garfield Posted April 17, 2015 Share Posted April 17, 2015 Well, any people, or group, or fan base or performer, I suppose. You know, drum corps people and maybe those who control it or pay for it or obsess over it. Maybe decision-makers or marketing or development people. I post this text from THIS Variety article, after hearing on the business news this morning about the circuit's purchase. Fascinated, I discovered some guys at some marketing firms who actually are visionaries who "buy-in" to the passion of a live sport, nurture it, feed it, market it, grow it, and make participants rock stars. Imagine replacing the PBR with DCI as you read and then imagine if anyone in DCI envisions this obvious success path... Fascinating (but long)... WME/IMG’s expansion into the world of sports continued Wednesday with the announcement that the agency had bought Professional Bull Riders, the rodeo-style event that bills itself as “the fastest-growing sport in America.” A source close to the deal said the Beverly Hills-based percentery paid about $100 million for ownership of the bull-riding circuit, extending its reach into the live-events space. PBR stages more than 300 events globally a year, with attendance of more than 3 million people. The sport’s reach via television and the Web — aided by a long-term contract with CBS — extends to more than 550 million households in more than 40 countries. WME had already made a major move into the sports field last year with its merger with athletics giant IMG. A joint statement from WME/IMG co-CEOs Ari Emanuel and Patrick Whitesell said: “We’ve worked closely with the PBR for the last several years and share their passion for expanding the sport of bull riding globally. The resources across WME/IMG make the partnership a perfect match, combining top quality event production and broadcast rights.” The Pueblo, Colorado-based organization is run by chief executive Jim Haworth, who said Wednesday he was “thrilled” to join WME/IMG. “The acquisition will allow our organization to continue its expansion worldwide, and bring our top-quality events to the masses,” Haworth said. Haworth noted that the organization’s fans follow the bulls sometimes more closely than the riders. He noted that in ESPN the Magazine’s “body” feature last year that a bull named Bushwacker was touted as possessing “the Baddest Body in Sports.” Last October, about 5,000 people turned out at Huntington Beach, Calif., for an event in which PBR brought its “bull athletes” to the beach. The event drew considerable television viewership, as well, thanks in part to an NFL game lead-in, Haworth said. The tour was founded in 1992 by 20 riders, breaking away from the traditional rodeo circuit. The organization now holds several tours, including the elite PBR Built Ford Tough Series, the BlueDEF Velocity Tour, the Touring Pro Division, and circuits in Australia, Brazil, Canada and Mexico. Haworth noted that the Professional Bull Riders are not entirely newcomers to Hollywood. Organization members served as advisers on the recently released Scott Eastwood starrer “The Longest Ride.” WME/IMG is purchasing the PBR from controlling shareholder Spire Capital Partners, a New York-based private equity firm and from other shareholders. The Raine Group and Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison served as WME/IMG’s financial and legal advisers, respectively. PBR was advised by financial advisers Evercore and legal advisers Dentons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daave Posted April 17, 2015 Share Posted April 17, 2015 First thought is how this would affect the non-profit status, or if that matters. Second thought... what happens after the newness wears off. In today's society, we are often on to something else as quick as a Lab puppy. Investigate it, see if I can play with it or eat it and eventually pee on it and walk away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted April 17, 2015 Share Posted April 17, 2015 (edited) Rodeo is a professional sport. Its athletes are paid professional athletes. Rodeo a For Profit enterprise. " Professional Bull Riders" in this article speaks directly to that For Profit Status. DCI is a 501 (c ) enterprise.. a Non Profit entity. So I'm not getting the connection, or what you would like to see happen similar to this Professional Sports aquisition by a For Profit Company in the Business World interested in making a profit for itself and its shareholders ( or its private owners ) Edited April 17, 2015 by BRASSO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garfield Posted April 17, 2015 Author Share Posted April 17, 2015 Rodeo is a professional sport. Its athletes are paid professional athletes. Rodeo a For Profit enterprise. " Professional Bull Riders" in this article speaks directly to that For Profit Status. DCI is a 501 (c ) enterprise.. a Non Profit entity. So I'm not getting the connection, or what you would like to see happen similar to this Professional Sports aquisition by a For Profit Company in the Business World interested in making a profit for itself and its shareholders ( or its private owners ) The structure of the corp is meaningless although part of the discussion. The "charitable" connotation of 501c3 is likely a bigger issue than the switch to a C-corp or other taxable entity. But the presumption is that "the MM experience" would be lost upon conversion and that's absolutely not true. In fact, I would suggest that the conversion would be a great benefit to the MM experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garfield Posted April 17, 2015 Author Share Posted April 17, 2015 First thought is how this would affect the non-profit status, or if that matters. Second thought... what happens after the newness wears off. In today's society, we are often on to something else as quick as a Lab puppy. Investigate it, see if I can play with it or eat it and eventually pee on it and walk away. The second (hilarious) sentence is more apt, but I see there have been guys riding bulls for as long as there have been kids playing horns and banging on things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LabMaster Posted April 17, 2015 Share Posted April 17, 2015 Rodeo is a professional sport. Its athletes are paid professional athletes. Rodeo a For Profit enterprise. " Professional Bull Riders" in this article speaks directly to that For Profit Status. DCI is a 501 (c ) enterprise.. a Non Profit entity. So I'm not getting the connection, or what you would like to see happen similar to this Professional Sports aquisition by a For Profit Company in the Business World interested in making a profit for itself and its shareholders ( or its private owners ) Not sure if there is any connection beyond PBR and DCI each dealing with a certain amount of BS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HockeyDad Posted April 17, 2015 Share Posted April 17, 2015 Imagine replacing the PBR with DCI as you read and then imagine if anyone in DCI envisions this obvious success path... Fascinating (but long)... I would pair Pabst Blue Ribbon with DCI. I wouldn't replace PBR with DCI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted April 17, 2015 Share Posted April 17, 2015 (edited) I would pair Pabst Blue Ribbon with DCI. I wouldn't replace PBR with DCI Thats a thought.. another could be to pair Ringling Bros, with DCI. Ringling gets the busses, drums, horns, and costuming, DCI gets the animals, fireworks, trains, & winter storage. Edited April 17, 2015 by BRASSO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
31rabbit Posted April 17, 2015 Share Posted April 17, 2015 there are a few reasons why there are big complications with the idea of 'buying' the DCI tour and trying to increase its market. but DCI-lite, 'Soundsport,' would fit this model really well. it can be year round. it only requires a modest sized venue. it has a greater potential to be 'dynamic' from event to event. a for-profit competitive mini-corps circuit, heavy on the advertising and head-to-head competition element, is a model that Could have legs If it could capture interest. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garfield Posted April 17, 2015 Author Share Posted April 17, 2015 Thats a thought.. another could be to pair Ringling Bros, with DCI. Ringling gets the busses, drums, horns, and costuming, DCI gets the animals, fireworks, trains, & winter storage. "That's a nice, little niche band circuit you've got there." "Circus, where they torture animals? No thanks, I'll take Cirque". "Stable" is stagnation as tastes change around you. Not upsetting the apple cart status quo, and repeating the way things have always been done is certain slow death. Witness both the circus and drum corps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.