NEW YORK—CBS Sports has announced that Paramount+ will be the English-language U.S. home for Barclays Women’s Super League matches through the 2029-2030 season.

Beginning with coverage in September 2026, Paramount+ will live stream 183 matches each season, the most matches in the newly expanded competition’s history. CBS Sports Network will air one match per week with select matches also airing on CBS Sports Golazo Network.

In addition to CBS Sports’ coverage of live matches, CBS Sports Golazo Network will provide Barclays Women’s Super League coverage on its dedicated women’s soccer show “Attacking Third”, alongside its other studio programming “Morning Footy”, “Golazo Matchday” and “Scoreline”.

With the addition of England’s top women’s league, CBS Sports bolsters its women’s soccer rights across CBS, Paramount+, CBS Sports Network and CBS Sports Golazo Network.

Those rights now include the NWSL, UEFA Women’s Champions League, Concacaf W Champions Cup, Concacaf W Gold Cup, Concacaf W Championship, Concacaf W Nations League, Serie A Femminile and select UEFA Women’s World Cup Qualifiers.

The deal was negotiated by WSL Football’s international media rights representative, IMG.

CBS Sports and the WNBA have expanded their seven‑year deal through a new long‑term, multiplatform rights agreement. Under the new package of rights, CBS Sports will feature up to 20 regular‑season games annually on the CBS Television Network and streaming live on Paramount+.

CBS Sports will present 20 regular-season games for the upcoming 2026 season, marking the network’s most ever WNBA games on broadcast television.

“The WNBA’s growth and cultural impact have never been stronger, and CBS Sports is proud to deepen our longstanding partnership with a league that continues to drive the evolution of women’s sports,” said Dan Weinberg, executive vice president, programming, CBS Sports. “With our entire schedule of games on broadcast television, we are broadening the league’s reach and amplifying the WNBA’s momentum with best‑in‑class coverage that reflects the excellence of its athletes and resonates with fans.”

CBS Sports said that Jordan Kent (play-by-play), Isis “Ice” Young (analyst) and Tiffany Blackmon (sideline) will return as the WNBA on CBS’s lead broadcast team.

“The WNBA Tip Off Show” the Network’s pregame, halftime and postgame studio show, will expand to support 10 matchups including six shows airing on CBS and Paramount+ and four digital-exclusive editions available via CBS Sports HQ.

NEW YORK—The live sports broadcasting industry is grappling with a significant technological shift. Productions are becoming larger and more complex, and the demand for wireless cameras has outpaced the capabilities of traditional microwave RF systems that operate on increasingly crowded and limited frequency spectrums.

There’s a constant challenge to efficiently broadcast content wirelessly, which has created a strong industry-wide push to find viable next-generation solutions like 5G. All the traditional solutions still perform well, but when Sony demoed for us its 5G-powered live remote-production offering, comprised of a CBK-RPU7 encoder paired with the PDT-FP1 portable data transmitter and the NXL-ME80 media-edge processor to achieve ultra-low latency, our reaction was, “Why wouldn’t we look at it?”

Low Latency, High Quality
Sony’s solution presented an option offering ultra-low latency and high video quality, plus the ability to send back return video and control the camera and tally.

We’re always limited on the amount of RF cameras we can run on a large-scale event—at a golf major, we typically have around 120 cameras. Over the last four or five years, we’ve been creating one giant camera-control network. If we have six different trucks, the person physically shading cameras can be there, or we can extend the network to New York and have somebody paint it from there.

Our teams have also started virtualizing RF camera control with Sony Camera Control Network Adapters (CNAs), which show up as just another CCU on the network. Now, even if we have 25 video operators, they can be anywhere, in any truck, controlling anything. Having another Sony device on the system allows us to add control to the network more easily.

It’s important we continue to look for ways to transmit more content using the same number of frequencies available. Spectrum is in short supply, so being able to leverage new transmission technology is certainly an advantage, and 5G is obviously, for now, the next solution.

Typically, public networks are specified at about 80% allocation for download and 20% for upload, making it difficult to stream higher bit rates—we need much higher upload bandwidth to transmit live video reliably and smoothly. The video quality and low latency achieved through Sony’s 5G encoder are production-ready and comparable to wired fiber, making it a viable option for primary broadcast cameras.

We’ve even done side-by-side tests of the 5G feed against hard-wired fiber feeds, revealing minimal differences in quality and latency. The video quality from Sony’s 5G encoder was so high when compared to a wired fiber camera that we often could not tell the difference, even when using a high-grade broadcast monitor.

Public 5G Slicing
Production always wants more RF—that’s one of the biggest requests at major events. While private 5G networks provide excellent, dedicated bandwidth, deployment is still challenging enough to warrant further simplification for broader adoption. The potential for carriers to offer guaranteed bandwidth (slicing) on public 5G networks could be the next necessary step towards simplified deployment. Plus, the availability of a public 5G slicing option means you don’t always have to deploy a completely separate 5G system.

Even if there is some trade-off between robustness, latency and quality, it’s worth it for the ability to get more coverage easily and over a large area. The future of wireless broadcasting, at least for the near term, is likely a hybrid model with traditional RF cameras supplemented by 5G cameras placed in strategic locations or in areas difficult to reach with other technologies.

We’re definitely rounding the corner, and as we do, it will be this 5G-powered remote production technology’s time to shine.

More information is available on Sony’s professional products website.

The NFL’s wild-card playoff round scored hefty viewing numbers for all five games, with Fox leading the weekend with 41 million viewers for the Jan. 11 San Francisco 49ers-Philadelphia Eagles game and Prime Video setting an all-time streaming record for NFL viewing.

Fox also reported 28 million viewers for its coverage of the Jan. 10 Los Angeles Rams-Carolina Panthers game, which peaked at 31 million viewers and was the most-watched Saturday afternoon wild-card playoff game since 2011.

Citing Nielsen’s Big Data + Panel, Amazon’s Prime Vdeo reported that its Jan. 10 coverage of the primetime Green Bay Packers-Chicago Bears game set an all-time NFL streaming record with 31.61 million viewers, shattering the previous record by 4 million, set on Christmas Day with 27.52 million for the Netflix telecast of the Detroit Lions-Minnesota Vikings game.

Packers-Bears saw a 43% year-over-year viewership increase over Prime Video’s 2025 telecast of the Pittsburgh Steelers-Baltimore Ravens wild-card playoff, which was also presented on a Saturday night (Jan. 1, 2025).

The numbers also indicated that the streamer had achieved the concurrent viewers and the highest single-day global viewership ever for Prime Video.

For its part, CBS Sports said the early Sunday AFC Buffalo Bills-Jacksonville Jaguars wild-card game was the most-watched game ever in the early Sunday slot on any network, drawing 32.71 viewers and peaking with 41.15 million at the game's end. That was up 5% from last year.

NBC's Sunday primetime coverage of the New England Patriots beating the Los Angeles Chargers averaged 28.9 million viewers, making it the most-watched Sunday night broadcast of any kind since last February's Super Bowl.

COLUMBIA, Md.—Major League Volleyball (MLV) is partnering with LTN to power live video production and distribution for its most expansive broadcast schedule to date in 2026. With a record 50-match broadcast slate across major national networks, streaming services and local stations, the collaboration enables continued audience growth for MLV, providing fans with wider access to their favorite teams and high-quality live experiences on multiple viewing platforms.

After the unification of Major League Volleyball and Pro Volleyball Federation (PVF) in 2025, MLV is continuing to elevate professional women’s volleyball in the United States. Now in its third season, the PVF saw broadcast coverage grow 350% after its most recent season.

LTN will again serve as MLV’s live production and distribution partner, powering the largest media rollout in league history through a suite of on-site and remote production, live event customization and intelligent video transport services.

"We’re kicking off a milestone season for MLV with new energy, closer fan connection and our widest broadcast coverage to date," said Rob Carolla, Vice President, Public & Media Relations at MLV. "LTN has been a vital part of our growth journey, advancing our production quality, working across any venue and enabling new graphics and viewing features to enhance the fan experience – all while simplifying customization and distribution for multiple rights partners."

MLV will harness a comprehensive range of LTN production and transport services, leveraging a multi-camera setup and remote transmission technologies while enabling fully centralized production from LTN’s Kansas City technical operations center (TOC). LTN manages all the complexities of live event production, from announcer integration to audio mixing, replay, custom graphics insertion and playout.

"We’re seeing huge growth in a new generation of dynamic, innovation-first sports leagues," said Bryan McGuirk, Chief Revenue Officer at LTN. "With rights models evolving and demand for live events surging, MLV is a standout example of how sports organizations can harness agile production models and purpose-built IP distribution to enhance reach and monetization."

Last year, LTN supported the league in delivering over 45 linear broadcast matches and 70 live digital events, including generating 4.7 million YouTube views, up 1 million year-over-year, and an All-Star Match with 455,000 viewers on CBS. As a start to the current season,

LTN also underpinned the annual MLV Draft of collegiate players, which was broadcast live on the Roku Sports Channel for the first time. The California-based studio production was managed remotely from LTN’s centralized production facility, seamlessly connecting distributed draft teams to participate with presenters in real-time from locations nationwide with ultra-low latency, IP-based video transmission.

MLV is leveraging innovative technologies, supported by LTN’s flexible video infrastructure and production expertise, to elevate fan engagement and enhance the depth of data for viewers. Its latest advances include:

• An enhanced tracking system that delivers real-time ball tracking, improving officiating accuracy and powering advanced performance analytics – enabling teams and fans to better understand attacking patterns and player dynamics.
• Displayed for the first time on opening weekend, viewers will see enhanced visuals including ball speed and jump height metrics on matches aired by CBS Sports, offering deeper insights into the athleticism of the game.
• In another league-first, teams like the Indy Ignite will now air both home and away games in their local market outside of the national broadcast schedule, offering fans unrivaled access to their teams via local stations.

Alongside CBS Sports and the Roku Sports Channel, which aired opening weekend games, Jan. 9-11, MLV's media partners include ION – the national network from The E.W. Scripps Company with exclusive rights for the championship finals – and VICE, both new for 2026. The second MLV All-Star Match will air live on CBS and Paramount+, with all other matches available via MLV’s YouTube channel and team-led local market agreements.

NEW YORK / MIAMI—CBS Sports and TelevisaUnivision have announced a sublicense agreement that will allow CBS Sports Network and CBS Sports Golazo Network will present matches in the United States from the 2025-26 Liga MX season starting this weekend on August 16 and running through May 2026.

As part of the deal, at least 40 regular season and additional playoff (Liguilla) matches from the 2025-26 schedule will air on CBS Sports Network or CBS Sports Golazo Network. All matches will feature English-language commentary from CBS Sports announcers including Nico Cantor, Adrian García-Márquez and Chris Wittyngham.

In addition, CBS obtain rights to use Liga MX match highlights and summaries across CBS Sports Golazo Network, CBS Sports Network and @GolazoAmerica social channels. CBS Sports Golazo Network, CBSSports.com and the CBS Sports app will provide additional Liga MX editorial coverage.

Initial matches include:

• August 16, 11:00 PM ET, Toluca vs. UNAM on CBS Sports Network
• August 24, 9:00 PM, Atlas vs. Club América on CBS Sports Golazo Network
• August 30, 11:00 PM, Club América vs. Pachuca, on CBS Sports Network
• September 12, 9:00 PM, Club América vs. Guadalajara, on CBS Sports Golazo Network
• September 27, 11:00 PM, Club América vs. UNAM, on CBS Sports Network
• October 5, 9:00 PM, UNAM vs. Guadalajara, on CBS Sports Network
• October 18, 9:00 PM, Monterrey vs. UNAM, on CBS Sports Network
• October 18, 11:00 PM, Cruz Azul vs. Club América, on CBS Sports Network
• October 25, 11:00 PM, Cruz Azul vs. Monterrey, on CBS Sports Network
• November 1, 9:00 PM, Monterrey vs. Tigres, on CBS Sports Golazo Network
• November 1, 11:00 PM, Club América vs. León, on CBS Sports Golazo Network
• November 8, 8:00 PM, Toluca vs. Club América, on CBS Sports Golazo Network
• November 8, 10:00 PM, Cruz Azul vs. UNAM, on CBS Sports Golazo Network

As the Pac-12 gets set to relaunch in 2026 with new schools and a new schedule, CBS Sports and the conference have announced a media rights extension set to begin with the 2025 football season.

With the departure of many of its schools to other conferences in 2024, the Pac-12 has been adding new schools to the two universities, Washington State and Oregon State, that remained from the conference’s former roster. It has also been working to boost revenue with new deals for TV, streaming and other media rights.

