
SVG Sit-Down: Telstra's Steve Dargham on America's Cup Transmission Needs World feed will be distributed to 60+ rightsholders globally on fiber, internet, partner networks By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director
Friday, March 5, 2021 - 11:00 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
The America's Cup (AC36) may not feature any teams from the Americas (New Zealand squares off with Italy beginning this weekend), but, given its location in Auckland, NZ, it will feature plenty of broadcasters and long-distance transmission connectivity. Steven Dargham, head of major events, Telstra Broadcast Services, discussed the company's efforts around the world-feed distribution and more with SVG Editorial Director Ken Kerschbaumer.
Telstra Broadcast Services' Steve Dargham: Proven hybrid delivery models make broadcasters open to flexible delivery solutions that incorporate new technology.
How many rightsholders, etc. are riding on the Telstra pipes?
Telstra distributed AC36's world feed to over 60 global media- and digital-rights holders on its global fiber, internet, and affiliated partner networks. Hundreds of countries will receive AC36 from broadcasters with rights in multiple regions.
Any sense of how many circuits and total bandwidth will be used?
To accommodate large-bandwidth acquisition, Telstra deployed dual 10GigE over diverse dark-fiber backbone from AC36's International Broadcast Centre to dual Telstra Global Media Network PoPs in Auckland. The feeds then travel across the Tasman to Telstra's Broadcast Operations Centre in Sydney, which acts as the centralized global distribution hub to rights-holding broadcasters. The aggregated content is delivered over the internet for streaming and on subsea cables with protected capacity of up to 5 Gig.
Everyone's needs are different. How is your team meeting some of the different demands?
AC36 is one of our most recent exciting projects and is different compared to our delivery of the 2010 Americas Cup from Valencia, Spain. This year, we had to build a flexible network solution to accommodate COVID impacts, such as a remote-production model, advanced multiservice media-edge equipment, Ethernet data services, and high-speed internet services, as well as reduced onsite engineers. A range of high-quality media-edge hardware deployed to support H.264 encoding, RTMP, Zixi and SRT, J2K, and remote-production-capable equipment. The multiservice edge equipment backhauled all contents to the Telstra Broadcast Operations Centre (Telstra BOC) in Sydney, where the centralized booking, monitoring, and distribution to global media- and digital-rights holders took place.
Telstra has a two-person team on hand in Auckland for the America's Cup.
How many people are onsite from Telstra?
The initial plan was to have six operations and engineering staff in Auckland. Instead, we have two onsite staff at the International Broadcast Center in Auckland, 24 7 live-operations support, and AC36 booking staff at the Telstra Broadcast Operations Centre in Sydney, and the remainder of our operations and engineering support in Paris and London.
What has been the biggest challenge working this event compared with others?
It's no secret COVID created new challenges for live sporting events. However, at the same time, it created new opportunities of delivering large events. In the past, broadcasters were reluctant to adopt new delivery models. The challenge of having minimal onsite engineers was overcome with the trust in the engineers and our global remote-production, fiber and internet delivery models. Proven hybrid delivery models make broadcasters open to flexible delivery solutions that incorporate new technology.
Does Telstra have a major presence naturally in New Zealand, or is it smaller connectivity that heads up to a larger hub in Sydney?
Telstra has an established presence in New Zealand, with an agile operating model with local telecommunications providers. Telstra has key points of presence on its Global Media Network to service multinationals with content from New Zealand and Pacific Islands.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
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...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
08/01/2026
An evidence-based analysis on disinformation and information manipulation in Sudan's ongoing conflict is published today. (January 8th 2026).
Thomson Found...
08/01/2026
At CFP Semifinals, ESPN Again Flexes Its Operational Muscle With 20+ MegaCast Vi...
08/01/2026
SVG Students To Watch: Sophie Fowler, University of OregonThe Portland product has honed her skills as a producer, director, and TD at Quack VideoBy Brandon Cos...
08/01/2026
Follow the Money, Episode 3: Inside the Sports-Media Biz With Sam McCleery and K...
08/01/2026
SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Qualstar's Jeff Sengpiehl on the Enduring Power a...
08/01/2026
Legendary February: Production Leaders at NBC Sports Pull Back the Curtain on Ol...
08/01/2026
In 2025 we launched the Spotify Partner Program to give creators more ways to tu...
