Technology & Media

The mid-1980's represented the beginning of a radical shift that altered the way sports media rights were packaged, sold and coveted. That shift began on precisely Jan. 24, 1984 inside a majestic hotel in the charming Alpine city of Lausanne, Switzerland. On that date, IMG's Barry Frank sold the rights to televise the 1988 Winter Olympics in an excruciating and benchmark-shattering process that forever changed the way sports-TV rights were negotiated. This case examines the negotiation tactics and interpersonal dynamics Frank leveraged so masterfully in selling the '88 Calgary Winter Olympics. Then, the case narrative shifts into the 'future', detailing Frank's role in selling MLB's media rights in 1995, and the ACC's rights in 2003. Spanning three decades, three property rights holders, and three different media rights landscapes, this case takes students inside the mind of one of the industry's true negotiations pioneers.

The NBA was the first professional sports league in North America to create and operate its own esports property: the NBA 2K League. In year one, seventeen NBA franchises formed NBA 2K gaming squads and competed in a full season of video game competition. In the context of the dynamic and evolving esports industry, the remaining thirteen NBA franchise owners had to decide if they would invest for season two. While considering factors such as branding, audience reach, complementarity of fans, and profitability, this case is designed for students to evaluate value chain alignment between an NBA franchise and an NBA 2K League team. This alignment analysis could help an NBA franchise owner decide if entrepreneurial investment in the billion dollar esports industry through the NBA 2K League is the right move.