Genvid releases interactive streaming for esports broadcasts

Genvid Technologies has released its technology for interactive streaming of esports broadcasts.

The software development kit (SDK) will enable developers to make any multiplayer game (esports titles, virtual reality games, and massively multiplayer online games) more compelling to watch on streaming services, such as YouTube.

If a game developer adopts the SDK, viewers will be able to interact with the broadcast they are watching. They can change the camera angle to any angle that they like. They can mark a particular player to follow. And they can even interact with advertisements embedded in the broadcast.

Jacob Navok, CEO of Genvid Technologies in New York, believes that the SDK will enable developers to create interactive broadcasts that will drive more revenue from premium esports broadcasts.

Genvid has integrated supported for YouTube, Unreal Engine 4, and Amazon Web Services.

“Interactive streaming — the ability to click on video as though you are in the game — is the future of the game industry,” said Navok, in a statement. “Until Genvid, developers looked at viewership as a marketing tool. With our patent-pending technology, the bifurcation between players and viewers breaks down, leading to a new market of revenue opportunity through viewership and a revolution for the game industry.”

Using the Genvid SDK’s simplified cloud launch functionality, developers and broadcasters can also generate and operate as many dynamic, interactive server-side cameras as are needed to showcase the in-game stadium.

More than 25 game developers (including the world’s largest publishers) and video game broadcasters participated in the company’s pre-release testing program.

“As an eSports broadcaster, we’re always looking for innovative technologies that push the viewing experience forward,” said Andy Vander Woude, CEO of Next Generation Esports (NGE), in a statement. “Genvid’s tech makes video content clickable and interactive in a way we’ve never seen before.”

The Genvid SDK maps viewer interactions onto the video itself in real time. As a result, livestreams can be monetized through transactions that are uniquely targeted to the person watching, leading to a revenue opportunity for game developers between sponsorships and in-stream purchases.

“Game developers have been looking for solutions that enable meaningful participation in the streaming market,” said Andy Kipling, CEO of Hardsuit Labs in Seattle, in a statement. “Genvid’s technology opens new opportunities for game creators.”

Navok founded Genvid in 2016 with a team that included the former technical and business leadership of Square Enix Holdings Co. Ltd. subsidiary Shinra Technologies, which shut down in January 2016.

Genvid is backed by March Capital Partners and OCA Ventures. The company has seven employees.

Here’s Navok at CES 2017, highlighting the capabilities of the platform:

And here’s an overview video from Genvid: