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In the latest sports website profile, S&T talks to Eric Handler of College Sports TV Networks (CSTV) about the company’s successful collegiate-focused website, CSTV.com, otherwise known as CollegeSports.com.  US-based CSTV Networks is a multimedia company that consists of the first-ever 24-hour college sports television network, College Sports TV; the leading college sports online network, CSTV.com; and the first ever 24-hour college sports radio network, SIRIUS College Sports Radio. Through its numerous platforms, CSTV provides more live college sports games, events, news, information, analysis and broadband content, and reaches more college sports fans, than any other company in the US.
Buoyed by its unparalleled coverage of the March Madness basketball championships, as well as its ability to extensively cover all college sports through a mix of multimedia and editorial packages, the CSTV.com broadband network has continued to set records in traffic, its number of affiliates, streaming events and online stores, and in online store revenue.
The CSTV broadband network now includes a record 183 affiliate colleges, universities and athletic conferences and associations, including 56 schools represented in this year's men's and/or women's basketball tournaments. Among the affiliates are Illinois, Louisville, Michigan State and North Carolina, as well as Duke, Tennessee, Washington, Kansas, Boston College and Georgia Tech. Recently added affiliates include SMU, Rice, Conference USA, Xavier, the Big East and USA Baseball.
According to Nielsen//NetRatings NetView, in March 2005, total page views for the four weeks ending 27 March increased by 35% compared with the four weeks ending 27 February (112m page views versus 82.7m). Average weekly unique users for the month of March increased by 31% compared with the month of February (2.1m unique users versus 1.6m. The site covers more women’s sports than any other network in the US, which is reflected in a healthy female demographic of users.
Commenting on the network’s popularity, CSTV’s Eric Handler says: “We are the only website that provides live automated statistics for college sports. A graphical interface includes in-game statistics and scores, play-by-play data, team stats – who is on the court etc. All in realtime and free.” Furthermore, one-to-one interviews with the biggest names in US college sports are a stalwart of the network. “No-one covers college sports as extensively as CSTV.com,” adds Handler. “We offer a variety of ways for fans to connect with their colleges – e-mail newsletters, stores and online chats. All these different components make for a compelling online experience.”
During February and March, NCAA March Madness on Demand, powered by CSTV.com, provided exclusive live streaming video of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament games, along with video highlights and press conferences from the tournament. NCAA March Madness on Demand also included live in-game statistics, scores and play-by-play, and chat rooms for each game, providing fans with personalised, interactive online experiences. Fans could log on to CSTV.com or NCAASports.com for additional NCAA March Madness on Demand subscription products, priced at $19.95. The coverage was provided as part of a multi-year agreement between CSTV, CBS SportsLine.com and the NCAA for the exclusive video streaming rights for out of market game coverage of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship beginning with the 2005 tournament.
A subscription package also exists for other areas of the network, billed at $6.95 per month or $49.95 per year, for a College Sports Pass. “New revenue streams for the network include auctions and merchandising through the online stores,” adds Handler. CSTV.com official online stores The CSTV.com broadband network online store revenues increased by 45% in March 2005. CSTV.com produces official online athletic stores for 100 college, universities and athletic conferences, including Illinois, Louisville, Michigan State, North Carolina, defending national football champion USC, Kansas and Notre Dame. CSTV.com's official online stores contain 50,000 products, the widest selection available anywhere in the US.
The official online athletic store for North Carolinian college Tar Heel set a single-day record for sales of national championship merchandise for the side within 15 minutes of the Tar Heels' 75-70 victory over Illinois in the national basketball championship final on 4 April 2005. Within 30 minutes of the Tar Heels' win, the store, located within the official North Carolina athletics site www.TarheelBlue.com, had tripled its previous single-day sales record.
Among the hottest-selling officially licensed North Carolina ‘national champion’ merchandise available at www.TarheelBlue.com included:
· 2005 North Carolina National Champions Nike Locker Room hat (worn by the team immediately after the game)
· 2005 North Carolina National Champions Nike Locker Room t-shirt (worn by the team immediately after the game)
· 2005 North Carolina National Championship ‘I Was On Franklin Street’ t-shirt
· 2005 North Carolina National Champion ‘Ram in the Hoop’ and ‘Hidden Ball’ t-shirts. CSTV.com live event cover age The CSTV.com broadband network provides live streaming video and/or audio services to 68 colleges, universities and conferences, including Illinois, Louisville, Michigan State, North Carolina, Michigan, Penn State, Kansas, Stanford and Texas Tech, as well as the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and Pac-10.
CSTV.com has already presented live video or audio of more than 5,500 college athletics events this academic year, a record, including games, press conferences and coaches shows.
CSTV.com has already covered more than 12,100 college games live this academic year, also a record, through its exclusive GameTracker Live feature, which provides fans with live in-game stats, scores, play-by-play and summaries. GameTracker Live has been providing real-time coverage for schools such as Notre Dame, Ohio State, North Carolina, Georgia and USC.
CSTV.com provides GameTracker Live coverage for 145 college and universities for 14 sports: men's and women's basketball, football, baseball, softball, men's and women's volleyball, men's and women's soccer, field hockey, men's and women's lacrosse and men's and women's ice hockey.
“It’s amazing how robust our network is,” says Handler. “It’s all about connecting with the fans.” Why college sports? It is undisputable that college sports are big business in the US, with alumni following the progress of their teams with immense passion and dedication. “You get a certain sense of electricity at a college sports event that you don’t get anywhere else,” explains Handler. “If you follow college sports, you tend to root for the entire school. This contrasts with the professional leagues where often fans root for individual players.” According to Handler, around 120m people in the US have graduated or attended college and will therefore have an allegiance to that school. “It might start with following a sport that was participated in, but then the fan usually starts to follow other sports played at that college, both on television and online.”
There are regional anomalies in terms of which sports are most popular at certain schools (“there’s a lot of tradition involved”), adds Handler.
“At the end of the day, it’s about reaching out to colleges and fans and using technology to connect college sports fans with college sports.” And with the CSTV Network celebrating its second birthday at the time of writing and growing day-by-day in traffic and member sits, the Network has certainly identified a ‘niche’ that is here to stay. Table: The Markets With The Most Loyal College Sports Fans Louisville
Oklahoma City
Lexington
Columbus, Ohio
Birmingham
Knoxville
Raleigh/Durham
Wichita/Hutchinson, Kan.
Tulsa
Cincinnati Source: CSTV, from Scarborough Research (September 2004); based on a survey involving 202,000 respondents representing all 50 US states
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