The Rise of Fan Engagement - A guide to the new wave of live video and interactive broadcast for sports and media companies - TokBox
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The Rise of Fan Engagement A guide to the new wave of live video and interactive broadcast for sports and media companies
Contents
THE DRIVERS OF DISRUPTION TO SPORTS AND TRADITIONAL BROADCAST 04
STAKEHOLDERS 07
THE IMPACT: DISRUPTION TO TRADITIONAL SPORTS 09
THE IMPACT: FAN ENGAGEMENT AND THE BOTTOM LINE 13
THE NEXT GENERATION OF BROADCAST & FUTURE OF CONTENT 16
THE ENABLING TECHNOLOGY 19
USE CASES: LIVE VIDEO EXAMPLES 22
USE CASES: INTERACTIVE BROADCAST 24
NEW RULES: BEST PRACTICES FOR INTERACTIVE BROADCAST 26
REFERENCES 30
2 www.tokbox.com
Introduction
Sporting organizations enjoy what Instead of viewing these forces as In this paper you will discover:
many brands spend tireless years disruptive, sports organizations and
and significant marketing budget broadcasters are uniquely positioned How disruptive digital technologies
fighting for—natural and unwavering to embrace this change and leverage have impacted the sports and media
brand loyalty. It’s the holy grail for any emerging technologies, creating new broadcasting landscape
marketer—customers are acquired at and engaging experiences for their fans,
birth, promptly indoctrinated by the helping them stand out from the crowd. The importance of driving fan
generation of family brand loyalists engagement in the digital age
before them to become faithful fans
who stick by your side, no matter what. The technologies being leveraged to
build engaging fan experiences
The new wave of live video and
From the proliferation of mobile, online streaming, participatory models of sports
broadcast with case studies
the rise of social media to more recently, live
broadcasting apps, the way fans watch and engage How to play by the new rules of
with their favorite sports has radically changed. broadcast, and win
3 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // Introduction
The Drivers: Disruption To Sports
And Traditional Broadcast
The way fans consume and engage with sports has changed
dramatically. In today’s increasingly fragmented digital world,
sports organizations and broadcasters aren’t capturing the
attention of fans, and therefore revenue, like they once did. Sports
viewing, once considered inseparable from TV, is transforming1.
Totally new viewing behaviors have risen from a raft of forces that
are converging and disrupting sports content.
4 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The Drivers
Behavior
Mobile Companion Device 2 Rise In Online Consumption
87% of consumers use more than one device at a time. 74% of mil- Online consumption of sports video grew 388 percent year-over-
lennials who use a combination of TV/smartphones during viewing. year from 2013 to 20145 .
Rise of Social Fans Are Not Just Watching, They’re Producing
More than half of people under 35 engage with social media AT&T figures show that fans consumed 205% more data than the
while they are watching TV content3. previous year during Super Bowl 50. This represents millions of
status updates, videos, photos and live video broadcasts6.
Second & Third Screen Growth 4 Millennials
Almost a quarter of all video viewing in households with high- 14- to 17-year-olds are abandoning the TV screen at the rate of
speed Internet access now takes place on a device other than a 33% for movies and television shows and 26% for sporting events7.
television set.
5 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The Drivers
Technology Content
Incredibly Powerful Broadband Speed Explosion Of Live Streaming Content
Over 15 years to 2012, bandwidth increased from 56KB dial up As sports fans cut the cord, they are streaming live sports in
to 100MB+. Average broadband speed will more than double droves. Over 15 million people tuned into the first-ever global live
from 2014 to 2019 from 20.3 Mbps to 42.5 Mbps8. stream of a regular season NFL game, hosted by Yahoo11.
Live Mobile Broadcasting Apps Video On-Demand
Mobile live streaming apps such as Periscope and Meerkat, The growth of video content platforms such as Netflix are giving
Facebook Live and even Snapchat have exploded into the main- way to a generation leaving cable behind in who are in favor of
stream with Periscope alone claiming 10 million registered users9. on-demand streamed television, movies and sports.
