Operators business model shifts towards sports-related content

The new commercial environment for telecom service providers opens up the opportunity for new kind of services and content related to sports

During the last couple of decades, operators run their business in a continuously challenged environment while regulators, competition, apps, OTTs attack their core business. All this has a direct impact on the monthly bill (ARPU) paid by their customers, and at the same time telcos have the “obligation” of expanding and evolving their networks to keep up with the technology pace.

With the objective of maintaining the ARPU, operators innovate with new services and commercial propositions, like bundling mobile and fixed services, adding internet access, financing of devices, payments, etc.

In order to retain customers and increase (in reality maintain…) the household ARPU, some operators added content services in the form of IPTV, mainly movies and sports, while the ones offering sports achieved lowest churn rates.

In summary, operators are becoming content distributors, and the most varied catalogue they will offer, the better. If sports, much better.

Operators then have to refine and strengthen their sports-related content and entertainment offering and complement their proposition to customers in order to keep eyeballs on the most time possible on their screens.

Sport business and sport content is a passion business

97 percent of the world population likes at least one sport. There are millions of people that would like to find and invest in the next in Rafa Nadal or Michael Jordan, and enjoy their success. Moreover, these people will be willing to SEE how their career and success comes with time, and how their investment evolves.

This looks like valuable content, doesn’t it?

Nowadays sports investment is available for a few, mostly related to investment funds and sports related companies.

Because of this, a lot of talent is not discovered, neither supported, therefore gets lost before they develop and rise.

Fortunately, some new sport-tech, fintech and neo-banks were created in the last couple of years with disruptive solutions that democratize investment within sports and help to increase fan engagement and its monetization.

In today’s hyper-competitive world, it is key for athletes to dedicate and maximize their time to train and compete and this exclusive dedication requires huge human and economical investment. Needless to say some sports are extremely demanding, economically.

If we can make fans invest in their idols, we will not only contribute to create great stories but also fans will engage in a stronger way.

Stories around sport business and its people

At the end, there are people behind the stories, so if we have the chance to take to the screens (to the fans) how these young talents develop, their personal histories and how they become stars, people looking to invest in sports or the ones that already invested will stick to it.

Operators have a great reach to the audience following sports, moreover, sport content is their source of customer retention. There is always room to add additional sport content and stories that people like.

Here is the place where Globatalent can play a key role in helping operators to complement their sports content offering, providing stories and opportunities to help athletes not only to achieve their sport objectives, but also to give them the space and audience to follow their evolution and achievements once people or brands invest in them.

People that invest and support such athletes or clubs would really enjoy this too. This content can help them decide if they want to hold on to their investment or trade it in the Globatalent Exchange.

Article written by Gaby Treiband- Globatalent COO