MLBPA announces licensing agreement

IRVINE, Calif. -- Brand Affinity Technologies, Inc. (BAT), the company reinventing endorsement and celebrity marketing, announced today they have signed a licensing agreement with the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA). BAT becomes the first company to offer advertisers a streamlined endorsement process utilizing three or more Major League baseball players, for both traditional and digital media campaigns.

With this license, BAT and its advertising clients will have the ability to present offers to any of the MLBPA's 750-plus players. Brands will now be able to utilize the BAT platform to submit offers to players and their representatives for both individual player and group endorsement opportunities across multiple advertising mediums. Under this licensing arrangement, advertisers may secure a license, through BAT, with the MLBPA to use more than two active players in any media or advertising campaign within a single calendar year. This includes personal appearances, TV/radio campaigns, out-of-home advertising and online advertising campaigns including, and for the first time, social media advertising campaigns.

"We are extremely excited that the MLBPA recognized BAT's unique capabilities as a leader in technology and marketing solutions and are excited to offer our advertising and brand partners exceptional access to all its players for sponsorship and endorsement opportunities," said Ryan Steelberg, co-founder and CEO of BAT. "This landmark agreement really highlights the marketing value of Major League baseball players and we are thrilled to work with the MLBPA."

"BAT's unique ability to provide targeted athlete recommendations, licensing and clearance solutions, through their digital platform to brands across our 750 players is a fantastic capability and we felt this was a key opportunity for players to gain access to new endorsement partners," said Richard White, MLBPA general manager of business affairs. "This new relationship is a true milestone for the MLBPA and we are excited to work with BAT."

BAT's patented endorsement platform (United States Patent No.7,809,603), which provides daily media and affinity analysis, along with the ability to identify, license and activate talent for cross-media advertising campaigns, is currently utilized by a long list of brands such as AT&T, Comcast, Ford, Samsung and Sony. The BAT/MLBPA partnership will give brands the unique combination of access to Major League baseball players along with BAT's technologies in the social, mobile and digital application-based products space. Brands will also find that BAT's library of on-file imagery for Major League baseball players is unlike any other group and coming to BAT with their endorsement ideas will streamline any and all opportunities.