2024年6月7日
By 艾德里安•加西亚高级解决方案顾问，掌声
博客

The Complexities of Sports Streaming Requires Continuous Testing

While we still wait for global streaming numbers on last month’s NCAA men’s and women’s finals, the evidence is clear that they will be the most watched Finals in college basketball history. 女子决赛创造了ESPN+和, 有史以来第一次, 在尼尔森的男子决赛中表现出色.

The nearly-month-long event put streaming platforms to the test. 体育直播对主播来说是一个很大的挑战, but those challenges - device and network compatibility, 延迟的问题, 当多个游戏在不同的网络和多个流媒体平台上传输时，可扩展性和可靠性将受到进一步的考验.

同时比赛的收视率也直线上升, so did gambling as 体育 and 体育 betting intercoupling became tighter. March Madness is the biggest gambling event of the year, spread out over three-plus weeks. 即使是最随便的赌徒，这里也是天堂.

撇开道德问题不谈——一名NBA球员最近因影响其表现的投注线而被终身禁赛——体育流媒体和赌博的未来充满了令人兴奋的可能性. 随着体育博彩变得越来越主流, streaming services are likely to integrate betting features directly into their platforms. 流媒体提供商已经提供了带有实时统计数据和个性化内容的交互式覆盖，这些内容是基于观众所关注的联赛和球队. 赌博和体育流媒体应用之间的未来整合可能会带来基于游戏趋势的高级分析，并提供投注赔率，以增强观众体验.

夏季奥运会, 下个月开始, provide the next opportunity for streamers to test their live 体育 technology. 和, if the past several major sporting events are any indication, 你可以预见，博彩应用程序将从渴望赚钱的体育迷那里获得大量工作. Last October - during baseball’s World Series - Americans spent 花在体育博彩应用上的时间增加了66% 而不是2022年10月.

流媒体的交集, 体育, and gambling has created a dynamic and rapidly evolving landscape. As streaming technology improves and 体育 betting becomes more accessible, the seamless integration of these elements will transform how fans enjoy 体育 and gambling.

而未来是光明的, streamers still need to address several challenges before further integration can occur.

直播体育赛事很复杂

我们在过去看到过直播噩梦, 无论是Netflix的《百家乐软件app最新版下载》(Love is Blind)重聚特别节目，因为技术困难而没有播出，还是Facebook Live和Twitch在数百万人直播时宕机. Unfortunately, viewers don’t care about the complexity of live streaming. 他们关心的是产品, and a bad livestream can have short-term and long-term impacts on brands, 特别是如果这种情况继续发生的话.

The biggest challenges for broadcasters and live streamers are:

设备和网络兼容性. 流媒体提供商必须确保跨各种设备和操作系统组合的无缝流媒体, 尤其是在对全球听众讲话时.

延迟的问题. 减少延迟, 或者是直播视频内容的延迟, is crucial for 体育 betting and interactive viewing experiences. 流媒体提供商必须利用自适应比特率流这样的技术，以更少的延迟交付内容. This challenge becomes even more pronounced during live events, 实时信息在哪里是必不可少的.

可扩展性和可靠性. 在重大体育赛事期间处理大量涌入的观众需要强大的流媒体基础设施和严格的测试，以防止中断. 流媒体提供商必须确保他们的平台能够承受高峰需求，同时保持高质量和可靠性.

然而，伴随着这些挑战，机遇也随之而来. 流媒体内容提供商必须考虑到，如果狂热的粉丝愿意花时间观看任何一场比赛，而不仅仅是大型比赛，他们都会期待出色的体验. This is where the opportunity exists to get things right.

While the customer journey should always be a primary concern for streaming content providers, major sporting events bring more prospective customers to your door. 为什么不通过简单的入门来吸引他们呢, 直观的导航, 有用的教程/指导, 和完美的表演，让他们留在身边?

要做到这一点，流媒体内容提供商必须在大事件到来之前，与真正的用户进行测试. Only then can you get real-world feedback about what’s working, on which networks and streaming devices in various parts of the world, 了解摩擦点.