The new agreement establishes CBS Sports as the primary long-term media partner for the new Pac-12, with additional partners to be announced at a later date, the league said. As part of the extended partnership, football and men’s basketball games for the new Pac-12 will air throughout each season on the CBS Television Network (and streaming on Paramount+, as well as CBS Sports Network.

“As the new Pac-12’s primary media partner, CBS Sports’ top-tier coverage will showcase the best of the conference’s football and men’s basketball games annually across our platforms, including the championship game for both sports,” said Dan Weinberg, executive vice president, programming, CBS Sports. “Extending this partnership strengthens our multiplatform college football and basketball schedule and, at a pivotal moment for the new Pac-12, allows us to collaborate, grow the conference and expand its reach."

Octagon, the Pac-12’s exclusive media rights advisor, served as advisor for both the 2025 partnership and subsequent long-term extension.

Highlights of the extended partnership between CBS Sports and the new Pac-12 include:

• Annual football championship game on CBS and streamed live on Paramount+.
• Annual men’s basketball tournament championship game on CBS and Paramount+.
• A minimum of three regular season football games on CBS and Paramount+ each season.
• A minimum of three regular season men’s basketball games on CBS and Paramount+ each season.
• Football and men’s basketball games throughout the regular season on CBS Sports Network, with details to be announced at a later date.

“Our goal with this process was to find transformational partnerships for the new Pac-12, and throughout our discussions and time together it became more and more clear that a partnership with CBS Sports would be just that,” said Pac-12 Commissioner Teresa Gould. “I am thankful to the team at CBS Sports for seeing our vision and investing in our shared future as we build, launch and realize a new Pac-12 together.”

In announcing the deal with CBS, the conference said further media rights partnerships for the new Pac-12 will be announced following finalized agreements with schools set to join. One of the factors that led to the breakup of the original Pac-12 was that some of its most prominent schools felt they could get more media revenue as member of the Big Ten and other conferences.

Last fall, Oregon State and Washington State were joined by Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, Gonzaga, San Diego State and Utah State in plans to create a new Pac-12 Conference set to begin play in 2026-27.

Oregon State and Washington State are currently operating as the Pac-12 under a two-year NCAA grace period and will continue to do so for 2025-26. Outside of football, the two schools are entering their second year of a two-year arrangement as affiliate members of the West Coast Conference in men’s basketball and other Olympic sports.

CBS Sports and UC3 have announced a deal for exclusive English-language U.S. TV rights to UEFA Women’s Champions League soccer matches through the 2029-2030 season.

Beginning with the 2025-2026 season, Paramount+ will stream CBS Sports coverage of all 75 matches, with select matches also airing on CBS Sports Network and CBS Sports Golazo Network.

Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

UC3 is a joint venture between UEFA and the European Club Association that manages and sells media rights.

CBS Sports already has rights to the men’s club competitions.

As part of the deal, CBS Sports will provide exclusive coverage of the newly expanded UEFA Women’s Champions League format beginning next season with 18 clubs participating in the initial league phase; a newly added knockout phase playoff round; and concluding with the UEFA Women’s Champions League final.

CBS Sports said it will announce full coverage details ahead of the start of the 2025-26 UEFA Women’s Champions League season in July.

“The UEFA Women’s Champions League with its world class players and elite clubs adds tremendous value to CBS Sports’ premium soccer portfolio,” said Dan Weinberg, executive vice president of programming, CBS Sports. “CBS Sports is proud to be the home of the UEFA Women’s Champions League and all men’s UEFA club competitions through the end of the decade, further solidifying Paramount+ as the premier and must-have destination for soccer fans.”

“We are delighted to expand our partnership with CBS Sports, bringing the UEFA Women’s Champions League alongside the UEFA men’s club competitions,” said Guy-Laurent Epstein, managing director at UC3. “As the competition embarks on an exciting new era, we look forward to CBS Sports delivering its dynamic and insightful coverage to American audiences, showcasing the highest level of women’s club football in its new format over the next five seasons.”

In addition to CBS Sports’ coverage of live matches, CBS Sports Golazo Network will provide extensive UEFA Women’s Champions League coverage on its dedicated women’s soccer show alongside its other studio programming. CBS Sports will provide additional coverage on CBSSports.com, the Golazo Starting XI newsletter, the “Attacking Third” podcast and across its @AttackingThird social accounts.

CBS Sports’ extensive soccer portfolio features more than 2,000 live matches per year on Paramount+ and across its various platforms. Those rights include games from the NWSL, the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Europa Conference League and UEFA Youth League;,Serie A and Serie A Femminile, the English Football League and Carabao Cup, the United Soccer League, Concacaf W Champions Cup, Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, the Scottish Professional Football League and more.

(Editor’s note: CBS Sports coverage of the PGA Championship began May 15 and wraps up May 18. Interviews for this story were conducted on-site May 14.)

CHARLOTTE, N.C.—To fans and golfers at the 14th hole here at Quail Hollow, nothing appears to be out of the ordinary for one of the four majors.

Not so for the viewers at home enjoying CBS Sports coverage of the PGA Championship.

The broadcaster, working with a handful of technology vendors, has created “an immersive tee box of the future,” leveraging artificial intelligence (AI), augmented reality (AR) graphics, 5G wireless connectivity, a remotely controlled robotic camera and tracking data system, Jason Cohen, senior vice president of remote technical operations for CBS Sports and CBS Sports Network, said.

“We are bringing the tee box to life in a more immersive virtual manner so we can show headshots of the group that’s about to hit,” Cohen said. “We can do a virtual display of the hole with a trail of the ball in this virtual map, and we can use the shot link data to create other metrics and information about how the golfer has been playing that course or how the hole has been played in general by other golfers in the field.”

The immersive tee box isn’t the only innovative technology the broadcaster is bringing to the tournament. Ball tracing from drones, first deployed last summer, is making its PGA Championship debut. Two new miniature POV 4K cameras embedded in the bunker at the 18th hole will enable CBS to zoom in to capture “nice, tight shots” showing the grains of sand as the ball is being hit without losing any resolution for the 1080p HDR production, Cohen said.

Other familiar technologies, including three FlyCams suspended overhead from two wires over different parts of the course and practice range, two drones, the blimp and the jibs, are contributing their unique perspectives to the overall production. “These other camera technologies are not just eye candy,” he said. “They really help with coverage.”

AR Deep Dive
What set the immersive tee box in motion was a desire to use all available data in a new, more effective way. “There’s a lot of information, a lot of data and a lot of analytics at our disposal that always don’t make the screen at the same time,” Cohen said.

Forming a technology partnership with T-Mobile, Cohen’s team began to reimagine coverage from the tee box that would be more futuristic and innovative.

The setup relies on a combination of technologies from a variety of vendors. All video and tracking data for the immersive experience is being transported via a T-Mobile 5G wireless network, which “goes into the private network cores located on premise,” said Scott Jacka, senior director of technology development strategy at T-Mobile. From the core, a fiber connection transmits the video and data to the CBS broadcast compound.

“The signal is lightning-quick,” Cohen said. “It’s almost as fast as the fiber, which is almost mathematically hard to believe.”

High above the tee box in a trace tower, a Robovision robotic camera, with a Mo-Sys Sony P50 robotic camera alongside it, is capturing the video and tracking data needed for the virtual presentation. Alston Elliot (AE) Live, which acquired Silver Spoon Animation in 2023, is providing the augmented reality engine, including hardware, software and personnel, in the broadcast compound.

Finally, a virtual window adjacent to the golfer in the tee box is displaying a virtual representation of the 14th hole created by Animation Research Labs (ARL) to show viewers how that golfer is playing that hole as he tees off.

CBS is deploying a roaming Steadicam-mounted Sony camera tech stack, including the Sony PDT-FP1 portable data transmitter, which transmits footage of the golfers as they leave the 13th hole and enter the 14th. T-Mobile 5G is used to transport the HEVC-encoded video from the rig at 25Mbps.

“It’s a full end-to-end 5G experience from the moment the golfers release 13 to the moment that ball lands wherever the drivable ball goes on the 14th hole,” Cohen said.

When not capturing players leaving the 13th on their way to the 14th hole, the roaming camera is also being used for “a walk and talk” with players as they walk from the 14th to the 18th holes, Grant Castle, senior vice president of systems realization at T-Mobile, said.

Size, Scope and Storms
The PGA Championship is a massive remote production. CBS has assembled 24 mobile production trucks, including units from NEP, Game Creek and F&F Productions, six trucks playing supporting roles and some 700 technicians and engineers, production personnel, managers and vendor partners for its coverage.

More than 125 cameras are strategically placed to capture every shot over the four-day tournament. “We try to anticipate and think about what the course is offering us that’s unique from year to year because we’re going to a different location each year.

“We take every hole and dissect it from the tee to the green, thinking about which angle we can shoot from and what different types of camera technologies allow us to capture all those unique angles,” Cohen said.

He points to the FlyCams as an example. One travels along the two-wire system across the large lake on the back nine from the 14th green to nearly the 18th green. “That’s an exciting camera technology,” Cohen said. “It’s got a fluctuating line where it can dip down to almost skim the water and then come back up.”

Another, the Sparrow FlyCam, is a miniature version that travels on the wire system from a tower on the 18th through a grandstand window. “These are not just bells and whistles,” he said. “They really help out with our coverage as players tap out on those various greens.”

Setup for the coverage began in mid-April with early work on the broadcast compound. Production trucks were on-site and parked by May 7. In the days leading up to the championship, severe thunderstorms struck the Charlotte area.

“A lot of the cameras were bagged and covered,” Cohen said. “A lot of them were not even deployed. But that schedule that we built takes into account an unforeseen situation. It allows us to still be in a position where today, which is an enormous day before air, we are doing a full rehearsal of every camera and every technology. The production teams are in their trucks right now getting set for the first golfers from tomorrow morning.”

FOOTHILL RANCH, Calif. —RED Digital Cinema will be showcasing its latest innovations at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Show in Las Vegas, April 6–9.

During the show RED will be demonstrating its Cine-Broadcast solution live on the show floor and will be showing the all-new RED V-RAPTOR [X] and KOMODO-X with Nikon’s premier Z Mount. Nikon acquired RED last year as part of the company’s ongoing push into video.

RED reported that its advanced Cine-Broadcast Module is now available for productions worldwide.

Compatible with V-RAPTOR XL [X], V-RAPTOR [X] and standard V-RAPTOR and V-RAPTOR XL camera systems, the module supports live broadcasting of up to two channels of 4K 60P (HDR/SDR) via 12G-SDI and IP broadcasting compliant with SMPTE ST 2110 (TR-08) and up to a 4K 60P JPEG-XS feed. It features a robust LEMO SMPTE 311M/304M hybrid fiber optical cable connector linked to a rack-mountable 2U full rack or 4U half rack base station. The module further expands workflows with advanced slow motion, AI/ML enhancements, and real-time 8K 120FPS R3D streaming through the RED Connect license-enabled feature.

“RED is excited to share our groundbreaking Cine-Broadcast Module on the NAB show floor this year,” said RED CEO Keiji Oishi. “This innovative technology will enhance productions worldwide by seamlessly blending cinematic and live broadcast imagery.”

CBS Sports will be integrating the Cine-Broadcast Module into some of its productions, showcasing the high cinematic image quality of the RED camera systems.

RED’s demo at NAB will also feature the new advanced Broadcast Color pipeline, which enables live painting of RED cameras in broadcast or streaming environments and allows for on-demand adjustments and multi-camera color matching using traditional broadcast controls. This latest functionality, which comes in a firmware update for V-RAPTOR XL and V-RAPTOR cameras, utilizes industry-standard RCPs to control painting parameters in real time over IP while saving information per frame in the recorded file’s metadata.

RED is also presenting a newly available integration with EVS’ XT-VIA® live production server, which allows broadcasters to enhance their workflows with up to 4x super-slow-motion at 4K and 8x at 1080p, while simultaneously delivering two baseband channels through the RED Cine-Broadcast Module.

This capability is powered by RED’s license-enabled RED Connect feature, which enables IP live streaming of R3Ds and unlocks advanced workflows, including real-time AI/ML augmentation and live-to-headset using 8K 120FPS R3Ds. These advanced workflows are capable due to a close integration with NVIDIA GPUs, including the NVIDIA RTX 6000 Ada Generation GPU and NVIDIA L40S GPU for real-time image processing.

"The successful integration of RED’s cutting-edge cameras with our XT-VIA server expands the range of UHD high frame rate solutions available to the market,” said EVS product marketing manager Ignacio Revuelto. “This not only paves the way for cinematic quality cameras to elevate sports productions but could also accelerate the deployment of our LSM-VIA® system’s latest replay and zoom capabilities—delivering crystal-clear 1080p output from 4K sources. We’re excited to showcase these advancements at NAB and empower operators with even greater precision and creative flexibility.”