Powerful Cameras At Fingertips Competing Content
Fans now have the tools to photograph, film, publish and broad- The amount of sports content has more than tripled in the past
cast their own content with the help of powerful smartphones decade while the time people spent watching TV increased just
cameras upwards of 21.5 megapixels10. 6.4 percent12.
6 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The Drivers
The Stakeholders
Digital disruption to sports presents both challenges and
opportunities for a range of stakeholders. In this new world, where we
will later discover everyone is a potential broadcaster, the needs and
objectives of those vested in sports are evolving.
7 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The StakeholdersA Snapshot
Media Companies Leagues and Clubs
As sporting content moves online, free-to-air Sporting Organizations are striving to engage and grow
broadcasters are battling to increase ratings and supporters with shrinking attention spans
advertising revenues while finding cheaper models of
content and distribution.
Sponsors Fans
Sponsors are expanding beyond traditional media to Fans are searching for more personal experiences with the
reach their online and mobile audience teams they love and through the technologies they use
8 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The StakeholdersThe Impact: Disruption To
Traditional Sports Broadcasting
Attracting and keeping fans in the stands is getting harder to do. Live
attendance across sporting leagues - pro basketball, football, motorsports,
baseball and even college football - has declined or leveled off in recent
years. While many argue that is due to rising ticket prices and higher-quality
video broadcast, the decline in live-audience attendance hasn’t translated to
an equal increase in TV ratings or subscribers.
9 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The ImpactWhile sports TV ratings and subscriber counts fall, the digital age presents countless more ways
for fans to connect with sports content. Disruption to sport and traditional broadcast means
sport and media companies must leverage new technologies to engage fans.
Declining Ticket Sales & Sports TV Subscribers
While the US sports market is expected to grow by 4.5
percent from 2013 to 2018, PWC projects that gate revenue
will increase only by 2.6 percent13
Sports network ESPN lost 3 million subscribers in 2015
For the first time, media rights are projected to surpass gate
revenues and become the industry’s largest segment by 2018
(CAGR 7.2%)14
For the first time, media rights are projected to surpass gate
revenues and become the industry’s largest segment by 2018
(CAGR 7.2%)15
10 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The ImpactLive televised sporting events are still immensely popular, with big games or matches attracting
large audiences. However the rising cost of TV rights is a challenge for sports broadcasters.
Rising Cost Of Sports TV Rights
TV rights are projected to rise 9% a year to $19.3 billion in
2018, according to PwC 16
TV networks including Disney’s ESPN, Fox Sports and Time
Warner’s TNT and TBS will spend a combined $12.5 billion
in the next year for rights to carry professional football,
basketball and baseball games and the Summer Olympics 17
11 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The ImpactAs TV networks lose subscribers while
shelling out millions for surging broad-
cast contracts, sporting and media
organizations must look well beyond the
stadium and television set.
In order to drive long term
profitability, sports broadcasters
must harness technology to
produce and distribute cheaper
yet high quality engaging sports
content through channels that will
reach millions of viewers.
12 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The ImpactThe Impact: Fan Engagement
And The Bottom Line
The biggest change that digital disruption in sports is driving is
the need for sporting organizations, clubs and broadcasters
to increase fan engagement. These stakeholders have long
conceded that one-way broadcast is no longer enough.
13 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The Impact“ As sporting organizations, clubs and media
companies grapple with changing sports content
consumption and look to maintain a commercial
foothold, they must recognize the importance of
engaging their audience and converting fans into
Since the birth of the internet, the rise of social media, mobile,
and multiple devices, the industry has innovated with a
number of marketing strategies and technologies to maximize
and personalize fan engagement both during, and beyond
gameday. However with the latest wave of disruption dominated
by cord cutting, online streaming and live mobile broadcasting
paying customers. apps, the need to create and distribute fresh, affordable content
that drives fan engagement is more urgent than ever.
