Live From the US Open: Digital Products Get Refresh as Experience at Home and in Stands Improves
12/09/2018
Monday, September 10, 2018 - 4:21 pm
Print This Story
Story Highlights
At the US Open tennis championships, which ended this past weekend, the grounds weren't the only thing that had been overhauled: digital properties related to the event also had been rebuilt from the ground up.
We rebuilt all of the digital properties from scratch: the website and the apps, says Kirsten Corio, managing director, ticketing and digital strategies, USTA. This was also the first time that we built the Android app from scratch in conjunction with our friends from Google. They helped us with best practices around Android development, so it's really designed for Android vs. an IOS app fitting into Android.
For the first time ever, the US Open app for Android was built from the ground up.
The digital strategies continue to serve two masters. The goal is to create offerings that are attractive both to fans at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center (NTC) and to any other tennis fan around the globe. The sweet spot is match-centric content like video, stats, photos, and stories that can keep fans anywhere up-to-date on the action. Things like a pervasive scoreboard across both the app and the website made it easy for fans to find out what was going on.
And when you drilled down on the website, Corio says, on the right-hand side, you would see all of the detailed stats. IBM SlamTracker even added a momentum score, which keeps track of who is winning points and how that is shifting the momentum. Lines are drawn out from a midline towards the name of a player on either side of the line, and the more consecutive points and games a player wins, the more momentum shifts in their favor. At a glance, a fan can get a sense of how momentum shifted during a match, something that a simple match score of, say, five games to four can't show.
The new digital efforts are all part of the USTA's goal to make the US Open the innovative slam, where technology and tennis come together for fans and players alike.
We have to be constantly iterating and innovating to defend that position, notes Corio. Nowhere is that more obvious than in our digital properties.
Part of those efforts are a rebuild of everything every two years to ensure that the products evolve as the consumer technologies evolve. With this being the Open's 50th anniversary, those efforts began in March with a light version that embraced the tournament's new logo.
The full experience puts scoring front and center and also eliminates dead ends. Users are dropped into the next story as they get to the end of one, Corio explains, adding, There is autoplay of video for the next set of highlights. It's more of an experience, and users can get lost in it and spend more time than they intended to.
The app, meanwhile, continued to evolve to meet the needs of fans at the NTC. The grounds map offers a 3D rendering of the grounds, and the use of IBM Watson AI means that fans can ask the Virtual Concierge thousands of questions and get answers. New this year was its availability via Facebook Messenger.
Momentum is a new way to visualize the ebbs and flow of a tennis match.
Overlays on the courts also are helpful for fans onsite. They can tap on a court and see the score pop up instantly. Simply put, the days of craning one's neck to watch a scoreboard (or sit where one is visible) are over.
FanCam was in the app for the first time this year, says Corio. If you are sitting in Arthur Ashe Stadium, you put in your section and seat location and take control of one of the eight cameras in the catwalk. It maps to your location, and you can pinch and zoom your location and take a picture.
The Fan Access Pass is also integrated into the app, providing unified registration so that, as fans engage with various experiences, a quick scan of a QR code gets them free gifts and provides valuable data to USTA marketing partners without the fans's having to re-enter information over and over.
There is also gamification with a grand prize of tickets to the final, says Corio, noting, Last year, 400 people collected every badge. The gamification can also be done by fans at home.
For those who have an Apple iPhone or iPad, the US Open Matchcast brought AR and live scoring together. Built into the primary app, it delivers a 3D rendering of each of the three primary stadiums and then layers in player avatars and live scoring. A fan could fire up the feature, point their phone at a flat surface like a table, and, looking through the phone, see the 3D rendering on the table. Moving the phone around allows it to be used as a window into an AR environment that allows the points to be viewed from the vantage of the two avatars or anywhere else.
It's a bit of a test with IBM to see if we could do it in a lightweight way. We wanted to pull up the live experience in a way that hasn't been done before, says Corio. You can watch a whole match that way, and, although it looks like pong, it's a cool activation and proof of concept.
Of all the changes, probably the biggest is that the digital team, which works in the Indoor Tennis Center, is now tied in via fiber to the broadcast-production team, which is located in the broadcast compound behind Arthur Ashe Stadium. That means the team can more easily access and publish content, because an EVS IPDirector can dive into the content storage and access the desired content.
Utopia would be for all of us to get in the same place so that we can physically be in the same place, says Corio.
Next year will see continued improvement to the digital
LINK: | https://www.sportsvideo.org/2018/09/10/live-from-the-us-open-digital-p... |
See more stories from svg |
Most recent headlines
04/08/2024
Dalet Appoints Santiago Solanas as CEO to Lead Next Era of Growth and Innovation
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, is excited to announce Santiago Solanas as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO)....
03/06/2024
Dalet and Veritone Reach Agreement to Distribute, Transact and Monetize Media Archives
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, a...
29/04/2024
Filming begins and further cast confirmed in Mark Gatiss drama Bookish for Alibi
(L-R) Mark Gatiss and Polly Walker on set Monday 29 April 2024 Further casting is now confirmed for Bookish (6x70), a brand-new drama created by Emmy Award-wi...
