Integrated Sports to Distribute PPV Basketball Tournament

By R. Thomas Umstead
published

Basketball fans will get some pay-per-view hoops action before the NBA returns to the court in a new tournament set to premiere July 19.

The inaugural 5 Tournament will feature several former NBA players participating in a six-team, three-on-three elimination tournament that will take place from The Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, NV, according to Doug Jacobs, president of Integrated Sports, which will distribute the PPV event.

The 10-day tournament will debut July 19 with the first of five tournament rounds before the semi-finals take place on July 27 and the Finals on July 29, said Integrated Sports. Teams will be based in New York, Chicago, Miami, Sacramento, Toronto and Texas and will feature such former NBA stars as Mario Chalmers, Mike Bibby, Jermaine Taylor, Brandon Rush and Carlos Arroyo.

FITE TV will distribute the 5 Tournament's early rounds at a suggested retail price of $12.95 per round, and the semi-final and final rounds for $19.95. In Demand and DirecTV will also offer the $19.95 semi-final and final rounds, said the company. 

R. Thomas Umstead
R. Thomas Umstead

R. Thomas Umstead serves as senior content producer, programming for Multichannel News, Broadcasting + Cable and Next TV. During his more than 30-year career as a print and online journalist, Umstead has written articles on a variety of subjects ranging from TV technology, marketing and sports production to content distribution and development. He has provided expert commentary on television issues and trends for such TV, print, radio and streaming outlets as Fox News, CNBC, the Today show, USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. Umstead has also filmed, produced and edited more than 100 original video interviews, profiles and news reports featuring key cable television executives as well as entertainers and celebrity personalities.