如果你的目标是为你的客户保持简单——这是应该的——考虑实施一个综合的策略，包括用户体验研究和各种测试方面, 比如功能性的, 可用性, 支付测试. 没有人说“欢迎”, 我们的目标是取悦,像光滑的, 直观的客户旅程, 最重要的是, 船上没有问题, delivers what the user wants… and even presents some unexpected bonuses along the way.

为粉丝创造不一样的观看体验

From onboarding to their experiences setting up monthly payments within the app, testers can offer nuanced insights into what works for your viewers. 从他们自己的研究和这些用户的反馈, streaming providers implement new features to delight their user base, 并吸引新用户加入. 例如，在2023年 NFL与亚马逊网络服务(AWS), 合作成立了Next Gen Stats, to “extract meaningful data from games and decipher patterns in player performances.” YES网络, home of the Yankees another New York-based 体育 teams, introduced an app that offers an innovative first with Live States and YES Watch Party, which brings together fans to socialize about the game they are watching.

当然, 不用说，创新必须早在损失之前就计划好，以避免意外延误. 当《百家乐app下载》通过MAX付费订阅的目标是在2024年疯狂三月初推出时，它经历了这一挑战. 然而, 由于整合问题，它现在被推迟了, creating a significant loss in monetization for the provider.

Monetization: Don’t miss the moment with your marketing - or your ad placement strategy

流媒体内容提供商必须充分利用与体育赛事有关的营销活动. 假设一个订阅者打算在疯狂三月之前加入，但在比赛结束后退订. 你的活动旨在吸引新用户留下, perhaps by offering an extended trial date or a lower introductory price for three months.

测试您正在考虑的各种客户流以了解哪些流产生所需的结果是很关键的. 再一次。, 测试对象是熟悉流媒体体育应用及其广泛支付工具(从信用卡、借记卡到Apple Pay)的真实用户, 贝宝, “更多”是关键. 使用各种测试者(游戏邦注:从资深用户到新用户)能够帮助你获得更深入的见解，从而让营销成本获得回报.

We can't discuss marketing without highlighting the significance of advertisements. Recent studies show that viewers are willing to accept more ads, especially if the amount is reasonable and it results in lower monthly fees. 体育流媒体服务应该效仿其他娱乐平台，提供无广告订阅计划. 供应商正在推出新的广告支持计划, 这可能会降低每用户平均收益(ARPU)——这是华尔街和供应商密切关注的关键指标. 然而, these plans have the potential to generate equal or greater revenue over time. The emerging trend indicates that viewers prioritize content, with the manner and personalization of ads being a secondary concern.

体育直播必须持续测试

Prepping for a major sporting event - March Madness, The World Series, The U.S. 开放, 这个清单还在继续——流媒体体育提供商面临着一系列复杂的挑战和机遇. 越来越多的流媒体服务提供商加入了体育直播的行列——就像Netflix一样, 这将播出两场NFL比赛今年的圣诞节——这使得这个空间更加复杂，需要深思熟虑的测试和推出.

这些重大事件的成功, providers must rigorously test their apps under the most realistic conditions, covering a broad range of user devices and operating systems. 实时事件测试尤其重要，因为实时编程引入了其他类型的流媒体内容中不存在的不同变量. 虽然有些方面可以事先验证, comprehensive testing during the broadcast is essential to address unforeseen issues.

另外, 流媒体和体育博彩提供商需要通过确保出色的用户体验来优化客户旅程, which includes meeting accessibility standards and incorporating inclusive design. 他们还必须制定精确的营销策略，并保持互动的方式来吸引和留住客户. 观众主要关心的是应用程序的性能，并期望获得无缝的体验，以证明成本是合理的. One effective strategy to achieve this is crowdtesting, where real users test the app and provide valuable feedback.

[编者注:这是来自掌声. 流媒体 accepts vendor bylines based solely on their value to our readers.]