Leonsis, whose deal doesn't involve AOL, has put a scoreboard camera hanging above games that online users can adjust. Online elements are popping up across the sports world. CBS' recent deal for NCAA men's basketball, which will run through 2013, includes Internet rights that CBS suggests might eventually exceed broadcast revenues. Live online Live sporting events online remain uncharted territory. And Web sites can help some skirt the media.
Some athletes already try to communicate mainly from their sites.
And AOL's Leonsis hopes the Internet might let teams manage their news. But Bonham suggested an obvious change for fans watching games online will be chances to play along at home. Fans might get to have playbooks, to play along in virtual versions as the game goes along, or predict plays. The point of big-time sports is, after all, to find new things to sell to sponsors and new ways to get fans to watch. But it's going to affect the opportunities to exploit those fans.