What’s Next in Sports Tech — 5G, AR, HDR, POV Cams, At-Home Production

By Jason Dachman on December 14, 2018

Whether it is a new POV camera, improved player miking and audio mixing, or augmented reality and data visualization, there are more ways than ever to keep fans engaged. In addition, next-gen technologies and workflows like HDR, Dolby Atmos, 5G, and at-home production are changing the way the live sports productions tell the story on and off the field.

In the Day 2 opening session at the 2018 SVG Summit (Dec. 10-11 in NYC), top operations and technology execs from major sports networks provided an overview of some of the year’s cool developments that can make a difference moving forward. The session featured Craig Bernstein, NBC Sports, senior director, remote technical operations and engineering; Chris Brown, Turner Sports, senior director, technical operations; Jason Cohen, CBS Sports and CBS Sports Network, VP, remote technical operations; Michael Davies, Fox Sports, SVP, technical and field operations; and Carlos Jimenez, Univision Networks, director of technology, sports and entertainment. It was moderated by SVG Chief Editor Jason Dachman.

Watch the session in its entirety:

Bernstein provided a peek at how NBC Sports produced all University of Notre Dame football home games in HDR and Dolby Atmos this season: 

Davies detailed Fox’s use of 5G transmission to deliver 4K camera signals at the 2018 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club:

Brown took attendees behind the scenes of Turner’s productions at the Ryder Cup (which sent back more than a dozen streams over IP public internet) and The Match, which deployed an array of next-gen tech and player miking strategies:

Jimenez addressed how Univision has implemented augmented reality and virtual “teleportation” to enhance its studio shows and blur the line between onsite and in the studio:

Jimenez also detailed how Univision uses the at-home production model for its live soccer productions, creating more efficiencies and allowing full use of top staff and production tools at the Univision broadcast center:

Davies addressed how augmented reality helped Fox enhance studio operations at the 2018 FIFA World Cup and at its NASCAR studio in Charlotte, NC. In addition, Chris Brown, Turner Sports, senior director, technical operations, discussed how player biometric data will provide new opportunities for AR and virtual graphics:

Cohen and Davies explored the potential and challenges of using player biometrics in live sports coverage:

Brown, Cohen, and Davies discussed how their use of SkyCam has evolved on football (for example, dual SkyCams on NFL and college football) and NBA (at NBA Summer League) coverage:

Davies and Jimenez addressed the ever-growing number of POV cameras in live sports production — from RefCams to PylonCams to CornerCams and more:

The panel concluded with predictions by all five execs on the biggest technological developments in 2019 for live sports coverage, including 5G, at-home production, HDR, player biometrics, and artificial intelligence:

For more one-on-one interviews, highlights from conference sessions, and full keynote conversations and panel discussions, visit SVG On Demand.