The solution is being utilised by Deutsche Telekom’s TV and OTT services – MagentaTV and MagentaSport – and has created 5,500 highlights for the operator from competitions like the FIFA World Cup, women’s Bundesliga, and basketball Euroleague. According to WSC Sports, Deutsche Telekom was the fastest operator to produce and publish highlights in the German market during the 2022 FIFA World Cup, with match highlights being published just minutes after the end of the match.

The companies say the move will help Deutsche Telekom broaden the reach and engagement of its sports content. According to Deutsche Telekom, the solution has helped the operator to generate more than 400 million video views across all platforms and social media channels since the middle of last year.

 Arnim Butzen, Head of TV, Deustsche Telekom, says: “Our Magenta sports offering stands for top-class entertainment and content diversity. Technological innovations such as the platform from our partner WSC Sports enable us to play out our exclusive content faster and more efficiently, thus significantly increasing interest in the various sports.“

Aviv Arnon, Chief Business Development Officer, WSC Sports, comments: “We’re very excited with the initial results of our collaboration with Telekom through 2022 and together we are exceeding the expectations of the modern sports fan across Europe. Integrating our leading AI Powered highlights solution into one of the largest telecommunications networks in Europe is a natural fit, and we are looking forward to further unlocking the full potential of Deutsche Telekom’s impressive portfolio of sports media rights.”

Whole sessions are devoted to answering these questions, and others explore how broadcasters can increase their share of digital viewing time, and what the expansion of SAVOD (Subscription with Advertising VOD, exemplified by Netflix Basic with Ads) and FAST means for the TV advertising market. Early confirmed speakers across the agenda include:

• Pedro Bandeira, Vice President Product and New Business, Europe, Deutsche Telekom
• Aušra Sidaravičienė, Group Chief Technical Officer, TV3 Group
• John Jelley, Senior Vice President, Product and UX, Peacock & International, D2C at NBCUniversal Media
• Ken Morse, Director of Application Delivery, Sky
• Pierre-Adrian Irlé, Head of Play Suisse, SRG SSR
• Jason Briggs, President and General Manager, RDK
• Mehmet Eroglu, Chief Commercial Officer, Foxxum
• Gary Woolf, EVP Strategic Development, All3Media International
• Marcos Milanez, EU General Manager, Rakuten TV
• Ivars Lubāns, Head of Product, Go3, TV3 Group
• Akhila Khanna, VP, Partnerships and Business Development, UK, Paramount.

You can see an up-to-date list of publicly announced speakers here.

There is a session titled ‘Driving D2C and SVOD growth’, focusing on how channel groups, studios and SVOD providers maximise their potential audience reach, convert app availability into paying customers, maintain attention in an increasingly competitive marketplace, guarantee win-win relationships with CE/OS/STB device platform providers, and expand market share during a cost-of-living crisis.

As part of a four-session advertising stream on Tuesday March 21, leaders who are driving the advanced advertising transformation will explore how we maximise the value of free connected TV, and how we make TV a better product for advertisers (spanning the latest thinking on making cross-platform buying easier, improving cross-platform measurement, and attributing TV exposure to business outcomes, among other things.

A session is devoted to ‘Preparing for a larger addressable TV universe’, exploring the challenges (as well as opportunities) as the number of addressable-enabled platforms and homes increases – acknowledging the fact that free-to-air platforms are increasingly ready to join the party, adding to Pay TV and streaming footprints.

The ‘Win-wins in the Television OS marketplace’ session focuses on how TV-OS providers, television set OEMs and content owners work together to increase total household reach, audience engagement and ongoing revenue opportunities for streaming TV. This includes  a look at the Pay TV operator Smart TV model (pioneered by Sky Glass), the role of independent OS/UX providers, and how global OS/UX providers in the CTV/Smart TV space differentiate themselves.

