Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Live From Super Bowl LIX: Verizon's Joe Russo on How 5G Can Get to the Next Level for Broadcasters, Fans

08/02/2025

Live From Super Bowl LIX: Verizon's Joe Russo on How 5G Can Get to the Next Level for Broadcasters, Fans By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director

Saturday, February 8, 2025 - 12:11 pm

Print This Story | Subscribe

Story Highlights

Verizon EVP of Global Networks and Technology Joe Russo is on site at Super Bowl LIX making sure that the large Verizon team, and the even larger Verizon 5G and wireless network is running properly. And that network is important as both the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles coaching staffs rely on a Verizon 5G network for their communications and, of course, tens of thousands of fans in the stadium will rely on it for their connectivity. Russo discussed the week's efforts and the future of 5G as a tool for broadcast production with SVG Editorial Director Ken Kerschbaumer.

What does Super Bowl week mean for Verizon given your role working with the NFL but then also supporting wireless needs of fans?

We leverage this event to showcase all our latest and greatest technology. It's not only for the venue itself, or for the back office of the NFL, or the city around it we're trying to put all of the technology we've been developing into the Super Bowl weekend so that we can demonstrate all the new stuff. Several years ago, we first started deploying 5G millimeter wave and we just keep building on that.

This year we have the coach-to-coach communication for the second year. We have a private network for the broadcasters to communicate. And we turned on standalone 5G throughout New Orleans which allows us to then do 5G advanced features this year like slicing for first responders or creators. We can guarantee certain capabilities that they need for what they're trying to do on our networks.

Joe Russo, Executive Vice President and President of Global Networks and Technology (GN&T) at Verizon

You mentioned year two of the coaching communications service. How has that been going?

I meet with the NFL's CIO every month and we talk about lots of different things, and I thought year one was exceptional. The performance of the network, the clarity of the communication is what they were looking for and we over-delivered on that. And now two things have happened since then. First, we are doing it for all their international games via our private 5G portable network that we take with us, and they keep expanding the international games, which makes it challenging for us as we have to work with local carriers. And then the other thing is we're now working with the NFL on expanding the private network we use for coach to coach for other things that they want to do like back-office support or sideline communications. The referees now have watches this year that are connected to the private network so we have proven how a private network can really give them end-to-end communication in a venue.

Obviously, broadcasters have shown they believe in bonded cellular technologies from companies like LiveU or TVU Networks. They are hugely important for broadcasters everywhere. And you mentioned slicing and one of the dreams for broadcasters is the ability to roll out their broadcast cameras for an event and tap into a 5G wireless network. Where are we on the roadmap to making that a reality?

One of four 5G transmission nodes on the field of Super Bowl LIX that will support coaches communications. Only two are active at any one time leaving the other two available as back ups.

We're in the early innings but there are three things that have to come together. The first is you have to have the 5G core to support it and we launched that nationwide last year, so the core now has all the capabilities you need to support 5G advanced features.

The second thing is you have to have the radio access network to support the 5G advanced features. We've taken a bit of a different approach than some of our competitors in that our view is if we're really going to offer these 5G advanced features we need to do them on our mid band or high band spectrums because if it's on the low band spectrum you might as well use 4G LTE. So, our view was let's build out the mid-band spectrum across the nation, get as much of the population covered as we can, and turn that spectrum on with standalone services. So that's kind of our strategy: make our standalone network a true differentiated experience that I could support with the great mid band spectrum, we have the C-band spectrum or millimeter wave, for certain applications like venues.

And then there is the third layer which is the devices have to support it. So today I think Samsung S21, and Apple 14 or newer cellphones all have SA capability. But what we have to work on with the ecosystems of backpacks that may have a 5G chip in it is we need to get them to support standalone networks. And I think that is where the industry is probably the furthest behind: having devices that support standalone networks.

What can be done to speed that along?

