When executed at the highest level, golf appears beautifully simple. The greatest competitors in the sport swing a club with seemingly effortless grace, sending the ball on a perfect flight between towering pines and rolling along manicured greens toward a flag flapping in the Georgia breeze.
In these moments, we don’t see the countless hours of practice. We don’t see the history of injuries, exhaustion or frustration. Yet although we can’t see it, all that time and effort was necessary to create this seamless moment, tirelessly earned and presented as a gift to patrons of the sport.
These glimpses of simple perfection are why millions will watch the Masters Tournament this April. Delivering these moments in a seamless viewing experience to patrons around the world requires the right infrastructure—a solution architected using both technological innovation and human expertise.
For more than 20 years, IBM has partnered with Augusta National Golf Club to bring this spirit of innovation to the Masters Tournament.
This year, IBM Watson Media’s solution is designed to seamlessly transcode live footage of the Masters into 18 different formats, making sure that viewers across virtually any device and bandwidth receive the most premium viewing experience possible. For patrons who might be moving through an area with reduced bandwidth availability, there is even an audio-only stream to help ensure he or she can remain apprised of the absolute latest developments. And thanks to IBM Watson Media AI-powered highlights, patrons can easily catch up on any action they may have missed.
The greatest moments in athletics are often the most unexpected. When these occur, the demand for viewing content may hit unanticipated, and often unprecedented, viewership spikes in a matter of seconds. IBM Watson Media’s streaming platform is architected to seamlessly manage these spikes by employing an approach that balances the load across several content delivery networks (CDNs) to deliver a stream with exceptional quality, free of delays – even when demand reaches all-time highs.
Finally, multiple onsite and offsite redundancies help ensure that—in the event of equipment failure or other issues—viewers won’t miss any of the action.
Together, IBM and the Masters are creating experiences unlike any other by powering seamless mobile and online viewing experiences coupled with powerful AI technology that presents new and exciting ways to watch this historic Tournament. This April, no matter where you are, you’ll have a clear window into Augusta.
Interested in learning more about IBM Watson Media’s video streaming solutions? Fill out the form found here or visit video.ibm.com.