14 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The ImpactStudy: Fan Engagement and Revenue
Engagement equals commercial success
Hopscotch, a Californian sport mobile platform company, analyzed the
data from a Ticketcity.com study on the level of fan engagement on four Research shows that the companies that create a compelling
major leages18 - MLB, NFL, NHL, and NBA - using a range of criteria from fan engagement experience, both on and off the pitch, drive
average attendance of all games through to Facebook and Twitter activity greater loyalty, affiliation and, as a result, increased revenues.
to determine a fan engagement score. They compared the fan engagement
leaders for each league with each team’s revenue and valuation. What they This is indisputable evidence that sporting companies must
found was that teams which ranked highest for fan engagement also came always be pushing the envelope of fan engagement to achieve
in the top 3 of revenue and valuation every time. commercial success.
15 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The ImpactThe Future: Next Generation Of
Broadcast & Content Creation
Innovative media companies and sporting organizations
are taking advantage of new trends around content
consumption, creation and distribution.
16 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The FutureUser generated content
Brands are moving beyond the concept of being con-
tent creators to becoming content enablers - bringing
their fans, followers and audience into discussions.
Whether on YouTube, Twitter, Snapchat, Periscope,
Meerkat, Instagram or Facebook fans and consum-
ers are publishing and sharing their thoughts, photos
and videos online at an astonishing rate.
The Pew Research Internet Project found that 54%
of adult internet users now post original photos or
videos online, up by nearly half from last year19.
User generated content drives brand engagement,
consideration and sales conversions. That said,
brands should continue to produce professional
content. In fact, according to comScore, brand
engagement rises by 28% when consumers are
exposed to both types of content 20.
The rise of live video
Video is fast becoming the dominant format of
online content with consumption exploding in recent The big decision we made was to shift a lot of our
years. Cisco predicts that online video will go from video efforts to focus on Live, because it is this
64 percent of all Internet traffic in 2014 to surpass
emerging new format; not the kind of videos that
80 percent by 2019, with on-demand video traffic
doubling by 201921. Alongside the growth of online
have been online for the past five or ten years22
video consumption is live video. Snapchat, Periscope, Mark Zuckerberg
Meerkat and Facebook Live have exploded as a form Facebook
of content as consumers, fans and brands now have
the tools to become broadcasters themselves.
17 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The FutureInteractive broadcast
The next era in broadcasting combines
professionally produced and user generated
content in the form of live video to bring interactive
broadcast; where viewers collaboratively consume,
interact and participate directly in the broadcast.
Still coming to grips with on-demand and mobile
viewing, this new model of broadcasting is being
pioneered by traditional broadcasters and sports
companies that must find a way to provide
immersive and engaging viewer experiences.
While the attraction of live video is its ephemeral
nature, by leveraging powerful new technologies,
sports and media companies can both
incorporate live fan participation and record these
moments for continued distribution.
Recording capabilities allow sports and media companies to build rich libraries of fan generated content, giving
them the power to broadcast online, on mobile and on-demand at a fraction of the cost of television, as well as
leveraging the free distribution that comes with its fans’ vast social networks.
18 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The FutureThe Enabling Technology
While fast broadband speeds and powerful cameras are key
ingredients for fan participation in the new era of broadcast, a
quiet technological revolution has been underway and, for the first
time, is enabling media companies to deliver powerful, reliable,
affordable and scalable fan engagement experiences.
19 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The Enabling TechnologyWhat is WebRTC?
WebRTC is a standard for enabling Real-Time Communications (RTC) -
voice, video, and messaging - within a digital environment. It includes the
fundamental building blocks for high-quality communications such as network,
audio, and video components used in voice and video chat applications.
WebRTC takes the functionality that was previously functionality, as well as the reliability and quality
offered by a telco, cable provider or broadcaster to power multi-party live video at scale, WebRTC
– with the packaging and economics they is one technology that media organizations and
determined – and puts it in the browser or mobile sports companies are using to bring the new wave
application, for free, for any developer to use. With of interactive live broadcast to fans.
no downloads or plugins, recording and playback
20 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The Enabling TechnologyInteractive Live
Broadcast Solutions
TokBox’s Interactive Broadcast Solution is the first platform to enable true
multi-party participation and genuine flexibility for broadcasters, ranging from
a two party video chat broadcast through to enabling viewers to join in and
become part of the show, and anything in between.
