Online sports resource SportsLine.com,
Inc. Wednesday joined forces with community site theglobe.com Inc. in a multi-year deal to
co-develop content and cross promote services on CBS Sportsline and
theglobe.com.
SportsLine.com (SPLN)
will receive a minimum guarantee of $5 million payable in theglobe.com (TGLO)
stock representing approximately 3 percent of outstanding shares in
theglobe.com stock, in exchange for prominent integration and extensive
promotion of the enhanced community throughout the CBS SportsLine site and
inclusion in CBS SportsLine’s Rewards Program.
Additionally, theglobe.com will have exclusive
rights to sell advertising, sponsorships and non sports-related e-commerce
within CBS SportsLine’s community. SportsLine.com will also have the
opportunity to receive additional payments in stock or cash, contingent upon
the achievement of certain performance milestones.
In terms of content, theglobe.com will co-brand and customize its community
services including e-mail clubs, home page building tools and message boards
for CBS SportsLine and its fantasy sports service, Commissioner.com. The partnership is
set to begin with CBS SportsLine’s coverage of the Major League Baseball
season, which starts in early April.
The deal matches two of the Web’s most popular properties. According to the
December
Media Metrix report, the combined
audiences of SportsLine.com and
theglobe.com represent an unduplicated reach of 12.4 percent of all Web
users.
“We strongly believe that our strategic partnership with theglobe.com will
enable us to foster deeper relationships with our users, resulting in more
frequent and longer visits to our site and substantial incremental value to
both our consumers and shareholders,” stated Michael Levy, founder and chief
executive officer of SportsLine.com.
