Perceived viewing-experience enhancement and audience acceptance: applying TAM to AI-based sports broadcasting services

Despite the rapid proliferation of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies in sports broadcasting, empirical evidence validating the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and experiential outcomes in this specific context remains limited. This study aims to address this gap by investigating the statistical relationships among core TAM constructs, usage attitude, behavioral intention, and perceived viewing-experience enhancement within AI-based sports broadcasting services.

Based on the theoretical framework of TAM, this study collected valid data from 630 Chinese respondents. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to quantitatively test the hypothesized research model and examine the interrelationships between the proposed variables.

The empirical results demonstrate that perceived ease of use positively predicts perceived usefulness, and both perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness exert significant positive effects on users' usage attitude. Furthermore, usage attitude is positively associated with behavioral intention and perceived viewing-experience enhancement. Notably, usage attitude plays a full mediating role in the relationships between the two perceptual antecedents (perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness) and the two outcome variables (behavioral intention, viewing-experience enhancement).

This research contributes context-specific empirical validation to the TAM framework in the emerging domain of AI-driven sports broadcasting. It extends existing TAM literature by integrating individual-level experiential outcomes alongside traditional behavioral intention indicators in sports media consumption. Practically, the findings provide actionable insights for optimizing user experience and improving service design for AI sports broadcasting platforms.