Media Timeout: New media heaven for fans, headache for advertisers

Depending on your perspective, this is either the halcyon days of sports consumption — or the biggest headache ever.

As fans, we have entered an age of on-demand programming and the availability of live games on multiple media platforms.

For those on the business end, finding ways to monetize these innovations is a crapshoot.

“I think it is a really good thing ultimately for consumers,” said David Katz, founder and CEO of ThePostGame.com. “And I think the winners (from a profit standpoint) are going to be the ones who understand how best to deliver this content to their consumers at a reasonable and fair price.”

This adds a layer to the media rights negotiations for college conferences — including the Big Ten and Big 12 — as well as whatever programming is produced by individual schools such as Iowa and Iowa State.

Network television established the process of generating revenue from advertising. Cable networks made subscriptions part of the financial model.

Now, with viewers able to watch sports on mobile devices, the audience has become more specific and complex.

Katz, a former executive for CBS, launched ThePostGame.com as a sort of digital magazine for a tech-enabled generation.

“The theory behind the new outlets is that it’s a more targeted approach, from an ad standpoint,” Katz said. “That is a very compelling model for an advertiser.”

It’s also a little unsettling.

Advertisers know the audiences will be smaller, but more devoted. They also know a lot of people click out of pop-up ads or ignore anything on the periphery, so creativity is a necessity.

Producers of sports content, however, have an advantage over other forms of entertainment.

“We’ve avoided a lot of the perils and pitfalls that plagued the music industry, where recorded music has gone away as a viable business model,” Katz said. “The movie business has also had a lot of piracy issues.”

Strong Take:

Few athletes have expressed themselves better on social media better than Iowa’s Faith Ekakitie. The defensive lineman recounted how he feared for his life after being approached by several police officers who had their weapons drawn. They were looking for a robber, while Ekakitie was playing Pokemon Go. His Facebook post drew the attention of ESPN, NBC, The Big Lead and pretty much every other news outlet.

Top Tweets:

Say What?

Lolo Jones told TMZ Sports she’s using the dating app “Tinder.” The two-time Olympic hurdler also explained that while on her first date, she was swiping through to find her next match.

She also documented her experiences via Twitter:

Stay Tuned:

The Iowa High School Athletic Association announced Monday it has agreed to a “long-term” deal with Comcast SportsNet Chicago. The agreement, which begins with the upcoming school year, will result in 85 hours of live coverage annually. This should be especially good for football, basketball and wrestling.

Andrew Logue has been with the Register for 20 years. Follow him @AndrewMLogue.