The Team Overdog Blog

May 9, 2016

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Board and Shareholders of Overdog, Inc. (“Overdog”) are very happy to announce the Company’s acquisition by Odd Networks (“Odd”), a New York-based SAAS Company.  The Odd and Overdog teams have worked together for years, and the combination of the companies was a long time coming.  The two companies are dedicated to delivering best-in-class experiences in gaming and Over-The-Top content, and are excited to be working together officially. Overdog’s technology will be incorporated into Odd’s product, and the Overdog management team will remain as advisors to Odd.

About Odd Networks: 

Odd Networks is an open source platform designed to give content creators access to a powerful set of tools enabling them to launch their own content streaming services across an array of mobile, tablet, and connected TV devices. 

Odd’s product is a middleware stack that pulls together many publishing partners to create a single product offering allowing content publishers to launch their own streaming services. This enables content publishers to integrate fragmented products and services into one place for publishing workflows and analytics. A good way to envision the product is if you could run your own "Netflix in a box".

Much of the Odd’s software has been made available as open source. This strategic move has been a huge benefit to adoption of the technology. It means partners are eager to integrate it, and the developers who are crucial to growing the market trust it enough to adopt it as a standard.

Odd Networks launched a beta version of their product last October. Since that time, they've grown to 200,000 videos watched per week on their platform with 9% week over week growth in viewership.

Odd's private beta customers include:

https://itpro.tv/

http://www.pbr.com/mobile-promo.aspx

https://www.pokercentral.com/

https://www.levintv.com/devices

 And integration partners include:

http://www.ooyala.com/

https://www.jwplayer.com/products/jwplatform/

http://cleeng.com/

https://piano.io/

http://freewheel.tv/

Odd is planning a public launch of their product this Summer, targeting a new market in the video streaming industry.

Odd Networks was founded in Saratoga Springs, New York, in 2015 by CEO Brian Corrigan, President Kris Walker, and others. The team is 8 people strong, including 4 full time engineers. Their technical background is in video game platforms and e-sports broadcasting, including management positions at Agora Games, Major League Gaming, and MadGlory Interactive.

About Overdog: 

On Friday, December 4th, with a little help from Mtn Dew Game Fuel, Mike Conley and Courtney Lee, the starting backcourt for the @memgrizz, alongside Twitch celebrities Chaos, Swiftor, and Ms Vixen will look to stave off zombie hordes in Call of Duty: Black Ops III Zombies mode. Dubbed the “Zombie Pro-Am,” the event will be broadcast live on Twitch from the FedEx Forum in Memphis, Tennessee.

The crew will be playing Black Ops III exclusively in zombie mode and throughout the event will be looking to team up with fans in the game using Overdog. Here’s how you can get in on the action:

How To Watch

Simple! Just tune into the event on Twitch, we’ll be broadcasting starting at 4:30pm CST on Swiftor’s channel (http://www.twitch.tv/swiftor).

How To Enter For The Chance To Play

Download Overdog and join the “Mtn Dew - Game Fuel” Group. Mike, Courtney, Chaos, Swiftor, and Ms Vixen will connect with members of the group at random throughout the event.

How To Level Up With Game Fuel

We’re excited to supercharge the event with help from our friends at Mountain Dew Game Fuel. 

When you drink Game Fuel and redeem the DLC code on the bottle, you’ll be able to unlock double XP for use in Call of Duty: Black Ops III Zombies mode. Here’s how it works:

Buy Game Fuel

Get DLC codes for Black Ops III

Go online to dewanddoritos.com to start a Pepsi account and then link your PSN or Xbox Live account

Enter in your codes – redeem a minimum of 10 min of Zombies 2XP per code, plus enter for the chance to win a PlayStation 4

Mark Your Calendars

The Zombie Pro-Am kicks off on Friday, December 4th, at 4:30pm CST so be sure to mark your calendars accordingly, as well as to follow our basketball stars, Twitch celebs and Mountain Dew on Twitter:

Mike Conley - @mconley11

Courtney Lee - @CourtneyLee2211

Chaos - @Chaosxsilencer

Swiftor - @Swiftor

Ms Vixen - @TheMsVixen

Mountain Dew - @mountaindew​

Looking forward to an awesome event!

Best,

This Veterans Day (Wednesday, November 11th), Operation Supply Drop and Wargaming America have partnered to raise money and awareness for veterans. On Wednesday, anyone who purchases the 2,000,000 silver package of in-game currency can rest easy knowing that 30% of the proceeds from their generosity will go straight to Operation Supply Drop, up to $20K. 

Overdog is proud to support the cause by serving as a meet-up spot for participants joining the event on their Xbox One consoles.

