Online destination for global rugby fans to access news and other ad-supported video content across multiple devices
Singapore, September 13, 2018 - Brightcove Inc. (NASDAQ: BCOV), the leading global provider of cloud services for video, today announced its Brightcove Video Platform is powering ad-funded video on-demand (AVOD) content on RugbyPass.com, the online destination for rugby content and matches. RugbyPass provides visitors with ad-supported content featuring rugby news and highlights, as well as live matches for subscribers, streamed across a variety of platforms and devices.
Founded in 2016, RugbyPass’ goal was to establish itself as the global go-to content hub for everything rugby, from live streaming rugby matches to on-demand video highlights and news. Now by offering AVOD content, the company can expand its reach to rugby fans and leverage content syndication across other rugby news sites including Rugby365.com, RugbyDump.com and more. RugbyPass has developed a number of original video formats, including Beyond 80, Rugby Pads, Besty’s Fight Club, Late Tackle, The Short Ball and others, as part of its strategy to produce original content that drives engagement among sports fans and drives traffic to the site.
“Like most sports fans, rugby fans seek out news and content about their favourite teams and matches when a live game is not scheduled. To cater to this need, we wanted to offer short form, ad-supported content on our website for fans to snack on in between live games. Since deploying the Brightcove Video Platform, our view rates on the AVOD content have increased by 300%, and we have seen a positive trajectory on our ad inventory and ad revenues. Since we rely on different sites for different countries, partnering with Brightcove meant that we could be assured the same high-performance video players are used across all of our sites,” said Richard North, Chief Strategy Officer at RugbyPass. “At RugbyPass, we are licensed to stream and syndicate rugby content across the region, and we rather focus on curating the best possible rugby content for our viewers and leave the underlying AVOD technology operations to Brightcove.”
“RugbyPass has hit a sweet spot for offering niche content to rugby fans who want to be engaged in between live matches, and this shift is influencing how RugbyPass curates and monetises its content. We are pleased to be the online video platform partner to RugbyPass as they seek to extend the reach of their content, unlock revenue channels via ads, and enhance the off-season rugby experience for fans across the region,” said Ben Morrell, General Manager, Asia at Brightcove.
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About Brightcove
Brightcove Inc. (NASDAQ:BCOV) is the leading global provider of powerful cloud solutions for managing, delivering, and monetising video experiences on every screen. A pioneering force in the world of online video since the company’s founding in 2004, Brightcove’s award-winning technology, unparalleled services, extensive partner ecosystem, and proven global scale have helped thousands of companies in over 70 countries achieve better business results with video. To learn more, visit www.brightcove.com.
About RugbyPass
Launched in 2016 by Coliseum Sports Media (PremierLeaguePass.com) with a vision to connect the 120M+ global rugby fans, RugbyPass is the home of rugby in Asia and now the largest English-language rugby audience network in the world. RugbyPass offers fans one destination to watch or follow the world’s top rugby matches, including Super Rugby, Gallagher Premiership, European Champions Cup and more, in high definition on the internet or any app-enabled device. RugbyPass complements a boom time for the game in Asia, including the first Asia-based Rugby World Cup in Japan 2019, the return of Singapore to the World Rugby Sevens circuit and the inclusion of Japan’s Sunwolves in Super Rugby. In April 2016, Discovery Communications acquired a minority stake in the platform to provide sports fans with greater access to content on more screens, when and wherever they choose to watch it. www.rugbypass.com
**Press Contacts
North America:
Meredith Duhaime
Brightcove
press@brightcove.com
Asia:
Radha K Raman
Brightcove
pressdesk.asia@brightcove.com
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