Amazon’s latest purchase — streaming business Sye — gives the retail/video giant key technology to improve its live streaming experience, which includes NFL “Thursday Night Football” and Premier League soccer.
The $37.2 million deal secures Sye’s big draw — providing “end-to-end latency of less than 3 seconds, improved sync, instant channel changes and improved quality of experience,” Fierce Video notes. It also delivers new immersive experiences, such as watching a Formula 1 driver on the main video feed, while viewing the driver’s CabCam on-screen in a PIP (picture in picture).
Plus, Sye provides B2B video transport solutions to ensure content companies deliver high-quality video between sites.
The timing is right, as Amazon signed a second two-year NFL streaming deal, with new features to entice viewers, including access to stats on QB throws and average yards for running back and wide receivers.
These features are now available for Android, iOS and Fire TV devices.
“Thursday Night Football” games are also streamed on Amazon-owned Twitch, its videogame channel, as well as Prime Video. Amazon hasn’t released any 2019 stats, but it previously said its 11 “TNF” games in 2018 reached 24.4 million total viewers between Prime Video and Twitch. That’s a 33 percent improvement from its 2017 streams.
On the retail side, Sye can connect video viewers more directly with Amazon store shopping, since it enables interactive features during streaming.
For Net Insight, Sye’s parent, the sale to Amazon allows it to focus on its core B2B media network business.