Connected TV World Summit is renowned for delivering smart new thinking and research, and many of the world’s leading analysts are gathering to explore these mission-critical issues:

• ‘The subscription economy in an inflationary era’ – Tim Mulligan, Executive Vice President and Research Director, MIDiA Research
• ‘Content and windowing strategies in the D2C market’ – Jack Davison, Executive Vice President, 3Vision
• ‘The impact of Netflix and TikTok in video advertising’ – Maria Rua Aguete, Senior Director, Media and Entertainment, Omdia
• ‘How broadcasters increase their share-of-time in digital’ – Lottie Towler, Research Manager, Ampere Analysis
• ‘The future of free-to-air aggregation’ – Richard Broughton, Executive Director, Ampere Analysis
• ‘Decarbonising TMT’ – Alice Enders, Director of Research, Enders Analysis
• ‘Technology choices shaping the sports experience of the future’ – Tom Morrod, Research Director & Co-Founder, Caretta Research
• ‘Media & Entertainment opportunities in the metaverse’ – Joseph Teasdale, Head of Tech, Enders Analysis.

‘Delivering an experience: STB & Operator App’ is a session that explores two parallel and closely entwined technology roadmaps: the next-generation TV experience delivered via a set-top box, and operator/aggregator services enabled directly on a television without an STB, whether in the form of ‘Operator as an App’ on a third-party television brand or embedded into an operator-produced television set (as with the pioneering Sky Glass model).

In ‘Cementing the consumer love affair with TV’, 90 minutes are devoted to best practice and global innovation in content discovery. Ampere Analysis is leading a special session dedicated to the future of televised sport, focusing on rights and distribution strategy, while there are parallel sessions devoted to beating the sports streaming pirates and building the sports streaming networks of the future.

Connected TV World Summit has moved to a new venue: Convene, 22 Bishopsgate – London’s second tallest building, next to the Gherkin and minutes from Tower 42. For the first time, the organisers (disclaimer – Videonet is owned by Adwanted Group, which produces Connected TV World Summit) are hosting some Masterclasses, making use of ultra-modern networking and meeting spaces to dig deeper into narrow-focus topics, led by experts in the field.

Nathalie Lethbridge, Founder and Principal Advisor, Atonik Digital, leads the FAST Masterclass, and the consulting/research firm MTM leads the Customer Retention and Acquisition Masterclass. There is a special breakfast devoted to how we decarbonise the television value-chain while ensuring the industry ends the process as large as it started.

The organisers are predicting 100+ senior-level speakers and 600+ (unique) delegates over the two days.

You can find more details about Connected TV World Summit 2023, here.

The registration for this event can be found here.

Connected TV World Summit is produced by Adwanted Events (formerly called Mediatel Events). Adwanted Events also delivers The Future of TV Advertising Global (also with Sydney and Canada editions), The Future of Media, The Future of Brands and The Future of Audio, among others.

Beginning in 2024, the partnership will see Sky and NOW offer coverage of all men’s and women’s events, including the ICC Cricket World Cups and ICC T20 World Cups. During the course of the partnership, there will be both a major international men’s and women’s event every year as well as a World Test Championship Final every two years.

In 2019, Sky and Channel 4 shared rights to the final of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, which recorded the highest average audience for a cricket tournament in the UK to date. The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Final in Australia last year was the highest viewed T20 match in the UK ever, according to the International Cricket Council.

Geoff Allardice, ICC Chief Executive, says: “We are delighted to partner with Sky Sports until 2031 as the home of ICC cricket in the UK and Ireland. For the first time the partnership will be a direct relationship with Sky Sports which gives us some exciting opportunities for innovative collaborations. I am confident this partnership can support our long-term ambition to attract more players and more fans to the game.”

Jonathan Licht, Sky Sports MD, comments: “This new direct partnership with the ICC means that Sky Sports viewers in the UK & Ireland will continue to enjoy every ball, run, wicket and catch from every international tournament for many years to come, and we’re all hugely excited to see what’s in store.”

Sky Sports will offer coverage of Men’s and Women’s tournaments, as well as Doubles, Mixed Doubles, Juniors, and Wheelchair competitions. The service will broadcast a minimum of 135 hours of competitive tennis throughout the two-week event. Extensive coverage of the tournament will be offered across Sky Sports’ linear channels, as well as its social and digital channels.

