Peter Hutton is Director of Global Live Sports Partnerships and Programming at Facebook. The former Eurosport CEO joined the social giant in May 2018, and his appointment was a clear statement of Facebook’s intentions in sport.
2.2 billion people use Facebook every month; a billion more on Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger in the same time-frame, and, slowly but surely, Facebook is integrating live sports content to drive further engagement with that audience.
You have to be nimble, says Hutton; “test, learn, look at the data and then move again”. Hutton, a senior sports media executive who has held leadership positions at Eurosport, MP & Silva, Ten Sports, and ESPN Star, states that the main focus and challenge for him is to deliver a product which will add new layers of experience for fans on Facebook. “There’s no good just putting down a whopping big cheque down on the table to secure the rights; you have to look after the brand and give a better experience to the fans,” he says.
In this edition of 5 Minutes with Leaders, recorded behind the scenes at The Sport Business Summit during Leaders Week London in October 2018, Hutton explains:
- Facebook’s renowned culture and the on-boarding process;
- The areas for development, within the budget constraints;
- His thoughts on the sports that are capitalising on Facebook’s viewing experience;
- How sport might be viewable on Facebook in the future.
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