Over 14 Million Live Video Streams of March Madness Action Served Around the World
March Madness on Demand Records Over Four Million Visitors in First Four Days
FT. LAUDERDALE, FL, March 19, 2006
- CBS SportsLine, a leading Internet sports media organization and part
of CBS Digital Media, in partnership with CBS Sports, CSTV and the
NCAA® this afternoon announced that NCAA® March Madness™ on Demand has
served over 14 million streams of live video from the 2006 NCAA®
Division I Men's Basketball Championship and recorded over four million
visitors during the first four days of the tournament.
The
over 14 million video streams and four million visitors are believed to
far surpass the total number of streams served and visits recorded for
any previous live event in Internet history. NASA's online video
coverage of the launch and landing of the Space Shuttle Discovery is
believed to have held the previous record for largest live Internet
event with more than 2.6 million visitors.
"Through
the success of March Madness on Demand, we have been able to provide
unprecedented viewing options by maximizing the Network's NCAA bundled
rights and the full range of assets of the new CBS Corporation," said
Sean McManus, President, CBS News and Sports. "March Madness on Demand
will continue to add to the viewing experience for hard core college
basketball fans everywhere."
"The
growth in reach of the NCAA Basketball Championship is evident in every
measure we see," said Tom Jernstedt, NCAA Executive Vice President.
"The addition of the free March Madness on Demand package has elevated
fan following to another level and we're very pleased with the growth
of the game evidenced across so many forms of media."
"The
numbers we have seen thus far with March Madness on Demand are clear
evidence that this product is the perfect extension of CBS Sports'
presentation of the ® Division I Men's Basketball Championship," said
Larry Kramer, President of CBS Digital Media. "Valuable partners,
including MLB Advanced Media have contributed heavily to the nearly
flawless performance of March Madness on Demand thus far."
NCAA® March Madness™ on Demand (MMOD) By the Numbers:
- MMOD served over 14 million streams of live game action
- MMOD has recorded over four million visitors in first four days
- A total of 1.15 million users have registered for MMOD
- 530 thousand fans registered for MMOD on Thursday, March 16
- Approximately 30 thousand international users registered for MMOD
- MMOD
had 150,000 people in the waiting room on Thursday March 16 just after
the first games started, if that line was single-file and visible
(assuming each person takes up two feet of space), it would have been
over 50 miles long.
NCAA®
March Madness™ on Demand, the online video player that provides
streaming live video of the first 56 games of the 2006 NCAA® Division I
Men's Basketball Championship is available at NCAAsports.com (www.ncaasports.com/mmod)
and is presented free of charge for the first time since its debut in
2003. Free access to NCAA® March Madness™ on Demand is made possible by
presenting sponsors Courtyard by Marriott and Dell as well as a host of
other sponsors including Lowe's, Pontiac and State Farm.
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