The MLB Startup Worth $1B+

Friends,

Raise your hand if you think MLB has been at the forefront of innovation lately (two hands up). Now keep your hand up if you think the MLB has created a technology 20 years ago that is worth over $1B (everyone please stand with both hands up). Today, we dive into the story and highlight ai tools and some NIL happenings. Let get into the Friday Show..

AI: 4 Things To Keep you educated on the world of AI

1/ AI is coming for your some jobs. According to new research by the University of Pennsylvania and OpenAI, high-skilled jobs like accounting and law are most at risk of replacement by AI. No specific sports related jobs on this list, but certainly you can see who may be first on the list to go (cough finance teams)

2/ Use Chat GPT and make $5k/ mo? Some great examples here and many can be applied to the sports world

3/ Healthcare AI- Not directly a sports related article, but we can see the signs of ai and healthcare trickling to the sports world.  Human sonographers and an AI model went mano-a-gizmo in a clinical study at LA’s Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, reading heart ultrasounds to see whose initial cardiac health assessments were most accurate. The machines won.

4/ Sports Illustrated taps AI to generate articles.

NIL

If the ever changing era of NIL, collectives are still working to find the best solution for their teams and athletes.

1/ USC launches a new NIL collective

2/ Georgia going in-house with NIL?

Featured Story

MLB’s $1B Startup

We are excited to bring you the latest news on Major League Baseball's digital arm, MLB Advanced Media (MLBAM). MLBAM has been at the forefront of innovation in sports media for over two decades, constantly pushing the boundaries to enhance the fan experience and provide new revenue streams for the league.

MLBAM was founded in 2000, and since then, it has become a key player in the sports media landscape. The company's streaming platform, MLB.TV, has over 3 million subscribers and is available in over 200 countries worldwide. In addition, MLBAM also provides the technology backbone for a number of other sports leagues and media outlets, including ESPN, the NHL, and HBO.

Major League Baseball (MLB) owns the MLB Advanced Media (MLBAM) technology. The company was originally created in 2000 as a joint venture between the 30 MLB teams, with each team owning an equal share of the company. In 2015, MLB bought out the stakes of all the teams and became the sole owner of MLBAM.

One of the key figures behind MLBAM's success is its former CEO, Bob Bowman. Bowman was instrumental in building the company's digital infrastructure and securing key partnerships with major tech companies like Apple and Google. He left the company in 2017 and was succeeded by Michael Paull, who has continued to lead MLBAM's growth and expansion.

In terms of revenue, MLBAM has been a major source of income for the league in recent years. In 2020, MLBAM generated over $1.2 billion in revenue, according to Forbes. This is a testament to the company's ability to adapt to changing media trends and provide fans with the content they crave.

MLB Advanced Media (MLBAM) provides technology services to a number of other streaming platforms, including ESPN+, WWE Network, and NHL.TV. While the specific financial terms of each agreement are not public, it is known that these platforms pay a fee to MLBAM in exchange for the use of its technology and expertise.

For example, in 2018, it was reported that ESPN paid MLBAM $30 million per year for the rights to use its streaming technology for ESPN+. This agreement allows ESPN to offer live sports and other programming to subscribers via the ESPN+ app and website.

Similarly, the WWE Network pays MLBAM a fee for the use of its streaming platform, which allows fans to watch live wrestling events and other WWE programming on a variety of devices. While the exact amount of this fee is not known, it is likely a significant sum given the popularity of the WWE Network and the large audience it serves.

The moral of the story here is don’t sleep on MLB when it comes to innovation!

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