PlayOn! Sports (PlayOn) announced Monday that it will launch the first nationwide network dedicated exclusively to high school sports, including a 24-hour television channel, and products for broadband, mobile, and video-on-demand platforms. 

PlayOn is the nation’s largest rights holder, producer, distributor, and aggregator of high school sports events, and this groundbreaking initiative will create a high school destination for viewers, distributors and advertising partners.  

Debuting in the fall of 2012, the network will provide comprehensive coverage of all boys and girls varsity sports, giving exposure to many of the 7.6 million high school students who participate in high school athletics. Annual attendance of high school events is more than three times that of college and professional sports combined, providing PlayOn with a robust and passionate fan base for the network.  

The PlayOn High School Sports Network will feature: 

- More than 15,000 hours a year, and growing, of live event coverage of regular season, postseason and championship events including marquee match-ups across all sports. 

- Original and exclusive programming to complement event coverage, including original series, studio shows, news, documentaries and highlights. 

- A linear television channel with a full 24-hour schedule and minimal repeats. 

- A substantial library of assets for video-on-demand, broadband and mobile products. 

- Access to a wide variety of sports and year-round programming including football, basketball, baseball, competitive cheer, cross country, golf, gymnastics, soccer, softball, swimming/diving, tennis, track and field, volleyball, water polo, weightlifting and wrestling. 

PlayOn is uniquely positioned to launch a nationwide high school network due to its exclusive and extensive rights holdings, partnerships with state high school associations and relationships with hundreds of high schools that participate in its School Broadcast Program. Currently, PlayOn annually produces more than 5,000 events, crowns 1,000 champions and generates more than 15,000 hours of live and on-demand event coverage from 21 states across the country. In addition, schools participating in the School Broadcast Program annually produce more than 15,000 regular season sporting and school-related events such as news programs, meetings and graduations. Over the next year, PlayOn anticipates expanding into over 30 states nationwide. 

“PlayOn has spent the past five years cultivating a product that has generated unprecedented access to millions of passionate high school sports fans across the country. Expanding to a nationwide network is a natural transition,” said David Rudolph, CEO of PlayOn. “High school sports is a rapidly emerging market and this network will provide an incredible opportunity for distributors and advertisers who want to reach this coveted audience at the national, regional and local level.” 

The PlayOn High School Sports Network will include broad multi-platform products for its distribution partners, that include video-on-demand, broadband, and mobile opportunities. After the fall launch, the network will debut additional features including high-definition programming, regional feeds, and unique multi-screen television and broadband applications.  

“More than 50 million Americans consider themselves high school sports fans, providing an enormous audience for the network” said Bo LaMotte, executive vice president of distribution at PlayOn. “This multi-platform network will be a valuable asset for distributors, delivering unique and compelling content across all platforms. The network will be the destination brand for high school sports, allowing our partners to target a national audience with complementary local programming.” 

PlayOn! Sports is the largest rights holder, producer, and aggregator of high school sports events distributed across television, the Internet, and IP-video enabled mobile devices. By combining State Athletic Associations' postseason content with the regular season events of member schools, PlayOn provides marketers with a unique multi-media platform solution to reach teens, young adults and families. 

PlayOn is headquartered in Atlanta, Ga., with offices in the Southeast and Midwest. For more information, contact PlayOn! Sports at info@playonsports.com, or visit www.playonsports.com.