LTN Global To Provide Transmission Services for Conference USA 2020 Men's, Women's Basketball Tourneys Under the deal, the vendor will be back in 2021 and, potentially, in 2022 By Kristian Hernandez, Associate Editor
Wednesday, February 26, 2020 - 1:00 pm
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
As the college basketball season will come slowly to an end over the next few weeks, Conference USA faces one of the most logically challenged endeavors of the entire basketball calendar. On March 11-14, its best 24 basketball teams (12 men's and 12 women's) will square off at Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, TX, for their respective championships. To accomplish such a feat, the conference has entered an agreement under which LTN Global will supply transmission services not only for this tournament on ESPN and Stadium but also for next year's and possibly in 2022.
We're providing a type of production that we're calling LTN Direct, which is a traditional, onsite direct production, says Colin Moran, director, product management, LTN Global. What makes this tournament interesting and unique is that, at The Star, they basically put two courts right next to each other, so there are games happening at the same time. We've been doing this for the past couple of years, so we have a longstanding relationship with the conference.
Sowing the Seeds: A Production Bond That Started in 2014
2020 isn't the first time that the two parties have worked together. The working relationship goes back to the midway point of the past decade, when the conference's championship tournament tipped off in 2014.
Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, TX, will host the Conference USA Men's and Women's Basketball Championships March 11-14.
At the time, American Sports Network [then the conference's broadcast partner] partnered with LTN to install transmission equipment into all of our schools as a cost-saving measure, says Jordan Foreman, director, multimedia, Conference USA. They knew that they had reliable transmission services and wouldn't have to rent a satellite truck. After ASN [was folded into] Stadium, the equipment was still there for them and all of our other TV partners to use.
From LTN's perspective, a tournament being held in the same venue for the third year in a row has allowed the provider to strengthen and solidify a plan that allows a lot of room for error.
In Year 1, says Moran, we looked at the plot [of the venue] with the in-house engineering department to figure out if we can cross-connect some cables to get some drops here and there when we needed to orient our cameras for basketball. We have it down to a science since this is the third year that we'll be at this arena.
Two at a Time: Detailed Planning Overcomes Logistical Hurdles
Although a handful of the 22 total games on the tournament slate (11 men's contests including the quarterfinals and 11 women's contests including the semifinals) will be done in the traditional one-at-a-time pattern, 16 will be played at the same time. To handle this double-barreled, two-court action, LTN has worked closely with Dallas Cowboys personnel to develop an intricate plan to keep track of who owns what inside the facility.
With two games happening simultaneously on separate courts, LTN is helping the conference navigate difficult logistical waters.
The venue is natively set up for football since it's the practice facility for the Dallas Cowboys. It has unique wiring, with the courts [extending from each side of the 50-yard line], says Moran. The employees at The Star are great to work with, but [it's] difficult to know where the in-house cables are running to. [Having gone over the plots with in-house engineering,] we make very in-depth input sheets about where in-house cabling is.
As the complex plan moved toward its current state, LTN involved outside vendors to supply the cabling needed to produce this type of event.
We rented some wiring from Bexel and ran it into the venue. CBS will be taking it out since they will be the last one onsite [after the finals], he adds. We have LTN transmission devices already installed in there with four redundant paths, so that makes the process pretty seamless.
Not only does a sturdy and organized foundation of transmission paths help with the execution of the digital broadcasts, but it also helps LTN check off other duties on its to-do list.
Not only are we trying to produce high-quality broadcast productions, says Moran, but there are also a lot of other responsibilities: [for example,] what the game officials need, what feeds need to go to what specific TVs, etc. We put a skilled project manager on these bigger tournaments that we do, not only to have everything documented but also to share [our plan] with the internal and external vendors to make sure that they know what equipment and cabling are ours.
At-Home Help: LTN Headquarters Saves the Conference Some Cash
Saving money is a driving factor in Conference USA's decision to go with LTN. For this massive undertaking, every Conference USA employee will make the 20-minute drive to the complex, including the three full-time employees and intern on Foreman's multimedia team. A fair number (around 70%) of LTN's crew members will be onsite in Frisco, filling production roles ranging from directing and producing to engineering and tech management inside the company's Lance and NETH production trucks.
LTN Global's Colin Moran (second from right) and his team will push out the final product to outlets like ESPN and Stadium from LTN's Lance and NETH production trucks.
Despite the all-hands-on-deck approach, though, cost-efficient procedures will also be in place to leverage resources located 491 miles to the north of the stadium.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
12/05/2026
Beyond the Hype: A Strategic Post-Hoc Analysis of NAB 2026 If NAB Show 2026 had an underlying theme, it was a quiet, industry-wide pivot from the high-energy sp...
12/05/2026
Guntermann and Drunck (G&D), a Panoptec Technologies Group company, and CT Square, led by Chandresh Shah, have announced a joint venture to distribute G&D and V...
12/05/2026
With 30 days until the start of the FIFA World Cup 2026, Telemundo, the exclusive Spanish-language home of the tournament in the United States, has announced th...
12/05/2026
The NHL has announced the return of Stanley Pup for its third consecutive year, a 90-minute special featuring adoptable rescue dogs competing on a miniature rin...
