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Tag: LIV Sports

  • LIV Sports to bring UFC 189 action as Chad Mendes takes on Conor McGregor

    LIV Sports to bring UFC 189 action as Chad Mendes takes on Conor McGregor

    MUMBAI: Will the luck of the Irish hold against Mendes or would Latino heat be too much to handle for McGregor? That is the question every UFC fan is asking. The answers will be found on LIV Sports, Multi Screen Media (MSM)’s premier digital sports destination, on Sunday, 12 July at 07:30 am.

     

    Watch the two featherweight fighters; the No.2 American Chad Mendes and the No. 3 Irishman McGregor go head-to-head in an exciting round of fights in UFC 189LIVEon the LIV Sports website and app. The ultimate digital sports destination will also allow viewers to indulge in a high-quality interactive user experience with on-demand video content.

     

    The fight will feature an interesting clash of styles which viewers can immerse in real time online on www.LivSports.in  and on the LIV Sports Mobile App available on iOS and Android. Mendes is known for his grappling and takedown moves, whereas McGregor is a striker who relies on his quick kicks and powerful punches. With both contestants undergoing grueling training regimes to be in peak physical condition, the Mendes-McGregor fight promises to be a smash hit with the audience. The temperatures are already soaring between the two camps, with taunts, videos and comments all over the web adding spice to the already rich flavour of the fight. 

  • Sony’s Uday Sodhi upbeat about VoD platform Liv Sports

    Sony’s Uday Sodhi upbeat about VoD platform Liv Sports

    MUMBAI: Multi Screen Media’s (MSM) sports Video On Demand (VOD) platform Liv Sports is set to take audiences to a whole new frontier. Liv Sports is a VOD service that offers sports content from Sony Entertainment Network.

     

    India now has 300 million internet users, up from 200 million a year ago, with a little more than 50 per cent having access to mobile Internet, which makes India a big market for online content consumption.

     

    With the on-going Cricket World Cup, various VOD platforms are coming up with innovative shows to build interest. Speaking about Liv Sports’ plan for the World Cup, Sony Entertainment Network executive vice-president and head digital Uday Sodhi tells Indiantelevision.com, “We are in the process of packaging and will release them in phases. Our exclusive package will include articles from journalists, news coverage, and result analysis through innovative graphics and text.”

     

    Commenting on the catalog of Liv Sports Sodhi says, “We have streamed Australian Open live and reached more than a million viewers. We are also streaming Indian School and College Basketball League, which is not aired on television. Moreover, we also streamed Syed Modi International Badminton Grand Prix. We are moving ahead and will invade into new territory whenever we get an opportunity.”

     

    Responding to the marketing strategy to popularise the portal, Sodhi asserts, “As of now there is no such campaign coming out, we are promoting the portal on our network. But soon when there is an opportunity we will opt for aggressive advertising.”

     

    Though digital platform is growing with time there is no clear revenue model for the portals. When quizzed about the revenue model of the digital platform, Sodhi says, “Advertisers are showing significant interest on the digital platform, and the fact that it is the fastest growing media, I think good content will rope in big endorsements. There will be creative banners, pre-rolls, exit rolls and also in the middle of the event there may be banners. There is always a room from creative innovations to grab attention.”

     

    “Television is a medium to consume content at home and that will continue to grow. We are seeing modern infrastructure like 4k and HD on TV. Digital platform is for consumption of content on the go and that will grow independently. Both may be a medium of communication but individually different in their mode of operation,” says Sodhi, when asked about digital media’s impact on television.

     

    “We are a six to eight months old venture and we aspire to be the digital destination of quality sports. With digital platforms we can reach to new audiences and that is a good sign. Bandwidth will increase and more and more people will use internet on their mobile, which increases our possibility of growing bigger. And the main factor is time spent in front of screen. We don’t expect people to sit and watch TV full time so more screens are essential and digital is one of them,” he concludes.

  • 2014 exemplified that the next big thing is mobile

    2014 exemplified that the next big thing is mobile

    It’s been a year of tremendous growth for the digital industry. Digital advertising spends have increased significantly. And while we’ve been talking about mobile as the next big thing for a few years, 2014 saw the thought being well and truly realised. A fair indicator of this were the numerous campaigns run by online shopping merchants, advertising their app over other platforms and even creating deals specific to mobile devices. Another great example is the launch of key services on mobile by the government of Karnataka.

