Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Live From the US Open: NEP's Nick Romano on Collaborative Energy, Innovation of 2021

10/09/2021

Live From the US Open: NEP's Nick Romano on Collaborative Energy, Innovation of 2021 By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director

Friday, September 10, 2021 - 10:49 am

Print This Story | Subscribe

Story Highlights

The 2021 US Open heads into its final weekend, and, for the NEP Group, it will close out an event for which more of its personnel than ever were onsite, overseeing world-feed operations, operations for selected rightsholders, Arthur Ashe digital boards, a virtual flash studio, and more. for NEP Engineering Manager Nick Romano, the event this year showed the power of teamwork, not only within the NEP family but beyond.

From left: Terry Brady, Joalin Goff, and Nick Romano outside the USTA Broadcast Building

The US Open production effort is a multi-pronged one, with not only NEP but also Gravity Media, CP Communications, and others onsite working together.

When we are onsite, we just make sure that everybody's clients' needs are met and the show goes as flawlessly as possible, says Romano. We're working hand in hand with Gravity Media to put on a good show all the way around for the USTA, ESPN, and all the rightsholders. I'm just proud to be a part of the team that brings this together.

The US Open compound is dominated by three core buildings: a two-story production facility home to ESPN's domestic and core world-feed coverage, a second ESPN two-story building for production operations, and a two-story broadcast building that is home to the USTA, rightsholders, and more. The USTA compound does still have traditional production trucks playing key roles, most notably NEP's Chromium and Nickel.

We've used them for the world feed and the good part is they are 1080p- capable so, in subsequent years, when there is a need to go 1080p, they won't need to change, says Romano. [Chromium is] a great truck, and the crew and operators [are familiar] it, so the world feed runs as efficiently as possible.

ESPN's interactive-TV service also is produced out of a truck, and, this year, those operations moved to NEP Supershooter 9.

That truck is also 1080p, and it has a crew that is just as incredible, says Romano. The truck and we've gotten a lot of good results out of moving from NCP VIII. We have a had great run-through year of 1080i in the truck as we prepare for 1080p. The good part is that we're ready for next year, whatever it is, and we have vetted the workflow.

One of last year's efforts that let the full NEP Group flex its muscles was the use of Creative Technologies to create a virtual flash interview room. With rightsholders unable to be onsite, the room allowed players to sit down for interviews in a green-screen environment with maximum safety.

That was a huge hit last year, and the USTA wanted to bring that back, says Romano. We added a couple of small nuances for backup-streaming capability so that, if somebody couldn't take the transmission the way it's currently going out, we can give them a URL and pass along an SRT feed.

Cincinnati-based Lightborn Communications knocked it out of the park, he adds, with work on the virtual graphics, which give rightsholders around the world a studio environment reflecting the US Open and New York City. It's all part of an effort that has received positive feedback from everyone, he says.

The players like it because it's a controlled COVID-free environment with robotic cameras, he notes. They contact only one person, and that is the person putting on the IFB. There are no microphones, and the earbuds are disposable, so [Creative Technology Project Manager] Jeff Chenery and his team have done an amazing job every day.

The US Open green-screen studio is a concept that Romano says could have applications across other types of events and at all levels. At the Open, it allows players to be interviewed by more media outlets more easily than ever, and there are plenty of other sports and other events where the goals are the same.

This is a major world-class event, and we're doing it at a world-class level, Romano says. But there is flexibility to change the level of production for multiple uses. I think we're just at the tip of the iceberg. It would be perfect for things like press junkets, and I look forward to any opportunity that we can get involved in because this technology is sound. It's an all-around great effort.

In February 2020, NEP acquired Australia-based Mediatec and folded it into Creative Technology. Mediatec began providing in-venue digital signage behind the baselines at the US Open in 2019 so the acquisition in 2020 gave additional fuel to efforts that are transforming the Arthur Ashe fan experience.

