CFO Studio Magazine with Bernd-Peter Bier, CFO, Bayer

EVENTS EXECUTIVE DINNER SERIES 30 WWW.CFOSTUDIO.COM 4th QUARTER 2015 on tape delay. We are now broadcast in more than 210 countries live around the world.” Jens Obermuller, Esq., Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary of New York City–based Symrise, a global supplier of fragrances, flavorings, cosmetic base materials and substances, as well as functional ingredients, mentioned the popularity of cricket in India and Pakistan. “We are a little myopic here in the United States. The world is doing other stuff,” said Mr. Obermuller. The NBA recently entered into a relationship with Tencent Holdings Limited, a leading provider of comprehensive Internet services in China. As the official digital partner of the NBA in China, Tencent will feature a record number of live games and deliver enhanced original NBA programming and highlights, including pre-season and regular-season games, NBA All-Star, the NBA Playoffs,The Finals, NBA Summer League, and the NBADraft, through personal computers andmobile devices. Streaming Technology Grows A star of this year’s South by Southwest conference was Meerkat, a live-streaming video app. Another live-streaming app, Periscope, was acquired by Twitter in January. These apps are impacting televised sports. Take the highly anticipated boxing match between Floyd Mayweather, Jr. and Manny Pacquiao, which sold for $100 on pay-per-view. Many in attendance took matters into their own hands and held up their phones and streamed footage for free to the world via these apps. “Our media rights are very significant to us, so we’re keeping a close eye on this new streaming technology,” said Mr. Denenberg. Mr. Wingate compared this new technology to music streaming. “We will have to outlaw it or capitalize on it,” he said. Mr. Stephans asked if the NBA gets involved with the social media platforms of its players. “Our players don’t wear helmets and are easily identifiable. When they connect with fans it benefits us, so we think it’s great that so many of our players are adept at social media,” responded Mr. Denenberg. By 2016, there are expected to be more than 2 billion social media users. “Snapchat, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook — that’s where millennials are consuming content. You can’t ignore the fact that they are on their phones, laptops, and iPads simultaneously, so we are very focused on that. ... We’re out there experimenting with many different platforms to figure out the best way to reach a diverse audience,” said Mr. Denenberg. Mr. Wingate agreed. “My son played Little League baseball, which he enjoyed, but it’s hard to get him to watch an entire game on television. He is fine with a video game. My generation is the TV generation, his generation is the interactive generation. They want to be involved in it, not just watch it.” Looking Toward the Future What does the future hold for the NBA? “Our calling, which we take very seriously, is to ‘Compete with Intensity, Lead with Integrity, and Inspire Play.’ So we’d like to be true to that calling, continue to stress social responsibility, fitness, and the global nature of our game,” concluded Mr. Denenberg. Other customer- focused companies, take note. C L. to R.: Jay Sabin, Mark Weller The confidence of trusting what you know At PwC, you work with professionals dedicated to serving private companies and their owners. We help you address day-to-day issues and more complex ones such as compliance, expansion, personal financial matters, and more. www.pwc.com/pcs © 2015 PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, a Delaware limited liability partnership. All rights reserved. PwC refers to the United States member firm, and may sometimes refer to the PwC network. Each member firm is a separate legal entity. Please see www.pwc.com/structure for further details. 70052-2 016-CFO Studio Magazine Ad.indd 1 8/5/2015 1:04:23 PM