NBA Signs $100 Million Deal With Samsung for Courtside Monitors

South Korean electronics giant Samsung is partnering with the NBA, as the League’s exclusive provider of courtside TVs and tablets. The 3-year deal is worth $100 million according to the Wall Street Journal: “The three-year deal will instantly make Samsung one of the most visible companies during NBA games, while bringing the basketball league into closer partnership with the electronics giant, which is the world’s largest seller of smartphones and flat-panel televisions. The league is also expected to customize video content for Samsung devices, including televisions, where Samsung is trying to set itself apart from rivals by building an ecosystem of unique offerings. For Samsung, the tie-up is part of a larger effort to offer exclusive software and services to customers, rather than simply slick hardware, to generate buzz around their devices and to keep current users loyal. For the NBA, partnering with a company as dominant in smartphones and television as Samsung could give it an added boost. This isn’t the first time that Samsung has turned to the NBA to augment its cool factor. Miami Heat forward LeBron James, one of the most marketable players in the NBA, endorsed Samsung’s Galaxy Note II smartphone last season in a long-form commercial that garnered more than 40 millions views on YouTube. The advertisement shows the league’s top player and two-time defending NBA champion playing with the Samsung device as he gets his hair cut and heads to a basketball game. Earlier this year, the rapper and former Brooklyn Nets owner Jay Z announced his latest album in a three-minute Samsung commercial during an NBA Finals game in June.”