08/01/2026
On Wednesday in Los Angeles, Spotify welcomed creators and press to a brunch cel...
08/01/2026
The Hollywood Professional Association (HPA) today announced several updates to its Board of Directors. As part of HPA's annual governance cycle, new leader...
08/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
08/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
08/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
08/01/2026
Spain's national public broadcaster, RTVE, has upgraded one of its main television production facilities in Madrid with the installation of two Alfalite NEO...
08/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
08/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
08/01/2026
Maxon's new release of Cinebench features performance enhancements and adds support for the latest Nvidia and AMD GPUs as well as Apple Silicon.
Maxon is t...
08/01/2026
Zixi, the industry leader in IP-based video transport and orchestration, today announced the appointment of Heather Mellish as Vice President, Global Sales.
In...
08/01/2026
Pebble, the leading automation, content management and integrated channel specialist, has provided a complete update of its installation at Canal Sur in Spain. ...
08/01/2026
iWedia, a global leader in software solutions for connected TV devices, proudly announces the success of its collaboration with Panasonic on the Z95B OLED TV, o...
08/01/2026
Secuoya Chile, a leading provider of television content creation and supporting services, has invested in Ikegami UHK-X600 and UHL-X40 broadcast cameras as the ...
08/01/2026
Kiloview, a global leader in AV-over-IP solutions, will showcase its latest innovations at ISE 2026, highlighting the continued evolution of its complete, light...
08/01/2026
iWedia, a global leader in software solutions for connected TV devices, and Realtek, a leading global SoC design house, today announced the next phase of their ...
08/01/2026
CJP Broadcast has completed a new pitch-side media installation for Cinderford RFC, creating a flexible production setup that supports match coverage, coaching ...
08/01/2026
PlayBox Neo further drives momentum in Playout, Streaming, Media Management and Delivery
"With a brand new year at PlayBox Neo already off to a flying start, I...
08/01/2026
Boston Conservatory at Berklee Presents Second Annual Commercial Dance BFA Conce...
08/01/2026
TSA awards Rohde & Schwarz contract for advanced airport screening ahead of Socc...
08/01/2026
Back to All News
New Korean Series Beauty in the Beast' (WT) in Production...
08/01/2026
The review looks back at DPA's miniature microphone development over the years. It compares the evolving technologies from the original mics through CORE an...
08/01/2026
Comscore Launches Audio Targeting and Measurement Capabilities with The Trade De...
08/01/2026
Tonight, on RT Prime Time at 9:35pm on RT One and RT Player
Tonight, Prime T...
08/01/2026
The Late Late Show celebrates the very best of traditional Irish music with its first-ever full special dedicated entirely to the tradition
Lisa Canny | Kevin...
08/01/2026
The next universal technology since the smartphone is on the horizon - and it ma...
08/01/2026
In the rolling hills of Berkeley, California, an AI agent is supporting high-stakes physics experiments at the Advanced Light Source (ALS) particle accelerator....
08/01/2026
It will be murder on the dancefloor when Dancing with the Stars returns this S...
08/01/2026
NVIDIA is wrapping up a big week at the CES trade show with a set of GeForce NOW...
07/01/2026
SVG Summit 2025: All General Sessions Now Available To Watch on SVG PLAYThe SVG Summit celebrated its 20th edition with a loaded agendaBy Brandon Costa, Directo...
07/01/2026
NBCU's Brings Rinkside Live' and Courtside Live' Features to Peaco...
07/01/2026
Spotify is launching a week-long celebration spotlighting creators at the center...
07/01/2026
We know people use Spotify not just to listen, but to share the songs, podcasts, and audiobooks they love with their friends and family. When we launched Messag...
07/01/2026
This week, all eyes are on the podcast industry as the Golden Globes recognizes ...
07/01/2026
Podcasts are stepping onto a new stage this week as the Golden Globes recognize the medium for the first time. To mark this milestone moment, we're hosting ...
07/01/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), in collaboration with a distributor, is commissioning new micro-budget fiction feature films and invites eligible...
07/01/2026
NASA's Space Launch System rocket carrying the Orion spacecraft launches on the Artemis I flight test, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2022, from Launch Complex 39B at ...
07/01/2026
For the first time ever, new C' variants allow international users to interoperate with U.S. personnel via NSA-certified cryptography....
07/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
07/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...