Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Apple's Beats by Dre Brand Announces NBA Partnership

MacRumors

MacRumors

macrumors bot
Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
68,733
39,680



Beats by Dr. Dre, Apple's well-known headphones brand, today announced a marketing and merchandising partnership with the NBA, which will make it the official headphone, wireless speaker, and audio partner of the NBA, and sister associations WNBA, NBA G League, and USA Basketball as of October 2018.

Under the terms of the partnership, which will span multiple years, Beats will establish separate deals with NBA teams to launch audio products for NBA fans, including NBA team-branded headphones.


Apple is aiming to boost Beats by Dre brand recognition through the NBA deal by leveraging NBA stars that include LeBron James, Draymond Green, James Harden, Ben Simmons, Jayson Tatum and Karl-Anthony Towns.

beatsnbapartnership.jpg

Luke Woods, Beats by Dr. Dre president, said that the company's partnership with NBA is the "perfect alignment," an unsurprising statement given that Beats has long used major athletes to advertise its headphones, even prior to the purchase by Apple.
"The NBA and its players have long been significant drivers of global culture. Basketball, music, and style speak as one voice: Julius Erving became a style icon, Allen Iverson cemented hip hop's place on and off the court and LeBron James is breaking new music every day... the list goes on and on," said Luke Wood, President of Beats by Dr. Dre. "This partnership with the NBA is the perfect alignment for Beats. It feels like coming home."
Click to expand...
In addition to developing NBA-themed headphones for fans, Beats also plans to provide headphones to players and advertise during major events like the NBA All-Star, NBA Draft, international games, WNBA games, and more.

The Beats NBA partnership will kick off in October, which is when the 2018-2019 NBA season will begin.

Article Link: Apple's Beats by Dre Brand Announces NBA Partnership
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2018/09/05/beats-by-dre-nba-partnership/
Beats has crappy quality for the high price (though I have spent over 600 bucks for two pairs of Beats headphones - just because they look the best). I may need to pick up another pair for my gym. I hope one day Apple will make a cool design for their rumored headphones.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Drogba11 and Blackstick
Someone left a Beats Solo 2 at the university my wife works at, over a year ago, so she brought them home. I prefer my AirPods, unless I need to eliminate background noise (like when she's watching some video for her schoolwork). They mash my ears and I wear glasses so they don't fit all that well, which is why I prefer the AirPods: freedom. Great bass, though.
 
MacRumors said:
Luke Woods, Beats by Dr. Dre president, said that the company's partnership with NBA is the "perfect alignment," an unsurprising statement given that Beats has long used major athletes to advertise its headphones, even prior to the purchase by Apple.
Click to expand...
This deal seems more like strategic defense than anything else. I think Beats didn't want to get caught on the outside looking in like they did with the NFL. It's a helluva lot easier to market your products in conjunction with, instead of of in spite of the sporting organization.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Big Alsie and yaxomoxay
"The NBA and its players have long been significant drivers of global culture. Basketball, music, and style speak as one voice: Julius Erving became a style icon, Allen Iverson cemented hip hop's place on and off the court and LeBron James is breaking new music every day... the list goes on and on," said Luke Wood, President of Beats by Dr. Dre. "This partnership with the NBA is the perfect alignment for Beats. It feels like coming home."
Click to expand...

This must be one of the most amazing marketing spins and non-sequitors I have ever read.
“Leonardo was a genius, an amazing artist, and a driver of global culture that still stands tall today. That’s why the parnership with Leonardo is the perfect alignment for BIC.”
 
  • Like
Reactions: No. 44 and decypher44
I was never blown away by the Beats brand and their artificially heavy bass. Don't get me wrong: they're not as terrible as people make out. On the Internet everybody's an audiophile it seems.

But after the weights they put in the headphones to make them heavier and feel more substantial/expensive, whilst the components inside were crappy, that sealed the deal for me. They're not bad (e.g., if you get them free with a Mac purchase you're unlikely to be dissatisfied), but not worth anywhere near the price.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ILikeAllOS, ChazSch, jimthing and 4 others
It has always been my dream to play basketball professionally. Initially, I worried that my lack of skill and even a single day of practice would pose somewhat of an obstacle, but now all I have to do to be like my heroes is buy a pair of headphones. Thanks Beats®©™! :)

beatsnba.jpg
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: jimthing, Oblivious.Robot, decypher44 and 2 others
seatton said:
Beats has crappy quality for the high price (though I have spent over 600 bucks for two pairs of Beats headphones - just because they look the best). I may need to pick up another pair for my gym. I hope one day Apple will make a cool design for their rumored headphones.
Click to expand...
you are not Beats' target audience
 
  • Like
Reactions: MisterK
AngerDanger said:
It has always been my dream to play basketball professionally. Initially, I worried that my lack of skill and even a single day of practice would pose somewhat of an obstacle, but now all I have to do to be like my heroes is buy a pair of headphones. Thanks Beats! :)
Click to expand...

Don't put yourself down like that AD! I see plenty of pallid white guys with thick, flowing locks playing basketball.

Sure, not professionally but... hey, if you wish upon a star, and your heart is pure...
 
  • Like
Reactions: ZZ9pluralZalpha and AngerDanger
i find the knock against beats interesting. The recent rise of sony as a competitor to bose is due to sony's higher fondness of bass too. But in that case, it's sony has a better sound than bose's flat signature, but for beats it's they suck they only care about bass.
 
I know Beats isn't exactly Apple but buying notoriety through other celebrities (people or not) was the kind of thing Apple didn't do and didn't have to do.
 
  • Like
Reactions: No. 44
Next year's Beats will be $100 more. Someone has to pay for the endorsements, people. The brand won't make itself an even more expensive and valuable thing all by itself.

All joking aside, I think many of you with comments suggesting beats are "crappy" should really consider taking a second look. The new Studio3 and BeatsX are both fantastic. I enjoy them a lot. Less bass, more clarity on both headsets. The Studio is the most improve from previous generation.

I tried compatible Bose headset and thought Beats were better. I tried the new Sony headset and while I liked that one better, the lack of W1 chip made it a second choice again. So, I don't think they are crapy. Plus, sound quality is super subjective.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Big Alsie, IGI2, LCC0256 and 1 other person
Was never impressed with beats poor ear fitment for thoe's with glasses and the sound quality is comparable to the cheap Sony headphones i purchased at Wallgreens.
 
I mainly see teenagers rocking Beats more than anyone I know. The only time I would ever wear a pair would be when I'm catching a flight but I have AirPods so I wouldn't need them.
 
69Mustang said:
They're ensuring Bose, Sony, or some other brand doesn't secure the official rights of the NBA like Bose did with the NFL.
Click to expand...
And who cares about those endorsements? Everybody knows they are bought.

The largest sport event in the world finished a few months ago and Hisense endorsed it. And who cares? They are thriving because they do a VA panel for half price. Uninformed consumers (the type endorsements are supposed to bring) still buy low end (and low quality) Sony, LG and Samsung TVs.

Some people will care if they see LeBron James on his spare time with "whatever" (probably Beats) headphones. But not much more.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back