Another highlight will be the all-new RED V-RAPTOR [X] and KOMODO-X with Nikon’s premier Z Mount.

These new camera variants offer tremendous flexibility in lens selection and provide a comprehensive capture solution—from lens to sensor to codec. With a shallower flange depth and a wider diameter, the Nikon Z Mount enables lens designs with higher sharpness and superior aberration control. The Z lens delivers unrivaled low-light performance and edge-to-edge detail, as well as autofocus performance on both the V-RAPTOR [X] and KOMODO-X cameras.

RED’s V-RAPTOR [X] Z Mount features unmatched low-light performance, dynamic range, resolution, high frame rates, and an industry-leading 8K VV global shutter large-format sensor. RED’s KOMODO-X Z Mount features a 6K S35 global shutter sensor and frame rates at 6K 80P and 4K 120P, all in a form factor measuring only 4x4x5 inches and 2.6 lbs.

Conference-goers will also have the opportunity to see the latest RED Digital Cinema and Mark Roberts Motion Control (MRMC) bundled offering, which includes the powerful combination of the RED KOMODO-X and the MRMC SR-1 with power zoom lens that combines cutting-edge image and lens technologies with a highly controllable and precise pan-tilt-zoom system.

RED’s cameras and solutions will be on display at the following booths:

• NIKON, BOOTH #N2038
• MARK ROBERTS MOTION CONTROL, BOOTH #N2038
• B&H, BOOTH #N2439, N2427
• BROMPTON, BOOTH #N2949
• CHRISTIE DIGITAL SYSTEMS, BOOTH #SL5708
• CORE SWX, BOOTH #N2848
• EVS, BOOTH #SL3316
• GYRO-STABILIZED SYSTEMS, BOOTH #N2007
• INFILED, BOOTH #N1051
• INTOPIX, BOOTH #N2452
• KINO FLO LIGHTING SYSTEMS, BOOTH #N1059
• MILLER CAMERA, BOOTH #N1367
• MO-SYS USA, BOOTH #N3039
• NVIDIA & DELL, BOOTH #SL4616
• PIXERA, BOOTH #W3743
• PLANAR, BOOTH #N2629
• PORTKEYS, BOOTH #N1070
• ROE VISUAL, BOOTH #N2839
• SKAARHOJ, BOOTH #2900
• VERIZON, BOOTH #W2530

NEW YORK—Paramount+ and EverPass Media has signed a multi-year distribution agreement that allows EverPass customers to stream all of CBS Sports’ UEFA Champions League matches that stream on Paramount+, starting on Tuesday, February 18, 2025.

EverPass Media aggregates, distributes and enables streaming of live sports and entertainment content to commercial venue like bars, restaurants and hotels. It was initially established as the exclusive distributor of NFL Sunday Ticket to commercial establishments in the United States and now offers a wide range of other content.

The Paramount/EverPass agreement offers a new distribution vehicle for CBS Sports’ UEFA Champions League matchups, which were previously unavailable for commercial venues in the United States.

As part of the deal, all of CBS Sports’ UEFA Champions League matches on Paramount+ will be available to stream via EverPass' platform. The deal also expands EverPass’ library of live sports content for businesses and includes select CBS Sports ancillary UEFA programming, including The Golazo Show, a whip-around show highlighting every goal from every match.

“We’re proud to expand EverPass Media’s portfolio with the Paramount+ stream of the UEFA Champions League, one of the most prestigious competitions in global sports. This partnership with CBS Sports reinforces our mission to bring the world’s most sought-after live sports to commercial establishments, ensuring bars and restaurants can provide unparalleled viewing experiences for their patrons,” said Alex Kaplan, CEO of EverPass Media. “For the first time, businesses have a seamless way to showcase every UEFA Champions League match all season long – driving foot traffic, increasing engagement and creating the kind of electric atmosphere that only live sports can deliver. This is another powerful step in redefining the way premium sports content reaches the commercial market, and we’re thrilled to partner with CBS Sports and Paramount+ to make it happen.”

CBS Sports is the exclusive English-language rightsholder for UEFA Champions League in the U.S. with all matches streaming on Paramount+ and select matches, including the semi-finals and finals also airing on the CBS Television Network. Paramount+ is home to popular original series, blockbuster movies and live championship sports including an expansive soccer portfolio that is anchored by UEFA Champions League.

“Paramount+ is the streaming home to UEFA men’s club competitions and we are always looking for ways to broaden the distribution and increase awareness for Paramount+ as well as maximize the audience for our UEFA Champions League coverage,” said Dan Weinberg, Executive Vice President, Programming CBS Sports. “This partnership with EverPass unlocks a new viewership avenue and allows us to reach the many passionate fans watching out of home.”

NEW YORK—CBS Sports and the Big 12 Conference have announced a new deal that will significantly increase the number of Big 12 men’s college basketball games that will air on the network’s various platforms. The multi-year deal, which runs through the 2026-27 season, is through a sublicense agreement with ESPN.

As part of its extensive regular-season schedule, CBS Sports already broadcasts a minimum of six Big 12 men’s college basketball games annually on CBS, with those games streaming live on Paramount+. This new agreement adds 20 games per year to air on CBS Sports Network to bring the total number of Big 12 men’s basketball games to at least 26 per season across CBS Sports platforms.

“CBS Sports continues to be the home for big-time college basketball and we are excited to expand our long-standing relationship with the Big 12,” said Dan Weinberg, executive vice president, programming, CBS Sports. “The Big 12 is one of the nation’s signature basketball conferences with marquee schools, student-athletes and coaches along with a rich history in the sport. This is a tremendous opportunity to add 20 high-quality games from a premier conference to our schedule and we are thrilled to increase the number of Big 12 basketball games across our CBS Sports platforms.”

“Growing our presence on CBS Sports will deliver Big 12 basketball to even more fans across the country,” said Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark. “The additional nationally televised games will continue to grow our brand as the best conference in college basketball and showcase the elite student-athletes and programs from our 16 institutions.”

CBS Sports will begin its 44th consecutive season presenting college basketball this fall with approximately 300 regular-season games across CBS and Paramount+, as well as CBS Sports Network, including 15 automatic bids to the NCAA Men’s and Women’s Tournaments. CBS Sports has been the broadcast home of the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament since 1982, including a partnership with TNT Sports since 2012.

NEW YORK—Following a recent deal for English Football League rights, CBS Sports continues to bulk up on international soccer rights, with a multi-platform, two-year agreement for Lega Serie A rights. 

The renewed agreement, which was approved by Serie A Assembly, means that CBS Sports continues as the exclusive U.S. English-language rights holder of every Serie A Championship, Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana match. The deal involves more than 400 matches per season on Paramount+ with select matches on the CBS Television Network, CBS Sports Network and CBS Sports Golazo Network, 

This extends the partnership that began when CBS Sports first aired Serie A matches in the 2021-22 season and underscores Lega Serie A’s strategic prioritization of investment in the league’s future growth in North America.

As part of a scope for increased distribution, Paramount+ will remain home to more than 400 club matches live each season, featuring all 380 Serie A matches, at least 25 Coppa Italia matches and all Supercoppa Italiana matches. The new deal marks the widest distribution in the U.S of Serie A, with the most matches airing on broadcast television ever over the course of the deal, including on the CBS Television Network, as well as select matches on CBS Sports Network and CBS Sports Golazo Network.

Additional live match and studio coverage details for the start of the 2024-25 season will be announced in the coming weeks, CBS said. 

Nine of the 20 Serie A teams have a North American ownership stake, and the league boasts some of North America’s biggest soccer talents, including USMNT stars Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah, Timothy Weah, Weston McKennie, and Canada’s Tajon Buchanan. The 2024-2025 season will see the ranks of North American talent in Serie A bolstered, with the ascension of four new American stars from the newly promoted teams, Venezia and Como.

In addition to airing live matches, CBS Sports Golazo Network will provide analysis and commentary of Serie A competition throughout its live studio programming. The first-of-its-kind, free, 24-hour soccer streaming network in the U.S. offers fans unparalleled coverage of all top domestic and international soccer competitions. The Network is available on connected TV and mobile devices through Paramount+, the CBS Sports App and Pluto TV, on CBSSports.com, and as a channel on The Roku Channel, Amazon FreeVee, Local Now and Plex.

CBS Sports will also provide additional editorial coverage of Serie A on CBSSports.com, the Golazo Starting XI newsletter and across its @CBSSportsGolazo social accounts.

CBS Sports’ extensive soccer portfolio features more than 1,500 live matches per year across its various platforms including Serie A; the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Europa Conference League and UEFA Youth League; NWSL; the United Soccer League; English Football League competitions including the Carabao Cup; Concacaf national team competitions; Argentina’s Liga Profesional de Fútbol; the Scottish Professional Football League; AFC Champions League and more.

CBS Sports has expanded its partnership with the National Women’s Soccer League  by adding multiplatform coverage of 22 additional regular season matches. The 22 matches will stream live across Paramount+ and CBS Sports Golazo Network, a 24/7 soccer streaming network.

The expanded slate kicks off tonight with the Houston Dash facing NJ/NY Gotham FC at 8 PM, ET and the Seattle Reign hosting the Kansas City Current at 10 PM, ET, with both matches streaming live on CBS Sports Golazo Network.

The additional matches enhance CBS Sports’ multiplatform lineup of NWSL programming under the network’s new deal with the NWSL, which was announced in November. The partnership includes up to 12 matches per season on CBS, including multiple postseason matches and the Championship match, and up to 10 matches on CBS Sports Network each year.

In addition to CBS Sports’ coverage of live matches, CBS Sports Golazo Network will continue to provide extensive NWSL coverage on its dedicated women’s soccer show “Attacking Third”, alongside its other studio programming. 

CBS Sports will provide additional NWSL coverage on CBSSports.com, the Golazo Starting XI newsletter and across its @AttackingThird social accounts.

CBS Sports Golazo Network, the first-of-its-kind 24-hour soccer channel, is available free on connected TVs and mobile devices through the CBS Sports App, Pluto TV, The Roku Channel, LocalNow and CBSSports.com, as well as Paramount+.

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 Champions League.

At launch, Champions League is available free on Pluto TV and on connected TV devices through the CBS Sports App, with additional availability next month, including through the CBS Sports App on mobile, CBSSports.com and Paramount+. Paramount+ will continue to stream live every UEFA Champions League match as well as on-demand match replays.

“UEFA Champions League represents the absolute best soccer in the world, and this new channel delivers fans an always-on venue to relive the special moments, sensational goals, iconic players and storied clubs that define this one-of-a-kind tournament,” said Jeffrey Gerttula, executive vice president, digital, of CBS Sports, News, Stations and Entertainment. “CBS Sports is the 24/7 home for soccer fans in this country, and we’re excited for this latest addition to our industry-leading multiplatform soccer coverage.”

CBS Sports acquired the rights to UEFA Champions League beginning in 2020 and in 2023 CBS Sports continued the evolution of its soccer coverage with the launch of CBS Sports Golazo Network, the first-of-its-kind free soccer streaming network in the U.S. On social platforms, @CBSSportsGolazo has become the No. 1 U.S. soccer media brand in engagement rate and has driven over 4.2 billion video views over the last year, CBS Sports reported. 

In addition to CBS Sports Golazo Network, UEFA Champions League joins CBS Sports HQ streaming sports news network; CBS News 24/7, CBS News’ free national streaming news service; and Pluto TV, the pioneer and leading player in the FAST industry.

NEW YORK—CBS Sports’ coverage of Super Bowl LVIII, which featured the Kansas City Chiefs’ 25-22 overtime victory over the San Francisco 49ers, delivered record audiences with a total audience delivery of 123.4 million average viewers across all platforms, including the CBS Television Network, Paramount+, Nickelodeon, Univision, and CBS Sports, Univision and NFL digital properties, including NFL+.

CBS reported that it was the largest audience ever on a single network, with 120.0 million watching it on CBS. CBS also claimed that more than 200 million viewers (202.4) watched all or part of Super Bowl LVIII across networks, making it the highest unduplicated total audience in history and up +10% vs. last year’s Super Bowl (184 million).

To provide some context for the size of those numbers in a landscape where there are hundreds of viewing options, somewhere between 125 million and 150 million U.S. viewers watched the Apollo 11 moon landing in 1969 when there were just three broadcast networks in the U.S. 

Viewership figures are based on Nielsen Fast National data and Adobe Analytics. Final Nielsen data will be available tomorrow.

CBS also said Super Bowl LVIII is the most-watched program ever, averaging 123.4 million viewers across all platforms, up +7% vs. last year’s Super Bowl which was the previous record (115.1 million).

