MUMBAI: National Basketball Association (NBA) and German multinational software corporation SAP have entered into a new multiyear marketing partnership that will make SAP the Official Business Analytics Software Partner of the NBA.

The partnership includes the Women?s National Basketball Association and the NBA Development League and will allow SAP to connect with the passionate fan bases of all three leagues. Along with the U.S, the partnership extends to several international markets, including Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, India and Russia.

As part of the marketing partnership, SAP will serve as an associate partner of NBA All-Star, the NBA Draft and the NBA Cares All-Star Day of Service.

Additionally, SAP will be a partner of NBA China Games 2012, which includes two games between the Miami Heat and Los Angeles Clippers in Beijing (11 October) and Shanghai (14 October), and NBA Europe Live 2012 presented by BBVA game in Berlin between the Dallas Mavericks and Alba Berlin (6 October).

In addition, NBA has selected SAP HANA platform to develop a statistical experience for its fans on NBA.com. The real-time data platform will enable the league to bring official NBA statistical information directly to fans? fingertips on the league?s official website.

?We are constantly researching new and emerging technologies in an effort to provide our fans with new ways to connect with our game,? said NBA Commissioner David Stern. ?SAP is a leader in providing innovative software solutions and an ideal partner to provide a dynamic and comprehensive statistical offering as fans interact with NBA basketball on a global basis.?

?SAP is honored to partner with the NBA, one of the world?s most respected sports organizations,? said SAP co-CEO Bill McDermott. ?Through SAP HANA, fans will be able to experience the NBA as never before. This is a slam dunk for SAP, the NBA and the many fans who will now have access to unprecedented insight and analysis.?

The NBA statistics team will implement SAP HANA to run the league?s enhanced statistical offering on NBA.com, which previously was accessible only to NBA employees and select media members. NBA fans will be able to access large volumes of statistical information and analysis tools on the SAP HANA platform, which will enhance their overall experience.

Furthermore, the NBA has also selected SAP BusinessObjects business intelligence (BI) solutions for advanced analysis with SAP BusinessObjects Explorer software and SAP Data Services software.

By utilising SAP HANA to power official NBA statistics on NBA.com, and SAP BusinessObjects Explorer and SAP Data Services to enhance data quality, the NBA will provide fans with access to an innovative and easy-to-use statistical platform for their desktop, tablet or mobile device. The project is scheduled to launch during the 2012-13 season.

Throughout the year SAP solutions will deliver real-time data across the NBA?s entire global operations, encompassing media, special events, mobility, social media, player and team statistics, technology and fan interactions.

MUMBAI; The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has launched the tender process for the sale of the broadcast and exhibition rights for the UK for the XXII Olympic Winter Games (2014) in Sochi, Russia, and the Games of the XXXI Olympiad (2016) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The tender also provides the opportunity to make a bid for the XXIII Olympic Winter Games (2018) in PyeongChang, South Korea, and the Games of the XXXII Olympiad (2020) in a city to be selected by the IOC.

The tender issued by the IOC provides organisations interested in acquiring the rights with specific guidelines relating to bid submissions. The IOC has asked for bids to be submitted by 29 June 2012.

The IOC will assess bids on their ability to meet the highest standards in broadcast quality, their capacity to reach the broadest possible audience, their commitment to promoting the Olympic Games and the values of the Olympic Movement, as well as on the financial offer.

MUMBAI: Manchester United is the world?s most popular club with 659 million global followers.

Kantar, which carried out a survey, found that football remains the world?s most popular sport, with 1.6 billion followers globally, reinforcing the results of a recent Fifa survey. For the survey, Kantar gathered 54,000 respondents from 39 countries.

The club?s commercial director Richard Arnold commented on the long-term strategy that has made Manchester United the number one club in the world?s number one sport: "Manchester United has built on a tradition of iconic players, iconic teams and iconic achievements -- Beckham, Busby, Benfica ?68. Now our games are broadcast to 1.15 billion households globally, to an audience of over four billion a year."

Since 2007, Manchester United has rolled out new approaches to reach fans. The connections to the club has grown exponentially: from the increase in TV viewership from two to four billion last season, to the demand from millions of media subscribers in 72 countries through media partnerships and to the way the footage of Wayne?s overhead kick echoed around the world on social media.

"With the DHL Champions Trophy tour we have seen that passion from our community of followers face to face in 38 cities across the globe, and there does not seem to be a beach or street in the world where you do not see the Aon and Nike shirt. This survey shows that our family of followers is going from strength to strength," Arnold said.

Manchester United has 71 million followers in Americas, 90 million in Europe 73 million in Middle East and Africa, 325 million in Asia-Pacific an 108 million in China.

The number of Manchester United followers globally has grown by 98 per cent since the previous survey in 2007. Manchester United?s family of followers is larger than the combined population of the US, Brazil and Mexico.

MUMBAI: The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) has announced a record-breaking collection of rights holding broadcasters to screen the Paralympic Games across the globe this summer.

Combining with the previous announcements of exposure in the UK through Channel 4 and China?s largest national broadcasting network CCTV, the total worldwide broadcast deals will see a record ?10 million in revenue generated from the sale of broadcast rights to the Paralympic Games - greater than for any previous Games.

The local organising committee has stitched deals with European Broadcasting Union (EBU), NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation), Globo TV in Brazil, Australia?s public broadcaster ABC, Italian digital subscription channel Sky Italia, Korea public service broadcaster KBS (Korean roadcasting System) and Thailand Pool TV representing a pool of well established broadcasters in Thailand.

Host broadcaster services are being provided by OBS, providing viewers around the world with unbiased live action in high definition. Minimum broadcast commitments have been matched or exceeded in all cases with hundreds of hours of Paralympic sport to be broadcast right across the world.

LOCOG chair Sebastian Coe said: ?As the world?s second biggest multi-sport event, all eyes will be focussed on the Paralympic Games in London in 2012. Beyond how the commercial value of this package has raised the bar financially for the Paralympic movement, the fantastic broadcast coverage we have agreed will help us take advantage of this opportunity to inspire disabled people of all ages to take up sport and be a catalyst for continued change in public attitudes towards disability.?

MUMBAI: Soccerex has announced a new agreement with Brazilian media company, Rede Globo.

The Brazilian broadcasting and media company will become the Premium Media partner for the Soccerex Global Convention. This takes place in Rio de Janeiro from 26 ? 30 November, giving Globo priority broadcasting access and an enhanced presence throughout the event.

Under the agreement, Rede Globo will broadcast action from the Soccerex Football Festival and the Conference and advertise the event throughout its open, pay and cable networks.

Rede Globo is a communications company in Brazil with a network of affiliated broadcasting stations of 121 spread over the states and from offices at worldwide capitals. Globo has aired football competitions like the Fifa World Cup, The UEFA Champion?s League and the Brasileir?o (The Brazilian league). It broadcasts Brazilian football to more than 150 countries all around the world.

Soccerex CEO Duncan Revie said, ?I am delighted to have Rede Globo as our Premium Media partner for the Global Convention. It is important that Soccerex works with the most important players in all areas of football and Globo are undoubtedly the most important player in terms of TV in Brazil. I would like to thank them for their support and I am sure that with their broadcasting expertise, the Convention will provide some fantastic content for their vast audience of viewers?.