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Speaker 1: This is the Bloomberg Business of Sports show, where we

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Speaker 1: explore the big money issues in the world of sports.

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Speaker 1: I'm Scarlett fo Unfortunately Michael Barr and Damion Sasauur are

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Speaker 1: off this week, but fortunately for me, sitting in for

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Speaker 1: them is the former Business of Sports host, the one

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Speaker 1: and only Jason Kelly.

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Speaker 2: So good to be here, Scar. I always love teaming

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Speaker 2: up with you.

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Speaker 1: You and I talk a lot about sports. Every time

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Speaker 1: you walk by my desk or I walk by your desk.

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Speaker 1: I know you've been busy with Vanessa Perdomo on Next

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Speaker 1: and Sports, examining some of the big sports that are

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Speaker 1: kind of on everyone's radar, but also Power Players, where

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Speaker 1: you talk to key people across the sports landscape.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, thank you for mentioning that yet. That show will

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Speaker 2: debut on September twenty six with Charlotte Jones obviously one

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Speaker 2: of the owners of the Dallas Cowboys, carl Lloyd, Alison

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Speaker 2: Felix all coming up in that season, So check that

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Speaker 2: out on Bloomberger.

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Speaker 1: I love the fact that those are all women too.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, listen, it's the Power Center.

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Speaker 1: Well we have another woman coming on another Power Center

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Speaker 1: of power Player really coming up on the show, We're

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Speaker 1: going to learn about what's next in the world of

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Speaker 1: sports from Jenna Corre. She's VP of Startup Partnerships and

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Speaker 1: head of Comcast NBCU Sports Tech. What her unit does

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Speaker 1: is look for and fast track the most innovative sports

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Speaker 1: related startups around the world.

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Speaker 4: I think one of the great examples in our current

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Speaker 4: cohort is Aircast, and they allow you, when you're in

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Speaker 4: the venue on your mobile device to be able to

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Speaker 4: see alternative camera angoes, listen to the broadcast audio and

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Speaker 4: create a more immersive experience so you feel like you're

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Speaker 4: the producer while you still have the grandeur of the

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Speaker 4: sport happening on the field in front of you with

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Speaker 4: those cheering fans.

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Speaker 1: That and more on the way on the Bloomberg business

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Speaker 1: of sports. But first, Jason, We've got to talk about

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Speaker 1: the biggest story in I would say, not just college football,

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Speaker 1: but it feels like sports overall, and that is Deon Sanders.

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Speaker 2: His name is everywhere, Yeah, the former superstar NFL cornerback

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Speaker 2: and baseball player. I took over as the head coach

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Speaker 2: of the Colorado Buffalo's.

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Speaker 3: They were a.

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Speaker 2: Team that barely won. They won one game last season.

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Speaker 2: Now they are dominating the landscape, not just on the field,

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Speaker 2: but even more so off the field. He is the

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Speaker 2: biggest name in sports right now.

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Speaker 5: Sanders off his backfoot cock first down and more down

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Speaker 5: the sideline.

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Speaker 2: Stop Riston Edwards touchdown?

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Speaker 3: Colorado?

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Speaker 2: Whoas over.

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Speaker 4: Fools?

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Speaker 5: Would it.

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Speaker 1: Mean? Dion Primetime all of that, and he's doing it

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Speaker 1: with his sons, which is an even more remarkable story.

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Speaker 1: It's a big part of Colorado's turnaround and its success

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Speaker 1: this year. It's an incredible story so far, and it'll

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Speaker 1: be featured in the next issue of Bloomberg Business Week

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Speaker 1: as of one of the big stories Bloomberg. A sports

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Speaker 1: business reporter, Randall Williams is here now. He co authored

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Speaker 1: this with Ira Budwey, and he's going to take us

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Speaker 1: through his work on the piece and the growing legend

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Speaker 1: of coach Prime. Randall. For those people who may not

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Speaker 1: be up to date on everything that Dion Sanders had

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Speaker 1: been doing, why is he attracting so much attention right now?

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Speaker 5: Well, he's on a national stage now. That's the biggest difference.

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Speaker 5: He was doing some of the same things at Jackson State,

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Speaker 5: and Jackson State hadn't been as successful as when he

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Speaker 5: was there, and now he's at Colorado, he's playing on

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Speaker 5: national airwaves and quit. Frankly, Colorado had been abysmal. They

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Speaker 5: were horrible. And when you face against the national champion

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Speaker 5: runner up and you beat them on their home field,

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Speaker 5: then you play Nebraska and it's like, ah, whatever, we'll

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Speaker 5: see and they beat Nebraska handedly. Then the Colorado State game,

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Speaker 5: they were supposed to blow them out. I would argue

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Speaker 5: that the outcome of that game worked in their favor

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Speaker 5: because it was almost like a movie the lead up

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Speaker 5: to it, the comments from j Norvel, and then you

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Speaker 5: have a double overtime game where your son leads a

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Speaker 5: ninety eight yard drive. It's almost movie like. Yeah, I mean,

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Speaker 5: this is Randall probably the biggest story in sports right now,

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Speaker 5: for sure. I think you could also argue it's the

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Speaker 5: biggest story in the business of sports as well, because

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Speaker 5: so many things are colliding here and you and Iray

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Speaker 5: do such a nice job sort of pulling this all

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Speaker 5: together in this story because it's nil, it's the transfer portal,

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Speaker 5: it's conference realignment all in one. What do you take

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Speaker 5: away from doing all this reporting where it's going to

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Speaker 5: have the most profound effect, or what does it tell

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Speaker 5: us most importantly about what's happening in the world. We

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Speaker 5: are witnessing a changing of the guard in college sports.

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Speaker 5: And the way I say that, the reason I say

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Speaker 5: that is because when you think about historically over the

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Speaker 5: past decade, who the most dominant coaches are Nick Saban, Dabos, Sweeney,

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Speaker 5: Kirby Smart at Georgia, all of these guys who they

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Speaker 5: built their programs off of NFL prospects. Oh, you come here,

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Speaker 5: you do three years, you compete against the best, and

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Speaker 5: you have a chance to go. I mean they have

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Speaker 5: more NFL prospects in Ohio state of course, yeah, than

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Speaker 5: anybody that still matters, but not as much anymore because

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Speaker 5: of name, image and likeness. When you have Deon Sanders,

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Speaker 5: think of all of the ways you are exposed at Colorado.

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Speaker 5: It isn't just in national exposure. It's Well Off Media,

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Speaker 5: which is run by his son, Deon Sanders Junior, which

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Speaker 5: post I think every day. Then you have Prime Video,

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Speaker 5: the docu series that comes out, and then there's Instagram

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Speaker 5: where he's on there and Twitter every single day. So

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Speaker 5: if you do something and in the middle of a practice,

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Speaker 5: he's gonna get up on the podium and he's going

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Speaker 5: to be like I witnessed something incredible from X, Y

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Speaker 5: and Z prospect and who better in the world really

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Speaker 5: to market you as a college athlete because he was

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Speaker 5: playing for the Yankees as a college athlete.

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Speaker 6: Right.

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Speaker 5: So it's one of these things where who's the next Dyon?

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Speaker 5: Could it be ray Lewis is it Warren Sapp who

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Speaker 5: said he was going to join his coaching staff next year.

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Speaker 5: Will colleges look to electric figures across all sports to

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Speaker 5: come in and do some of the same things, because

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Speaker 5: this is just the beginning. We're three games in and

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Speaker 5: one of the things I think there was the Boulder

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Speaker 5: Chamber of Converse said was that he brought in seventeen

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Speaker 5: million dollars in one read. If they beat Oregon this

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Speaker 5: weekend and USC it's going to be Hollywood in Boulder

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Speaker 5: next weekend.

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Speaker 1: So football recruits want to play for Deion Sanders and

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Speaker 1: they're seeking him out because of the national stage, you said,

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Speaker 1: but also because of access to Deon Sanders. What is

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Speaker 1: he able to provide them? And yes, you talked about,

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Speaker 1: you know, the business that his son runs and all

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Speaker 1: of that and the Instagram followers, but what is he

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Speaker 1: able to offer them that they can't get at a

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Speaker 1: traditional football program.

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Speaker 3: It's him. It's him.

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Speaker 5: There isn't you get Nick Sabing proximity too. It's proximity

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Speaker 5: to him. At the end of the day. Is Deon

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Speaker 5: is the cool figure. When you think about the coolest

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Speaker 5: figures in the NFL, A lot of them are quarterbacks

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Speaker 5: over the years, and they go on and do their

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Speaker 5: own thing. But I mean running backs wise, there aren't

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Speaker 5: a lot of guys in coaching, and at one point time,

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Speaker 5: like Mike Singletary was a coach, but it's not the same.

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Speaker 5: Dion is an iconic figure on and off the court,

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Speaker 5: and he's been that way. So even if, like for me,

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Speaker 5: I'm young, I didn't grow up watching Dion, but I

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Speaker 5: knew who he was because I was a football in there.

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Speaker 5: Then on top of that, he's on NFL Network, He's

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Speaker 5: on all these different places, and he's the funny guy

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Speaker 5: on the show. So when the funny guy steps in

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Speaker 5: and he wins at Jackson State, which has a very

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Speaker 5: small athletic budget in comparison to Colorado, then he goes

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Speaker 5: to Colorado and he's putting the world on notice.

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Speaker 6: Why wouldn't you want to be.

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Speaker 5: A part of that that moment because and he would

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Speaker 5: say I think he said when you keep having moments,

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Speaker 5: you become a monument yesterday to Taylor Rooks, which he

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Speaker 5: is not. These things are not rehearsed. I've witnessed them

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Speaker 5: live where it's like he says something that's like, my God,

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Speaker 5: I want to put that as a caption for Instagram. Yeah,

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Speaker 5: there's nobody better than him. If you're a young athlete

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Speaker 5: who a wants to build a business and b wants exposure,

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Speaker 5: he's your guy.

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Speaker 3: He's a platform in and of himself.

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Speaker 2: So, speaking of platforms, one of the most fascinating windows

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Speaker 2: that this program and Coach Prime also provide is a

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Speaker 2: view of the collectives that have come to now be

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Speaker 2: this massively influential economic engine in college sports. Help us

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Speaker 2: understand what those are and how profound a change that is.

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Speaker 5: So collectives and the world of nil and college sports

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Speaker 5: are very fascinating and in some ways funny. Because the

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Speaker 5: NCAAA governs a school, a collective, which can be a

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Speaker 5: for profit entity or a nonprofit entity, are not a

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Speaker 5: part of the school. So the NCAA technically has no

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Speaker 5: governance over collectives. Now, what is a collective. A collective

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Speaker 5: can be It could be Scarlet saying I want to

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Speaker 5: raise money for whatever college. What college did you go to?

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Speaker 5: Or now if Scarlett decided she wanted to raise money

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Speaker 5: for Cornell and said I'm going to go to every

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Speaker 5: rich Cornell graduate and asked them for five hundred thousand dollars.

