THEO Customer Story

At a Glance

NASCAR, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, is the premier American auto racing organization known for its high-speed, competitive races and passionate fanbase. With a rich 76-year history, NASCAR attracts millions of fans in the United States and internationally.

To enhance the fan experience, NASCAR provides live race updates, driver stats, race schedules, videos, live in-car cameras, and interactive features through their website and apps, including NASCAR Mobile (its official league-level app) and the NASCAR Tracks app. These platforms keep fans connected and engaged with the sport, whether they are live at the races or watching remotely.

Premium, cross-platform video experiences are crucial for NASCAR. Ensuring seamless, high-quality video streaming on their website and apps allows fans to enjoy races from any location and on any device. This commitment to top-tier digital experiences keeps fans not only engaged but also enhances their overall viewing experience, making cross-platform video playback a vital part of NASCAR’s strategy to maintain and grow their fanbase.

The Challenge

A few years ago, NASCAR partnered with a commercial video player vendor instead of building an in-house player using open-source libraries. However, this video player supported only web platforms. To address this limitation, NASCAR used the web player in webviews on mobile, including for their React Native apps. This approach resulted in issues such as limited analytics data, missing features like casting, and a sub-par full-screen experience. Consequently, the NASCAR team had to dedicate substantial maintenance efforts to resolve technical problems.

Recognizing the need for a better solution, NASCAR initiated the search for a new cross-platform video player. The goal was to ensure the NASCAR team could focus their development efforts on the fan experience with the support of a strong partner. Key requirements for the new solution included:
● Native mobile SDKs
● Full React Native support
● Easy integration with their ads solutions (Google DAI, Google IMA) and analytics solutions (MOAT, Comscore, Adobe Experience)
● Premium features, including casting and Picture-in-Picture
● Expert support from video playback specialists

The Solution

While searching for a new solution, the NASCAR team evaluated various premium video players on the market before ultimately deciding on THEOplayer for two key reasons.

First, they were impressed by how seamlessly THEOplayer integrated into their native and React Native apps. THEOplayer offered the fastest and most cost-efficient way to deliver premium cross-platform video experiences, thanks to:

● Extensive React Native support and robust documentation that streamlined internal development processes.
● Ready-made & open-source ads and analytics connectors for both the native and React Native SDKs. The Comscore, Adobe and Moat analytics connectors also allowed NASCAR to gather the additional data points and insights they were looking for, to further optimize the fan experience.
● A wide range of features, including Picture-and-Picture, and also casting capabilities, allowing NASCAR fans to enjoy content on the big screen, further enhancing their viewing experience.
● Open Video UI, an open-source library of player UI components, allowing NASCAR to easily build and customize their video player UI.

“THEOplayer had most things that we needed out of the box and we didn't have to have many conversations around features.” said Ryan Yow, Director of Products at NASCAR.

Secondly, NASCAR found that THEOplayer allowed them to refocus on the fan experience. They were impressed with the expert support and responsiveness of the THEO team, who closely collaborated during the proof-of-concept and integration phases. “The player is great, but honestly, my favorite aspect is working with the THEO team. It's the relationships we built and the trust in the team that truly matters,” said Fraser Nye, Project Manager at NASCAR.

Regular updates and maintenance by THEO experts, along with rigorous cross-platform testing and optimization, ensure NASCAR has a reliable and future-proof video playback solution.

“THEOplayer has excellent cross-platform compatibility. Knowing that we would get a better React Native integration with vendors through THEO was the main reason for our switch. I trust your expertise in video delivery and really appreciate the THEO innovations to further enhance viewer Quality of Experience. It’s a relief for our team to rely on THEO for these improvements without having to worry about it ourselves.”

Patrick Carroll

Managing Director of Technologies at NASCAR

The Results

The project ramped up in mid-January and successfully rolled out on April 10, taking just about three months in total. Everything went smoothly, and the app updates were launched on schedule in April as planned.

The implementation of THEOplayer into the NASCAR website and apps did not only allow NASCAR to focus their efforts on the NASCAR fan experience instead of video player maintenance but also brought several additional key benefits:

Enhanced Viewer Quality of Experience: New features such as Picture-in-Picture and casting, improved full screen functionality, reduced video startup times, and fewer bugs have significantly improved the viewer Quality of Experience. Fraser Nye, project manager at NASCAR, said, “After integrating THEOplayer, we've observed fewer bugs, increased impressions, and received better feedback from our internal team members.”
New Monetization Opportunities: The ready-made connectors for NASCAR’s third-party ad insertion solution made integration seamless and allowed NASCAR to explore new ad technologies and monetization opportunities.
Improved Insights with Enhanced Analytics: In-depth analytics now provide previously unavailable insights, helping NASCAR to further optimize the fan experience. “Using a webview on the React Native side meant that we couldn't do a lot of really in-depth analytics. Thanks to the THEOplayer out-of-the-box analytics integrations, we can now get some good insights to make further improvements down the road,” said Patrick Carroll, Managing Director of Technology at NASCAR.

About NASCAR

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States and owner of 14 of the nation’s major motorsports entertainment facilities. NASCAR sanctions races in three national series (NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR Xfinity Series™, and NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series™), four international series (NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race, NASCAR Canada Series, NASCAR Mexico Series, NASCAR Whelen Euro Series), four regional series (ARCA Menards Series, ARCA Menards Series East & West and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour) and a local grassroots series (NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series). The International Motor Sports Association™ (IMSA®) governs the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship™, the premier U.S. sports car series. NASCAR also owns Motor Racing Network, Racing Electronics, and ONE DAYTONA. Based in Daytona Beach, Florida, with offices in five cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races annually in 11 countries and more than 30 U.S. states.

For more information visit www.NASCAR.com and www.IMSA.com, and follow NASCAR on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, X and Snapchat.

Webinar: Benefits of using a commercial React Native video player vs. DIY with open source

Speeding Ahead: NASCAR Selects THEOplayer for Premium Cross-Platform Video Playback Experiences

At a Glance

The Challenge

The Solution

Patrick Carroll

The Results

About NASCAR

Relevant resources:

Webinar: Benefits of using a commercial React Native video player vs. DIY with open source

Customer Story: How the NFL Delivers a Great Video Experience

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