Editorial Comment: Clear communication in an age of disruption By Fergal Ringrose, Editorial Director, Europe
Friday, September 20, 2019 - 14:38
Print This Story
There can be no doubt that the sports video production business is going through a time of great disruption. Technologies, enablers and platforms such as remote production, 5G, OTT, AR/VR, AI, 8K, immersive audio, HDR and more are jostling for our attention.
What could be more game changing' than the NBA's recent dive into smartphone-only capture on a Summer League game, delivered via 5G infrastructure to fans? The Smartphone View alternative broadcast is how Steve Hellmuth, EVP, media operations and technology, NBA Entertainment described this fantastic innovation. No more multi-camera TV crew, no more TV production, or OB compound, or broadcast'?
And while broadcasters continue to battle each other and large production outfits for sports media rights contracts nationally and internationally, into the frame have come new OTT-only operators who again bypass television broadcast' and go direct to your device via live video streaming.
Of course they are targeting the younger generation of consumers who have already broken the cord and simply don't watch TV. If interested in the game they want to be able to follow it while interacting constantly through multiple social media platforms - some of which themselves want a slice of the action and are wading into the sports media rights arena.
Electronic, digital and online
And by the way, something else is happening with the manner in which the younger generation consumes media and interacts with the world - as discussed in a fascinating presentation by Dirk Ziems of concept m at the SVG Sky Sport Summit in Munich last May.
Ziems noted that while digital natives are living their lives online now - which we all know - their concept of themselves as beings is inextricably bound up with that internet interaction. Their validation of self now comes not from any real-world activity or achievement, but through the approval they receive from others online.
They don't visit a tourist attraction to appreciate its beauty or historical significance but rather to place themselves in front of it in order to capture their own image on a smartphone so that they can receive more likes from friends. They don't attend a sports event to enjoy the atmosphere and the competition in a collective environment but instead to feature themselves within the stadium and to interact with others on social media rather than being there primarily to watch the game.
Something along these lines is the driver behind the incredible eSports phenomenon. Young males
FIFA eWorld Cup 201: How do the big eSports companies expand the experience to reach potentially millions more live viewers who are not at the venue? (Photo: FIFA via Getty Images)
(and yes they are nearly all male!) pay good money to go to a sports stadium and participate in a live event. Except it's not a sports' event. And the game is not real. It's electronic. Digital. Online.
But here's the twist - and this is where SVG Europe comes back into the picture. With stadiums around the world now packed out with young males watching other young males play video games, how do the big eSports companies expand the experience to reach potentially millions more live viewers who are not at the venue?
By combining their in-game expertise, in terms of navigation and storytelling, with the traditional' expertise of television broadcast production companies who can deliver multi-camera live sports events of the highest editorial quality.
No matter how signals or streams are to be delivered, where and to whom - and how much disruption there may be along that path - live content creation that tells the story of an unfolding sports event still needs a production team experienced in planning and capturing that content for a mass audience.
It turns out the eSports operators still need TV OB girls and guys with trucks! And while there is absolutely no question that remote production, artificial intelligence and virtual reality will continue to change the way live sports broadcasting is achieved - and we know the pace of that change will evolve significantly in the next couple of years, as climate-change and work/life balance pressures increase - the community of people producing sports around Europe will remain absolutely central to the business, as disruption and innovation occurs all around.
Anticipation through dialogue and access
In this maelstrom of disruption, clear communication is required in order to help industry actors understand the changes going on all around them so that they can do their jobs better.
Our job here at SVG Europe is to report the news on our newsletters as it breaks around Europe and beyond, through our in-house editorial team and our network of correspondents. Getting behind the scenes for our Live From' reports from major sporting events around Europe is the most important single driver in this continuous effort.
Our role is also to share information and innovation, through our events and initiatives - most especially the four flagship pan-European events, Football Summit (February), SportTech (May), Sport Production Summit (September) and FutureSport (November).
But above all our task - or our constant aspiration, certainly - is to anticipate new directions for the sports video business, in production, operation and technology. Anticipation brings insight and understanding. Anticipation requires constant dialogue and access - between our team and sports broadcasters, rights holders, production companies, OBs, service providers and technology vendors.
No one will argue that the future for this business contains disruption and change: but it is going to be an exciting
Most recent headlines
04/08/2024
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, is excited to announce Santiago Solanas as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO)....
03/06/2024
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, a...
28/04/2024
Mediahaus delivers the first SRT live-streaming sports production over 5G with U...
27/04/2024
On April 26, L3Harris Chair and CEO Christopher E. Kubasik joined CNBC's Mor...
27/04/2024
PORTLAND, Oregon Audinate Group Limited, the developer of the Dante AV-over-IP solution, announced significant new additions to Dante Connect, its cloud-based D...
27/04/2024
TORONTO Bell Media has launched 10 English and French-language FAST channels featuring entertainment, factual, news, and sports programming. The new free stream...
27/04/2024
An extensive new analysis of the news segments in the broadcast evening news programs of ABC, CBS, NBC and PBS has found that broadcasters devoted most of their...
27/04/2024
GERMANTOWN, Md. EchoStar's Hughes Network Systems has opened a new manufacturing facility and private 5G incubation center in Germantown, Maryland....
27/04/2024
Harry Pappas, one of three brothers who founded Pappas Telecasting Companies in 1971, died April 24. He was 78 years old....
27/04/2024
ATLANTA and LONDON Mexican telecommunications and broadcast company Televisa has selected Synamedia for an overhaul of its broadcast distribution....
27/04/2024
Participate in the Survey - The Impact of AI on Media and the Creative Industry
Pascal Wagner April 26, 2024
0 Comments
By participating in this surve...
