Leaders 2019: "We are changing the world of sports via the tools we provide" (P. Hutton, Facebook)

"I think we are changing the world of sports. We are asking businesses what they aim to obtain and are trying to deliver it like for our deal with the MLB. (Facebook acquired the rights to exclusive distribution, in the USA, to 25 games for the 2018 season, then to six without exclusivity in 2019)," stated Peter Hutton, director of the sports media eights at Facebook, at the 2019 edition of the Leaders Sport Business Summit conference cycle, organized at Twickenham Stadium in London (ENG), on 08/10/2019.

"The target (of the deal with MLB) was to trigger new, younger audiences to the sport. If a fan has watched one minute of video of a franchise, it tells them he is a potential customer. This is an example of how we work as a tool. We are opening up other revenues streams with our tools," added the Facebook director during an exchange with John Skipper, the executive chairman of DAZN.

"I believe the aggregation of sports rights serves as a defense against churn, whereas buying sports right buys you that audience," continued the director who left the pay-TV group Eurosport in March…