Sony Acquires Beyond Sports; Will Combine With Hawk-Eye and Pulselive to Create End-to-End Data/Tracking Offerings

Beyond Sports was utilized for Nickelodeon's AR NFL Wild Card game broadcasts and NHL Stanley Cup Blocky livestreams

Sony has acquired Beyond Sports, an AI-based data analysis and visualization company that specializes in fan engagement. As a result of the deal, Sony is reconstructing its sports business organization with the Netherlands-based Beyond Sports joining Sony-owned optical tracking provider Hawk-Eye and digital media platform Pulselive under its sports business umbrella.

Beyond Sports technology is already being used in high-profile sports events, including Nickelodeon’s Emmy-winning, AR-powered NFL Wild Card game broadcasts the past two seasons and the NHL Stanley Cup Blocky livestreams during the Playoffs last June.

“We are confident that the acquisition of Beyond Sports will further strengthen our sports business to realize new sports entertainment bridging live and virtual worlds,” says Hiroshi Kawano, Corporate Executive, EVP, Sony Corporation. “By maximizing Beyond Sports’ technology and expertise, we aim to create new sports entertainment experiences that unlock the power and emotion of sports.”

“We are delighted to welcome Beyond Sports as we further strengthen Sony’s sports business,” says Rufus Hack, CEO, Hawk-Eye and Pulselive. “We feel that marrying the unique capabilities of Beyond Sports alongside the incredible businesses of Hawk-Eye and Pulselive will truly enhance our ambition to be a strategic partner to the world’s biggest sports leagues.

“Beyond Sports leverages high-quality to create new and immersive sports content experiences,” he adds. “We are excited to continue to build out the breadth and distinctiveness of our capabilities and feel the data tracking expertise of Hawk-Eye paired with the data visualization expertise of Beyond Sport will be a winning combination for our clients.”

Sony says the Beyond Sports team brings an additional layer of data expertise to the group, especially when it comes to human movement sciences and modular yet scalable applications. Its proprietary engine will accelerate collective efforts in making three dimensional visualizations and applications available to rights holders and fans.

Beyond Sports’ efforts are platform agnostic, meaning that any output format imaginable is ready to be used instantly, from traditional TV all the way to fully immersive mixed reality headsets, positioning itself as the gateway to live sports in the Metaverse.

“We couldn’t be happier to be joining Sony’s sports businesses,” says Sander Schouten, Beyond Sports’ CEO & Co-Founder. “Hawk-Eye and Pulselive offer an incredible suite of products and services to their clients globally, across different sports and end user touch points, and we’re excited to add ourselves to these conversations.

“Our vision at Beyond Sports has always been to challenge the status quo when it comes to sports data, data visualization and sports content consumption, and we will keep on doing so for the benefit of everyone involved,” he adds. “We believe that we can accelerate that process alongside the existing businesses, to fully utilize the combined potential and cater to the needs of the new generation of sports fans.”

According to Sony, adding Beyond Sports to the it portfolio means a step closer for the group to a full end-to-end partnership for sports rights holders using Hawk-Eye, Pulselive, and Beyond Sports in a single cohesive ecosystem. As for existing partners, Sony says this is an active step towards not only receiving best-in-class officiating and digital technology, but also an outlet for the group’s unique data capture capabilities to drive additional commercial value and fan engagement opportunities.