Two of my favorite things should come together.
Tomorrow is the Starbucks Annual Meeting, which I really wish I was going to. I’m a shareholder, but with just recently taking a vacation, decided I should be at work, rather than checking out what Howard talks about tomorrow. He’s typically not rolling out as many new and noteworthy things as Steve Jobs, but since it is his first meeting since retaking his role as CEO, it may be the biggest meeting in recent history.
Then this coming Thursday is the beginning of March Madness. The best sporting event of the year that typically does not have Oregon State in it. With the tournament comes office pools and many many brackets being filled out, distributed, and talked about with almost every person you know. I have what I think is my final bracket, but with UCLA having two potential game changing injuries, I may have to change it again tomorrow.
As there is a rumor that Starbucks may be unveiling a customer loyalty program tomorrow it got me thinking as to what this program can, will, and should look like.
Is Steve Ballmer Seattle’s new Paul Allen?
Today, I received an email from Steve Ballmer. Yes, it was actually from him and in its entirety it read, “Thanks.” I had a few thoughts about Ballmer when I received the email back. First, I wonder what phone he sent that from? It wouldn’t be a Blackberry or an iPhone, even though Apple is now licensing Microsoft technology for business email on the iPhone. Second off, I was surprised that he lives up to his word of saying he responds personally to all emails. Third, I started to think that he may be the new Paul Allen.
Bowling is a sport
Since my blog has moved in the direction of debating what is and is not a sport, I give you this image. If bowling requires defense, how is it not a sport?
Hat tip: Deadspin
An editor from the PI must read my blog
I saw that there was a story written today in the Seattle PI called, “What defines a sport? Like a ping-pong match, the debate goes back and forth.” Thought it was funny that my most commented on post as of late was about computer gaming being carried on ESPN. Well the comments have turned into a debate as to what a sport is, or is not. Seeing that my readers couldn’t answer this question, David Andriesen decided to do some research and write a feature piece on the subject.*
It’s a fairly long article, but I guess any item written on this subject will be. He basically created a checklist, as Aaron Vis did in an earlier comment, about what should be included in a sport. His checklist includes; objective scoring, mostly human power, direct head-to-head, requires physical strength, and employs a ball. He doesn’t say that all sports need to meet all five criteria, but that it’s a good point to start the debate.
The only six sports to match all five criteria are baseball, basketball, football, hockey, soccer, and tennis. What do you think, are those the six most sport like competitions because they meet the most items on this list? Where is the cutoff? Would meeting three of these criteria be enough to constitute a sport? Four? One?
After the jump the checklist, but I’d recommend reading the entire article and weighing with your opinion some more.
*probably not true
Gaming, a sport?
A few weeks ago when I was bowling with some friends we got into the discussion of what constitutes a sport. I wont’ go into it all right now, but I would say that bowling is definitely a sport. Now the question to ask is, is computer gaming a sport?
Major League Gaming now has an agreement with ESPN that will provide content for ESPN.com which will also include online video of various events and matches. ESPN includes bowling, billiards, darts, poker, and a bunch of other non-mainstream sports, but how far are they going to push it. Personally I would say that neither poker nor online gaming are sports, but they are competitions and for that ESPN is choosing to carry them on their network.
So, in your opinion, does this partnership make sense? Should ESPN carry Major League Gaming events on their website for now? Will it lead to them putting it on tv opposite Sunday football when they are desperate for a different target audience?
Sports tickets on a commodity exchange?
I just read a very entertaining book called Rigged that was written about the Merc Exchange in NY. How it started as a place to trade potatoes and grew into what it is today, an oil exchange.
Well this weekend I read about my new favorite exchange that I really hope takes off. Yoonew, is an exchange for sports tickets, that is focusing for now on Super Bowl 42 tickets. This is a great way for fans to potentially get tickets to watch their teams in big games, at a fraction of the costs. For example, I can buy tickets to watch the Seahawks (if they make it) in this years Super bowl, for about half the price of face value and exponentially cheaper than the after market value. However, if the Hawks were not to make it to the Super Bowl, I would be out a few hundred dollars. You can also buy futures for tickets and still make money if the prices of tickets were to go down.
I think this is a phenomenal business idea and with fans always feeling more optimistic about their team, than the odds actually are, this will lead to alot of trading if the business can get to a critical mass. It can also lead to an affordable way for people to experience dream events. I hope the word spreads and this exchange takes off, because everyone wins, as opposed to only a select few ticket brokers winning at this time.
About Otis
I live in Seattle, Washington. I am passionate about working with and interacting with others. My work experience includes marketing, account management, and sales.
I am a huge sports fan who on top of cheering for my favorite teams (Go Beavs!) also appreciates coaching strategy, as well as the marketing behind teams, players, and events.
Personally, I enjoys exploring new cities and areas (particularly small towns) and getting outside and playing.