Pink's Bottom Line on Media, Money and Sports

NFL on Amazon and Twitch, home prices and the NFC Least

In today’s newsletter, I discuss viewership of an NFL game that was telecast nationally on Amazon and Twitch, home price increases and the NFL’s saddest division, the NFC East, which is referred to these days as the NFC Least.

MEDIA: NFL on Amazon Prime, Twitch

It looks like Saturday’s national telecast of an NFL game that ran on Amazon Prime and Twitch, and not a traditional broadcast network, fared relatively well, according to an NFL press release.

The NFL says 10.7 million total viewers streamed at least part of the Arizona Cardinals-San Francisco 49ers game this Saturday — that total reached 11.2 million if also you include those who streamed at least part of the pre-game show.

In fact, according to this press release, the NFL says that the average viewer streamed for 82 minutes on Twitch or Amazon, more than the 67 minutes that a viewer averages watching other NFL games telecast this year.

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While it’s not an apples to apples comparison, an NFL game on a Sunday afternoon on a traditional broadcaster still pulls in a much larger total audience — usually in the 12 to 16 million total viewer range.

(Click here to see an excellent overview of NFL ratings through week 15 from Front Office Sports.)

That said, it is encouraging that viewers did manage to find and to watch the Cardinals-49ers game last Saturday despite its non-traditional distribution.

MONEY: Home Prices Rise

Home prices are marching higher, according to data from the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices released today.

The Case-Shiller Indices show that home prices nationally rose 8.4% in October — the most recent data available — compared to a year ago.

Prices rose broadly across each region of the country, with the West and Southwest parts showing the biggest increase in prices from a year ago, according to that Case-Shiller data.

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Notably, the city with the biggest price increase from a year ago was Phoenix, where prices rose 12.7% in the past year, according to the data, followed by Seattle with an 11.7% gain and San Diego with an 11.6% increase.

A strong housing market will help lead the country to an economic recovery, and this data seems quite positive.

If the housing market remains strong and if consumer spending picks up in the first few months of the year, which seems likely as the federal stimulus bill has been approved, the economy could be set for a strong start in 2021.

SPORTS: NFC Least

As we enter the last week of the NFL regular season, it’s only fitting that the NFC East, the league’s worst division, still isn’t settled, and three of the four teams — Dallas, the New York Giants and Washington — could still emerge as division champion.

On Sunday, the Giants host the Dallas Cowboys and the Philadelphia Eagles are home against the Washington Football Team.

If Washington wins, the Football Team wins the division. If Washington loses, then the winner of the Giants-Cowboys game will be crowned division champs. (Note: I’m assuming there are no tie games.)

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In any case, the best record that any team that wins this sorry division could have is 7-9 — the Giants could even win the division with 6-10 record.

The Cowboys are three-point favorites in their game, and they’re on a three-game winning streak, so I like them to beat the Giants.

Meanwhile, I think the Eagles, though they are 1.5-point underdogs to Washington, will beat the Football Team, which is in disarray because of its quarterback situation.

That means that the Cowboys, who looked like they had no shot of being in the postseason just a few weeks ago, will win the NFC Least and will host a playoff game. Amazing.

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Jeremy Pink is COO of Geniecast, a leading virtual content and experience company, and he is also currently an advisor to companies in the media and financial tech sectors. Jeremy is the former CEO of private-equity backed Broadcast Sports International where he helped lead the company to a successful sale and exit during his tenure there, and he is also a former CNBC television executive in New York, London and Singapore.

The information contained in this communication is strictly for general informational and entertainment purposes and is not meant to be construed as financial, investment, tax, or legal advice. This communication is not a solicitation to buy or sell any securities. I am not a financial advisor or offering professional advice of any kind. Users should not act upon the content or information found within this communication without first seeking professional advice appropriate for their individual situation. Decisions based on information contained in this communication are the sole responsibility of the user, and use of this communication and its contents constitutes an explicit understanding and acceptance of the foregoing disclaimers.

(Newsletter Editor: Karina Pink)