Survey: Key Innovations on Sports Execs Radar Include Automated Content Creation, Remote Production Other key production/distribution trends include AI capabilities, virtual production tools, and cloud-based workflows By Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S.
Tuesday, February 27, 2024 - 7:47 pm
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
According to a newly released Key Innovations report in Altman Solon's 2023 Global Sports Survey, 79% of sports executives believe automated content creation will have a major impact on their business, and 74% believe remote production technology will be just as game-changing. The survey of over 150 global sports executives and 2,500 consumers across eight countries spotlights how enabling technologies empower the value chain to generate greater fan engagement and unlock untapped revenue streams.
Both automated content creation and remote production technology can lower costs while producing content at scale and unlocking new revenue streams, giving rights holders the ability to create differentiated products from a single sports event. The NBA's partnership with WSC Sports Technology to provide customized in-game and post-game highlight reels is one example.
Similarly, content localization technologies like Virtual Board Replacement (VBR)-where physical objects like edges of the playfield are replaced with virtual advertisements-are now reaching maturity. As media production and distribution workflows move to the cloud, rights holders and their media rights licensees will have greater opportunities to acquire new, hyper-local advertisers. The NHL's partnership with Supponor on Digitally Enhanced Dasherboards (DED) is one major example. The system allows for the digital replacement of camera-visible arena dasherboards within local, national, and international NHL game broadcasts.
The Key Innovations report also addresses how new technologies, including AI capabilities, virtual production tooling, and cloud-based workflows, are transforming content production and distribution. Meanwhile, digital native sports fans are consuming content in new ways, ranging from ultra-personalized feeds and streaming subscriptions to Web3 fan communities. The landscape is in flux, experiencing top-down and bottom-up changes, and is ripe for new products and revenue streams.
On the consumer side, 52% of sports executives believe content augmentation (AR/VR, gamification, and advanced stats) will impact sports media. This tepid response is due in part to low consumer adoption of mixed reality products. However, continued innovation in mixed realities and launches of devices like Apple's Vision Pro headset signal emerging opportunities in the area.
Sports executives are less bullish on blockchain and tokenization, with only 26% thinking that Web3 technologies and ownership models will move the needle. This is largely due to low adoption among fans (only 6% surveyed have purchased a sports NFT or fan token). However, executives believe that in the future, blockchain-based loyalty programs hold great promise and have the potential to create synergies with gaming and live events. The survey of sports fans shows interest in a hypothetical digital fan ID that can unlock personalized content and experiences for sports fans. Leagues like the NBA, along with technology companies like Sportradar, are already experimenting with this concept and are testing ways to provide tailored experiences to individual fans.
CLICK HERE to download the full report.
More from Sports Video Group
29/05/2026
With InfoComm 2026 just weeks away, NDI is giving attendees plenty of reasons to...
29/05/2026
Reaffirming a partnership that has defined Canadian sports broadcasting since 19...
29/05/2026
Mobile/tablet is No. 2 device for watching TV, suggesting that the sports-production industry needs to take another look at the format
Ring Digital's Sprin...
29/05/2026
Berliner Ensemble, one of Berlin's five major theater companies, has expande...
29/05/2026
Solid State Logic will showcase its new compact, fly-away TCA Tour audio product...
29/05/2026
Gerald (Jerry) Pierce, a pioneering technologist who helped shape the digital transformation of the motion picture industry, passed away last month on April 12 ...
29/05/2026
Paramount+ will be the English-language U.S. home for Barclays Women's Super...
29/05/2026
Further strengthening its virtualisation strategy to fully support broadcasters ...
29/05/2026
Swiss broadcaster Canal Alpha has deployed Harmonic's award-winning, software-based XOS Advanced Media Processor to modernize playout operations across cant...
29/05/2026
PTZOptics will showcase a new generation of intelligent video workflows at InfoComm 2026, June 17-19, Las Vegas. Visitors to booth N8227 will see how PTZOptics ...
29/05/2026
Arizona's Family has launched the Arizona's Family Sports (AZFS) streaming app, a new direct-to-consumer destination for live, local sports. The app is ...
29/05/2026
Starting in 2027, DAZN will be the exclusive home of The Canadian Football Leagu...
29/05/2026
Comcast Business has detailed the advanced network infrastructure it has deploye...
