• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Now worth $200 million, Sarah Jessica Parker credits being ‘one of eight kids that struggled financially’ for her hunger, ambition, and work ethic

2

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

3

Amazon's record Prime Day masks a darker truth: Americans are spending more and getting less

1

Now worth $200 million, Sarah Jessica Parker credits being ‘one of eight kids that struggled financially’ for her hunger, ambition, and work ethic

2

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

3

Amazon's record Prime Day masks a darker truth: Americans are spending more and getting less
TechDigital media

Digital Media Firms Search for Revenue in High-School Bleachers

By
Reuters
Reuters
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Reuters
Reuters
Down Arrow Button Icon
February 1, 2017, 7:47 PM ET
113189810
Football players running on football fieldPhotograph by Erik Isakson—Getty Images
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Digital media companies looking for other sources of revenue growth are targeting high school sports licensing and content deals, hoping to tap into a surge in online viewing and crack a market too fragmented for most traditional networks.

Online viewing offers new ways to reach a rabid fan base of the about 2.5 million scholastic events held each year, according to PlayOn! Sports. Streaming games have a cost advantage over traditional television and produces a treasure trove of data that can be used to market to advertisers, executives said.

Digital platforms seeking to add or license high school sports content include Monumental Sports Network, a digital platform co-owned by Monumental Sports & Entertainment and NBC Sports, and Pluto TV, whose financial backers include German media giant ProSiebenSat.1 (PBSFY), Scripps Networks Interactive (SNI) and Sky Plc.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

Time Warner Inc’s’s Bleacher Report, is searching for ways to identify student athletes and teams with stories that can attract a nationwide audience.

Bleacher Report, which is a unit of Time Warner’s Turner unit, is partnering with Facebook Live and Snapchat on videos featuring heavily-recruited high school athletes “committing” to colleges or universities of their choice.

With millions of events held each year and over 8 million high school athletes across the country, Atlanta-based PlayOn! Sports estimates a revenue opportunity of around $2 billion a year just through live-streaming games.

PlayOn! Sports, which charges $9.95 per month for viewers to watch high school sports, this fall will launch digital ticketing, Chief Executive Officer David Rudolph told Reuters. With digital ticketing, the firm will have access to data on these fans that can be used to woo advertisers and athletic brands.

The Leaders of These Billion-Dollar Companies Met in High School

“This is an audience that you know likes playing sports or is in the market for athletic equipment,” said Vasu Kulkarni, founder and CEO of sports analysts software company Krossover. “You can’t say that about the average NBA fan.”

The challenges of gaining critical mass viewership, however, have led some companies, like Yahoo (YHOO) to steer clear of live-streaming high school games.

“It’s such a hyper local endeavor that it is really difficult to build a business,” said Kyle McDoniel, head of Yahoo’s Rivals.com, which specializes in college sports recruiting.

To snag deals, firms usually have to sign agreements to license the media rights from each school, meaning a lot of legwork for the firms given the various local markets across the United States, executives said.

To address this, PlayOn! Sports has a deal with the National Federation of State High School Associations to livestream all of its post-season games, Rudolph said.

How Playing a Sport Can Get Women to the C-Suite

Washington, D.C.-based Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which owns the Washington Wizards and Washington Capitals, is testing a launch of high-school hockey on its subscription-based streaming platform, Monumental Sports Network.

“High school has always been this untapped giant,” said Zach Leonsis, Monumental Sports Network’s general manager.

Monumental can livestream the games at a fraction of the cost of what it would do a high level, televised production, Leonsis said.

Leonsis estimates that to produce a game with one to three cameras will cost up to $2,000 per game, compared to a high level production which can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. He declined to comment on whether Monumental pays for the rights to livestream the games.

High School Football’s High Dollars

WGL Holdings, which owns Washington Gas, has signed on with Monumental for a year-long deal to be the presenting sponsor of the high school sports coverage.

Often in instances where firms are paying schools to stream their games, they are likely paying only a few thousand dollars—or are entering in some kind of revenue share, said Kulkarni.

To that end, Los Angeles-based Pluto TV, a free streaming service with hundreds of online shows, is looking to buy or license rights for high school sports, said Ken Parks, executive chair.

“We have a big demo of high school aged viewers,” said Parks. “We think there is a great opportunity.”

About the Author
By Reuters
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

stock
InvestingMarkets
How one chip stock reversed the global tech selloff, exposed AI’s ‘memory tax’ and made the case for an entire valuation regime change
By Nick LichtenbergJune 25, 2026
3 hours ago
Larry Ellison quietly gave $45 million to a pro-Trump group—then Oracle landed a starring role in a $500 billion AI buildout
PoliticsLarry Ellison
Larry Ellison quietly gave $45 million to a pro-Trump group—then Oracle landed a starring role in a $500 billion AI buildout
By Sydney LakeJune 25, 2026
3 hours ago
Sundar Pichai
SuccessCareers
Google CEO tells graduates to stop obsessing over first jobs because ‘very few moments are make or break’ in life—a lesson he learned in Vegas
By Preston ForeJune 25, 2026
4 hours ago
Softbank CEO dismisses Elon Musk’s extraterrestrial data center idea in favor of maximizing Earth-side construction now: ‘He who strikes first wins’
AITech
Softbank CEO dismisses Elon Musk’s extraterrestrial data center idea in favor of maximizing Earth-side construction now: ‘He who strikes first wins’
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJune 25, 2026
4 hours ago
VivaTech entrance in Paris.
NewslettersEye on AI
Europe’s AI wake-up call: cybersecurity threats, sovereignty fears, and a growing demand for ROI dominated VivaTech
By Beatrice NolanJune 25, 2026
5 hours ago
Digital transformation technology strategy, IoT, internet of things. Businessman using smart phone with AI and Digital Icons design.
AICFO Daily
Top CFOs warn AI success depends on training employees, not just buying technology
By Sheryl EstradaJune 25, 2026
6 hours ago

Most Popular

Now worth $200 million, Sarah Jessica Parker credits being ‘one of eight kids that struggled financially’ for her hunger, ambition, and work ethic
Success
Now worth $200 million, Sarah Jessica Parker credits being ‘one of eight kids that struggled financially’ for her hunger, ambition, and work ethic
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJune 24, 2026
2 days ago
MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year
Success
MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year
By Sydney LakeJune 25, 2026
12 hours ago
Amazon's record Prime Day masks a darker truth: Americans are spending more and getting less
Retail
Amazon's record Prime Day masks a darker truth: Americans are spending more and getting less
By Nick LichtenbergJune 24, 2026
1 day ago
Ray Dalio just finished a 10-day trip to China. He says global leaders know America ‘doesn’t have what it takes to fight to maintain its empire’
Asia
Ray Dalio just finished a 10-day trip to China. He says global leaders know America ‘doesn’t have what it takes to fight to maintain its empire’
By Nick LichtenbergJune 24, 2026
1 day ago
After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup
Success
After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJune 23, 2026
2 days ago
Ikea’s billionaire founder was so frugal that he bought clothes from flea markets and took free salt and pepper from restaurants
Success
Ikea’s billionaire founder was so frugal that he bought clothes from flea markets and took free salt and pepper from restaurants
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJune 25, 2026
12 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.