AOL Extends WNBA Agreement

AOL and the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) have launched a new ad-supported broadband channel featuring on-demand video highlights, player interviews, and other exclusive content.

The WNBA broadband channel on AOL.com will feature game highlights from the past 10 years, behind-the-scenes game coverage, feature stories and interviews with WNBA players. All WNBA video will be indexed in AOL’s video search engine.

The videos will reside on a WNBA site within AOL Sports, which will also feature WNBA news and player blogs. In addition, the content will be featured in other AOL.com programming areas, such as Black Voices, and Women’s and Lifestyle channels.

All videos are shown in AOL’s media player, with the WNBA’s own banner ads displayed beneath the video clips. Unlike other video content on AOL.com, there are no third-party pre-roll video ads on the WNBA clips.

As part of this multi-year programming and partnership deal, AOL will also reach out to WNBA fans through offline channels, including in-arena signage and advertising during every nationally televised WNBA regular and post-season game and the league’s All-Star Game.

AOL will also host a “Greatest Moments” video series sweepstakes in celebration of the WNBA’s 10th Anniversary season. The sweepstakes, which launches online next week to coincide with the All-Star Game, lets AOL.com visitors cast votes for their favorite moments in league history, which enters them for a chance to win WNBA-themed prizes, or a a grand prize trip to the 2006 WNBA Finals.

The two organizations began their relationship in 2000, with a marketing partnership that also involved the NBA.