Welsh Netball franchise the Celtic Dragons in partnership with Lightmaker and TokBox have been nominated for the Fanalyse ‘Best Technology Partner’ 2017.
The Celtic Dragons, who are the only Welsh team within the prestigious Vitality Netball Superleague, were the first ever women’s sport in the UK to pilot a live Q&A session where their fans could ‘call in’ and speak with their idols. The session was powered by the Web Real-time Communication (Web RTC) platform ‘Spotlight’ delivered by Lightmaker and Tokbox using Opentok technology.
Hosted by former Wales international and Celtic Dragons star Rosie Pretorius, ‘Green Army’ fans from across the country visited the Celtic Dragons website to ask current team members their burning questions. Mid-court superstar Bethan Dyke alongside tenacious defenders Leila Thomas and Stacey Peeters met countless fans online and even faced a few dares live on air.
“We are thrilled to have been nominated for the ‘Best Technology Partner’ alongside Lightmaker and Tokbox,” said Celtic Dragons Commercial and Operations Manager, Catherine Marin.
“Welsh Netball were very fortunate to be able to pilot exciting new technology that allowed our supporters to have face time with their idols and we’re thrilled that so many young fans were able to get involved and ask their questions.
“This kind of user-friendly platform really allows us to make that connection between grass roots netball and elite sport that drives what we do, and we’re very proud to be the first women’s sport in the UK to pilot this.”
On the nomination, Lightmaker’s Managing Director Paul Hudson, said:
“We are excited to be nominated for Best Technology Partner along with Tokbox for the collaboration on the Green Army Q&A. Web RTC technology is becoming more and more popular and it’s great to see Celtic Dragons and Welsh Netball leading the way in UK sport when it comes to fan engagement.”
The Fanalyse team are an organisation which supports sports businesses with fan engagement. The Fanalyse Awards 2017 (#FES17) will be held on Thursday 27 July at Cardiff’ Principality Stadium. The winners will be announced following an event which will host a top class selection of speakers, industry leading delegates and partners from around the world.
Welsh Netball’s Chief Executive Sarah Jones will be part of the ‘Experience Marketing and Activation’ Panel which will be held in the afternoon of the Fanalyse event. Sarah Jones is one of only two women to feature in the Fanalyse list of speakers and panel members.
ENDS
Editor’s Notes:
- The Celtic Dragons netball franchise is owned and run by Welsh Netball – the National Governing Body for netball in Wales. More info: https://cardiffdragons.com/
- The Celtic Dragons are one of ten teams from across the UK which compete in the presitigious Vitality Netball Superleague. More info: http://www.netballsl.com/
- Lightmaker is a leading digital agency with 20 years’ experience in the industry. “With offices around the globe, we have worked with clients such as Chelsea FC, Wayne Rooney, RBS and BNY Melon to bring their ideas to life in the digital world. We believe in creating meaningful and long standing relationships with our clients to ensure all the digital needs are not only met, but exceeded. We don’t just build websites, we do so much more.”
- TokBox develops and operates OpenTok, the leading cloud platform for adding live video, voice and messaging to client websites and mobile apps. Tokbox believe that integrating real-time communications into products should be simple, whether you’re developing an app for one-to-one calls or for complex large-scale broadcasts.