Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Overwatch League Grand Finals: Project Aloha, Cloud Workflows Are Key to Transcontinental Production

24/09/2021

Overwatch League Grand Finals: Project Aloha, Cloud Workflows Are Key to Transcontinental Production Analysts are onsite in Honolulu while players, casters, and crew are spread across the globe By Jason Dachman, Chief Editor

Friday, September 24, 2021 - 2:59 pm

Print This Story | Subscribe

Story Highlights

It has been wild ride for Activision Blizzard Esports' Broadcast Technology Group during the 2021 Overwatch League Season. After producing OWL regular-season matches online and from Project Aloha in Honolulu using its cloud-based, remote-production model, the Group had been prepping for the OWL Playoffs in Dallas and Los Angeles, its first live, in-person matches in more than two years. However, when the Delta variant of COVID-19 hindered those plans, the Broadcast Technology Group pivoted quickly for a return to Honolulu to broadcast the playoffs, which conclude with tomorrow's OWL Grand Final.

The OWL Playoffs feature analysts on-site in Honolulu manning a set at the Moana Surfrider Resort.

When the [in-person events] were canceled, we had only about two weeks to pivot the entire show, says Corey Smith, director, live operations, Broadcast Technology Group, Activision Blizzard Esports. The fact that the team was able to get it done was nothing short of a miracle. We simply wouldn't have been able to do it without the cloud and all the work we had already put in to develop [remote workflows]. We couldn't have been orchestrating trucks and satellite uplinks and coordinating fiber drops in that small of a window. We just didn't have the time to turn around that traditional type of infrastructure. We had to do it with cloud production.

Project Aloha: A Unified Champion Thanks to Hawaii-Tokyo Connection After being forced to have regional champions in Asia and U.S./Europe last year because of travel restrictions and transcontinental bandwidth challenges, Tomorrow's OWL Grand Finals will crown a unified global champion for the first time since 2019.

To pull this season off, Activision Blizzard Esports (ABE) partnered with the University of Hawaii M noa to launch Project Aloha, a competition model in which teams could compete live between Honolulu and Asia. The university provided access to a high-capacity trans-Pacific subsea fiber cable between Tokyo and Honolulu, allowing players to compete online with near-zero latency.

Project Aloha allowed us to combine the teams from North America and Asia for competitive matchmaking, which was great because we weren't able to do that last season, notes Smith. We obviously didn't want to end this season again by crowning separate champions in Asia and North America, so Hawaii allowed us to conclude the season in a way that made sense.

Onsite in Honolulu: Analyst Desk Heads to Waikiki Beach During this week's OWL Playoffs, for the first time at Project Aloha, analysts are located onsite in Honolulu, delivering live coverage during broadcasts from its set on the balcony of the penthouse suite at the Moana Surfrider Resort.

OWL Playoffs coverage spans the globe with interviews across multiple continents.

The big challenge here for the set was connectivity at the top of the Moana Surfrider, says Senior Technical Manager Ryan Cole, one of the few crew members onsite in Honolulu. [The hotel] cannot support the network at the level and scale we needed at the penthouse, so we ended working with the Marriott folks and some onsite vendors to setup two point-to-point [wireless bridges] from different locations around the island to the suite to get the network connectivity we needed. And it has been going really well.

A small crew is also on hand in Honolulu: the production team manning the Moana Surfrider set and the competition room at the UH M noa, four editors located at the Sheraton Waikiki, an ENG team shooting behind-the-scenes content with the teams, and IT and operations staff. UH M noa students are also playing a role in the productions and getting hands-on experience in a live-esports-broadcast environment.

OWL observers remote into cloud-based VMs in both South Korea and Los Angeles.

At the UH M noa where teams compete, ABE has deployed Always-On Player POV cameras for each player, a wide shot of the competition room, two handheld cameras, and ambient microphones throughout the room. In addition, the broadcast will incorporate Player POV cams and shots from the competition rooms in China and South Korea.

We're focused on making this feel like it's truly a Grand Finals and not just another Overwatch league show, says Smith. We're upping the scale of the show as much as possible. We owe it to the teams, the players, and the community that's watching to polish it up and do whatever we can do to entertain them in a new and different way.

Spanning the Globe: How the Cloud Brings It All Together Nearly the entire production team, meanwhile, remains remote and continues to use ABE's cloud-based production workflow. This production model allows the production crew and casters to continue to work entirely from home, from locations across the mainland U.S., Hawaii, South Korea, and China.

Observers use remote stations like this one to tell the story as in-game camera operators

The cloud production ecosystem is built around vMix live-video-streaming software and uses software-based Unity intercom, Viz Trio graphics in the cloud, and Parsec remote-desktop software. ABE also created its own master-control platform - dubbed Echo - which can distribute multiple regionalized feeds with different graphics and commercial insertion for each region.

