Viacom18 Media and Ateme reckon they have elevated the live cricket watching experience to new heights during multiscreen coverage of the Indian Premier League 2023, with UHD and immersive audio that reached up to 31 million concurrent viewers.
Viacom18 is the Indian entertainment network with a multi-genre 38 channel offering, the Voot AVOD/SVOD streaming service and studios. It also has rights to one of the world’s most watched and highest value sports events, and is determined to give what it calls a ‘true-to-life’ experience to fans.
Working with Ateme, the compression and streaming specialist, Viacom18 delivered an immersive UHD TV viewing experience throughout the tournament – and claims this was a first for India. The content was delivered across broadcast and streaming, was available in 17 languages, and featured Dolby Atmos immersive audio technology and Dolby Vision for enhanced colour quality.
Ateme’s TITAN encoders and decoders were used to reach audiences on any screen. These encoders also lay the foundation for Dynamic Ad Insertion (DAI) so that Viacom18 can introduce targeted advertising in future.
“India is the seventh largest country in the world [by land mass], and cricket is one of its most popular sports, reaching 31 million concurrent views during the final match of the IPL through Viacom18 this year,” observes Jibu Mathew, Country Manager, South-Asia, at Ateme.
“We are delighted to have supported Viacom18's technology strategies so IPL 2023 viewers could enjoy UHD live cricket matches anywhere — from the comfort of their living room to their smart phone or tablet — with an in-stadium atmosphere in UHD, featuring immersive audio and exceptional image quality, for the first time in India.”
Photo credit: Ajay Parthasarathy on Unsplash
