When SVG was launched in January 2006, we set out to be an association with a difference. Yes, as with most associations, our members and sponsors help us lay out an agenda for activities and initiatives. But we do boast one major difference: a dedicated (and global) editorial team that spends countless hours every week reporting on the industry's biggest events and technological advances.
The goal is simple: to use the power of the written word (and video) to tell our members' and sponsors' stories in an in-depth way, helping inform sports-video professionals around the globe.
SVG's Advisory Board Chairmen have been an integral part of the company's mission since Day 1, beginning with CBS's Ken Aagaard (left), followed by NBA's Steve Hellmuth (right) and Turner's Tom Sahara (center).
That approach has allowed us to spend much of the past 10 years reporting firsthand from inside the world's largest sports events. We have witnessed the way sports TV production has evolved and, in many ways, led the industry in deployment of new technologies. Some of those new technologies create a template for future operations; others fall by the wayside. But, regardless of whether a technology finds a place in the marketplace, those early efforts of putting it to use involved tons of effort, a lot of faith, and plenty of patience.
The Dynamism of Sports
It goes without saying that the sports segment of the TV-production industry is the most dynamic. In the past five years, TV-viewing habits have undergone a profound shift, with streaming services like Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu competing with the TV networks for eyeballs. But the traditional broadcast and cable networks hold the ultimate weapon in appointment television: live sports.
The Olympic Flame, visible over the iconic Bird's Nest, at the 2008 Beijing Olympics
Yes, part of that is because the value of sports rights and franchises continues to rise. But the real reason the industry is so dynamic is that visionary production professionals are always looking to improve the quality of the TV-viewing experience and manufacturers and production-services vendors look to stay one step ahead of the competition. That constant push-pull - coupled with the support of networks, teams, and leagues that make the necessary financial investment to distinguish the on-air (or in-venue) production from the competition - is the magic formula for the industry.
Just look back to 2006 and see where our industry was in terms of innovation. The 2006 World Cup made the move to all-HD production, a step that had repercussions around the globe because many European broadcasters were not yet sold on the benefits of HD. Hi-def was still in its formative stages domestically, despite the fact that there were 50 HD production units on the road (today, there are more than 230). Tennis's Hawk-Eye instant-replay system debuted and seemed to be about as far as technology could go in overturning an official's ruling. The massive scoreboards and top-notch video- and audio-production facilities that have become the norm in venues were not even a dream; justifying expenditures on HD cameras, EVS replay servers, and fully broadcast-capable production switchers seemed impossible. And the college-video marketplace did not extend beyond team video coordinators, who used the power of video- and audio-content creation to improve on-the-field performance but, otherwise, were seen as nothing more than an extension of the coaching staff.
New Orleans welcome Super Bowl XLVII, and CBS Sports, to the Superdome in 2013.
During the decade, there have been plenty of amazing highlights and accomplishments in sports production. Some of them turned out to be the beginning of industry trends and laid the groundwork for the future of sports production. Others, most notably 3D, were amazing accomplishments that ran into consumer resistance.
The Global Transition to HD
Today, it's hard to recall a time when HD was not the norm. That's why the 2006 World Cup was so important: it was the first global sports event to commit to all-HD production. That decision was important not just to U.S. domestic-rights holder ESPN, which already had an HD service, but to broadcasters around the globe that were looking for a reason to flip the HD switch. The World Cup provided that reason.
OBS cameramen capture curling at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
Grass Valley worked closely with Host Broadcast Services (HBS) to ensure that the HD production became a reality. Seven HD remote-production trucks (coupled with seven HD slow-motion-replay vans) covered all the action from 12 stadiums across Germany. Grass Valley supplied more than 182 LDK 6000 and LDK 6200 cameras, Kalypso and Xten DD HD switchers, 12 large-scale routers with 6,000 6,000 inputs and outputs, and more than 900 modular signal-processing devices.
Other equipment included Tektronix waveform monitors; Panasonic, Sony, and Barco monitors; Dolby and Glensound audio gear; and Avid and EVS media servers and editing systems.
The HD efforts for the World Cup were also important for another reason: the use of two fiber rings from T-Systems allowed transport of uncompressed HD feeds as well as unilateral SD feeds.
The 3D Experimental Phase
Less than six months after the global success of the World Cup, there was another major accomplishment in sports production: the 2007 NBA All-Star Game in 3D.
The view from the camera booth behind Centre Court, where Wimbledon was captured in 3D in 2011
Tech geeks who attended the NBA All-Star Game will never forget the experience, for which NBA Entertainment and the league went all out in 3D. Working with PACE's Vince Pace (who played a key role in the 3D Avatar experience that captivated moviegoers in 2009), the league's production team deployed five 1080i st
Most recent headlines
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
06/12/2025
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. A new survey from Pixitmedia by Datacore revealed a major shift in the Media & Entertainment industry in media archiving, with 85% of resp...
06/12/2025
HACKENSACK, N.J. LiveU has announced that the national public broadcaster Czech Television has completed one of the largest LiveU live production deployments fo...
06/12/2025
NEW YORK The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) presented the Excellence in Production Technology Emmy Award to NASA+ and Dr. Tom Leight...
05/12/2025
2025 Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame: Curt Gowdy Jr. - Master Storyteller, Nati...
05/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Veritone's Sean King on the Power of Mining Video, Audio DataThe company's Data Refinery offers users total control and governance over da...
05/12/2025
Platinum White Paper: Inside the Nashville Predators' Unified, Flexible, Sca...
05/12/2025
Netflix Reaches Agreement To Acquire Warner Bros. Following Planned WBD SplitThe deal does not include WBDs sports assets like TNT Sports (US, UK, LatAm), Euros...
05/12/2025
FOX Sports Returns to Indianapolis for Primetime Broadcast of Big Ten Championsh...
