NTT WEST AND ABC GROUP FORM PIXELLOT POWERED NTTSPORTICT TO FOCUS ON LOCAL JAPANESE SPORTS AND THEIR FANBASES

NTT West and Asahi Broadcasting Group HD Form Joint Company to Promote Regional and Amateur Sports Network in Japan’s Booming Sports Market

Tel Aviv, March 25, 2020. Pixellot, the world’s leading provider of AI-Automated™ sports production and streaming solutions is happy to announce the strategic partnership to provide its AI-Automated solutions to NTTSportict co. ltd, a new company that was formed by NTT West and Asahi Broadcasting Group HD in Japan. The new company will provide video content production and distribution to sports facilities and organizations, based exclusively on Pixellot’s technology.

In recent years, the Japanese domestic sports market has been rapidly expanding. According to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, it is expected to reach 15.2 Trillion Yen ($136B) by 2025. In parallel, the sports video distribution market is expected to reach 86.3B Yen ($770M) by then. The new company plans to contribute to the development of sports competitions and amateur sports in metropolitan as well as rural areas.

“We are proud to have Pixellot as our partner in bringing automated production to semi-pro and local leagues,” said Masatoshi Nakamura, President of NTTSportict. ”After conducting extensive trials in several leagues, we concluded that Pixellot is the leading technology for our long-term plans. We are moving forward to increase local sports coverage to ensure that every team and player can get the exposure that they deserve while providing communities and teams with the ability to engage at a high level, watching live games, replays and sharing game and player highlights.”

“We are happy to have been chosen as the providers of the technology that will be powering the coverage of local leagues in Japan,” said Alon Werber, CEO of Pixellot. ”The ability to broadcast games live will enable local and amateur sports to come out of the current crisis and develop the leagues. Players and clubs will connect on a much higher level with their fan base. The foresight of our partners to put this technology in place will be a major factor in helping society return to normal after the pandemic passes.”

“We are already seeing some of the APAC leagues returning to play” Says Christopher Yap, Head of Sales & Business Development, APAC. “The financial recuperation process of the top leagues will be faster than the secondary and lower divisions. This is precisely where automatic production can help.”

Several sports associations welcomed the news: The Nara Football Association who participated in trials last year announced: “We will transform games into valuable content so that everyone in Japan can enjoy local sports!”. The Kumamoto Prefecture Handball Association stated: “This will create a world where more and more people can enjoy handball games, that take place in rural areas.” The Japan Ice Hockey Federation added: “We will look forward to creating new value for athletes and fans.”

Pixellot’s AI-based automated production solution provides the sports market with easy and affordable ways to produce and distribute high-quality game and player videos. Pixellot works with schools, clubs, leagues and federations worldwide, and currently produces over 90,000 hours of live sports per month from over 6,000 fields and venues. In addition, added-value features such as game and player highlights increase the engagement with fans and the use of social media.

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Media contact
Yossi Tarablus | Director of Marketing | +972 522 890 297 | Yossit@pixellot.tv

Business Contact
Christopher Yap | Head of Sales & Business Development, APAC | +65 9111 3130 | chrisy@pixellot.tv