HBS BRAZIL MAKES ITS MOVE

HBS BRAZIL MAKES ITS MOVE - 12/03/2013 With less than 100 days remaining before Brazil and Japan face off in the Opening Match of the FIFA Confederations Cup 2013, HBS continues to ramp up its Rio de Janeiro-based team in what promises to be a key year for its operations in Brazil. What started in early 2011 as a trio of HBS veterans opening the company's traditional host country office is now a big band including over thirty people, most of them local newcomers to the company selected for their expertise in relevant fields. Among others, HBS venue management experts have been actively participating in the design and set-up of the broadcast infrastructure at the twelve venues of the 2014 FIFA World Cup while the logistics team has been working relentlessly on the massive task of bringing literally thousands of tonnes of equipment and personnel into the country on schedule.

Two weeks ago the Rio team moved out of what was becoming an increasingly cramped workspace and into new offices within the Riocentro complex, future home of the International Broadcast Centre. The new offices are located next to those of the Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and of FIFA. This geographic proximity will play a key role in helping HBS to continue to accelerate the speed of its planning by encouraging greater synergy between organisations.

While the Rio office has always worked in close collaboration with HBS' two permanent branches in Zug, Switzerland and Paris/Boulogne, France, this year will involve a significantly increased level of interaction due to four major company-wide milestones taking place in Brazil. The first of these is the FIFA World Broadcaster Meeting 1, to be held in Rio's Sofitel Copacabana on 24-25 April. The FIFA WBM1 will be an opportunity for FIFA, HBS and the LOC to meet with each other and especially with hundreds of expected Media Rights Licensees (MRLs). Europe-based HBS staff members will join the Rio team to present the company's production plan, help MRLs book services and generally address all enquiries the MRLs may have.

Approximately six short weeks later, the FIFA Confederations Cup 2013 will be both a major football tournament in its own right and a test event for HBS' 2014 FIFA World Cup operations. HBS staff numbers in Brazil will grow ten times and disperse across the six host cities to cover every possible angle of the tournament's sixteen matches. The local team will be particularly important in the build-up to the FIFA Confederations Cup, both in carrying out their respective missions and for their ability to provide key information and support permitting the foreigners to get settled in quickly.

HBS will close its big year in Brazil by serving as host broadcaster for the Final Draw on 6 December in Costa do Sauipe with Globo providing the production and, two days later, by co-hosting the FIFA WBM2 in Rio, at which it will present further details of its plans for 2014, potentially including adjustments made as a result of post-FIFA Confederations Cup debriefings with FIFA and MRLs as well as internally. After the FIFA WBM2 all staff will break for some short and deserved vacation time before reconvening in Brazil in early 2014, where they will progressively be joined by over two thousand additional HBS team members for the main event.

LINK:	http://www.hbs.tv/news-archive/news/article/hbs-brazil-makes-its-move....
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