The 10th edition of the National Sports Forum, held at the MGM Grand Convention Center in Las Vegas, from February 10-12, 2019 was a gathering unlike any other in the sports-tech world: professional and amateur sports teams, leagues, and associations meeting with some of the industry’s most innovative start-ups. The fraternal atmosphere made for an unparalleled showcase of the solutions that the U.S. sports industry is deploying to expand the fan experience.

To this end, BCaster joined as a sponsor of the event, and showcased its platform for real-time licensing and monetization of photos and video content, enabling automatic user-generated content (UGC) uploads for sports brands, teams, leagues, and sportscasters. BCaster demonstrated its app during the Budweiser data at the T-Mobile Arena on Sunday, February 10th, in an event at the venue’s Jack Daniels Lounge, where participant content was uploaded in real-time to displays in the lounge.

Chris Pfaff moderated a well-attended session on Monday, February 11th – ‘Turning Fans to Dollars with User-Generated Content’ – that featured Sean Callahan, founder of SportsGeek; Dante Simpson, CEO of ESPAT Media; John Durbin, senior vice president of marketing and business strategy, Pegula Sports and Entertainment (Buffalo Bills and Sabres), and Patrick Hooper, director of digital, San Jose Sharks.

The ‘Turning Fans Into Dollars with User-Generated Content’ panel at the 10th edition of the National Sports Forum: (left to right) Patrick Hooper, director of digital, San Jose Sharks; Dante Simpson, CEO of ESPAT Media; Sean Callanan, founder, SportsGeek; Chris Pfaff, moderator, and John Durbin, vice president of marketing, Pegula Sports and Entertainment, February 11, 2019

Ron Seaver, founder and president of the National Sports Forum, thanks BCaster for its sponsorship, at the opening ceremony of the 10th edition of the National Sports Forum, Las Vegas, February 10, 2019

BCaster’s session on fan engagement was a hit with the National Sports Forum attendees

Fan content was uploaded in real-time to monitors in the Jack Daniels Lounge at the T-Mobile Arena, at the National Sports Forum in Las Vegas, February 10, 2019

From left to right: (back row) Josh Keiles, vice president of business development with the National Sports Forum; Dante Simpson, CEO of ESPAT Media; Sean Callanan, founder of SportsGeek; Patrick Hooper, direct of digital, San Jose Sharks; (front row) Sanni Kivipelto, head of customer success, BCaster; Pekka Parnanen, founder at MAD-Partners, at the T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, during the National Sports Forum, February 10, 2019

Sean Callanan (with microphone), founder of SportsGeek, discusses extreme fandom during the ‘Turning Fans to Dollars with User-Generated Content’ panel at the National Sports Forum, at the MGM Conference Center, February 11, 2019

It is always a pleasure to work with Tracey Swedlow and her team at the TV of Tomorrow Show. I have known Tracy since 1998, and she has indefatigably helped lead the discussion around advanced TV and video for more than two decades. And, yes, we shared the virtual stage in a famous Producers Guild of America (PGA) New Media Council event in February, 2008 (it was a webcast, with me in New York at the New School; she in San Francisco, at the Macromedia building), in which we presented panelists and debated the New York vs. San Francisco tech/new media scene.

At the recent TV of Tomorrow Show New York, held at the SVA Theatre in Manhattan on December 7th, 2018, I moderated a session, ‘Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence for the OTT Universe,’ that dove into a wide range of issues facing broadcasters; MSOs; user-generated content, and advertisers as machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) increase their sophistication in the overall OTT world.

My panelists included:

Romain Eude, CEO/founder, Utelly

Randa Minkarah, COO, Transform

Janne Neuvonen, CEO/co-founder, BCaster

Aman Sareen, CEO, Zypmedia

Have a listen to the audio from this session by clicking the link embedded in this post from the TV of Tomorrow site:

https://thetvoftomorrowshow.com/radio-itvt-machine-learning-and-artificial-intelligence-ott-universe