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ESPN brings a curated daily version of SportsCenter to its app
ESPN isn't just bringing versions of SportsCenter to social networks like Snapchat and Twitter. The network is launching a daily edition of SportsCenter within the ESPN App. Anchors like Scott Van Pelt will host a "curation" of top sporting news, such as highlights from last night's games or things to expect from upcoming matches. It'll certainly be hard to miss -- the show will "feature prominently" on the app's home screen in the morning whenever you open it for the first time that day.
Twitter's new shows include Formula 1 and SportsCenter Live
Twitter wasn't kidding when it promised a flurry of video. The social network has announced more than 30 video deals, including a slew of live shows. To begin with, Twitter has landed a Formula 1 deal: The @f1 account will stream a live post-race show (sorry, no live races) with both key interviews and panel discussions with luminaries like Nico Rosberg. The first of ten shows will premiere after the Spanish Grand Prix on May 13th, and you'll also find on-demand race highlight clips.
Nobody knows if Snapchat shows are actually successful
Snapchat hasn't been coy about its obsession with making original video content. Snap Inc., its parent company, sees TV-like programming as the holy grail and key to its long-term success. The quick, raw, disappearing videos that made Snapchat popular with teens are no longer enough to keep users locked in. Especially as Instagram has started stealing its most popular features, like Stories. Snapchat won't admit it, but Facebook may have inadvertently driven its push into original programming. Conquering that world won't be easy, and right now there are more questions than answers about whether Snapchat shows are working and how viable they are.
ESPN looks to reinvent itself with a SportsCenter for Snapchat
More than three years ago, ESPN opened a 194,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art production facility known as Digital Center 2. That space was built to house five studios, including the home of its flagship show SportsCenter, which has been airing on TV since 1979. The goal from the beginning was to make the show futureproof, by laying the foundation for its studio to support incoming technologies like 4K and 8K content. It was also set up to handle the rise of social media, what with a wall made of 56 screens giving the anchors' the ability to interact with Twitter or Facebook posts from athletes in a real-time 3D environment. The Digital Center 2 brought SportsCenter into the 21st century.
The line between sports and eSports continues to blur
The division between the activities you do outside with balls and those indoors with mice is narrowing by the day. Not content with invading the realm of traditional broadcasting, eSports is now getting its very own daily recap show that'll mirror the format of ESPN's SportsCenter. Machinima is launching Inside eSports, which will air seven days a week and show off news and analysis from the world of electronic gaming. Unlike ESPN's offering, Inside eSports will be an online-only affair, which will broadcast on Go90, Verizon's nascent video network. It'll begin broadcasting in May, although you won't see many commercials and advertising for it until June -- presumably to give producers time to iron out any kinks.
Twitter wants to put ads in other companies' apps
Twitter isn't growing as quickly as it used to, so it can't just count on a horde of new social networkers to pump up its bank account. What's it going to do, then? Sell ads elsewhere, apparently. Sources for the Wall Street Journal claim that Twitter is planning to offer ads for the tweet feeds you see in other companies' apps and websites, sharing the money it makes with its partners. It's not certain who's onboard with the idea. Twitter reportedly cited both ESPN and Flipboard as examples during a presentation at CES, but a WSJ tipster says that there's no official deal with ESPN just yet.
ESPN Sportscenter updates with new features and faster delivery
The four-letter network as it is known has launched the latest version of its ESPN Sportscenter app. The free universal app requires iOS 7.0 or later and comes with plenty of new features including one that is long overdue. You need to have an ESPN account and will be asked to sign in to the app or register if you don't already have an account. Your normal ESPN.com account works with the app and if you need an account there is no charge. ESPN Sportscenter offers scores, live scoring updates, news from your favorite sports or favorite team, video highlights, access to ESPN Radio programming, personalized alerts with numerous option, analysis, and access to live TV programming through the Watch ESPN app, more on that in a minute. Among the new features is one that allows you to designate your favorite teams in every sport and have those scores grouped at the top of Sportscenter Scores. This can be a valuable feature now with major league baseball in its pennant races, the start of the college and professional football season, soccer in full swing around the world, and golf and Nascar entering their final stages. It saves the user from having to look through dozens of scores to find the ones for his favorite teams. However this should have been available some time ago. I have been using the same feature in two other score and news apps for quite a while. But it is a welcome addition if you use this app. ESPN has improved its games pages for both the NFL and NCAA football games. The pages offer a complete breakdown of statistics, both team and individual players, scoring summaries, video highlights, and live drive charts so you can follow the game on your iPhone or iPad. The updated app gives the user access to live ESPN programming, both radio and television. Radio works with a simple click and if your speakers are turned up you are ready to go. To get live television programming, ESPN Sportscenter accesses programs through the Watch ESPN app, also a universal app and a free download. However to see live programming your home cable or satellite provider must have an agreement with ESPN. Bad news if you are a DirecTV subscriber, but most of the other major providers are included such as DISH Networks, Cox Cable, Time Warner, AT&T U-Verse, Charter, and Comcast along with hundreds of smaller cable operators. The programming choices are many with live tennis, college football, basketball, and auto racing. So just like the live broadcasts, ESPN Sportscenter, the app, covers sports from just about every angle with live updates and live programming too.
