Time Inc. has acquired three companies–
\nincluding SportsSignup, based in Saratoga
\nSprings–that will form the foundation of Sports
\nIllustrated Play, a new business devoted to youth
\nand amateur sports.<\/p>\n
Sports Illustrated Play is teaming up with
\nleaders in online sports management to introduce
\na suite of tools for player registration,
\nscheduling, communication and score keeping,
\nsaid a statement from the company.<\/p>\n
Two of the acquired companies–League
\nAthletics, Tucson, Az., and SportsSignup, based
\nat 18 Division St.–operate digital management
\ntools that post game scores, keep track of
\nschedules, statistics and standings and enable
\nparticipants to register and communicate regularly.<\/p>\n
According to Time Inc., the two companies
\nreach more than 8 million players, parents,
\ncoaches, administrators and other youth sports
\nparticipants, including over 8,500 leagues and
\n300,000 teams.<\/p>\n
The third acquired business, Southern
\nCalifornia-based iScore, operates a scoring
\napp for youth baseball, basketball, soccer and
\na multitude of other sports. The baseball app,
\nfor example, provides play-by-play coverage of
\napproximately 10,000 games each week. The
\niScore baseball, basketball and soccer apps are
\navailable on iOS devices; iScore baseball is also
\navailable on Android devices.<\/p>\n
“This acquisition brings together three leaders
\nin online sports management–SportsSignup,
\nLeague Athletics and iScore–to form the
\nfoundation of Sports Illustrated Play, LLC. Out
\nof the gate, this new and independent Time Inc. business will introduce a powerful suite of
\ntools for player registration, scheduling, communication
\nand scorekeeping for youth and
\namateur sports,” said Anthony Bruno, who was
\nCEO of SportsSignup and now COO of Sports
\nIllustrated Play.<\/p>\n
“Expect little to change in the near term,
\nbut over the longer term, you can count on a
\ncontinuation of open communication as we add
\nto the services we currently deliver to you,” he
\nsaid in a statement. “After all, Sports Illustrated
\nPlay will only be successful if we make your lives
\neasier and your organization more successful.<\/p>\n
“As our service and platform evolves, we
\nwill be eager to hear your thoughts on how
\nSports Illustrated Play can better serve your
\norganization.”<\/p>\n
Joe Ripp, CEO of Time Inc., said the acquisitions
\n“establish Time Inc.’s position in a youth
\nsports space that now consists of approximately
\n30 million American athletes aged 5 to 17. I
\nknow firsthand how team sports can empower
\nchildren and teens. It is also a source of pride
\nto older participants, whether they’re involved
\nas parents, coaches or provide moral support.
\nYouth sports are activities that touch one’s
\nentire life span and are a tremendous force of
\ngood in the lives of American families.”<\/p>\n
“We believe Time Inc. can bring greater
\nvalue to this growing segment and provide a
\nmore rewarding experience to its passionate
\naudiences,” Ripp continued. “This opportunity
\nrepresents a natural extension of the trusted
\nSports Illustrated brand. It was developed internally by George Linardos, an involved youth
\nsports dad, who conceived the idea for Sports
\nIllustrated Play and was a driving force behind
\nthe acquisitions and business plan.”<\/p>\n
Sports Illustrated Play will be led by Jeff
\nKarp, who has long been involved in youth and
\namateur sports and has built some of the largest
\nbrands in mobile, sports and entertainment,
\nTime Inc. said.<\/p>\n
In June, SportsSignup announced a partnership
\nwith Babe Ruth League Inc., to provide a
\nfull range of registration and content management
\nservices to Babe Ruth and its more than
\none million players nationwide.<\/p>\n
Time Inc. is a leading media companies,
\nwith a monthly global print audience of over
\n120 million and worldwide digital properties
\nthat attract more than 120 million visitors each
\nmonth, including over 50 websites. Influential brands include People,
\nSports Illustrated, InStyle, Time, Real Simple, Southern Living,
\nEntertainment Weekly and more.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Time Inc. has acquired three companies– including SportsSignup, based in Saratoga Springs–that will form the foundation of Sports Illustrated Play, a new business devoted to youth and amateur sports. Sports Illustrated Play is teaming up with leaders in online…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[57,98,115],"class_list":["post-17512","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business-news","tag-business-news","tag-new-businesses","tag-saratoga-springs"],"yoast_head":"\r\n