05/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: Digital Engagement & Monetization Workshop Tackles the ...
05/12/2025
Atlanta United Lights Up New Emory Healthcare Studio With First Live Broadcast f...
05/12/2025
As Messi Takes the Pitch, MLS, Apple, NEP Roll Out Largest MLS Cup Production Ev...
05/12/2025
ESPN Enters College Football's Most Intense Month With Elevated Workflows fo...
05/12/2025
It's about that time! Awards season is in full swing, and the Film Independe...
05/12/2025
Every year, Spotify Wrapped offers a personalized look back at the audio that defined your year. It's a snapshot of your listening habits, designed to tell ...
05/12/2025
In 2025, Spotify's EQUAL, GLOW, and RADAR programs celebrated women, LGBTQIA , and emerging artists who turned moments into milestones. From breaking record...
05/12/2025
In our latest blog, we explain how Wi-Fi 7 rollouts can drive consumer loyalty with value-add services such as consumer cybersecurity. We also explore how this ...
05/12/2025
LOS ANGELES Netflix announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire the assets of Warner Bros. for $82.7 billion....
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Nielsens Gracenote has launched Gracenote Content Connect, a new ad platform that provides agencies, brands, supply-side platforms (SSPs) and demand-si...
05/12/2025
NEW YORK In an most important update to the workings of deal-based programmatic advertising, IAB Tech Lab has released version 1.0 of its Deals API for public c...
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Pass the turkey. Pass the stuffing. Pass the cranberry sauce. All are common requests of Americans celebrating Thanksgiving Day with family and f...
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Iris, the new cloud-connected camera control platform, has officially launched with features that turn virtually any PTZ camera into a software-connect...
05/12/2025
HOLLYWOOD, Calif. Netflix announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the assets of Warner Bros. for $82.7 billion....
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Iris, the new cloud-connected camera control platform, has officially launched with features that turn virtually any PTZ camera into a software-connect...
05/12/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has approved AT&T's $1.02 billion acquisition of spectrum from UScellular in a decision that was issued sho...
05/12/2025
The Best Coldplay Songs: 21 Tracks That Shoot for the Stars From Yellow to Viva La Vida, Fix You to Paradise, this playlist goes back to the start.
December ...
05/12/2025
Zafris Lecture Series Brings Nabil Ayers to Berklee The 32nd annual James G. Zafris Distinguished Lecture series was held on Thursday, November 13, with guest...
05/12/2025
Friday 5 December 2025
A new Game of Thrones Tale: Official trailer for Sky Exc...
05/12/2025
Back to All News
Don Lee, Lee Jin-uk, and Lalisa Manobal to Star in Netflix Act...
05/12/2025
Tis the season of giving once again and this year we've taken our Give Back Fridays' concept and turned it on its head.
In the autumn we were approach...
05/12/2025
Brayden Gogis doesn't remember a time when he wasn't completely fixated on games in all forms. In preschool, when they asked us to dress up as what we ...
05/12/2025
The Grinch steals the spotlight as the theme for The Late Late Toy Show 2025
Tune in tonight at 9:35pm on RT One and worldwide on RT Player
#LateLateToyShow...
05/12/2025
RT Announces New Presenters of Flagship News Programmes
New RT Six One News co-presenter Tommy Meskill
Sarah McInerney & Justin McCarthy join Morning Ir...
04/12/2025
ToolsOnAir Blackmagic Design HyperDeck Event Presets for just:in mac pro 2025 & ...
04/12/2025
ToolsOnAir AJA Ki Pro Event Presets for just:in mac pro 2025 & just:in linux
More Details:Starting with version 5.5, both just:in mac pro and just:in linux sol...
04/12/2025
Wangu Kanuri from Kenya and Godwin Asediba from Ghana are two of this years finalists for Thomsons Young Journalist of the Year Award. The pair are runners-up i...
04/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: ProximaVision's Claudio Lisman on Why Tethered Drones Could Be...
04/12/2025
SVG Campus Shot Callers: Imry Halevi, Senior Associate Director of Athletics, Co...
04/12/2025
Platinum White Paper: LiveU Lightweight Sports Production: A Step Change in Spor...
04/12/2025
London to Riyadh: DAZN brings the boxing glamour to new production levels for Be...
04/12/2025
Analysis: Paramount bets on the battering ram' with Champions League play By Callum McCarthy, Editor-at-Large
Tuesday, December 2, 2025 - 10:12
Print ...
04/12/2025
Space City Home Network Launches SCHN DTC App for Astros and RocketsThe Rockets and Astros were previously the lone NBA and MLB teams without a DTC appBy Jason...
04/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: Content Workflows Workshop Spotlights Evolution of Spor...
04/12/2025
New Sponsor Spotlight: Geotech's Patrick Wambold On the Unreal Engine Revolu...
04/12/2025
Curt Gowdy Jr. - Master Storyteller, Nationally and RegionallyBy Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S.
Thursday, December 4, 2025 - 1:52 pm
Print This Sto...
04/12/2025
(L-R) Rebecca Lichtenfeld, Mohammadreza Eyni, Sara Khaki, and Judith Helfand att...
04/12/2025
SBS launches Future Frames initiative to support emerging First Nations video ed...
04/12/2025
Coronal mass ejections caused by eruptions on the surface of the sun can have fa...
04/12/2025
Gracenote Content Connect enables media ecosystem to precisely align ad campaigns and programming based on rich content signals
NEW YORK - December 4, 2025 - N...
When SVG was launched in January 2006, we set out to be an association with a difference. Yes, as with most associations, our members and sponsors help us lay out an agenda for activities and initiatives. But we do boast one major difference: a dedicated (and global) editorial team that spends countless hours every week reporting on the industry's biggest events and technological advances.
