Thursday, October 16, 2008

A new year… a new Horizon League Network

The Horizon League Network is beginning its second year at www.HorizonLeagueNetwork.tv. The site was a complete success during year one, more than tripling our registered user base. I wanted to thank everyone who watched last year and if you didn’t, sign up today… it’s free!

Year two brings some change to HLN. The live viewing window has been increased substantially to provide a better experience for HLN users. Also, the picture quality is clearer, allowing for full-screen viewing with less pixilation.

We continue to explore the use of Microsoft Silverlight and provide a beta version for all of our on-demand content. It’s our goal to continuously explore new technologies and implement them when appropriate. We are also exploring the use of Flash Video to deliver both our live and on-demand content.

Some more exciting additions have come in the way of on-demand content. Damon Lewis and the crew at WebStream Productions is ramping it up. The HLN Update debuted a month ago now and has been a resounding success. Essentially a look at the week that was and the week that will be, the HLN Update gives the network the ability to have its own SportsCenter-type show. This is a great promotional tool for our student-athletes as all sports are now included.

We’re also making a push in the social media world. We want to bring our content to the masses and get it in front of as many interested people as possible. Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and many other social networking sites will carry HLN content this year. This will also allow fans to connect with HLN and get any questions they might have answered.

That’s all for now… check back soon for the next big thing!