Indoor Sports Continue with Help of NFHS Network's High School Support Program

ATLANTA, Dec. 10, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- With high school sports moving indoors for the winter, and concerns rising about the risk of COVID-19 contagion in facilities such as gymnasiums, many schools are limiting fan attendance at basketball games, wrestling matches, and other activities. To help with this, the NFHS Network's High School Support Program is making it easier for high schools to livestream events so that viewers can stay safe and catch the action remotely.

This past July, the leader in streaming live and on-demand high school sports kicked off the High School Support Program to help schools contend with the fallout from COVID-19. The program includes two free Pixellot automated production units for eligible schools (one for indoor and one for outdoor use), enhanced revenue sharing to recoup lost funds from ticket sales and concessions due to the pandemic, and the ability to make standalone donations directly to high schools.

NFHS Network viewership is based on an affordable subscription model that gives subscribers "anytime, anywhere" viewing capabilities. The service can be accessed across all smartphones, tablets, computers, and connected devices by visiting www.NFHSnetwork.com or by downloading the NFHS Network app. 

The High School Support Program has been a resounding success with total live views on the Network increasing from 1.1 million in the first four months of the 2019-2020 school year to over 2.3 million during the same time period this year.

"Our viewership is rising for indoor sports just as it did for football and other outdoor athletic events in the late summer and fall," said Mark Koski, vice president of the NFHS Network. "Remote viewing is perhaps even more important for indoor activities. Our ability to provide a livestream solution for both outdoor and indoor athletics enables us to play a key role in fan viewership while generating an important revenue stream to schools."

The NFHS Network has provided over 6,000 free Pixellot units through the High School Support Program since July, bringing the total number of automated production units at schools nationwide to more than 10,000. The Pixellot automated production solution allows every event to be streamed live without requiring personnel to produce the games, thereby eliminating the operational strain created by manual production.

Mountain Brook Schools is the K-12 public school system serving the city of Mountain Brook, Alabama, a suburb of Birmingham. The system's Mountain Brook High School has utilized the NFHS Network for the last four years to livestream a wide range of both outdoor and indoor sporting events. The school has two Pixellot cameras. 

"From the beginning, livestreaming sports over the NFHS Network has generated a lot of positive feedback from the families of our student-athletes, school alumni, and the community in general," said Benny Eaves, director of Athletics for Mountain Brook City Schools. "With the pandemic, our fall football program was in uncharted territory with restricted attendance at games, and the Network was highly useful in ensuring that everyone could catch the action—including those who couldn't be there in person. Now that we're moving to indoor sports, our participation in the NFHS Network will be even more valuable. Our boys' varsity basketball has been nationally ranked for the last several years, so there's a lot of excitement for that in particular. It will be a huge benefit to enable fans to livestream basketball and other indoor sports this winter."

The NFHS Network livestreams 27 different sports throughout the academic school year, including football, wrestling, volleyball, basketball, hockey, competitive cheer, and soccer. Additionally, the Network livestreams performing arts, graduations, award ceremonies, and other school events.

To date, the NFHS Network has distributed over $25 million back to schools and state associations through its subscription revenue-sharing model.

For more information about the High School Support Program, please visit www.nfhsnetwork.com/supportprogram.

About NFHS Network

The NFHS Network is the leader in streaming live and on-demand high school sports. The NFHS Network covers 27 different regular season and postseason sports, as well as other high school activities, celebrating the accomplishments of students-athletes, student broadcasters, and high schools across the country. Partnered with the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), 46 high school state athletic/activities associations, and PlayOn! Sports, the NFHS Network is a joint venture created to provide fans with the ability to stream high school sports on any device, from wherever they are. All NFHS Network events are available to watch online at www.NFHSnetwork.com and through the NFHS Network app for iOS, Android, Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

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SOURCE NFHS Network