Published for 124 years, TSN is the old-timer among sports publications—and as the most troubled over much of the past 20 years, also the most willing to experiment with new business models. The magazine added a free digital daily edition in 2008 when it slashed its print schedule to bi-weekly monthly.

Charlotte-based ACBJ acquired TSN in 2006 from Paul Allen’s Vulcan Sports Media, expanding sports holdings that include Street & Smith’s Sports Group. Street & Smith’s also publishes the print weekly SportsBusiness Journal and the digital SportsBusiness Daily. SBJ‘s report on Price’s hiring.

Update: Price spoke with paidContent from Charlotte this afternoon. Why TSN? “I think there’s a space in the marketplace that the sporting news can occupy that become very profitable. We don’t have to serve the entire sports universe. ... We don’t have to be all things to all people.” An added benefit for someone who spent the last few years at Time Inc.: it can be done without “hurdles or shackles in terms of what we can do.”

Price knows as well as anyone the rough path TSN has over the past couple of decades. Competition in that sports universe has moved from a constellation of publications at the top and a bunch of niche outlets to a kind of sports media metor shower. Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO) Sports breaks news. Leagues hire sports journalism vets as bloggers and have their own cable networks. Companies like SB Nation are blending professional and user-gen in highly targeted sites. Every platform; every sport.

“There are challenges everywhere in terms of what old-line companies need to do,” said Price. When I asked about blending something like SB Nation with The Sporting News, he complimented Jim Bankoff on what he’s been able to accomplish with the online sports network. “It’s an important part of the overall ecosystem, but probably more of a collaborative relationship rather than us trying to recreate what Jim is doing.” His first focus is working off what’s already been done with the magazine—he described the ‘08 changes as “ahead of its time”—and folding in more of the real-time web.

As for the leagues, Price said he’s already talked to a couple of execs today about finding more ways to collaborate. “We serve a multiple-sport audience and serve them cross season. We can be much more collaborative with the league than competitive.”

Possible acquisitions?: Price led or took part in a number of investments and acquisitions while he was at SI, including the acquisitions of FanNation and Golf.com. Will he be shopping at ACBJ? “I think the reality is we’re going to look at the marketplace really hard. If we see gaps that really need to be filled, buying is one way to get there. But our core
competency is not going to be a tech company.”

Jeff Price is a new addition to paidContent 2010: Discussing the Economics of Content, this Friday, Feb. 19, at TheTimesCenter. He’ll take part in the session The Truth About Subscriptions. Register today.