Sports business is all about feelings: Prashant Khanna, Disney Star

Having crossed over 475 million viewers during the 17th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) on its linear network, Disney Star is constantly innovating to enhance customer experience by thinking from a fan-centric perspective, said Prashant Khanna, Head - Field Operations, Studios & R&D for Sports, Disney Star, in an exclusive chat with exchange4media.

From introducing sign language interpretation and vertical viewing experience through MaxView to providing special feeds for various fan cohorts, Khanna shares how tech in broadcasting is transforming the viewers’ experience and making it more engaging.

Here are the excerpts from the interview:

Can you tell us about your experience in the sports broadcasting domain? What are some of the challenges you faced and overcame?

Sports business is all about feelings. Everything that we turn around, has to do with how you (viewers) would experience it on air. When you look at it from that lens, everything then becomes an opportunity.

We are privileged to be in this space where we define how the coverage should be for millions of fans around us. Technology in that respect is largely an enabler. It allows us to seamlessly add value to everything we do.

During COVID, we realized that fans were going out of the stadium. That allowed us to look at Cricket or Kabaddi coverage that has never been done before without fans in the stadium. We were able to redefine our coverage by modifying the camera angles to ensure fans were not missed in the stadium. Thousands of fans were brought in using the ‘Fan wall’ virtually to be part of the coverage. This allowed for many more fans to experience a stadium like experience from the comfort and safety of their homes.

On top of that came the layer of audio, which is an extremely important component of any sports Broadcast. Now, how do you compensate for all that noise, the chants, the Stadium Buzz with empty stadiums? The team tasked itself to create Audio beds and Chants from scratch for all teams to incorporate into broadcast so the emptiness was not felt. We further went on and integrated this with our OTT app Disney+ Hotstar where millions of fans could now chant for their hero’s by simply clicking on emjois while watching the game for it to convert to Realtime Audio on air. A staggering 4.8 Billion emojis were liked by fans over the duration of the tournament.

Star Sports is one of the most sought-after linear channels for cricket and other sports. With changing times, what technology has Star deployed to meet market expectations?

While I can't share specific details, what I can discuss is how we assess various solutions and enhancements through a consumer or fan-centric perspective. Ultimately, the goal is to make significant strides and be able to always add value at scale.

So, I believe the numbers always follow later. The crucial aspect is being able to convince yourself and the team that the endeavour will enhance the fan experience at any given moment during our broadcast, whether it's on linear or digital platforms. That's what ultimately drives our decision-making process to invest in such initiatives.

Tell us about the special feeds that have been introduced to reach out to various fan cohorts.

With our intent and endeavour to increase our reach to more audiences, we consistently explore ways to innovate in the special feeds we deliver. During the initial years of our IPL rights, we introduced what was known as the "Select Dugout" feed. This feed was specifically tailored to an analytical cohort, attracting a core fan audience.

We expanded our focus to include other elements and introduced a subtitled feed, providing live subtitling not just for fans watching at home, but also for those at social establishments with friends or family. Our aim was to enhance the out-of-home viewing experience by offering accuracy and giving the monitored out-of-home segment the option to enjoy and follow the game wherever they were.

Max View on Disney+Hotstar was another such initiative, Which looked at enhancing the viewing experience, especially for digital natives, through a comprehensive approach involving advanced camera set-ups, tailored replays, optimized graphics, seamless commentary, and a user-friendly interface for content delivery on Disney+ Hotstar.

When we sat down to evaluate a sign language feed it stem from how we can address a viewer cohort that was underserved or not being served at all – As per reported numbers there are approximately 63 million hearing impaired and 35 million visually impaired people in India. As custodians of sport it is our responsibility to ensure the game reaches everyone without any discrimination. We spent a lot of time working with sign language interpreters to build on the Cricket sign Language, building talent to be able to serve not just a few games but an entire tournament.

With the rise in digital streaming platforms and social media, how do you see the future of sports broadcasting evolving and how do you adapt to these changes?

Sports broadcast is no longer one size fits all. They have to be produced keeping the fans in mind and their platform of choice for experiencing the sport. While linear broadcasting offers a unified experience for viewers to come together, Producing for those who are on digital platforms allows to build a personalised experience. The ability to watch the game, commentary, graphics and all other elements as per your preference – like an Alacart offering.

Has tech innovation in sports broadcasting impacted advertising? How?

Absolutely. We work extensively with our Sales and Marketing teams to understand the brand and their needs to integrate them into broadcasts more effectively. With so much going on the screen, just putting a logo or a lower third might not make the same impact. We have worked with brands and advertisers where we help them in building their campaign using technology which allows for their products to travel and resonate more with the audience at large.  

Airtel “5G Metafan” and the Cadbury “Thank you” Campaigns are a few such examples where both content and technology become key enablers for the Brand to travel far and beyond.

What can viewers expect from the T20 World Cup?

Currently, we are focusing on the IPL. I'm guessing you'll find out very soon when we get to that.