How To Participate In The Event

To match with other event participants using Overdog, simply …

Download the app from the Xbox One App Marketplace

Like “Operation Supply Drop” (featured on our home page!), along with your other favorite interests and games, to build your gaming profile

Select World of Tanks as your “preferred game” 

Scroll to the Matchmaking menu and click “Connect” to invite people into a party

Overdog will be giving away prizes at random to those who log on to Overdog and participate. Join in the action for the chance to win ...

Tetrarch Tank

500 Gold

7 Day of Premium

A headset from Steel Series

About Operation Supply Drop

Using video games as a generationally relevant catalyst, Operation Supply Drop has created a supportive community for thousands of veterans, secured millions of dollars worth of video games and equipment for service men and women, and supported veteran-owned businesses in the video game industry. The proceeds from your contributions will go to the continued efforts of these three key programs:

Supply Drop Program: OSD assembles care packages which are sent to veterans deployed as well as to those in hospitals or to military installations across the world that are filled with games, products, apparel and many other items that truly do “Bring Fun Where There is None.”

Thank You Deployment Program: OSD sends veterans to various events across the world with a civilian counterpart. This is an opportunity for both to learn each other’s story while enjoying some well-deserved fun. The thank you deployments are structured to create a shared experience which develops a relationship lasting beyond the event and into the growth of The Teams program.

The Teams Program: Locally based chapters of Veterans and Civilian Supporters, working together to directly address lowering depression, homelessness, and unemployment. In-person Chapters of The Teams across the world come together for monthly "Mandatory Fun” social events ranging from gaming, bowling, movies, baseball games, volunteering in their community, and more. The Teams help create a stable environment, networking opportunities, and a support mechanism for veterans/civilians in times of need.

For more information about Operation Supply Drop, or to donate to the cause, visit their website at http://www.operationsupplydrop.org/.

We look forward to helping OSD and its supporters honor service men and women across the globe this Wednesday. Thanks in advance for helping the team make it a meaningful (AND FUN!) night!

This Saturday, November 7th, our friends at Extra Life will be hosting GAME DAY 2015, a 24-hour gaming marathon, and Overdog is proud to be serving as a meet-up spot for participants playing on their Xbox One consoles.

How To Participate In The Event

To match with other GAME DAY 2015 participants using Overdog, simply  …

Download the app from the Xbox One App Marketplace

Like “Extra Life” (featured on our home page!), along with your other favorite interests and games, to build your gaming profile

Select your “preferred game” based on the title that you want to play; note that we’ll be featuring Black Ops III throughout the weekend

Enter Matchmaking and click “Connect” to invite people into a party

Also, to support Extra Life, we encourage you to consider joining as a member and/or donating to the cause.

Saving Lives Through Video Games

Extra Life is a grassroots organization that mobilizes passionate gamers of all types to help Children's Miracle Network Hospitals treat sick and injured kids in their communities. Extra Lifers raise money year-round, culminating in a massive international day of play each fall and ultimately celebrating one grand total together. Extra Lifers typically participate from the comfort of their own home and have raised more than $14 million dollars since the program was founded by gamers in 2008. Join the movement at www.Extra-Life.org or connect with the team on Twitter at @ExtraLife4Kids.

Thanks in advance for supporting Extra Life and checking out Overdog. It’s going to be a fantastic weekend!

Overdog is a social matchmaking app for the Xbox One that connects people based on their shared interests in music, movies, entertainment, sports, celebrities, and communities. 

Interested in playing Destiny with fellow Game of Thrones fans? How about competing in FIFA against other hardcore players? Want to play Forza with other EDM listeners? Overdog is built to deliver these and an infinite amount of other unique online experiences.

How does it work?

To use Overdog, simply  …

Download the app from the Xbox One App Marketplace

Like your favorite interests and games to build your gaming profile

Select your “preferred game” based on the title that you want to play

Enter Matchmaking and click “Connect” to invite people into a party

Here’s a quick preview of the app following our latest update (version 1.5):

Interested in learning more about Overdog? Check out the app on your Xbox One console, follow us on Twitter @overdog, or email us at [email protected].

Thanks in advance for checking out Overdog and looking forward to hearing your thoughts about this new evolution in game matchmaking!

Best,

Each week, we poll our team users, and partners to share all of the exciting news and notes happening in the world of Overdog. Here’s the latest:

Diving into Reddit Head First

We successfully ran an AMA on r/XboxOne last week to hear what their community members thought of our latest update, version 1.5. We’re still replying to posts so check it out!  Our Reddit AMA

Also, thanks to the AMA, we’ve made some new best friends in the Xbox One Subreddit. Turns out they’ve been trying to find a solution to help streamline their own matchmaking needs for a while now, and Overdog seems to be exactly what they’ve been looking for. We ran a Game Night with them last weekend, and given the success we logged, we’ll be running Game Nights each weekend for the foreseeable future.

