Press release -
Seenit wins BT Infinity Lab competition for digital innovators
A company aiming to put fans at the heart of sports broadcasting has won a worldwide competition to find start-ups and entrepreneurs with innovative digital media and production solutions.
The winning idea which will embed sports fans’ reactions to events during, pre- and post-match could now be trialled by BT Sport. They will now receive six months of support from BT’s research and innovation teams.
Seenit, based in London, were named winners after impressing judges with their app which allows viewers to upload their reactions to live TV coverage of sport.
The competition was launched in November 2015 and entrants were narrowed down to a final seven before a Dragons’ Den style panel at the BT Sport studios in London. The competition was backed by BT Sport presenter Jake Humphrey who was part of the judging panel.
Edward Pearse Wheatley, head of business development, Seenit: “We're happy to have won the award. To be associated to a brand that is making waves in sport media is such a bonus, and we can't wait to collaborate and help bring the BT Sport audience into the storytelling.”
Jake Humphrey said: “I loved the pitch from SeenIt. User Generated Content is not a fad, or a short-lived trend, it's an integral part of broadcasting live events in the future, and this relationship with BT Sport really does put the viewers at the heart of our content. I'm really excited about it.”
The winners will also receive six months membership of TechHub and gain access to their workspace and events. TechHub is one of the world’s leading entrepreneur communities with bases in Bangalore, Bucharest, London, Madrid, Swansea, Riga and Warsaw. BT have partnered with TechHub to run the Infinity Lab programme.
Entries were encouraged to focus on aiding a sports TV viewer’s experience through technologies including apps, augmented reality, as well as innovations in studio side production.
Will Pryke, head of BT Infinity Lab, said: “The whole process has given us some great insight into the breadth of innovation in this space, and the pitches for this competition were really impressive. SeenIt are worthy winners and I am really looking forward to working with them to develop their ideas.”
The other finalists were London based After the Flood, MatchDay Fantasy, PlayON, Minglvision, Groovy Gecko and Thuuz, based in Palo Alto in the USA.
More information about BT’s Infinity Lab competitions is available here - http://www.btplc.com/btinfinitylab/
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