ESPN senior director of commercial, digital & marketing Charly Classen outlines mobile strategy as he talks DADI Awards judging

This centres on using technology to drive user engagement, while exploring how to further personalise and hone content curation for sports fans, according to Classen. “There is so much opportunity around making the life for the fan better,” he said.

Classen admitted the sports broadcaster has “neglected” mobile for the last few years but it is now preparing to ramp up its mobile product portfolio with the launch of a new app to coincide with the new football season. The app’s content is driven by real-time feeds and aggregates content from all ESPN’s sources, “putting users in control” of their experience, added Classen.

Meanwhile Classen said he expects the “next big thing” for mobile will be the general acceptance that mobile has become well and truly main stream.

He said ESPN frequently see mobile traffic outstrip desktop, therefore ensuring the mobile experience is right, as well as establishing monetisation around it is key. “We are getting a lot closer to the ad industry embracing mobile and that will help the industry a lot,” he said.

Classen was impressed by the high calibre of entries for the DADI Awards, adding that the morning spent judging them had been “hugely stimulating”, adding “There has been some great debate over some fantastic.”

The interview can be viewed in the video above, while further information on the DADI Awards can be found on the official website.

This year awards are sponsored by Digilant, Exponential, Go ON UK, Green Square, Manual Link Building and Millennial Media.

Nominations for this year’s DADI Awards will be announced at Thursday 18 July at 3pm.