WTA TOUR HAS BIG NEW SPONSOR , GREAT NEWS FOR LADIES TENNIS

WTA Signs Spectacular Deal With Perform

 

The WTA certainly has a way with big money deals.

 

Back in January 2005 the rest of the sports world was left open mouthed when a $88 million sponsorship deal with mobile communications giants Sony Ericsson was announced. Now almost ten years on, the ink is just drying on the WTA’s ten year media agreement of more than $525 million with English-based partner, Perform.

 

At the time the Sony Ericsson deal, spread over six years, was the largest sponsorship in both tennis history and women’s professional sports. Now this extended partnership between the WTA and Perform, one of the world’s leading digital sports content groups, is the largest live media rights and production venture in the history of the WTA and in women’s sports.

 

By comparison, the Women’s National Basketball Association is reported by the New York Times to have a $12-million-a-year contract with ESPN.

 

The WTA/Perform deal does not kick in until 2017 but will centralize the international rights of the WTA’s total of 54 tournaments for the first time. Up to now the WTA had been receiving $17 million annually but in 2017 that figure will almost double to $33 million and thereafter expected to carry on rising.

 

According to the WTA, this is a unique strategic move on their behalf to ensure the aggregation and centralization of all WTA tournament media rights will deliver every WTA event across linear, digital and over-the-top (OTT) offerings. Ultimately, this will improve the fan experience by making it easier to consistently follow favorite WTA players throughout the year.

 

Stacey Allaster, WTA Chairman and chief executive officer, said, “This is a game-changing and historic moment for our fans and for women’s sport. Our new broadcast strategy to produce all 2000 main draw singles matches in partnership with Perform will deliver exponential global exposure for our players, tournaments and partners.”

 

Allaster added: “This is a very clear signal to the market about the value of women’s sports for media partners and for brands and sponsors.”

 

The deal basically means Perform will pay the rights fees and guarantee money to produce all 2,000 main-draw singles matches and 300 semifinals and finals of doubles matches each year. Networks that choose to produce tournaments on their own will receive subsidies from the venture, which is called WTA Media. Profits between the WTA and Perform will be shared equally.

 

Allaster told the New York Times that earlier this year the WTA began studying how to broaden and modernize the worldwide reach of women’s professional tennis and studied the media strategies of the Pacific-12 Conference, the PGA Tour, the National Football League (NFL) and the UEFA Champions League.

 

“It was a pretty clear road map for us,” she said, adding she also wants the WTA to make an aggressive push into social media. “Control and own the content and use the efficiencies of technology to distribute it.

 

“We want to be able to distribute all our matches and then cut them down to short form for social and over-the-top platforms for younger fans.”

 

STORY VIA BOB Larson tennis news.

Topics: Perform, tennis deal, Tennis News, Wta

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