The NFHS Network said that despite roughly 25 percent of states officially postponing all or the majority of their fall sports and activities, overall live viewership on the NFHS Network is up almost 200 percent year-over-year. Total aggregate live views have increased from 375,000 to 1.1 million in the first two months of the school year.
This past July, the provider of streaming live and on-demand high school sports kicked off its High School Support Program to help schools contend with the fallout from COVID-19. The program includes two free Pixellot automated production units for eligible schools, enhanced revenue sharing to recoup lost funds from gate ticket sales and concessions due to the pandemic, and the ability to make standalone donations directly to high schools.
“The success of the High School Support Program is evident based on the substantial live viewership growth in states that are currently producing athletic events but with limited game attendance,” said Mark Koski, vice president of the NFHS Network. “Our ability to live stream athletics enables us to play a key role in fan viewership while returning an important revenue stream to schools. The program reflects our ongoing commitment to helping our partner state associations and schools manage through these challenging times.”
Koski added that viewership numbers should continue to increase as more sports programs start back in other states, even with truncated seasons.
The NFHS Network has provided over 4,000 free Pixellot units through the High School Support Program since July, bringing the total number of automated production units at schools nationwide to more than 9,000. The Pixellot automated production solution allows every event to be streamed live without requiring personnel to produce the games, thereby eliminating the operational strain created by manual production.
To date, the NFHS Network has distributed over $25 million back to schools and state associations through its subscription revenue-sharing model.
