AP Expands Partnership with HERO Sports to Automated NHL Game Previews

SEATTLE, March 6, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- In an effort to provide greater value to customers the AP is expanding their partnership with HERO Sports to include NHL previews, in addition to MLB and the NBA. HERO Sports is the leader in sports content automation for both college and professional sports, as their clients include newswires, sports media companies, publishers, and college athletic departments.

The automated NHL game previews will begin moving on AP lines on March 7.

"The launch of the NHL previews is part of our ongoing efforts to provide even more content of value to our customers around the world," said Barry Bedlan, AP's director of sports products. "Our collaboration with HERO Sports and Sportradar is helping make the AP Sports report even more comprehensive than before."

AP Sports editors worked closely with the automation team at HERO Sports to craft the preview templates, using game, seasonal and historical data from Sportradar. The automation technology enables the text stories to be produced directly from data without the intervention of editors.

"Our collaboration with Sportradar and The Associated Press has been phenomenal. With the launch of NHL previews, we continue our commitment to expand coverage to all sports," said Brad Weitz, HERO Sports CEO. "Whether it is helping universities, publishers, or leagues, our mission is the same; to reduce the cost of content production and enable people to be more valuable to their organizations."

The HERO Sports automation platform enables subscription-based sports news businesses to provide a consistent baseline of content to subscribers without the need to hire additional staff.

About AP:

The Associated Press is the essential global news network, delivering fast, unbiased news from every corner of the world to all media platforms and formats. Founded in 1846, AP today is the most trusted source of independent news and information. On any given day, more than half the world's population sees news from AP. On the web: www.ap.org.

About HERO SPORTS:

HERO Sports is a SaaS technology platform that produces contextually relevant, insightful, ready to publish content based on an understanding of your target audience's intent. Whether your audience wants text, infographics, slide shows, interactive content, predictions, or fantasy advice, the HERO platform can help drive audience engagement. For more visit https://herosports.com/about-us and follow HERO Sports on Twitter @herosportsnews.

Media Contact:
Jordan Nilsen
425.444.6336
210590@email4pr.com

View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ap-expands-partnership-with-hero-sports-to-automated-nhl-game-previews-300807870.html

SOURCE HERO Sports