27/04/2024
SDVI Rally Access Workstation Earns Two Top Awards at 2024 NAB Show
Brie Clayton April 26, 2024
0 Comments
SDVI, the leading platform provider for clo...
27/04/2024
Berklee's Music and Health Institute Launches Community Health Musician Cert...
27/04/2024
Charter Communications reported higher first-quarter profits despite continued cord-cutting and competition for broadband customers....
27/04/2024
Two environmentally-focused groups are partnering to engage the unscripted TV world in finding better ways to address climate change. Reality of Change is an ec...
27/04/2024
Sarah Garcia has been promoted to weekend anchor at KTLM McAllen, Texas, known as Telemundo 40. Starting April 27, she will anchor Noticias Telemundo 40 weekend...
27/04/2024
CBS Sports said it launched a new 24-hour free, ad supported streaming television (FAST) channel devoted to the UEFA Champions League....
27/04/2024
Comcast chairman and CEO Brian Roberts received $35.4 million in compensation in 2023, up 11% from the previous year, according to a proxy statement filed by th...
27/04/2024
Art Happens Here With John Lithgow, which sees the actor study dance, ceramics, silk-screen printing and vocal jazz with students in Los Angeles, debuts on PBS ...
27/04/2024
Remember Leave It to Beaver? Bewitched? Dragnet? When cable ratings were rising?...
27/04/2024
Next up for the weekend binge at Catchy Comedy is Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. Every weekend, Catchy Comedy features The Catchy Binge, a marathon of a classic sitcom....
26/04/2024
Sundance Film Festival CDMX 2024 kicks-off today with screenings in 5 theaters in Mexico City and the opening-night film, FRIDA, directed by Carla Guti rrez...
26/04/2024
[Editor's Note: This interview is part of a larger feature about the women d...
26/04/2024
Once again this year, SGL Carbon opened its doors to interested children and young people. On the occasion of the German Girls and Boys Day, which took place on...
26/04/2024
Orders1 of $5.5 billion; book-to-bill of 1.06x
Revenue of $5.2 billion, up 17%,...
26/04/2024
Five Considerations For Communications Modernization In The 21st Century
In the digital-enabled battlespace, the Joint Force needs to shoot, move and communica...
26/04/2024
CBS Sports has launched Champions League as a new, 24-hour streaming channel that will serve as the year-round destination for nonstop highlights of the UEFA ...
26/04/2024
Despite tough competition in the streaming space, Roku reported solid results in Q1 2024, beating revenue expectations, with total net revenue up 19% YoY to $88...
26/04/2024
LONDON AND TORONTO Pinewood Toronto Studios has appointed Sarah Farrell as general manager of the Studios in downtown Toronto....
26/04/2024
Quantum to Offer Advanced Filesharing Technology and Performance in StorNext and...
26/04/2024
FilmLight Colour Awards welcomes 2024 entries and introduces new Emerging Talen...
26/04/2024
Picture Shop Announces Chris Evans as Head of Unscripted
Brie Clayton April 26, 2024
0 Comments
Picture Shop announced Chris Evans will lead Unscripte...
26/04/2024
Participate in a Survey - The Impact of AI on Media and the Creative Industry
Pascal Wagner April 26, 2024
0 Comments
By participating in this survey,...
26/04/2024
Toy maker Mattel said it is working with Samsung to launch its first free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channels later this year....
26/04/2024
Trusted Media Brands (TMB) said it named Marty Moe as president....
26/04/2024
Ron Howard is the director on Jim Henson Idea Man, a documentary that premieres on Disney Plus May 31. Henson of course created Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Big...
26/04/2024
The ice continues to melt under the regional sports network business as the Seattle Kraken of the National Hockey League have made a long-term deal to broadcast...
26/04/2024
Heading into the upfronts, Warner Bros. Discovery said it launched Olli, a first-party data platform advertiser can use for converged, targeted advertising camp...
26/04/2024
CBS has renewed the drama The Equalizer, which will see season five on in 2024-2025. Queen Latifah stars....
26/04/2024
The CW has entered into an exclusive multiyear broadcast partnership for the Miss USA Pageant and the Miss Teen USA Pageant. The 73rd Miss USA Pageant will air ...
26/04/2024
Fuse Media isn't mincing words in a campaign urging its young viewers to register and participate in the 2024 elections....
26/04/2024
Dead Boy Detectives, a series from Neil Gaiman about a detective agency staffed by ghosts, debuts on Netflix April 25. George Rexstrew and Jayden Revri are in t...
26/04/2024
The Story Collective has gradually repurposed the former Mortlake Brewery to include production offices, workshops and sound stages
By Matthew Corrigan
Publi...
26/04/2024
Perkett joins the company following a 25 year career in product management, product marketing, engineering and user experience (UX) across multiple industries
...
26/04/2024
Teradek, the industry leader in wireless video transmitters and receivers, announced today the launch of new Bolt 6 LT 750 and Bolt 6 Monitor Module 750 RX with...
26/04/2024
NEW YORK Amagi has appointed Richard Perkett chief product officer (CPO)....
26/04/2024
WASHINGTON, D.C. The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has announced the results of the 2024 NAB Radio and Television Board of Directors elections. The...
26/04/2024
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. & NEW YORK Mattel has announced a deal to launch its first three 24/7 free ad supported streaming (FAST) channels on Samsung TV Plus, Samsung...
26/04/2024
PORTLAND, Maine Viewers here can now receive the NextGen TV signals of five local stations with the launch of ATSC 3.0 service from host station WPFO, which is ...
Editorial Comment: Clear communication in an age of disruption By Fergal Ringrose, Editorial Director, Europe 