29/04/2024
She Speaks Sudan': Thomson launches programme to empower women journalists and civil society actors in exile
A groundbreaking initiative offering training and mentoring to 30 women journali...
29/04/2024
Meet the 2024 Sundance Institute Directors, Screenwriters, and Native Lab Fellows
Even though we've been doing this for over 40 years, a spark of excitement r...
29/04/2024
The AN/PRC-158: A Resilient Communications Bridge Between Air and Ground
L3Harris is delivering manpack radios to U.S. Army CH-47 Chinooks as part of the Air-to-Ground Networking Radio program, providing seamless, resilient communica...
29/04/2024
CS President Sam Mehta: Resilient Communications are Critical to Realizing JADC2
He writes in Defense One: Despite the near-universal acknowledgement throughout the U.S. government and defense industrial base of the criticality of resilient ...
29/04/2024
Clear-Com Enhances The Kennedy Center with Seamless Communication Solutions
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
29/04/2024
Optimising audio loudness & normalisation across the Media Supply Chain
Codemill aims to revolutionize media workflow efficiency at this years NAB Show by introducing Just-In-Time (JIT) playback technology in Accurate.Video Validate...
29/04/2024
TF1 Chooses Broadpeak to Power Targeted Advertising for New Video Streaming Service
April 29, 2024 -- TF1 Chooses Broadpeak to Power Targeted Advertising for New...
29/04/2024
LG Adds Allen Media Group's Local Now FAST Channel in 223 Markets
LOS ANGELES Allen Media Group (AMG) has partnered with LG Electronics to bring 223 Local Now FAST channels to LG's free streaming service, LG Channels, avai...
29/04/2024
Ross Video Unveils Raiden Weather Graphics System
OTTAWA Ross Video has announced the introduction of Raiden, a data-driven weather graphics software that combines data gathering, processing, and visualization ...
29/04/2024
Melanie Georgieva Joins Panalux as Long Form Sales Direct...
Panalux, a leading rental provider of lighting and power solutions for the motion-picture industry and part of Panavision's end-to-end service offerings for...
29/04/2024
Cobalt Iron Earns Patent on Analytics-Based Dynamic Autho...
Cobalt Iron Inc., a leading provider of SaaS-based enterprise data protection, today announced that it has received a patent on its technology for dynamic autho...
29/04/2024
SDVI Rally Access Workstation Earns Two Top Awards at 202...
SDVI, the leading platform provider for cloud-native media supply chains, today announced that Rally Access Workstation, a fully managed solution for editing in...
29/04/2024
Premier Sports selects QuickLink Remote Commentary soluti...
Premier Sports, a premium sports broadcaster, has selected QuickLink's Remote Commentary solution for introducing professional, high-quality remote commenta...
29/04/2024
Glookast picks Jigsaw24 Media as exclusive UK channel par...
Glookast has chosen Jigsaw24 Media as the only UK channel partner to represent their portfolio of ingest and workflow optimisation products. The agreement, sign...
29/04/2024
Clear-Coms Eclipse HX and Agent-IC Technology Illuminate...
Clear-Com played a pivotal role in the seamless coverage of the recent solar eclipse on April 8, 2024. Leveraging its cutting-edge Eclipse HX Digital Matrix i...
29/04/2024
PlayBox Neo to Promote Latest Smart Media Playout Innovat...
PlayBox Neo will promote its complete range of television channel management, graphic branding and playout solutions to EMEA region media content owners and bro...
29/04/2024
RuPaul Game Show Lingo' Returns to CBS May 24
Lingo, RuPaul's word-twisting game show, returns for season two on CBS Friday, May 24. Two episodes air that night, and stream on Paramount Plus, too....
29/04/2024
ESPN, Amazon Prime Video Reportedly Close To New Deals With the NBA
ESPN and Amazon Prime Video are reportedly close to scoring television rights to the National Basketball Association, according to published reports....
29/04/2024
Judge Judy,' Hot Bench' Renewed for 2 More Years
Judge Judy and Hot Bench, CBS Media Ventures' genre-leading court shows, have been renewed through the 2025-26 TV season in more than 95% of the country, Gr...
29/04/2024
Irish Sports Broadcaster Premier Sports Taps QuickLink for Remote Commentary
Premier Sports, an Irish-based premium sports broadcaster, has selected QuickLink's Remote Commentary solution for introducing professional, high-quality re...
29/04/2024
BAFTA Television Craft Awards winners announced
The awards celebrate the craft of behind-the-scenes TV talent and the best programmes of 2023 By Matthew Corrigan Published: April 29, 2024 The awards cel...
29/04/2024
Watch: How Milk VFX helped create 259 shots for Netflix's Scoop
The team at Milk had to create and deliver the VFX and environment work for the royal residences featured in the drama from scratch By Jenny Priestley Publis...
29/04/2024
What's going on at Paramount Global?
CEO Bob Bakish is expected to leave the company as early as today, with a new leadership committee likely to run the company on an interim basis By Jenny Pries...
