Channel to Feature Original Shows Starring Some of the Most Talented
Digital Influencers
NEW YORK & VANCOUVER, British Columbia–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The National Basketball Association (NBA) and digital entertainment
company BroadbandTV (BBTV) today announced their new YouTube channel, NBA
Playmakers, which features a slate of original shows starring NBA
players and digital influencers.
The NBA Playmakers channel is composed of original programming that
mixes digital celebrities and their fanbases with NBA players and teams.
Creators in the NBA Playmakers network will attend some of the league’s
marquee events, including All-Star, the NBA Draft and NBA Summer League,
granting them behind-the-scenes access to produce exclusive content.
“This community of creators has become part of the NBA family and has
helped us connect with fans in a new way,” said Jeff Marsilio, NBA
Senior Vice President, New Media Distribution. “We’re excited to launch
this channel to further reach and engage our passionate fans through
unique content.”
“We continue to build and grow NBA Playmakers to become the strongest
digital ecosystem for the basketball community and culture,” said Ben
Pickering, VP Strategic Business Development, BroadbandTV. “Producing
compelling original content with professional athletes and top digital
talent is an important strategic move for the NBA Playmakers brand and
there is real value for all constituents, spanning digital influencers,
NBA players, brands, advertisers and ultimately the viewer.”
With a variety of joint productions by the NBA and BBTV as well as
influencer-produced shows, topics will include basketball culture,
fitness, training, entertainment, fashion, gaming and more. The series
also will be cross-promoted on the NBA’s social media outlets and
YouTube channel, with a combined global community of 1.5 billion likes
and followers. NBA-produced NBA Playmakers content includes an exciting
lineup of shows and will feature creators, celebrities and NBA players.
Joint productions by the NBA and BBTV for Playmakers shows include:
- “Run
That Back,” a reaction and commentary-driven series featuring
content from NBA history, both recent and from NBA legends. - “Jump
Start,” a fireside chat series between Playmakers around skills,
players, teams, and iconic moments with a comedic and personal bent. - “On
the Court,” an on-court training and casual games show featuring
some of the most prominent creators on social media.
Influencer-produced NBA Playmakers shows include:
- “NBA
Breakdown,” a technical and in-depth look at what makes NBA
players so good at what they do, hosted by an NBA Playmakers skills
expert and aided by NBA on-screen technology. - “Best
of Sneakers,” a weekly sneaker series hosted by an NBA Playmakers
sneakerhead, diving into their top sneaker favorites of all time, at
key events, or even from the week’s biggest games. - “Community
Mixtapes,” slickly stylized by Golden Hoops and MaxaMillion, these
mixtapes feature a creator spin on their favorite moments from
players, teams, and games throughout the season and throughout history.
“My YouTube channel ‘In the Lab’ is all about inspiring and motivating
people through basketball. I’m excited to partner with BBTV and the NBA
to create high caliber content to engage with our community and
fanbase,” said InTheLab YouTube creator Devin Williams, who currently
has 386K subscribers and 1.4M Monthly Views.
The BBTV and NBA relationship began in 2009, with BBTV managing
fan-uploaded NBA content on YouTube. The two organizations then launched
the NBA Playmakers network in 2016 to provide the creator community and
NBA fans the opportunity to produce and distribute basketball culture
content with exclusive access to NBA resources such as select NBA
footage, tickets to games and special events, and merchandise.
About the NBA
The NBA is a global sports and media business built around four
professional sports leagues: the National Basketball Association, the
Women’s National Basketball Association, the NBA G League and the NBA 2K
League. The NBA has established a major international presence with
games and programming in 215 countries and territories in 50 languages,
and merchandise for sale in more than 100,000 stores in 100 countries on
six continents. NBA rosters at the start of the 2018-19 season featured
108 international players from 42 countries and territories. NBA
Digital’s assets include NBA TV, NBA.com, the NBA App and NBA League
Pass. The NBA has created one of the largest social media communities in
the world, with 1.5 billion likes and followers globally across all
league, team, and player platforms. Through NBA Cares, the league
addresses important social issues by working with internationally
recognized youth-serving organizations that support education, youth and
family development, and health-related causes.
About BroadbandTV
BroadbandTV is a digital entertainment company which exists to empower
creators and inspire audiences. BroadbandTV generates 34.6 billion
monthly impressions, and is the third largest video property in the
world – in terms of unique viewers – following only Google and Facebook
as of August 2018. Its leading digital video networks include: popular
kids content brand, HooplaKidz; number one hip-hop and electronic music
destinations, Opposition and WIMSIC; TGN, the largest and most engaged
community of gamers worldwide; Outspeak, for influencers passionate
about covering current events in politics, entertainment, lifestyle,
business, technology, and more; and NBA Playmakers, geared to reach
targeted and engaged audiences from sports, to how-to and fitness, and
basketball culture in partnership with the NBA. In June 2013, leading
European entertainment network RTL Group acquired a majority stake in
BroadbandTV. Both companies also formed an ongoing strategic partnership
to accelerate the global growth strategy of BroadbandTV. www.bbtv.com
Contacts
NBAJacinda OrtizDigital Communications Manager[email protected](212)
407-8022
BroadbandTVDan GambleHead of PR & Corporate
Communications[email protected]+1778
873 0422
