More data is being generated as it relates to user experiences, in turn enabling greater personalization of content and advertising. The data starts with the DAI/SSAI strategies, which produces more enhanced data analytics. These analytics are giving content owners and platforms the necessary information to make calls on personalization of content and ads, which leads to higher CPMs and user retention.

With the abundance of videos and shrinking attention spans, capturing user attention has never been more critical. Delivering relevant, accessible, and interactive content not only engages users but also drives meaningful business outcomes. Personalization enhances engagement, increases time spent on platforms, and ultimately unlocks greater revenue potential. At AnyClip, we’re witnessing this shift firsthand as leagues, publishers, and broadcasters adopt AI-powered platforms to replace outdated video players and ad stacks. Our AI-driven content analysis delivers contextualized viewing experiences and hyper-relevant ad placements, meeting the growing demand for interactivity and relevance. In today’s landscape, personalization isn’t just a feature; it’s the key to unlocking new revenue streams and delivering the interactive experiences fans demand.

The elephant in the room is that many broadcasters and sports companies are challenged by younger generations of viewers. Essentially, everyone younger than 35 prefers to consume content on more-personalized and interactive platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Twitch. These platforms involve the user much more naturally than traditional broadcast formats do. The high level of interactivity also means these platforms learn to know the user much better, which increases inventory value, enabling higher revenues by DAI. One of the big trends in traditional media now is to experiment with production and distribution models that enable much more personalization and interactivity. This includes multi-versioning and multicamera live productions and curations, interactive graphics, and social ingredients to gamify the experience and cultivate more fan engagement.

Ateme’s leadership in dynamic ad insertion (DAI) reflects the evolving need for personalized, real-time content engagement in a low-latency world. Leveraging advanced manifest manipulation, Ateme empowers broadcasters to seamlessly integrate targeted ads into live and on-demand streams, aligning perfectly with viewer preferences without disrupting their experience. This capability is particularly critical in live sports, where the immediacy of the event is paramount. Ateme’s DAI solution not only optimizes engagement and revenue but also sets a new standard for operational efficiency, reducing the computational demands of ad insertion in low-latency environments. By shaping the future of personalized content, Ateme leads the charge in maximizing both viewer satisfaction and monetization.

The convergence of content types and technical capabilities will move sports-content consumption from a historically passive, uniform experience (by virtue of the one-to-many linear delivery of content) to one that is engaging, interactive, and personalized. The activities ascribed or relegated to “second screen” will migrate into direct-to-consumer streaming platforms. Fans will have the ability to select the application of augmentation driven by sports data, audio preferences, camera angles, social engagement, commerce integrations, fantasy and sports-betting presentations, and more. As control shifts from the distributor to the fan, viewers will have the ability to produce or influence their own game-viewing experience.

We’re seeing a big push for personalized and interactive content as viewers expect more-tailored and -engaging experiences. People want recommendations that match their interests and ads that feel relevant.

Today’s audiences not only expect to curate their own programming but also want to personalize their in-program-experience. With MPEG-H Audio, Fraunhofer IIS brings an interactive sound experience to broadcast and streaming. In combination with the amazing visuals delivered today, this makes for a custom experience that truly sets providers apart from the competition. Not only can providers deliver exciting personalization options — such as a choice of languages, commentators, team radio, or referee communication — and sound options like stadium atmosphere during sports broadcast, but they can also deliver easy-to-manage accessibility options, such as enhanced dialog and audio descriptions. In addition, they can easily match the sound of personalized ads to the viewer’s choices and settings for an unbroken experience.

Several streaming services are providing their viewers with the ability to select from multiple streams of the same event. This gives the viewer the ability to watch their “own” show. These streaming services are also embedding product in the stream, allowing the viewer to purchase products, vote, and interact. It also provides a transactional component to the stream.

AI will continue to enable personalizing content search and recommendations. With the advances in multimodal models, content itself will become more personalized to audiences, based on implicit cohort, explicit interests, or known individual viewing behavior. In the competition for attention from the increasing entertainment choices available to consumers, companies are meeting consumers where they are by responsibly adapting content through summarization, translation, and format conversion. Not only are companies streamlining and expanding their creative workflows for marketing, but AI is enabling contextual advertising that understands content, allowing ad operations to automate and optimize both targeting and business rules for compliance, competitive exclusion, and more.