The product they use is absolutely amazing, and we do our best to work with everybody to get the best out of it, says Romano. It serves multiple purposes, but it just looks phenomenal and amazing. We look forward to more options as we move into the future and to show what NEP can do. It's another example of just being at the tip of the iceberg.

The NEP team at the US Open is a bit larger than last year's, mostly because NEP is now handling technical needs for Wowow's rightsholder needs.

We provided the engineers and additional tech manager on board to help make sure that we were ready for them, says Romano. We wanted to make sure they were taken care of when they returned here for their first year in the new building.

The use of internet streaming to deliver live broadcast-quality signals has given NEP Media Solutions a chance to play a role for the practice courts. Robotic cameras cover those courts, and the signals are available to rightsholders via SRT or Zixi streams.

NEP Media Solutions is also helping out with streaming to social media and YouTube, says Romano, who has become more involved
LINK: https://www.sportsvideo.org/2021/09/10/live-from-the-us-open-neps-nick...
See more stories from svg

More from Sports Video Group

02/07/2025

World RX of Sweden: Aurora's Matt Beal on Taking Up the Broadcast Reins Alongside the FIA

Progressive realism: Aurora on taking up the broadcast reins for World RX alongs...

02/07/2025

World RX of Sweden: Getting the Production Together With NEP Finland, Cloudbass Graphics

Great speed: New host broadcaster Aurora on getting the World RX 2025 season pro...

02/07/2025

World RX of Sweden: Host Broadcaster Aurora Looks Ahead to This Weekend's Second Race of the Season in Hljes

Seat of its pants: Aurora boxes clever and looks ahead for the FIA as new host b...

02/07/2025

UEFA Women's Euro 2025: EBU, BBC Sport, Sunset+Vine Talk Coverage Plans, Distribution and Maintaining Momentum

UEFA Women's Euro 2025: EBU, BBC Sport and Sunset Vine talk coverage plans, ...

02/07/2025

UEFA Women's Euro 2025: Women's Super League Launches New Content Series to Support Teams, Players Over Summer of Football

UEFA Women's Euro 2025: Women's Super League launches new content series...

02/07/2025

UEFA Women's Euro 2025: Ignite Puts Fans, Players Front and Center With Title Sequence for ITV

UEFA Women's Euro 2025: Ignite puts fans and players front and centre with t...

02/07/2025

Storytelling in the Live Game Broadcast: ESPN Director Jimmy Platt Breaks Down the Craft

Storytelling in the Live Game Broadcast: ESPN Director Jimmy Platt Breaks Down t...

02/07/2025

CONCACAF's Miguel Angel Garcia on the Gold Cup's Enhanced 2025 Production Plan

CONCACAF's Miguel Angel Garcia on the Gold Cup's Enhanced 2025 Productio...

01/07/2025

SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Spyrosoft's Jonathan Witty on Futher Business Expansion in the U.S.

SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Spyrosoft's Jonathan Witty on Futher Business Exp...

01/07/2025

The NIL Effect: How the Shifting Business of College Athletics Impacts On-Campus Video Production

The NIL Effect: How the Shifting Business of College Athletics Impacts On-Campus...

01/07/2025

Cherry On the Cake: Inside the Technical Production of the Tour de France 2025 with EMG / Gravity Media

Cherry on the cake: Inside the technical production of the Tour de France 2025 w...

01/07/2025

NESN's Josh Jun on Keeping Alternative Broadcasts Fresh for Boston Red Sox, Boston Bruins Fans

NESN's Josh Jun on Keeping Alternative Broadcasts Fresh for Boston Red Sox, ...

01/07/2025

TNT Sports Races Back Into NASCAR With Fresh Look, Familiar Edge

TNT Sports Races Back Into NASCAR With Fresh Look, Familiar Edge Production approach emphasizes creative freedom, bold storytelling, casual-fan-friendly tone B...