29/05/2026
In two-day event, leaders from academia and industry explored solutions to chall...
29/05/2026
The Basketball Tournament (TBT), now entering their 13th year of competition, ha...
29/05/2026
Roku has launched FOX One as a Premium Subscription on The Roku Channel in the U.S. Roku customers can now subscribe to FOX One using their Roku account for liv...
29/05/2026
In its sixth year, the broadcaster's coverage has become a global brand and ...
29/05/2026
Ratings Roundup is a rundown of recent ratings news and is derived from press re...
28/05/2026
FOX Sports' MLB coverage dominated the night at the 47th Annual Sports Emmy ...
28/05/2026
One of the most memorable postseasons in baseball history would have had no memo...
28/05/2026
NBC's Sunday Night Football is among the most-decorated and most-watched pro...
28/05/2026
The 2026 Sports Emmys marked a watershed moment for Prime Video Sports. After bu...
28/05/2026
Hosted by ESPN Senior Writer Ryan McGee, the ceremony honored winners from athletic departments, conference offices, professional networks, production companies...
28/05/2026
Major rights-holders rolled out their 2026 college football slates today, offering a first look at marquee windows, kickoff partners, and conference distributio...
28/05/2026
The 4 Nations Face-Off, an international competition that launched in February 2...
28/05/2026
Soccer is a truly global sport, and, to match the U.S. viewing audience's in...
28/05/2026
The NFL Today, CBS Sports' top-of-the-line NFL studio show, has a storied hi...
28/05/2026
Prime Video is no stranger to innovation, and, within the realm of live streamin...
28/05/2026
The crack of the bat, the pop of the glove, and the cheer of the crowd: those are three prime examples of the glorious sounds fans hear on televised baseball ga...
28/05/2026
Every year, March Madness captivates the entire sports world. Nonstop action, un...
28/05/2026
NBA on NBC was an integral part to live sports production in the 1990s, and, when the league made these media rights available, NBC Sports saw an opportunity to...
28/05/2026
UmpCam is a technological wrinkle that has given fans unprecedented views of wha...
28/05/2026
T-Mobile and the United States Golf Association (USGA) announced a multi-year partnership, making T-Mobile the Official 5G Network Partner of the U.S. Women'...
27/05/2026
Telestream has announced that its Board of Directors has appointed Benjamin Desbois as Chief Executive Officer, effective July 1, 2026. Desbois, currently Teles...
27/05/2026
ESPN garnered 10 awards; NBC's Sunday Night Football received the Outstandin...
27/05/2026
Matrox Video is celebrating its 50th anniversary, marking five decades of operations from its headquarters in Montreal, Canada. Founded in 1976, the company has...
27/05/2026
Major League Baseball has announced a series of initiatives tied to America's Semiquincentennial, including a national marketing campaign, Fourth of July br...
27/05/2026
Advanced Systems Group (ASG) has announced that Brian Gross has joined the company as an Account Manager on its Audio team, based in the Burbank office. He will...
27/05/2026
Nielsen has released new research on soccer fandom ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2...
27/05/2026
ESL FACEIT Group (EFG) has unveiled a new partnership with TikTok to bring broad...
27/05/2026
FIFA's Oscar Sanchez gives a deeper look to how this tournament will be cove...
27/05/2026
The soon-to-be senior from Charlottesville is building her skills in replay, TD, and even creative content for HokieVision and its ACC Network productions
In t...
27/05/2026
FOX Sports' Mike Davies breaks down the vision for this summer's showcas...
27/05/2026
HBS's Paul King, FIFA's Oscar Sanchez preview how the masses at home wil...
27/05/2026
FOX's MLB coverage dominated the night at the 47th Annual Sports Emmy Awards...
27/05/2026
One of the most memorable Postseasons in baseball history would have had no memo...
27/05/2026
NBC's Sunday Night Football is among the most decorated and most watched programs in the history of television. It added to its jam-packed trophy case on Tu...
27/05/2026
The 2026 Sports Emmys marked a watershed moment for Prime Video Sports. After bu...
27/05/2026
With the Opening Match just over two weeks away, the entire sports-production-te...
Survey: Key Innovations on Sports Execs Radar Include Automated Content Creation, Remote Production Other key production/distribution trends include AI capabilities, virtual production tools, and cloud-based workflows By Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S. 
