John Skipper stepped down as chair of DAZN to "dedicate my time to Meadowlark Media,” the content company he launched with Dan Le Batard, the exec wrote in an email sent to DAZN employees this morning that found its way into my email inbox. One of Meadowlark Media’s first clients: DAZN. This could be the beginning of a trend in the sports media business (Connor Schell set up a similar arrangement with ESPN when he stepped down from his role last year).
For Skipper, the deal means that DAZN will pick up Meadowlark-produced documentaries -- part of a programming strategy emphasizing original non-game content that Skipper embraced at the streaming network as a key to retain subscribers. When the pandemic hit last year and live sports went into a shutdown internationally, DAZN execs were bracing themselves, expecting to lose half of their subscribers. Churn levels never got close to 50%, I’m told.
Part of the reason subscribers stuck around: in most markets DAZN found that documentaries they carried were getting more activity than normal. In Japan, a combination talk show/game show proved to be popular. The lesson for DAZN: original content is a place where they can get stronger. Subscribers may come in for live sports. DAZN wants them to stay for the documentaries.
Skipper’s former Disney colleague Kevin Mayer will take over as DAZN’s chair. “For more than two decades, I had the pleasure of working closely with Kevin, and his depth of expertise in the sports and entertainment industries will be a tremendous asset to DAZN Group,” Skipper wrote. Mayer told the Wall Street Journal that he does not plan to compete for U.S. sports rights, where the market is too mature for newcomers, focusing instead on the European and Asian markets.
