
Commentary revolution: DAZN's technical production manager Max Mosgraber talks doing more with less By Kevin Emmott
Monday, April 29, 2024 - 11:24
Print This Story
DAZN commentators Max Siebald [left] and Michael Ballack
Doing more with less is a common trope in broadcast circles, but the needle does not have to move far to make it worthwhile. The smallest things can make the biggest differences says DAZN's technical production manager, Max Mosgraber.
Sports commentators don't just describe what's happening on the field. The best commentators engage and involve the viewer in the action. They have opinions, they chat, and above all they provide companionship to people listening at home.
Mosgraber already knows all this. With over 10 years of experience in the broadcast industry, he's worked as a freelance sound engineer and technician for various OB companies in Germany, including TVN, Studio Berlin, NEP, TV Skyline, and HD Broadcast, and has spent time as a media engineer at public broadcaster RBB. So when he saw an opportunity to repurpose existing technologies to improve DAZN's commentary output he leapt on the opportunity.
Teaming up with select industry partners, he boosted DAZN's commentary output with additional audio channels, improved quality, added a video feed of the commentary area, and provided a fully redundant mix on an entirely separate backhaul.
He used the same technologies to minimise latency, give audio operators full control over the signal, and provide the commentary team with better information to do their jobs and he did it with no outside broadcast equipment and no additional transmission lines.
Available resources
Trialling his workflow at the recent UEFA fixture between Real Madrid and RB Leipzig at the Santiago Bernab u Stadium, he did big remote production on a micro scale. But Mosgraber's description of what he did is way better: We condensed the OB van into hand luggage.
When we attend games in foreign countries we have three commentary options, says Mosgraber. At the biggest events like the Bundesliga and UEFA Champions League matches in Germany, we will always send an OB van. For foreign Champions League matches, as a main visiting broadcaster, we may come equipped with our own OB, or more likely we book a full or partially equipped space in the commentary area.
Like many broadcasters, DAZN adds live commentary from its onsite team to the world feed of the game, supplied on this occasion by Spanish UEFA rights holder Telefonica. In Madrid, Mosgraber secured a partially equipped commentary booth, which as usual included a fibre connection to a 100MBps internet line and two monitors which showed the live match feed to help keep the commentators across the action. Mosgraber felt that even with this limited connectivity, he could do better.
DAZN's commentary booth at the recent UEFA fixture between Real Madrid and RB Leipzig at the Santiago Bernab u Stadium
Doing more with less
Pairing a Prodys Quantum W commentary unit at the stadium with a Quantum AV at DAZN's production control room (PCR) in Munich, he was not only able to introduce a second commentator track, but a live PTZ camera feed of the commentary area. Providing up to three mic/line inputs, the Quantum W can embed up to four audio tracks onto a camera feed. Mosgraber only needed two, and he used it to embed isolated commentator audio channels on the camera video output down the Movistar ethernet link to the DAZN PCR in Germany where it was de-embedded via a Quantum AV unit. Embedding the audio kept everything in sync, and both channels were able to be routed directly into DAZN's Stagetec mixer for monitoring and mixing into the world feed presentation.
The biggest benefit for us is being able to deliver a better mix to the gallery, and all without an SNG, OB van or additional dedicated fibre/satellite transmission lines. I think I am the only person in the world working like this, but this workflow was enabled by its simplicity
To use as much of the available bandwidth as possible, Mosgraber used the BitRate Adaptive Video Encoding (Brave) protocol, which provides network analysis for things like packet loss, packet latency and average bandwidth, and makes bitrate adjustments in real time. Crucially, Brave also gives priority to audio information over video.
The system effectively creates a small television studio that fits into my travel bag, says Mosgraber. We are the first company at the Champions League in Europe - or maybe in the world - that is using a commentary camera at these big football games without needing an OB van on site. It allows us to integrate the commentaries on a transmission line via the internet and because the commentaries are embedded onto the commentary camera it means the camera is an integrated part of the setup.
On a normal partially equipped remote production the commentary area isn't able to send or receive vision tracks to or from the PCR, but this workflow means that as well as sending the commentaries and commentator camera feed, we can also get the program feed from the gallery via RX.
It means the commentators can see all the inserts and graphics, the commercials, the EVS highlight tracks; they can see everything as opposed to just the match feed. It's a huge benefit to the commentary team because they feel more connected to the production and from a teamwork perspective it's a much more joined up approach.
Full redundancy
As a as a main visiting broadcaster, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) requires DAZN to produce a clean commentary track on audio track four of its transmission line, and Mosgraber took the opportunity to implement a secondary system to ensure that it not only sounds better than before, but provides a solid redundant backup should the internet f
Most recent headlines
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
10/12/2025
Sound-Alike Commercials Are Part of Sports' Soundtrack Johnny Cash for Coca-Cola is the latest in a long litany of sonic approximationsBy Dan Daley, Audio ...
10/12/2025
Immersive Sound Is Logical Next Step for Sports VenuesSound-systems suppliers are sanguine, but the market has its challengesBy Dan Daley, Audio Editor
Wednes...
10/12/2025
The Romans Built Arenas for Immersive Sound 2,000 Years AgoThe historic Arena of Nimes in France is still in use todayBy Dan Daley, Audio Editor
Wednesday, De...
10/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: Audio Workshop Hits on Immersive, Virtualized, and Next...
10/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Technology Exhibits Preview: Audio SpotlightBy SVG Staff
Wednesday, December 10, 2025 - 8:21 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlig...
10/12/2025
SVG Europe Audio: Listening to the sounds of powder and ice at Milano Cortina wi...