TokBox unlocks the power of WebRTC, packaging into any website with minimal development work
it in a solution designed specifically to meet the and customizable UI. An intuitive dashboard gives
needs of media and sports companies including an event producer complete behind-the-scenes
scale, quality and customizability. Fans don’t need to control. Producers can even create high-quality, TV-
install a plugin or visit third party websites - TokBox’s ready content with built-in recording capabilities so
Interactive Broadcast Solution embeds seamlessly content can be captured and shared across the web.
21 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // The Enabling TechnologyUse Cases:
Live Video Examples
The rise of live streaming apps, such as Periscope and Meerkat,
has made serious waves in the sports world. Used by fans to share
games live with their friends and by brands to stream exclusive
footage to their audiences, applications like these enable real-
time streaming to large audiences.
22 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // Use CasesLive Streaming Apps
Periscope was used by HBO to live-stream backstage
footage providing fans with exclusive online content 23 in Twitter
boxing’s “fight of the century” between Floyd Mayweather The NFL has partnered with Twitter to broadcast live games via the social
and Manny Pacquiao. At the same time, as many as network 29 allowing the NFL to gain access to its huge online audience.
10,000 viewers tuned in to a spectator’s live Periscope 24
The partnership includes in-game highlights and pre-game Periscope
broadcast of the fight. This represents a potentially broadcasts from players and teams. Like live streaming apps, but with
enormous loss in pay-per-view revenues for HBO, the broadcast quality, NFL and Twitter are enabling fans to directly comment
broadcaster. However, instead of viewing this new and engage with the broadcast itself. However, that’s where the
medium as a threat, many organizations are embracing engagement starts and ends.
live streaming apps to produce raw inexpensive footage to
engage their fans in unique ways.
For example:
The Royals and Mets have broadcasted
batting practice via Periscope25
Roger Federer gave a walking tour of
Wimbledon via Periscope26
More than 100,000 people watched Sky’s
cricket commentator and former player
Michael Atherton’s exclusive interview with
Freddie Flintoff and Kumar Sangakkara at
the T20 World Cup after it was streamed on
Facebook Live27
The NFL has partnered with Snapchat to
bring curated “live stories” of NFL events
through a mix of fan-submitted Snaps and
official inside-access content 28
23 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // Use CasesUse Cases:
Interactive Broadcast
While the use of live broadcasting apps offers fans rich and exclusive
video content, engagement is limited to emoji and text based
responses during broadcasts. The opportunity for true fan engagement
comes when broadcasters empower fans to become directly part of
the show, and two-way interactive video now makes this a reality.
24 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // Use CasesFox Sports Huddle Model: Interactive Broadcast
Fox Sports Huddle is a weekly live interactive college football chat show College Football is one of the most popular sports in America and through a
sponsored by Edward Jones and broadcast on www.foxsports.com - one of the participatory model of broadcast, Fox Sports Huddle brings fans even closer to
biggest sports websites in the world. The program is built with fan participation the action, taking sports coverage from a simple one way stream or text chat to a
at its core bringing college football fans, players, managers and experts face to large scale, interactive and engaging experience where fans can truly be part of the
face on Fox’s College Football Huddle chat room. It incorporates live feeds from show. Fox Sports experts and athletes can talk with their fans, not at them.
the studio or the sports field together with real-time video streams from fans to
create a video talk show that can be broadcast to an online audience of up to
thousands of people, all without a download or plugin.
Why TokBox Interactive
Broadcast Solution
With such rich and engaging fan generated content being produced with each
show, it was essential that Fox Sports capture these moments and empower
fans to share across social networks. Built on TokBox’s Interactive Broadcast
Solution, the Fox Sports Huddle events do not end with the live show. Shows will be
rebroadcast and available to view on demand as high quality, TV-ready content,
using the built-in recording capabilities to distribute and share via various social
media outlets using TokBox’s WebRTC powered Interactive Broadcast Solution.
