Paris 2024: Behind the Scenes at NBC Sports' Record-Setting At-Home Operation in Stamford The ST 2110 and Dante facility produces 1080p HDR, 50-Hz content By Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S.
Friday, August 2, 2024 - 11:36 am
Print This Story
Since cutting the ribbon on its Stamford, CT, broadcast center following the London 2012 Games, NBC Sports Group has escalated the facility's role in its Olympics broadcast operations with each successive Games. Implementation of the at-home efforts were accelerated for the Tokyo 2020 and Beijing 2022 Games because of COVID-related challenges, and NBC hasn't looked back. Stamford is squarely at the center of NBC's Paris 2024 production with more technical infrastructure, crew, and live shows located there than ever before.
The period of COVID production expedited a lot of technology and infrastructure that would have been implemented down the road but out of necessity were fast-tracked, says NBC Olympics Production Executive Producer/President Molly Solomon. We are now one unified team: there's no evidence of distance between us [in Paris and Stamford] because of three years of planning between production, operations, and engineering. There is no latency in our interaction. Aren't you always on a headset anyway [no matter where you are]?
The heart of NBC Sports' Olympics broadcast operations in Stamford, CT
Nearly 2,000 NBC Sports staffers - nearly two-thirds of the entire Olympics coverage team - are working at the division's headquarters in Stamford, handling what ultimately will be more than 7,000 hours of programming across NBCUniversal's linear and digital platforms. While the team in Paris is focused on capturing the Olympic action as it plays out, it's up to the crew in Stamford to take in thousands of live and ENG feeds from Paris and package them for the millions of viewers watching.
During the 19 days of Paris 2024 coverage, Stamford is housing 17 production-control rooms, the lion's share of NBC's live studio productions, 28 off-tube announce booths, a dozen flex rooms that can serve a variety of needs, 24/7 live ingest and editing, the massive Highlights Factory operation, the broadcast-operations center, and more.
Game-Changer: The Move to ST 2110 and 1080p HDR Across the Board Like NBC's Paris effort, the Stamford operation is a fully 1080p HDR, 50-Hz production with 10 channels of Dolby Atmos across the board. In addition, nearly the entire operation relies on SMPTE ST 2110 for video and ST 2110-30 for audio, with a separate Dante network for audio, thanks to significant upgrades in IP technology following Beijing 2022.
NBC Sports' Kevin Callahan: Production members get quickly acclimated to the new systems and new facilities, thanks to the flexibility we've created here.
The biggest shift for these Games, says Kevin Callahan, senior director, system engineering, NBC Sports, is that everything flows through Stamford in some form. There's not a single control room in Paris that can go to air without passing through Stamford. We're able to do that largely because of the [upgrades] we've made since Beijing, with about 95% of our control rooms being native 2110 and the entire facility [running in] 1080p HDR 50.
Stamford's routing core has grown exponentially with the move to 2110: from roughly 3,000 3,000 to 5,000 11,000 sources/destinations with the new IP router (a Cisco switch with Grass Valley orchestration and EVS Cerebrum router control). Switchers in the larger control rooms went from having 20 router feeds to 128 feeds. Each control room is outfitted with a Densitron 2RU touchscreen router panel, streamlining operations for the production teams.
With all the rooms being 2110, the sky's the limit, says Callahan. That has really unlocked our remote workflows. We're now able to do all our REMI workflows with split video and audio levels. Every control room gets their own source list that they can share across the board so they can name every source whatever they want - just like they do in the trucks. That's a simple thing, but it has been huge for our production teams.
Control Rooms: Record Number of PCRs Drive Stamford-Based Productions The 17 production-control rooms in Stamford comprise 12 full PCRs, four Riedel Simplylive rooms, and one mobile unit. That is up from the 11 PCRs and three mobile units deployed for Tokyo 2020.
PCR2 serves as the home of NBC's Primetime in Paris, marking the second Olympics that the primetime show has been produced in Stamford. The fully ST 2110 control room is outfitted with a Sony XVS-9000 switcher, Evertz ev670 multiviewers, EVS Cerebrum router control, and Calrec ImPulse audio-routing core.
[The crews in PCR2] are in preproduction most of the day, says Callahan, watching all the feeds and compiling [content] to go into the Primetime segments that evening. They are watching it happen as it comes in and compiling the best of' [content] to put in the Primetime show.
With technical infrastructure and layouts similar to PCR2's, PCR3 handles USA Network's round-the-clock broadcasts (being made available to distribution partners in 4K HDR with Dolby Atmos audio), and PCR4 serves the NBC broadcast network's daytime segments.
Parked at the loading dock, Mobile TV Group 49 Flex serves as PCR17.
Two new fully ST 2110 IP control rooms, PCR11 and PCR12, were completed just prior to the start of Paris 2024. PCR11 is the home of diving during the day, NBC's live Spotlight on Paris TikTok show from Team USA House in the evenings, and the late-night show closing out the day. The much-hyped Gold Zone whip-around show is produced out of PCR12.
PCR6 is shared by E! network, which carries daily Olympics coverage, and CNBC, broadcasting Olympics content on Sat
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...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Creative software developer Foundry today announced the latest developments on Nuke Stage. A purpose-built application for end-to-end virtual production and in-...
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...
Paris 2024: Behind the Scenes at NBC Sports' Record-Setting At-Home Operation in Stamford The ST 2110 and Dante facility produces 1080p HDR, 50-Hz content By Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S. 
