Akamai powers 4K HDR livestream of NHL, MLB games for NESN 360 app

NESN is prepared to mark a first this weekend with partner Akamai, as the regional sports network tees up a native 4K HDR livestream of the Boston Bruins home opener on Saturday, October 15, against the Arizona Coyotes.

The high-quality video live stream is available via NESN 360, the RSN's direct-to-consumer streaming app that launched in June (the first RSN to do so, and ahead of Sinclair’s Bally Sports+ recent debut). NESN 360 is only available for fans in the New England area and costs $30 per month, or $330 per year with an annual subscription.

NESN, which is also the broadcast home of the Boston Red Sox, said it is the first regional sports network in the U.S. to live stream Major League Baseball and National Hockey League games in 4K HDR natively via a streaming app.

The partnership with Akamai was announced Thursday, with the vendor providing media delivery solutions to live stream all 2022-2023 Bruins home games and future Red Sox home games through NESN 360.

According to NESN, the partnership comes through significant investments the company made to produce games in 4K HDR at Boston’s TD Garden and Fenway Park. As for Akamai, the vendor is providing the streaming infrastructure and has cloud-based capabilities that NESN said provide the needed scale and reach to deliver higher-bandwidth video to fans watching online.

“The NESN team broke new ground, testing around the clock, to produce and package live home games in native 4K/HDR. Akamai media delivery solutions helped get it all into viewers homes as fast as possible," stated Kenny Elcock, NESN VP of Technology.

Specifically, NESN is tapping the Akamai Adaptive Media Delivery (AMD), which has been used before by broadcasters globally to deliver large sporting events.  The product is optimized for adaptive bitrate streaming, NESN noted, which enables consistent, high-quality viewing for various network types and connection speeds. Speaking to scale, AMD is built on Akamai’s Intelligent Edge Platform network, which spans more than 4,100 locations across 135 countries.

"NESN is proving that the technology to live stream 4K/HDR at scale and consumer demand for the content have both finally arrived," said Will Law, chief architect, Edge Technology Group at Akamai, in a statement. "Akamai is proud to partner with NESN in this cutting-edge streaming service and excited to help bring it to our hometown base of avid Boston sports fans."

Although the NESN 360 app is available via direct subscription, viewers with traditional TV providers can also authenticate through the app on iPhone, Android, Apple TV, Fire TV and Google TV.

Starting in April, 2023 Red Sox home games will be live streamed in 4K HDR.  

“We are so excited to bring 4K/HDR into New England homes on NESN 360. This technology provides a rich, immersive experience for NESN 360 subscribers and those with access through their TV provider," said Ahmed Darwish, NESN's chief marketing officer, in a statement.

Darwish went on to highlight positive feedback from earlier pilot tests of the high-quality format.

"Fan reaction when we piloted 4K/HDR during the Red Sox season was spectacular, and we look forward to wow'ing Boston sports fans this Bruins season," Darwish continued.

NESN has already been broadcasting MLB games in native 4K HDR during the 2022 season for traditional broadcasts, offering the high-quality format for all Red Sox home games on DirecTV, Verizon Fios and virtual MVPD FuboTV.