    There was also growth experienced in digital content, where not only were key properties available for viewing exclusively on web and mobile, but we also saw a lot of instances of specialised content being created for web and mobile. FIFA World Cup 2014 on LIV Sports is one example of how a grand event today isn’t just a TV property.

    Talking about LIV Sports, it has been a very successful year for us at Sony with the launch of LIV Sports simultaneously on web and mobile, as an app available on both iOS and Android. Apart from FIFA, LIV Sports also acquired the mobile and internet broadcast rights for the South African RAM SLAM T20 Challenge Series for India, Vijay Amritraj backed Champions Tennis League, the UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying tournament and the Australian Open.

    A huge learning point for us this year has been the increased need to focus on mobile. Increase in mobile internet connectivity and introduction of cheaper smartphones along with a drop in internet surfing charges has led to huge increase in consumption of video content. The consumer today is looking for content on the go, thus, making mobile a key focus. As a result, we launched a number of apps including KBC Play Along, creating a second screen experience allowing viewers to answer questions with the contestants and win prizes. We also have the KBC Official App allowing fans to engage with the show any time they want. We’ve had approximately two million downloads for the KBC suite of apps and over 13 million downloads for both Sony LIV and LIV Sports.

    Keeping this in mind, in 2015 we will continue to innovate and engage our users by establishing our marquee properties in the new media space. We are excited by the opportunity, the overlap of better connectivity and smartphones, is offering entertainment content companies like us. Our aim is to be the leader in the digital video entertainment space. We will strengthen our mobile offerings to consumers and our agenda is to make 2015 the ‘Year of Mobile Entertainment’ and deliver great content through product innovations on SonyLiv.com and LivSports.in.

    (These are purely personal views of Sony Entertainment Network executive vice president and digital head Uday Sodhi and indiantelevision.com does not necessarily subscribe to these views.)

  • LIV Sports bags exclusive rights for Australian Open 2015

    LIV Sports bags exclusive rights for Australian Open 2015

    MUMBAI: Multi Screen Media (MSM) has announced that LIV Sports, its digital sports entertainment destination – www.LIVSports.in – holds the mobile and internet broadcast rights of Australian Open 2015.

     

    LIV Sports will offer both live and video-on-demand content, with rich and informative statistics and analysis. The Australian Open is scheduled to be held between 19 January and 1 February 2015.

     

    The live coverage of the Australian Open will be available on LivSports.in on the web and mobile and the LivSports Mobile App for iOS and Android.

     

    Sony Entertainment Network executive VP and digital head Uday Sodhi commented, “We are extremely pleased to bring all the action from the Australian Open to Indian viewers. The content on LIV Sports is designed to cater to the ardent tennis fans as well as to engage other viewers with a highly immersive experience. Since our inception as the official mobile and internet broadcaster for the 2014 FIFA World CupTM Brazil, LIV Sports has been committed to keep every cross section of our consumers actively engaged through high-quality interactive sports content with informative data and analytics.”

     

    In addition to the Australian Open, LIV Sports also holds the web and mobile broadcasting rights to properties like Champions Tennis League, UEFA Euro 2016 Qualifiers, FIFA Club World Cup, NBA, TNA and domestic T20 cricket competitions like the Carribean Premier League and RamSlam T20 Challenge.    

  • We want to create a new category, Sportainment: Uday Sodhi

    We want to create a new category, Sportainment: Uday Sodhi

    The last couple of years have been good for sports in India. As more and more leagues are launched, the sports channels have a lot to offer to the viewers. And in a bid to capture viewer’s attention, many of them have launched portals.

     

    One such is, LIV Sports from the Multi Screen Media (MSM) stable, which was launched just before the FIFA World Cup 2014 Brazil commenced.  It has been a late entrant when compared to its competitors like Tensports.com and starsports.com, but has been able to make a mark in the digital space.

     

    In September, the portal saw former HeadHonchos’s CEO Uday Sodhi taking charge as MSM executive vice president and head digital business to take the portal to the next level. With LIV Sports acquiring the mobile and internet broadcast rights of the UEFA Euro 2016 Qualifiers for India and the Champions Tennis League, the executive spoke to Indiantelevision.com’s Herman Gomes about the portal’s growth so far and his future plans for the site.

     

    Excerpts…

     

    What is the growth LIV Sports has seen since its launch and in which markets? 

     

    The success has been phenomenal. With LIV Sports we are aiming to create a new category of Sportainment or Sports Entertainment. The objective is to empower the sports fan with deep statistics on video as well as engage with the fence sitters. 

