BT Sport has hosted the live final of its Innovate 21 competition, which saw just four finalists selected to present their ideas and technology to a panel of expert judges, led by Jamie Hindhaugh, chief operating officer, BT Sport, at the BT Sport Studios in Stratford.
London based Sport Buff, the brainchild of Benn Achilleas and Jonty Whitehead, impressed the judges with its broadcast in-app overlay technology to deliver increased fan engagement during live sport. The interactive technology sits directly over a sports broadcast, enabling gamification, live polls, predictions, trivia, purchasing, real-time betting, social media, messaging and more, earning fans points and allowing them to compete against their friends on live leaderboards.
Benn Achilleas, CEO, Sport Buff, said: “It was a really great day, and despite not coming away victorious, it was brilliant to be in the company of so many fantastic entrepreneurs, exchanging ideas and insights. We’d like to thank BT Sport for the opportunity and the judges for their valuable feedback. This is an exciting time for Sport Buff and we can’t wait to bring our platform to more fans for new experiences with the sports they love.”
Sport Buff was one of four companies to make it to the final, alongside StreamInsights, AriSports and Sport X, with AriSports’ digital platform for football fans to predict on-pitch events named the winners on the night. Those involved in identifying both a shortlist and winner included journalist and technology expert Lucy Hedges, Matt Stagg, director of mobile strategy, BT Sport, and BT Sport presenters Brian O’Driscoll, Suzi Perry and Robbie Savage.