Super Bowl LVIII on CBS led the way with 120.0 million viewers, the largest audience in history for a single network and the most-streamed Super Bowl in history, led by a record-setting audience on Paramount+.

The record viewing levels highlighted the growing importance of sports for linear TV, with networks like CBS and ESPN reporting record viewing during the 2023-24 NFL season. The NFL On CBS scored the most-watched regular season since the NFL returned to CBS in 1998 as well as the Network’s best postseason viewership since 1998.

CBS Sports has released the technical details behind its 22nd broadcast of Super Bowl LVIII on Sunday Feb. 11, introducing several new production elements—including new camera angles and configurations along with cutting-edge graphic enhancements—to deliver what the network calls “an incomparable multiplatform viewer experience.”

The game will mark the first time that CBS Sports will present the Super Bowl in 1080p High Dynamic Range (HDR) and 4K HDR. While Fox and NBC were the first networks to offer 4K and HDR feeds in 2020 and 2023 of the Super Bowl, those feeds were upscaled from 1080p HDR. The last time CBS broadcast the big game was during the pandemic in 2021 which presented its own unique set of challenges. 

CBS will deploy 165 cameras across the network’s entire  presentation of the game on the CBS Television Network, Paramount+ and on mobile with NFL+, along with the Nick-ified telecast exclusively on Nickelodeon, as well as pregame, halftime and postgame coverage on THE NFL TODAY originating live from the Las Vegas Strip and Allegiant Stadium.

In all, CBS Sports Network and CBS Sports HQ—Paramount's free, 24/7 streaming sports news network—will provide more than 115 combined hours of Super Bowl LVIII coverage throughout the week prior to the game, with shows primarily originating from CBS’ central broadcast location at Bellagio, beginning Monday, Feb. 5 at 6:00 AM, ET. CBS Sports Network will have extensive coverage with more than 75 hours of programming from Las Vegas throughout Super Bowl week, including studio programming and radio show simulcasts. The CBS broadcast will be available to stream via Paramount+.

For the kids, Nickeodeon will provide "slime" based coverage starting at 6:30 p.m. (ET). with "Super Bowl LVIII Live from Bikini Bottom," featuring enhanced graphics and advanced augmented reality, "bringing the historic Slime-filled telecast to SpongeBob SquarePants’ undersea home," the network said. This this marks the first time in NFL history that the Super Bowl will be broadcast in two different formats, according to CBS Sports.

Among the technical highlights this year is an increased emphasis on 4K zooms, with 48 cameras with super slow-motion capability—Half of which are 24 4K zoom extraction cameras—a record number for a Super Bowl, according to CBS. Those cameras will showcase a range of angles inside Allegiant Stadium, including from the ceiling, along the goal lines and embedded inside the endzone pylons. 

New this year are so-called small “Doink Cameras,” inserted into upright cutouts, with six 4K cameras capturing “unprecedented” angles of field goals and extra points, the network said. Cameras will have high resolution zoom capability and also be made available for super slow-motion replays.

With Las Vegas hosting the Super Bowl for the first time, CBS Sports will take advantage of its unique skyline, which now includes the world famous Sphere. Three sky cams, two fly cams (including a “trolley cam”) and three drones will be utilized between the stadium and areas of the Strip, including the Sphere. Twenty-four live robotic cameras also will be mounted inside the stadium and as well as throughout the city to showcase high altitude vantage points of Las Vegas.

CBS Sports will also deploy 23 augmented reality cameras—11 on the CBS broadcast, eight on Nickelodeon and four at the set on the Strip. A collection of AR graphic enhancements will be integrated into coverage, including graphics over the Bellagio fountains utilizing a drone and fly cam, as well as virtual AR studio showcasing Las Vegas Boulevard.

For VR fans, specialty graphics implemented during Super Bowl coverage will transport players to Las Vegas Boulevard, while a VR experience will transport viewers to the set on the Strip.

The network will also use a real-time 3D Animation Graphics Packager based on Unreal Engine—an immersive real-time 3D animation graphic tool—for its studio and game coverage. 

Other enhancements include: 

• Shallow Depth-of-Field Cameras – 5 shallow depth-of-field cameras will showcase players up close on the field with a cinematic feel.
• “Red Cat” POV Cameras – A creative POV tool utilizing aftereffects and accelerated live post-processing by stabilizing, focusing and time re-mapping to present replays in a dynamic way.
• Techno Movie Bird Crane – A 53-foot movie bird crane traditionally used for major motion pictures will be located on the upper concourse, offering dramatic sweeping views of the stadium.
• Falcon 360 Camera – An immersive camera showcasing vivid panoramic views of the venue.
• Wireless RF Cameras – 12 wireless remote frequency cameras, including two “line to gain” vantage points.

CBS Sports has announced that for the first time, it will deliver Super Bowl LVIII on Sunday, Feb. 11, 2024, in 1080p High Dynamic Range (HDR) and 4K HDR. 

CBS Sports said it will make the 1080p HDR feed available across most platforms and will supply the 4K HDR feed to various MVPDs and vMVPDs.

The CBS Television Network and Paramount+ will air over ten hours of CBS Sports coverage on Super Bowl Sunday, all of which will be available on all feeds offered by the Network. In addition to Super Bowl LVIII, CBS Sports’ pregame, halftime and postgame coverage will also be delivered in 1080p HDR and 4K HDR.

HDR expands the ability of a television set to better display detail in shadow and bright scenes. Wide Color Gamut (WCG) enables a display to present a broader and more vivid range of colors. Together, HDR and WCG offer viewers a brighter and more colorful viewing experience, the network said. 

Fox Sports was the first to offer 4K and HDR feeds in 2020 and 2023 of the Super Bowl. Those feeds were upscaled from 1080p HDR feeds.   

LONDON, UK and PORTLAND, Ore.—Formula E, the world’s first all-electric FIA World Championship motorsports series, announced that it has inked a deal with Roku that would make the streamer the U.S. home to racing coverage. The league also expanded its existing contract with long-standing partner CBS to air more live races

Beginning in January 2024, five races will air live on CBS Television Network and simulcast on Paramount+—both channels are already integrated on Roku’s platform. Roku users who subscribe to Paramount+ can view races airing on the service through the Paramount+ app on Roku’s Sports Experience. CBS Sports Network will also show one highlights program per round.

The new partnerships, which mark Roku’s first-ever live sports rights acquisition, reflect growing interest in all-electric motorsport racing in the U.S,, Formula E said. Starting next season, 11 races in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship will be available on The Roku Channel, a leader in free ad-supported streaming, and will also be accessible through the Sports Experience on Roku’s Home Screen.

In addition to offering streamers the live races, Roku will also bring its audience a robust offering of Formula E library content, including Formula E's docu-follow series “Unplugged,” as well as race previews, highlights, replays of all races, and more.

The announcement of the multi-year broadcast deal for the U.S. market follows the first ABB FIA Formula E World Championship race at the Portland International Raceway in Oregon. Last week, Formula E confirmed that the series will return to Portland in season 10 when the new broadcast partnership will be active.

“This is a powerful new partnership with CBS and Roku that will dramatically increase Formula E’s audience reach and maximise discoverability of our programming in the U.S, said Aarti Dabas, Chief Media Officer, Formula E. “We value the strength of our ongoing relationship with CBS and are delighted to join forces with Roku and supercharge Formula E content on their market-leading platform.”

"It’s an honor to partner with Formula E on Roku’s first-ever live sports partnership, making it easier for millions of TV streamers to discover the thrill of Formula E races through the unique integrated viewing experiences only available on Roku,” said David Eilenberg, Head of Content, Roku Media. “We look forward to working together with Formula E, as well as our long-standing partners at CBS and Paramount+, to drive viewership to this programming and to connect new audiences with the exhilarating world of Formula E.”

“Formula E is innovative and exciting racing, and we’re thrilled to expand our partnership and broadcast more live races across CBS and Paramount+,” said Billy Stone, Programming, CBS Sports.

TEL AVIV, Israel—Hype Sports Innovation and CBS Sports have announced that they will be working together to create new technologies for the network’s sports coverage. 

Founded in 2015, Hype Sports Innovation bills itself as the largest global ecosystem for sports tech. The ecosystem includes around 200 teams, leagues and federations as well as a large equity holding portfolio of sports tech startup. Hype has successfully generated hundreds of business engagements and deals through its ecosystem, the companies said. 

As part of this collaboration. CBS Sports said it will tap into Hype’s network of sports technologies to explore new and innovative solutions in such areas as artificial intelligence (AI), augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and remote broadcasting.

"We are excited to work with Hype Sports Innovation and many of the leading technology companies from around the world to further enhance our coverage and deliver never-before-seen technology to our audiences, while developing more creative and compelling content, as well as innovative experiences" said Jason Cohen, vice president technical operations, CBS Sports.

"We are committed to continue pushing the boundaries of sports experience through our collaboration with CBS Sports,” added Amir Raveh, founder and CEO of Hype Sports Innovation. “Together, we have the opportunity to create an unforgettable sports viewing experience by introducing new technology and innovation that fans will truly love."

SportsTech startups with interest in collaborating with CBS Sports and Hype on developing new technologies can apply here. 

NEW YORK—CBS Sports is planning to launch the CBS Sports Golazo Network on April 11, making it the first-of-its-kind free, 24-hour direct-to-consumer digital network in the U.S. dedicated exclusively to global soccer coverage, the network reported.  

CBS said that the CBS Sports Golazo Network will offer coverage of all the top domestic and international soccer competitions across the globe, making it a year-round streaming destination for soccer fans.

At launch, the network will be available free on CBSSports.com, the CBS Sports app for connected TV devices, the CBS Sports mobile app and Pluto TV, as well as Paramount+ as the latest addition to the service’s sports experience.

CBS Sports has rights to more than 2,400 soccer matches a year. 

CBS Sports Golazo Network’s robust 24/7 programming lineup will include select live matches plus match re-airs, leveraging CBS Sports’ collection of top-tier soccer properties, including UEFA Europa League, UEFA Europa Conference League, Serie A, NWSL, Concacaf national team competitions, Barclays Women’s Super League, Campeonato Brasileirão Série A, Scottish Professional Football League, Argentina Liga Profesional de Fútbol and the AFC Champions League.

CBS Sports Golazo Network will be anchored weekdays from 7:00-9:00 AM, ET, by “Morning Footy,” the Network’s flagship morning show.

In addition, the Network will feature live matches, pre- and post-match breakdowns, magazine shows, films from Paramount+’s “Stories From The Beautiful Game” soccer documentary collection and original programming.

“The launch of the CBS Sports Golazo Network demonstrates the continued evolution of our industry-leading soccer coverage as we build on the incredible momentum we have created the past three years delivering authentic, informative, engaging and entertaining content across multiple platforms,” said Sean McManus, chairman of CBS Sports. “Led by our best-in-class studio shows and announcers, more than 2,400 live soccer matches a year and now a dedicated soccer streaming network, CBS Sports is the ultimate destination for soccer fans.”

“Interest in soccer has never been stronger. By launching a first-of-its-kind streaming network in the U.S. dedicated to soccer globally, CBS Sports Golazo Network provides a tremendous growth opportunity by delivering unprecedented, round-the-clock coverage for passionate soccer fans,” said Jeff Gerttula, executive vice president, digital, of CBS Sports and CBS News and Stations. “CBS Sports Golazo Network capitalizes on our existing soccer rights by building free audiences around CBS Sports and Pluto TV platforms while driving new subscribers and enhancing the sports experience for Paramount+.”

As part of CBS Sports’ UEFA Champions League coverage, CBS Sports Golazo Network will provide an exclusive pre- and post-match show surrounding “Champions League Today”, CBS Sports’ studio show, and offer fans same-day Champions League match re-airs.

The Association of Pickleball Professionals (APP) has announced deals with CBS Sports and ESPN to deliver hundreds of hours of APP Tour pickleball programming throughout 2023.

The deal provides APP and the fast-growing sport with broadcast partners that will deliver 12 hours of live matches and highlight-driven programs on CBS Sports Network, eight hours of event recap telecasts on ESPN2 and more than 200 hours of live streaming coverage on ESPN+ and APP TV.

“We are delighted to welcome CBS Sports and ESPN to the APP and are excited to be working with two of the most significant names in sports media to bring the sport of pickleball to fans across the country,” commented Tom Webb, APP chief marketing officer. “Over 36.5 million Americans played pickleball in 2022 and this media package enables those fans to tune in to our world-class tournaments, and introduces the sport and its best players to millions more. The APP exists to expand the sport of pickleball domestically and internationally and this media exposure is an important step in that mission.”

