Video content optimisation is a key element of brand marketing strategies, and even more so if your brand is in gaming.
The pandemic showed the world that video games connect and entertain. Over 662.7m people tuned in to live-streamed gaming content in 2020, a jump of 11 percent over the previous year, according to Newzoo.
As millions flocked to video content, esports organisations, tournament organisers, and brands learned the importance of optimisation. Being able to identify, clip, and share entertaining moments quickly can be the difference between ‘you should have been there’ and ‘come join us right now’.
That’s where companies like REELY come in. REELY.AI is an AI startup that provides lightning-fast tools for content creators and companies, allowing entities to automatically clip and tag interesting moments in gaming broadcasts. This allows for real-time social media sharing, as well as making it easier for brands to create content.
According to eMarketer, there will be 56.2m monthly gaming-video-content (GVC) viewers in the U.S. in 2021, up by 6.2 percent from last year. According to REELY, this can only be seen as a good sign.
“The more content there is, the more validation [it brings] to the gaming industry,” REELY.AI COO Maria Consuelo Gonima said on the ESI Focus Podcast. “We’ve seen the potential of the esports industry and I believe this tool will be the thing to amplify it.”
REELY: Feed your community
It’s now possible to post fast and create real-time video clips in a fraction of the time thanks to platforms like REELY.
Firstly, customers add the stream to their REELY dashboard and tell the platform which game will be played. Secondly, the person responsible sets the clip length and what kind of action is needed to be captured. This could be anything from a kill to how excited a player gets on-screen. According to the firm, a clip is ready within minutes to share with a call to action.
The usefulness of this technology is obvious for established streamers, esports teams, and tournament organisers, however, the platform can also help those who are just starting out.
“This is an opportunity for those players who are maybe too scared to go out into the world with their streams who just want to showcase their best plays,” said Gonima. “Anyone who streams or plays can be part of this community.”
Why snack-sized content is important
The pandemic brought several challenges for esports and its brand sponsors. While gaming content has traditionally lived online, tournament organisers found themselves contending with various time zones, inconsistent internet connections, and remote workspaces that weren’t designed for professional broadcasting.
REELY.AI has already partnered with Overwatch League team Houston Outlaws and tournament organiser PlayVS to optimise video content. As of this writing, the tech startup supports titles such as VALORANT, Fortnite, NBA2K, and FIFA.
“Most people don’t have time to watch a four-to-five-hour stream,” said REELY.AI CEO Daniel Evans on the ESI Focus podcast. “Some people do, but for the wider audience, we need to develop snack-sized content that is easy to consume very quickly.”
Evans likened the current state of esports to the way traditional sports was before ESPN. There are so many games and streams to watch that it’s next to impossible to follow them all. ESPN introduced bite-sized content that allowed people to become fans and understand the space quickly. Suddenly, fans could gather up-to-date information on an entire league or multiple teams without watching every single event.
Before esports was a billion-dollar powerhouse, teams like OpTic Gaming gained notoriety on YouTube for their sniper kill montage videos. That tradition continues today, but luckily for new gamers, streaming, seeking, editing, and sharing videos has never been easier.
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The benefits of video optimisation
Of course, anyone can edit and post videos the traditional way, and no tool will ever replace the art of storytelling. REELY.AI’s tool simply helps those storytellers gather resources more efficiently. Plus, those who need to produce and share a lot of content should optimise the process in any way possible. Video content optimisation means editors can spend more time on meaningful content, and reduce the leg work in assembling highlight videos.
REELY.AI says its tools will not eliminate the job of the editor and it is not trying to be the ‘ESPN of esports’, but rather create opportunities for more people to share content.
The ‘Hype Score’ algorithmic feature of REELY’s product detects and saves ‘hype’ during a video and issues it a score from one to ten. The score is based on several factors, from excitement and volume of the audio to specific events, such as a headshot. REELY.AI consults subject-matter experts for each esports title to fine-tune the AI’s decision-making.
Editors can use filters to locate clips based on their preferences, such as ‘multi-kills with hype score over 6’ or ‘any hype score moments over 9’.
In short, optimisation is crucial to serious content creators and those who partner with them. To learn more about REELY.AI and the tools it offers, visit their website.
Supported by REELY.AI