The Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association announced the signing of an agreement to join the newly established NFHS Network and the launching of a subscription-based stream model on WIAA.TV to help member schools generate revenue.
The WIAA is one of 31 state associations in the National Federation of State High School Associations to become a charter member of the NFHS Network, the new all-digital network devoted to coverage of high school sports through the Internet at www.NFHSnetwork.com.
The NFHS Network is a joint venture between the NFHS and PlayOn! Sports to expand coverage of high school sports through the Internet at www.NFHSnetwork.com.
The NFHS announced the official launch of the NFHS Network on Aug. 1. Coverage of boys and girls sports will initially be streamed in at least 31 states during the 2013-14 school year. With the forming of the NFHS Network, it becomes the largest aggregated destination for coverage of high school sports in the country. Through a subscription-based digital service available at www.NFHSnetwork.com, more students, parents and fans will be able to watch high school sports than ever before.
The WIAA’s existing television contracts with other media partners for the State Tournaments will not be impacted. Viewing opportunities for NFHS Network events will be posted in the coming months at www.NFHSnetwork.com.
The NFHS Network will be governed and overseen by a combination of NFHS staff, State Association directors and PlayOn executives. The NFHS Network Board of Directors, which will meet quarterly, will be responsible for establishing the budget, selecting events for the NFHS Network, monitoring the performance of PlayOn and distributing payments to Network members, among many tasks.
The five-person Board of Directors selected to govern the NFHS Network include Bob Gardner, NFHS executive director, and David Rudolph, chief executive officer of PlayOn! Sports, who were selected vice-presidents of the NFHS Network Board. The other three members selected for the NFHS Network Board were Jack Roberts of the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA), who was selected chair of the NFHS Network Board of Directors; Mark Beckman, of the Montana High School Association; and Mark Buffington of Buckhead Investment Partners in Atlanta, Ga.
In addition to Wisconsin, the following NFHS state associations will be a part of the NFHS Network as the 2013-14 season begins: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia and Wyoming.
“We believe this is one of the greatest opportunities in the 94-year history of the NFHS as we are able to take advantage of new technology and showcase high school sports and performing arts on a national scale,” said Bob Gardner, NFHS executive director. “We are excited to provide viewership opportunities for fans of high school sports that have never existed before. The NFHS Network will help showcase our primary mission of expanding participation and opportunities for involvement in education-based interscholastic sports and performing arts activities.”
In other web-streaming related news, PlayOn! Sports Midwest, in conjunction with the WIAA and NFHS Network, will assist WIAA member schools generate revenue for games produced and streamed on WIAA.TV by using a subscription-based platform to view games live on the portal.
High school sports enthusiasts may help generate revenue for the participating schools in an event streamed on WIAA.TV with a portion of the $6.95 fee to be directed to participating schools. In addition, an option will be added for fans to contribute donations to the school or schools of their choice when purchasing programming. For each online subscription, PlayOn! Sports Midwest will return approximately 40 percent of the revenue to the schools participating.
A football game of the week available through subscription with plans to stream various other sports during the week will accompany the numerous free live streams produced by the schools participating in the WIAA.TV school streaming program. The subscription programming will be later archived on WIAA.TV and available on a delayed basis at no cost.
WIAA.TV was launched in 2007 with the first live stream of high school games in 2008. The portal has streamed many live State Tournaments, as well as regular-season and pre-State events throughout the years and has been the digital video archive of WIAA Tournament events since its inception.