Twitter’s positioning in the saturated social-media market is simple: The company wants to be the global public square, the place where people go to discuss what is happening in the
world.
At the company’s newfront presentation Monday night, it doubled down on that message.
The company highlighted new partnerships with major media
companies and sports leagues, with a particular focus on three key areas: sports, news and live entertainment.
Twitter's global head of revenue Matt Derella noted
the company kicked off the year at CES announcing new content deals, adding it would "continue that drumbeat around sports, news, and entertainment tonight.
"You will see us
continue to reimagine sports, news, and entertainment, bringing together the best conversation win Twitter, bringing you the most premium content from the world's best content creators."
The company made a point of highlighting brand safety, long a sticking point for media buyers and marketers.
"Health is our No. 1 priority, and brand safety is an
integral part of this," Sarah Personette, vice president of Twitter global client solutions, told the crowd at Terminal 5 in Manhattan. "We only offer premium
content from publishers you trust. You have visibility into the publishers and content aligned with your brand message."
Among the announcements: a wide-ranging deal with
Spanish-language Univision, which will see Univision bring 2020 election coverage and highlights from Liga MX and UEFA Champions League to Twitter.
On the sports side, Twitter unveiled a
multiyear partnership extension with the NFL, which will include live anchored shows held around events like the season kickoff and NFL Draft.
The company also announced an
extension of its deal with MLS, which include live matches (through its Univision partnership) and every goal posted to Twitter after it happens.
Twitter is partnering with The
Player’s Tribune to launch a new live series called “Don’t @ Me,” which will feature two athletes debating various topics, bringing in the opinions of Twitter users
throughout the show.
Expanded programming from ESPN, Bleacher Report, and Blizzard Entertainment rounds out the sports lineup. The new deals will live alongside existing
partnerships, which include deals with the NBA, MLB, and PGA Tour.
On the news side, the company rolled out a significant partnership with The Wall Street Journal, which
will include a new show called “WSJ What's Now” that runs video clips on Twitter throughout the day and provides live coverage of WSJ events, such as the “Future of
Everything” conference.
Bloomberg will expand live coverage on its TicToc news service.
Twitter also announced new deals with CNET and Time
magazine. CNET will cover industry events, such as CES and the Mobile World Conference on Twitter, while Time will develop exclusive content around its “Person of the Year” and
“Time 100” brands.
Twitter also announced new live event programming for its platform.
Live Nation is developing a slate of 10 concerts in
10 weeks, which will stream live and exclusively on Twitter. Live Nation will also share exclusive content from events like Governors Ball, Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo Arts & Music Festival and
Electric Daisy Carnival.
MTV will work with Twitter on a live streaming partnership tied to the Video Music Awards, with an emphasis on backstage access. The company will
bring back red-carpet coverage of its tent-pole events to the social network.