In live sports broadcasting, there are no second takes. The game starts whether broadcasters are ready or not, and traditionally, fans have wanted to consume sports live. However, viewing preferences have shifted as new generations of fans want to watch games and highlights on their schedule, whether at home, on public transportation, or on a lunch break.
Fox Sports Mexico needed more than just a technology provider to deliver that experience. We needed a true teammate.
Struggling to keep up with fans
Owned by the Lauman Group, Fox Sports Mexico is the country’s leading multiplatform sports brand. We are a 100% Mexican company that offers 24/7/365 national and international sports coverage to Mexican fans, and customers access our live coverage and expert analysis through four pay TV channels, our app, and our website.
Not long ago, our legacy streaming platform couldn’t meet the demands of an audience craving live, uninterrupted action across numerous devices. Customers constantly requested increased compatibility with more smart TVs, more mobile manufacturers, more browsers, and more streaming boxes, particularly Chromecast. We only offered a couple of payment gateways and were limited to a very small number of mobile devices, browsers, and streaming boxes. These limitations prevented us from supporting the flawless, low-latency live streams that fans expect.
As senior VP of media operations, production, and technology at Fox Sports, I knew this was a critical moment in our development. How could we best address customer concerns and deliver a high-quality streaming experience that did justice to our premium content?
A customer-centric partner becomes our MVP
The first step was to offer services on the most devices and subscription gateways possible. We wanted to outsource it for several reasons:
- We have a lot of in-house technical knowledge, but the rate of innovation means we would be forever playing catchup if we tried to assemble an in-house solution.
- Remaining secure and compliant would be a struggle.
- Whatever we created would always live within Mexico’s borders and never reach a global scale.
The best way to approach this project, then, was through a platform as a service (PaaS). In addition to having the right skills and expertise, the right partner had to share our customer-first mindset and the sense of urgency that live sports demand. Together, we could create the top-notch experience our customers crave.
Enghouse was that partner, and their Media Platform as a Service was the solution. It offered a low-latency, industry-leading sports streaming service that maximized our device integrations and subscription gateways right out of the box. The partnership also allowed us to leverage Enghouse’s global expertise and experience from working with customers worldwide. We also liked that the Media Platform as a Service offered the flexibility for us to retain control and ownership over certain parts of the ecosystem.
Enghouse’s commercial and professional services teams worked closely with our engineering team to design and scope the project and collaborate on the Minimum Viable Product (MVP). The team was keen to help us manage the project, minimize any risks, and plan for future updates.
Guided by Enghouse’s customer-centric approach, we developed a solution that gave us mission-critical support for our live sporting events broadcasts. It was a straightforward transition, and everything went as planned.
A live streaming app delivers non-stop action
Our new platform was the foundation for launching the Fox Sports MX app for live, immersive sports content. Enghouse helped us engineer the entire app ecosystem, from how users got the app to what they could do within it. The app significantly expanded the number and type of devices and subscription gateways available to our customers. Enghouse provided the Chromecast integration our fans demanded, and the team also added additional payment methods.
We now own a dynamic, stable, technically robust platform where viewers can enjoy the highest-quality audio and video. Our new app delights customers, who enjoy new features such as the ability to pause and restart a live event from any point and connect multiple devices and simultaneous sessions under a single account. Customer support questions have become less technical and involve more “happy problems” like forgotten passwords. The Fox Sports MX app has been solidly in the black since its first quarter — a major improvement over our financially struggling legacy platform.
Patricia Salgado, our head of marketing, puts it best:
Enghouse has helped us become more versatile. The digital world is growing very fast. Enghouse has allowed us to keep pace and keep the consumers necessities aligned to our product. It really was a game changer for consumers and also for us as a brand.
Enghouse makes us a stronger team
Sports are always evolving and the industry is always innovating. Every major event offers new technologies for analysis, and that’s what our fans are used to watching. Enghouse helped us bring all that excitement and innovation into our direct-to-consumer offering and reduce the gap between modern industry standards and our previous experience.
Even with the best technology, the people make the difference. In Enghouse, we found the teammate we need to go head to head against big global brands. By choosing a partner who shares our vision and dedication, Fox Sports Mexico transformed our streaming platform from a struggling legacy product to a profitable, scalable solution. Now, Mexican sports fans can get every piece of the action.
Even with the best technology, the people make the difference. Enghouse’s commercial, engineering, and project management teams have been properly aligned with Fox Sports Mexico since day one.
