Source: Insider Sport
A ground-breaking collaboration backed by the International Broadcasting Convention (IBC) is paving the way for a new era of sports consumption—one where fans don’t just watch matches, but shape how they experience them.
Through IBC’s Accelerator Media Innovation Programme, a group of media and tech companies—including Verizon Business, AMD, and Xansr Media—has developed a prototype that uses AI-powered virtual assistants to personalise live sports broadcasts in real time. The project, titled “Changing the Game Again”, is being touted as a major leap toward fan-first content delivery.
“This is about smashing traditional boundaries and unlocking a smarter, more adaptive way of engaging fans,” said Muki Kulhan, Co-Lead of IBC Innovation. “It’s about relevance, control, and building new digital touchpoints for the next generation of viewers.”
The Problem: Content Overload, Limited Time
With fans now faced with a relentless stream of fixtures, platforms, and storylines, traditional sports broadcasting has become overwhelming. The average fan doesn’t have the time—or the attention span—to watch full matches week after week.
“The volume of content is simply unmanageable for most people,” said Erin Rose Widner, Global Head of Business Strategy for Emerging and Creative Tech at Verizon Business. “That’s why the ability to personalise is so powerful.”
Rather than expecting fans to keep up with every minute of every match, the new AI assistant uses individual viewer preferences—favourite teams, players, stats, and even available time—to shape the stream itself.
How It Works: Real-Time Intelligence for Each Viewer
The virtual assistant sits on top of a live stream and modifies the experience based on user profiles. A fan of Team A, interested in defence stats and short highlights, would see different content than a fan of Team B who prefers long-form replays and behind-the-scenes audio.
This is made possible by the integration of AI models into production platforms like Chyron Live and Xansr’s Aiko platform, optimised on AMD GPUs via Spectral Compute. As matches unfold, the system analyses the action, identifies key moments, and delivers tailored replays, overlays, or real-time updates—all in sync with the broadcast.
“This is not a concept anymore,” said Vaibhav Panchal, Board Director at Xansr Media. “We’ve moved into live testing, and we’ll be showcasing the platform at IBC2025.”
Strategic Value: More Than Just Entertainment
From a commercial perspective, the assistant is not just about engagement. It’s about precision monetisation and smarter audience segmentation. With better insight into user behavior, broadcasters can customise sponsor content, deliver more relevant ads, and even integrate commerce links tied to viewer interest.
It also empowers fans to go deeper. AI-generated pre-match summaries, in-game data prompts, and interactive stats are all designed to extend the fan journey beyond the linear broadcast.
“It’s like having a companion that understands what matters to you,” added Widner. “And that’s what fans are asking for.”
Challenges: Metadata, Rights, and Scaling
Despite the excitement, there are still real obstacles. Rights fragmentation and inconsistent metadata remain two of the biggest hurdles to scaling this across leagues and regions. Panchal notes that serving millions of simultaneous fans—each with a unique stream—requires massive optimisation and lean infrastructure.
“Scale is our biggest technical challenge,” he said. “But we’re confident in the system’s flexibility. Once the metadata and licensing ecosystem matures, this model can go global.”