27/06/2025

How Smarter Video Compression is Creating a Sustainable Future

How smarter compression is creating a sustainable future By Michael Burns Monday, June 23, 2025 - 14:13 Print This Story Live sport is especially vulnerab...

27/06/2025

RTL Group To Acquire Sky Deutschland

RTL Group To Acquire Sky Deutschland By George Bevir, Editorial Director, SVG Europe Friday, June 27, 2025 - 8:00 am Print This Story | Subscribe Story ...

27/06/2025

Frictionless, At Scale: The Current State of Live Video Streaming Techology

Frictionless, At Scale: The Current State of Live Video Streaming Techology Leaders from Bitmovin, Comcast Technology Solutions, Harmonic, IMAX, and Phenix brea...

27/06/2025

Marquee Sports Network's Nick Steger on Meeting the Moment of the Contending Chicago Cubs

Marquee Sports Network's Nick Steger on Meeting the Moment of the Contending...

27/06/2025

NHL Draft 2025: The League Is Primed for First Decentralized Draft in Non-Pandemic Era

NHL Draft 2025: The League Is Primed for First Decentralized Draft in Non-Pandem...

26/06/2025

10th-Annual SVG Regional Sports Production Summit Presents Useful Roadmap for the Future of the RSN, Local Media Business

10th-Annual SVG Regional Sports Production Summit Presents Useful Roadmap for th...

26/06/2025

The Big Cloud Debate: Public vs. Private vs. Hybrid

The Big Cloud Debate: Public vs. Private vs. Hybrid Tech leaders from CineSys, Diversified, and Net Insight breaks down all flavors of cloud By Jason Dachman, ...

26/06/2025

Program Productions' Jess Kowatch on Training the Next and Current Generation of Sports TV Technicians

Program Productions' Jess Kowatch on Training the Next and Current Gener...

25/06/2025

SVG College Summit 2025: Select Sessions Now Available to Watch on SVG PLAY

SVG College Summit 2025: Select Sessions Now Available to Watch on SVG PLAY Tackling the latest in college sports video: NIL, live production, virtual productio...

25/06/2025

ESPN Is Set To Bring AR Graphics to Wimbledon, Revamps Bunker and Studio 18 VO Booths

ESPN Is Set To Bring AR Graphics to Wimbledon, Revamps Bunker and Studio 18 VO B...

24/06/2025

2025 NBA Draft: ABC/ESPN Prepares for Two-Day Draft at Barclays Center

2025 NBA Draft: ABC/ESPN Prepares for Two-Day Draft at Barclays Center Partners Game Creek Video, CP Communications, NEP Specialty Capture will be on hand By M...

24/06/2025

Cloud Broadcast Tech Update: Google Cloud's Jane Day on the Impact of AI on Sports

Cloud Broadcast Tech Update: Google Cloud's Jane Day on the Impact of AI on ...

24/06/2025

Cloud Broadcast Tech Update: AWS's Dana LaGattuta on Data-Driven Innovation in Sports

Cloud Broadcast Tech Update: AWS's Dana LaGattuta on Data-Driven Innovation ...

24/06/2025

British & Irish Lions Men's Tour: Dublin Opener Sees Sky Sports Take Remote Route

Lions live: Dublin opener sees Sky Sports take remote route By Fergal Ringrose ...

24/06/2025

British & Irish Lions Men's Tour: Pumas Maul Lions as S4C and TG4 Deliver First-Ever Joint Host in Dublin

Pumas maul Lions as S4C and TG4 deliver first-ever joint host in Dublin By Ferg...

24/06/2025

ABC/ESPN Prepares for 2025 NBA Draft, the First at Barclays Center

ABC/ESPN Prepares for 2025 NBA Draft, the First at Barclays Center Partners Game Creek Video, CP Communications, NEP Specialty Capture will be on hand By Mark ...