The new SportsCenter app makes sure you don't miss live events
Just in time for the start of a new NFL season, ESPN has updated its SportsCenter application on iOS and Android. The main highlight here is the addition of an On-Air feature, which allows users to get access to broadcasts of live events, like games or shows, with a simple tab. ESPN's newly added one-click access, not surprisingly, only applies to content it owns or has the rights to, so the SportsCenter app redirects to the ESPN Radio or WatchESPN apps, depending on the program. The Worldwide Leader in Sports notes that it also made alerts smarter in this fresh release, letting fans see related stories and videos each time they click on a notification. It's definitely an improvement over previous versions, but let us know what you think in the comments section.
Engadget Daily: how to disappear, the deal with 3D printers and more!
Today, we review Sony's lifelogging SmartBand wearable, investigate the ins and outs of 3D printing, learn how to escape the clutches of the internet and take a look at SportsCenter's new home. Read on for Engadget's news highlights from the last 24 hours.
This is ESPN's new home for 'SportsCenter'
After breaking ground on it more than two years ago, ESPN is finally ready to show viewers the Digital Center 2. In the 194,000-square foot building, located at its Bristol, Connecticut, campus, the sports media giant plans to have a total of five studios, one of which is now officially the new home of SportsCenter. As part of the move, the popular up-to-the-minute news show will be waving goodbye to the old Digital Center 1, a 10-year-old, 120,000-square foot space that has been its home for the past few years. "DC-1 was opened 10 years ago; we were only built for [broadcasting] four to five hours a day. Now we're doing like 17 hours," Rob King, senior vice president at ESPN, told Engadget. "It's been seven years in the making; DC-2 was built to be future-proof." With this in mind, King says the new building is prepared to handle the next wave of technology, whether that be producing content in 4K and 8K, or doing things like adapting shows to be interactive with social media.
ESPN renames ScoreCenter app to SportsCenter, adds a wealth of personalization
Say goodbye to ESPN's ScoreCenter app. Don't worry though, the sports broadcast network has renamed the popular mobile software SportsCenter alongside a redesign. The refresh brings video highlights, social functionality and personalized content to those looking to remain up to speed or follow along on-the-go. For example, you'll now be able to set favorite teams to quickly display content and get info on those clubs to the app's inbox. Clubhouses "for every team and league under the sun" serve up all of the latest franchise news in one convenient spot. Tweets from on-air commentators and shows are included with ESPN Now alongside access to WatchESPN content for easy streaming of live or archived events and much more. The latest version is now available for both iOS and Android devices via their respective app libraries.
ESPN on Xbox Live updated with all live ESPN content
Previously Xbox Live was a good place to see some of ESPN's more fringe live content, like log racing, plastic cup stacking and the occasional tennis match. Today all live ESPN content is streaming through your Xbox 360, including Monday Night Football, Sunday Night Baseball and more top draws from ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPNU, Buzzer Beater and Goal Line – granted only if you're an Xbox Live Gold subscriber, that is.The updated app on Xbox 360 still features all of the familiar Kinect gesture and voice commands required by Microsoft law, and lets users stream multiple events in split-screen format, set reminders for big games and track their favorite sports through a customizable menu. Next month, SmartGlass functionality will also be added to the app.You can download the improved app right now, simply by booting up the old app or heading to the appropriate section of your Xbox 360 dashboard.
ESPN EVP and CTO Chuck Pagano opens a new facility, sees 4K sports on the horizon
While we were very pleased to hear that our friend Chuck Pagano just got a new title at ESPN -- Executive Vice President & CTO -- we're even happier about his remarks at the opening of a new building at the sports broadcaster's Bristol campus. This week it broke ground on DC 2, a four-story 193,000 square foot building that should be ready to go in 2014 with studios, control rooms with plans to take over as the new home of SportsCenter. There's no word on exactly what tech ESPN is putting in, but with ESPN 3D already up and running and the 1080p-ready LA studios plus MPEG-4 broadcast equipment ready to go, it wasn't a shock to hear Chuck asked people to "get used to hearing the term 4K TV." If you're not familiar with the name, check after the break for an Engadget Show segment we filmed with him in Bristol last year as well as a press release that rattles off his (long) list of accomplishments.
ESPN3 comes exclusively to Xbox 360
The recently relaunched ESPN3 online portal is coming to Xbox 360 , as just announced during Microsoft's pre-E3 press conference. Trey Wingo and Josh Elliott from SportsCenter are on stage demonstrating with footage from a USC / Ohio State game, and of course it has built in Kinect controller support. 3,500 live sporting events, instant replays, highlights, polls all at your fingertips or by the sound of your voice. The PiP stuff will be familiar to fans who have already indulged online, but with the new control aspects (and of course, HD streaming) it could give a reasonable alternative to the existing channels. The usual requirement of Xbox Live Gold just like Netflix, Facebook, etc. is present, but beyond having a TV provider / ISP that's signed up for the package, there's no additional charge. Update: Wondering if you'll have access? Check the list of ESPN3 affiliates to see if your ISP is playing ball.
