Farewell to Live Production GmbH posted: 25/01/2021
After 11 Years we say Thank you to all our Customers, Sponsors and Readers
Live Events is the only industry that is and will be totally shut down for over a year and more with zero income. The companies and the people in the industry cannot gain commercial loans or financing because their balance sheets and profit and loss statements are negative, and they have no income stream that will allow repayment of a commercial note. The Live Events Industry in particular is at the point of extinction, as every firm is closed and will be until June 2021 or longer.
Some reflections of the past 40 years in Live Production. I work in this Industry since1980 for most of the time on the Hardware side improving the production and transmission of Live Events. We moved the videosignal quality from FBAS Recording to Component recording (U-Matic to Betacam) and from analogue to digital recording.
The Betacam Format proofed its reliability at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary where the lady's downhill winner Marina Kiehl was recorded with a Betacam camcorder during the flower ceremony at the finish area following her straight to a helicopter flying her directly to the German broadcast studio at the IBC with temperature differences from -10 to +30 degrees Celsius. The recordings on the Betacam cassette were played back during her interview in the studio without any dropout.
Marina Kiehl at the Olympics in Calgary
In parallel we promoted the move from SD 4:3 production to HD 16:9 production.
At the end of the 1980's, the Eureka initiative of manufacturers and broadcasters in Europe triggered the development of analogue HDTV equipment and production facilities, key suppliers being Thomson and BTS. The initiative was based on a) the analog transmission standards (HD-MAC, D2-MAC for standard definition), b) Test production & transmission during the Olympic Games 1992 in Albertville (Winter) and Barcelona (Summer) and c) numerous productions in Europe, organized by the European Consortium VISION 1250 with production facilities provided mainly by Thomson and BTS. The European Consortium VISION 1250 was responsible for the production and distribution of the HDTV programs produced at the Olympic venues in France. Transmission of the signals at the time were provided via Satellite using the analogue HDMAC-transmission standard, reception was provided at about 150 special viewing sites throughout Europe. European production teams from France (SFP), Italy (RAI), England (BBC), Sweden (SVT), Spain (RTVE) and Portugal (RTP) produced the individual events. However the European VISION 1250 system didn't succeed. After burning some 100 million ECU it disappeared.
VISION 1250 equipment at the Olympics in Alberville and Barcelona
After this Intermezzo the focus was solely on the Japanese 1125 lines system. A first terrific example was the test of the NHK 1125 lines system during the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta where the mens 4x 100m rely was covered with one camera on the roof of the stadium, starting with a totale covering al eight start runners following them by zooming in to the first exchange then following all eight athletes to the second exchange, then zooming back to cover the third exchange following the eight athletes the last 100m to the finish line documenting the win of the quartet from Canada.
The Summer Olympics in Atlanta
The real success of HD took place in 2006 where the FIFA soccer world championships in Germany were covered in SMPTE certified 1080 lines. At the FIFA championships2010 in South Africa and the 2012 Summer Olympics in London the TV viewers also had the chance to see some of the events in 3D. However, the 3D experience found a home only in the cinemas.
The FIFA world Cup in Germany and in South Africa
But not only in sports HD became a success - also in the recording of high-end show events like Robby Williams concert in Knebworth 2003 and the industry continued to introduce the next Quality step in video recording and transmission with 4K UHD by covering the 2013 concert of MUSE Live in Rome. And the Eurovision Song Contest from 2017 onwards was covered in 4K
Robby Williams - MUSE - Eurovision Song Contest
I believe every human being has one or more strong memories of live events, in my mind currently Images of the Opening ceremony of the 2008 Peking Summer games and images of the closing ceremony of the 2012 London Summer games are popping up.
Opening Ceremony at the Peking Olympics - Closing ceremony at the London Olympics
In parallel to the quality improvement of the video signal we moved from linear editing to non-linear editing and finally into the cloud which enabled us to go around the planet in 80 milliseconds and produce the first-ever fully decentralized production of a live, global music event. On Nov. 22 the live-streamed program opened with Purple Schulz playing an intimate, center-stage concert in the One2One Studio in Bottrop, Germany, with Stephan Ullrich and Daniel Klein thrilling audiences with a performative reading on Nov. 23.
In 80 milliseconds around the world
iPads were placed in seating positions around the stage enabled interaction between the streaming audience and the artists, adding a powerful immersive element and making the event more tangible for all. The on-site production team worked with a minimal cast, with the director working remotely and in real time from Vienna, the lighting designer from Munich, and the lighting operator from Frankfurt. FOH and broadcast sound was mixed in Cologne, and the parallel sound recording was controlled in 5.1.4 from Valhalla Studios in New York. The TV Skyline Skycenter in Mainz acted as a hub for camera control, image mixing, and stream delivery, while teams in Berlin managed quality control and remote audience aspects.
The technol
Europe Stories
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...
15/05/2026
Last night, the Spotify Podcast Awards in Mexico returned to the country's capital. Now in its second year, the evening honors creators whose voices are hel...
15/05/2026
Rebranded show announced
Ahead of their 2026 return, Music Expo have announced that they have now officially changed their name to the MONO Music Conference...
15/05/2026
Fuzz pedal joins UK companys line-up
UK-based pedal makers Buzzing Bugs Audio Devices have recently unveiled their latest creation, the Bolster. Said to pay...