The APP’s fourth season, the 2023 APP Tour, kicked off in Punta Gorda, Florida, with a sold-out event and over 720 professional and amateur pickleball players from across the USA and around the world. Full details of the 2023 schedule are available at APPTour.org.

Conference USA has announced a new multimedia rights deal between C-USA and its longtime partners CBS Sports and ESPN that gets underway during the 2023-24 season.

“This is a major step forward for Conference USA in terms of our multimedia rights as it relates to streamlined exposure, accessibility for our fans and greater financial resources for our members,” commissioner Judy MacLeod said. “Building on our strong relationships with CBS and ESPN enabled us to provide increased exposure and consistent broadcast homes for our membership and fans as we continue to see the landscape of Conference USA and college athletics evolve.”

The multi-year agreement provides CBS Sports Network with tier one selection status for C-USA football (18 games annually) and men’s basketball (18 games annually) over the length of the partnership, while also televising the football championship, men’s basketball semifinal and championship games, the women’s basketball championship game, and baseball and softball championship games.

C-USA membership also approved a linear television-friendly scheduling format for football that sees all October league matchups played on midweek evenings. The broadcast partners will share C-USA’s October weeknight football games on linear television across CBS Sports Network, ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU.

“Conference USA has been a key partner for nearly two decades and we are pleased to extend our longstanding relationship,” said Dan Weinberg, executive vice president, programming, CBS Sports. “As the primary television home of Conference USA, we are excited to showcase the conference’s best across sports throughout the year. This new deal adds even more live games and events to our CBS Sports Network lineup and we look forward to crowning champions in football, men’s and women’s basketball, baseball and softball for years to come.”

ESPN linear networks will carry eight midweek football games per season via the October midweek scheduling. In addition, ESPN+ or ESPN3 will carry all additional regular season football games, while also serving as the exclusive digital home for all of Conference USA’s Olympic sports (soccer, volleyball, baseball, softball, etc.), including all C-USA tournament games aside from the title games for baseball and softball, which will air on CBS Sports Network. Consolidating all digital inventory with ESPN provides a much more streamlined process for C-USA fans under one banner. Over 450 live sporting events will be available and streaming on ESPN+/ESPN3.

ESPN linear networks will also broadcast a minimum of five regular season men’s basketball games and one regular season women’s basketball game on its linear networks, while holding digital rights to all additional women’s regular season basketball games and all men’s basketball regular season games beyond CBS Sports Network’s selections.

“ESPN is thrilled to continue its association with Conference USA and improve its selections to offer better and more games than ever before,” said Nick Dawson, Vice president of programming & acquisitions, ESPN. “Our combination of industry leading linear networks and digital platforms will feature hundreds of events across multiple sports each year, providing C-USA, its member institutions, student-athletes and fans unmatched simplicity and access to their favorite C-USA teams and games.”

Conference USA retained Octagon to assist with negotiating its deals with CBS and ESPN. The full schedule of games and their corresponding distribution outlets will be announced at a later date.

BALTIMORE—As the 2022 NFL season gets underway, Michael Davies knows what’s at stake. The senior vice president of field operations for Fox Sports is contemplating new technical options on the road to the network’s 10th presentation of Super Bowl LVII to accentuate its broadcast on Sunday, Feb. 12, from State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.

What will they be? He doesn’t know yet, which means the crew “will try different things during the season that we will eventually use during the Super Bowl broadcast. 

Replay’s the thing
One area Davies plans to focus on en route, however, is the clarity and quality of replays.

“Audiences are expecting more and more super slow motion, for that clear, smooth replay. We plan to expand that option by about 10% across the board,” he said, “so we may include a couple more replays for the A game on a given Sunday, for about 10 total; and maybe one more for the B game. And we’ll try to ensure that every camera we use during a game is super slo-mo, except for A, B and C.”

That means during a Super Bowl broadcast, which has in recent years included about 120 cameras, even the pylon cams (which all of the networks will employ) can be used for super slo-mo shots. That requires using software from the cloud.

“How that works is pretty straightforward,” Davies shared. “You record the clip, send it up to the cloud and then it’s returned for air. Pylons, POVs, etc., can’t be super slo-mo, so we add that option with software, though we’re getting closer to being able to do so natively. The bandwidth required has been the challenge.”

Fox Sports primarily relies on Sony cameras and produces most games “in 1080p and sends the content out in 720p, aside from some key games during the season,” he said, such as the Thanksgiving and Christmas broadcasts, which will air in 1080p HDR.

And for edgier shots, Davies said that Fox Sports and the other networks are continuing to work with the league on refining its drone program. As it’s happened, broadcasting for another league is providing insights.

“We’re still figuring out how to handle drones in the NFL, though we’re doing it extensively with our USFL broadcasts, which basically serve as a ‘Petri dish’ for the NFL,” he said. “So drones will be part of our coverage one way or another. We use one per game.”

For audio, Fox is using six parabolic mics around the field, but the league also requires the networks to work with NFL Films.

“The NFL has allowed microphones to be put on centers and guards, for example,” said Davies, “and as part of the process, NFL Films provides the player audio for effects at the line. So, they typically mic the players and get us the audio, and we feather this in with audio we get from traditional systems, like our parabolic microphones and shotgun mics, from Skycams among many others placed around the field.”

Production techniques will be fine-tuned as the season progresses, Davies added.

(Also read: ‘Fox NFL Sunday’ to Debut Groundbreaking New XR/AR Studio)

Pyl-ing on
CBS Sports is planning on refining picture quality and take advantage of advances in data tracking, according to Jason Cohen, vice president of remote technical operations, who pointed to the network’s moves last season to accentuate the shallow depth of field “with a cinematic quality” via the Sony F5500 and Steadicam.

He also discussed last year’s collaboration with the NFL and Second Spectrum to use next-generation data to track player movement via a chip that was embedded in a given player’s shoulder pad. That led to CBS featuring “RomoVision” and winning an Emmy Award for technical achievement.

“That data can be leveraged in many ways,” he said, “and RomoVision gives us the X’s and O’s on how players ran routes and why a play worked­—or didn’t.”

The next big thing on Cohen’s radar is its enhanced pylon system. “Traditionally there have been cameras out of each of three [of the four] pylons set in each end zone. This season, CBS has partnered with C360 that uses one 4K camera from each of four pylons that has an embedded 191-degree sensor,” Cohen said, “which allows us to follow action seamlessly into the end zone, instead of having to keep switching cameras.”

Rebuilt to last
ESPN’s EN1, the main truck in its five-truck compound has received a complete overhaul and upgrade to SMPTE 2110 according to Jimmy Platt, director of Monday Night Football. The update includes 27 new Sony 5500s, which will give the “Monday Night Football” broadcast “a more cinematic feel,” said Platt; plus four Sony 4800s and two F5500s; and new Canon lenses, featuring 122xs and 24xs.

Almost all of ESPN’s 52 cameras, including 19 manned, will offer high frame rates “with an average of 6x for replay,” he said, adding that graphics “will remain the same, with a slightly more robust approach via augmented reality.” 

Platt said EN1’s new design “will be like walking into the same house, yet like walking into a new one,” adding that the broadcast will be sent back to ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Conn., “in 1080p HDR, as we’ve done for several years, with viewers seeing it in 1080p.”

NBC is also adding more slo-mo, pylons and graphics as part of an evolving approach with “Sunday Night Football.”

 “This year, we’ll have an additional super slow-motion reverse camera angle that will cover game action [from] a new perspective,” said Rob Hyland, coordinating producer. “We have also added pylon cameras in each end zone, as well as RF line to gain cameras on the near and far sidelines.” 

Adding separate or offering new looks during this season’s NFL broadcasts will be the recurring theme among the major carriers on the way to Feb 12.

“Overall, we’re just marching to Super Bowl LVII, knowing that new options will manifest themselves during the season,” Davies said. “There’s still much in discussion.” 

NCAA March Madness Live—the live streaming and second screen destination for the NCAA Men’s Tournament—is offering several new ways to watch and engage with all the action from the 2022 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship this year. The updated platform experience will include the debut of a new multigame viewing feature across select connected devices. 

NCAA March Madness Live is managed by Turner Sports in partnership with the NCAA and CBS Sports and is available to download across 18 mobile and connected devices including Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, Xbox, Google TV and select LG Smart TV devices.

New this year is a Multi-Game Viewing option, which allows fans to watch up to two games simultaneously, providing users a live look-in to a second game without audio. Multigame viewing is available on Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Google TV, and Xbox One. This feature will join the picture-in-picture option (available on mobile, desktop and tablet), which allows users to navigate through the MML app while watching a game in real-time.

NCAA March Madness Live will also introduce Starting Lineup Challenge, a new interactive experience, developed in partnership with SharpLink Gaming. To play, fans are given a budget to pick a lineup of five teams before the start of the Tournament. Those teams then gain value by winning games and conversely stop gaining value when they lose. After every round, users can buy and sell teams to tweak their lineups or hold the teams they currently own to earn loyalty points. At the end of the Tournament, the lineup with the highest value wins.

Capital One NCAA March Madness Men’s Bracket Challenge will add a new feature that reminds users of the outcomes they predicted so that they know which results to root for in anticipation of winning their Bracket Challenge.

NCAA March Madness Live will once again feature Matchup Analysis, allowing fans to choose from over 20 stats to personalize their bracket picking experience as part of Bracket IQ presented by Invesco QQQ. Fans will also gain extra insight with Path to the Championship, which lets fans calculate possible Tournament outcomes based on remaining games in the bracket, giving users a visualization of their best possible ranking. Path to the Championship will be available at the start of "Sweet Sixteen."

Fast Break presented by AT&T 5G and Nissan, will now feature enhanced analytics powered by Second Spectrum, part of the Genius Sports family, that will breakdown gameplay stats and augment video with graphic overlays detailing the most critical data points. This live, whip-around coverage will also offer quick turnaround highlights, real-time analysis by industry stars, social reaction and commentary for all games.

Game Center, the central hub of NCAA March Madness Live, will be featured on all connected devices and include Condensed Games presented by AT&T 5G to spotlight the most important moments of live game action. To fuel engagement and connection with users, Game Center will feature the Madness Feed, powered by LiveLike, to offer Tournament updates, interactive polls and quizzes. The feed will be updated during the busiest rounds of the Tournament to create a unique experience alongside video viewing.

Turner Sports and CBS Sports will provide live coverage of all 67 games from the 2022 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship on TBS, CBS, TNT and truTV, and via NCAA March Madness Live. Additionally, Turner Sports’ Bleacher Report and CBS Sports will provide coverage of the games across their respective social media platforms and apps, redirecting fans to watch games live on NCAA March Madness Live and the four networks.

Fans can also access all Tournament games via live streaming on TBS, CBS, TNT and truTV’s digital platforms, as well as participating TV provider websites and apps. The CBS telecast can be viewed via the web and on mobile devices with no authentication required and via Paramount+ on connected devices.

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J.—LG Electronics USA has launched a three-year partnership with the NCAA, Turner Sports, and CBS Sports for category exclusive marketing and distribution rights to NCAA Championship competitions. 

LG's support of NCAA Championships will include the launch of the NCAA Championships Channel, a new smart TV streaming channel for NCAA championships available exclusively on LG Smart TVs, the companies said.

As part of the partnership with CBS Sports and Turner Sports, up to 50 NCAA Fall, Winter and Spring championships, both live and on-demand, will be featured on LG's exclusive streaming service, LG Channels. A top-five app in terms of streaming hours on LG TVs, LG Channels features more than 350 free ad supported channels in the United States.

The exclusive NCAA channel on LG Smart TVs will also offer a unique series featuring behind-the-scenes content from student athletes and their schools in addition to recaps of NCAA championships throughout the year. 

"As a fan of the NCAA, LG is excited about this one-of-a-kind sponsorship opportunity which will deliver various services for fans, including live streaming content through a big screen experience and enhanced access to games," said Peggy Ang, senior vice president of marketing at LG Electronics USA. "Working with the NCAA, CBS Sports, and Turner Sports, LG will offer a new platform that celebrates these accomplished athletes while simultaneously empowering their development and success with LG technologies."

The NCAA Championships Channel launches this month, airing highlights and games from previous college championships. The Fall 2021 NCAA championship games will be available on-demand starting mid-November, with live streams expected to be available starting for the Winter season in the first quarter of 2022. LG, the NCAA, Turner Sports, and CBS Sports will work closely together on integrated marketing activities to celebrate this momentous partnership.

"We're thrilled to welcome LG to the NCAA Corporate Partner family as it brings a platform that will put more of a spotlight on outstanding student-athlete accomplishments with its SmartTV channels," said Dan Gavitt, NCAA senior vice president of basketball.  "NCAA student-athletes are high achievers in the classroom and in competition. LG is providing a special opportunity for athletes to be seen and to have a voice around their championships. We thank LG for providing this unique platform where student-athletes can talk about their overall experiences and their competitive achievements."  