Observers - the camera operators who cut the in-game action and are integral to the broadcast - remote into cloud-based VMs in both South Korea and Los Angeles, which provide them with ultra-low-latency connections.

OWL's
LINK: https://www.sportsvideo.org/2021/09/24/overwatch-league-grand-finals-p...
See more stories from svg

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

06/09/2026

Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA World Cup 2026 in Germany with Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos

June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...

04/08/2026

Dalet Announces Commercial Availability of Dalia, Bringing Media-Aware Agentic AI to Enterprise Productions

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...

10/07/2026

SVG GameDay, Ep. 23: Nashville Predators Teri Johnson - Throwing a Bash on Broadway

In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...

10/07/2026

Fujifilm Announces FUJINON GF19-35mmT3.5 PZ OIS WR Cinema Power Zoom Lens

FUJIFILM North America Corporation has announced the FUJINON GF19-35mmT3.5 PZ OIS WR, a cinema power zoom lens for the GFX System with native G Mount. The lens ...

10/07/2026

Dalet Releases Long-Term Supported Update to Dalet Flex

Dalet has announced a new Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex, expanding AI capabilities, workflow automation, and integration with Dalia, Dalet'...

10/07/2026

Blackmagic Design Releases Fairlight Live Audio Mixer Software

Blackmagic Design has released Fairlight Live, a free software-based broadcast audio mixer for Mac and Windows, available for download now. Simultaneously, the ...

10/07/2026

FloSports and USA South Athletic Conference Announce Exclusive Media Rights Partnership

FloSports and the USA South Athletic Conference have announced an exclusive medi...

10/07/2026

Daktronics Installs LED Video Board at Field of Dreams Ballpark in Dyersville, Iowa

Daktronics has manufactured and installed an LED video display at Field of Dream...

10/07/2026

Registration Opens for NAB Show New York 2026, October 21-22 at the Javits Center

Registration is now open for NAB Show New York 2026, taking place October 21-22 ...

10/07/2026

Sphere and Formula 1 Heineken Las Vegas Grand Prix Announce Five-Year Partnership Extension

Sphere Entertainment Co. and the Formula 1 Heineken Las Vegas Grand Prix have an...

10/07/2026

CBS Sports and Asian Football Confederation Announce U.S. Media Rights Agreement

CBS Sports and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) have announced a media rights partnership covering the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 and the AFC U23 Asi...

10/07/2026

Sony Electronics Announces RX10 V with AI Autofocus and 4K 120p Video

Sony Electronics has announced the RX10 V, the fifth generation of its RX10 all-in-one camera series. The camera will be available in August 2026 at a suggested...

10/07/2026

Chyron Releases PRIME 5.4 with Newsroom Workflow Expansion and New Playout Options

Chyron has announced PRIME 5.4, an update to its unified graphics, playout, and ...

10/07/2026

Sports Broadcasting Hall of Famer Gene Mikell Dies at 87

The nine-time Emmy Award-winning video engineer was a pioneer of NASCAR in-car cameras and a longtime fixture in FOX Sports' video-control operation...

10/07/2026

Fubo Appoints Alisa Bowen as Chief Executive Officer

FuboTV Inc. has announced the appointment of Alisa Bowen as Chief Executive Officer, effective July 10. Bowen succeeds David Gandler, who co-founded the company...

10/07/2026

Ratings Roundup: USMNT-Belgium on FOX Top Soccer Telecast in U.S. History; Mexico-England on Telemundo Sets Spanish-Language Record

Every entry on Nielsen's Top 25 Live Sports Events Telecasts for the week of...

10/07/2026

BravesVision GM Jeff Cravens on Launching MLBs Newest Team-Owned Network in 35 Days

The Braves opted to keep production in-house rather than hand it off to MLB...

10/07/2026

PBR Teams Ready To Roll at CSU for Opening Weekend 2026

Drones, jibs, robos are part of the expanded camera complement for the Professional Bull Riders series PBR Teams' 2026 season, with a 10-team field competi...

10/07/2026

20 Years Later, We're All Still Part of the Little Miss Sunshine Family

(L-R) Michael Arndt, Paul Dano, Toni Collette, Valerie Faris, Abigail Breslin, Jonathan Dayton, and Greg Kinnear attend the Park City Legacy program screening o...

10/07/2026

AES Show Nashville: Early Bird registration opens

Discounted rates available through 27 August 2026 The Audio Engineering Society (AES) have announced that Early Bird registration is now open for the AES Sh...

10/07/2026

Sony introduce the IER-M500

New in-ear monitors to launch in August 2026 Sony have announced the upcoming launch of a new pair of in-ear monitors that promise to deliver a secure, stab...

10/07/2026

Apogee CRAS Symphony Mkii Upgrade Case Study

Why CRAS Upgraded to Symphony I/O MK II When an audio school runs studios all day, every day, gear doesn't just need to sound good , it needs to survive rea...

