Extended reality (XR) may still be an emerging technology, but one arena where AR/VR formats are coming into play is live sport. The promise of pitch-side immersive experiences, choosing between camera angles and seeing overlaid match stats can be enticing for fans absent from the stadium itself. This morning, Deutsche Telekom announced plans for such an offering, with video tech firm Accedo building the German telco an XR sports streaming app.
The planned streaming service will be an interactive version of MagentaSport, Deutsche Telekom’s sports streaming service. By integrating Magenta’s live streams and data feeds into Accedo’s XR platform, Accedo Xtend, the new app will play host to a range of interactive features. These include live statistics, multi-camera feeds, player cards, and 3D sponsored experiences, according to the companies. The app also uses technology from Ateme and HISPlayer to provide high-quality video with low latency and bandwidth.
Accedo and Deutsche Telekom said the technology will extend MagentaSport beyond the “physical limitations of the TV screen”, using the VR headset to display the match in the space around the viewer. Users will also be able to watch replays from different angles, and view supplementary information overlaid in the display, such as team and player statistics.
New angles
The announcement specfically mentions live football, and comes ahead of the Euro 2024 tournament, for which Deutsche Telekom holds the German TV rights. And while it seems unlikely to have the Accedo infrastructure in place for the Euros, the partners are investing in immersive experiences to help engage fans who might otherwise go elsewhere to augment their live TV viewing, such as social media.
At the same time, broadcasters will need to boost their revenues in order to keep spending on live sports, especially with tech giants occassionally prepared to splash out large sums on TV rights. The companies noted that the new XR environment will provide space for sponsors to interact with fans, opening up further revenue opportunities for the telco.
“Accedo’s unrivalled experience and expertise within the XR, media and sports industries has enabled it to seamlessly build a high-quality XR live sports streaming experience,” said Daniel Aslam, Senior Partner & Business Development Manager at Deutsche Telekom. “The application will allow us to deliver a truly immersive and engaging vision of a next-generation MagentaSport experience.”
“As the sports industry evolves, we’re seeing a noticeable increase in activity and interest in XR applications,” added Michael Lantz, CEO at Accedo. “The Accedo Xtend platform enables immersive applications to be launched in record time with a configurable set of features, allowing for experimentation as well as cost control. We’re thrilled about this collaboration with Deutsche Telekom, which we believe will showcase the immense potential of spatial interactive user engagement for live sports.”
