Mark Phillip had a problem. He enjoyed the thrill of watching sports, but he didn’t live on his couch.  In response to this problem, he created “Are You Watching This,” a service to alert users when the most exciting parts of their favorite sporting events are about to occur.

It essentially tackles a  problem we all encounter on the internet today: extracting signal from noise. In order to scale the demand for quality content, there are a number of entrants in this noise-filtering, content curation sector.  “Are You Watching This?” definitely has a unique approach of combining statistical, crowdsourcing and social analysis to arrive at their recommendations. They’ve been operating for three years now, and we got a chance to catch up with them at SXSW.

In order to use the service, you have to provide your favorite sports, as well as your cable or satellite provider. The company then filters all channels and providers across Canada and the United States, which is estimated to be about 2.4 million combinations inclusive of postal codes and providers.

Founder Mark Phillip also boasted the release of their new engine, which he claims to have the ability to learn, something he never thought could happen. Since they’ve been online for three years now, they accumulated enough content to analyze data based on previous data and current standing. They mash it with the results, and are then able to tell users the exact time and channel to turn to catch the game. You’ll never miss a classic when it happens.
Here is a list of the service’s alert level:

• EPIC – Drop everything you’re doing. This is Boise State vs. Oklahoma, Lebron vs. Pistons, and no-hitter in the bottom of 9th territory. Find the nearest TV post-haste.

• HOT – Any game that is in overtime or extra innings, and sometimes just a close finish or upset possibility will reach HOT. This game is definitely worth turning on the TV for.

• GOOD – A GOOD game is starting to get good. It’s a tied game in the top of the 9th, or maybe a ranked team down at halftime. If you already have the TV on, you might as well click over and check it out.

• OK – All games start off as OK. Snoozers and blowouts are OK. Not even their momma would vote for a game that’s OK.

Philip also pointed out that while curation is good, some people just want to get the best then and there, and that’s exactly what Are You Watching This? is all about. No need to search because the RUWTbot will do everything for you. The service is reminds us very much of the Music Genome Project, only for Sport Events.