The agreement represents the return of U.S. Open coverage to Sky Sports after an eight-year gap, during which Amazon won rights to show the tennis tournament to Prime Video viewers. Eurosport also briefly won rights to the tournament during this period. Prior to this gap, Sky Sports had consistently offered U.S. Open coverage from 1991-2015.

Jonathan Licht, MD, Sky Sports, says: “We are excited to partner with the United States Tennis Association once again to deliver the U.S. Open. We have had a great history with the USTA and remember Andy Murray’s 2012 US Open win as one of the great moments on Sky Sports. This is another huge sporting event, and we look forward to bringing tennis fans more of what they love and welcoming new fans to the sport.”

Twice as many young people said they will keep up via updates on social media – 28% versus 14%. Young people are also significantly more likely to watch matches in public spaces (such as pubs) with 38% saying they would, compared to only 13% of those aged 55 or older.

Overall across all age groups, 78% of respondents said they plan to follow whole games, with 69% saying they would be doing so on TV – the device of choice across all generations. According to Ofcom, almost half overall said they will only watch the tournament on TV and no other devices.

But the survey reveals significant differences between the age groups in terms of specific media and devices people plan to use. Ofcom notes: “More than twice as many of th[e] younger age group said they’d be using a laptop or tablet – 29% compared to 14% of over-55s. There was also a difference in age groups for those who plan to keep up using their smartphone to watch games, with more than three times as many younger people than older people saying they’d be doing this – 34% versus 10%.”

According to the media regulator, three times as many younger people said they would be using ‘watch along’ channels on YouTube and other platforms – 12% versus 3%. And twice as many younger people said they would be using dedicated apps to keep up with the matches – 26% compared to 13% of those aged 55+.

More than twice as many younger people than older people said they will be using social channels at the same time as they are watching the live action on TV – 42% compared to 16%.

The moves sees Movistar+ expand its portfolio of football rights which currently includes the top Spanish football league LaLiga and second-tier Segunda Division. The company also has broadcast rights for Italy’s Serie A, Germany’s Bundesliga, the European Super Cup, the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Europa League, and the UEFA Conference League. Additionally, Movistar+ owns rights to the Premier League via a partnership with sports streaming service DAZN.

Movistar+ said: “The platform will focus on the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and will broadcast the best reports, the most complete summaries, the statements of the protagonists, and the analysis of experts during a few weeks that promises to be unforgettable.”

Carl Furgusson, Head of Portfolio Development at MediaKind Global, gives an example: “We had this idea to enable different monetisation models. For example, under a certain model viewers could be allowed to watch a sports game for free until the first goal is scored. As soon as the first goal is scored, they get notified that the free viewing period is up and that, in 30 seconds they will no longer have access to the stream. They can be presented an option that says ‘press here now to buy access to the rest of the game.’”

He notes that this is partly achieved through a live synchronisation mechanism the company added to MK Engage, which allows metadata flags to be added the stream at the encoding stage, which can then be surfaced through the SDK and into the streaming apps.

He elaborated: “For example, let’s say a goal has just been scored in a football match that is being streamed. We can insert a tag saying ‘hey a goal has been scored now’ and client functionality can then take that and say ‘I’m going enable a pay-after-first goal type model and surface all of the transactions.”

According to Furgusson, the live video synchronisation feature can allow service providers to offer novel custom experiences to viewers, particularly in the domain of sports. By leveraging the feature, streamers can include information on-screen such as the name of the player that has possession of the ball at any given moment in a football match. Another application could be if a viewer wanted to watch several football matches simultaneously, service providers could highlight which game they should be paying attention to based on something important having just occurred (a goal being scored for example).

MediaKind says this feature also allows venues showing live games, such as betting shops, bars, and stadiums, to experience the same goal at the same moment in time, regardless of latency in the feed or the device or platform being used.

