The Baofeng Sports International division of Chinese internet entertainment and technology provider Baofeng has acquired rights to the Chinese Super League club football competition and has also struck a partnership with the Chinese Basketball Association.
The Yutang Sports website said Baofeng Sports has been granted rights to the CSL across its ongoing 2016 season, along with the 2017 campaign. Under the deal, Baofeng Sports will hold rights to a single match from every round of the CSL season, which it will exploit across OTT platforms, PCs and mobile devices.
Le Sports, which is operated by Chinese internet company LeEco, is the main new media partner of the CSL through a deal struck in February. Le Sports holds a wide-ranging strategic partnership with agency China Sports Media, also known as Ti’ao Dongli, headlined by exclusive broadcast rights in a number of markets to the CSL.
The five-season rights deal runs from 2016 to 2020. Le Sports will live stream CSL matches in mainland China; Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan; the US and Canada, and “much of” Southeast Asia. In September, Ti’ao Dongli acquired the domestic broadcast and production rights to the Super League from 2016 to 2020.
Meanwhile, Baofeng’s partnership with the CBA will involve the production of virtual reality content for China’s women’s national basketball team, along with other commercial rights.