Amazon bolstered its growing library of live sports programming with the addition of NBA League Pass to Prime Video Channels. The NBA’s live streaming product is now available on Amazon’s video platform for Prime members who also subscribe to NBA League Pass ($28.99/month or $169 for a season) that provides access to live out-of-market regular season games for all NBA teams. The games will stream much like they do on the other 19 platforms where NBA League Pass is available. But those using Fire TV devices will have access to Prime Video’s X-Ray feature that shows fans team stats and player… Read More
Jeff Tran, a former director of sports marketing and alliances at Microsoft, was indicted on five counts of wire fraud on Wednesday. Federal prosecutors allege that he attempted to steal more than $1.5 million from the tech giant via fraudulent invoices and selling Super Bowl tickets allocated for Microsoft employees. Tran oversaw the company’s promotional relationship with the NFL, which includes the use of Microsoft Surface tablets on the sidelines during games and other marketing-related initiatives. Prosecutors say Tran used his position to create fake third-party vendor invoices, then routing cash from Microsoft through the vendors to his own personal… Read More
Amazon is using Twitch and its Thursday Night Football live streams to test new gamification features that might change the way we watch live sports — particularly if legal sports betting spreads across the country. As part of a two-year deal with the NFL worth a reported $130 million, Amazon is streaming 11 Thursday Night Football games this season. It follows Amazon’s initial one-year deal with the NFL last season. New this season is Amazon’s decision to stream games not only on Prime Video but also Twitch, the popular live-streaming platform it acquired for nearly $1 billion in 2014. I tuned into… Read More
Today’s featured stories Microsoft partners with Indian cricket legend to develop a smart bat that tracks live analytics Alexa and Cortana can now control Xbox devices as new ‘skill’ for digital assistants rolls out broadly Photos: High-tech, video-mapping light show turns Seattle’s MOHAI into a pulsating projection surface Subscribe to GeekWire on YouTube. [Editor’s Note: TLDR is GeekWire’s tech news rundown show, hosted by Starla Sampaco. Watch today’s update above, subscribe to GeekWire on YouTube, and check back weekday afternoons for more.]
A startup wants to help basketball players improve their jump shot — with just a smartphone. Among the flurry of announcements made at its press event on Wednesday, Apple showed off HomeCourt, a new iPhone app that uses augmented reality to track basketball shots. AR tech built into the iPhone — including the new A12 Bionic chip — and artificial intelligence technology developed by HomeCourt maker Nex Team can detect a hoop and basketball to measure kinematics, trajectory, release times, and number of shots made. Apple brought out former NBA star point guard Steve Nash and a Nex Team founder… Read More