ONTARIO—Legalized betting has become an increasing source of revenue for broadcasters since the Supreme Court struck down federal laws prohibiting it in 2018. According to Nielsen, online gambling ad sales increased from $10.7 million in Q1 2019 to $154 million in Q1 2021. Local television received just under 80% of these ad dollars, with the remaining amount being shared between national online sites, network TV, local radio, and outdoor advertising.

Hand-in-hand with the growth of online gambling ad sales is the integration of betting information into national TV sports broadcasts on networks such as CBS, ESPN, and NBC.

“When it comes to the betting audience, we know that’s growing as legalization of sports betting expands across the country,” said Scott Clark, ESPN senior coordinating producer, sports betting & fantasy sports for ESPN. “We have been aggressive in looking to attract that audience in the last couple years and will continue to look to expand what we do across TV and other platforms.”

Here’s a look at how some broadcasters are integrating betting information into their sports programming. 

CBS Sports

In February 2020, CBS Sports and sports book operator William Hill US (now rebranded as "Caesars Sports" by new owner Caesars Entertainment) announced a strategic partnership that made the sports betting firm the "Official Sports Book and Wagering Data Provider" across all CBS Sports platforms. Since that time, CBS Sports has integrated William Hill’s betting information, content, and products into its digital platforms.

“When it comes to linear content, it is our CBS Sports Digital streaming service that is really benefiting from William Hill’s betting information,” said Kieren Portley, CBS Sports Digital’s senior vice president of programming and production. “Through our partnership with William Hill, we provide the over/under and winning percentages for each team in each game. This goes along with the scores and standings, and other data that signals to the fans that we offer the most innovative gambling-centric ticker in the business.”

To assemble the ticker, CBS Sports Digital integrates betting information from William Hill with live sports data provided by Sportradar. All of this data is analyzed and packaged by SportsMEDIA Technology (SMT), and then sent to CBS Sports Digital where the network’s own graphics teams package it for air.

“We designed and built the entire functionality of the ticker,” said Portley. “The impact of offering all this data during our program streams, including betting information, has been significant. Time spent on our program feeds per viewer is up, which means that their involvement in the content has increased as well.”

Worth noting, Sportradar provides turnkey sports data solutions to media rights holders worldwide. These solutions integrate with the visualization tools these content creators utilize, such as tickers, graphical overlays, as well as research products for producers and talent.

“For the content itself, Sportradar works with the majority of sportsbooks, offering our customers pre-game and live odds, as well as player props for each league and game,” said Per von Rosen, Sportradar’s product director of broadcast solutions. “On top of this, we offer betting market insights, which allow our customers to leverage sports betting content for deeper storytelling. Between our betting data and media data streams, we have created an automated solution ready for broadcasters to take to air.”

ESPN   

ESPN is a big believer in the power of sports betting information to attract and retain loyal viewers, which is why the network has a deal with Sportradar to ingest odds from its official partner, Caesars Sports, among other sportsbooks. Sportradar receives those odds via API from the sportsbooks, and this data is then received by ESPN for formatting into its on-air tickers and graphics, as well as for use in a range of its programs, according to Michael Protos, ESPN Associate Director, Stats & Information Group.

“Sports betting content is part of the majority of shows on ESPN, with the amount and type of content varying from show to show,” said ESPN’s Clark. “It differs from a standard sports broadcast in terms of the types of conversations being had throughout the game, with the focus being on tracking pregame odds, discussing live odds and providing context around all sports betting storylines. It also has a unique look, with odds integrated into graphics throughout the game.”

The use of sports betting content varies on ESPN programs. Shows such as “Get Up” and “First Take” regularly use odds to frame discussions, while SportsCenter features odds in every episode. 

“Then there’s 'Daily Wager,' ESPN’s sports betting news and information show,” said Clark. “It’s basically everything a sports bettor would need to get ready for the night in sports, with odds discussion, picks, bigger picture sports discussion and reaction to the biggest news of the day.” This daily show is reinforced on an occasional basis by shows such as ESPN’s ‘Daily Wager Special,’  which was the first linear broadcast of an event focussed solely on sports betting.

ESPN sees betting information as fundamental to its future success.

“We know that our fans engage with sports through betting,” Clark said. “The reaction has been very good and has led to growth. For example, in the time since we launched ‘Daily Wager,’ we moved it from its original home on ESPNEWS to ESPN2.

“We also have expanded our sports betting content with a thrice-weekly digital show ‘Bet’ and most recently a ‘Daily Wager' podcast,’” Clark added. “We also have ‘Daily Wager’ radio specials connected to big events like the NCAA Tournament and the NFL Draft.”

NBC Sports

Last year, NBC Sports announced a partnership with online sportsbook operator PointsBet, in which the network provides PointsBet with multiplatform media and marketing opportunities across its many platforms, including the ‘NBC Sports Edge BetCast.’ In return, PointsBet content is used in linear/streaming content produced by the eight NBC Sports Regional Networks, and in the NBC Sports Predictor app, among others. This data is fed from PointsBet for integration into NBC Sports content by the network’s graphics department.

“Our original ‘NBC Sports Edge BetCast’ presentation focused on basketball,” said Nicolina O’Rorke, senior vice president, NBC Sports Enterprises and GM, Sports Betting & Gaming. “It was in April 2019 on our regional sports network NBC Sports Philadelphia with a 76ers regular-season game, followed by a playoff game.”

The experience, which included audio from sports-betting analysts, was enhanced for the 2019-20 season to feature expanded sports-betting data and other information during a 10-game 76ers schedule on NBC Sports Philadelphia+ (formerly Comcast Network).

In February, NBC Sports and PointsBet broadcast the first-ever betting companion show during the Waste Management Phoenix Open PGA TOUR event. This live second-screen experience also included “NBC Sports Edge BetCast,” which was shown on the Peacock Premium streaming service. 

“It was a fully betting-focused alternate viewing experience where fans watched along with an engaging group of analysts as the drama of the tournament played out,” said O’Rorke. “The production uniquely presented golf entirely from a bettor’s perspective, integrating PointsBet odds, with the head oddsmaker at the PointsBet trading desk in Denver providing regular updates as outcomes unfolded and odds shifted.”

The results from this event are worth noting. Working together, NBC Sports and PointsBet were able to create over 1,000 unique markets for the “Waste Management Phoenix Open” betting show, which NBC says was four times as many as the next sportsbook for that event. NBC Sports also launched a pick tracker with PointsBet ("EDGE Tracker") where bettors can track their bets and auto sync their betslips from PointsBet. 

As well, PointsBet  has a “Name-a-Bet” feature where people can suggest betting for events not yet covered by PointsBet, which has been used in some NBC Sports productions.

Based on viewership and feedback from fans, NBC Sports plans to extend this second-screen experience into broadcasts/streams. “We learned from the golf BetCast, and will add that knowledge to the takeaways from our prior BetCast experiences,” O’Rorke said. “We expect that there will be potential for BetCast presentations across other sports.”

HOLLYWOOD, Calif.—Nickelodeon is going to the Super Bowl. After working with CBS Sports earlier this NFL postseason on a kid-centric broadcast, Nickelodeon is once again attempting to draw younger viewers with a pregame show and customized highlights of Super Bowl LV.

Nickelodeon and CBS Sports are partnering on the “Nickelodeon Super Duper Super Bowl Pregame Spectacular.” The half-hour program will be hosted by Nick stars Gabrielle Nevaeh Green and Lex Lumpkin, and will feature Super Bowl fun facts, “Nick-ified” season highlights and game predictions from special guests. The special will air on Nickelodeon on Feb. 5 at 8 p.m. ET/PT and re-air multiple times over the weekend.

On Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 7, the CBS pregame show will also feature a specially produced segment of Nickelodeon’s game show “Unfiltered.” In addition, customized Nick-ified highlights will air as part of CBS’ halftime coverage of Super Bowl LV.

Second screen content from Nickelodeon will also be available while fans watch the game on CBS. Social media accounts @Nickelodeon, @NFLonCBS and @CBSSports and NFL handles will feature Nickelodeon football highlights before and during the game. Interactive content, including polls, trivia and games, will be available at NFLNickPlay.com. 

All of this comes after overwhelmingly positive responses from the Nickelodeon secondary broadcast of the NFL Wild Game between the New Orleans Saints and the Chicago Bears. CBS Sports said that broadcast gave Nickelodeon its biggest audience in nearly four years.

“We are thrilled to continue our collaboration with Nickelodeon and build off the success and overwhelming positive response from the production of the NFL Wild Card Game on Nickelodeon,” said Sean McManus, chairman, CBS Sports. “The 'Nick-ified' elements in our pregame and halftime programming, along with the second screen digital and social highlights, will be the perfect complement to CBS Sports' first-class broadcast of Super Bowl LV, allowing us to reach an even wider audience on Super Bowl Sunday across a variety of platforms as we continue to showcase the power of the ViacomCBS family."

Super Bowl LV takes place on Feb. 7 at 6:30 p.m. ET, with the Kansas City Chiefs playing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

NEW YORK—CBS Sports is ready to bring its A-game to its production of Super Bowl LV, announcing a number of new technologies, ranging from cameras to graphics, that the network says will bring a new look to fans.

Super Bowl LV will be the 21st time the CBS has produced the Super Bowl, and because of the unique circumstances as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic—including the reduced number of fans that will be in the stadium for the game—the network has announced a number of new cameras that will be utilized during the broadcast.

One example is the Trolley Cam, which will be used for the first time live during the Super Bowl, CBS said. The Trolley Cam is operated on a wire from one end of the stadium to another, allowing for an angle that resembles a fan’s view from the lower stands. CBS says that the rig can travel up to 65 mph.

Also making their Super Bowl debut will be the Sony Venice cameras to capture what CBS calls a “cinematographic feel” for on-field coverage. The Venice will use full-frame imager shots in a short depth field to produce the unique look. The cameras will be operated on a steadi-cam rig, as well as a MOVI rig.

CBS has also announced that it will have a 53-foot Movie Bird crane on the upper concourse of the stadium for sweeping shots of the pregame set and game action. The crane will also be used for one of the production’s augmented reality encoded cameras strategically placed throughout the stadium.

In total, CBS says that it will have more than 120 cameras placed throughout the stadium, including 12 4K and 8K cameras to capture close-up shots during the game. The 4K cameras will be controlled robotically from the stadium concourse levels, while two Sony 8K cameras will be fixed on robotic gimbals from the lower field.

CBS is also introducing special graphics for its Super Bowl coverage. Four augmented cameras will be used to help create the motif of sea and sand in graphics. Additional animations, in-game graphics and augmented reality will be featured throughout the game. The Unreal Engine is supporting these efforts.

With COVID-19 still a major factor, CBS plans to continue practicing its “alternative production methodologies” for production of Super Bowl LV that it has been using for the entire NFL season. This includes extra mobile units that allow for person-to-person social distancing; replay operators working remotely; and dozens of editors, graphic operators and show production personnel working from the CBS Broadcast Center in New York.

CBS has shared a preview of what its production will look like:

Super Bowl LV takes place on Feb. 7 from Tampa, Fla., and will see Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas Chiefs play Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 

NEW YORK—CBS Sports has announced its streaming plans for Super Bowl LV, however one thing missing was any news on a 4K or HDR stream of the big game. According to The Verge, CBS Sports Digital has confirmed that there will be no 4K stream of the Super Bowl this year.

CBS Sports is citing production limitations due to the COVID-19 pandemic as reasons for not being able to offer a 4K stream. CBS has not offered a NFL game in 4K/HDR to date, and any possible plans for one were likely shifted because of the demands of remote production.

Fox Sports offered a 4K and HDR stream of last year’s Super Bowl LIV, however they had previous experience with 4K productions of live NFL games and were not dealing with a pandemic.

The full story is available on The Verge. 

NEW YORK—CBS Sports is embracing streaming for its biggest sporting event of the year, announcing that its coverage of Super LV will be available across ViacomCBS digital platforms, including a live stream of the big game itself on CBS All Access.

Starting at 2 p.m. on Feb. 7, CBS Sports will begin its streaming coverage on CBSSports.com (available to unauthenticated users) and on the CBS Sports app for OTT devices and services, smart TVs and mobile devices.

CBS’ broadcast coverage of Super Bowl LV will be available as a live stream to subscribers of CBS All Access, which has been providing live streaming coverage of NFL on CBS games all season.

“We’re excited to broaden the availability of our Super Bowl LV stream this year, as we look forward to building on the incredibly strong momentum NFL football is driving on CBS All Access as a cornerstone of the extensive live sports offerings available on the service,” said Jeff Gerttula, executive vice president and general manager, CBS Sports Digital.

