PRODUCT MANAGEMENT & STRATEGY WORKTurning team fandom into a daily personalized video feed
We created a mobile first channel that stitched together every new clip from a fan’s teams, then guided them into CBS Sports HQ live. The experience increased video time, created a habit loop, and made a clear case for vertical video at scale.
Role
VP Product Management
(Lead Product Strategist)
Industry
Sports Media
Duration
3 Months
Services
Product strategy, experience design, mobile video, personalization, growth
Deliverables / Platform
Backend Video Fetching Service & Automated Tagging functionality, iOS and Android Mobile Application Feature
The Challenge
CBS Sports HQ was our always on live stream, positioned like a free version of ESPN SportsCenter. We wanted more of our mobile audience to enter HQ and to stay longer once they arrived. The app already had strong team favorites usage, but fans had to hunt for related videos. The team asked a simple question:
“If the app knows my teams, why not assemble every new clip about them into one continuous mobile feed that greets me when I open the app?”
We also needed to make a clear case for a vertical video format so that HQ content and highlights felt native on phones rather than resized television frames
Older Experience
Our Approach
Personal feed, not a playlist
We designed “The Rundown” as a single linear stream that collects every new clip from a user’s selected teams since their last visit. The feed is simple: press play and watch your world. When the last team clip ends, the experience moves the fan into HQ live. This creates a gentle push into live programming without breaking intent.Mobile first video
We established a vertical video standard for headline and highlight formats, with letterboxed options where needed during the transition period. The goal was to match hand posture and attention patterns of phone viewing.Habit design
We added clear entry points from the scoreboard and team pages and instrumented a wake return pattern that makes it easy to resume your rundown if you paused mid stream.Measurement plan
Tracked uniques, minutes per user, HQ live starts, and the depth of interaction events like my teams click, watch click, next, previous, and swipe.
The Solution
The Rundown became a personalized video channel powered by HQ and your teams. The experience removed navigation effort, accelerated the path to the most relevant clips, and trained a consistent handoff into live. Fans got a fast way to catch up. The business got a reliable feeder into HQ and a stronger case for phone native formats. Leveraging UI patterns from Instagram stories allowed us to deliver an experience pattern the mass market was already acquainted to more likely to engage with.
We launched ‘The Rundown’ in 2019—years ahead of ESPN’s own personalized vertical-video feed and swipeable content format, which rolled out in August 2025 (see ESPN press release).
Christopher Hrynczyszyn
The Results
Adoption and time spent
The first 90 days results show 42,951 uniques with 4.9 minutes per user and 3,774 video hours. HQ handoff created 22,474 live starts in that same window.
Across the longer trend of 6 months, the feature reached 345,105 uniques, 4.3 minutes per user, 26,102 video hours, and 209,474 HQ live starts.
Depth of interaction
Users engaged directly from my teams and watch entry points, with strong signals on next, previous, and swipe interactions that reflect lean back and lean forward modes.
Power users drive the economics
Power users “the top ten percent of active users” carried the vast majority of attention and revenue. They watched more than eight minutes of video in “The Rundown” feature on average, while users who did not engage with The Rundown averaged about two minutes of video time.
In the same tier snapshot, revenue per user was materially higher for power users than for mid and low tiers, and the overall app revenue pattern was dominated by this cohort.
Business takeaway
A simple personalized channel increased time spent, concentrated high value attention, and moved viewers into live with a clear purpose. It also provided real world proof to move video creation toward a phone native format.
Our Takeaway
When you remove the work between a fan and the content they care about, they watch more and they return more often. The Rundown converted favorites into a daily habit and became a dependable path into HQ live. It is a model for how personalization, format, and programming strategy can work together on mobile.
Great sports products don’t just show the score, they make you feel part of the game.
Christopher Hrynczyszyn
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