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Speaker 5: Those that five hundred thousand dollars is then used to

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Speaker 5: pay the athletes through an NIO star right exactly. But

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Speaker 5: it's legal because this is not a part of the school.

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Speaker 5: Now there are NCAA regulations that they try to impose

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Speaker 5: and say you can't do this, you can't do that.

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Speaker 5: But at the end of the day, these are state

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Speaker 5: by state laws, so it's very difficult for the schools

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Speaker 5: to come in and say can I do this?

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Speaker 3: Can I not?

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Speaker 5: For Dion, and he said there's plenty of times he

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Speaker 5: does not want to make his players filthy rich. He

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Speaker 5: would like to help them build brands and represent themselves

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Speaker 5: the way. But I think his thing is if you

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Speaker 5: get filthy rich, how can I speak to you? He

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Speaker 5: can speak to his son. And he said that Shador

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Speaker 5: is going to come back. We'll see. But for Shador,

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Speaker 5: let's say and this is a completely different theory that

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Speaker 5: I have on both him and Caleb Williams, but for

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Speaker 5: both of them, who are probably going to touch at

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Speaker 5: least six million dollars before they go to the NFL.

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Speaker 5: If the Cardinals or the Bears are the number one

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Speaker 5: and number two draft selections in next year's NFL draft,

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Speaker 5: do you go to a franchise that hasn't really shown

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Speaker 5: much over the last fifteen years or so, or maybe

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Speaker 5: three or four years is a better window. Do you

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Speaker 5: go to that franchise in risk having to be the cornerstone?

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Speaker 6: Or do you wait?

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Speaker 5: You pair yourself with the head coach, whether it be

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Speaker 5: Eric b Enemy when he's up for a coaching job,

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Speaker 5: say I'm gonna play my senior season and we'll do

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Speaker 5: this all over again. Yeah, because that's what NIL has

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Speaker 5: the power to do. And it's not just football. It

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Speaker 5: can happen in the WNBA too. To wait, right, you

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Speaker 5: can afford to wait in the past can do it.

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Speaker 2: And so what are the unintended consequences? Do you think

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Speaker 2: of the Dione phenomenon? I mean, play this out. I

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Speaker 2: mean you're a student of this game. You understand the

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Speaker 2: economics as well as anyone I've ever talked to in

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Speaker 2: terms of how this all comes together. What are you

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Speaker 2: seeing as this sort of like filters in Beyond Boulder.

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Speaker 5: The biggest question now is his use of the transfer

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Speaker 5: portal is just ruffling everyone up because Dion, and he's

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Speaker 5: told me this, He's told a bunch of people this.

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Speaker 5: He has the forty forty twenty rule, which is forty

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Speaker 5: percent graduate transfers, forty percent straight from the transfer portal,

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Speaker 5: and then twenty percent from high school recruits, which is

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Speaker 5: not normal at all. I mean normal high school recruits

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Speaker 5: normally make up the bulk of recruiting. But with all

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Speaker 5: of this flux in the ways that you can bring

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Speaker 5: in players, essential free agency at the college exactly exactly.

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Speaker 5: So the question now is will the NCAA change the

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Speaker 5: rules of the transfer portal because of the success that

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Speaker 5: Dion has had And there have been.

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Speaker 1: No no, no, I'm just to be clear. He's not

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Speaker 1: breaking any rules, no, and that's disrupting the way things

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Speaker 1: have been done right.

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Speaker 5: Which I would argue that he's doing the right thing

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Speaker 5: to keep his job because Colorado, like I said, was abysmal.

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Speaker 5: So if he goes in there with the roster that

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Speaker 5: didn't play well, that maybe were all the things that

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Speaker 5: he did not want and he loses, then it's gonna

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Speaker 5: be like, oh, look, he could do it as Jackson State,

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Speaker 5: he couldn't do it at Colorado. So he brings in

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Speaker 5: his own team and they win. But for the next

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Speaker 5: coach that doesn't have that, I can guarantee you there

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Speaker 5: are coaches behind closed doors who are saying, that's not fair.

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Speaker 5: Dion does this. I can't do that because they aren't him.

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Speaker 5: So when it comes to other coaches, Nick Saban and

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Speaker 5: some of these other guys, they have their own set

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Speaker 5: of rules. But for Dion, everyone's pointing the finger right now.

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Speaker 1: Okay, So can you put this in the context of

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Speaker 1: all the conference realignments as well, right the implosion of

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Speaker 1: the PAC ten Big ten becoming ever bigger. How does

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Speaker 1: this fit in? How does what Deon Sanders is doing

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Speaker 1: with the Colorado program fit in with all the changes

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Speaker 1: taking place across college football.

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Speaker 5: So the craziest thing about the PAC twelve right now

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Speaker 5: to me is the fact that.

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Speaker 1: Twelve Pac ten, I mean, it's Pack zero sin exactly is.

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Speaker 5: That when he accepted a job at Colorado, I believe

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Speaker 5: the PAC twelve commissioner came out and said, like one

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Speaker 5: hundred percent effects media negotiations. Six months later, Colorado's out

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Speaker 5: of the PAC twelve, and so in terms of conference

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Speaker 5: realignment and things like that. It affects his pockets in

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Speaker 5: some way because of the fact that Colorado's athletic director

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Speaker 5: Rick George came out and said, we don't have the

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Speaker 5: money to pay him. Well, the new deal with the

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Speaker 5: Big twelve gives color Dorado an increase in money. And

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Speaker 5: don't get me wrong, they were going to make the

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Speaker 5: money regardless because it's Dion. I mean, you'd think if

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Speaker 5: all you have to do is go to one game.

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Speaker 5: And I spoke to someone. I was standing on this

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Speaker 5: pole and the Bubblos have this this pet rally and

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Speaker 5: brings a big old car through and Dion's and his escalade.

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Speaker 5: He gets out. It's very fulling boyant, and I'm standing

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Speaker 5: on his ball and as a guy next to me,

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Speaker 5: and one of the things he said was I had

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Speaker 5: been to over one hundred of these and even when

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Speaker 5: we won a national championship, and nothing is like this,

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Speaker 5: and even just the level of I don't even know

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Speaker 5: what to call it, the level of extravagance for Dion,

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Speaker 5: it's crazy. So in terms of conference re alignment, bringing

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Speaker 5: that all back around, because that was the original question,

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Speaker 5: it matters. But to him in Colorado, they're gonna make

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Speaker 5: it regardless to the other schools USC UCLA. This was

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Speaker 5: one hundred percent of money thing because at the end

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Speaker 5: of the day, usc is probably up until Colorado was

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Speaker 5: going to be the most covered college i'd say over

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Speaker 5: the last five to six years. Because you have a

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Speaker 5: Heisman Trophy candidate who's being compared to Patrick Mahomes and

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Speaker 5: it's Patrick Mahomes. You have Lebron James's son, and I

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Speaker 5: believe there's someone else that I'm missing that all play

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Speaker 5: in Los Angeles. There is no better story up until

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Speaker 5: Dion that was there.

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Speaker 2: And a coach who has poached from the Midwest to

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Speaker 2: make his way, Lincoln Riley. You know they're in southern California.

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Speaker 2: I'm fascinated. I want to go back to something you said,

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Speaker 2: because now it's like like kicking through my brain this

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Speaker 2: notion that Dion's success could ultimately have a profound effect

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Speaker 2: on the coaching position in college football, because this is

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Speaker 2: a you know, this is candidly and I think speaking

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Speaker 2: very plainly, a profession that has been dominated by a

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Speaker 2: very specific type of person. I'll say the quiet part

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Speaker 2: out loud, a white dude who came up sort of

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Speaker 2: through the ranks of college football.

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Speaker 3: There were not a lot of former college players.

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Speaker 5: Certainly, let me jump in. So here's the thing. If

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Speaker 5: you listen to any college coach talk to a college athlete.

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Speaker 5: The issue in college athletics have been has been the

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Speaker 5: fact that a coach can literally determine everything to you,

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Speaker 5: your scholarship, your playtime. If you get off to a

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Speaker 5: bad start with your coach, you're done. And it's not

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Speaker 5: immune to Dion. But it doesn't feel that way. Dion,

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Speaker 5: as he said plenty of times, he doesn't walk in

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Speaker 5: and discuss NIL because he wants you to get to

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Speaker 5: the NFL. There are recruits out there, because of the

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Speaker 5: circumstances of their life, walk in and discuss NIL with

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Speaker 5: coaches and the coaches and don't get me wrong, I'm

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Speaker 5: not alleging that because that's against NCAA rules technically, but

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Speaker 5: there are coaches who will do that. Dion doesn't do that.

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Speaker 5: So when if Dion points out a coach at Jackson

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Speaker 5: State or Florida A and M or a number of

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Speaker 5: other hb use which have black head coaches who speak

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Speaker 5: in the same language as him. Then he can say, hey,

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Speaker 5: you should hire that guy because he speaks in the

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Speaker 5: language of the players. However, will the university get behind

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Speaker 5: it right, because it isn't just a college thing, It's

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Speaker 5: an NFL thing where these football organizations, leagues, conferences have

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Speaker 5: an issue with black men leading teams. Dion, there are

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Speaker 5: arguments that he's an anomaly. He's an anomaly because he's

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Speaker 5: a professional athlete and he's one of the most iconic

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Speaker 5: sports figure, but as a black man, he's not. There's

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Speaker 5: plenty of coaches who can do the exact same job.

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Speaker 1: So Dion obviously didn't start at Colorado. You said he

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Speaker 1: started at another smaller school and he made his way

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Speaker 1: over to Colorado. How long is he going to stay

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Speaker 1: at Colorado?

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Speaker 4: Like?

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Speaker 1: What is next for him? Because I can't imagine that,

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Speaker 1: given how he's just a super nova with you know,

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Speaker 1: all these things orbiting around him, that he's not going

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Speaker 1: to leverage this into something more.

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Speaker 5: I think it depends. It depends on two things. If

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Speaker 5: Shador comes back next year, then I think he's probably

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Speaker 5: guaranteed between two to three years if he goes. If

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Speaker 5: Shaudor declares for the draft, then it's in flux because

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Speaker 5: people don't realize, Like the conversation around Dion and Shador,

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Speaker 5: Shadoor is very very, very very good. This is Shadoor.

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Speaker 5: I I don't know the ages for everyone, but Shador

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Speaker 5: is the person who plays quarterback.

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Speaker 1: Okay, younger, The oldest son is Deon Junior. I think

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Speaker 1: we're talking about it.

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Speaker 5: Deon Junior runs the social media channels. Shiloh, who is

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Speaker 5: older than Shaudor, play safety, and then Shador plays quarterback.

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Speaker 5: But Shador is incredible, and people think like, oh, you

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Speaker 5: know he just got this good. No, he was literally

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Speaker 5: the exact same player at Jackson State. He's improved, he's

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Speaker 5: mentored by Tom Brady. But the thing is bringing in

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Speaker 5: a quarterback to that level is going to be very

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Speaker 5: very difficult because look at look at Alabama right now.