     

    We registered a record number of downloads and live match views between 13 June and 13 July 2014.  It attracted over 20 million page views in July. Viewers spent on an average of 28 minute watching the live streaming of the matches across online, mobile and the tablet LIV Sports application.

     

    Of the total traction observed on LIV Sports, the maximum percentage of unique views came from the six metros (53 per cent) with Mumbai and Delhi in the lead (13 per cent each), followed by Bengaluru (10 per cent). 83 per cent of the total viewers in the country were within the age bracket of 18-34 years. The World Cup also attracted 25 per cent female viewers; engagements like the Predictor, ‘Mohit Bana Messi – Jerseyfy Me’ and ‘Pehchaan Kaun’ helped achieve this number. We also registered phenomenal numbers in terms of social presence. The Blogger outreach programme enabled a reach of over 2.85 million.

     

    Technical problems were witnessed initially… 

     

    Initially, we did face some technical glitches because of the overwhelming number of active users on our site. But we upgraded our technical capabilities and erased out the issues.

     

    Which are the different audiences the portal seeks to target through its sports entertainment content?

     

    In an attempt to redefine the way sporting content is presented and consumed, LIV Sports has blended sports with a right dose of entertainment. LIV Sports viewers gets the best of both worlds, high quality interactive sports content, comprehensive informative data and analytics as well as fun and entertaining content – keeping every cross section of consumers actively participating with addictive engagements modules.

     

    “My time, my content and my device” is where today’s audience is heading. Consumers want to engage, interact and consume content at their terms, at their convenience and in their method. They want personalised and contextualised experiences with each click. Their attention span is ever-shrinking and secondly, keeping them engaged with the right packaging is thus imperative. And that’s why our focus is on the mobile platform, to create a customised viewing experience and allow them to stay updated with their favourite sports.

     

    It’s been over two months since you took charge. What is on your priority list for the website?

     

    Over the next few months, viewers will be able to catch up with the widest range of sporting content, including football, NBA, UFC, tennis and cricket on LIV Sports. The digital destination offers live and exclusive video content along with a complete coverage of the latest sporting content present, across devices. Our key focus is on mobile platforms to provide both content on live streaming and video on demand for catch-up content. With superior handsets and improved connectivity, we’re witnessing huge growth on mobile and see it as a continuing trend.

     

    What is the revenue model of the same?

     

    We saw significant downloads of the app on both iOS and Android during the FIFA World Cup 2014. Revenue model is subscription and advertising. We worked with partners across categories for FIFA World Cup 2014 and we’re in constant discussion with potential advertisers for upcoming sporting properties.

     

    Do you see e-commerce platforms advertising online on sports websites?

     

    Certainly. E-commerce is a key category and we’ve already worked with brands in this space. LivSports.in offers brands the opportunity to create targeted campaigns for a defined audience.

     

    How do you view the growth of sports platforms in the coming years?

     

    Digital, video, online and mobile is fairly new in sports broadcasting. With the increase in the bandwidth and increase in internet penetration, video consumption overall is going up. With live sports, a publisher/broadcaster needs to have very good infrastructure in place in order to have a large number of users watching the live streaming of the match together, in high quality. We are getting there slowly. 

     

    Video inventory in sports is hard to find, since legally licensed rights are expensive and it requires the marketing bandwidth to reach out to the target user group. Football has the second largest viewership after cricket. Interest in the sport is growing, with investment in local leagues as well. 

     

    In terms of data points, as per the recent Mobile Sports Report released by Adobe, watching sports online or on mobile devices is the primary driver of the continued worldwide growth in digital video consumption. Some of the key findings have been that sports video streams increased 640 per cent, year on year, compared to an overall growth of 440 per cent for all types of content. Secondly, sports events accounted for 37 per cent of all streams, compared to 32 per cent for news programs and 28 per cent for TV shows. And finally, one quarter of all sports digital viewing now happens on mobile devices, a 73 per cent year-over-year increase. And though tablets lead all forms of non-TV devices for video viewing, streams on smartphones and gaming consoles are also growing rapidly.

     

    We need to be where the consumer is i.e., be it mobile, TV, online or a tablet at the same time.

     

    Which are the other sports properties you look at tapping in the future?

     

    We are looking at expanding with a mix of sports including NBA, UFC, TNA and more.

