CBS' MMOD traffic up 129 percent
NCAA March Madness on Demand traffic up 129 percent through first & second round
Total live video & audio consumption through first four days surpasses entire 2007 tournament
Over 3.6 million users play bracket games with CBSSports.com
FT. LAUDERDALE, FL, March 25, 2008 -- CBSSports.com, in partnership with CBS Sports, CBS College Sports Network and the NCAA, today released traffic figures for NCAA March Madness on Demand for the first four days (First & Second Round) of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship. In total, there were 3,318,844 total unique visitors to the NCAA March Madness on Demand video player, a 129% increase over 2007 figures. (1,448,546 unique visitors)
2008 NCAA March Madness on Demand traffic figures through Sunday, March 23
* 3,318,844 total daily unique visitors to the NCAA March Madness on Demand video player (comparable 2007 figure was 1,448,546 -- 129% growth)
* Total minutes of live streaming video and audio consumed in the first fours days of the tournament (March 20-23): 3,705,092 total hours (222,305,520 minutes). This figure surpasses the entire 2007 total of minutes of live video and audio consumption (2,716,236 hours -- 162,974,160 minutes) resulting in 36% year-over-year growth and counting.
* Over 3.6 million fans are currently playing in CBSSports.com bracket games across the web, including the largest bracket application on Facebook. The total number CBSSports.com brackets participants is up 62% from 2007. (2.2 million)
* 2,190,488 clicks of the "Boss Button" (figure not available for 2007)
* 571,297 VIP registrants (2007 figure was 468,720 -- 22% growth)
2008 NCAA March Madness on Demand Consumption tidbits
* The First Round Georgia vs. Xavier game on 3/20/08 had a record-setting total of 376,000 hours of consumption. This mark easily eclipsed the previous record high of 133,000 total hours which was set in 2006. (Winthrop vs. Tennessee) Kentucky vs. Marquette on 3/20/08 also broke the 300K barrier with 325,000 hours.
* The average stream for Cornell vs. Stanford on 3/20/08 (23.5 minutes per stream) was over four minutes longer than any other game thus far. This is due to the fact that the game tipped off at 4:40 p.m. ET and was the only game playing at the time.
A large factor in the year-over-year traffic escalation with NCAA March Madness on Demand is the decision CBSSports.com made to drop registration requirements for the product, giving fans immediate admission to the video player. This one-click access gives CBSSports.com the ability to distribute links to NCAA March Madness on Demand to a network of more than 200 sites across the Internet, including major sports websites such as ESPN.com, Yahoo! Sports and SI.com, leading social sites like Facebook, online video leader YouTube as well as the CBS Audience Network, including sites for CBS television and radio affiliates.
2008 marks the first time that NCAA March Madness on Demand gives users the ability to view all 63 games of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship, from the first round of the tournament through the Men's Final Four in San Antonio, including the Championship game. NCAA March Madness on Demand also gives users the option to listen to live play-by-play audio from Westwood One Radio for all games of the tournament.
Since its inception in 2003, NCAA March Madness on Demand has traditionally provided live video of 56 games from the first round through the regional semifinals of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship as they are broadcast by CBS Sports, with local broadcasts being subject to blackouts.
Full game video and audio archives and highlight packages will be available on demand for all games of the tournament via the NCAA March Madness on Demand player. Additionally, highlight packages are available on the CBS Interactive Audience Network as well as YouTube. The NCAA March Madness on Demand player and archival footage are accessible through April 21.
Free access to 2008 NCAA March Madness on Demand is made possible by presenting sponsors and NCAA Corporate Champions AT&T, Coca-Cola, and Pontiac.