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Speaker 5: They put three quarterbacks on the field in the past

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Speaker 5: two weeks and this is Nick Saban. Nick Zaban at

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Speaker 5: one point in time switched a quarterback at the National

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Speaker 5: Championship game, but he's never done it. In Week two

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Speaker 5: against why I believe it was that doesn't happen. So

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Speaker 5: getting a talented quarterback in the room can determine a

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Speaker 5: lot of things. He's not gonna ever have any issue

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Speaker 5: recruiting cornerbacks. But in terms of what Colorado and the

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Speaker 5: collectives can pay athletes is going to come up now.

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Speaker 5: I think in discussing things with their collectives, they're getting

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Speaker 5: up to speed, but it's nowhere near some of the

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Speaker 5: collectives that have already been established. I mean, some of

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Speaker 5: the comments that have come out from Ryan Day and

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Speaker 5: Nick Saban about hey, like this person's doing this and

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Speaker 5: this person's doing that, and we need to raise this

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Speaker 5: amount of money is because of the fact that they

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Speaker 5: need to keep their roster together. Dion doesn't have that

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Speaker 5: right now. There isn't a list of players on Colorado

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Speaker 5: who are just making a bulk of money. It is Shador,

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Speaker 5: it is Travis Hunter, and it is Shiloh right now,

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Speaker 5: and there's probably some other athletes who have nil deals.

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Speaker 5: But in terms of that upper ECHELN six and seven figures,

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Speaker 5: there aren't a lot of players there right now. And

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Speaker 5: I would say that's because of the the collectives just

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Speaker 5: weren't ready for him. It's hard to prepare in nine

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Speaker 5: months and potentially, let's put the number very small, potentially

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Speaker 5: raise five million dollars. There are other collectors who have

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Speaker 5: put a target of twenty five million dollars, So it

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Speaker 5: all depends.

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Speaker 6: Now.

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Speaker 5: One of the things that I think is fascinating is

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Speaker 5: people are talking about the NFL. I don't think that happens.

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Speaker 1: You don't think gian goes to the NFL.

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Speaker 5: No, not necessarily because of the fact of the motivating factor.

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Speaker 5: There's a level of control that college coaches have over

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Speaker 5: a university and a university and their players. The NFL

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Speaker 5: doesn't happen if you go to the NFL. Basically, right,

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Speaker 5: if you go to the NFL, and we've seen this

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Speaker 5: plenty of times, that's Covin exactly, and even even recently,

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Speaker 5: like I think Lincoln Riley did not he was considered

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Speaker 5: for the Cowboys job, he didn't accept it because of

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Speaker 5: the fact of everything that comes with being the Cowboys coach.

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Speaker 5: You are under a constant level of scrutiny because your

405
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Speaker 5: general manager does more press than you, and so it's

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Speaker 5: one of these things where if he steps into that light,

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Speaker 5: the scrutinization that he may get for losing the next

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Speaker 5: two games is probably fifty times more for the NFL.

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Speaker 5: Now another school, I think it's fascinating, But you go

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Speaker 5: to another school and you're not just the only You're

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Speaker 5: not just the biggest dog in a conference when they

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Speaker 5: go to the Big Twelve, if there's a good chance

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Speaker 5: next year they win the Big Twelve. Right, if you

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Speaker 5: go to the SEC when it's Peyton Manning's son or

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Speaker 5: Peyton Manny's nephew is coming up at Texas and Nags

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Speaker 5: beat Alabama, it's gonna be a tough, tough task and

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Speaker 5: a tall task.

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Speaker 3: I mean.

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Speaker 2: The other issue I would imagine is, you know, does

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Speaker 2: Congress get involved and in what way does the NC

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Speaker 2: DOUBLEA under relatively new leadership start to rain this in,

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Speaker 2: whether it's the collectives, whether it's nil rules, whether it's

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Speaker 2: you know, getting their arms around conference realignment. We could

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Speaker 2: be looking at a moment where big time college football

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Speaker 2: breaks off from the rest of the NC DOUBLEA. So

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Speaker 2: those things obviously are going to have some effect on

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Speaker 2: Deon's future, but also the future of college football.

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Speaker 5: It is truly in all of sports, and I would

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Speaker 5: argue in the business of the world, it is the

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Speaker 5: wild wild West of anything anything goes you can. Nio

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Speaker 5: has made it so that athletes can be paid under

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Speaker 5: the table, legally illegally, depending on what side of the

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Speaker 5: table you're sitting on. You could call one thing legal

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Speaker 5: and the next thing illegal. And as well as the

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Speaker 5: conference of re alignment and these media deals and everything else.

436
00:21:23,440 --> 00:21:26,040
Speaker 5: It's crazy, but it's all about the money at the

437
00:21:26,119 --> 00:21:28,480
Speaker 5: end of the day, because Colorado does not leave the

438
00:21:28,520 --> 00:21:30,880
Speaker 5: PAC twelve. If the PAC twelve gets a media deal, now,

439
00:21:30,920 --> 00:21:34,560
Speaker 5: someone whoever this big sports guy in the PAC twelve

440
00:21:34,640 --> 00:21:37,119
Speaker 5: is right now is kicking themselves because they are the

441
00:21:37,160 --> 00:21:39,639
Speaker 5: most successful conference in college football right now at a

442
00:21:39,640 --> 00:21:42,000
Speaker 5: time where everyone is getting ready to leave. Now you're

443
00:21:42,000 --> 00:21:46,480
Speaker 5: stuck with two schools and you have Deon Sanders, Lincoln Riley,

444
00:21:46,520 --> 00:21:49,120
Speaker 5: Caleb Williams, and Shador Sanders all in the same conference

445
00:21:49,119 --> 00:21:51,920
Speaker 5: and you couldn't get anything done. Yeah, that's crazy.

446
00:21:52,640 --> 00:21:54,719
Speaker 1: So it's amazing that with all these changes, with all

447
00:21:54,760 --> 00:21:56,720
Speaker 1: this uncertainty, with all these things that still need to

448
00:21:56,720 --> 00:21:59,560
Speaker 1: be determined and decided, Deon Sanders can step in and

449
00:21:59,600 --> 00:22:01,760
Speaker 1: make it work for him and that's exactly what he's

450
00:22:01,760 --> 00:22:05,200
Speaker 1: done as a coach of Colorado. Randall, thank you so much.

451
00:22:05,359 --> 00:22:07,800
Speaker 1: Really looking forward to seeing your story on Bloomberg Business Week.

452
00:22:07,960 --> 00:22:09,320
Speaker 5: Thank you, Thank you for having me. It was a

453
00:22:09,320 --> 00:22:10,919
Speaker 5: lot of fun. And shout out to Ira because he

454
00:22:11,000 --> 00:22:13,040
Speaker 5: is incredible and he worked with me on this and

455
00:22:13,160 --> 00:22:14,040
Speaker 5: got a lot of love for him.

456
00:22:14,119 --> 00:22:17,240
Speaker 1: Yeah. Ira Broudway and Randall Williams co writing this story

457
00:22:17,280 --> 00:22:20,280
Speaker 1: in your latest issue of Bloomberg Business Week. Up next

458
00:22:20,280 --> 00:22:22,399
Speaker 1: on the show, we turned to the gaming industry and

459
00:22:22,440 --> 00:22:25,199
Speaker 1: a company that is looking to help prevent or at

460
00:22:25,240 --> 00:22:27,919
Speaker 1: least reduce fraud. That's straight ahead on the Bloomberg Business

461
00:22:27,920 --> 00:22:35,480
Speaker 1: of Sports from Bloomberg Radio around the world. This is

462
00:22:35,520 --> 00:22:37,879
Speaker 1: the Bloomberg Business of Sports Show, where we explore the

463
00:22:37,920 --> 00:22:40,960
Speaker 1: big money issues in the world of sports. I'm Scarlet fou.

464
00:22:41,600 --> 00:22:44,280
Speaker 1: The sports gaming industry is growing by the day, which

465
00:22:44,320 --> 00:22:48,520
Speaker 1: means so too is the opportunity for fraud. Geo Comply

466
00:22:48,880 --> 00:22:51,680
Speaker 1: is a company that helps to protect users and provide

467
00:22:51,680 --> 00:22:55,280
Speaker 1: insight into the gaming industry. So earlier this week, Michael

468
00:22:55,280 --> 00:22:58,400
Speaker 1: Barr and I caught up with Geocomplies co founder, chairwoman

469
00:22:58,480 --> 00:23:01,600
Speaker 1: and CEO and a Saints so you could get her

470
00:23:01,640 --> 00:23:04,040
Speaker 1: take on the state of sports betting as the NFL

471
00:23:04,080 --> 00:23:07,240
Speaker 1: season gets underway. Here is some of our conversation.

472
00:23:07,800 --> 00:23:11,320
Speaker 6: One of us in the room, Well, I've heard rumors

473
00:23:11,880 --> 00:23:18,160
Speaker 6: loves online betting, and you are trying to keep me

474
00:23:18,320 --> 00:23:23,199
Speaker 6: safe so somebody who's living in Bedrock won't try to

475
00:23:23,280 --> 00:23:26,200
Speaker 6: steal my bet. Can you tell me what you do

476
00:23:26,520 --> 00:23:27,560
Speaker 6: and what the company does?

477
00:23:28,520 --> 00:23:33,240
Speaker 7: Sure? I mean, our biggest initiative in the gaming industry

478
00:23:33,240 --> 00:23:35,960
Speaker 7: at the moment anyway, is to make sure that Americans

479
00:23:36,040 --> 00:23:40,639
Speaker 7: have a legal betting option. And therefore that really stands

480
00:23:40,680 --> 00:23:44,159
Speaker 7: for an operator that has a license in your state

481
00:23:44,720 --> 00:23:46,920
Speaker 7: and is legally able to take your bet and make

482
00:23:46,960 --> 00:23:51,920
Speaker 7: sure that your personally identifiable information is held safe and

483
00:23:51,960 --> 00:23:56,320
Speaker 7: that you have services available that you can rely on,

484
00:23:56,440 --> 00:24:00,479
Speaker 7: including payment methods. One of the key considerations here especially

485
00:24:00,480 --> 00:24:03,840
Speaker 7: that we focus on is making sure that those operators

486
00:24:03,880 --> 00:24:06,600
Speaker 7: are only accepting bets within the state that they have

487
00:24:06,640 --> 00:24:09,919
Speaker 7: a license, and that is critical for the market to

488
00:24:10,000 --> 00:24:13,520
Speaker 7: open up and for operators to have legal betting options

489
00:24:13,560 --> 00:24:14,200
Speaker 7: for Americans.

