Tennis Channel International Responds to Pandemic With Live Programming The OTT service has streamed more than 1,000 matches since its launch in May By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director
Thursday, January 21, 2021 - 12:00 pm
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
When Tennis Channel International was launched in Germany last May, the OTT service didn't intend to broadcast live tennis programming. But COVID-19 and its impact on the tennis world opened up opportunities that were unforeseen only months earlier.
When we launched, says Tennis Channel SVP, international, Andy Reif, we thought live rights would not be available for two or three years, and our whole strategy was going to be classic matches and original features. But, when COVID happened and the tours were disrupted, there were exhibitions popping up, and Tennis Channel started discussions with those exhibitions.
Tennis Channel International picked Germany for its initial app because tennis is so popular in the country.
The impact has been large. The service has shown more than 1,000 live matches and was the official streaming partner of the ATP 500 Hamburg European Open and even the DTB German Tennis Championships (which never had a media partner before) in December.
Those championships did incredibly well and even had stronger viewership in Germany than the Hamburg Open, which had global players, says Reif. It showed there was an opportunity to be a major focus with live tennis and original programming.
The idea behind Tennis Channel International, he notes, was to bring some cohesion to a sport that has different tours, four independently run Grand Slams, and rights deals that can sometimes make it hard for fans to find the information they want.
The central concept was to be the meeting place for tennis fans, a place to grow and tell the story of tennis in multiple ways, says Reif. The Tennis Channel is that place here in the U.S., but the rest of the world does not have that central meeting place for tennis.
Figuring out how to launch an OTT service on a global basis is a challenge for any organization, and Reif and the team decided to focus their efforts on countries that have strong tennis federations.
We looked to see where tennis is popular and where there are a lot of players who play at least one time a month. Those countries tend to have strong tennis federations, he explains. We also wanted to launch where SVOD services are popular, people are used to paying for streaming, and there is an infrastructure to support it.
Germany, whose Deutscher Tennis Bund (DTB) has 1.4 million members, was the initial focus, and a partnership was formed. A subscription service priced at approximately $2.75 per month was launched with Sportradar, which oversees the app.
Tennis Channel International began live-streaming matches during the coronavirus pandemic.
With the pay service up and running, Reif says, attention turned to the launch of a free ad-supported streaming-TV service via Samsung, with technology partner Amagi powering the look and feel of the service.
We use the FAST channel to build awareness for TCI, and then fans can migrate over to the subscription service, says Reif. It was launched on Samsung TV Plus in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland and also in the UK in advance of launching the app this year.
FAST gives people a lean-back experience, and Reif notes that the 24/7 channel is fully programmed with the tennis fan in mind, with weekly and monthly themes.
Amagi allows us to put in dynamic graphics so it looks like a channel and not just a playlist, he says.
Along with 24/7 content, fans will also find hundreds of hours of VOD content. The production team dove into thousands of hours of content created for Tennis Channel to find the content that would best appeal to a global audience.
Now, when I go to our service, says Reif, there is thousands of hours of stuff to watch, which is incredible to me.
And something truly original is MatchCast, a live-scoring application that allows fans to follow the match live from nearly any device.
Something like that has never existed for tennis fans, Reif points out. Sportradar is our technology partner for that, allowing fans to watch every match in the world live and follow how a point and a match play out, as well as stats and data.
MatchCast is still in beta test, but Reif expects it to be a hit for fans who want to be able to follow any match at any tournament and at any time. Hard-core fans will want to follow different matches even if they can't watch it.
Obtaining original content from around the world is important, and a team of preditors (people who both produce and edit content) travel with the tour and are focused on tennis 365 days a year.
The MatchCast app allows fans to follow matches live from nearly any device.
They have access to footage and interviews to tell the story of tennis, and, at the end of the day, that is the goal, he says. We have features on players, human-interest stories, and access to anything that was created for the linear channel.
Speaking of the linear channel, Tennis Channel is moving to a new production facility in Los Angeles, where it will have multiple sets and sound stages that could play a big role moving forward.
We will be able to create global and also local content as we can keep the lights and the cameras on and shoot German or French versions of shows, notes Reif. As we grow, we will see more opportunities to take a global service and localize it. It will become more impressive for the tennis fan.
Plans for this year include a launch in both the UK and Australia, keeping the service on a positive trajectory despite tumultuous times.
We're happy with how much we have accomplished in a crazy time as we launched a subscription service, a 24/7
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
04/06/2026
Sony Electronics is introducing the SRG-AS10, a 4K 60p-compatible PTZ auto-frami...
04/06/2026
This recent grad from Spring, TX, led creative-video output for the Aggies' men's basketball team last season and has been producing video and creating ...
04/06/2026
For the first time at a women's golf major, every player in the field will r...
04/06/2026
Three Panasonic PT-RQ45 40,000-lumen 3-Chip DLP projectors made their first live...