23/06/2025

Adventures in Live Cloud Production: Stories From the Trenches with MLB, NHL, NBC Sports, Warner Bros. Discovery, and AWS

Adventures in Live Cloud Production: Stories From the Trenches with MLB, NHL, NB...

23/06/2025

Finding the Edge: How Badger & Combes Produces Live-Streamed Coverage of County Cricket for LancsTV

Finding the edge: How Badger & Combes produces live-streamed coverage of county ...

23/06/2025

Masters of Madness: New Football Format Shakes Up the Rules of Sportainment

Masters of Madness: New football format shakes up the rules of sportainment By Adrian Pennington Monday, June 16, 2025 - 11:38 Print This Story The ball i...

23/06/2025

New State-of-the-Art Mountain Media Center Launches in Former Starz Encore Building Near Denver

New State-of-the-Art Mountain Media Center Launches in Former Starz Encore Build...

23/06/2025

ESPN Says Goodbye to Seaport Studios, Hello to New State-of-the-Art Production Facility at Disney's 7 Hudson Square

ESPN Says Goodbye to Seaport Studios, Hello to New State-of-the-Art Production F...

20/06/2025

A True Test? Cricket's Growth on the Global Stage and the Role Broadcast Can Play

A True Test? Cricket's Growth on the Global Stage and the Role Broadcast Can...

20/06/2025

Sky Sports Goes Large for the British & Irish Lions Tour with AR Graphics, UHD and a Pop Up Channel

Sky Sports goes large for the British & Irish Lions Tour with AR graphics, UHD a...

20/06/2025

ESPN's Men's College World Series Finals Coverage Combines Innovation, Legacy

ESPN's Men's College World Series Finals Coverage Combines Innovation, L...

19/06/2025

SVG Rewind: PGA Tour Introduces Drone AR Smart Tracing, Reflects on Winning George Wensel Technical Achievement Award

SVG Rewind: PGA Tour Introduces Drone AR Smart Tracing, Reflects on Winning Geor...

18/06/2025

Technology Focus: Fan Expectations Drive Advances in the In-Stadium Experience

Technology focus: Fan expectations drive advances in the in-stadium experience By Jo Ruddock Tuesday, June 3, 2025 - 08:36 Print This Story For years, att...

18/06/2025

Making Connections: How Stadiums Are Meeting the Ever-Growing Demand for Data and Connectivity

Making connections: How stadiums are meeting the ever-growing demand for data an...

18/06/2025

SVG Venues & Teams Summit Keynote: RWS Global Powers the Stadium Environment at 2024 Paris Olympics

SVG Venues & Teams Summit Keynote: RWS Global Powers the Stadium Environment at ...

18/06/2025

SVG Rewind: Behind the Scenes of Producing Tottenham Hotspur's Europa League Victory Parade

SVG Rewind: Behind the Scenes of Producing Tottenham Hotspur's Europa League...

17/06/2025

SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Mercury Intermedia's Tom Richardson, Mike Ligon on Powering DTC Streams for Teams Reclaiming Media Rights

SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Mercury Intermedia's Tom Richardson, Mike Ligon o...

17/06/2025

Total Sports Performance from Relo Metrics, VideoAmp, Offers Next-Level Media, Brand Measurement

Total Sports Performance from Relo Metrics, VideoAmp, Offers Next-Level Media, B...

17/06/2025

From Stage to Stream: Producing Live Esports Events in 2025

From Stage to Stream: Producing Live Esports Events in 2025 Leaders from ESL FACEIT Group, Riot Games, and more break down the latest trends By Jason Dachman, ...

17/06/2025

Inside FIFA 2025 Club World Cup Operations With FIFA's Oscar Sanchez, HBS's Stefan Wistuba

Inside FIFA 2025 Club World Cup Operations With FIFA's Oscar Sanchez, HBS...

17/06/2025

Production Ambitions: Over Exposed on Making the National League Promotion Final for DAZN as Spectacular as Possible

Production ambitions: Over Exposed on making the National League Promotion Final...