  • LIV Sports bags exclusive rights for Ram Slam T20 challenge series

    LIV Sports bags exclusive rights for Ram Slam T20 challenge series

    MUMBAI: Multi Screen Media (MSM) today announced that its digital sports entertainment destination LIV Sports has acquired the mobile and internet broadcast rights of the South African Ram Slam T20 challenge series for India. The competition began on 2 November 2014 and will run through 12 December 2014. The game will be hosted across all South Africa’s cricket stadiums.

     

    It will offer both live and video-on-demand match content, with informative statistics and analysis.  The digital destination will air 14 live matches, free of cost and the rest of the matches will be available for video-on-demand viewing.

     

    Commenting on the acquisition Sony Entertainment Network executive vice president and head digital Uday Sodhi said “We are immensely excited to bring the Ram Slam T20 challenge series. The digital destination was conceived to offer quality sports-entertainment content that is mass inclusive and not designed to cater only to ardent sports fans. We are committed to keep every cross section of our consumers hailing from different parts of India actively engaged through quality interactive sports content.”

     

    The Ram Slam T2O challenge series is South Africa’s domestic T20 league where six teams battle it out over six weeks to win the trophy. The top two teams qualify for the champions league T20. Like the Indian Premier League, the competition features South Africa’s T20 players and international stars. This season’s top players include Chris Gayle, Dale Steyn, David Miller, AB DeVilliers and Faf du Plessis.

  • LIV Sports bags exclusive rights for the Champions Tennis League

    LIV Sports bags exclusive rights for the Champions Tennis League

    MUMBAI: Multi Screen Media (MSM) has announced that its digital sports entertainment destination www.LIVSports.in holds the mobile and internet broadcast rights of the Champions Tennis League (CTL) for India.

     

    The league has been conceptualised by Vijay Amritraj and All India Tennis Association (AITA). Viewers will be able to watch the live telecast of the league and catch video-on-demand highlights on LIV Sports.

     

    Sony Entertainment Network executive vice president and head digital Uday Sodhi commented that the network was excited to bring the CTL, which has been designed to ignite the passion for tennis and inculcate a love for the sport. “LIV Sports started as the official mobile and internet broadcaster for the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil and then moved on to bagging the exclusive web and mobile rights for the ongoing qualifying matches for the 15th European Championship – Euro 2016, for India. It was conceived to offer quality sports-entertainment content that is mass inclusive and not designed to cater only to ardent sports fans”, he added.

     

    The CTL teams made up of the world’s top 25 ranked male and female players will be structured into two groups, each having three teams each, where they would play each other in a home and away format. The teams topping their respective group will play each other in the grand finale for the prize money of Rs 1 crore. The runner-up will receive Rs 50 lakhs. Each of the six teams will also have an international legend as their playing captain, apart from a noted Indian male tennis player, plus a top ranked junior Indian girl and boy from each city.

     

    The CTL will feature six city based teams, who will play 12 matches over a 10-day period from 17 November to 26 November 2014. Each of the six official CTL teams from Chennai, Bangalore, Pune, Delhi, Chandigarh and Mumbai comprises of Indian and International marquee players, including local youngsters handpicked by AITA. Some notable players to participate in India include Martina Hingis, Venus Williams, Somdev Dewarman and David Ferrer among others.

  • LIV Sports bags rights for UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying tournament

    LIV Sports bags rights for UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying tournament

    MUMBAI: Multi Screen Media (MSM) today announced that its digital property, LIV Sports, holds the mobile and internet broadcast rights of the UEFA Euro 2016 Qualifiers for India. The qualifying schedule is currently underway, starting September 2014 and will run through November 2015. LIV Sports will offer both live and video-on-demand match content with rich and informative statistics and analysis.

     

    The digital destination will enable viewers to watch the live telecast of the qualifying tournament at a nominal rate of $3 per match. It will also offer video-on-demand (VOD) highlights. The VOD content on LIV sports will include match highlights, goals, penalties, red cards, free kicks and misses.

     

    Sony Entertainment Network executive vice president and digital head Uday Sodhi commented, “We are excited to bring to you the qualifying matches for the 15th European Championship for men’s national football teams – Euro 2016. Since our inception as the official mobile and internet broadcaster for the 2014 FIFA World Cup  Brazil, the idea behind LIV Sports was to offer quality content that is mass inclusive and not designed to cater only to ardent sports fans. We are committed to keep every cross section of our consumers actively engaged through quality interactive sports content.”

