287

Comments: 1, Likes: 18

FOX's Sun Sports Rallies with Rays Broadcast Auction

With Rays ratings up +62% YOY on FOX’s Sun Sports this season, fans in Tampa continue to tune in and support their team.

On Wednesday, June 13, the Rays game vs the visiting New York Mets was the annual Rays Broadcast Auction, which gave viewers the opportunity to bid on some amazing experiences online and through the broadcast. All proceeds benefit the Rays Baseball Foundation and Tampa General Hospital's Children's Medical Center.

FSKC partners with Royals for Broadcast Auction benefiting Royals Charities

FOX Sports Kansas City helped the Kansas City Royals raise nearly $80,000 Wednesday during the third annual Broadcast Auction benefiting Royals Charities. 
 

Time Warner Cable Beats Out Comcast to Post the Lowest Programming Cost per Video Sub per Month at $30.51

Wednesday, June 13, 2012 4:51 PM ET 
Q1 MSO programming costs post fastest growth since 2009

By Michelle Ow

The influence of escalating retransmission fees and increasingly costly sports rights pushed programming costs among three of the largest MSOs up 5.1% year-over-year in first quarter 2012, the fastest annual growth since the 8.7% increase in first quarter 2008.

Unless regulatory pressures or other competitive factors emerge, programming costs are unlikely to decrease; full-year programming costs are still projected to grow in the mid-to-higher single digits, and most likely on the higher end of that figure.

The cost of programming each video sub rose more than $2 in first quarter 2012 compared to the same period in 2011, or up 6.9% on average year over year to $31.61 per month. Comparatively, revenues generated per video sub averaged just more than $75 per month in the quarter.

For the first time since we began tracking the quarterly metric in 2007, Time Warner Cable Inc. beat out Comcast Corp. to post the lowest average programming cost per video sub per month at $30.51. Programming costs per sub also grew at the slowest rate since the first quarter of 2008. Time Warner Cable projects that programming costs per sub will grow 8% to 9% overall in 2012, including the impact of its Insight acquisition, which closed in February.

Time Warner Cable performed best among its peers in keeping video revenue growth apace of programming cost growth. The cost of programming a video sub rose by 4.9% year over year, compared to a 3.2% increase in video ARPU in the first quarter. As a result, the cost of programming a video sub grew 1.5x faster than the residential video revenues generated per video sub.

At Charter Communications Inc., programming a video sub grew 6.4x faster than the monthly residential video revenues generated per sub. The gap stems from an absence of video rate increases in the first quarter. The first full-month impact of rate increases is expected to fall in the second quarter of 2012. As a result, monthly programming costs rose 9.4% year over year to $37.82 per sub, while monthly residential video revenues rose just 1.5% to $71.89.

Comcast programming costs grew the fastest compared to Charter and Time Warner Cable, up 5.4% year over year to total $2.08 billion in the quarter, but slower compared to its programming cost increase in first quarter 2011 (up 5.9%). The increase raised the expense of programming a video sub by $2.19 year over year, to an average of $31.01 per month.

The gap between programming cost increases and video revenue increases widened just slightly this year. Programming per sub grew at about 2x the rate of video revenues per sub in the first quarter of 2012, up slightly compared to a 1.8x ratio in the first quarter of 2011.

The increase in first quarter 2012 was driven by de rigueur rate escalators and by Comcast's aggressive plans to extend and expand content onto multiple platforms. A number of scheduled carriage renewals should contribute to faster growth rates in the upcoming quarters.

Multichannel Market Trends is a regular feature from SNL Kagan, offering exclusive research and commentary.

Tigers Continue to Roar in the Ratings for FOX Sports Detroit

The Detroit Tigers tour of their NL Central neighbors made their next stop in Chicago to play at Wrigley Field against the Cubs for the first time since 2006. Detroit viewers clearly loved seeing their team play along the ivy because Tuesday night's 11.8 HH Rtg. was the 2^nd best rated game this year on FOX Sports Detroit (doesn’t include Opening Day game simulcast with WJBK).  This rating is made more impressive seeing that it went up against Game 1 of the NBA Finals and cleared ABC-WXYZ’s delivery by nearly two rating points to be #1 for the day for HH’s and several key demos. Through 54 games this season, the Tigers are 45% year-to-year, this despite having 5 less wins than at this time last year.


On Wednesday, the Detroit Tigers leveled their series with the Chicago Cubs and put together a 2nd consecutive rating of an 11 or greater on FOX Sports Detroit with an 11.4. This game was the #1 rated program of the day in HH’s and across men and adult demos.

(Courtesy Brian Traynor, HTS Research)

FOX Sports Ohio Facebook Sweepstakes Draws Over 2,000 Entries in Just Two Weeks

For two weeks in May, FOX Sports Ohio viewers could enter to win the Lunch Bunch Sweepstakes, presented by Cincinnati Bell Fioptics. The prize was lunch with Cincinnati Reds outfield Drew Stubbs, Reds Live host Jim Day, and the FOX Sports Ohio Girls, as well as a 46" television.

To enter, fans had to "like" the FOX Sports Ohio Girls on Facebook and complete an entry form located at the Lunch Bunch tab on the Girls' facebook page.

The contest was promoted on air during Cincinnati Reds telecasts on FOX Sports Ohio as well as on the network's and the Girls' Facebook and Twitter pages. The promotion also garnered some blog coverage: Yardbarker, Red Hot Mama, Cincinnati Buzz, & Redsball.com

In the two-week window, the sweepstakes had over 2,000 entries and new Facebook likes!

The winner, Eric McGuire, redeemed his prize on June 7 at the Moerlein Lager House in Cincinnati.

From L to R: Sara, Eric McGuire (winner), Kristine, Jim Day, Hallie, Drew Stubbs

While at the event, FOX Sports Ohio Girl Kristine was able to chat with Drew Stubbs and ask him some questions, a few which came from their Facebook fans. Check out the video below.

Popular "Play Along With FSOhio" Increases Web Registration

"Play Along With FSOhio" is a game on FOXSportsOhio.com where fans can compete against other fans in predicting player and team outcomes before and during Cincinnati Reds games. The top three players get their names displayed during Reds Live post-game show.

The game has been running each Tuesday as part of the Cincinnati Reds broadcast on FOX Sports Ohio.

Since debuting on April 17th, it has been the 5th most popular page on the site, amassing over 68,000 page views and leading to a surge in user registrations.

More importantly, it has spurred a ton of registrations. In two and a half years, between 10/01/09 and 4/17/12, 6031 people registered for the site. In just two months since then, site registration has grown by more than a third, with 2,080 new users registering, most of who have opted in to receive emails from FOX Sports Ohio.

For details on how to play the game, click HERE!