Rugby League goes remote at EMG UK's ViBox-led Stream ROC By Michael Burns
Wednesday, April 14, 2021 - 10:47
Print This Story
The Betfred Challenge Cup match between Widnes Vikings and Whitehaven was a completely remote production. Micron Video handled the cameras and Aviwest supplied the feeds back to the gallery over bonded cellular
There's been a lot of interest in remote production and the promise it offers for wider coverage of sport. That potential is being fulfilled with the launch of a Stream Gallery' at EMG UK in High Wycombe. Unlike the other four remote galleries in operation by the company, this addition to the EMG UK ROC is different in that it is focused on live streaming using the ViBox All-In-One system from Simply Live.
This Stream ROC, which has been in use since March covering Rugby Football League (RFL) matches, is the brainchild of Neville Smith, founder of In Touch Productions and a 40-year veteran of sports broadcasting.
Smith's history with Telegenic and EMG UK goes back to 1992 when he was executive producer/director of Sky Sports Rugby League, and the OB firm became its main facility provider for the next 28 years. Even before Sky was founded, Smith had championed rugby coverage, particularly rugby league, and is no stranger to utilising technology to further this goal; as part of the launch of Super League in 1996 he pioneered the use of the Video Referee. Smith left Sky on a high point in April 2019, as head of rugby league, but not before being enrolled onto the RFL Roll of Honour for Outstanding Services to the Game'.
Trend setter
As covered previously by SVG Europe, an early example of remote production saw In Touch produce the Toronto Wolfpack's Championship campaign matches. Working with EMG UK in High Wycombe, Smith directed eight fully remote matches from the Lamport Stadium in Toronto, 6,000 miles away, persuading Sky Sports to support the production with airtime.
We all learned a lot about remote production in that process, Smith tells SVG Europe. At the beginning of last year, I was about to sign a deal with Sky [for the Championship and Challenge Cup matches, and the Toronto home matches in Super League]. We did one match at the end of February and then, of course, COVID happened and a ball wasn't kicked off for the rest of the year.
Fast forward a year and the championship was set to kick off again, albeit in empty stadiums. I was aware that the RFL was going to do more for the season ticket holders, says Smith. In the meantime, I got hold of the Simply Live kit, which I've been looking at for a couple of years.
Along with his son Lachlan, a professional editor and replay operator, Smith familiarised himself with the remote solution, practicing on past matches. Impressed with the kit, he proposed using it to cover Championship matches for the Our League platform. This online pay-per-view platform is currently streaming matches for RFL season ticket holders until crowds are allowed back in. The RFL agreed and the gallery build swung into action.
Aviwest worked with Micron Video to supply the camera streams and embedded audio from the venues
Eamonn Curtin, deputy CEO at Telegenic, says: Building on the success of the three galleries which are servicing elite sports such as EPL and Rugby Union, we wanted to be able to offer a cost-effective solution for lower-level leagues such as Championship Rugby League. We tested different options with In Touch Productions and finally settled on the Simply Live solution and Stream ROC' was born.
EMG UK has been amazing in its support for this project, says Smith. They built the Stream ROC in a few short days, recognising the potential market that this sort of production is heading towards for the streaming market. Also offering critical support have been Aviwest, working with Micron Video to supply the camera streams and embedded audio from the venues, and Ce8 Graphics. All have been vital to help raise the bar for the RFL's Our League platform.
Going live from Widnes
Remote coverage from the Stream ROC of the Betfred Challenge Cup kicked off at the beginning of March, and on the second weekend SVG was able to sit in' on a live stream. The game was a Second Round match where Widnes Vikings hosted Whitehaven.
A completely remote production, there was no truck at the ground. Instead Micron Video handled the cameras at the match, with Aviwest supplying the feeds back to the gallery over bonded cellular. We had individual streams coming from the cameras, says Smith. We were not returning cue lights to them, but they were on the talkback, so [directing it] was just a case of being a little bit patient and not being over reactive to the match.
Building on the previous, initial game of the season, where two cameras were used, Smith wanted to take things up a notch. For the second game, I thought how can we replicate what we do with the full truck, using mini cameras or whatever else, he says. The Aviwest system allows you to stream iPhones, so we used an iPhone on a gimbal being operated by the floor manager for some of the shots on the night, such as from the players' entrance and a little bit of coverage on the touchline.
Following the Widnes game on the day, the team had access to a stream showing a multiview output of the six Aviwest sources, with four broadcast cameras into PRO380 transmitters, and two iPhones running the Aviwest MoJoPro app.
Although there were four broadcast cameras, there was only three operators, with the wide shot just a mini camera mounted on top of the follow camera on a fixed lens, explains Smith. There are disciplined ways of cutting around that so it doesn't show.
An iPhone on a gimbal was used for some of the shots in Widnes, such as from the players' entrance and some touchline
North America Stories
08/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Technology Exhibits Preview, Part 1By SVG Staff
Monday, December 8, 2025 - 6:56 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
The 2025...
08/12/2025
2025 Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame: Bill Rasmussen, the Entrepreneur Who Drea...
08/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: Live Production Innovation Workshop Goes Deep on ST 211...
08/12/2025
#GALSNGEAR Announces East, West Leadership Retreats for 2026By Ken Kerschbaumer
Monday, December 8, 2025 - 9:10 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story High...
08/12/2025
MediaKind Acquiring Harmonic's Video Business to Create New Streaming-Video ...
08/12/2025
Platinum White Paper: Sony HDR/SDR Camera Shading Techniques for Live Production...
08/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: NESN's Kenny Elcock and Harmonic's Jean Macher Talk Next-G...
08/12/2025
Monsters Funday Football,' ESPN's Latest Live Animation Effort, Advances...