     

    For the first time, the European Championship final tournament – Le Rendez-Vous will be contested by 24 teams, having been expanded from the 16-team format that had been in place since 1996. Under this new format, the finalists will contest a group stage consisting of six groups of four teams, followed by a knockout stage including three rounds and the final. As hosts, France has automatically qualified for the final tournament while the other 53 national teams will compete in a qualifying competition to secure the remaining 23 places. Among these teams are back-to-back defending champions Spain, and for the first time since their affiliation with UEFA, Gibraltar.

  • LIV Sports uses social media beyond advertising during 2014 FIFA World Cup

    LIV Sports uses social media beyond advertising during 2014 FIFA World Cup

    MUMBAI: With football craze gripping the Nation days before the start of the World Cup, LIV Sports, Sony’s online and mobile based VOD platform, anticipated a huge surge in Social communication and engagement from fans. Also, considering the LIVE streaming of the 2014 FIFA World Cup matches was a paid subscription service, LIV Sports decided to service queries from India’s mobile and social first users directly on their platforms. LIV Sports teamed up with Social IQ, a disruptive social media solution from TO THE NEW to set up The Social Command Center – a 24×7 social response solution. The team used social media as a customer support channel that helped in quick, transparent and efficient delivery of responses and updates to its users.

     

    The Social Command Center that consisted of a well-defined service framework of people and processes along with proprietary social customer support software helped LIV Sports with a quick response time of 2 hours over the period of the World Cup; addressed nearly 1000 customer support queries from the users. Additionally, the Social Command Center helped LIV Sports identify query patterns with deep analytics, thus guiding the LIV Sports Product teams to enhance Product improvements and User experience real-time.

     

    Launched in June this year, LIV Sports is the Official Mobile and Internet Broadcaster for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

     

    Mr. Nitesh Kripalani, Executive Vice-President – New Media, Business Development and Digital/Syndication at Sony Entertainment Network commented – “Social IQ’s Social Command Center and customer response platform definitely helped us build trust with our fans and followers; it also helped us reduce our support costs. Our goal that both Sony LIV and LIV Sports need to be where the consumers are, was further enhanced by the Social Command Centre’s ability to talk to our consumers on Social platforms.

     

    The personal touch, quick turnaround response and transparency helped achieve our goal of being connected to digital users irrespective of where they are.”

     

    LIV Sports successfully harnessed the power of social media beyond advertising to build brand awareness and become more relevant to the social and mobile first consumer.

     

    “When we were building the software and service frameworks, we knew this would be very new for the Indian market. However, for brands who want to reach out to today’s social and mobile first customer, leveraging social media for customer support can be a key differentiator. The same got validated with our engagement with LIVSports and I believe it is just a matter of time when we will see many more brands having a Social Command Center established”, said Mr. Kesavan Kanchi Kandadai, Business Head, Social IQ and CEO, Tangerine Digital.

  • LIV Sports attracts 20 million page views during 2014 FIFA WC

    LIV Sports attracts 20 million page views during 2014 FIFA WC

     

    MUMBAI: The official mobile and internet broadcaster of 2014 FIFA World Cup LIVSports.in attracted 20 million page views during the month long sporting extravaganza. On an average, viewers spent 28 minutes watching the live streaming of the matches across online, mobile and the tablet LIV sports app.

     

    Sony Entertainment Network executive vice president-new media, business development and digital syndication Nitesh Kripalani said, “The 2014 FIFA World Cup digital viewership is a gratifying proof of LIV Sports’ success since its launch a little over a month ago. Our goal was to redefine the way sports content is viewed and consumed in India via a new category – ‘Sportainment.’ We are glad to see that sports fans have engaged with LIV Sports.”

     

    The top three matches, by time spent were the finals between Germany and Argentina with 48 minutes. Next was the semi finals between Netherlands and Argentina with 42 minutes and finally, the quarter finals between Netherlands and Costa Rica with 42 minutes.

     

    Of the total traction observed on LIV Sports, the maximum percentage of unique views came from the six metros with 53 per cent  with Mumbai and Delhi in the lead (13 per cent each), followed by Bengaluru (10 per cent). 83 per cent of the total viewers in the country were within the age bracket of 18-34 years. The FIFA World Cup on LIV Sports also attracted 25 per cent  female viewers due to engagements like the ‘Predictor’, ‘Mohit Bana Messi – Jerseyfy Me’ and ‘Pehchaan Kaun’

     

    Its blogger outreach programme enabled a reach of over 2.85 million.