490
00:24:14,520 --> 00:24:17,760
Speaker 1: So you're protecting the gaming companies and you're protecting the

491
00:24:17,920 --> 00:24:23,040
Speaker 1: individual betters as well. One of us exactly, I want

492
00:24:23,040 --> 00:24:28,000
Speaker 1: to identify which one and so when all goes well,

493
00:24:28,040 --> 00:24:30,399
Speaker 1: then everyone can place the bets that they want and

494
00:24:31,359 --> 00:24:35,800
Speaker 1: you know, enjoy the stakes that the betting provides when

495
00:24:35,840 --> 00:24:38,439
Speaker 1: they watch the game. What did you find in the

496
00:24:38,440 --> 00:24:42,399
Speaker 1: first week of the NFL season, What kind of activity,

497
00:24:42,400 --> 00:24:44,800
Speaker 1: what kind of volume did you observe, and how does

498
00:24:44,800 --> 00:24:46,160
Speaker 1: that compare it to the previous year.

499
00:24:46,600 --> 00:24:49,240
Speaker 7: Sure, well, in the first week we had two hundred

500
00:24:49,400 --> 00:24:53,440
Speaker 7: and forty two point three million transactions, but that obviously

501
00:24:53,560 --> 00:24:59,520
Speaker 7: just represents the number of times we are seeing glocation transactions.

502
00:25:00,119 --> 00:25:02,879
Speaker 7: But ultimately what that means is it's a fifty six

503
00:25:02,920 --> 00:25:06,800
Speaker 7: percent increase from last year. And we also saw one

504
00:25:06,920 --> 00:25:11,080
Speaker 7: point one million new accounts, making a total of seven

505
00:25:11,119 --> 00:25:16,280
Speaker 7: point six million active betters in the first week of NFL.

506
00:25:16,920 --> 00:25:21,600
Speaker 6: Some of the customers are with sites such as DraftKings,

507
00:25:21,640 --> 00:25:27,360
Speaker 6: Fan Duel and MGM, and which is important because the

508
00:25:27,480 --> 00:25:32,280
Speaker 6: online better is on MGM. Maybe they had a little

509
00:25:32,320 --> 00:25:35,159
Speaker 6: fear because of what happened to the company because of

510
00:25:35,320 --> 00:25:39,880
Speaker 6: the breach, and you're in there trying to protect not

511
00:25:39,920 --> 00:25:42,439
Speaker 6: only MGM, but the customer is also betting on the

512
00:25:42,520 --> 00:25:43,160
Speaker 6: MGM side.

513
00:25:43,440 --> 00:25:47,600
Speaker 7: Yes, of course, I mean cyber crime and cyber attacks

514
00:25:47,640 --> 00:25:52,240
Speaker 7: are horrible. It's something that we spend a lot of

515
00:25:52,320 --> 00:25:55,359
Speaker 7: time thinking about being in the in the cybersecurity space,

516
00:25:55,560 --> 00:25:59,800
Speaker 7: but ultimately for the online space that MGM has not

517
00:26:00,080 --> 00:26:03,760
Speaker 7: had that impact, right, That was a for MGM resorts.

518
00:26:04,000 --> 00:26:07,520
Speaker 1: When it comes to sports betting, the NFL reigns largely.

519
00:26:07,560 --> 00:26:09,439
Speaker 1: I mean, that is a big show. Everything else is

520
00:26:09,480 --> 00:26:11,360
Speaker 1: kind of small potatoes in comparison.

521
00:26:10,920 --> 00:26:12,320
Speaker 7: Isn't it It is?

522
00:26:13,000 --> 00:26:13,280
Speaker 4: It is?

523
00:26:13,359 --> 00:26:16,920
Speaker 1: Yes, So I ask because the Major League Baseball made

524
00:26:17,080 --> 00:26:19,600
Speaker 1: some pretty big changes to the game this year, and

525
00:26:19,640 --> 00:26:22,080
Speaker 1: we saw a television ratings increase, we saw more people

526
00:26:22,119 --> 00:26:25,480
Speaker 1: attend games. I'm wondering if there was a pickup in

527
00:26:26,160 --> 00:26:30,719
Speaker 1: activity during the baseball season because of the improvements that

528
00:26:30,760 --> 00:26:33,040
Speaker 1: they made to the game on the field, whether that

529
00:26:33,280 --> 00:26:36,439
Speaker 1: got more engagement on the sports betting side.

530
00:26:36,640 --> 00:26:40,240
Speaker 7: That is an interesting data point to look into for us.

531
00:26:40,280 --> 00:26:43,600
Speaker 7: It would be hard to distinguish because we are seeing

532
00:26:43,640 --> 00:26:47,120
Speaker 7: so much growth within gaming. Just as those that were

533
00:26:47,160 --> 00:26:50,960
Speaker 7: betting offshore with illegal books are now converting to the

534
00:26:51,040 --> 00:26:53,960
Speaker 7: legal ones, so that creates a lot of growth. In addition,

535
00:26:54,440 --> 00:26:57,760
Speaker 7: so many new states are opening and so that also

536
00:26:57,840 --> 00:27:00,000
Speaker 7: creates a lot of growth. So the sort of nuance

537
00:27:00,160 --> 00:27:03,480
Speaker 7: of the game changing, that would probably be a data

538
00:27:03,480 --> 00:27:06,200
Speaker 7: point that an operator would be able to dive into

539
00:27:06,200 --> 00:27:07,040
Speaker 7: better than we could.

540
00:27:07,320 --> 00:27:09,840
Speaker 1: Yet when the start of the NFL season comes around,

541
00:27:09,880 --> 00:27:13,000
Speaker 1: it's really clear that that gets everyone jumping in.

542
00:27:13,760 --> 00:27:18,159
Speaker 7: It is I mean, you know, NFL is an amazing

543
00:27:18,240 --> 00:27:21,600
Speaker 7: thing for the sports betting industry. It is sort of

544
00:27:21,640 --> 00:27:25,280
Speaker 7: the season that we follow the curve and make sure

545
00:27:25,320 --> 00:27:27,760
Speaker 7: that we have scaled up our services. Like for instance,

546
00:27:28,119 --> 00:27:32,919
Speaker 7: in the first week we saw sometimes waves of transactions

547
00:27:32,960 --> 00:27:36,880
Speaker 7: per second at four thousand, two hundred, which just sort

548
00:27:36,920 --> 00:27:40,160
Speaker 7: of shows you when there is an interesting play happening

549
00:27:40,200 --> 00:27:43,800
Speaker 7: in NFL, fans and betters are watching that and then

550
00:27:43,880 --> 00:27:47,560
Speaker 7: logging into their sports books each time those plays happen

551
00:27:47,680 --> 00:27:50,560
Speaker 7: because it's so tied together. Those are the types of

552
00:27:50,640 --> 00:27:53,560
Speaker 7: trends we can track an NFL that we haven't seen

553
00:27:53,600 --> 00:27:54,960
Speaker 7: as much in other sports.

554
00:27:55,440 --> 00:27:57,320
Speaker 6: I want to brag about you for a second here.

555
00:27:57,480 --> 00:28:01,840
Speaker 6: You have been recognized as being some one of the

556
00:28:01,840 --> 00:28:06,159
Speaker 6: most influential women on the list in the gaming and

557
00:28:06,280 --> 00:28:11,080
Speaker 6: business industry. First of all, that means you get the

558
00:28:11,200 --> 00:28:13,760
Speaker 6: yes ma'am treatment for me because that you know, I

559
00:28:13,840 --> 00:28:17,280
Speaker 6: tipped my hat. And second of all, can you tell

560
00:28:17,359 --> 00:28:21,879
Speaker 6: us what that means is an impact? You are leading

561
00:28:21,880 --> 00:28:28,119
Speaker 6: the way, helping more women get out there and just

562
00:28:28,840 --> 00:28:30,840
Speaker 6: kick you know what and take names.

563
00:28:31,760 --> 00:28:35,119
Speaker 7: Well, thank you so much. Obviously, it's an honor to

564
00:28:35,200 --> 00:28:39,680
Speaker 7: be recognized. I think more than anything for me, it's

565
00:28:39,720 --> 00:28:44,280
Speaker 7: so wonderful to be recognized for innovation as my team

566
00:28:44,320 --> 00:28:47,440
Speaker 7: and I work so hard to make this market happen

567
00:28:47,560 --> 00:28:49,920
Speaker 7: and to change things for Americans, because it's clear that

568
00:28:49,960 --> 00:28:53,040
Speaker 7: sports betting means a lot too well let's say seven

569
00:28:53,040 --> 00:28:56,560
Speaker 7: point six million Americans the first week of NFL anyway,

570
00:28:57,240 --> 00:29:00,480
Speaker 7: and so being able to work hard and to open

571
00:29:00,600 --> 00:29:04,520
Speaker 7: up market so that legal betting options are available is

572
00:29:04,600 --> 00:29:07,440
Speaker 7: the ultimate thrill. The sort of big push from now

573
00:29:07,560 --> 00:29:11,560
Speaker 7: is to continue innovating, especially in the cybercrime area. So

574
00:29:11,600 --> 00:29:14,720
Speaker 7: in twenty twenty five, it's being reported that cybercrime is

575
00:29:14,720 --> 00:29:18,440
Speaker 7: going to cost the WORLDLD ten point five trillion annually.

576
00:29:19,360 --> 00:29:22,040
Speaker 7: So if we can look into that, it's clearly a

577
00:29:22,080 --> 00:29:25,560
Speaker 7: growing market and has a lot of demands on us totting,

578
00:29:25,720 --> 00:29:28,880
Speaker 7: and one thing I love doing is innovating with lots

579
00:29:28,880 --> 00:29:32,360
Speaker 7: of other female leaders on my team to really sort

580
00:29:32,400 --> 00:29:34,320
Speaker 7: of push that. That's feeling.

581
00:29:34,800 --> 00:29:36,440
Speaker 1: So it sounds like you have a pretty long to

582
00:29:36,520 --> 00:29:38,680
Speaker 1: do list in terms of what you're going to move

583
00:29:39,440 --> 00:29:43,760
Speaker 1: geocomply towards next, I read that GEO complyed did get

584
00:29:43,840 --> 00:29:46,680
Speaker 1: approached to go public in twenty twenty one during the

585
00:29:46,720 --> 00:29:49,400
Speaker 1: spack boom. But this is something that you and your

586
00:29:49,400 --> 00:29:53,640
Speaker 1: co founder David Briggs decided not to move forward with. Instead,

587
00:29:53,680 --> 00:29:57,040
Speaker 1: you went with fundraising from institutional investors like a unit

588
00:29:57,120 --> 00:29:59,880
Speaker 1: of Blackstone. Where do things stand right now in terms

589
00:29:59,880 --> 00:30:03,960
Speaker 1: of of our fundraising? Is going public something you're that's

590
00:30:04,000 --> 00:30:05,040
Speaker 1: completely off the table?

591
00:30:05,320 --> 00:30:08,440
Speaker 7: Fundraising was a great option for us at the time

592
00:30:09,000 --> 00:30:12,040
Speaker 7: SPACs where we're definitely a trend, and we did have

593
00:30:12,080 --> 00:30:15,280
Speaker 7: our door knocked on a few times. But really where

594
00:30:15,320 --> 00:30:18,480
Speaker 7: I'm concentrating at the moment is on innovation. The market

595
00:30:18,520 --> 00:30:22,280
Speaker 7: is growing so quickly and being a public company, although

596
00:30:22,360 --> 00:30:25,120
Speaker 7: it is an amazing thing and probably something that we

597
00:30:25,160 --> 00:30:28,320
Speaker 7: will explore in our future, at the moment, we want

598
00:30:28,360 --> 00:30:31,800
Speaker 7: to focus on where we can innovate, what we can build,

599
00:30:31,840 --> 00:30:33,320
Speaker 7: and getting that to market fast.

