Versus Enters Partnership With Yardbarker
Digital Aggregator Will Have Segment On 'Fanarchy' Series; House Network Video Player On Affiliated Sites
Mike Reynolds -- Multichannel News, 5/22/2009 10:55:23 AM EDT
Versus is supporting its upcoming Fanarchy series with a strategic partnership with digital sports aggregator Yardbarker.The agreement, terms of which were not disclosed, will result in Yardbarker having a regular segment on Fanarchy, which will give loud-mouthed sports fans a chance to debate the stories du jour via their Webcams.
Hosted by Zach Selwyn, Fanarchy debuts on Sunday, June 7 at 11 p.m. (ET ) before assuming its regular Tuesday 10:30 p.m. time slot on June 16
Each installment of Fanarchy will feature a Yardbarker-branded segment highlighting the off-beat topics that are popular on Yardbarker and featuring talent from its roster of popular sports bloggers. The San Francisco-based company operates a network of more than 700 affiliated Web sites and blogs, plus 100 celebrity athlete blogs, which collectively attract more than 10 million unique monthly visitors.
Versus will also partner on a video player that will be prominently featured on Yardbarker.com and across its network of affiliated sites. The video player will include clips and highlights from Versus sports properties, including NHL games, IndyCar Series events, college football games and cycling races. It will also include a Yardbarker channel, which will profile and contain their exclusive content.
"Launching new original series and enhancing our digital media offerings are two major initiatives for the network. With their vast reach, broad sports content and strong brand recognition among sports fans, Yardbarker is the perfect partner for Versus," said Versus president Jamie Davis in announcing the deal. "Their readers and users are not only our audience, but a talent pool for future episodes of Fanarchy and the distribution of the Versus video player will undoubtedly help to expand our digital footprint."
Noted Yardbarker CEO Pete Vlastelica: "Yardbarker is thrilled to be entering into this partnership with Versus and extending the Yardbarker experience to the TV audience. We're very encouraged by the Versus team's commitment to community and authenticity, and their understanding that it's not enough to ‘have your finger on the pulse' -- you have to be the pulse."
