Australian Rugby Partners with Brightcove To Create The Ultimate Online Video Hub For Rugby Fans

Sydney, 26 July, 2016 - Brightcove Inc. (NASDAQ: BCOV), the leading provider of cloud services for video, today announced that Australia’s national governing body of Rugby, the Australian Rugby Union (ARU), has selected Brightcove to power an enhanced video experience for its fans at www.rugby.com.au.

As part of the ARU’s recent digital transformation, the company has placed an increased focus on video in a bid to make its fan website the central hub for all things rugby related. Alongside editorial articles, video content of match highlights, press conferences and exclusive interviews with the stars will be a large component of the website. Videos are also now being embedded within editorial content to bring the article to life, as well as hosted on a separate video gallery page within the fan site.
Brightcove Video Cloud will provide the backbone for ARU’s video offering, which includes the latest version of the Brightcove video player for fast load time, short time to first frame and HTML5 playback to deliver an exceptional viewer experience on any screen for ARU fans. Brightcove Video Cloud is also helping to streamline the video workflow for ARU’s digital team, providing access to a single, integrated solution to manage myriad aspects of ARU’s online video content.
“We are always looking for ways we can improve the fan experience. As we continue to transform our offering to take on a new digital approach, we have identified video as a key component to achieving this,” said ARU Head of Digital & Wallabies Media, Adam Freier. “Our fans are hungry for content. We want www.rugby.com.au to become a central hub for all rugby fans. We need to be able to efficiently manage our content and publish high-quality video quickly and smoothly to meet fans’ expectations every time.”
As part of the ARU’s new digital strategy, the organisation is producing its own content in its in-house production studio. This content is being uploaded to the website and added to hundreds of videos already online.
ARU will also leverage Brightcove’s video analytics to gain a better understanding of audience viewing habits and to ensure the content it is providing its viewers is engaging.
Brightcove General Manager of Australia and New Zealand, Mark Stanton, said, “Australia is witnessing a tipping point in the sports industry with the growing trend of video streaming live sporting events and demand for more online content.”
“ARU is a leading sports organisation that has continued to be an innovative player within the industry,” adds Stanton. “As more fans move online to view content, Australian sporting organisations are placing increased focus on video. We’re proud to partner with one of the leading sporting organisations in Australia and help the company continue on its digital transformation.”

About Brightcove

Brightcove Inc. (NASDAQ:BCOV) is the leading global provider of powerful cloud solutions for delivering and monetizing video across connected devices. The company offers a full suite of products and services that reduce the cost and complexity associated with publishing, distributing, measuring and monetizing video across devices. Brightcove has nearly 5,000 customers in over 70 countries that rely on the company’s cloud solutions to successfully publish high-quality video experiences to audiences everywhere. To learn more, visit www.brightcove.com.

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