Fans in Australia and New Zealand, Overdog has arrived!

As we continue to refine and enhance Overdog, we also plan to expand our geographic coverage to more countries around the world This week, our latest expansion introduced Overdog to Xbox One users in Australia and New Zealand, markets that have both been interested in using the app.

We’ve added hundreds of interest topics that are specific to music, celebrities, and sports teams in both countries so our hope is that Overdog feels like a native app, rather than a U.S.-based company that just happens to be available elsewhere. If you’re in either country, be sure to check out the app and let us know what you think!

Big Game Releases

This week, both Tony Hawk Pro Skater 5 and NBA 2K16 launched globally. We’re excited for these new games and hope you are as well. If you’re looking for people to play these titles with, or hate experiencing great games alone, give Overdog a shot, and make sure to select these new titles as your preferred game to start searching for a match today.

Overdog launched six months ago onto the Xbox One platform with one goal in mind, enrich the matchmaking experience. Last week we took the first step of many to improve the app we originally launched in March. Overdog 1.5 is faster, sleeker and easier to navigate than ever before. Check it out!

Overdog’s mission is connecting like-minded gamers around the world. In line with that mission, we’re pleased to announce that Overdog is now available in the UK and Ireland! We’ve added over 100 new topics specific to the region, but if there’s anything else you’d like to see, let us know!

In an effort to engage our active users each week, we’ve introduced Theme Weeks! Our front page will highlight communities, topics and personalities built around the theme and will showcase our featured game nights and events! Next week is FIFA and our UK+Ireland Launch Week. Take a look and let us know what you think!

Monday kicks off Overdog’s AMA on Reddit! Be sure to head to http://www.reddit.com/r/xboxone at 9am CST to learn about everything that’s going on with the product and have your questions answered by our team!

San Diego Comic-Con International is THIS WEEK and we’re hosting a SDCC-inspired takeover of our app featuring topics related to the world’s biggest comic-related convention.

To amp up the excitement for this year’s event, we’re teaming up with our friends at Scuf Gaming (@scufgaming) to give away two custom controllers. 

Want to enter for a chance to win one? Simply tweet a pic of your favorite Comic-Con topic featured in the Overdog app and we’ll select two winners next week.

As The Action Unfolds In Austin, Play With Fellow ESPN X Games Fans From Home On Overdog (June 4-7, 2015)

For the first time, as part of the X Games Austin festival experience, Pro Gamers from multiple leagues will be invited to compete for honors during the 3-day championship event.

In addition to catching the action on MLG.tv, you can also connect and play with like-minded MLG fans using Overdog. And the best part? If you use the app and retweet our post about the weekend, you’ll be entered for the chance to win a Scuf Gaming controller customized to you favorite MLG team!

What is Overdog?

Overdog is a social matchmaking application for the Xbox One that connects like-minded gamers based on their interests. Whether you want to play Dragon Ball with a fellow Game of Thrones fan or compete against a rival soccer junkie in FIFA 15, Overdog can make that happen.

How does it work?

To use Overdog, simply  …

Download the app from the Xbox One Store.

Create a profile by liking your favorite MLG teams and finding other fans to chat and play with!

Enter Matchmaking and click “Connect” with people who look interesting.

From the person’s profile card, send them an Xbox One message or party invite to play.

- -

With our next app update coming up just around the corner, we’d love any feedback you have for how we can improve your matchmaking experience. Send us your feedback at [email protected], on Twitter @overdog, or via our website at overdog.com.

Dragon Ball XenoVerse Game Night THIS THURSDAY (5/28) at 8pm ET

Along with Goku, Vegeta, and all of your favorite Dragon Ball XenoVerse characters, join fans of the franchise for a Game Night on Overdog this Thursday, 5/28, at 8pm ET.

What is Overdog?

Overdog is a social matchmaking application for the Xbox One that connects like-minded gamers based on their interests. Whether you want to play Dragon Ball with a fellow Game of Thrones fan or compete against a rival soccer junkie in FIFA 15, Overdog can make that happen.

How does it work?

To use Overdog, simply  ...

Download the app from the Xbox One Store.

Create a profile by liking your favorite interests and games. (Make sure to add Dragon Ball XenoVerse so you can find other fans of the game!)

Enter Matchmaking and click “Connect” with people who look interesting. 

From the person’s profile card, send them an Xbox One message or party invite to play.

- - 

With our next app update coming up just around the corner, we’d love any feedback you have for how we can improve your matchmaking experience. Send us your feedback at [email protected], on Twitter @overdog, or via our website at overdog.com.

