Verizon Digital Media Services, part of the company’s Oath media unit, will help Sinclair-owned Tennis Channel stream more than 2,000 live and on-demand tennis matches this year, via the channel’s app.
Verizon said its end-to-end platform, including a new Live Event Operations managed service, helps ensure users have access to TV-like quality streaming video content.
Under the new agreement, Verizon earlier this month powered the Tennis Channel’s stream of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif.
“As we grow Tennis Channel’s app, Verizon Digital Media Services lets us deliver the exceptional streaming experiences our users have come to expect,” said Adam Ware, SVP and head of digital and business development at the Tennis Channel. “They’ve been flexible enough to integrate with our existing systems, with a 24-hour support team and Live Event Operations managed service that have helped us scale significantly.”
More than 700 live tennis matches and more than 1,500 VOD titles are set to be streamed, including the annual Roland Garros (French Open) Grand Slam in May, backed by Verizon Digital Media Services’ platform. For the first time, this year the Tennis Channel will have 16 simultaneous live streams (one for every court) for the marquee event.
Verizon said its platform features services that work together to relieve broadcasters and rights holders from the difficulties of directly managing live event OTT streaming, and allows them to securely stream content to mobile and connected devices through a single partner.
Verizon Digital Media Services’ Uplynk Video Streaming service also works with Tennis Channel’s proprietary in-house scheduling and content management system, Storyline, allowing game highlights to be published as VOD content.