There are things we can do like RedCap or reduced capacity 5G which means the core doesn't need to support the kind of complex functions that are on a smartphone. We could reduce the form factor and reduce the cost. Our core now supports Redcap and we're working with all of the device manufacturers to bring the price and form factors down for those 5G SA capable devices so they can be put into backpacks and other things.

And the challenge there is that someone needs to manufacturer devices with those capabilities, but they won't do that unless there is a solid potential customer base who can support the manufacturing of those devices.

Exactly. So, if you look at the tablets on the sidelines that are used by the coaches and players at NFL games as an example, it's a Microsoft tablet today but it doesn't support 5G millimeter wave.
LINK: https://www.sportsvideo.org/2025/02/08/live-from-super-bowl-lix-verizo...
See more stories from svg

Most recent headlines

09/11/2025

Dalet Unveils Agentic AI Media Workflows at IBC2025

Dalet today announced a transformative leap forward for media operations: Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) that unifies the Dalet ecosystem under one natura...

06/10/2025

France Tlvisions Wins Prestigious 2025 EBU Technology & Innovation Award in Groundbreaking Collaboration with Dalet

France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...

18/09/2025

DirecTV Adds Three Sports Channels to Its FAST Streaming Offering

DirecTV continues to expand its women's sports offerings by adding Sports Fanatics' and Whoopi Goldberg's Free Ad-Supported Television (FAST) All Wo...

18/09/2025

Fall Football Kicks Off With Native HDR Production, NextGen TV Telecast

WASHINGTON NextGen TV viewers are beginning to see what high dynamic range (HDR) brings to their football enjoyment with the launch of the sport's fall seas...

18/09/2025

FCC Extends Deadline for EEO Audit Replies

WASHINGTON After issuing audit letters seeking Equal Employment Opportunity data from a randomly selected group of TV and radio stations in August, the Federal ...

18/09/2025

Warner Bros. Discovery Signs New Deal with Nielsen

NEW YORK Warner Bros. Discovery and Nielsen have signed a new, long-term, multi-year deal that covers measurement for all Warner Bros. Discovery platforms acros...

18/09/2025

CIMM Launches Startup Program and Innovation Showcase

NEW YORK As part of its ongoing efforts to develop better measurement solutions, the Coalition for Innovative Media Measurement (CIMM) announced the launch of t...

18/09/2025

UPDATED: ABC Takes 'Jimmy Kimmel Live! Off the Air Indefinitely

IRVING, Texas Following threats from the Federal Communications Commission and the announcement that the nations largest station group, Nexstar Media Group, wou...

17/09/2025

Tech Focus: Audio Training, Part 2 - Manufacturers Offer Extensive Online Learning

Tech Focus: Audio Training, Part 2 - Manufacturers Offer Extensive Online Learni...

17/09/2025

Tech Focus: Audio Training, Part 1 - A1 Shortage Remains a Major-League Challenge for Sports Broadcasting

Tech Focus: Audio Training, Part 1 - A1 Shortage Remains a Major-League Challeng...

17/09/2025

Dua Lipa's Service95 Book Club' Goes Live at the New York Public Library

It was the ultimate convergence of pop culture and literary prestige: Last night, Dua Lipa brought her Service95 Book Club podcast to the stage for a special li...

17/09/2025

The Gauge: Mexico August 2025

During August, streaming's share of TV viewing in Mexico showed an increase of 0.4% compared to the previous month, accounting for 25% of TV viewing. Discl...

17/09/2025

Jo Aun Joins FOR-A America as Senior Manager, Product Engineering

CYPRESS, Calif. FOR-A America has named Jo Aun as senior manager of product engineering, a new role responsible for guiding the planning, development and rollou...

17/09/2025

PlayBox Neo and CIS Group Power CazeTV with a seamless Pl...

PlayBox Neo, in partnership with CIS Group, a leading provider of media and broadcast technology solutions, has successfully deployed PlayBox Neo's Dual Cha...

17/09/2025

Energy Regulatory Agency Underscores Commitment with Ene...

In a relationship that mirrors societal advances in sustainability, Brightline Lighting and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Headquarters have en...