Overdog is honored to partner with military gaming charity Operation Supply Drop to help gamers around the world connect with one another during the organization’s fourth-annual “8-Bit Salute,” a 24-hour gaming marathon set to begin this afternoon (May 16th) at Noon CT. Donations raised during the event will help fund the creation and shipment of video game-related care packages to our troops fighting in defense of our nation’s freedom all across the globe. 

It’s an incredible cause so we hope you’ll find time to not only hop on your console this weekend to play 1,000s of troops and their supporters, but also learn more about the charity after the event is over. 

For more information, visit Operation Supply Drop’s website (http://www.operationsupplydrop.org/) or follow them on Twitter @OpSupplyDrop.

We’re proud to announce that we've partnered with our friends at #GirlTribeGaming for the first ever Overdog Game Night. This Wednesday, we’ll be gathering fans of the podcast and newcomers alike to play #CallOfDuty Advanced Warfare on the #Xbox One.

How Do You Get Involved?

It’s easy! Simply head over to the Overdog application on Xbox One and like the "Overdog Game Night: Girl Tribe Gaming" tile and select "Call of Duty" in your "I want to play" slot.   When the Game Night begins, you’ll be paired up with the hosts of the podcast, as well as other fans. 

What Time Is The Event?

The event is starts at 5:00 PST and will run until 7:00 PST. Matchmaking will run though these times and as long as you've liked the  "Overdog Game Night: Girl Tribe Gaming" interest tile, you’ll be added into the game night. 

What If I Have And Xbox One And Don’t Have Overdog?

You can download the Overdog app via The Xbox One App Store. For more information on Overdog, be sure to visit us on Twitter or at http://www.overdog.com/.

Overdog has launched the first interest-based game matchmaking service for Xbox One in the US, Canada, and Great Britain. The Overdog app enables gamers to create profiles that help you find others, both online and offline, based on shared interests. The matchmaking tools in Overdog also allow gaming influencers and developers to connect directly with their fans on the console as Verified Players.

“Xbox One has one of the most active game communities in the industry, but there has been a need for players to be able to connect with like-minded gamers, not just random people,” said Eric Doty, Director of User Acquisition at Overdog. "We want to take some of the anxiety out of being matched up with someone online. Trying to find someone that will help you finish a co-op mission in Destiny or build a castle in Minecraft right now that loves watching Red vs Blue? Overdog can find the right person for you."

Overdog is launching with almost a thousand topics, with plans to add many more based on feedback from the Xbox community. You can browse interests based on what's new and popular, as well as featured content and deals with partners like Scuf Gaming and Netduma. Find and Like games, movies, communities, celebrities, and more to make your profile, and Overdog matchmaking, more accurate.

About Overdog

Last night at 6pm PT, the Overdog team released our app to hundreds of thousands of gamers in the Xbox One Preview program (a closed beta audience dedicated to test-driving new products from Xbox developers and game publishers) in the US, Canada, and Great Britain. Crickets or crowds, we had no idea what to expect.

Well, it turns out we saw the latter. We were greeted with a crushing wave of users minutes after our introduction to the wild, and that response hasn't slowed down through this morning with our friends in the UK making Overdog part of their Saturday morning gaming rituals.

Dealing With The Crush

That's the wonderful, joyful part of our launch tale. The challenge? Keeping our ship afloat under such a hearty welcome from the Preview community. An hour into launch, we started to see strains on our servers and platform that were causing users to see Network Errors in the Overdog app. As usage continued to steamroll, that challenge intensified.

Thankfully, our team stepped up in force to troubleshoot and resolve the issues. Our lead engineer Kris led the charge from HQ, cranking away literally all night (and he's still going folks!) to diagnose and fix server load-balancing issues and various computational elements related to our game-matching logic. He was joined by Richard, our newest team member, in what can only be described as a baptism by fire.

The remainder of our dev team - Brian, Clay, and Clarke - was busy lobbing snippets of code and nuggets of input from San Francisco after wrapping up an awesome week at GDC 2015. They had their laptops open in the cab to SFO and all the way through security, then they battled internet issues from 30,000 feet during a red-eye home to support the Overdog cause. It was incredible.

Looking Ahead

Over the past year, we've asked ourselves countless times, "Will interest-based matchmaking be something people care about?" Until last night, we only had a little bit of data and a whole lot of gut intuition to tell us they will. Well, after 16 hours in the wild connecting with Preview users, we've confirmed there is absolutely interest in what we're building. Now, onto the next steps - stabilizing the platform, fixing bugs, adding new topics, and delivering a product that people love.

In building our app for the Xbox One platform, we're doing something that virtually no other startup has had the opportunity to do to date. We will absolutely get our sea legs with this whole endeavor in short order. In the meantime, we are extremely thankful for the excitement (and understanding!) we've received from Preview users.

- Dr. Seuss, Oh, The Places You’ll Go!