IBM backs tech startup using Watson for AI-powered news curation
IBM has announced that Oovvuu, an Australian technology startup, has launched a Watson powered video-on-demand news platform to connect viewers to relevant video and news content, whilst generating new advertising revenues for global media and news organisations.
As media organisations struggle to maintain advertising revenues, news and editorial teams are shrinking and the quality of journalism is being challenged.
News organisations around the world are relinquishing advertising revenue to social platforms, with estimates that Facebook and Google represent 85% of digital revenue and growing.
Building new revenue streams are critical not only to the survival of media and news organisations but also their ability to maintain and deliver quality journalism.
Oovvuu connects the world's best video content from 40 broadcast partners, such as ABC, BBC, and Bloomberg, with the most-read news articles using the power of IBM's Watson to match videos with breaking news.
The Oovvuu technology, with the help of Watson, 'watches' videos and 'reads' articles, matching them within media outlets where they are seen by a billion people daily.
In addition, delivering more targeted and relevant content creates higher customer engagement which results in visitors staying on the site for longer.
As a result, this higher engagement translates to higher revenue returns from advertising.
Watson services combine with the Oovvuu technology platform Compass, to analyse articles as soon as they are published, "digesting" more than 300,000 articles a day to better understand what audiences want when searching or reading about any given topic.
Built on the IBM Cloud with Watson Discovery News and Natural Language Understanding services, Compass can match up to 1000 videos to relevant articles in less than a second – significantly more than the 40 videos per day that manual processes can handle.
"Global and local news moves fast and by using machine learning, AI and the cloud, we can match videos with breaking news, embedding relevant videos directly into articles in real time," says Ricky Sutton, Oovvuu founder.
"Moving at speed and adding value to viewers is the lifeblood needed to secure new advertising value for media organisations.
"Digital video is the most pervasive form of communications and a strategic source of content for media and news organisations, and yet it has no value if it cannot be effectively managed and harnessed," says Amanda Johnston-Pell, IBM CMO and startup chief.
"Oovvuu's technology powered by IBM Watson offers a unique solution to source and manage video content that harnesses new value for customers, media and news organisations around the globe.
Oovvuu received access to entrepreneurial services offered through the IBM Global Entrepreneur Program, which provides access to the IBM Cloud platform, including more than 150 APIs and services in cognitive intelligence, blockchain, Internet of Things, DevOps and security.
Oovvuu are presenting at IBM Watson Summit in July 2017.