1080p / 60 fps production confirmed for ESPN's new L.A. studio
ESPN made a point of mentioning its new Lexington designed L.A. Live based studios (home of the new West Coast SportsCenter edition) would be the first capable of "full HD" 1080p production, but with no details we could only speculate on what that meant -- check that week's podcast for our take. We got in contact with Colleen Lynch of ESPN and confirmed the new equipment is designed for 1080p at 60 frames per second, with additional production equipment coming in over the next few months. There's no way to get that bandwidth home yet and won't be for at least several years but it's good to know the network is ready for whatever comes next. Check out the full response and a video clip of the studio -- for those who hit the sack before its 1 a.m. EST timeslot -- after the break.
ESPN's SportsCenter goes West Coast & 1080p production tonight
Think you've seen everything SportsCenter has to offer? Already a go to channel for most HDTV owners by default, the next big change to ESPN's daily news show is the debut of a West Coast produced edition, coming 5 days a week at 1 a.m. EST / 10 p.m. PST. The Sony-outfitted digs in the L.A. Live entertainment complex are the world's first capable of 1080p production (what, no 3D?), but until someone starts broadcasting live that way, it'll be the same 720p as usual when Neil Everett and Stan Verett bring it to your house featuring a Magic Johnson / Larry Bird interview on the 30th anniversary of their championship game tonight. Read - ESPN's studio in L.A. debuts Read - Bird and Magic Interview on Debut of SportsCenter from Los Angeles Monday, April 6
SportsCenter changes up the formula starting August 11
The daily SportsCenter rotation marks time for many a sports junkie, but starting this fall, everything will be different. Timed for the start of the Beijing Olympics, SportsCenter is switching to a live edition from 6 a.m. until 3 p.m., Monday through Friday. News vet Hannah Storm will host from 9 a.m. until noon each day, in an effort to balance with ESPN2's morning programming and ESPNews. Smaller tweaks include a continuous Bottom Line news ticker that scrolls headlines throughout the show and commercial breaks, and an ESPNews-style Rundown vertical listing of upcoming stories. Next spring ESPN takes the wrapper off its Sony-powered LA studio, debuting a 10 p.m. PT / 1 a.m. ET live SportsCenter broadcast skewed for the West Coast. Endless reruns of SportsCenter throughout the night and early morning have been a fixture for more than a decade, this adjustment strikes us on the level of political unrest, a weakening dollar and global climate change. [Via Variety]
Microsoft buys out SportsCenter ad space, for a night [update 1]
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Microsoft_buys_out_SportsCenter_ad_space_for_a_night'; Tonight's edition of ESPN's SportsCenter (11pm EST/8pm PST) will feature Microsoft as sole advertiser. Viewers sticking around for commercial breaks will be force-fed a full seven minutes of Xbox 360 advertising, topped with spots like "Cops & Robbers" and "Mad World." The ads tie into a contest sweepstakes that asks viewers to answer questions about the commercials in order to enter (don't worry, each clip is also viewable on the entry page). In case you're lazy, here are the answers: What does Marcus Fenix find in the puddle? (Answer: Cherub) What's the name of the person who starts the game? (Answer: Geoff) How many steering wheels are in the final scene? (Answer: 2) What's the first game to get jarred loose? (Answer: Gears of War) Which of the following titles are referenced on the cars' license plates? (Answer: Gears of War, Halo 3, Forza 2) [Update: Microsoft just sent us a note that the original announcement contained some errors. They've updated the official sweepstakes website with the following corrections: 1) People are not automatically entered into the sweepstakes; they have to get 3 out of the 5 questions correct to be in it. 2) People do not win a free trip to Bristol, Connecticut to visit the set of SportsCenter, but will win "a trip to New York, including a tour of the ESPN Studios." 3) The date that the sweepstakes ends is December 19 and not December 18.]
Sony marketing asks you to "Find Me"
I've been looking for days to find a direct-feed version of Sony's new commercial, entitled "Find Me." Unfortunately, I couldn't. "Find Me" is part of Sony's newly revamped PSP marketing plan. It tells the touching story of a man who must find a girl through a Memory Stick loaded with clues in photo and video form. A hard-to-get girl that plays with a PSP must be worth the effort of running around the city. The ad can be seen on shows like Family Guy, The Daily Show, and Sports Center."The PSP system has already been established as a popular gaming handheld, but it was designed to do so much more -- from playing music and videos to sharing photos and accessing the Internet," said Peter Dille, senior vice president of marketing, SCEA. "These marketing initiatives deliver the broader PSP brand message and offer PSP owners the entertainment experience they're thirsting for from a content perspective."[Via GameDaily]
ESPN live in next-gen NBA Live
EA is collaborating with the ESPN network to include real world sports coverage in NBA Live 07 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Aside from SportsCenter updates every twenty minutes, gamers will also have access to live streaming podcasts, including The Dan Patrick Show and Mike & Mike in the Morning. In addition, downloadable highlights from around the sport's world will be updated every hour. Here's to hoping Madden will get the same treatment.