12/05/2026
NBCUniversal presented its 2026 Upfront to advertisers at Radio City Music Hall, detailing upcoming programming across NBC, Peacock, Bravo, and Versant properti...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced funding for the Fandom and Social Connection Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School's Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Publ...
12/05/2026
TNDV and Live Media, both divisions of Live Media Group, supported live broadcast coverage around NCAA Final Four weekend in Indianapolis, including the March M...
12/05/2026
The European Football Alliance (EFA) has announced a content distribution agreement with Fubo Sports Network, the free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channel ...
12/05/2026
For the first time, Spanish-speaking fans in the U.S. will have two separate tel...
12/05/2026
CP Communications led a comprehensive spectrum management initiative on behalf of Churchill Downs during Kentucky Derby week, coordinating RF assets across the ...
12/05/2026
LiveU has announced a strategic partnership with DRONERESPONDERS, a 501(c)3 non-...
12/05/2026
Open Broadcast Systems has announced that BMC TV, a specialist in IP transport of broadcast content, has selected the Open Broadcast Systems 5G Flyaway solution...
12/05/2026
NEP Europe, part of NEP Group, has announced it will deliver broadcast solutions...
12/05/2026
Grass Valley has announced continued collaboration with Ravensbourne University ...
12/05/2026
Stats Perform has announced the launch of Opta Pulse, an AI-assisted video creation and distribution platform for leagues, rights holders, and broadcasters. The...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced a collaboration with Sesame Workshop to integrate Sesame Street characters into FOX Sports' FIFA World Cup 2026 programming. Conten...
12/05/2026
To date, NHL Productions has produced 19 broadcasts with commentary in American Sign Language
NHL in ASL (American Sign Language) may be just one show, but the...
12/05/2026
Google's Brian Albert: creators, athletes, highlights, nostalgia, second-scr...
12/05/2026
A still from Past Lives by Celine Song, an official selection of the Premieres program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. (Courtesy of Sundance Institute | p...
12/05/2026
Spotify is where fans and artists come together, turning discovery into somethin...
12/05/2026
Features patented Marco-MMC clocking technology
Black Lion Audio's latest release combines the company's expertise in clocking with their renowned p...
12/05/2026
New Track Panel, sequencer upgrades & more
Following their recent public beta release, Reason Studios have announced the full release of Reason 14. With the...
12/05/2026
One month to go! SBS reveals expansive FIFA World Cup 2026 lineup beyond the pi...
12/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz presents its advanced solutions for power electronics testing at...
12/05/2026
aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, has developed a modified fund raising p...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Tyrell Corporation, specialists in high-end live sports and entertainment broadcasts, was tasked with delivering compelling broadcast coverage of premier equest...
12/05/2026
Registration is now open for IBC2026 as the global media, entertainment and technology community prepares to converge on the RAI Amsterdam from 11 14 September ...
12/05/2026
Ross Video, a global leader in live video production technology, will present its latest innovations and integrated production workflows at BroadcastAsia 2026, ...
12/05/2026
500 selected leaders from around the world across start-ups, corporates, and venture capital. Over 50bn in assets under management among attending investors, a...
12/05/2026
CVP, one of Europe's leading suppliers of professional video and broadcast solutions, has appointed Randy Koeman as Sales Manager, Netherlands, marking anot...
12/05/2026
Taiwan Television has expanded its HD content ingest workflow capabilities by investing in the PlayBox Neo Suite - a leading multi-channel multi-server UHD/HD/S...
12/05/2026
Jigsaw24 is strengthening its media team with the appointment of Tom Laker as Client Director and Ashish Chauhan as Project Manager. These strategic hires bring...
12/05/2026
Broadcast playout leader showcases hybrid IP infrastructure and workflow automation with Videoland deployment as regional benchmark...
12/05/2026
dzjinius, the all-in-one production management platform for the media and entertainment industry, will showcase its centralised approach to production workflows...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
NUGEN Audio will debut Version 1.1 of DialogCheck, its intelligent dialog intelligibility and compliance tool, at the 2026 Media Production & Technology Show (S...
12/05/2026
The reactive visuals can adapt to any stage or screen setup and comprise 50 layers of Notch content
Today, Disguise announced that its high performance GX 3 m...
12/05/2026
Snapgrid , Snapbag & Airglow Expand Creative Control for the ARRI Modular LED BarFollowing the launch of the ARRI Omnibar, DoPchoice introduces a dedicated li...
12/05/2026
May 12th, 2026 Press Materials Available Here
TRIBECA FESTIVAL UNVEILS 2026 GAMES PROGRAM
Tribeca Celebrates Its 25th Anniversary With World Premieres and Pl...
12/05/2026
May 12th, 2026 Press Materials Available Here
MADONNA BRINGS THE WORLD PREMIERE OF CONFESSIONS II TO 2026 TRIBECA FESTIVAL
The Global Icon Will Unveil a Cine...
12/05/2026
Customer demand for data continues to grow in the first quarter of 2026 at Magya...
LTN Global To Provide Transmission Services for Conference USA 2020 Men's, Women's Basketball Tourneys Under the deal, the vendor will be back in 2021 and, potentially, in 2022 By Kristian Hernandez, Associate Editor 