08/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: ESPN Director Jeff Nelson on Calling the (Animated) Action on Mon...
08/12/2025
Monsters Funday Football': Louisiana Philharmonic Delivers Again With Orches...
08/12/2025
Nielsen's robust data offering enables marketers to connect with their target audience more effectively and drive better results throughout Amazon's adv...
08/12/2025
LOS ANGELES and NEW YORK Paramount has launched a hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. Discovery with an all-cash tender offer to acquire all of the outstandin...
08/12/2025
EMERYVILLE, Calif. Media and entertainment technology and services provider Advanced Systems Group has named Macky Beheshti as director, enterprise storage and ...
08/12/2025
DENVER MediaKind, a global provider of cloud-based video streaming technology announced today that it is acquiring the video business of Harmonic Inc. for appro...
08/12/2025
NEW YORK Nielsen has announced that its Audience Segments from Nielsen Marketing Cloud (NMC) are now available across the Amazon Ads marketplace, including the ...
08/12/2025
Marshall Electronics showcases the CV355-27X-ND3 Optical Zoom NDI (NDI HX2, NDI HX3) Camera at ISE 2026 (Booth 4N900). Designed for users seeking high-quality ...
08/12/2025
Cinnafilm today announced the immediate availability of IPx LIVE and Tachyon LIVE, delivering broadcast-grade, real-time IP video transcoding and motion-compens...
08/12/2025
Following a successful 45th anniversary year in 2024, Hiltron reports increasing demand for its wide range of satellite communication equipment manufacturing, p...
08/12/2025
When was the last time you updated your default playlist(s)? A default playlist keeps your station(s) on the air should your team ever miss a step in sending mu...
08/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix ISP Speed Index for November 2025
Product
08 December 2025
Global
Link copied to clipboard
This month marks 15 years of the Netfl...
08/12/2025
Back to All News
Another Exciting Chapter in Our Book-to-Screen Journey and What's to Come
Entertainment
08 December 2025
Global
Link copied to clipboa...
07/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Takes Over the Oslo Skyline With Celebratory Troll 2 L...
06/12/2025
In a live broadcast from the Reagan National Defense Forum, L3Harris Chair and CEO Christopher Kubasik joined Morgan Brennan on CNBCs Closing Bell: Overtime. Ku...
06/12/2025
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. A new survey from Pixitmedia by Datacore revealed a major shift in the Media & Entertainment industry in media archiving, with 85% of resp...
06/12/2025
HACKENSACK, N.J. LiveU has announced that the national public broadcaster Czech Television has completed one of the largest LiveU live production deployments fo...
06/12/2025
NEW YORK The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) presented the Excellence in Production Technology Emmy Award to NASA+ and Dr. Tom Leight...
05/12/2025
2025 Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame: Curt Gowdy Jr. - Master Storyteller, Nati...
05/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Veritone's Sean King on the Power of Mining Video, Audio DataThe company's Data Refinery offers users total control and governance over da...
05/12/2025
Platinum White Paper: Inside the Nashville Predators' Unified, Flexible, Sca...
05/12/2025
Netflix Reaches Agreement To Acquire Warner Bros. Following Planned WBD SplitThe deal does not include WBDs sports assets like TNT Sports (US, UK, LatAm), Euros...
05/12/2025
FOX Sports Returns to Indianapolis for Primetime Broadcast of Big Ten Championsh...
05/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: Digital Engagement & Monetization Workshop Tackles the ...
05/12/2025
Atlanta United Lights Up New Emory Healthcare Studio With First Live Broadcast f...
05/12/2025
As Messi Takes the Pitch, MLS, Apple, NEP Roll Out Largest MLS Cup Production Ev...
05/12/2025
ESPN Enters College Football's Most Intense Month With Elevated Workflows fo...
05/12/2025
It's about that time! Awards season is in full swing, and the Film Independe...
05/12/2025
LOS ANGELES Netflix announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire the assets of Warner Bros. for $82.7 billion....
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Nielsens Gracenote has launched Gracenote Content Connect, a new ad platform that provides agencies, brands, supply-side platforms (SSPs) and demand-si...
05/12/2025
NEW YORK In an important update to the workings of deal-based programmatic advertising, IAB Tech Lab has released version 1.0 of its Deals API for public commen...
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Pass the turkey. Pass the stuffing. Pass the cranberry sauce. All are common requests of Americans celebrating Thanksgiving Day with family and f...
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Iris, the new cloud-connected camera control platform, has officially launched with features that turn virtually any PTZ camera into a software-connect...
05/12/2025
HOLLYWOOD, Calif. Netflix announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the assets of Warner Bros. for $82.7 billion....
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Iris, the new cloud-connected camera control platform, has officially launched with features that turn virtually any PTZ camera into a software-connect...
05/12/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has approved AT&T's $1.02 billion acquisition of spectrum from UScellular in a decision that was issued sho...
05/12/2025
The Best Coldplay Songs: 21 Tracks That Shoot for the Stars From Yellow to Viva La Vida, Fix You to Paradise, this playlist goes back to the start.
December ...
05/12/2025
Zafris Lecture Series Brings Nabil Ayers to Berklee The 32nd annual James G. Zafris Distinguished Lecture series was held on Thursday, November 13, with guest...
05/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils the First Look for Land of Sin' - Premier...
05/12/2025
Introducing New Perks to Help You Get Even More from LinkedIn Premium Published on Dec 5, 2025 Categories: Company News, Product News
LinkedIn Corporate Co...
05/12/2025
Back to All News
Don Lee, Lee Jin-uk, and Lalisa Manobal to Star in Netflix Act...
Rugby League goes remote at EMG UK's ViBox-led Stream ROC By Michael Burns 