10/12/2025
Advancements in audio technology: Capturing the atmosphere of live sports By David Davies
Tuesday, November 25, 2025 - 09:27
Print This Story
Although wor...
10/12/2025
Everything smelled of popcorn: The art of bringing the complex sound of esports ...
10/12/2025
Top L-R: Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty!, Hanging by a Wire, Broken English, Buddy
C...
10/12/2025
For the first time, Spotify is giving users the power to steer the algorithm. Gustav S derstr m, Spotify's Co-President, CPO, and CTO, shares the vision beh...
10/12/2025
L3Harris' new contract for Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System Insensitive ...
10/12/2025
L3Harris Meadowlands system has been designed with an open architecture software system that allows for more flexible and efficient software updates. This capab...
10/12/2025
During this interval, streaming comprised the majority of ad supported TV (46.4%...
10/12/2025
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. Bitcentral, a provider of production, asset management, playout and streaming workflow solutions, has named technology veteran Rick Arnold...
10/12/2025
TV Tech is delighted to reveal the winners of the 2025 Media & Entertainment: Best in Market Awards....
10/12/2025
BOTHELL, Wash. The Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS), the Video Services Forum (VSF), the Advanced Media Workflow Association (AMWA) and the European Broad...
10/12/2025
In a notable example of how pay TV operators are integrating streaming services into their lineup and using those services to retain or attract subscribers, Dir...
10/12/2025
Today, Chaos builds instant feedback into the viewport, connecting Maya and Houdini to Chaos Vantage's real-time path tracer. Artists can now assess 3D asse...
10/12/2025
Smeup, a key partner for companies engaged in digital transformation, today announced the expansion of its adoption of Cubbit, the first geo-distributed cloud s...
10/12/2025
Mediagenix, a global leader in smart content solutions to profitably connect the right content to the right audience, today announced two significant milestones...
10/12/2025
BEAVERTON, Ore. HDR10+ Technologies, LLC has announced that they will soon begin the licensing and certification of devices, content, and services that support ...
10/12/2025
SMPTE has joined forces with the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and Entertainment Technology Center (ETC) to publish an updated report on AI and its impact o...
10/12/2025
Clear-Com is pleased to announce the appointment of Kris Koch as Director of Sales - North & South America. In this expanded leadership role, Kris will oversee...
10/12/2025
Mavis today announced the latest version of Mavis Camera (v7.4), a major update to its professional iOS camera app, headlined by the launch of Film Kit - an opt...
10/12/2025
Creamsource, renowned for its Vortex series of cinematic lighting, is laying the groundwork for its next phase of growth with the addition of Markus Zeiler as G...
10/12/2025
Digital Alert Systems, a global leader in emergency communications solutions for media providers, today announced that the DAS3-DC-PS, a new DC power supply opt...
10/12/2025
Riedel Communications today announced it has formed a strategic partnership with Racing Electronics, a premier provider of motorsport communication equipment in...
10/12/2025
#GALSNGEAR is launching two signature leadership retreats in early 2026, designed to equip women in media, entertainment, and technology with the tools to lead...
10/12/2025
Providing worldwide customers with total confidence through transparent, all-inclusive pricing
CVP, one of Europe's leading suppliers of professional video...
10/12/2025
With the Federal Communications Commission working on new rules for the deployment of NextGen TV, next year promises to be an important one for both the future ...
10/12/2025
DENVER Tom Rutledge, director emeritus and former president and CEO of Charter Communications, will be honored with the 2026 Bresnan Ethics in Business Award by...
10/12/2025
NEW YORK Novocap's Cadent has acquired VuePlanner, a YouTube video ad planning, optimization, and measurement company in a deal that will help Cadent expand...
10/12/2025
In preparation for the madness of March, here are some important reminders for scheduling back-to-back Special Playlists.
The first Special Playlist MUST end b...
10/12/2025
10 Dec 2025
VEON's Rising Capital Markets Profile Strengthened by Inclusion...
10/12/2025
10 Dec 2025
VEON Recognized for JazzCash, Kyivstar and Jazz at the World Commun...
10/12/2025
December 10th, 2025
TRIBECA FILMS TO RELEASE THE INDEPENDENT DOCUMENTARY FILM...
10/12/2025
Wednesday 10 December 2025
Sky extends partnership with the Ladies European Tour for a landmark 30th year
Sky and the Ladies European Tour (LET) have announce...
10/12/2025
Wednesday 10 December 2025
Walk-on if you love the darts: James Maddison, Luke ...
10/12/2025
Rohde & Schwarz presents world's first RF power sensor with 0.80 mm RF conne...
10/12/2025
Back to All News
2026 Starts With a Swoon: Kim Seon-ho and Go Youn-jung Lead C...
10/12/2025
Back to All News
Berlin and the Lady with an Ermine Arrives to Netflix on May 15
Entertainment
10 December 2025
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
THE N...
10/12/2025
It's out of the frying pan and into the sequins for comedian and actor Micha...
10/12/2025
Born That Way airs Thursday 18 December on RT One and RT Player
Born That ...
09/12/2025
2025 Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame: Pam Oliver, Sideline Icon Who Redefined t...
09/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Technology Exhibits Preview, Part 2By Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S.
Tuesday, December 9, 2025 - 7:17 am
Print This Story | Subscr...
09/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: Cloud Production Workshop Spotlights Live and Non-Live ...
09/12/2025
Next-generation content protection: Multi-technology security is integral to com...
09/12/2025
CBS Sports Provides One-of-a-Kind Production' for UEFA Champions League Cro...
09/12/2025
Spanish Professional Basketball League Relies on NETGEAR AV, MAM Tech for Seamle...