This year, the awards will celebrate collaboration, innovation, and creativity across 19 categories. Created with a global focus in mind, they pay tribute to the most creative and inspiring uses of technology and new thinking
Entries are now CLOSED.
Best in Broadcast Distribution
New category. This award recognises innovation and excellence in technology as part of the delivery of live sports production.
The application must be referring to a piece of technology or a solution that is directly linked to the production and distribution of live sports content.
What the judges are looking for:
- How well does the solution address challenges associated with distributing live sports content such as latency, scalability, and quality of experience?
- Does the solution empower other features which positively impact the user experience for fans?
- How does the solution stand out from others in the market?
Best Sports FAST Channel
New category. This award recognises the best application of technology and/or strategy leveraging FAST (Free Ad-Supported Television) channels by a sports property or platform.
The platform or channel does not need to be dedicated to sport, but all applications must focus on the delivery and impact of sports content.
What the judges are looking for:
- How the content approach for FAST addresses building audiences and supports the overall content portfolio?
- What is the quality of the user experience and discoverability?
- How successfully has the applicant been able to monetise and effectively used advertising and sponsorship?
Best Use of AI
New category. This award recognises the best application of artificial intelligence in the creation, production, or delivery of sports content.
The use of artificial intelligence must be directly linked to the experience associated with consuming or broadcasting video content
The nomination must have an application specifically designed for sports
What the judges are looking for:
- How does this solution stand out from others
- Insights into how the solution’s use of artificial intelligence has improved the user viewing experience or the content distributor’s efficiency
Platform of the Year - D2C
This award celebrates the most outstanding sports OTT platform of 2023 operated by the rights holder.
Must be a platform that delivers live or on-demand content to consumers
The platform operator must be the rights holder associated with the product
The judges are looking for:
- How the platform provides best-in-class experiences for users
- How does it differentiate from its competitors
- Growth in audience and subscription numbers
- How does it deal with key technological challenges such as latency and piracy
- The proof of ROI relative to platform size and scale
- Integration of OTT as a broader Direct to Consumer strategy
Platform of the Year - Network
This award celebrates the most outstanding sports OTT platform of 2023 operated by a broadcaster or platform distributing multiple sports properties.
Must be a platform that delivers live or on-demand content to consumers
The platform must distribute multiple sports properties content
The judges are looking for:
- How the platform provides best-in-class experiences for users
- How does it differentiate from its competitors
- Growth in audience and subscription numbers
- How does it deal with key technological challenges such as latency and piracy
- The proof of ROI relative to platform size and scale
- Integration of OTT as a broader Direct to Consumer strategy
Best Tech Company
This award recognises the company that’s driving the growth and disruption of the sports OTT industry via the use of technological innovation.
The company must deliver technological solutions to help the industry with a key technological challenge(s)
The company has created a gap between itself and the competition
Can demonstrate that the company is a key driver and influencer of the OTT industry
The judges are looking for:
- Real-world case studies on how this company is delivering for clients
- How much this technology company has expanded its influence on the industry
- How this company has helped improve the consumer experience
Innovation of the Year
This award recognises the most innovative concept that has transformed the consumption of sports content by delivering a new experience for consumers or opening new opportunities for organisations to monetise. The innovation can be strategic, content, or technology focused.
The concept was either new to the market or a significant change to an existing one
Can demonstrate meaningful impact on the company, the industry, and consumption behaviour
The judges are looking for:
- How innovative is the nomination in comparison to existing offerings in the market
- How well it can be proven that this innovation has transformed content consumption
- How much new opportunity did this innovation create
- What is the long term impact this innovation will have on the industry
Tech Solution of the Year
This award recognises the technology-based solution which best addressed a challenge/s in the industry to deliver an improved viewing experience.
The solution was either new to the market or a significant change to an existing one
The solution significantly impacted the industry’s ability to overcome a technological shortcoming to deliver a better viewing experience to consumers
The judges are looking for:
- How well the product addresses the challenge it set to solve
- How unique the product is to existing technology solutions
- How viable is the solution for the long term
Best User Experience
This award is for platforms, products, and services that deliver an intuitive, interactive, and flexible user experience that drives greater retention and consumption of sports.