600
00:30:34,240 --> 00:30:38,760
Speaker 6: Where do you see online gaming heading in the future.

601
00:30:39,160 --> 00:30:41,760
Speaker 6: I mean, obviously I think more states they're going to

602
00:30:41,800 --> 00:30:43,640
Speaker 6: be joining the online gaming business.

603
00:30:44,200 --> 00:30:47,160
Speaker 7: Yeah, I mean I think that that is inevitable.

604
00:30:47,440 --> 00:30:47,680
Speaker 1: Now.

605
00:30:48,280 --> 00:30:52,080
Speaker 7: I believe we have about legal gaming options available to

606
00:30:52,120 --> 00:30:57,000
Speaker 7: about fifty percent of Americans in almost fifty percent of

607
00:30:57,240 --> 00:31:01,960
Speaker 7: US states plus the district of Columbia, and so I

608
00:31:02,000 --> 00:31:05,280
Speaker 7: think continuing to see growth, especially for the acceptance of

609
00:31:05,400 --> 00:31:11,560
Speaker 7: online sports betting is definitely likely, as well as options

610
00:31:11,600 --> 00:31:15,560
Speaker 7: for cash list gaming and online casino and poker in

611
00:31:15,960 --> 00:31:16,680
Speaker 7: states as well.

612
00:31:17,280 --> 00:31:21,040
Speaker 1: You do have a competitor, another geolocation company called xpoint,

613
00:31:21,080 --> 00:31:24,200
Speaker 1: which has been expanding into the gambling market. What is

614
00:31:24,240 --> 00:31:28,080
Speaker 1: your distinction between geocomply and xpoint? What do you do

615
00:31:28,160 --> 00:31:30,440
Speaker 1: that Xpoint doesn't do well?

616
00:31:30,440 --> 00:31:34,080
Speaker 7: One thing that geocomply has always focused on, which was

617
00:31:34,160 --> 00:31:39,959
Speaker 7: designing geolocation compliance solutions specifically for the gaming industry, and

618
00:31:40,000 --> 00:31:44,120
Speaker 7: that means all of our solutions are configured to adapt

619
00:31:44,160 --> 00:31:48,240
Speaker 7: to each of the different states requirements. And from there

620
00:31:48,320 --> 00:31:51,280
Speaker 7: we have been able to expand into not just solving

621
00:31:51,280 --> 00:31:55,200
Speaker 7: the geolocation compliance problem, but opening up that funnel to

622
00:31:55,240 --> 00:31:59,160
Speaker 7: try and improve the usability and ability for Americans to

623
00:31:59,160 --> 00:32:01,640
Speaker 7: sign on to these sites. And so that looks at

624
00:32:02,000 --> 00:32:04,160
Speaker 7: how can we make sure we have the highest pass

625
00:32:04,240 --> 00:32:08,560
Speaker 7: rates the least amount of friction, How can we solve

626
00:32:08,760 --> 00:32:13,240
Speaker 7: the issues around identifying users online to a high level

627
00:32:13,240 --> 00:32:16,840
Speaker 7: of accuracy. We do that through our idcomply service, but

628
00:32:16,920 --> 00:32:20,640
Speaker 7: we also work with operators and regulators to reduce fraud.

629
00:32:21,560 --> 00:32:24,120
Speaker 7: And so over the last ten years, we've obviously spent

630
00:32:24,160 --> 00:32:26,720
Speaker 7: a lot of time looking at the data and looking

631
00:32:26,760 --> 00:32:29,479
Speaker 7: how we can solve more and more problems, and ten

632
00:32:29,560 --> 00:32:32,320
Speaker 7: years of historic data has allowed us to be an

633
00:32:32,320 --> 00:32:33,280
Speaker 7: expert in that area.

634
00:32:34,120 --> 00:32:38,120
Speaker 6: Now, you co founded the company in twenty eleven, and

635
00:32:38,480 --> 00:32:45,320
Speaker 6: it was just right before everything exploded online. What have

636
00:32:45,400 --> 00:32:47,680
Speaker 6: you learned from that point until today?

637
00:32:49,720 --> 00:32:54,000
Speaker 7: I mean, the explosion seemed slow from my perspective, really

638
00:32:54,240 --> 00:32:58,640
Speaker 7: was it was three markets live with online casino and poker,

639
00:32:58,800 --> 00:33:04,040
Speaker 7: which was essentially New Jersey and Delaware, and then there

640
00:33:04,200 --> 00:33:09,080
Speaker 7: was quite a lull until PASPA, which stopped sports betting

641
00:33:09,120 --> 00:33:13,400
Speaker 7: from being legal in many states, was struck down in

642
00:33:13,480 --> 00:33:16,680
Speaker 7: twenty eighteen. And so after twenty eighteen is really where

643
00:33:16,680 --> 00:33:20,720
Speaker 7: we saw the big explosion. It's been an amazing journey.

644
00:33:21,040 --> 00:33:24,720
Speaker 7: So looking back, of course, hindsight is always twenty twenty.

645
00:33:24,760 --> 00:33:27,200
Speaker 7: But in those early days, there were many people that

646
00:33:27,680 --> 00:33:30,480
Speaker 7: told me and my co founder David Briggs that we

647
00:33:30,520 --> 00:33:32,960
Speaker 7: were making a big mistake and that the market wasn't

648
00:33:32,960 --> 00:33:36,040
Speaker 7: going to happen. But I'm really happy that we had

649
00:33:36,040 --> 00:33:38,920
Speaker 7: that grit and we committed to solving a problem that

650
00:33:39,280 --> 00:33:41,760
Speaker 7: wasn't attractive for other people to solve at the time.

651
00:33:42,120 --> 00:33:45,360
Speaker 6: Now you can tell people take that fancy pants cuz

652
00:33:45,760 --> 00:33:47,760
Speaker 6: look at what we've grown into today.

653
00:33:49,280 --> 00:33:52,160
Speaker 7: I find saying that to people helps endear them to me.

654
00:33:57,600 --> 00:33:59,680
Speaker 1: And I talk a little bit about what you see

655
00:34:00,000 --> 00:34:03,880
Speaker 1: in terms of demand from states that are perhaps on

656
00:34:03,920 --> 00:34:08,560
Speaker 1: the cost of legalizing sports bedding places, particularly in the

657
00:34:08,600 --> 00:34:12,080
Speaker 1: southeast Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi.

658
00:34:13,920 --> 00:34:17,080
Speaker 7: Sure, I mean, you know, every state has its own

659
00:34:17,120 --> 00:34:20,880
Speaker 7: sort of ask that they want. But ultimately, when a

660
00:34:20,920 --> 00:34:26,440
Speaker 7: bill is being considered, the main concerns from a legislator's

661
00:34:26,480 --> 00:34:30,399
Speaker 7: perspective are, can you identify who is on the other

662
00:34:31,120 --> 00:34:34,279
Speaker 7: end of the transaction, so who is ultimately setting up

663
00:34:34,320 --> 00:34:37,719
Speaker 7: the account? What sort of identity checks can you have

664
00:34:37,800 --> 00:34:40,440
Speaker 7: to have high levels of assurance? Then how do you

665
00:34:40,560 --> 00:34:44,080
Speaker 7: know where that user is? And can you ensure us

666
00:34:44,120 --> 00:34:47,600
Speaker 7: that you can respect state rights by ensuring the user

667
00:34:47,840 --> 00:34:52,000
Speaker 7: is within this state? And then the next major consideration,

668
00:34:52,200 --> 00:34:54,400
Speaker 7: which is also something the industry has been spending a

669
00:34:54,400 --> 00:34:57,640
Speaker 7: lot of time on lately, is what protections do you

670
00:34:57,719 --> 00:35:00,799
Speaker 7: have for players that might want to opt out? And

671
00:35:00,880 --> 00:35:04,440
Speaker 7: so those are the conversations that we really focus on

672
00:35:04,640 --> 00:35:08,279
Speaker 7: from a regulatory and legislative perspective, and I think the

673
00:35:08,360 --> 00:35:11,839
Speaker 7: great news is that the industry has solutions for all

674
00:35:11,880 --> 00:35:16,840
Speaker 7: the biggest considerations that would stop or enable a market

675
00:35:17,600 --> 00:35:18,319
Speaker 7: from going live.

676
00:35:19,320 --> 00:35:23,720
Speaker 6: Anna Sainsbury, CEO, chairwoman and co founder of Geo Comply,

677
00:35:24,520 --> 00:35:27,040
Speaker 6: thank you so much for joining us here on the

678
00:35:27,040 --> 00:35:29,440
Speaker 6: Bloomberg Business of Sports. We really do appreciate it.

679
00:35:29,600 --> 00:35:30,360
Speaker 7: Thank you so much.

680
00:35:30,560 --> 00:35:32,560
Speaker 1: Coming up next on the show, we turn to What's

681
00:35:32,640 --> 00:35:35,760
Speaker 1: Next in Sports with Jenna Carath, vice president of Startup

682
00:35:35,800 --> 00:35:39,880
Speaker 1: Partnerships and head of Comcast NBCU Sports Tech. That is

683
00:35:39,920 --> 00:35:42,280
Speaker 1: straight ahead on the Bloomberg Business of Sports from Bloomberg

684
00:35:42,360 --> 00:35:51,560
Speaker 1: Radio around the world. Thank you so much for joining

685
00:35:51,640 --> 00:35:53,799
Speaker 1: us on the Bloomberg Business of Sports Show, where we

686
00:35:53,840 --> 00:35:56,200
Speaker 1: explore the big money issues in the world of sports.

687
00:35:56,400 --> 00:35:59,920
Speaker 1: I'm Scarlett Fou, Michael Barr and Damian Sasaur are off

688
00:36:00,040 --> 00:36:03,160
Speaker 1: this week. Our special guest host, Jason Kelly, the former

689
00:36:03,200 --> 00:36:05,680
Speaker 1: Business of Sports co host and of course currently chief

690
00:36:05,680 --> 00:36:09,760
Speaker 1: correspondent at Bloomberg Originals, is here with US Comcast NBC

691
00:36:09,920 --> 00:36:13,239
Speaker 1: Universal Sports Tech is looking for the next big thing

692
00:36:13,360 --> 00:36:17,680
Speaker 1: in sports. It finds funds and fast tracks startups around

693
00:36:17,680 --> 00:36:21,160
Speaker 1: the world, helping to drive innovation in sports and across

694
00:36:21,200 --> 00:36:23,640
Speaker 1: its ecosystem. So here now to talk us through the

695
00:36:23,680 --> 00:36:27,080
Speaker 1: process and some of the new sports ventures being uncovered,

696
00:36:27,400 --> 00:36:30,240
Speaker 1: we welcome Jenna Carath. She is Vice President of Startup

697
00:36:30,280 --> 00:36:34,760
Speaker 1: Partnerships and head of Comcast NBCU Sports Tech. Jenna, Welcome

698
00:36:34,760 --> 00:36:36,160
Speaker 1: to the Bloomberg Business of Sports.

