PRESS INFORMATION

4 AUGUST 2014

SUNSET+VINE CONFIRMS MEDIA PARTNERSHIP WITH MCC TO DELIVER SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT STRATEGY

- SUNSET+VINE TO MANAGE LORD’S CRICKET GROUND YOUTUBE CHANNEL AND DELIVER CONTENT ACROSS ALL OF LORD’S SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS

- PROJECT SOFT LAUNCHED 1ST JUNE WITH SUBSTANTIAL INCREASES IN VIEWS AND SUBSCRIBERS ALREADY EXPERIENCED

- NEW UNIQUE CONTENT GIVING UNPRECEDENTED INSIGHT TO STARS OF CRICKET AND RE-IMAGINED ARCHIVE FOOTAGE GOES VIRAL

(London) Sunset+Vine, the multi-award winning UK independent TV sports production and media company, has confirmed its appointment by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) to deliver the Lord’s Cricket Ground YouTube channel as well as content across the Lord’s Facebook and @ Home of Cricket Twitter feed.

Sunset+Vine will be creating new content several times a week using a mixture of newly shot original content and by repurposing MCC’s extensive archive. YouTube specialist digital agency Diagonal View has been brought in by Sunset+Vine to handle channel management and optimisation requirements.

The new content is already offering ‘never seen before’ insights into cricket, which is proving massively popular for users. A GoPro camera was attached to Australian batting legend Adam Gilchrist’s helmet as he opened the batting in the recent MCC versus Rest of the World match at Lord’s. “GoPro batting” featuring Adam Gilchrist facing Shaun Tait has, so far, hit 315,000 views and over a ¼ million minutes watched, while a clip featuring the most famous man in cricket, Sachin Tendulkar, walking out at Lord’s, has reached almost 730,000 views on YouTube and over 1 million views on Facebook.

Andrew Piller, Commercial Director at Sunset+Vine, commented:

“There is nowhere more special to watch sport than at Lord’s Cricket Ground. The history and prestige associated with the ground is unmatched in sport. To have the opportunity to bring cricket enthusiasts from around the world closer to the spiritual Home of Cricket is a wonderful opportunity.

“Through the Lord’s Cricket Ground YouTube channel, not only will fans be able to unearth a treasure chest of archive footage but they will also have unprecedented access and insight from the stars of the game, both past and present. In the soft launch period we have had to date, we have seen that the new approach is being very well received.”

Neil Priscott, MCC Head of Media & Communications said:

“MCC has made great recent strides in growing its digital platforms. A redesigned website successfully launched in 2013, the Lord’s Facebook and Twitter reach continues to grow and this summer the Club has been delighted with the digital partnership it has entered into with Sunset + Vine.

“With its strong heritage and global remit in the game, MCC is well placed to attract cricket enthusiasts from all around the world on YouTube, and with Sunset + Vine’s expertise we are already seeing the benefits of the partnership.”

Since 1st June 2014 the Lord’s Cricket Ground YouTube channel has achieved the following results:

  • Views: 1,237,401 (increase of 1539% on previous 1½ month period)
  • Subscribers: 3,460 (increase of 1832% on previous 1½ month period)
  • Comments: 676 (increase of 2972% increase on previous 1½ month period)
  • Estimated Minutes Watched: 1,340.347 (increase of 777% on previous 1½ month period)
  • Shares: 3,703 (increase of 6,071% on previous 1½ month period)

Since 1st June 2014 the Lord’s Cricket Ground Facebook & Twitter accounts has achieved the following results:

  • Twitter following has grown by more than 13,000 (increase of 333% on previous two month period)
  • Potential Twitter impressions of more than 309 million (increase of 115% on previous two month period)
  • Increase in page Likes of more than 74,000 (increase of 891% on previous two month period)
  • Facebook impressions of more than 38 million (increase of 1,468% on previous two month period)

The Lord’s Cricket Ground YouTube channel is fully live and can be found at

ENDS

For further information on Sunset+Vine:

Greg Moore, Head of PR, Sunset+Vine M: +44 (0)7748 968695 E:

About Sunset+Vine

Sunset+Vine is a leading independent supplier of sports programming to broadcasters in the UK and overseas. It has won over 35 broadcast awards including nine Royal Television Society awards and six BAFTA’s most recently for “Best Sport and Live Event” in relation to its production of Channel 4’s ground-breaking coverage of The London 2012 Paralympic Games.

Sunset+Vine was appointed as primary production partner for BT Sport (launched August 2013) and now produces the channel’s live English Premier League Football and Aviva Premiership Rugby matches and all support programming. The company will be Host Broadcaster of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games and the Volvo Ocean Race 2014. In the Middle East, Sunset+Vine has been Host Broadcaster for the Dubai World Cup for 17 consecutive years. A leader in Advertiser Funded Programming, the company devised the world’s most watched weekly sports’ show “Gillette World Sport” (shown in 180 countries at its peak). Mobil 1 - The Grid is also amongst its extensive portfolio.

Sunset+Vine has offices in London, Singapore, Cardiff, Oxford and Glasgow which enable it to deliver international, national and regional programming. Awarded the Queen’s Award for International Trade in 2003, the company has direct access to over 260 broadcasters worldwide across all media platforms. The company is part of The Tinopolis Group.

About Marylebone Cricket Club

MCC is the world’s most active cricket club, the owner of Lord’s Ground and the guardian of the Laws and Spirit of the game. Founded in 1787, it issued the first code of Laws in 1788 and moved to its current home in 1814. There are 18,000 Full and 5,000 Associate Members of MCC.

MCC also has a World Cricket committee, which is chaired by Mike Brearley and contains eminent current and former players and administrators – including Rahul Dravid and Shaun Pollock. It has a remit to act as an independent think tank, debating issues and making recommendations about the health and state of the game and to commission research.

MCC owns the most comprehensive collection of cricket artefacts and books in the world, housed in its museum and library at Lord’s which is visited by tens of thousands of visitors from all over the world each year.

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