17/09/2025

Clear-Com Powers Star-Studded Communications at Houston A...

Clear-Com is proud to support the world-class productions of Alley Theatre, one of the oldest and largest nonprofit resident theatres in the United States. With...

17/09/2025

Arch Platform Technologies Announces Strategic Collaborat...

Arch Platform Technologies (www.archpt.io), a pioneer in automated, scalable cloud infrastructure for high-performance workflows, today announced a Strategic Co...

17/09/2025

With over 39bn EUR in assets under management and record-...

Over 300 selected decision-makers from start-ups, corporates, and VC funds worldwide will gather for the third edition of the event, united by a single goal: to...

17/09/2025

Telestream Celebrates Award Win at IBC2025

Telestream, a global leader in media workflow technologies, is excited to announce that its flagship Vantage platform and its next-generation AI capabilities re...

17/09/2025

Mediagenix Celebrates Triple Best of Show Wins at IBC2025...

Mediagenix, a global leader in smart content solutions that profitably connect the right content to the right audience, proudly announces its three Best of Show...

17/09/2025

PlayBox Neo Appoints Transtel Universal as Top Reseller P...

In a move to further establish a firm foothold across South East Asia, PlayBox Neo, the well-respected name in broadcast playout and channel branding, has appoi...

17/09/2025

Wisycom Unveils Two New Solutions at IBC 2025

Wisycom, a global leader in advanced wireless audio solutions, announced two major wireless solutions at IBC 2025 (Stand 8.D30). This includes the Portable RF-o...

17/09/2025

Six Berklee Alumni Win Emmy Awards

Six Berklee Alumni Win Emmy Awards The recipients were recognized for their contributions to acclaimed programs Severance, The Studio, The Penguin, SNL50: The...

17/09/2025

Applications Open for Berklee in Santo Domingo

Applications Open for Berklee in Santo Domingo The weeklong contemporary music program will run January 5-10, 2026. By Colette Greenstein September 17, 2025 ...

17/09/2025

Ukrainian Students Find Creative Consonance' at Berklee Valencia

Ukrainian Students Find Creative Consonance' at Berklee Valencia Through ELIA's UAx Platform, six students from Kyiv joined Berklee Valencia for a week...

17/09/2025

Meet Kenna Hilburn, Avids New Incoming Chief Product Officer

Earlier this year Avid announced Kenna Hilburn as its new senior vice president of product. Recently Hilburn was promoted to Avids new Chief Product Officer, su...

17/09/2025

SES and K2 Space to Accelerate Development of Next-Generation MEO Network

Transatlantic collaboration combines experience and agility to drive innovation in network design and delivery Luxembourg, September 16, 2025 - SES, a leading ...

17/09/2025

Fox TV Stations Join Madhive's Local Live Sports Marketplace

NEW YORK Madhive has announced that the Fox Television Stations have joined its Live Sports Marketplace....

17/09/2025

Sony Electronics Partners with Newhouse School at Syracuse University

SYRACUSE, N.Y. Sony Electronics has announced that it is partnering with the Newhouse School at Syracuse University to provide state-of-the-art equipment, hands...

17/09/2025

Roku's First TV Smart Projector Now Available in the U.S.

SAN JOSE, Calif. Roku has announced that the first smart projector using its Roku TV operating system, the Aurzen Roku TV Smart Projector D1R Cube, is now avail...

17/09/2025

Meet the Streamlabs Streaming Assistant, Accelerated by NVIDIA RTX

Today's creators are equal parts entertainer, producer and gamer, juggling game commentary, scene changes, replay clips, chat moderation and technical troub...

17/09/2025

Portrait Artist of the Year returns to Sky Arts with a dazzling line-up of celebrity sitters on 1 October

Wednesday 17 September 2025 UK artists capture icons of stage and screen, inclu...

17/09/2025

FOR-A America Appoints Jo Aun to Lead U.S. Product Development

Jo Returns to FOR-A as Senior Manager of Product Management and Engineering...

