Friday, September 6, 2002

U. of Nebraska Offers a Trove of Online Sports Information -- for a Fee By SCOTT CARLSON Fans of the University of Nebraska's sports teams can get their fix by visiting a revamped Huskers Web site that broadcasts interviews with coaches, clips of practices, and sometimes streams live video of entire games. Users will have to pay for access to premium content on the site and will need cable or DSL connections to download the video programs. The university already sends a film crew to all Huskers sports events, whether a football game in Lincoln or a gymnastics meet in Miami. "We have so much content, but we've never had a vehicle to present it to our fans," says Larry W. Punteney, the site's senior producer. Now, with HuskerNside, as the subscription service is called, the university will package that footage as exclusive video content, updated daily. In addition to footage from practice sessions and interviews with coaches, the site will show entire competitions of sports that usually aren't televised, like women's basketball. In some cases, the site will feature particular games of popular sports, like football, if the networks that bought broadcast rights decide not to show those games. The site has been running since August 12 and already has 500 subscribers. "People are really eating it up," says Mr. Punteney, who hopes to eventually get about 10,000 subscribers. Rates run $10 a month, but subscribers can get a six-month football-season subscription for $40 and an entire year for $100. New Media Networks, a Lincoln-based company, helped the university put the new site together by providing servers, video-editing equipment, and employees for the university. "We believe that there is a business model here," says Ron R. Rheinheimer, the company's general manager. He hopes to generate advertising for the site, make money from subscriptions, and work out deals with cable companies, which may gain new subscribers because of HuskerNside's cable-connection requirements. He also hopes to bring the business model to about 20 other universities -- those that have top-ranked athletic programs, video-production capabilities, and a "business-minded athletic department" -- but he declines to name the institutions he has in mind. The university sees benefits, too. It's good publicity, says Mr. Punteney, and it helps attract athletes from far-away states like California and New Jersey. High-school stars can now see footage of the Huskers, and their families have a reasonable hope of seeing them perform. "It's a tremendous advantage in recruiting," Mr. Punteney says, "and the coaches think so, too." Easy-to-print version E-mail this article

Second firing in 2 days: LSU ousts head of center where bioterror expert worked, gives no explanation Special investigator will examine actions by trustees at Auburn U. Measure to increase loan-forgiveness ceiling for teachers clears House committee Report on Latino-American students notes high college-enrollment rate, lower graduation rate Americans' support for an international thrust in academe remains strong, poll finds Massachusetts college employees stage brief walkout over salary dispute 28 colleges announce events to mark the anniversary of September 11 U. of Nebraska offers a trove of online sports information -- for a Fee