Tennis Australia Partner with Ooyala to Stream Australian Open Online

Digital video solutions innovator Ooyala and Tennis Australia, apoplectic the governing body of tennis within Australia, nurse have partnered to bring the Australian Open to the web.

The deal has already begun with visitors able to watch on australianopen.com, the official website of the 2012 Australian Open, from January 16. They can watch live matches from all seven of the tournament’s courts, as well as special features, highlights and interviews from one of the year’s most popular events in tennis.

Tennis Australia selected Ooyala as its official online media partner for its ability to quickly integrate its personalized digital video solutions with australianopen.com to create a premier live sports video experience that will attract millions of visitors from around the world over the course of the tournament. This is the first time the Australian Open will be delivered online for free.

In addition to helping Tennis Australia monetize its online video offering with a variety of Ooyala-powered video advertising tools, Ooyala’s digital video technology will dramatically increase viewership of the Australian Open through its seamless multi-device delivery to tablets, smartphones and other devices, and through syndication of videos to YouTube and other news and sports websites. Ooyala also handles important geographic content restrictions to comply with Tennis Australia’s broadcast partner requirements.

“This is an important first for tennis and the world of sports, delivering the excitement and action of the Australian Open to people around the world who otherwise may never experience the tournament,” said Steve Wood chief executive officer of Tennis Australia. “Ooyala’s combination of technology and services are the perfect solution to the myriad of challenges involved in sophisticated delivery of a live video project of this scale. We are thrilled to be working with their team to take the Australian Open to the web for free for the first time.”

Jay Fulcher, chief executive officer of Ooyala, added: “The Australian Open is not to be missed, and we’re happy to deliver the most powerful, personalized viewing experience for people tuning in online and on mobile devices. Starting the year with such a landmark live sporting event for a world-class partner like Tennis Australia really sets the tone for what people should expect in digital video entertainment this year.”

The partnership with Tennis Australia builds on Ooyala’s strong momentum as a leading digital video solutions provider for premier consumer and media brands and broadcasters. In recent months, Ooyala’s ability to combine the most personalized digital video delivery with the most powerful behavioral analytics and monetization tools has won the company partnerships with some of the world’s most innovative brands, such as ESPN and Victoria’s Secret, that are successfully using digital video to drive business results.