04/06/2026
Bitmovin and Akamai have announced a collaboration with NRJ Group, a French mult...
04/06/2026
Telestream will exhibit at InfoComm 2026 (Booth N7952), demonstrating media work...
04/06/2026
Sony has announced the development of RIALTO 65, a 65mm format image sensor block for the VENICE 2 digital cinema camera, targeting release in the first half of...
04/06/2026
KOKUSAI DENKI Electric America will exhibit at InfoComm 2026 (Booth N8025, June ...
04/06/2026
Bell Media's TSN and RDS are the exclusive Canadian broadcasters of FIFA Wor...
04/06/2026
The Challenge: Receiving Heavy Media Files From Road Games Quickly and ReliablyT...
04/06/2026
MASV, a managed file transfer platform used in broadcast and live sports product...
04/06/2026
NESN has announced the appointment of Fahad Haider as Vice President of Operations and Engineering. Haider returns to NESN, where he previously served as Vice P...
04/06/2026
David J. Halberstam, who spent almost 50 years in sports as a broadcaster and an executive, died June 2 after a years-long battle with brain cancer.
Over his l...
04/06/2026
Although collegiate production programs are tasked with delivering high-quality ...
04/06/2026
California studio, two production trucks, global distribution system are combine...
04/06/2026
New global program empowers and supports storytellers through scriptwriting course and access to industry experts
TikTok and Sundance Institute today announce...
04/06/2026
Steinberg DAWs now boast in-depth Tonalic integration
Celemony's innovative virtual session musician plug-in has just received an update that brings ARA...
04/06/2026
Get Hands-On With Over 20 Mic Brands
GearExpo UK is fast approaching, and if you've been looking for a chance to check out some new mics, then you'r...
04/06/2026
Combos feature new Amplifier Intelligence engine
Positive Grid's latest release sees the company introduce two new combo amplifiers that promise to offe...
04/06/2026
Is Your Job Making You Work this June?
4 June, 2026
Media releases
SBS Launches the World Cup Watchers' Rights Association to Stand Up For Australians&...
04/06/2026
Statement regarding unauthorised use of SBS logos on third party social content
4 June, 2026
Media releases
SBS has become aware of social media posts in c...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Bitmovin, a leading provider of video streaming infrastructure, and Akamai, the cybersecurity and cloud computing company that powers and protects business onli...
04/06/2026
American Underground (AU), the Startup Hub of the South and a community of mor...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
NVIDIA and Microsoft Reinvent Windows PCs for the Age of Personal AI
Brie Clayton June 3, 2026
0 Comments
RTX Spark - a 1-Petaflop Superchip, the Full...
04/06/2026
Inside the Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man Grade
Brie Clayton June 3, 2026
0 Comments
Simone Grattarola discusses shaping the look in DaVinci Resolve...
04/06/2026
Cine Gear Expo Announces 2026 Awards of Excellence Recipients
Brie Clayton June 3, 2026
0 Comments
Ed Lachman ASC, Caleb Deschanel ASC, and M. David M...
04/06/2026
St. Vincents Live with Orchestra Tour to Feature Berklee Alum Ruby Plume Berklee alumni St. Vincent and Ruby Plume will appear on the same bill across seven d...
04/06/2026
Back to All News
All the Truth in My Lies Coming to Netflix on August 28
Entertainment
04 June 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Download the imag...
04/06/2026
Back to All News
Larry Tanz, VP of Content, EMEA, Delivers a Keynote Speech at ...
04/06/2026
Back to All News
Turn Your Living Room into a Stadium With the New FIFA World ...
04/06/2026
Keeping conversations real on LinkedIn Published on Jun 4, 2026 Categories: Product News
LinkedIn Corporate Communications
Share
LinkedIn
Facebook ...
04/06/2026
BackStory follows four Irish young people as they travel back to their parents' homelands
Modern Irish identity is enriched by cultures and influences from...
04/06/2026
June's forecast with GeForce NOW: 100% chance of gaming.
GeForce NOW is lining up new adventures for the month, from big-name blockbusters to quirky indies...
03/06/2026
SES and Viva, Mexico's ultra low-cost airline, have launched multi-orbit satellite inflight connectivity on Viva's Airbus aircraft. A total of 60 A320s ...
03/06/2026
The College Football Playoff, ESPN, and TNT Sports have announced kick times and...
03/06/2026
RED Digital Cinema will exhibit at Cine Gear Expo 2026 (Booth 33, June 5-6, Universal Studios Lot), hosting three panels and hands-on product demonstrations.
P...
03/06/2026
Roku has announced the Soccer Zone, a dedicated hub for FIFA World Cup 2026 content available across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Argent...
Tennis Channel International Responds to Pandemic With Live Programming The OTT service has streamed more than 1,000 matches since its launch in May By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director 