In addition to CBS digital properties, Super Bowl LV will be streamed for free on NFL digital properties across devices, on mobile via the participating teams’ mobile properties, Yahoo Sports and other Verizon Media mobile properties. ESPN Deportes and ESPN digital platforms will provide Spanish-language streams of the game.

There is no word on whether ViacomCBS will attempt an alternate broadcast of the Super Bowl, after experimenting with one of Nickelodeon for the playoff game between the Chicago Bears and New Orleans Saints that was designed specifically for younger viewers and earned rave reviews.

The Super Bowl has been available via streaming in recent years. Last year’s Super Bowl LIV drew 3.4 million viewers via streaming, per Fox.

Super Bowl LV will take place on Feb. 7 from Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla.

NEW YORK—CBS Sports is preparing to tee off its 64th consecutive year of covering PGA Tour golf, which will include a number of new elements being added to its production of tournaments.

Among the new features that will be added to CBS Sports' production is live drone coverage; enhanced capabilities and presentation for its SmartCart mobile production unit; and a constant mini-leaderboard graphic. The broadcast is also adding a dedicated PGA Tour rules official and new theme music.

Sellers Shy will oversee CBS Sports’ coverage of the season, having been appointed as the new lead producer for PGA Tour coverage. Shy is just the third lead producer in CBS’ 64 years of covering the PGA Tour, per ViacomCBS.

While some things change, Jim Nantz and Nick Faldo will continue to serve as the lead anchor and golf analyst, respectively, for CBS Sports’ golf coverage. They will be joined by analysts Ian Baker-Finch and Frank Nobilo, lead on-course reporter Dottie Pepper and the rest of the CBS golf announce team, which includes Mark Immelman, Trevor Immelman and Amanda Balionis. Andrew Catalon and Colt Knost are expected to join for select broadcasts as well.

For all PGA Tour events in 2021, CBS Sports’ full coverage will be available to stream live in U.S. markets via the CBS All Access subscription streaming platform (Paramount+ as of March 4). Additional coverage will be available on CBSSports.com, the CBS Sports app and the CBS Sports HQ streaming sports news service.

CBS Sports will produce 20 PGA Tour events in 2021, kicking off with the Farmers Insurance Open from Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego on Jan. 30 and Jan. 31.

HOLLYWOOD, Calif.—When CBS’ coverage of the NFL playoffs kicks off, it will include a special broadcast designed for kids to enjoy the game in a whole new way.

CBS Sports and Nickelodeon are partnering on this unique broadcast that will air on Nickelodeon simultaneously with the CBS Sports traditional broadcast. The Nickelodeon broadcast will feature kid-focused content, Nick-themed elements, guest reporters, original on-field graphics and a special halftime presentation.

Noah Eagle, CBS Sports analyst Nate Burleson and Nick star Gabrielle Nevaeh Green will call the game from the booth, with Lex Lumpkin, another Nickelodeon star, serving as a reporter during the game.

“This is a first of its kind presentation for the NFL together with Nickelodeon, and we are excited to create a unique telecast that will maximize the co-viewing appeal for kids and families, while maintaining the integrity of the game and its traditions,” said Sean McManus, chairman, CBS Sports.

Brian Robbins, president of ViacomCBS Kids & Family Entertainment says the Nickelodeon broadcast of the game will infuse Nick’s “sensibility of surprise and fun at almost every turn.”

Here’s a preview of what the broadcast will look like:

In addition to the game broadcast, Nickelodeon will air the “The SpongeBob SportsPants Countdown Special” before the game, hosted by Denver Broncos’ Von Miller and featuring appearances from CBS Sports’ Jim Nantz, Tony Romo, Eagle, Burleson and Green. The special halftime presentation will be a preview of Nickelodeon’s upcoming services “Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years.”

The NFL Wild Card Game will air on Nickelodeon, with streaming only available on mobile for free via the NFL app. NFLNickPlay.com will be the online destination for the Wild Card Game on Nick, providing content to entertain and educate kids about football.

While NFL games are still among the biggest draws for live TV, the league and networks that carry the games need to address the growing trend of younger generations using other avenues to watch content, including live sports.

The NFL Wild Card Game on CBS and Nickelodeon will be on Jan. 10 at 4:30 p.m. ET.

NEW YORK—CBS Sports has had to rely on new production techniques to bring PGA Tour golf tournaments to fans during the pandemic. One new technique is the use of at-home/REMI production technology from The Switch for live telecasts.

Supported by The Switch through its Burbank, Calif.-based control rooms and on-site low-latency connectivity, CBS Sports Productions has been able to produce a number of at-home/REMI telecasts in recent weeks that aired on the Golf Channel, including coverage of the recent PGA Championship.

For these broadcasts, 24 cameras and a multitude of audio sources were transported from each golf course to the Burbank control rooms. These sources were available to the CBS crew in Stamford, Conn., for them to produce and direct the telecast, replays and editorial off multiviewers. The Switch’s Burbank location also served as the originator for broadcast features like Top Tracer, Hawk-Eye and Video Shading.

This setup connects teams from around the U.S. This includes the site of the tournament where CBS host Jim Nantz broadcasts, as well as Orlando, Fla., where other CBS golf analysts call the tournament from. It also helps connect additional places needed for CBS Sports’ production, including New Zealand.

Of course, the need for remote production arose because of the COVID-19 pandemic to help keep production crews safe. The Switch maintains that “safety-first” practice at its Burbank facility, with technical and production crews handling the broadcasts remotely in Burbank, which reduced the number of personnel required on the course for each tournament. 

In addition, “containment zones” have been erected in the control, audio, replay, graphics and support rooms that only designated people can access. The Switch has also reworked its HVAC system to bring only outside air into containment zones; separate building entrances have been created; hygiene and deep-cleaning protocols have been put in place; and personnel in the containment zones were sequestered and administered daily COVID screening protocols.

“Certainly none of us anticipated the COVID outbreak and the impact to live sports, but the collective engineering, operations and production teams have done a remarkable job to bring back broadcast quality, live PGA Tour golf to an enthusiastic public audience in this new environment,” said Eric Cooney, president and CEO of The Switch. “While many of the COVID-related complexities will diminish as the pandemic is brought under control, our industry has significantly accelerated its comfort level and adoption of remote production solutions. We look forward to pushing the creative envelope with our broadcast partners in the rapid evolution of live sports production.”

For more information, visit www.theswitch.tv.  

FORT WORTH, Texas—“This is the most complicated production plan I’ve ever been involved in,” said Sean McManus, chairman of CBS Sports, during a conference call on the network’s return to live PGA Tour coverage with the Charles Schwab Challenge from June 11-14 at the Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth,Texas.

What’s on hand for the CBS Sports crew is a full-fledged PGA Tour event with a reduced crew on the course, more mobile trucks, multiple remote locations and a couple of new features to try and add to the broadcast in the absence of live fans, resulting in “a golf production unlike any other” that took two months of planning, per McManus. But that’s what is called for as sports leagues and broadcasters return from months-long hiatuses because of the coronavirus pandemic.

CBS is working with NBCUniversal’s Golf Channel on the broadcast, with the same production and announcing team handling all four days of the tournament. This will allow for half of the normal amount of people to be on-site than is typical for a PGA tour production. Despite the reduced number of crew people, there will actually be more mobile production trucks at the course so that proper social distancing practices can be maintained, with about nine people working in a single truck.

In addition to the coverage that CBS will be providing, the PGA Tour has announced that it will be collaborating with Twitter by using its PGA Tour Live feed to create a “Twitter Multicast” on Thursday, June 11, from 1-2:30 p.m. ET. There will be nine video streams of Featured Groups coverage with athletes, celebrities and other personalities providing commentary. The guest commentators will include Charles Davis, Annika Sorenstam, Darius Rucker and Dude Perfect. For more information, visit pgatour.com. 

STAYING SAFE

There is an additional wrinkle when it comes to the production crews during these first few weeks. The crew that is working this tournament will also work next week’s RBC Heritage in Hilton Head, S.C. After that, an entirely new crew will take over the production for the next two events on the schedule. In addition, backup crew members are available in the event that anyone on the crew does become ill.

Among the on-site team will be commentator Jim Nantz, who will call the action of the tournament alone in the broadcast tower on the 18th hole—a change of pace from the typical five to six usually in the booth, according to McManus. There will also be only two on-course reporters—Dottie Pepper and Mark Immelman. The rest of the broadcasting team will be working remotely in various locations, including Nantz’s partner Nick Faldo from the Golf Channel Studios in Orlando, Fla. 

Other production elements for the broadcast, like scoring graphics, remote editing, video shading, multiple replay devices and more, will be done from additional remote locations that include Los Angeles, New York, Samford, Conn., and New Zealand.

Some production elements have not been drastically changed, McManus said. The production will feature 23 cameras, including 10 hard cameras, six mini RF cameras, as well as robotic cameras. Other recognizable features for a CBS golf broadcast will still be present, including the 3D Toptracer for following live tee shots and Toptracer RF for players’ second shots; ARL Virtual Eye meanwhile uses Toptracer ball tracing capabilities to use with 3D hole models. CBS’ SwingVision technology will also be available.

EXPANDING USE OF HAWKEYE

However, there are some new additions to the production. ARL Virtual Signage is augmented reality technology that can virtually place statistics, player information and sponsorship partnerships on the course with full trackable camera moves. The Hawkeye Replay Source, meanwhile, sees an operator control camera angles remotely for real-time replays. Hawkeye has been a feature on CBS digital platforms in the past, but will now be integrated into the linear broadcast for the first time. 

In addition, CBS is pushing to have more players mic’d up during their rounds so they can share conversations between players and their caddies while on the course. There will also be a drone camera on-site that the production hopes to be able to use, weather permitting.

Something entirely new for the broadcast that both meets COVID-19 safety protocols and has eyes at being a new permanent element beyond the pandemic is the “Inside the Ropes” feature. This is a tented area that will be placed between the green of one hole and the tee box of another (as of publication the specific location for the Charles Schawb Challenge was not determined) with an unmanned camera and boom mic that players enter and give short answers to prompted questions that can then be woven into the broadcast.

The Charles Schwab Challenge is the first of 11 straight weeks of tournaments on the PGA Tour schedule. According to McManus, this production plan will be in place for the first four tournaments, with possible adjustments as the season progresses. McManus said he would not be surprised, however, if these were the plans for the rest of the year.

“Golf is the most difficult sport to produce to begin with,” McManus said. However, he continued, “we’re learning a lot of lessons, and some of the lessons that we’re learning will allow us to produce golf in a more efficient way.”

“The amount of detail that has gone into planning this, and having a backup plan to the backup plan, it has been extraordinary,” said Nantz on the conference call. “This crew’s ready for it. It’s as well planned out as anything I’ve been a part of.”

The Charles Schwab Challenge takes place from June 11-14 with Golf Channel airing coverage each day and CBS handling coverage on Saturday and Sunday afternoons.

WASHINGTON—Even though the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, more affectionately known as March Madness, was cancelled because of coronavirus (COVID-19), CBS Sports and Turner Sports have committed to paying the contracted technicians, utilities and freelancers that were set to work the tournament, according to reports.

Initially reported by Sports Video Group, the news was shared through an email from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW said it was not able to share internal emails with TV Technology). SVG also said that it received confirmation from CBS Sports and Turner Sports.

The email detailed that CBS Sports would pay “straight-time hours” for when individuals were contracted to work, and that they would be paid over the next few weeks as originally intended had the tournament gone on. Corresponding benefit contributions will also be made to flex plans and entertainment industry 401K plans, per the email.

The range of those being paid will include any professional or freelancer who was scheduled to work the NCAA Tournament, the Final Four and Division II and Division III national championship games. It will also extend to those who were contracted (professional and freelancers) working in the broadcast centers’ studios, edit rooms and coordination rooms.

CHICAGO—The National Women’s Soccer League has signed a three-year media rights deal that will see its matches appear both on traditional TV and streaming platforms through CBS Sports and Twitch.

This deal was slated to start with the 2020 NWSL season on April 18, but as the world deals with the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the league is currently reviewing contingency plans for its regular season schedule. Other sports leagues and television productions have been suspended or limited as a result of the coronavirus.

As for the deal itself, CBS Sports is set to deliver a total of 87 NWSL matches across CBS, CBS Sports Network and CBS All Access in 2020, including the championship game on the CBS Television Network; 71 games were expected to be on CBS All Access, which would also be available to subscribers online, on mobile devices and connected TV devices.

NWSL says that the deal with CBS marks the first time a U.S. broadcast network will present live, national coverage of women’s professional club soccer.

