The US College Athletic conference, formally known as the PAC-10, is announcing a new iPad app today that allows you to stream college sports directly to your iPad wherever you are. Games that are broadcasted on TV will require a Cable television login and password, but no login will be required for long-tail events like rowing or UCLA football that do not get TV airtime. All major cable providers are on board except Comcast, of course, which has its own Xfinity iPad app. Pac-12 is working with smaller cable networks to get on board too.
I am not going to beat around the bush. As a die-hard (No. 1 Ranked ) USC Football fan, who often has to run around to different local bars in New York to find the game, this might be my app of the year. Maybe best app of all time. Even better, since Ooyala is helping with the App, fans can embed clips of PAC-12 sports into their blogs and websites. The app will also feature recaps and interviews that are not broadcast.
I got a chance to talk with PAC-12 a little bit about the creation of this app and the services behind it. Ooyala received a lot of help from Apple (which, I am told, has a lot of PAC-12 Alumni itching for this service) getting this product up and running. “Pac-12 Now is game changer in our ability to deliver our content to millions of fans,” said Pac-12 Enterprises President Gary Stevenson. “Today we are one step closer to achieving our goal of connecting fans with our live programming and feature content when and where they choose to access it.”
To cater viewing to each individual, Ooyala created a graphic interactive programming guide (IPG) that is more like a map of what is important to the viewer rather than a traditional grid-formatted guide. In addition to prioritizing teams and sports preferred by the viewer, as indicated during set-up, future versions of the IPG will highlight events that are currently live, games that are tied or nearing a close finish, and games trending in a viewer’s social graph. Additionally, fans can chat and share their viewing experience with friends through Facebook and Twitter feeds optionally presented adjacent to the video display.
“The result of our work with the Pac-12 Networks is a multi-screen fan experience that changes the way sports are watched,” said Ooyala Chief Executive Officer Jay Fulcher. “The web and iPad experiences blur the line between broadband and traditional broadcasts, and are hallmarks of a new way of distributing entertainment – in this case sports – reaching digital consumers on their schedule, on their preferred screen and with a more engaging experience. The result is a win for everyone involved – the fans, the Pac-12 and their participating broadcast affiliates.”
The full press release is below:
PAC-12 NETWORKS AND OOYALA DELIVER “PAC-12 NOW,” SEAMLESSLY INTEGRATED LIVE BROADCAST AND BROADBAND ENTERTAINMENT ACROSS TV, WEB AND iPAD
Pac-12 Now iPad app showcases the latest consumer benefits of digital broadcasting innovation; Brings live streaming of hundreds of live and VOD sporting events to Pac-12 fans
SAN FRANCISCO and MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (August 29, 2012) – The Pac-12 Networks, a sports entertainment network built from the ground up for integrated broadcast and broadband entertainment, today released Pac-12 Now for iPad, the ultimate interactive fan experience for followers of college sports. Pac-12 Now for iPad is the newest in a series of web, iOS and Android experiences, developed in close partnership with Ooyala, that bring fans complete access to a rich catalog of live and video on demand (VOD) programming, games, scores, interviews and more from around the Pac-12 Conference. It is available immediately in the iTunes Store and on Pac-12.com.
As the first live television network conceived from day one as a multi-screen interactive fan experience, the Pac-12 Networks worked with Ooyala to create a unified digital broadcasting studio that provides unlimited capacity for streaming content across an unrestricted range of devices. As a result, the Pac-12 Networks can offer subscribers of its affiliate partners PC, tablet and smartphone access to 850 live and on-demand sporting events, analysis and commentary, statistics, press conferences, documentaries and other content that extends dramatically beyond the programming available through the telecast alone.
“Pac-12 Now is game changer in our ability to deliver our content to millions of fans,” said Gary Stevenson, President of Pac-12 Enterprises. “Today we are one step closer to achieving our goal of connecting fans with our live programming and feature content when and where they choose to access it.”
