In an effort to pull more NBA betting fans, and combat a dying fan base, Twitter has announced an exclusive new deal with the NBA. Twitter’s dwindling popularity has recently been highlighted by the release of Pokemon GO. The augmented reality app took less than a week to record more daily users than both Twitter and Facebook. As online consumers are becoming desensitized to the wonders of social media it’s up to those respective companies to re-spark interest into one of our lifetime’s biggest commodities. Facebook has been making strides into the world of instant messaging by acquiring WhatsApp and improving their Facebook Messenger App capabilities. The interest that creates might be combatted by the fact that Facebook is so invested into creating ads and advertising. Twitter seems to be seeking more creative solutions to their lack of growth by introducing exclusive content from the NBA. While some basketball fans could care less, NBA betting fans in particular should pay heed to the exclusive content as any advantage in information could result in a smarter gamble on NBA futures.
The new deal states that the exclusive content will feature a free live stream of a new pre-game weekly show. These pre-game shows will be designed to help ignite conversations on Twitter, helping both spark interest in the NBA and Twitter’s interface. The NBA has also announced plans to release an additional show for the 2016-17 season. Although it hasn’t released too many details for the second show it is clear that the show will be exclusive to Twitter.
This deal isn’t something completely new; rather it is an expansion of the NBA and Twitter’s preexisting partnership. Last year Twitter showed an interest in creating exclusive content by signing a deal with the NFL. The NFL decided to stream 10 games, all Thursday night games, within the 2016 regular season completely free on twitter. Thursday night games are generally easy to watch as they are usually streamed on ESPN or FOX and users don’t need an NFL pass to watch those games. Nevertheless this deal impacts sportsbook users who will now be able to access those games with greater efficacy.
The NBA isn’t just looking to increase its influence on Twitter; it’s attacking on all fronts of social media. Part of the agreement between the NBA and Twitter will include increased content for Twitter’s daughter companies. Periscope (a live streaming service owned by Twitter) and Vine (an Instagram of sorts that’s exclusive to videos; also owned by Twitter) are also set to receive massive increases in content from the NBA. In particular this content will feature exclusive videos from the biggest events in the NBA, (All-Star game and Playoffs) as well as player interviews, and even behind the scenes access to all 32 NBA teams. Basically this new partnership will feature all the content fans are looking for except the actual live stream of NBA games.
Twitter should find moderate success in this financial venture as the NBA is currently pulling 22.4 million followers on the social media site. While both parties are expecting this contract to end lucratively they aren’t the only ones who can benefit from this new enterprise. Having exclusive access to behind the scenes moments might just give NBA betting enthusiasts that edge they were looking for.
