Sporting News is relaunching its website, SportingNews.com as “Sporting News Feed,” focusing coverage on breaking news and trending topics in the MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL, NCAA Basketball, NCAA Football and NASCAR.
Yahoo! Sports has the exclusive rights to syndicate Sporting News Feed, and will likely become a major traffic driver for the revamped site.
Nationwide Insurance has signed on as the launch sponsor of the new site.
The move comes just a few weeks after Sporting News sold one of its most-visited blogs, The Sporting Blog, to startup SB Nation. Now that decision makes more sense, given the direction executives at the company seem to be interested in taking the website.
“Our goal in re-launching SportingNews.com and creating Sporting News Feed is to change the way avid fans follow breaking stories – we’re re-emphasizing the ‘news’ in Sporting News in a real-time, multi-media approach,” saidJeff Price, President and Publisher of Sporting News. “We’re also looking forward to working with CineSport, extending our sales relationship with their industry-leading sports video syndication network to deliver unique video advertising solutions on Sporting News Feed. When sports fans and advertisers think about what we’re doing, it is essentially an ESPNews 2.0 offering on the web for avid fans.”
The press release announcing the relaunch is after the jump.
SportingNews.com Re-launches as Sporting News Feed, Focuses on Breaking News
Site launches with Yahoo! Sports as exclusive distribution partner and extensive Facebook integrationNew York – August 17, 2010 – Sporting News announces the re-launch of SportingNews.com as a new content distribution platform, branded Sporting News Feed. Launching today with Nationwide Insurance as launch-day sponsor, the new site will focus exclusively on in-depth coverage of breaking news and trending topics in Sporting News’ seven core sports: MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL, NCAA Basketball, NCAA Football and NASCAR. For avid sports fans, Sporting News Feed will make it easy to get up-to-the-minute perspective on major stories including original reporting and real-time video as well as curated recommendations to the best related content available across the web. The site has also been constructed to allow fans to follow stories over time – including one-click timelines around the major milestones of evolving stories.
Yahoo! Sports will have the exclusive right to distribute Sporting News Feed content on a national basis, thus becoming an important traffic partner and driving fans deeper within Sporting News Feed content for additional insights and commentary on the top stories of the day. Digital aggregation innovator, PublishThis, has built a custom tool for Sporting News editors to package related links from around the world of sports, a complement to the original multi-media reporting from Sporting News’ award-winning editorial team.
Sporting News Feed will connect fans through direct integration with popular social media platforms. The site will utilize a vast array of Facebook social plugins including Like buttons on story, sport, player and team pages and Activity Feed plugins showing users what stories their friends are sharing as well as the most popular articles on the site. In addition, Twitter, Yahoo! Buzz and Rowdy.com will provide additional opportunities for fans to interact with their friends in valuable conversations as they follow stories of mutual interest.
In an effort to deliver avid sports fans an immersive experience around the key news of the day, a major point of emphasis on the new site will be breaking news video. Produced in partnership with CineSport, the leading producer of syndicated sports video highlights and commentary in the US, delivering an average of 13MM unique visitors per month (comScore), Sporting News writers and other national and local insiders will offer their immediate insights as well as direct interaction with players, coaches and executives around the major stories of the day.
Advertising opportunities surrounding Sporting News Feed will include standard IAB units, custom rich media and compelling video opportunities including pre-roll and companion advertising. SportingNews.com can also guarantee unique reach into its avid sports fan base with a custom Surround Session opportunity, complete ownership of the Sporting News Feed entry page as fans follow a topic, wherever they enter the site. Sporting News Feed was designed by Omnigon.
“Sporting News Feed will deliver avid sports fans the most comprehensive destination in the US to follow the biggest sports stories of the day in our seven core sports,” said Benson Taylor, Managing Editor of Sporting News Feed. “Our reporters and editors will do the heavy lifting for fans, providing context around these stories through our original reporting and curating recommendations to the best related content from across the web, including our competitors.”
“Our goal in re-launching SportingNews.com and creating Sporting News Feed is to change the way avid fans follow breaking stories – we’re re-emphasizing the ‘news’ in Sporting News in a real-time, multi-media approach,” said Jeff Price, President and Publisher of Sporting News. “We’re also looking forward to working with CineSport, extending our sales relationship with their industry-leading sports video syndication network to deliver unique video advertising solutions on Sporting News Feed. When sports fans and advertisers think about what we’re doing, it is essentially an ESPNews 2.0 offering on the web for avid fans.”
“SportingNews.com has been a long-time content partner of Yahoo! Sports, and we believe Sporting News Feed will continue to provide timely news and information about the stories our users care about most,” said Kyle Laughlin Head of Sports at Yahoo!.
“By integrating with Facebook social plugins, Sporting News is providing sports enthusiasts with a customized experience and real-time updates on the latest news in sports,” said Justin Osofsky, who leads media partnerships for Facebook. “Whether watching with friends or wearing your team jersey, sports have always been inherently social. By building with Facebook, now Sporting News is now bringing that social context to their website.”
“Online and mobile consumption of information is clearly moving away from a text-only model in favor of one that is anchored by video,” said CineSport CEO Gregg Winik, “Sporting News Feed will give fans instant access to premium sports content in a compelling, multi-media presentation.”
“With the Sporting News Feed, Sporting News will deliver sports fans a unique 360 degree view of the best sports content across the web,” said Matt Kumin, CEO of PublishThis. “We are thrilled to have Sporting News as an initial launch partner utilizing our next-generation publishing platform to power the Sporting News Feed as part of this exciting new digital chapter in their long history.”