Sports fans nowadays want to be involved at a much higher level. Leveraging TokBox’s Interactive Broadcast
Solution, Fox Sports is giving fans a unique chance to be part of the action by creating direct interaction with
our hosts and guests on a weekly basis.
VP of Sales Integration
Fox Sports Digital
25 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // Use CasesNew Rules: Best Practices
For Interactive Broadcast
In the new era of broadcast, sport and media companies must follow
a few crucial rules so as not to be left behind.
26 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // New RulesLet them shine Let them discuss
Most Americans are now walking around need to consider interactivity but also When fans attend a sporting event, they
with a broadcast-quality video camera sources of content, and how to integrate generally chat to the people around
in their pocket, and not only are they that into the program. We have all seen them as well as Tweet their reactions
armed, they are also ready to use it. news pundits pulling journalists and throughout the game. Most millenni-
This new generation of broadcasters are commentators in via Skype into a live TV als, in fact most people, engage with
more than happy to comment or join the experience. That very experience can be a second screen when watching TV.
program, so program creators, whether made more seamless to the end-user. Broadcasters must do more to replicate
the professional networks or sporting Imagine using a mobile application to these real life experiences and move
companies must leverage fans’ desires to not only view but be able to join in and past passive viewing towards collabora-
be part of the action. participate in a live TV experience. This tive and interactive. Just as on mobile,
Currently, most conventional sports is just one example of a slew of support- Meerkat has moved beyond simple
media consumption experiences are not ing features, like the ability to record emojis and chat reactions to include video
built for interactivity, and this will need content, post-process content, that need reactions, as should professional content
to change. In a mobile world we now to be taken into consideration. creators and broadcasters.
27 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // New RulesLet them be mobile Let them have control Let them share
Most interactive broadcasts are built While the richest forms of fan generated In the age of social media and shar-
to several hundred viewers at best. In live video content are spontaneous and ing content en masse, it’s crucial for
the new world, sporting fans will be organic, for professional media compa- media broadcasters to give fans the
consuming online digital media not nies broadcasting to a huge audience, power to share content across their
only across different devices but also it’s critically important to have checks social channels. Not only does this
across a range of network conditions. and balances in place that ensure fans bring unprecedented brand endorse-
Optimizing this experience for scale will participate in an appropriate man- ment, it also allows media companies
while keeping it low-latency will be key. ner. This includes the ability to curate to build vast libraries of rich fan con-
content or an online video ‘waiting tent that lives on and can be distrib-
room’ where broadcasters can meet uted at little cost and watched well
verify fans prior to the live show. after the live event.
Like just about every industry, sporting
companies and broadcasters are
undergoing constant digital disruption. As
barriers fall around content production
and distribution and viewing habits
change, it isn’t just the TV networks who
are now fighting for audience attention
and engagement. The winners will figure
out how to adapt to this interactive
live-mobile-online-TV hybrid world and
continue to drive new fan engagement
and viewing models. It’s no longer enough
to broadcast, the fan is part of the show.
28 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // New RulesAbout TokBox
TokBox enables companies to embed live communications directly into
their web and mobile applications. The TokBox media suite includes the
Interactive Broadcast Solution & API, offering brands and content
creators a powerful new way to connect instantly with their followers.
The TokBox Interactive Broadcast Solution is an embeddable fan
engagement application for producers who want to connect on-screen
presenters with viewers through real-time video and voice
communications. The shows are broadcast to large audiences and
include high-quality recording for post-show content distribution. For a
more customized experience, brands can utilize the TokBox Interactive
Broadcast API to build a fully bespoke broadcasting experience.
TokBox is trusted by leading organizations including Fox Sports, Major
League Baseball, Universal Music Group, Blab.im, Nom.com and Yogaia.
Benefits of using the TokBox Interactive Broadcast Solution
• Removes barriers between presenters and viewers.
• Increases accessibility and reach.
• Embeds easily into websites and apps with just two simples lines
of code.
• Records for post-event distribution.
• Offers customizable UI.
29 www.tokbox.com The Rise of Fan Engagement // About TokBoxReferences
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Bloomberg: Live Sports No Longer TV’s Holy Grail in U.S. as Ratings Peak
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