RotoWire
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Type of site
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Fantasy Sports |
|---|---|
| Owner | Roto Sports, Inc. |
| Created by | Peter Schoenke, Herb Ilk, Jeff Erickson |
| Website | www.rotowire.com |
| Alexa rank |
 16,998 (December 2014[update]) |
| Commercial | Yes |
| Registration | Mostly Pay Site |
| Launched | 1997 |
| Current status | Active |
RotoWire.com is a company based in Madison, Wisconsin, U.S. that specializes in fantasy sports news and fantasy-style games. RotoWire provides fantasy news and information to ESPN, Yahoo! Sports, FoxSports.com, NFL.com, CBSSports.com, Sports Illustrated and Sirius XM Radio. RotoWire is the successor to RotoNews.com, which pioneered the concept of real-time fantasy sports information when launched in 1997.
RotoNews.com launched in January 1997 and published its first player note on Feb. 16 1997. RotoNews revolutionized how fantasy sports information was presented on the web with the innovation of the "player note" which were snippets of information every time a player got hurt, traded, benched or had a news event that impacted his fantasy value - all search-able in a real-time database. Most sites today follow how RotoNews had a "news" and "analysis" element to each player update.
"Back in 1997, Peter and his crew launched RotoNews.com (now known as Rotowire.com), giving us fantasy owners a wondrous gift: the player news application. You know, here's an update on a guy, and here's the fantasy spin on that news. This changed everything. The days of feeling like a moron because you started a quarterback who, unbeknownst to you, had frayed his septum? Over. And you have Peter to thank."
Within two years RotoNews had become one of the top ten most trafficked sports sites on the web, according to Media Metrix, ranking higher than such sites as NBA.com. RotoNews.com also launched the Web's first free commissioner service in 1998, quickly becoming the largest league management service.
"The Internet has been a god-send for fantasy-leaguers. Updated information is just a mouse-click away, while instantaneous box scores make the morning paper seem like the Stone Age.
How did we ever play fantasy baseball before the Internet? The same question can be asked of an online service that is changing the face of the industry. In just two short years, RotoNews.com has become the industry leader for news and stats.
RotoNews.com was sold to Broadband Sports in 1999, which failed in 2001. The company re-emerged as RotoWire.com. RotoWire.com moved from a free model to a pay model in 2001.
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