Furgusson believes the inclusion of live synchronisation in MK Engage represents a significant advance in the technology. He remarked: “Before now either you couldn’t do it or you would have to rely on some out-of-bound signaling. You would have had to get your app talking to some other service to get it fed with data or metadata.

“By putting it inside the video encoded stream as metadata, you’ve got a secure delivery mechanism to deliver that to all the devices that the app is on without relying on out-of-bound connections to other systems.”

The SaaS platform speeds up the creation of linear channels, as well as the delivery of sports events and live streams to viewers (and syndication partners). By leveraging VOS360, Harmonic says that operators have creative control over content ingest, scheduling, playout, branding, encoding, monetisation and the creation of channel variants, with “real-time agility.”

Kip Schauer, Global Head of Media and Entertainment Partnerships at Google Cloud, said: “Google Cloud’s highly performant and trusted infrastructure is helping media and entertainment companies develop and distribute content intelligently and at great scale. By bringing its innovative VOS360 platform to Google Cloud, Harmonic enables these businesses to deliver differentiated broadcast and direct-to-consumer streaming experiences that contribute to a growing ecosystem of cloud-native, flexible, and agile media supply chains.”

Shahar Bar, Senior Vice President, Video Products and Corporate Development at Harmonic, commented: “We’re thrilled to announce that we can now offer our market-leading VOS360 SaaS platform on Google Cloud for a wide range of applications.

“Not only is our full tech stack available on Google Cloud, but so are our full DevOps capabilities, providing customers committed to Google Cloud the ability to deploy our full suite of services and cloud technologies. In recent years Google Cloud has placed a strong focus on the Media and Entertainment market, and we’re excited to partner with them to bring more customers to the Cloud.”

The company also launched its non-linear live streaming functionality, which allows viewers to rewind a live stream (if they miss a goal, for example.) BT Sport, as well as several other major sports broadcasters, have already deployed Yospace’s non-live streaming.

Yospace says these latest innovations are “designed to maximise the monetisation opportunities and user experience of live sports.” The company notes that, even when the viewer is in non-linear playback mode, advertising is dynamically replaced at the point an ad break is viewed.

David Springall, CTO and Founder of Yospace, said: “Sporting events are highly dynamic in terms of their scheduling, ad breaks and audience demand. We’ve orchestrated the process of operating ‘pop-up’ channels such that they are as reliable as 24/7 channels, with no practical limit to the number that can be supported simultaneously.

“What really sets this solution apart is the way in which we can ensure that the operations teams can get the most important real-time metrics for their audience and advertising performance as their live content offering scales up and down.”

Jeremy Rosenberg, Director of Advertising Partnerships at BT Sport, commented: “Yospace has been an important partner of BT Sport since 2016 and is a true innovator of live session management at scale. While initially we needed a monetisation solution, what we have today is a partner that is quick to adapt to new challenges and provides innovative solutions, to ensure its ahead of the curve, in an ever evolving market.”

STARZPLAY Sports will also include matches from international and regional football tournaments such as Coppa Italia, Supercoppa Italiana and the Dutch Eredivisie. As part of the offering, subscribers will have access to the EuroLeague and EuroCup basketball competitions, PGA Tour, the Pakistan Super League and the Indian home series.

The service will offer live sports events, which will then become available to watch on-demand “immediately” once the event ends. The company says it “seeks to disrupt the sporting entertainment scene by bringing the best live sports events under one platform.”

Danny Bates, Chief Commercial Officer, STARZPLAY, said: “As the pioneer of SVOD in the region and since launching our first sports channel in 2021, building an exclusive portfolio of sports in the OTT space has been our strategic priority. Now, we are challenging the status quo of sports streaming with STARZPLAY Sports, a platform like no other that will provide sports lovers more reasons to cheer.

“We are dedicated to ensuring the best sports entertainment is readily accessible to our subscribers. We leverage cutting-edge technology to bring users a seamless, high-quality experience and best industry low latency live streaming possible.”

STARZPLAY currently has over 2.1 million subscribers across the 19 territories it operates in. The sports streamer will be made available through desktop and mobile platforms.