Chinese sports fans would have more sports programs to follow with the signing of a multiyear agreement between ESPN and Tencent for live coverage of games in China.
Under the deal, ESPN, a cable and satellite television giant, would also make available Chinese language sports commentary online to Tencent, the biggest Internet company in China. Beginning in April, there would be courtside analysis of National Basketball Association (NBA) games and international soccer games to air on QQ, the sports site of Tencent, reported China Daily.
NBA games followers in China watch its games on mobile device, computers and tablets. Fortune pointed out that basketball has been popular in China since the country was led by Chairman Mao Zedong of the Great Revolution, especially since China produced two basketball greats, Yao Ming and Jeremy Lin, noted Fortune.
With potential millions of Chinese viewers, ESPN is expected to boost its viewers’ numbers which declined in 2014 by 7 percent to 92 million compared to 2013 data in the U.S. SY Lau, senior executive vice president of Tencent and president of Online Media Group, stressed, “Tencent boasts a huge pool of users. Every day, hundreds of millions of people watch streamed sports games and read sports new on Tencent.”
Besides the analysis, ESPN would contribute articles to sites of Tencent and provide live streams of the National Collegiate Athletic Association men’s basketball championship match. The Disney-owned sports company would also provide Tencent subscribers extreme sports events, X Games and 100 ore college basketball games.