Platform or feature designed specifically to deliver an enhanced viewing experience
The experience must be centred around an OTT platform
Incorporates innovation unseen on other platforms
The judges are looking for:
- How the user experience drives fan engagement
- How has it improved platform consumption
- Has it led to an increase in revenue or other measurable ROI
- How the company has dealt with any reliability issues to their platform, service, or solution
Best in Anti-Piracy
This award is for the rights owner, broadcaster, or technology provider leading the way to combat the piracy of live sports.
A project, campaign, solution, or innovation that raised awareness, prevented the spread, or protected the value of live sports content from piracy.
The judges are looking for:
- Insights or data demonstrating how the approach influenced the prevalence of pirated sports content
- How unique is the approach compared to others
Best in Fan Engagement
This award is for those companies who are successfully building passionate and loyal communities around their OTT platforms and services.
A company, technology or campaign that is significantly growing audiences and communities because of its fan engagement practices
Fans have an improved connectivity with the sport, the athlete or other fans consuming content in real-time
Any activity needs to be delivered through OTT or digital platforms
The judges are looking for:
- Measurable proof of the impact this company or campaign has had on the fan
- Examples of how fan engagement has increased as a result of the company of the nomination
- How fan engagement has helped the company drive revenues
Best Original Content
This award recognises the best non-live sports content created for an OTT or digital platform.
Content must have been published originally on an OTT or digital platform
Content must be new and unique
The judges are looking for:
- Data demonstrating increased viewership and engagement compared to other content
- Evidence of increased awareness or sentiment attributable to the original content
- Revenue from original content
- Accolades for quality of content
Best Social Media Strategy
This award recognises the most innovative and creative strategy for distributing engaging video content on social media platforms.
Content must have been specifically intended for distribution on a social media platform
Demonstrate how video content on social media sits within broader fan engagement strategy for the organisation
The judges are looking for:
- Authentic, engaging, creative, and format specific content relevant to the target audience
- Identifiable touchpoints using social media across the fan journey
- KPI’s and measurements demonstrating engagement and promoting interaction amongst followers
- ROI on delivery
- Partnership collaborations using social assets
Best New Platform
This award recognises the most successful launch or re-launch of an OTT platform either direct to consumer or aggregator to the market.
Any re-launch nomination must successfully demonstrate genuine platform re-development, new content offering, rebranding, or combination of factors
Content offering must include live sports
The judges are looking for:
- Innovative features, content offerings, or payment models distinct from competitors within the market
- Proof of success in building subscriber base upon launch
- How disruptive the launch has been to market
- How launch is impacting overall business performance
Best Digital First Production
This award recognises a platform, production or solution that greatly enhanced the digital broadcast experience.
The platform or feature was primarily available in a digital OTT environment
The product broadcasted or is associated with live sports
The judges are looking for:
- Examples of how the digital first approach improved the user experience
- How was the digital experience unique in comparison to a traditional linear broadcast
- Metrics displaying how digital first production positively impacted consumption
Best Marketing Strategy
This award is for a marketing strategy which has driven awareness, engagement and consumption of sports content on an OTT platform.
The marketing strategy was explicitly intended to drive engagement and usage of an OTT platform delivering sports content
Data and insights to prove the success of the strategy
The judges are looking for:
- How the marketing strategy was conceptualised, delivered, executed, and measured
- Marketing that was unique, innovative, and clearly considered touchpoints across different channels and stages of the funnel
- How the marketing performed against KPI’s, industry standards, and delivered ROI
Best Emerging Tech Company
This award recognises the most innovative and emerging technology company impacting the OTT industry.
Annual turnover under $20 million
The company has provided a solution or innovated a feature that improves the OTT industry
The judges are looking for:
- Case studies of how the technology is providing solutions to partners in real life
- How much impact the company’s solution could have on the wider OTT industry
- How the company’s technology uniquely resolves a challenge within OTT
Best Start Up Tech Company
This award recognises the most impactful technology company entering the OTT industry.
Annual turnover under $5 million
Must have a proof of concept
The judges are looking for:
- Case studies of how the technology is providing solutions to partners in real life
- How much impact the company’s solution could have on the wider OTT industry
- How the company’s technology uniquely resolves a challenge within OTT
INDIVIDUAL AWARD
EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR
This award recognises the most outstanding industry contributions of an accomplished individual leading a sports broadcast & OTT organisation.
NOT OPEN TO APPLICATIONS