Stephane has worked for more than 25 years at the intersection of content and technology.
Every year, sports enthusiasts eagerly anticipate the thrill of a new sports season, where hopes of victory are realized (at last) or dreams are dashed (again)!
This new season is coming on the heels of a summer sports calendar filled with high-stakes competitions—from football to cycling and from tennis to track and field—with smart TVs transforming the viewing experience into something richer, more immersive, and more interactive than ever before. Whether your favourite athletes triumphed or fell short at the Paris 2024 Games, the Euro 2024 or Wimbledon, one thing was certain: more fans than ever before embraced this summer of sport on TV.
While the rules of the game may change at the margins over time, the way we watch sports is evolving quickly, and the software that powers your smart TV — essentially the operating system that lets you discover and watch content — can make or break your live sports experience. While many smart TVs rely on static lists of pre-selected content, those with a TiVo operating system benefit from AI-driven discovery, which is where the magic truly happens.
AI at the heart of the action
AI's influence on sports extends to a growing number of use cases in the stadia and competitions themselves. AI-powered tracking systems analyze athletes' performances in real-time, providing detailed insights that help coaches make crucial decisions on everything from training regimens to game strategy. AI also monitors athletes' biometrics to reduce injury risk and even aid in recruiting top talent. In football, AI-supported refereeing uses data from on-field cameras and chips inside balls to make accurate calls, showcasing how technology is changing the dynamics of the game, sometimes to the fan's frustration!
At the Paris Olympics, GenAI also played a significant role off the field, like a specifically designed chatbot helping with athletes’ scheduling and orientation. Data generated for analysis by AI algorithms also made its way onto television screens, enriching the viewing experience with enhanced statistics and graphics and providing commentators with real-time insights. GenAI was also instrumental in creating automatic match summaries and even daily highlight recaps sometimes personalized to individual fan profiles. The use of AI in sports broadcasting makes sports more accessible and engaging for fans worldwide.
Hitting the target: AI for the best match
With so much sporting action available and in constant competition with other entertainment content, viewers may experience "choice fatigue." According to Nielsen’s “State of Play” report, the average viewer wastes more than 10 minutes searching for something they actually want to watch (that is 60 hours a year)! With 329 individual events on offer at the Paris 2024 Olympics alone, fans needed to plan what and when to watch, or risk finding themselves overwhelmed by the sheer volume of options.
We’re all familiar with the concept of “doom scrolling” in social media —the time wasted scrolling through endless content without finding anything that truly engages us. This summer, the choice of content, coupled with the complexities of navigating it between channels and apps, left some sports (and entertainment) fans feeling as fatigued as a marathon runner!
This is where your smart TV’s operating system can make all the difference in saving you time and energy! Almost three-quarters of people in the UK now own a smart TV, with sales surging when the sporting stakes are highest. If you’re enhancing your home viewing experience for the start of the new football season, it’s crucial to ensure that your new, glossy screen has AI under the hood—simply look for the ‘Powered by TiVo’ logo.
TiVo’s AI-driven operating system constantly learns what you like to watch, what’s trending with people who share your interests, and what’s streaming right now. Integrated seamlessly into the operating system, intuitive AI makes smart decisions to match and suggest the content you’re likely to enjoy, saving you from “choice fatigue” and wasted time.
Whether you’re into sports, music or even talent shows, a truly smart TV with AI could have suggested you check out the Paris 2024 Games breakdance finals, which you might not have even known were happening on August 9! Inspired by your preferences, AI elevates viewing experiences.
Voice control for real interaction
At TiVo, we believe your TV should be as intelligent as your smartphone. So, you should be able to interact with your TV using voice control, with AI understanding the subtle nuances of your natural language commands to recommend ever more personalized viewing options. Voice control should not be about barking one-line commands at your TV like a coach on the sidelines — that is why the TiVo operating system engages in a conversation with you, allowing you to refine your search as you go. TiVo never stops learning, ensuring that your viewing experience continues to hit new personal bests.
If you are ready to enhance your home viewing experience for more sports thrills in this new season, choose a truly smart, AI-driven TV to simplify your programming options and conserve your energy for the sporting action ahead.