15/05/2026
Join Calrec at MPTS 2026 | May 13-14 | Stand A40 | Olympia, London We're looking forward to meeting up with customers and partners at this year's Media ...
15/05/2026
Against that backdrop, IAB UK has added retail media to its Gold Standard. Jan Pitt, Commercial Director at ABC, spoke with Liv McCullagh, Retail Media Lead at ...
15/05/2026
Further to RT 's statement released yesterday and in the interest of full transparency, with the full permission of Derek Mooney, we are now publishing the ...
14/05/2026
At Spotify, we're focused on making every listening experience feel intentio...
14/05/2026
Spotify recently welcomed songwriters, artists, executives, and music students t...
14/05/2026
New articulations, ostinatos, Motion Scoring Articulation Sets & more
Sonuscore's flagship cinematic string library has just been treated to a significa...
14/05/2026
World-class studio opens on T rkiye's Aegean coast
P r Recording & Residence have announced their official opening, introducing a new world-class reside...
14/05/2026
Now supports channel layouts up to 9.1.6
Nugen Audio have just released an update for their AI-powered dialogue intelligibility and compliance tool. Set to ...
14/05/2026
New recordings & one-key chord tool
UVI have just announced the release of Orchestral Suite 2, a ground-up redesign of their all-in-one symphonic orchestra ...
14/05/2026
Two new arrivals & expanded factory content
Rob Papen's all-encompassing plug-in and virtual instrument collection has just been treated to another upda...
14/05/2026
Embed QR codes into DAW sessions
FSK Audio's latest plug-in doesn't process audio, but serves as an organisational tool that allows QR codes to be e...
14/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz transforms spectrum complexity into situational awareness and ef...
14/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz and Quantum Systems join forces to redefine EW and C-UAS-enabled...
14/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz showcases STANAG aligned ARDRONIS Counter UAS capability at NATO...
14/05/2026
Code of Silence has won the BAFTA for Best Drama Series at Sunday night's ceremony at the Royal Festival Hall.
The series, starring Rose Ayling-Ellis and w...
14/05/2026
Vivid Broadcast was embracing remote production long before it became the industry norm. Now, with Calrec's True Control 2.0-enabled Argo M and Type R conso...
14/05/2026
Comscore Reports First Quarter 2026 ResultsRESTON, Va., May 14, 2026 Comscore, Inc. (Nasdaq: SCOR), a trusted partner for planning, transacting and evaluating...
14/05/2026
RT is today publishing the earnings of its top 10 highest-earning presenters for 2025, ahead of the publication of RT 's Annual Report 2025 later this year...
14/05/2026
What can I watch on UKTV and stream on U this week?
This week on UKTV and the free streaming service U, viewers can watch a range of new and returning programm...
14/05/2026
The high-stakes chase thriller from Oscar- and BAFTA-nominated writer Matt Charm...
14/05/2026
Back From The Brink airs Sunday 17 May and Sunday 24 May at 6.30pm on RT One an...
13/05/2026
13 May 2026
VEON Delivers Strong Start to 2026 1Q26: Revenue 17.0%, EBITDA 17...
13/05/2026
Thousands of props donated from Skys longest-running original seriesWednesday 13 May 2026
How a neon windmill from A League of Their Own ended up in a dogs'...
13/05/2026
SAN JOSE, Calif. - May 13, 2026 - Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced that I...
13/05/2026
A definitive portrait of one of Ireland's most influential musicians
New TV documentary airs Monday 18 May on RT One and RT Player at 9.35pm
Watch the...
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
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
FOX Announces Schedule for 2026-27 Season FOX'S POWERFUL NEW SERIES PIPELINE FUELS A BREAKOUT SEASON WITH RETURNING HITS AND BOLD NEW STORYTELLING ACROSS ...
12/05/2026
Customer demand for data continues to grow in the first quarter of 2026 at Magya...
12/05/2026
The latest drama underscores Sky's continued investment in regional production and Welsh creative talent.Tuesday 12 May 2026
Wales takes the spotlight in S...
11/05/2026
As Eurovision fans gear up to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the iconic song ...
11/05/2026
Pela primeira vez na hist ria, o Brasil figura entre os oito maiores mercados de...
11/05/2026
New desktop instrument focused on tactile performance
Bastl Instruments have announced the Kalimba, a new desktop instrument that combines physical modellin...
11/05/2026
Compact sampling workstation gains new features
1010music have announced the blackbox 2, a new version of their compact standalone sampler designed for DAWl...
11/05/2026
Performance-focused sequencer with microtonal control
Berlin-based KOMA Elektronik have announced Monoplex, a new 42HP Eurorack sequencer designed for hands...
11/05/2026
Boasts wireless control from mobile devices
The latest iteration of IK Multimedia's compact amp and effects modelling pedal expands on the capabilities ...
11/05/2026
Spans traditional orchestral and experimental sounds
Sonora Cinematic have recently released the third instalment in their Transfigured Orchestra series, de...
11/05/2026
Our exhibition coverage
Watch all our SUPERBOOTH 2026 video coverage in one place. Check back to this page regularly as we will be updating with more video ...
11/05/2026
aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, is participating in the Equity Forum Ge...
Farewell to Live Production GmbH posted: 25/01/2021 