699
00:36:36,520 --> 00:36:38,560
Speaker 4: Thanks for having me back. It's great to be with you.

700
00:36:39,120 --> 00:36:43,799
Speaker 1: So your title VP of Startup Partnerships and head of

701
00:36:43,800 --> 00:36:47,600
Speaker 1: Comcast NBCU Sports Tech, it doesn't really tell the full story,

702
00:36:47,640 --> 00:36:51,560
Speaker 1: does it, because you're basically looking for startups to invest

703
00:36:51,640 --> 00:36:55,719
Speaker 1: in that are tied to sports. But when we talk

704
00:36:55,760 --> 00:36:59,040
Speaker 1: about sports, it's a pretty broad area, isn't it.

705
00:36:59,040 --> 00:37:01,520
Speaker 4: It is at some In fact, when we were wrapping

706
00:37:01,520 --> 00:37:04,800
Speaker 4: our arms around this, we have eight strategic investment areas

707
00:37:04,800 --> 00:37:07,200
Speaker 4: when you look at the world of sports. But you're right,

708
00:37:07,560 --> 00:37:09,719
Speaker 4: it's a long title, but I like to say it's

709
00:37:09,719 --> 00:37:12,200
Speaker 4: directly proportional to how fortunate I am to have my

710
00:37:12,320 --> 00:37:16,319
Speaker 4: job because we get to invest in ten startups each year.

711
00:37:16,680 --> 00:37:21,080
Speaker 4: They have the opportunity to work with decision makers from Comcast, NBCU,

712
00:37:21,280 --> 00:37:27,000
Speaker 4: Sky spectacor we own Wells Fargo the Flyers. We've got

713
00:37:27,320 --> 00:37:31,600
Speaker 4: the largest youth sports platform and that is an amazing

714
00:37:31,640 --> 00:37:35,960
Speaker 4: innovation playground for them to test and highlight their technologies.

715
00:37:36,400 --> 00:37:38,640
Speaker 4: But it was still playing a little bit too small.

716
00:37:38,680 --> 00:37:41,399
Speaker 4: So we brought in external sports partners that have really

717
00:37:41,400 --> 00:37:45,960
Speaker 4: given them an opportunity to find product market fit across

718
00:37:46,000 --> 00:37:49,680
Speaker 4: different sports, different leagues, and that's what really gives them

719
00:37:49,719 --> 00:37:53,000
Speaker 4: scalability and sustainability in a market that's not always easy

720
00:37:53,040 --> 00:37:53,640
Speaker 4: to break into.

721
00:37:54,320 --> 00:37:56,960
Speaker 2: Well and Jenna, it's so interesting to look at the

722
00:37:57,040 --> 00:38:00,560
Speaker 2: list of the companies you're backing because it it reminds

723
00:38:00,640 --> 00:38:04,120
Speaker 2: us all how much candidly disruption there is in how

724
00:38:04,160 --> 00:38:09,000
Speaker 2: we consume sports, how teams you know, get to their fans,

725
00:38:09,000 --> 00:38:11,760
Speaker 2: how they deal with sponsors, you know, the the in arena,

726
00:38:11,880 --> 00:38:15,319
Speaker 2: the outside of arena. Give us a sense of like

727
00:38:15,760 --> 00:38:18,000
Speaker 2: how do you pick, Like what's the what are the

728
00:38:18,120 --> 00:38:21,480
Speaker 2: criteria that that you're really looking for, because, as you say,

729
00:38:21,480 --> 00:38:22,840
Speaker 2: the aperture is so wide.

730
00:38:24,360 --> 00:38:28,239
Speaker 4: Yeah, well, when it candle our partners, we early on

731
00:38:28,480 --> 00:38:30,440
Speaker 4: had a list of names down on the sheet of

732
00:38:30,440 --> 00:38:32,120
Speaker 4: paper and I'm happy to say that the ones we

733
00:38:32,200 --> 00:38:35,279
Speaker 4: wanted are the ones that we have and the criteria

734
00:38:35,360 --> 00:38:37,920
Speaker 4: for choosing them. It was really about building off of

735
00:38:37,920 --> 00:38:41,759
Speaker 4: our media rights and our sponsorship investments. That really aligns

736
00:38:42,200 --> 00:38:44,600
Speaker 4: any of the work that we do together to create

737
00:38:44,640 --> 00:38:48,520
Speaker 4: those more immersive fan experiences and to push our products forward.

738
00:38:49,040 --> 00:38:52,200
Speaker 4: So NASCAR was an obvious easy fit. You know, we

739
00:38:52,239 --> 00:38:56,839
Speaker 4: broadcast the back half of the season or titles sponsorship

740
00:38:56,880 --> 00:39:00,799
Speaker 4: in the Ectinity Series. I think Comcast Business powers about

741
00:39:01,000 --> 00:39:03,960
Speaker 4: thirteen of those tracks, and it is just a really

742
00:39:04,080 --> 00:39:08,840
Speaker 4: innovative driven company. They are willing to disrupt themselves and

743
00:39:08,960 --> 00:39:12,080
Speaker 4: have been a phenomenal partners and testing and experimenting with

744
00:39:12,239 --> 00:39:15,560
Speaker 4: us PGA Tour. You're not going to have the Golf

745
00:39:15,640 --> 00:39:18,080
Speaker 4: Channel and not have a deep relationship with PGA Tour.

746
00:39:18,560 --> 00:39:21,440
Speaker 4: And there's a lot of interesting and fascinating technology that

747
00:39:21,480 --> 00:39:26,239
Speaker 4: brings every shot live together. So that was another important

748
00:39:26,239 --> 00:39:29,160
Speaker 4: place for us to be wwe we are their streaming

749
00:39:29,200 --> 00:39:33,320
Speaker 4: platform on Peacock, so vital for that. It really drives

750
00:39:33,800 --> 00:39:37,040
Speaker 4: a viewership that isn't necessarily tied to I only love

751
00:39:37,080 --> 00:39:40,440
Speaker 4: this sport, so it is a real game changer for

752
00:39:40,520 --> 00:39:44,600
Speaker 4: us in terms of keeping and retaining our subscribers on

753
00:39:44,600 --> 00:39:47,520
Speaker 4: that platform. And then we brought in Premier League, which

754
00:39:47,600 --> 00:39:50,319
Speaker 4: I could not be more excited about that has been

755
00:39:50,320 --> 00:39:52,399
Speaker 4: on the wish list for quite some time, and talk

756
00:39:52,440 --> 00:39:55,640
Speaker 4: about a growing sport worldwide. And about a third of

757
00:39:55,640 --> 00:39:58,920
Speaker 4: our startups that applied for this current cohort for the

758
00:39:58,920 --> 00:40:01,800
Speaker 4: twenty twenty three Class US they were international looking to

759
00:40:01,840 --> 00:40:04,640
Speaker 4: break into the US. And then we've got three Olympic

760
00:40:04,640 --> 00:40:08,960
Speaker 4: teams as well, So that's an innovation playground that our

761
00:40:09,120 --> 00:40:12,600
Speaker 4: founders have an opportunity to test and pilot. We get

762
00:40:12,600 --> 00:40:15,080
Speaker 4: that early look and if it's vital enough to the

763
00:40:15,120 --> 00:40:20,360
Speaker 4: business that it's unlocked revenue or cost savings or operational efficiencies,

764
00:40:20,400 --> 00:40:22,560
Speaker 4: and we're willing to pay for it. Guess what they've

765
00:40:22,600 --> 00:40:25,800
Speaker 4: found real sustainable product markets fit They have revenue coming

766
00:40:25,840 --> 00:40:28,320
Speaker 4: in and that de risks our initial investment.

767
00:40:29,239 --> 00:40:31,680
Speaker 1: So when I talk to venture investors a lot of

768
00:40:31,719 --> 00:40:34,040
Speaker 1: times they say they invest in the founder rather than

769
00:40:34,080 --> 00:40:37,800
Speaker 1: the business that they've identified. In this case, you're looking

770
00:40:37,840 --> 00:40:40,640
Speaker 1: for specific businesses that fit in with what you offer

771
00:40:40,760 --> 00:40:44,000
Speaker 1: as Comcast and what your partners are looking for as well.

772
00:40:44,400 --> 00:40:47,200
Speaker 1: Are these mature business ideas?

773
00:40:47,200 --> 00:40:52,480
Speaker 4: Then as a result, they are what we term as

774
00:40:53,120 --> 00:40:55,399
Speaker 4: enterprise ready, So they have to have a product out

775
00:40:55,400 --> 00:40:57,480
Speaker 4: there in the market sometraction because we've got to have

776
00:40:57,520 --> 00:40:59,200
Speaker 4: something that we can get our hands on to really

777
00:40:59,200 --> 00:41:02,160
Speaker 4: test the pilot. Okay, so that's a real critical piece

778
00:41:02,160 --> 00:41:05,080
Speaker 4: of it. The other lens is it really has to

779
00:41:05,120 --> 00:41:09,680
Speaker 4: be addressing an innovation need or a challenge in the

780
00:41:09,719 --> 00:41:13,480
Speaker 4: business that is applicable to you three or four of

781
00:41:13,560 --> 00:41:18,040
Speaker 4: the partners in the consortium see and then the last piece.

782
00:41:18,080 --> 00:41:20,960
Speaker 4: So going back to your initial point, Scarlett, it is

783
00:41:21,000 --> 00:41:26,640
Speaker 4: one hundred percent about investing in those founders's. We believe

784
00:41:26,880 --> 00:41:29,480
Speaker 4: it's the problem we're solving, but we believe this is

785
00:41:29,480 --> 00:41:32,560
Speaker 4: the team to do it. And you know, our program

786
00:41:32,760 --> 00:41:35,920
Speaker 4: a traditional accelerator is three months. We've moved to a

787
00:41:35,960 --> 00:41:39,000
Speaker 4: six month program because it allows us more time to

788
00:41:39,040 --> 00:41:43,920
Speaker 4: tackle those complex business challenges in our industry, and it

789
00:41:43,960 --> 00:41:47,040
Speaker 4: also gives them an opportunity because they're so much further along,

790
00:41:47,280 --> 00:41:49,759
Speaker 4: they've still got to serve their clients and so we

791
00:41:49,840 --> 00:41:52,600
Speaker 4: made space in the program for them to achieve on

792
00:41:52,719 --> 00:41:53,239
Speaker 4: both lines.

