The Watchman: March Madness Online Is Both Mad Cool and Just Plain Maddening

I also found it a little odd that the on-demand games didn’t seem to have any in-stream ads. While I definitely didn’t mind as a viewer, delivering video is costing CBS money, and I doubt they had any trouble selling inventory so why they didn’t serve any in-stream ads on-demand is beyond me, especially since I would’ve been willing to watch them.

For the most part, their use of ads was great. There were always a couple less running online than on TV, leaving a bit of dead air they filled with crowd footage. The ads started playing immediately and seamlessly during commercial breaks.

The only problem was that many times they got repetitive. Not just the same advertiser but the same ads, in one case for three straight commercial breaks. If this is the future of sponsorship-driven ads, then I’m disappointed. I mean, it’s OK to have the same advertiser, but at least load it up with different ads.

Still Worth Watching
All this being said, I did have a truly great moment watching online this year.

After seeing the last moments of the second round Texas-Miami game on broadcast TV, local coverage switched over to a game with the whole second half left. I looked at the scoreboard and noticed that another game was down to less than 5 minutes left with only a 1-point margin.

The main reason I watch March Madness is for those exciting last few minutes of close games, so I quickly jumped online and, despite all the problems I had, was watching within seconds, enjoying yet another thrilling finish.

That is ultimately the story of March Madness 2008 for me, when the internet proved its mettle where it matters most: giving me the power to choose the content I want to see, not that which my local broadcaster makes available.

And this trend only gains momentum through CBS deciding this year to make all the games available online. (Last year you couldn’t stream the game being broadcast by the local CBS affiliate.)

So in the end I still see this year’s edition of March Madness online as a big win for the industry. While it had its share of problems and has plenty of room for improvement, simply by continuing to deliver on the promise of live video to mass audiences, CBS is proving the viability of streaming media and, most importantly, keeping me watching.