
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 ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
09/09/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) invites eligible Tier 1 and 2 South African production companies to submit proposals to serve as the Facilitating ...
09/09/2026
Italy launch follows UK and Germany as Nielsen expands product across EMEA
Milan, Italy, September 9, 2026 - Nielsen, a global leader in audience measurement, ...
09/09/2026
Planned solutions tackle accuracy, cost and latency barriers to deploying AI at ...
09/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/09/2026
Studio Technologies, a leading manufacturer of high-quality audio, video, and fiber-optic solutions, introduces its new Model 791 Control Console at IBC 2026 (N...
09/09/2026
Maxon, maker of powerful, approachable software solutions for creators working in 2D and 3D design, motion graphics, visual effects and visualization, is headin...
09/09/2026
NUGEN Audio unveils DialogCheck v1.2, the latest evolution of its intelligent dialog intelligibility and compliance tool, at IBC 2026 (Pod P27). With a sharpene...
09/09/2026
Trusted Partner Network Launches Fix It or Risk It to Help the Entertainment Industry Tackle Everyday Security Risks
Industry-Wide Campaign Launches at IBC2...
09/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/09/2026
AI has moved firmly beyond experimentation in UK advertising, with more than eight in ten marketers (83%) now actively using or piloting AI in production, accor...
09/09/2026
IBC2026 - Stand 7.D22
At IBC2026, Pixitmedia by DataCore will showcase its latest capabilities designed to simplify distributed production, accelerate workflow...
09/09/2026
Stockholm, Sweden September 9th, 2026 At IBC2026, on booth 1.B47, Net Insight will showcase Open Live Media, its architecture for delivering resilient live ...
09/09/2026
Net Insight today announced that DMC Production Norway is continuing the use of its Open Live Media technology for premium European football, deploying Nimbra 5...
09/09/2026
Amagi, the media industry cloud platform for unified broadcast, streaming, and monetization, will showcase four new AI-native capabilities at IBC2026, Hall 5, S...
09/09/2026
Limecraft today announces version 2026.6 of its AI-powered production platform, extending capabilities for connected media operations. An AI-assisted approach t...
09/09/2026
Telestream, a global leader in media workflow technologies, today announced the next evolution of its Practical AI strategy, evolving its comprehensive portfoli...
09/09/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the appointment of Brian Doheny as Chief Executive Officer (CEO)....
09/09/2026
LiveU is now a Clarus Integrated Reseller, bringing Starlink's fast, reliable broadband directly into LiveU's cellular bonding EcoSystem through a singl...
09/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/09/2026
Wisycom is showcasing the latest additions to its ecosystem of professional RF technologies at IBC 2026 (Stand 8.D60). This includes its new MATF Wideband Anten...
09/09/2026
AMSTERDAM, IBC2026 VisualOn, Inc. and Cires21 today released an updated joint whitepaper at IBC 2026 demonstrating measurable, high-impact improvements in visu...
09/09/2026
Sony Electronics Introduces Its First Fisheye Zoom G Lens
Brie Clayton September 8, 2026
0 Comments
Compact, lightweight SEL814G Full-frame lens deliv...
09/09/2026
Blackmagic Design Announces DaVinci Resolve 21.1
Brie Clayton September 8, 2026
0 Comments
Major update adds AI assistant integration, expanded camera...
09/09/2026
Cuez Integrates AI into a Unified Broadcast Production Workflow
Brie Clayton September 8, 2026
0 Comments
Cuez announces the expansion of its cloud-ba...
09/09/2026
Red Seat Ventures Integrates Barometer into Speakeasy to Maximize Podcast Revenu...
09/09/2026
Baselight-powered color comes natively to Media Composer, connecting creative de...
09/09/2026
Twenty Years Strong...
09/09/2026
At the IBC conference, running Sept. 11-14 in Amsterdam, the creative, technology and business communities are coming together to turn ideas into action and dis...
09/09/2026
RT brings three packed days of live radio, entertainment, news, weather and fun
Join RT Radio 1: Morning Ireland, Oliver Callan, Today with David McCullagh,...
08/09/2026
Comcast Technology Solutions (CTS) has announced a multi-year agreement with A E...
08/09/2026
Spectra Logic today announced the availability of Media Insight, a new capabilit...
08/09/2026
Rogers Communications and Quebecor have announced a 12-year sublicensing agreement for French-language national NHL games beginning with the 2026-27 season. TVA...
08/09/2026
Skyline Communications and Bridge Technologies will demonstrate two integrations...
08/09/2026
Boland Communications will make the European debut of its 4K55HDR7SNB 55-inch super-narrow-bezel monitor at IBC2026 (Stand 12.C57, RAI Amsterdam, September 11-1...
08/09/2026
Ateme and Comcast Technology Solutions (CTS) have announced a collaboration comb...
08/09/2026
Haivision has joined the IBC Accelerator Media Innovation Programme as part of t...
08/09/2026
Blackmagic Design has announced price reductions on its PYXIS 6K and Cinema Camera 6K models, effective immediately through Blackmagic Design resellers worldwid...
08/09/2026
AI-Media will demonstrate its LEXI Suite at IBC2026 (Booth 5.C34, September 11-1...
08/09/2026
Bitmovin and Ad Insertion Platform (AIP) have announced the first live deploymen...
08/09/2026
Grass Valley will demonstrate story-centric media workflows at IBC2026 (Booth 9.A01, RAI Amsterdam, September 11-14), connecting newsroom production, content ma...
08/09/2026
M2A Media and Ateme have announced a partnership integrating Ateme's video processing solutions into M2A Media's MediaToAnywhere platform for live sport...
08/09/2026
Ikegami will exhibit at IBC2026 (Stand 12.A31, RAI Amsterdam, September 11-14), including a Day 1 introduction of new cameras in the UNICAM XE series. Additiona...
08/09/2026
Broadcast industry analysts will be gathering plenty of insights at the 2026 IBC Show this weekend in Amsterdam, but Caretta Research has offered up some though...
08/09/2026
SENSHI and DAZN have announced a global broadcast partnership that will bring SENSHI's live events free to viewers in more than 200 markets. The partnership...