793
00:41:54,200 --> 00:41:57,040
Speaker 2: So general, when you think about sort of the end

794
00:41:57,160 --> 00:42:00,680
Speaker 2: user here, I mean your partners, the start that you're

795
00:42:00,719 --> 00:42:04,279
Speaker 2: investing in. You know, they're all geared in some form

796
00:42:04,360 --> 00:42:07,720
Speaker 2: or fashion too, and your company is really geared towards

797
00:42:07,800 --> 00:42:12,480
Speaker 2: you consuming this content. Right what's the most profound way

798
00:42:12,520 --> 00:42:15,040
Speaker 2: that you think that's changed over the past few years.

799
00:42:15,040 --> 00:42:17,000
Speaker 2: You know, what have you picked up from both the

800
00:42:17,000 --> 00:42:19,720
Speaker 2: partners and the startups in terms of how we're actually

801
00:42:19,760 --> 00:42:21,719
Speaker 2: interacting with with sports right now?

802
00:42:23,480 --> 00:42:25,960
Speaker 4: I think, if anything, it's a little bit more difficult

803
00:42:26,040 --> 00:42:28,560
Speaker 4: now for a sports pans to find the sports they

804
00:42:28,600 --> 00:42:32,319
Speaker 4: just want to watch. Yeah, so as the aggregator of aggregators,

805
00:42:32,640 --> 00:42:36,640
Speaker 4: we want to simplify that. The voice remote, if you're

806
00:42:36,680 --> 00:42:39,160
Speaker 4: on the X one system, that is the best experience

807
00:42:39,160 --> 00:42:41,120
Speaker 4: for the Olympics, because you can pick up the remote

808
00:42:41,360 --> 00:42:44,000
Speaker 4: and say women's ault and it'll drop you right into that,

809
00:42:44,080 --> 00:42:47,600
Speaker 4: whether it is streaming live, whether it is live broadcast,

810
00:42:47,719 --> 00:42:50,759
Speaker 4: whether it's bod Because as a consumer, you just want

811
00:42:50,760 --> 00:42:53,560
Speaker 4: to get closer to the sports moments than matter to you.

812
00:42:53,640 --> 00:42:56,040
Speaker 4: Don't quite care how they get to you, and so

813
00:42:56,080 --> 00:42:59,680
Speaker 4: we're trying to meet our fans in places where they

814
00:42:59,760 --> 00:43:03,040
Speaker 4: are and then elevate that experience. I think one of

815
00:43:03,080 --> 00:43:07,759
Speaker 4: the great examples in our current cohort is Aircast, and

816
00:43:07,880 --> 00:43:09,960
Speaker 4: they allow you, when you're in the venue on your

817
00:43:09,960 --> 00:43:12,920
Speaker 4: mobile device to be able to see alternative camera angles,

818
00:43:13,120 --> 00:43:17,080
Speaker 4: listen to the broadcast audio and create a more immersive

819
00:43:17,120 --> 00:43:20,120
Speaker 4: experience so you feel like you're the producer while you

820
00:43:20,200 --> 00:43:23,040
Speaker 4: still have the grandeur of the sport happening on the

821
00:43:23,080 --> 00:43:26,560
Speaker 4: field in front of you with those chiming fans. But

822
00:43:26,680 --> 00:43:29,279
Speaker 4: equally so, when we do that as a cloud implementation,

823
00:43:29,520 --> 00:43:32,319
Speaker 4: if you're able to see those things unique camera angles

824
00:43:32,800 --> 00:43:35,680
Speaker 4: in your living room, that is bringing you closer to

825
00:43:35,800 --> 00:43:39,480
Speaker 4: the best of being their lives or being there in

826
00:43:39,520 --> 00:43:43,080
Speaker 4: your living room experience hearing the broadcast commentators who are

827
00:43:43,080 --> 00:43:45,760
Speaker 4: explaining the nuances of the sport and why you're seeing

828
00:43:45,760 --> 00:43:46,760
Speaker 4: something so directing.

829
00:43:47,120 --> 00:43:49,680
Speaker 1: That was Vice president of Startup Partnerships and head of

830
00:43:49,880 --> 00:43:54,040
Speaker 1: Comcast NBCU Sports Tech Jenna Kurrak. Be sure to stick

831
00:43:54,080 --> 00:43:55,759
Speaker 1: around because we have a lot more of our conversation

832
00:43:55,840 --> 00:43:58,160
Speaker 1: coming up next on The Bloomberg Business of Sports from

833
00:43:58,200 --> 00:44:07,320
Speaker 1: Bloomberg Radio around the world. This is the Bloomberg Business

834
00:44:07,320 --> 00:44:09,560
Speaker 1: of Sports Stroke, where we explore the big money issues

835
00:44:09,600 --> 00:44:12,239
Speaker 1: in the world of sports. I'm Scarlett fo here with

836
00:44:12,440 --> 00:44:16,040
Speaker 1: our special guest host, Jason Kelly. We're talking with Jenna Krath,

837
00:44:16,200 --> 00:44:19,680
Speaker 1: vice president of Startup Partnerships and head of Comcast NBCU

838
00:44:19,719 --> 00:44:23,960
Speaker 1: Sports Tech about how her unit is driving innovation across sports.

839
00:44:24,280 --> 00:44:25,600
Speaker 1: Let's return to our conversation.

840
00:44:26,280 --> 00:44:28,600
Speaker 2: You know, it's interesting as you're talking about that, I'm

841
00:44:28,640 --> 00:44:30,960
Speaker 2: struck by something that I think we talk about all

842
00:44:30,960 --> 00:44:34,160
Speaker 2: the time, which is how do you balance it? You know,

843
00:44:34,239 --> 00:44:38,360
Speaker 2: here in twenty twenty three and going forward, the personalization

844
00:44:38,760 --> 00:44:41,960
Speaker 2: that is you know, on offer and is now possible

845
00:44:42,440 --> 00:44:45,600
Speaker 2: with the shared experience, you know, because that is ultimately

846
00:44:45,640 --> 00:44:48,120
Speaker 2: what we care so much about when it comes to sports,

847
00:44:48,200 --> 00:44:50,960
Speaker 2: is being a fan of the same team or you know,

848
00:44:51,080 --> 00:44:54,840
Speaker 2: having that moment, that that collective moment. How do you

849
00:44:54,880 --> 00:44:57,320
Speaker 2: balance those things? You know, in an age where technology

850
00:44:57,360 --> 00:44:59,360
Speaker 2: makes so much possible, it.

851
00:44:59,239 --> 00:45:02,439
Speaker 4: Does makes so much possible, and there is a balance there.

852
00:45:02,480 --> 00:45:05,359
Speaker 4: There are some of the traditional sports fans that don't

853
00:45:05,400 --> 00:45:06,920
Speaker 4: want to see a whole lot of change, But we

854
00:45:06,960 --> 00:45:09,880
Speaker 4: have a younger generation that is not as inclined to

855
00:45:09,920 --> 00:45:12,560
Speaker 4: sit there and watch the entire match. They actually want

856
00:45:12,560 --> 00:45:15,080
Speaker 4: it to be more interactive. They want to have polls

857
00:45:15,080 --> 00:45:16,920
Speaker 4: in there, they want to be watching with friends, they

858
00:45:16,920 --> 00:45:19,879
Speaker 4: want to have it be more of a gamified experience.

859
00:45:20,080 --> 00:45:23,560
Speaker 4: And again going back to another interesting startup in our

860
00:45:23,600 --> 00:45:28,200
Speaker 4: current cohort, fan Fest, and they did an amazing opportunity

861
00:45:28,560 --> 00:45:31,720
Speaker 4: and were really instrumental in helping us bring Premier League

862
00:45:31,800 --> 00:45:35,120
Speaker 4: on board. We paired them up with Sky Sports, and

863
00:45:35,160 --> 00:45:37,719
Speaker 4: what fan Fest allows you to do is create interactive

864
00:45:37,719 --> 00:45:42,200
Speaker 4: TV shows. So we leaned into the talent base that

865
00:45:42,360 --> 00:45:45,359
Speaker 4: guy has with their fantasy football team, and they did

866
00:45:45,400 --> 00:45:47,879
Speaker 4: a couple of pre show events and then fans could

867
00:45:47,920 --> 00:45:51,520
Speaker 4: come in from anywhere and talk about why they loved

868
00:45:51,960 --> 00:45:54,759
Speaker 4: their club and who they thought was going to win,

869
00:45:55,239 --> 00:45:58,080
Speaker 4: and who played right and who made the right calls.

870
00:45:58,480 --> 00:46:02,960
Speaker 4: And what was interesting was that took place during a

871
00:46:03,280 --> 00:46:07,360
Speaker 4: real Madrid and Manchester match that we actually did not

872
00:46:07,440 --> 00:46:09,319
Speaker 4: have the rights for, so we normally would not have

873
00:46:09,320 --> 00:46:12,120
Speaker 4: had a voice in that match, but we were able

874
00:46:12,160 --> 00:46:15,280
Speaker 4: to give our fans a voice in there with our talent.

875
00:46:15,680 --> 00:46:18,239
Speaker 4: So then you fast forward to Premier League coming on

876
00:46:18,360 --> 00:46:21,040
Speaker 4: in their summer series here in the US. They're really

877
00:46:21,080 --> 00:46:25,680
Speaker 4: bullish on growing their global fan base and the summer

878
00:46:25,719 --> 00:46:28,880
Speaker 4: series was that first big foray into that, and so

879
00:46:30,239 --> 00:46:33,120
Speaker 4: fit doubleheader in Atlanta, we were able to be there

880
00:46:33,160 --> 00:46:38,040
Speaker 4: in the press box, three hosts doing an interactive TV

881
00:46:38,080 --> 00:46:41,360
Speaker 4: show from the press box in the Mercedes Benz stadium

882
00:46:41,719 --> 00:46:45,279
Speaker 4: overlooking what was really mind boggling to see how they

883
00:46:45,320 --> 00:46:49,920
Speaker 4: had completely renovated that into a soccer field with life,

884
00:46:50,000 --> 00:46:52,759
Speaker 4: with real grass. It was and to be with the

885
00:46:52,880 --> 00:46:57,080
Speaker 4: fans there. But have you know somebody that is Chelsea's

886
00:46:57,120 --> 00:47:01,040
Speaker 4: greatest fan out of New York come onto the show

887
00:47:01,440 --> 00:47:05,200
Speaker 4: and talking about why they love this game so much.

888
00:47:05,800 --> 00:47:10,080
Speaker 1: That's so fascinating. Sometimes the derivative content, Jason is justice compelling,

889
00:47:10,120 --> 00:47:11,960
Speaker 1: if not more than the actual life sports event. I

890
00:47:11,960 --> 00:47:14,840
Speaker 1: think about the Manning brothers on Manning Cast reacting to

891
00:47:15,280 --> 00:47:18,800
Speaker 1: Aaron Rodgers going down right and how you saw that

892
00:47:19,239 --> 00:47:24,440
Speaker 1: their expression and that was what captured everyone's attention exactly.

