Kemba Walker of the Charlotte Hornets dribbles past Chasson Randle of the Washington Wizards on Mar. 15, 2019 in Washington, DC. The Hornets will join Wizards DG next year in the NBA 2K League. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
Wednesday, Apr. 3, 2019 – A roundup of some of the key sports technology stories you need to know, including SportTechie’s own content and stories from around the web.
- The Charlotte Hornets Will Join the NBA 2K League in 2020: Charlotte’s new affiliate will be the 22nd NBA franchise to join the esports league, which began its second season yesterday. Only eight NBA teams remain without an NBA 2K League affiliate. NBA 2K League managing director Brendan Donohue has said the league’s goal is to expand to all 30 NBA teams and eventually add international teams in cities such as Shanghai and Hong Kong. “We view this as a global league,” Donohue said according to The Charlotte Observer. “While we expect to have all 30 NBA teams as part of this, we want to go beyond that.”
- The New York Yankees Sign On to UN Sports for Climate Action: The United Nations announced that the Yankees have become the first major North American professional sports team to join the UN Sports for Climate Action framework. The aim of the framework is to bring greenhouse emissions in line with the Paris Climate Change Agreement. Other notable sports organizations to join the group include the IOC, FIFA, UEFA, and Formula E. This past January, the Yankees appointed Dr. Allen Hershkowitz as the team’s environmental science advisor, the first position of its kind in pro sports.
- Pixellot AI Platform Will Produce College Sports Live Streams for SIDEARM Sports: Artificial intelligence video platform Pixellot has partnered with SIDEARM Sports, a software company that powers websites and mobile apps for college sports teams. Pixellot’s AI-powered platform will produce livestreams of college sports games that include graphics, commentary, and highlights production. “With the addition of Pixellot’s technology, our goal is to produce more than 50,000 live events each year,” said Jeff Rubin, CEO of SIDEARM Sports, in a press release.
- DAZN Reportedly Plans to Sell Data Business to Fund Sports Rights: DAZN Group is close to selling its Perform content business to Vista Equity Partners, according to Bloomberg. Vista would acquire Perform’s betting services and B2B data collection platform as part of the deal. DAZN could then use the money from the sale to acquire media rights that would bolster its live sports offerings. The streaming service recently doubled its subscription cost from $9.99 to 19.99 per month.
- ESPN and Thirty Five Ventures Renew Sports Business Show: ESPN and Kevin Durant’s Thirty Five Ventures have decided to produce a second season of The Boardroom. The sports business show will continue to air exclusively on the ESPN+ streaming platform. It has recently focused on the usage of wearable technology in sports, and on building athlete brands. Production and filming for the second season will begin in NYC this summer and ESPN’s Jay Williams will return to host the show.
- Formula 1’s Esports Racing Series Returns for Third Season: The F1 New Balance Esports Series will return on Apr. 8. The third season will include more races and teams will compete for $500,000, more than double last year’s prize pool. In 2018, the F1 esports season reached 5.5 million viewers across TV and live stream broadcasts. “The potential within this space is extremely exciting both as a commercial opportunity, but importantly, as a way for the sport to engage with the next generation of motorsport fans,” said Sean Bratches, F1’s Managing Director of Commercial Operations, in a press release.
