And The Beat Goes On...

On October 9, 2014 the NFL fined San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick $10,000 for wearing Beats headphones during a press conference. The fine was administered due to the promotion of a product not sponsored by the NFL. According to Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, players only allowed to wear headsets made by NFL sponsor Bose during interviews. The rule lasts 90 minutes following the end of a game.

What does this mean for a marketer?

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The market for headphones over $100 was worth more than $1 billion last year, according to research firm NPD Group. Beats holds 61 percent market share, while Bose holds 22 percent market share. I know I would not have guessed that. Bose has been around decades longer and has a sophisticated image. Beats is more edgy and appeals to a younger demographic. This sort of rebellion and personality expressed by Kaepernick plays well into the image of Beats. It is also a source of free publicity as people write about it (you're welcome). 

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-10-10/getting-banned-by-the-nfl-is-great-for-beats?campaign_id=yhoo