10/07/2026

FreeCast Cities To Stream Local TV, Premium Channels

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

10/07/2026

Hey Man, Cheech & Chong's Last Movie Rolls With SNS EVO

Hey Man, Cheech & Chong's Last Movie Rolls With SNS EVO Melanie Ciotti July 10, 2026 0 Comments Richard Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong have long b...

10/07/2026

Alex Zarfati's Fail Safe Shot with Blackmagic PYXIS 12K

Alex Zarfati's Fail Safe Shot with Blackmagic PYXIS 12K Brie Clayton July 10, 2026 0 Comments Camera's full frame sensor supports anamorphic s...

10/07/2026

Dalet Flex LTS Delivers Smarter Media Operations from Ing...

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...

10/07/2026

N.Y. State Broadcasters Association Selects Hall of Fame Class of 2026

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

10/07/2026

Chyron's PRIME 5.4 Brings Template Experience to More Newsrooms

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

10/07/2026

Registration Opens for 2026 NAB Show New York

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

10/07/2026

IAB Releases Redefining Media Types' Standard for Public Comment

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

10/07/2026

Wedotv FAST Channels Launch on TiVo Platforms in Europe

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

10/07/2026

Sage Offers Guidance on EAS Password Changes

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

10/07/2026

New RT documentary explores Irish-led efforts to build bridges

New RT documentary explores Irish-led efforts to build bridges in divided Cyprus More than a Game: From D1 to Pyla airs Monday 13 July More Than a Game: Fro...

09/07/2026

Omaha Productions Goes All-In as World Series of Poker Main Event Returns to ESPN

With 50+ cameras, three trucks, 60+ EVS channels, RFID hole-card workflows, and ...

09/07/2026

SVG Students To Watch: Dana Shearer, Syracuse University

A recent graduate from Westchester, NY, this experienced technician has already started her first gig in the industry, as a REMI A2 Comms Specialist at ESPN In...

09/07/2026

SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Lightcasts Andreas Kisslinger on the Role of Automation, Cloud-Based Workflows in Streaming

Live sports production is a fast-paced industry with no signs of slowing down. W...

09/07/2026

TV Skyline, thinXpool, DMC Production Collaborate on Deutsche Telekom's World Cup From NYC

From a rooftop studio in Manhattan, multiple Germany-based companies share respo...

09/07/2026

FOX One and Overtime Announce Creator Series Race to Glory for FIFA World Cup 2026

Overtime has announced a content partnership with FOX One to produce Race to Glo...

09/07/2026

Ross Production Services Standardizes on Clear-Com Intercom Across Mobile Production Fleet

Clear-Com has announced that Ross Production Services (RPS) has standardized on ...

09/07/2026

NetApp Returns as Presenting Partner of 2026 NFL Madrid Game

The NFL has announced that NetApp will return as Presenting Partner of the NFL Madrid Game, featuring the Atlanta Falcons against the Cincinnati Bengals at the ...

09/07/2026

The R&A and Cisco Announce Multi-Year Network Infrastructure Partnership

The R&A and Cisco have announced a multi-year partnership making Cisco the Official Network Supplier of The R&A and its Championships. Cisco will deploy AI-read...

09/07/2026

Fox Television Stations, Extreme Reach, and LTN Complete Live Syndication of 25 Words or Less LIVE

Fox Television Stations, Extreme Reach (XR), and LTN have announced the completi...

09/07/2026

Wynn Records Launches Direct-to-Consumer Streaming Platform Powered by Kiswe

Kiswe has announced a partnership with Wynn Records to launch the Wynn Records Network streaming platform, debuting Saturday, July 11 with a Salita Promotions b...

09/07/2026

NEP Europe Announces Multi-Year Agreement as Wimbledon Broadcast Services Provider

NEP Europe has announced a new multi-year agreement with Wimbledon Broadcast Ser...

09/07/2026

Thropic Games Raises Pre-Seed Round Led by The Famous Group

Thropic Games, a company offering casual mobile games tied to fan fundraising for sports programs, has announced a pre-seed funding round led by The Famous Grou...

09/07/2026

Game Creek Video Purchases 10 Grass Valley K-Frame Switchers for Fleet Expansion

Game Creek Video has reached an agreement with Grass Valley to purchase 10 K-Frame production switchers as part of a two-year fleet expansion. Two systems have ...

09/07/2026

Gravity Media Powers ITVs FIFA World Cup Coverage with Three-Hub Remote Production

Gravity Media is delivering a three-hub remote production workflow for ITV's...

09/07/2026

Report: North American Broadcast Journalists Spend Up to 75% of Time on Technical Workflows

A new report from Quickplay and Caretta Research, The Broadcaster Revolution Wi...

09/07/2026

DAZN to Broadcast Esports World Cup Free to Global Audiences

DAZN, the world's leading sports entertainment platform, has announced a long-term strategic partnership with the Esports World Cup Foundation to serve as t...