29/04/2024
Meet the director of media and entertainment and strategic products
Albena Ivanova, director, media and entertainment and strategic products at CHAOS talks to TVBEurope about her route into the industry By TVBEurope Staff Pub...
29/04/2024
Anna Valley brand name acquired by AV company Grand Technix
The acquisition gives Grand Technix the opportunity to expand its footprint in the audio visual and broadcast technology sectors By Jenny Priestley Published...
29/04/2024
Screen Australia announces James J. Robinson's debut feature First Light
29 04 2024 - Media release Screen Australia announces James J. Robinson's debut feature First Light First Light Principal Photography is underway on Firs...
29/04/2024
Capitol Broadcasting Becomes First Company Inducted into NC Media and Journalism Hall of Fame
Capitol Broadcasting recently became the inaugural company honored with inductio...
29/04/2024
Uninterrupted and Tribeca Enterprises Partner for Second-Annual Uninterrupted Film Festival Powered by Tribeca Festival July 9-10 in Los Angeles
April 29th, 2024 UNINTERRUPTED AND TRIBECA ENTERPRISES PARTNER FOR SECOND-ANNUA...
29/04/2024
Rebrand and Refresh: SailGP Talks Bringing its Graphics Operations Inhouse for a Bright New Look to Keep Viewers Illuminated
Rebrand and refresh: SailGP talks bringing its graphics operations inhouse for a...
29/04/2024
Reflecting on a Storied Career: Sean McManus Looks Back While Keeping an Eye on the Future
Reflecting on a Storied Career: Sean McManus Looks Back While Keeping an Eye on ...
29/04/2024
Drones Take Flight Inside MSG: How Sky Candy Studios is Upping the Excitement for Knicks, Rangers Playoff Series
Drones Take Flight Inside MSG: How Sky Candy Studios is Upping the Excitement fo...
29/04/2024
Netflix Announces a Diverse Lineup of Polish Titles to Debut in 2024 With Established Creators Returning With New Series and Films
Back to All News Netflix Announces a Diverse Lineup of Polish Titles to Debut i...
29/04/2024
Tonight on Smoke and Mirrors: Fanyana feels embarrassed about his sexual mishap
Tonight on Smoke and Mirrors: Fanyana feels embarrassed about his sexual mishapDon't miss Monday, 29 April's riveting episode of South African soapie Sm...
29/04/2024
SEA.AI Navigates the Future With AI at the Helm
Talk about commitment. When startup SEA.AI, an NVIDIA Metropolis partner, set out to create a system that would use AI to scan the seas to enhance maritime safe...
28/04/2024
Mediahaus delivers the first SRT live-streaming sports production over 5G with URSA Broadcast G2
Mediahaus delivers the first SRT live-streaming sports production over 5G with U...
27/04/2024
L3Harris Chair and CEO Christopher E. Kubasik Discusses 1Q24 On CNBC's "Closing Bell: Overtime"
On April 26, L3Harris Chair and CEO Christopher E. Kubasik joined CNBC's Mor...
27/04/2024
Audinate Adds Major New Features to Dante Connect
PORTLAND, Oregon Audinate Group Limited, the developer of the Dante AV-over-IP solution, announced significant new additions to Dante Connect, its cloud-based D...
27/04/2024
Bell Media Launches New Portfolio of FAST Channels
TORONTO Bell Media has launched 10 English and French-language FAST channels featuring entertainment, factual, news, and sports programming. The new free stream...
27/04/2024
Study: Broadcast TV Evening News Avoids Serious Economic Issues
An extensive new analysis of the news segments in the broadcast evening news programs of ABC, CBS, NBC and PBS has found that broadcasters devoted most of their...
27/04/2024
Hughes Opens Manufacturing Facility and Private 5G Incubation Center in Maryland
GERMANTOWN, Md. EchoStar's Hughes Network Systems has opened a new manufacturing facility and private 5G incubation center in Germantown, Maryland....
27/04/2024
Broadcasting Legend Harry Pappas Dead At 78
Harry Pappas, one of three brothers who founded Pappas Telecasting Companies in 1971, died April 24. He was 78 years old....
27/04/2024
Televisa Selects Synamedia For Broadcast Distribution Overhaul
ATLANTA and LONDON Mexican telecommunications and broadcast company Televisa has selected Synamedia for an overhaul of its broadcast distribution....
27/04/2024
Participate in the Survey - The Impact of AI on Media and the Creative Industry
Participate in the Survey - The Impact of AI on Media and the Creative Industry Pascal Wagner April 26, 2024 0 Comments By participating in this surve...
27/04/2024
SDVI Rally Access Workstation Earns Two Top Awards at 2024 NAB Show
SDVI Rally Access Workstation Earns Two Top Awards at 2024 NAB Show Brie Clayton April 26, 2024 0 Comments SDVI, the leading platform provider for clo...
27/04/2024
Berklee's Music and Health Institute Launches Community Health Musician Certificate
Berklee's Music and Health Institute Launches Community Health Musician Cert...
27/04/2024
Charter Reports Higher Q1 Profits Despite Broadband, Video Losses
Charter Communications reported higher first-quarter profits despite continued cord-cutting and competition for broadband customers....