iWorld
NBA launches streaming service in association with Microsoft
MUMBAI: The National Basketball Association (NBA) has come up with a new branded streaming service in association with Microsoft. The NBA made the announcement on 16 April regarding a multi-year deal with Microsoft in this regard.
The direct-to-consumer streaming video service, on the Microsfot Azure cloud platform, will provide consumers personalised TV broadcasts and game streaming with the help of machine learning and artificial intelligence.
The yet-to-be-named streaming service will be co-managed by Microsoft and NBA Digital.
The alliance will transform the way fans experience the NBA.
As part of this collaboration, Microsoft will become the official Artificial Intelligence (AI) partner and an official cloud and laptop partner for the NBA, Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), NBA G League, and USA Basketball beginning with the 2020-21 NBA season.
“Microsoft and NBA Digital — co-managed by the NBA and Turner Sports — will create a new, a direct-to-consumer platform on Microsoft Azure that will use machine learning and AI to deliver next-generation, and personalised game broadcasts and other content offerings as well as integrate the NBA’s various products and services from across its business,” said an official statement.
The platform will reimagine how fans engage with the NBA from their devices by customizing and localising experiences for the NBA’s global fanbase, which includes the 1.8 billion social media followers across all league, team and player accounts.
Beyond delivering live and on-demand game broadcasts through Microsoft Azure, the NBA’s vast array of data sources and extensive historical video archive will be surfaced to fans through state-of-the-art machine learning, cognitive search, and advanced data analytics solutions, says the release.
This will create a more personalised fan experience that tailors the content to the preferences of the fan, rewards participation and provides more insights and analysis than ever.
Additionally, this platform will enable the NBA to uncover unique insights and add new dimensions to the game for fans, coaches and broadcasters. The companies will also explore additional ways technology can be used to enhance the NBA’s business and game operations.
As part of the partnership, Microsoft will become the entitlement partner of the NBA Draft Combine beginning next season and an associate partner of future marquee events, including NBA All-Star, MGM Resorts NBA Summer League and WNBA All-Star.
“We are thrilled to serve as the official AI partner of the NBA,” said Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. “Together, we’ll bring fans closer to the game and players they love with new personalised experiences powered by Microsoft Azure.”
“This partnership with Microsoft will help us redefine the way our fans experience NBA basketball,” said NBA commissioner Adam Silver. “Our goal, with Microsoft, is to create customized content that allows fans, whether they are in an NBA arena or watching from anywhere around the world, to immerse themselves in all aspects of the game and engage directly with our teams and players.”
eNews
Paisabazaar launches Credit Premier League 2.0
Nationwide campaign rewards highest credit scores with Rs 1 lakh top prize.
MUMBAI: When credit scores become a national league, even your CIBIL report starts feeling like it’s playing in the IPL and Paisabazaar has just kicked off the second season. Paisabazaar, India’s leading marketplace for financial products and the country’s largest free credit score platform, has announced the return of the Credit Premier League (CPL) 2.0, a fun, nationwide initiative to recognise and reward individuals with the highest credit scores.
Building on the success of the first edition, CPL 2.0 introduces higher rewards and broader participation. The individual(s) with the highest credit score in the country will win Rs 1 lakh, while state champions will each receive Rs 10,000. Additionally, all participants from the winning state, the one with the highest average credit score will also be rewarded.
All winnings will be credited directly to winners’ PB Wallet, allowing them to pay credit card bills, recharge mobiles, or settle utility bills seamlessly on the Paisabazaar platform.
Paisabazaar CEO Santosh Agarwal said the campaign aims to make credit awareness more engaging and mainstream. “With CPL, we are bringing together engagement, gamification and rewards to make conversations around credit scores more mainstream,” he noted. “Our focus remains on building a financially aware and credit-healthy Bharat.”
The first edition of CPL saw over 5.5 million participants, with the highest individual score touching 861. Delhi recorded the highest average credit score of 746.
Consumers can participate simply by checking their free credit score on the Paisabazaar platform or app. The CPL leaderboard and rankings will be available exclusively on the Paisabazaar App.
In a country where financial dreams are serious business, Paisabazaar has found a smart way to turn credit scores into an exciting game – because when your financial health gets rewarded, everyone wants to play.
