By Prabu Chelladurai
When you’re serving up a sports buffet like the Summer Olympics, how do you make sure everyone at home gets their fill of their favorites? That’s what’s been going through my head as I count down to this week’s Opening Ceremonies for the Paris games.
Let’s face it: I can’t offer anything but good wishes to Simone Biles, LeBron James and Katie Ledecky. But for the media and entertainment industry there’s this: the diversity of events and the stories behind the stars create opportunities that could help the streaming industry boost engagement and revenue through dynamically targeted advertising and AI-generated features that personalize shorts clips of the biggest Olympic moments for each viewer.
Admittedly the Olympics start with a huge advantage. The 2020 (2021) Tokyo games attracted over 3 billion viewers worldwide. Viewership of the Paris games is anticipated to grow with a friendly time zone difference which means many events will be broadcast during prime viewing hours in Europe, the United States and Canada.
A Can’t-Miss Opportunity for Digital Ad Insertion in Sports!
Maximizing the value of that audience is in streaming’s wheelhouse. Dynamic ad insertion (DAI) of billions of ads across NBA, NHL, Major League Baseball and other content has proved the technology ready for the gold medal podium. Deployed by some of the biggest names in sports, Quickplay’s award-winning Dynamic Ad Insertion (DAI) solution is showing how Olympics streamers can tackle the complexities of dynamic ads, including support for DASH across multiple devices such as mobile, web and connected TVs . We’re addressing concurrency challenges through Innovative techniques that leverage our cloud-native architecture to scale server capacity and pre-process ads.
In real world environments, we’ve supported 1.5 billion streaming minutes dedicated to the 2024 NHL playoffs alone, with a record high of ≈730 million ads, a 65% increase from the previous period, along with 1 billion ads served since the start of the year. That means revenue growth for our customers and their sponsors, and better experiences for their subscribers.
Capitalize on Diverse Viewing Patterns
Technology also is making it easier to meet individual Olympic viewers where they are – Olympic viewers span all ages and types, from sports enthusiasts who strategize their schedules to catch live events across various time zones to casual viewers who immerse themselves in the excitement of the games through short-form video.
Shorts and Generative AI-powered clipping features such as those developed by Quickplay can serve these audiences bite-sized content while expanding content inventory and driving marketing opportunities for live channel and additional platform engagement. By clipping game highlights, goals, and short-form VOD content, streaming providers can generate engaging snippets that attract, engage, and most importantly, retain viewers during and post the sporting event. This approach not only helps build a rich library of content but also creates valuable opportunities for upselling, enticing users to explore additional premium offerings.
Elevating Olympic Streaming and Beyond
As the Olympics approach, Quickplay is primed to transform the viewing experience with seamless, high-quality streaming for its customers. By leveraging Dynamic Ad Insertion (DAI) and creating engaging and personalized experiences, streaming providers can significantly boost monetization and attract new subscribers.
The Summer Olympics offer a unique opportunity that comes every four years, but it’s not the only one! Quickplay’s platform extensibility and reliability is crucial for scaling coverage of the Games and preparing for upcoming major events like the UEFA European Championship, Rugby World Cup, Cricket World Cup, and the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Curious to learn more? Visit the Quickplay team at IBC 2024, booth 5.H61 and discover how you can achieve gold-level performance for your sports streaming service!