Twitch, meanwhile, is expected to present 24 free, select matches during the 2020 NWSL regular season in the U.S. Twitch will also be the exclusive international media rights partner for NWSL outside of the U.S., making all games available on its platform to global viewers.

NWSL and Twitch are also planning to collaborate on additional content and original programming.

NEW YORK—The second major of the year for golf, the PGA Championship, will feature some new technology from CBS Sports to bring enhanced coverage to viewers. Motion capture and aerial tracing technology will now be added to the broadcast alongside improved technology elements used during previous tournaments.

First introduced during the coverage of the Masters Tournament in April, CBS has partnered with SIMI for motion capture technology to explore human body analytics during a golf swing. During the PGA Championship, eight high-end industrial cameras will be set up on the 11th tee box to capture golfer’s swings and full body analytics, from hip and shoulder rotation to arm and knee contortion angles.

Being used for the first time during any golf broadcast, according to CBS, is the aerial tracing technology. Using live video captured from a blimp and Toptracer technology, CBS will provide complete shot trajectory from tee to green via aerial views from the blimp.

A number of other technologies present in past CBS broadcasts of golf tournaments are also set for this year’s PGA Championship. In addition to aerial tracing, CBS will feature other Toptracer technology, including Toptracer RF for shot tracing from the fairway on any hole and ARL Virtual Eye.

CBS is bringing back its use of 4D technology, this year on the 15th hole tee box and doubling the amount from last year’s coverage to 90 cameras for 180-degrees of video display. On the greens, CBS will provide Hawk-Eye Green Technology, including Putt Predictor and Undulation Grid.

Additional technology set to assist the broadcast includes SmartCart, SwingVision, aerial drone coverage, full course wind metering and, on the final three holes, 4K HDR.

The 101st PGA Championship is taking place at Bethpage State Park, Black Course in Farmingdale, N.Y. Across the course, CBS will have nearly 200 cameras, 175 microphones and 41 miles of multi-strand fiber.

The PGA Championship will be held May 16-19.

CBS’s coverage of Super Bowl LIII drew 100.7 million viewers across all platforms, down 2.6 percent from 103.4 million viewers last year.

According to Fast Total Audience Estimates from Nielsen, the New England Patriots’ low-scoring victory over the Los Angeles Rams was watched in all or part by 149 million people age 2 and up.

Streaming the Super Bowl set records. The average minute audience was 2.6 million viewers, up 31 percent from last year. The game was seen on 7.5 million unique devices, up 20% from last year, and viewers consumed more than 560 million total minutes of live game coverage, up 19 percent from last year.

CBS said Super Sunday delivered the biggest day even for new subscriptions to CBS All Access. Sign ups were up 84 percent, unique viewers rose 46 percent and there was a 76 percent increase in time spent on CBS All Access.

CBS said that for its owned stations in Los Angeles and Boston, this year’s game was the highest rated Super Bowl ever.

Following the game, CBS drew 22.22 million viewers for The World’s Best, best ever for CBS. The Late Show drew 5.52 million viewers, its third highest total ever.

The lower viewership was matched by estimates that CBS drew fewer ad dollars for the Super Bowl.

Kantar Media’s preliminary estimate for in-game ad revenue for Super Bowl LIII is $382 million, down 6 percent from $408 million in last year’s game The record was set in 2017, when the Super Bowl went into overtime and Fox rang up revenues of $419 million, according to Kantar.

Data and analytics company iSpot.TV estimates that advertisers spent $391 million on in-game spots on CBS during the Super Bowl.

ATLANTA—For the first time in its history, CBS Sports will deploy multiple 4K and 8K cameras at the Super Bowl to provide close-ups and alternative viewing angles for NFL fans.

CBS will use a total of 115 cameras including 16 cameras with 4K capabilities as well as nine Sony 4800 camera systems strategically placed around the stadium. The cameras will provide additional live game camera angles, and give the production the ability to replay key moments of the game in a super slo-motion and an HD cut-out with zoomed-in perspectives with minimal resolution loss.

This is not the first time 4K has been used in the Super Bowl; NBC deployed a number of 4K cameras for its coverage of Super Bowl LII in 2018. 

[Read: Falcons Debut ‘Halo Board’]

For the first time in a live network broadcast, multiple 8K cameras will be deployed in the endzone to cover the game (in what the network calls a “highly-constructed engineering solution”).

To provide virtual coverage, CBS will use a live, wireless handheld camera showing augmented reality graphics and up-close camera tracking on the field. This will allow the camera to get closer to these virtual graphics in a way that gives viewers different perspectives and angles including “never–before-seen” field level views of these graphics.

CBS will utilize four cameras (including the SkyCam) with live augmented reality graphics, plus an additional 10 cameras with trackable first-down-line technology. In all, 14 cameras creating virtual graphic elements that are completely manufactured will seamlessly blend in to the real environment of the broadcast.

Over 25 cameras will flank each endzone including HD cameras with super slo-motion capabilities, six 4K cameras, three goal post super slo-motion cameras shooting the backlines and 14 cameras embedded in pylons per each side of the field. A total of 28 pylon cameras will be a part of the 50-plus camera feeds from the endzones.

Super Bowl LIII will take place Feb. 3 at Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta. 

BURBANK, CA–CBS Sports says it is now using an upgraded version of Bexel’s Sideline Audio/Video Cart to cover the NFL during the 2018-2019 season. The new version includes a pop-up talent tent to protect on-air talent from unfavorable weather and limit distracting venue noise during gameplay. The Sideline Audio/Video Cart is designed as a plug-and-play unit to streamline the acquisition of field audio and video feeds in all types of stadium sports productions.

Currently used on the sidelines of this season’s CBS’s NFL “A” and “B” games, the new addition of the talent tent can now be adapted and installed for all clients of the original Bexel Sideline Audio/Video Cart introduced last year. The unit is easily deployable with its pneumatic tires and lightweight aluminum shell, and can be positioned on the sideline or end zone of a sports field, or anywhere requiring quick and easy connections for video and audio feeds.

“Our original Sideline Audio/Video Cart was a big success with broadcasters, giving them all the technology they needed in a compact package that is quick to set up,” said Lee Estroff, vice president, account development, Bexel. “But through the use of the cart last season, we knew that it needed one additional element—the human element. So we began developing a pop-up tent to protect on-air talent during the game. And just like its predecessor—the original Sideline Audio/Video Cart—there is nothing else like it in the industry.”

Each Sideline Audio/Video Cart is designed for each specific customer and use, with the ability for all included equipment to be pre-wired within the cart, reducing setup and strike times. Connectivity to the Mobile Unit is via single-mode fiber.

As with the original design, the cart’s built-in patchbay makes it easy to monitor, troubleshoot, and manage signal routing. It comes with integrated antenna poles, customized drawers for stowing gear, and a flat tabletop surface that can serve as an on-site workspace. The standard cart measures 72 inches by 47 inches by 36 inches, providing ample rack space for shows of any size, and its rugged, weather-resistant housing protects gear in all types of conditions. The cart is powered via single 110-volt outlet and provides an extended period of built-in UPS backup power.

Bexel is an NEP Broadcast Services company. 

NEW YORK — When it comes to using cutting-edge broadcast technology to cover the 2018 PGA Tour, CBS Sports is going all-out to provide unique, insightful shoots of what’s happening on the course.

“Our philosophy is to use advanced technology to tell the story,” said Harold Bryant, CBS Sports’ executive producer/and senior vice president of production. “We also use it to teach the average golfer to improve their own game.” CBS Sports deploys this technology at various PGA Tour events, working out of the SSCBS mobile production unit equipped and operated by NEP.

SHOT TRACKING

It isn’t always easy for viewers to understand what’s happening on the fairways and the greens; especially when it comes to the shots being taken by golfers and how they play out.

To explain the process, CBS Sports uses Toptracer’s real-time ball tracking (“tracing”) system, which graphically portrays the ball’s trajectory, arc, and apex as it travels from golf club to ground.

[Read: Fox Sports Taps New Production Tech For U.S. Open Coverage]

CBS Sports has been using Toptracer onscreen for eight years, and has been enhancing its application for PGA coverage ever since.

Most recently, CBS combined Toptracer with ARL’s Virtual Eye technology and “ShotLink” shot-by-shot analytical data provided by the PGA Tour, to track the ball’s progress from an actual camera shot as well as via second-view animation showing it “flying over” the golf course. The second animated view — which is on the right side of the broadcast screen — includes ball speed, distance, and apex graphics on the screen in real-time.

“The animation looks so good, you can hardly tell the difference between it and the actual camera shot,” said Ken Aagaard, CBS Sports’ executive vice president, Innovation and New Technology.

READING THE GREEN

Every time a player approaches the cup, armchair golfers at home like to guess how they should putt the ball on the green.

CBS Sports hopes to help lessen the guesswork with “Green Reader” graphics software from Hawkeye (a Sony company). Green Reader is preloaded with a topographic 3D map of each green, and has the ability to calculate and display an onscreen “cone” showing the sweet spot for hitting the putt right. The network is currently experimenting with the technology.

“If you’re hitting it within this cone, there’s a good chance that you’re going to be in the hole or near the cup,” said Bryant. The only drawback for golfers is that they don’t have this graphic to refer to on the green. That advantage rests with CBS Sports’ viewers.

SLOWING DOWN WITH SWINGVISION

Since 2006, CBS Sports has been using high frame rate cameras to cover the shots in slow motion so that viewers can see for themselves how a golfer’s swing actually progressed. The feature — known as SwingVision — has won an Emmy.

“The enhanced color range of HDR really stands out; especially shooting in bright sunlight where SDR would provide washed-out images.” —Ken Aagaard

Typically, high-frame-rate cameras have operated at 4x real-time speed; shooting 120 frames per second vs. the standard 30fps used for broadcast.

But this wasn’t good enough for CBS Sports, which introduced a Sony 4800 16x960 fps camera at the June 2018 FedEx Cup that raised the frame rate to 16 times real-time speed, according to Aagaard. “Peter Kostis is really a whiz at describing a player’s swing, and when you see that swing using a high-frame-rate camera on SwingVision, you can see how accurate he is,” he said.

DON’T FORGET ON-COURSE TALENT

When it comes to on-course coverage from field reporters, the days of talent standing alone with their microphones are over; at least for CBS Sports and their PGA Tour coverage. When CBS Sports Reporter Amanda Balionis does live hits on the course, she has access to a 72-inch touchscreen computer mounted on a mobile golf cart known as the “SmartCart.” Like a TV studio meteorologist, Balionis can call up graphics, stats and footage on the fly.

“SmartCart makes you feel like you’re closer to the action,” said Bryant. “You can use it on site to call up golf swings and shot live to air — and then drive the cart to the next hole to keep up with the action.” CBS is the first U.S. broadcast network to use SmartCart, which it debuted in 2016.

4K/HDR, DRONES AND ATMOS

To cover golf in 4K/HDR for DirecTV’s 4K subscriber service, CBS Sports uses Sony HDC-4300 4K-capable cameras from the SSCBS mobile truck in 4K mode, giving the network valuable experience in using the technology.

Aagaard is more impressed with HDR than 4K.

“You can’t tell much of a difference between 1080p and 4K on side-by-side monitors,” he said. “But the enhanced color range of HDR really stands out; especially shooting in bright sunlight where SDR would provide washed-out images, but HDR shows a full range of shade and light levels.”

CBS Sports is also shooting pre-broadcast overhead shots using drones. “We don’t do this when there are people on the course,” Aagaard said.

As for audio, the network will begin testing Dolby’s Atmos “3D” audio capture system next month. “We were testing HDR two years ago, to stay ahead of the curve,” Aagaard said. “Same thing with Atmos; when it becomes popular with consumers, we’ll be ready.”

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NEW YORK—CBS Sports HQ is a new streaming sports news network that will be burning the midnight oil, offering fans news, highlights and analysis 24 hours a day. A collaboration between CBS Sports and CBS Interactive, the digital network features live, anchored coverage, including game breakdowns and top storylines.

CBS Sports HQ draws from CBS Sports, CBSSports.com, 247Sports, SportsLine, CBS Sports Fantasy and MaxPreps to provide the live news and reporting, game previews, post-game analysis, highlights, projections and statistical breakdowns. Viewers will also have DVR-like functionality to easily go between live programming and previous segments.

CBS Sports announcers and reporters will be involved in coverage, breaking news, analysis and previews. CBS Sports Digital writers and insiders will also help with coverage.

The new streaming network will be available on CBSSports.com, the CBS Sports app for connected TV devices, the CBS Sports mobile app for iOS and Android devices, CBSN and the CBS All Access subscription service. CBS Sports HQ is available for free on connected devices.