WASHINGTON—NAB Labs is heading in a new direction. And in the announcement you can sniff the evolving nature of broadcast media itself.

The National Association of Broadcasters today announced the planned “evolution” of its four-year-old NAB Labs technology division to become PILOT. It describes the latter as “an initiative to bring together leading-edge companies, organizations and educators to advance broadcast technology and broadcaster innovation.”

Charter members announced today are Accenture, Akamai, Frankly, Google, Nielsen, Shareablee and Yahoo, along with NAB. They also are associate members of NAB itself.

John Clark is hired as executive director of the program. He will lead its launch and evolution.

“Clark brings 18 years of experience in the digital media space, most recently with the Reese News Lab in the School of Media and Journalism at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Prior to UNC, Clark conceived, built and managed some of the most successful broadcast television websites and mobile applications in the industry.”

NAB stated in the announcement that the program aims to be a coalition of broadcasting and tech stakeholders, “such as new media broadcasters, measurement and attribution companies, advertising partners and technology enablers.” It envisions creation and implementation of new tech for media through working groups and committees.

With this move, it appears that NAB EVP/CTO Sam Matheny continues to make his thumbprint evident. Since he join NAB in 2014 from Capitol Broadcasting Co., where he was active in digital strategies, NAB Labs has been in the news with several notable activities and investments. 

In the announcement, Matheny is quoted saying, “As the definition of what it means to be a broadcaster broadens, it is critical to work with traditional and new media partners on innovations to better meet the needs of future generations of consumers.” He said the new program will seek to build partnerships among “visionaries.”

WASHINGTON—The technology division of the National Association of Broadcasters, NAB Labs, has gone just a bit a ways up 95 to invest in Yet Analytics. The Baltimore-based company uses open source technologies to provide platforms for multi-source collection and analysis of human and machine performance data within Fortune 500 companies and other organizations.

The technology, which was developed by the Department of Defense, simplifies and leverages big data analytics. Yet Analytics utilizes it in an effort to improve workforce efficiency. NAB Lab’s investment in Yet Analytics will provide funding for the development of big data and analytics technologies.

“The technology has the potential to help broadcasters identify workflow efficiencies and provide audience measurement enhancements that detect viewer preferences and facilitate target advertising,” said Sam Matheny, NAB Chief Technology Officer.

Yet Analytics was founded in 2014. In 2015 it received the Nielsen Data Visionary Award at TechCrunch Disrupt SF.

WASHINGTON—The National Association of Broadcasters has announced that NAB Labs has joined Dingman Center Angels as an investor. Run through the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, the Dingman Center Angels provide funding to startup companies in the Mid-Atlantic region. In addition, the Dingman Center offers workshops, seminars and training programs for the region’s entrepreneurial community.

With its involvement with the Dingman Center Angels, NAB Labs will seek to identify early-stage companies that have the potential to impact radio and television broadcasting in a positive way.

“A major part of NAB Labs’ mission is to foster companies on the leading-edge of innovation,” said Sam Matheny, NAB chief technology officer. “We are excited to join the Dingman Center Angels and to help identify and support promising startups that re pushing the limits of technology in fields of interest to NAB members, such as big data analytics, cybersecurity and drones.”

NAB Labs also recently announced a partnership with D.C.-based business incubator 1776, which provides support for startups in government regulated industries. NAB and NAB Labs also recently announced its membership in NCSU’s Center for Innovation Management Studies and NAB’s engagement with SPROCKIT.

WASHINGTON– The National Association of Broadcasters announced that its technology division, NAB Labs, has participated in a Series Seed financing of Antenna (www.antenna.is), a startup with an online engagement platform that enables users to react to and interact with mobile and Web content, and whose equity round of financing was led by IDEA Fund Partners.

The Antenna platform also measures audience sentiment from these reactions, including responses to news and entertainment content, in a matter of seconds. Antenna provides a means for media companies and retailers to determine what online content is resonating with audiences by enabling users to quickly and easily react to various forms of mobile and web content, including video, images and text.

Created in 2012, NAB Labs is an NAB initiative designed to foster innovation and continue to propel broadcast television and radio into the future. As part of this effort, NAB Labs undertakes projects and makes investments to facilitate the development and commercialization of new technologies that have the potential to advance broadcasting in the digital age.

“We see a lot of promise in this early stage company,” said NAB Chief Technology Officer Sam Matheny. “Our members are vital parts of their respective communities and the Antenna platform is an elegant solution that enables mobile and Web visitors to pick the exact text, image or video they want to react to and to offer real feedback—much more than just a ‘like’ or a ‘heart’ – without all of the management overhead that comes with cumbersome commenting systems. Antenna is quick and easy for the user and provides an excellent opportunity to grow engagement, build community and expand revenue options.”

Antenna is a free engagement tool that boosts Website metrics and builds community. Publishers who use Antenna have reported as much as 50 times more engagement by mobile device users compared to typical comment threads. Antenna also offers an upgraded service that enables the sharing of content based on engagement and user feedback versus page views and clicks.

“Media companies want to know what their audiences care about and why,” said Porter Bayne, Antenna co-founder and CEO. “They love the engagement, but often need help managing the interface and monitoring and interpreting reactions. That’s where we come in.”

So far, 55 publishers are using the free Antenna platform. They include high-profile sites like Perez Hilton, Dlisted and Okay Player. Other investors in Antenna include Geoff Judge, iNovia Capital partner and co-founder of 24/7 Real Media; Horan MediaTech Advisors; IDEA Fund Partners, a North Carolina-based seed stage fund; and The Startup Factory.