Endeavor, Professional Triathletes Organization launch DTC service

Endeavor Streaming is continuing to leverage its technology in the direct-to-consumer sports sphere, this time launching a streaming service with the Professional Triathletes Organization (PTO).

The platform, dubbed PTO+, launched this week as a free, registration-only service designed to showcase upcoming PTO Tour events. PTO+’s content library will offer both on-demand and livestreams, and the service is currently available via iOS, Android and desktop.

Notable events that will be made available include the PTO Canadian Open, taking place this weekend, and the PTO U.S. Open on September 17-18. In both of these events, contestants compete for $1 million in prize money. The service will also provide shoulder content to complement the events as well as documentaries about PTO professionals.

PTO noted it won’t carry the livestreamed versions of these events in Europe and the Indian subcontinent, as Warner Bros. Discovery carries the exclusive broadcast rights in those regions.

Pete Bellamy, SVP of global sports and international monitoring and evaluation at Endeavor Streaming, noted in a statement PTO is “in an exciting phase of their digital evolution.”

“PTO+ represents a new and dedicated home for viewing triathlons, including original content catered to fans around the globe. We’re excited to see Endeavor Streaming support and embrace PTO’s ambition to connect with fans and deliver their live events this summer and beyond,” he added.

This marks the second DTC sports streaming service Endeavor helped launch this month. The company recently debuted Spursplay in partnership with Tottenham Hotspur, a U.K.-based professional soccer club.

“The PTO will leverage Endeavor Streaming’s end-to-end D2C capabilities with branded front-end device applications, video streaming capabilities and subscriber management tooling to deliver a dedicated triathlon content destination,” stated Tim Godfrey, chief marketing officer at PTO.

PTO+ isn’t the only sports streaming service to tout zero price tags. FIFA+ launched in April, and it’s not only free-to-use but also doesn’t require registration. FIFA+’s coverage doesn’t displace existing streaming deals, it aims to increase exposure of the organization’s events – much like what PTO is doing.

An anticipated sports DTC platform is NFL+, with reports in May saying its launch date is expected sometime in July. In a July 8 interview with CNBC, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said the service will launch in time for the upcoming football season in September.

Sports streaming services like PTO+ and FIFA+ are cropping up as competition for livestream sports rights intensifies. Disney, Apple and Amazon are awaiting the results of the NFL Sunday Ticket bid, but Apple has been reported to be the likely winner – possibly paying close to $3 billion for the rights.

Other recent streaming deals include Amazon’s three-year contract to stream UEFA soccer games in the U.K. Prime Video app and Viacom18 paying $2.63 billion for five-year Indian cricket rights.

Though sports content still maintains a presence on linear TV, programming is becoming increasingly fragmented as sporting events shift to the streaming model.

“Regional sports networks are disappearing form the line-ups of traditional and virtual MVPDs, narrowing distribution and undermining the ability of franchises to grow new fans,” MoffettNathanson outlined in a recent report.