Former English Premier League Executive Phil Lines Joins SportsFix Advisory Board
Game changers! The time has come to reveal why the man behind the Premier League’s media rights success over the past 10 years, Phil Lines, joins our Advisory Board!
Phil Lines is one of the most senior executives in the sports media rights industry. For nearly a decade, he spearheaded the English Premier League media rights business, successfully establishing it as the richest football league in the world generating a nearly 1,000% increase in international rights fees during his tenure.
Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Adoption in Sports Industry
Following the recent news of the use of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology for player transfer of seven top-flights Premier League clubs, it marked a fresh milestones for cryptocurrencies entry into the mainstream football industry!
We caught up with Phil Lines in London and he explained the phenomenon.
“Looking at Blockchain and crypto is definitely the way to go because these can be allied with tremendous local market knowledge plus big picture thinking.”
Despite the clear power struggle between traditional pay-TV broadcaster and over-the-top (OTT) companies to win sports rights, Lines foresaw that SportsFix is on the right track.
“Sports fans will get involved by selecting what they want to watch and grouping together to make sure they can watch what they want and on the device they want.” The expert envisages a world with a leaner chain of supply –less middle men, a novel way to empower fans.
And this is exactly why SportsFix secured Phil Lines to join the ICO Advisory board.
SportsFix OTT 2.0
SportsFix is building a decentralized streaming platform (OTT 2.0) to democratize sports content for fans backed by blockchain technology, creating a community-based ecosystem which allows every sports fan to vote, watch and engage with their favourite club and fan communities across the globe.
Phil Lines welcomed SportsFix’s invitation as an advisory board member as he believes Sportsfix technology will help bridge mainstream adoption of blockchain and cryptocurrency in the sports business.
“I am thrilled to work with the SportsFix team. To push new innovation in the industry, it is important to have experienced people, like Marcus Luer and Carl Kirchhoff, who I know and have worked with for almost 20 years” Lines said.
SportsFix Co-founder and Executive Chairman Marcus Luer is a pioneer who helped build the Asian sports marketing industry for over 20 years. He is also the Group CEO of Asia’s leading global sports marketing agency Total Sports Asia (TSA) and co-founded the #1 kickboxing league in the world GLORY Kickboxing.
“We are very excited working with Phil,” Luer said. “We need industry leaders like Phil to help introduce our blockchain-based OTT platform to key decision makers at League and club levels. The opportunity for a completely different type of engagement between the clubs and their displaced fans globally is huge. The physical audience in the stadium compared to the fans engaging globally thru the live broadcast signal is 1% vs 99%. Our platform caters to the 99% who are displaced and currently poorly served.”
Luer continued, “SportsFix is building the first OTT 2.0 platform and changing the broadcast landscape in the process. Through the SportsFix decentralised Digital Stadium ecosystem, every fan can now be part of it. It’s no longer just for people who can afford expensive Pay TV packages. We are combining the best of the free and pay TV model in digital form.
The Future is Here
The recent news of cryptocurrency trials between clubs underline the bigger monetary opportunities with crypto. This means the push towards decentralisation is happening here and now!
Phil Lines agreed. “With seven Premier League clubs onboarding themselves into the cryptocurrency and blockchain community, there is no doubt that others will watch closely and eventually follow their steps.” The seven UK-based clubs include Tottenham Hotspur, Leicester City, Newcastle United, Southampton, Cardiff City, Brighton and Crystal Palace.
And that’s what SportsFix is all about. Our decentralised Digital Stadium ecosystem will provide top quality live streamed matches and will also create new monetisation opportunities and direct engagement between clubs, fans, and sponsors.
Phil Lines concluded. “It won’t be a simple transition and it won’t happen overnight, but this is the direction of flow.”
It is time to empower sports fans globally. Stay tuned for our next article: SportsFix Public Sale Announcement.
IT’S GAME TIME! And we’re changing the way YOU watch sports!
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