17/09/2025

AIR's Big Comeback with DPA Microphones

For the Moon Safari anniversary tour, AIR opened the doors to their backstage. Just a few hours before the Paris concert, DPA met with two key figures of the te...

17/09/2025

The Late Late Toy Show hits the road in search of Ireland's brightest young stars

Auditions will be held in Dublin, Cork and Galway The County Parade returns f...

16/09/2025

SVG All-Stars: Leigh Michaud, Manager, Remote Operations, ESPN

SVG All-Stars: Leigh Michaud, Manager, Remote Operations, ESPNThe UConn grad rose from ESPN's mailroom to become one of its most valuable ops leadersBy Bran...

16/09/2025

Live From IBC 2025: Friday's Latest From Halls 1-4, Outdoor Exhibits in Amsterdam

Live From IBC 2025: Friday's Latest From Halls 1-4, Outdoor Exhibits in Amst...

16/09/2025

Live From IBC 2025: Saturday's Latest From Halls 5-7 in Amsterdam

Live From IBC 2025: Saturday's Latest From Halls 5-7 in Amsterdam By SVG Staff Friday, September 12, 2025 - 17:00 Print This Story The SVG Europe and ...

16/09/2025

Live From IBC 2025: Sunday's Latest From Halls 8-10 in Amsterdam

Live From IBC 2025: Sunday's Latest From Halls 8-10 in Amsterdam By SVG Staff Saturday, September 13, 2025 - 17:00 Print This Story The SVG Europe and...

16/09/2025

Live From IBC 2025: Monday's Latest From Halls 11-14 in Amsterdam

Live From IBC 2025: Monday's Latest From Halls 11-14 in Amsterdam By SVG Staff Sunday, September 14, 2025 - 17:00 Print This Story The SVG Europe and ...

16/09/2025

Amazon Prime Video Picks Up Four Hours of Early-Round Masters Coverage in 2026

Amazon Prime Video Picks Up Four Hours of Early-Round Masters Coverage in 2026 By Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S. Tuesday, September 16, 2025 - 10:15...

16/09/2025

VERSANT Inks Deal for League One Volleyball as Women's Sports Rights Slate Grows

VERSANT Inks Deal for League One Volleyball as Women's Sports Rights Slate G...

16/09/2025

ESPN VP, Corporate Communications, Katina Arnold Named SVP, Disney Advertising Communications

ESPN VP, Corporate Communications, Katina Arnold Named SVP, Disney Advertising C...

16/09/2025

IBC 2025 in Review: SVG Europe's Full Collection of Video Interviews From the Show Floor

IBC 2025 in Review: SVG Europe's Full Collection of Video Interviews From th...

16/09/2025

Celebramos 10 aos de Viva Latino en Spotify y el xito global de la msica latina

Hace una d cada, la m sica latina representaba apenas el 8% de las reproducciones globales en Spotify. Hoy, constituye m s de una cuarta parte (27%) de toda la ...

16/09/2025

Celebrating 10 Years of Spotify's Viva Latino Playlist and the Global Rise of Latin Music

A decade ago, Latin music made up just 8% of global Spotify streams. Today, it a...

16/09/2025

Spotify Welcomes Graham Norton and Select VICE Studios Content

Spotify is expanding our video lineup with a new partnership with Zoo 55, part of ITV Studios. For the first time, acclaimed content from ITV Studios is landing...

16/09/2025

One Enterprise, One Mission: Aligning the Supply Chain to the Warfighter

At DSEI 2025, James Dunne of L3Harris Maritime UK chaired a panel on aligning the supply chain to the warfighter, where leaders discussed modernising support fo...

16/09/2025

RTW chooses Calrec as technology partner

Calrec has strengthened its collaboration with audio metering expert RTW by integrating RTW's new TMxCore metering platform across its full range of Argo IP...

16/09/2025

Football and Back-to-School Dynamics Spark First Gains Since April for Traditional TV

College Football Scores Top Telecast in August with 16M+ Viewers on FOX, Followe...