FOX SPORTS OFFERS MULTI-DAY VIRTUAL REALITY LIVE STREAM
OF BIG EAST MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT
Jeep Sponsors Tech Effort between FOX Sports Lab & LiveLike
Available through FOX Sports VR App
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - FOX Sports, through its FOX Sports Lab initiative, is teaming with New York-based live VR broadcasting company LiveLike to deliver the BIG EAST Men's Basketball Tournament in virtual reality through the FOX Sports VR app, beginning with four quarterfinal games on Thursday, March 9.
With presenting sponsorship from Jeep(R), the immersive, four-camera VR effort includes user-selected views, with two basket and two foul line cameras as well as original 360-degree tournament content, all managed from the FOX Sports VR app's "Virtual Suite." There also will be a live "director's cut" which automatically moves viewer's vantage points around the court to keep them on top of the action. After the game, viewers can tune in and watch a tournament highlight package where users can choose replays from multiple vantage points.
"This blend of virtual reality provides the promise of the second screen in a way that has not been delivered before," said Michael Davies, FOX Sports Senior Vice President of Field & Technical Operations. "With the ongoing refinement of virtual reality and support from Jeep, FOX Sports now offers a unique blend of presence and interactivity that has not been available previously."
The FOX Sports VR App can be enjoyed without special "glasses" through the interactive, 360-degree viewing experience built specifically for iOS and Android devices or with a Gear VR or cardboard headset. Fans can access the BIG EAST Tournament VR experience by downloading and installing the FOX Sports VR app and signing in with their television-provider credentials.
Teaming together on a first-of-its-kind Super Bowl VR highlights package last month, FOX Sports and LiveLike continue to work together across multiple sports, including soccer and college football, as part the ongoing FOX Sports Lab directive, a designed approach to exploring technical partnerships that give viewers a fresh perspective and ad sales teams more targeted sports integrations.
"We're thrilled to give every college basketball fan the opportunity to sit at virtual courtside at Madison Square Garden, where year in, year out, the BIG EAST Tournament provides some of the most entertaining basketball of the season," said Miheer Walavalkar, co-founder and chief business officer, LiveLike.
Since January 2016, FOX Sports has delivered a wide variety of sports offerings in virtual reality, including NASCAR's Daytona 500 (2016), Premier Boxing Champions title fights (2016, 2017), the BIG EAST Men's Basketball Tournament (2016, 2017), the U.S. Open Golf Championship (2016), the Bundesliga season opener (2016), the MLS Cup (2016) and Monster Jam monster trucks (2016), as well as multiple college football games, including the Big Ten Football Championship Game (2016).
Complete coverage of the BIG EAST Men's Basketball Tournament is available across the FOX Sports family of networks and digital platforms, with first round, quarterfinal and semifinal games available on FS1 and FOX Sports GO, beginning Wednesday, March 8, and the championship game airing on the FOX broadcast network on Saturday, March 11. For more information on FOX Sports coverage of the 2017 BIG EAST Men's Basketball Tournament, please visit FOX Sports Press Pass.
ABOUT FOX SPORTS
FOX Sports is the umbrella entity representing 21st Century Fox's wide array of multi-platform US-based sports assets. Built with brands capable of reaching more than 100 million viewers in a single weekend, FOX Sports includes ownership and interests in linear television networks, digital and mobile programming, broadband platforms, multiple web sites, joint-venture businesses and several licensing partnerships. FOX Sports includes the sports television arm of the FOX Broadcasting Company; FS1, FS2; FOX Sports Regional Networks, their affiliated regional web sites and national programming; FOX Soccer Plus; FOX Deportes and FOX College Sports. FOX Sports also encompasses FOX Sports Digital, which includes FOXSports.com, FOX Sports GO, Whatifsports.com and Yardbarker.com. Also included in the Group are FOX's interests in joint-venture businesses Big Ten Network and BTN 2Go, as well as a licensing agreement that establish the FOX Sports Radio Network.
ABOUT LIVELIKE
LiveLike gives viewers the opportunity to watch live sports in virtual reality from a "private suite" that mimics a real VIP suite experience, complete with additional feeds, statistics and a jumbotron showing the game's TV broadcast. With a flexible technology platform and device-agnostic approach, LiveLike creates tailored mobile experiences for Gear VR, Google Cardboard and more. LiveLike powers the Fox Sports VR app and has broadcast multiple NCAAF games including Oklahoma v. Ohio State, 'Red River' showdown of Texas v. Oklahoma, B1G 10 Championship, as well as the MLS Cup. Most recently, the company brought VR to the Super Bowl for the first time, with near real-time highlights of 20 plays. The company has also broadcast games with Sky Sports, Roland Garros, Manchester City and more. Last year, the company received the "1st and Future" award from NFL and TechCrunch. The company is based in New York.
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