The demand for personalization and interactive content is driving a more systemic approach to dynamic ad insertion (DAI) through end-to-end adoption of SCTE standards. At Imagine, we use SCTE 104 as the interface between the master-control and production-control systems to signal breaks during production, then translate them into SCTE 35 messages in the transport stream. Enriching these signals with contextual metadata — such as event details, game moments, or player actions — enables more-precise ad decisioning, allowing targeted and relevant ads whether for all viewers at the broadcast level or tailored to individual preferences.

Audiences now crave personalized, interactive experiences that truly engage them. They want to participate and connect meaningfully with content. Using AI, we help clients offer innovative features like gamified experiences that sync across devices, blending video, data, and interaction. Imagine fans reliving moments from a player’s perspective or receiving tailored stories. By transforming live video into data, we create unique views and predictive content that deepen engagement. Dynamic ad insertion allows personalized advertising that resonates with individual viewers. We collaborate closely with our clients to harness these trends, enhancing the entertainment experience while unlocking new revenue opportunities. Together, we’re shaping a more immersive and personal future for their audiences.

Social media has led the way in delivering personalized content, and it’s hard to imagine this not extending into sports venues as well. Right now, the fan perspective is watching sports content as a community as one. But fans of the same team have individual preferences. Casual fans may want a higher level of educational content, whereas hardcore fans are looking for advanced stats that communicate the individual nuances in every game. This is happening right now on broadcast channels with different feeds, including native translations of stats, but Mixon Digital can do this on steroids. I’m excited to create personalized feeds based on fan preference and behavior, which will deepen connection to their team and increase the sense of their community as one.

We are seeing an accelerating demand for personalized, interactive content in sports streaming, driven by fans’ demand for tailored, immersive experiences. Viewers expect more than passive consumption; they seek customized overlays, real-time data, and interactive controls that adapt to their preferences. Dynamic ad insertion (DAI) enables hyper-targeted, contextually relevant ads, enhancing engagement and monetization without disrupting viewing. Personalized features, such as user-driven highlights and on-demand–content curation, empower fans to shape their experience. This shift reflects a broader trend toward deep personalization and viewer-driven interactivity, transforming passive viewership into an engaging, participatory event tailored to each individual’s tastes.

Bespoke content can be created live. Real time gamification is enabled.

Sports audiences are demanding highly personalized experiences that drive new revenue streams. Real-time–betting interfaces integrated directly into streams are showing significantly higher handle compared with traditional approaches. Broadcasters are discovering that personalized ads delivered through real-time SSAI, along with integrated merchandising and interactive sponsorship experiences, generate higher returns on advertising spend. Viewers who engage with interactive features like custom camera angles and personalized statistics demonstrate substantially higher watch times and return rates. The key is seamlessly integrating these experiences to benefit both passive viewers and those seeking deeper interaction, ensuring value for all audience segments.

The shift to REMI and cloud-based production is transforming sports production by offering scalability and cost-efficiency. Traditional models with large crews and OB vans are being replaced by decentralized workflows leveraging the cloud for remote production, content management, editing, and distribution. This is a game-changer for grassroots and niche sports, enabling high-quality coverage on tight budgets. AI-powered production and REMI minimize human intervention while maintaining professional standards. At Pixellot, our AI-driven cloud solutions empower federations, leagues, and clubs to produce and distribute content remotely, democratizing sports broadcasting. Every game, regardless of scale, can now reach its audience. Pixellot’s platform also supports device-agnostic integrations, and we see the importance of integrating seamlessly with additional hardware crucial for unlimited scalability and flexibility in production.

Personalized and interactive content is becoming increasingly important in live sports viewing. For example, Red5’s collaboration with Torkhub has revolutionized motorsports streaming by delivering real-time event data alongside live video, enhancing fan engagement. Additionally, multiviewing experiences are growing both in-stadium and at home, allowing fans to choose their preferred camera angles and access dynamic content. At Red5, we’re also integrating Magnifi’s AI-driven clips, enabling automatic highlight creation during live events. This partnership streamlines highlight delivery, ensuring that exciting moments are instantly accessible without extra resources. Together, we’re enhancing the live experience, making it more interactive and tailored to fans’ preferences. As demand for personalized content grows, these innovations allow broadcasters to deliver engaging, on-demand experiences.

AI-Driven Hyper-Personalization in CTV Ads: “In 2025, AI will mature as a technology useful not just in improving processes and creating efficiencies but also in driving strategic initiatives and outcomes for brands. In the connected-TV space, GenAI will build on recent advances to create truly dynamic and contextual ad experiences, analyzing not only viewer demographics but moment-by-moment reactions. This will inspire a new level of hyper-personalization in CTV advertising, allowing advertisers to deliver messages that adapt to the context of a scene and to even viewers’ emotional states.”