This year's Wimbledon tennis championships are expected to be the most intelligent and data-rich in history thanks to its continued partnership with IBM.
The IT giant has unveiled its latest range of updates and smart features as part of its work together with the tournament organiser, the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC).
New additions this year include an improved Fan Predictions feature, an improved IBM Power Index that can help discover the next generation of champions, and improved match insights powered by IBM's Watson AI system.
Innovation Wimbledon 2022
"We're very excited about this year," said AELTC Marketing and Communications Director Alexandra Willis, "but of course we can't just think about the past, we have to look to the future at the same time... the world." is changing all around us and the ways people consume and continue to change.
“We have this innovation program that we are very proud to offer in partnership with IBM and we often talk about the role of innovation such as preserving Wimbledon traditions and ensuring they remain relevant to the world. It is not a matter of opposing to tradition. and innovation, it is more about making them work collaboratively.
As one of the most iconic events not just in tennis, but perhaps in all of sport, Wimbledon attracts many different types of fans, with different levels of knowledge, so providing a point of view is essential. app
Delivering a fan experience that appeals to everyone, from the casual Wimbledon watcher to the data-hungry hardcore insider, has been a challenge, but AELTC and IBM now believe they can conquer it.
(Image credit: IBM)
This year's championships sees an expansion of IBM Power Index, the data and statistics platform powered by IBM Watson that powers the website and app to deliver a world of information for fans.
In addition to point-by-point analysis of every match in the tournament, their Match Insights tool has been enhanced with "Win Factors," a more accessible way to explain to fans exactly why a player is doing well. With IBM Watson Discovery and IBM Cloud, the tool can collect data such as form, head-to-head battles, ATP/WTA rankings and, through natural language processing (NLP), even recent media coverage to deliver more fan-friendly information. . to help detect those to watch or any possible interruptions.
Fans will now be able to debate and discuss their new icons through the 'Have Your Say' fan predictions feature on the official Wimbledon app. This will give fans the ability to predict the outcome of any match and then compare that view to the other two fans around the world, as well as IBM Watson-generated “Odds to Win” predictions.
(Image credit: Shutterstock.com/Leonard Zhukovsky)
Entering their 33rd year as partners, this year's championships are more technologically advanced than ever, thanks in no small part to IBM's "innovation platform," said Kevin Farrar, head of sports partnerships at IBM UK and Ireland.
"It's about collaborating and co-creating content to bring the beauty and drama of championships to life for tennis fans around the world," he said, adding that the "explainable AI" the company involves is essential.
"It's about collecting massive amounts of data, creating compelling and engaging insights to attract new fans, and ensuring that fans who are already engaged with the platform stay with us."
"It's a great showcase of IBM's capabilities...data is at its heart."