To cater viewing to each individual, Ooyala created a graphic interactive programming guide (IPG) that is more like a map of what’s important to the viewer rather than a traditional grid-formatted guide. In addition to prioritizing teams and sports preferred by the viewer as indicated during set-up, future versions of the IPG will highlight events that are currently live, games that are tied or nearing a close finish, and games trending in a viewer’s social graph. Additionally, fans can chat and share their viewing experience with friends through Facebook and Twitter feeds optionally presented adjacent to the video display.
“The result of our work with the Pac-12 Networks is a multi-screen fan experience that changes the way sports are watched,” said Jay Fulcher, chief executive officer of Ooyala. “The web and iPad experiences blur the line between broadband and traditional broadcasts, and are hallmarks of a new way of distributing entertainment – in this case sports – reaching digital consumers on their schedule, on their preferred screen and with a more engaging experience. The result is a win for everyone involved – the fans, the Pac-12 and their participating broadcast affiliates.”
To enable the Pac-12 Now experience across all devices, Ooyala deployed a comprehensive range of digital broadcasting technologies and services, including:
- Interactive Programming Guide: Automatically retrieving schedule information via a templatized traffic and automation system connector; associating highlights, condensed games and press interviews with the original airing of a live event for easier discovery of content for any sporting event; and a flexible set of APIs which enable the creation of different IPGs containing both live and VOD content
- Stats Server: Automatically importing sports statistics and timecode data from third parties and associating data with live and VOD content. This ensures all content is easily discoverable by stats or event tags, and enables time-synchronized display of sports stats data in line with when the events occur — whether in VOD or live content
- Adobe Pass Implementation: managing entitlements and authentication across multiple MSO’s in a single interface so viewers can easily view content on any web-connected device
Turning Information into Insights
Ooyala’s industry-leading analytics were of paramount importance to Pac-12 Enterprises in the selection of its partner. Processing over two billion video analytics events daily, Ooyala studies conversion rates, video completion rates, social sharing events and hundreds of other key metrics across various web and device platforms and geographies. Ooyala analyzes this data in real time to deliver business insights and content trends, enabling unparalleled content personalization and revenue optimization. This combination of big data processing and rigorous data science for delivering actionable intelligence is the underpinning of Ooyala technology and a core focus of its digital broadcasting innovation.
About Ooyala
Ooyala delivers personalized video experiences across all screens. It is the leader in online video management, publishing, analytics and monetization. Its integrated suite of technologies and services give content owners the power to expand audiences through deep insights that drive increased viewer engagement and revenue from video. Companies using Ooyala technology include ESPN, Telegraph Media Group, Bloomberg, Tennis Australia, The North Face, Rolling Stone, Dell, Sephora and Yahoo! Japan. Headquartered in Mountain View, California, Ooyala has offices in Los Angeles, New York City, London, Sydney and Guadalajara, Mexico; and the company works with premier reseller and technology partners throughout the Americas, Europe, Africa, Japan and the Asia-Pacific region. For more information visit www.ooyala.com.
About Pac-12 Enterprises
Pac-12 Enterprises is the new content and multiplatform media company for the Pac-12 Conference, a leader in collegiate athletics that includes 12 of the most prestigious universities in the world and a nation-leading 451 NCAA titles across 27 sports. Headquartered in San Francisco, Pac-12 Enterprises was created in 2011 to develop and launch the Pac-12 Networks and Pac-12 Digital, and to control the distribution of the Pac-12 intellectual property rights in sports and other Conference initiatives. The Pac-12 Networks are full-time native HD linear networks available to video programming operators, dedicated solely to the Pac-12. Consisting of a national network and six regional feeds, the Pac-12 Networks will televise hundreds of live sporting events annually and provide 24/7 access to Pac-12 teams and universities. Pac-12 Digital encompasses the digital network, mobile, the university websites, social media and innovative digital initiatives across the company.
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