893
00:47:24,800 --> 00:47:28,200
Speaker 4: And I think that that younger demographic and look, you

894
00:47:28,239 --> 00:47:31,880
Speaker 4: know what they were able to do with Premier League

895
00:47:31,960 --> 00:47:35,719
Speaker 4: on site there with no promotion, two hundred and seventy

896
00:47:35,719 --> 00:47:38,480
Speaker 4: five thousand views on the fan fizt platform and it

897
00:47:38,520 --> 00:47:43,080
Speaker 4: was also simulcast across the Premier League channel. So that

898
00:47:43,239 --> 00:47:47,000
Speaker 4: was a unique audience reach. That is that younger demographic

899
00:47:47,480 --> 00:47:49,719
Speaker 4: that almost likes it a little bit more raw, where

900
00:47:49,719 --> 00:47:51,720
Speaker 4: you can chime in, where you can have that reaction

901
00:47:51,920 --> 00:47:52,520
Speaker 4: in the moment.

902
00:47:53,320 --> 00:47:54,839
Speaker 1: I want to ask you about another company in your

903
00:47:54,880 --> 00:47:58,240
Speaker 1: cohort Tickets for Good. It helps them partners fill venues

904
00:47:58,320 --> 00:48:02,720
Speaker 1: and also boost revenue by giving discounted tickets to specific

905
00:48:02,760 --> 00:48:05,759
Speaker 1: consumer groups that support the local community. This is a

906
00:48:05,800 --> 00:48:07,040
Speaker 1: for profit company, Jenna.

907
00:48:08,360 --> 00:48:10,920
Speaker 4: It is a for profit company. And I will be

908
00:48:10,960 --> 00:48:13,640
Speaker 4: the first to say anytime we see a company that

909
00:48:13,760 --> 00:48:16,640
Speaker 4: is tech for good, I'm usually always in the yes camp.

910
00:48:16,760 --> 00:48:21,080
Speaker 4: But I have really been truly blown away by Steve Rimmer,

911
00:48:21,120 --> 00:48:23,920
Speaker 4: the CEO and founder, and how he has been so

912
00:48:24,800 --> 00:48:28,239
Speaker 4: meticulous in making sure he's building a platform that is

913
00:48:28,719 --> 00:48:33,239
Speaker 4: helping both the ticketed events, whether that is a big

914
00:48:33,280 --> 00:48:37,720
Speaker 4: sporting event a concert. They at the end of the day,

915
00:48:38,000 --> 00:48:40,840
Speaker 4: we want to see those seats filled. As a broadcaster,

916
00:48:41,000 --> 00:48:43,200
Speaker 4: we want to see those seats field because it gives

917
00:48:43,239 --> 00:48:44,839
Speaker 4: you that sense of Oh, I got to be there,

918
00:48:44,840 --> 00:48:45,600
Speaker 4: I can't miss this.

919
00:48:46,040 --> 00:48:46,239
Speaker 6: Right.

920
00:48:46,960 --> 00:48:50,760
Speaker 4: So, for any of those deeply discounted tickets, you're able

921
00:48:50,840 --> 00:48:53,880
Speaker 4: to have a verified, vetted community that you are providing

922
00:48:53,880 --> 00:48:56,680
Speaker 4: these tickets to. So it could be healthcare workers, it

923
00:48:56,719 --> 00:49:00,440
Speaker 4: could be nonprofit charity workers, it could be somebody who

924
00:49:00,520 --> 00:49:02,560
Speaker 4: has a lower cost of living who wouldn't be able

925
00:49:02,560 --> 00:49:06,280
Speaker 4: to experience that event. And there's something magical about getting

926
00:49:06,280 --> 00:49:09,480
Speaker 4: them there. It may be their first time, but that

927
00:49:09,719 --> 00:49:13,720
Speaker 4: creates a fan for life, and you know, over time

928
00:49:14,040 --> 00:49:18,360
Speaker 4: they might become season ticket holders. And so their platform

929
00:49:18,360 --> 00:49:22,720
Speaker 4: has been very interesting. We took that concept of tickets

930
00:49:22,760 --> 00:49:25,800
Speaker 4: and replaced it with tea times, so we own golf

931
00:49:25,840 --> 00:49:29,839
Speaker 4: now the large booking system, and the idea was, look,

932
00:49:29,920 --> 00:49:33,440
Speaker 4: we have assets. We have inventory in tea times that

933
00:49:33,480 --> 00:49:36,320
Speaker 4: are not always getting filled, and we have healthcare workers,

934
00:49:36,880 --> 00:49:40,200
Speaker 4: frontline workers, and we started off in the Orlando market

935
00:49:40,560 --> 00:49:42,799
Speaker 4: of providing those tickets and then we're now going to

936
00:49:42,840 --> 00:49:45,719
Speaker 4: expand that over time into fandango as well. So it's

937
00:49:45,760 --> 00:49:48,600
Speaker 4: a good reminder that we have this amazing portfolio of

938
00:49:48,640 --> 00:49:51,880
Speaker 4: assets that are really truly valuable, and at the end

939
00:49:51,920 --> 00:49:54,840
Speaker 4: of the day, we're getting fans where we want them

940
00:49:55,280 --> 00:49:57,759
Speaker 4: in the stadium, enjoying the experience.

941
00:49:58,480 --> 00:50:02,040
Speaker 2: And so, you know, I you wonder, Jenna, given how

942
00:50:02,080 --> 00:50:04,640
Speaker 2: you set the table for us in terms of why

943
00:50:04,719 --> 00:50:08,520
Speaker 2: you do this, I wonder also what insights you've gained

944
00:50:08,560 --> 00:50:11,040
Speaker 2: that sort of a crew to the benefit of the

945
00:50:11,239 --> 00:50:13,319
Speaker 2: of the broader enterprise as it were. You know, you

946
00:50:13,360 --> 00:50:15,719
Speaker 2: talk about media rights, you talk about getting you know,

947
00:50:15,840 --> 00:50:18,600
Speaker 2: fans in seats, what's something that you know when you

948
00:50:18,640 --> 00:50:22,399
Speaker 2: talk to your colleagues in the broader Comcast and NBCU

949
00:50:22,480 --> 00:50:26,480
Speaker 2: world where you've said, Okay, maybe maybe it's a sport

950
00:50:26,520 --> 00:50:30,560
Speaker 2: that the broader group wasn't as in tune with before.

951
00:50:30,719 --> 00:50:33,919
Speaker 2: Maybe it's an experience, like is there something you can

952
00:50:33,960 --> 00:50:36,560
Speaker 2: share with us, some insight that you've been able to

953
00:50:36,600 --> 00:50:39,919
Speaker 2: sort of share it into the broader family as it were.

954
00:50:41,200 --> 00:50:45,320
Speaker 4: Absolutely, I think one of the interesting things. Yes, we

955
00:50:45,400 --> 00:50:47,799
Speaker 4: cross different sports teams and leagues when you look at

956
00:50:47,800 --> 00:50:52,759
Speaker 4: the Sports Partner Consortium, but the needs, the innovation challenges,

957
00:50:52,840 --> 00:50:55,399
Speaker 4: the gaps to be addressed in the business, there's more

958
00:50:55,440 --> 00:50:59,040
Speaker 4: similarity than there is difference. So that's been a really

959
00:50:59,200 --> 00:51:01,520
Speaker 4: interesting insight and it has really helped us align on

960
00:51:02,080 --> 00:51:04,880
Speaker 4: ten companies each year that we invest in and we

961
00:51:04,920 --> 00:51:07,919
Speaker 4: make progress with. But I think one of the things

962
00:51:07,920 --> 00:51:11,680
Speaker 4: that's more interesting is we're finding companies that on the

963
00:51:11,719 --> 00:51:14,759
Speaker 4: grand stage of sports, they absolutely can prove themselves and

964
00:51:14,760 --> 00:51:18,000
Speaker 4: it's an important vertical for them. But it's the companies

965
00:51:18,120 --> 00:51:21,680
Speaker 4: like let's chat. It does live language translation, whether that's

966
00:51:21,719 --> 00:51:27,200
Speaker 4: on a mobile device, live broadcast chat for customer support,

967
00:51:27,320 --> 00:51:30,480
Speaker 4: those types of things that is a technology that is

968
00:51:30,480 --> 00:51:34,120
Speaker 4: applicable across any industry. If you can interact with your

969
00:51:34,160 --> 00:51:37,440
Speaker 4: customers and one hundred and four different languages and one

970
00:51:37,520 --> 00:51:42,040
Speaker 4: hundred plus dialects, that is true inclusivity and meeting your

971
00:51:42,040 --> 00:51:46,680
Speaker 4: customers where they are. Another interesting startup in this current

972
00:51:47,840 --> 00:51:51,120
Speaker 4: twenty twenty three class is Rivalry Tech, and they allow

973
00:51:51,200 --> 00:51:54,880
Speaker 4: you to a mobile device or a kiosk, order your

974
00:51:54,960 --> 00:51:56,840
Speaker 4: food and have it delivered right to your seat in

975
00:51:56,840 --> 00:51:59,040
Speaker 4: the stadium. They do it for the New York that's

976
00:51:59,080 --> 00:52:03,560
Speaker 4: already up other teams, but for that think about it.

977
00:52:03,600 --> 00:52:06,960
Speaker 4: There's other use cases in the hospitality see where that's

978
00:52:07,040 --> 00:52:11,960
Speaker 4: valuable and they're making great headway. And healthcare doctors and

979
00:52:12,040 --> 00:52:14,520
Speaker 4: nurses have that same challenge. They have a small break.

980
00:52:14,719 --> 00:52:17,200
Speaker 4: The last thing I wanted to be doing is standing online,

981
00:52:17,600 --> 00:52:19,480
Speaker 4: and so that brings value to other parts of our

982
00:52:19,520 --> 00:52:23,839
Speaker 4: business like Comcast business where, hospitality, where healthcare are some

983
00:52:23,880 --> 00:52:25,320
Speaker 4: of our top verticals.

984
00:52:25,800 --> 00:52:29,280
Speaker 1: Jenna, really fascinating conversation. Thank you so much for joining

985
00:52:29,320 --> 00:52:31,000
Speaker 1: us and explaining how this all works.

986
00:52:32,239 --> 00:52:34,359
Speaker 4: Thank you, it's a pleasure to be with you, and

987
00:52:34,440 --> 00:52:34,879
Speaker 4: thank you.

988
00:52:34,960 --> 00:52:37,640
Speaker 1: For listening to the Bloomberg Business of Sports show. We're

989
00:52:37,680 --> 00:52:39,440
Speaker 1: here each and every week at the same time, and

990
00:52:39,480 --> 00:52:42,719
Speaker 1: of course online wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Scarlet Foo,

991
00:52:42,880 --> 00:52:46,200
Speaker 1: I'm on X at Scarlet Foo. You can follow Jason

992
00:52:46,400 --> 00:52:49,319
Speaker 1: at Jason Kelly News. Tune in again next week for

993
00:52:49,360 --> 00:52:51,520
Speaker 1: the latest on the stories moving big money in the

994
00:52:51,520 --> 00:52:54,600
Speaker 1: world of sports. You're listening to Bloomberg Business of Sports

995
00:52:54,600 --> 00:53:00,640
Speaker 1: from Bloomberg Radio around the world. Four