Changing the Game with NBC Sports Washington

Midway through the Washington Wizards 2018-2019 season, NBC Sports Washington called on Chyron and Sparx Technology to help the network create Predict the Game, an interactive game designed to enhance viewers’ experience of sports broadcasts. From the start of 2019-2020 NFL preseason games, Predict the Game also enhanced viewers’ experience of Washington Redskins game broadcasts.

The game envisioned by NBC Sports Washington would allow viewers to take part in the live game itself and, with correct predictions about gameplay, earn points and compete on a live leaderboard with other fans. In short, Predict the Game would be fun! But we had only a few weeks to make it a reality.

NBC Sports Washington, a longtime customer of ours, began a comprehensive upgrade of its legacy LyricX installations to our PRIME Graphics Platform in an effort to enrich its NBA and NFL coverage, and the team there knew they could count on Chyron to help drive innovation. Because PRIME integrates smoothly with other key broadcast systems, NBC Sports Washington also could be confident in the platform’s ability to support Predict the Game.

Sparx Technology brought to the table a proven platform for advanced consumer engagement — polling, trivia, predictive gaming, sports wagering, and audience data. As expected, it took very little time to connect the Sparx API and PRIME in order to feed game-related data through to the live broadcast graphics.

This integration gave NBC Sports Washington the ability to push live feedback, live results, and even a live leaderboard through to its broadcasts of Wizards and Redskins broadcasts in real-time. Despite the fact that data comes from many different sources, PRIME’s powerful data-binding to scene elements allows for smooth, effective inclusion of that data into the live broadcast. Working with a shared vision, we very quickly designed and implemented a creative solution that adds a rich new layer to the viewing experience.

NBC Sports Washington just relaunched Predict the Game for its 2019-2020 NBA coverage, starting with the Nov. 6 game between the Washington Wizards and the Indiana Pacers. In updating Predict the Game for the new NBA season, we integrated Sparx Technology’s user engagement feed, Stats Inc. game data, and SportRadar betting data into the LBar that runs off PRIME. The on-screen result is pretty impressive! Building on strong partner relationships and strong technologies, NBC Sports Washington is delivering a first-of-a-kind interactive experience to the massive number of basketball and football fans watching at home and on mobile devices.

Written by Mark Friedman

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