CHESEAUX-SUR-LAUSANNE, Switzerland and PHOENIX—Nagravision today announced the launch of a new fully managed, event-based watermarking-as-a-service solution with Harmonic, extending a long-standing collaboration. The solution will be available as an upgrade for existing Harmonic VOS 360 Media SaaS customers or as part of the NAGRA Streaming Security solution.

The combined, event-ready watermarking-as-a-service solution builds on deep technical integration between Harmonic’s VOS 360 Media solution and NAGRA NexGuard forensic watermarking, a core component of the NAGRA Streaming Security solution that allows rights owners to quickly identify and mitigate illegal restreaming during live events. Together, they enable major live sports and OTT event streamers to activate A/B watermarking— increasingly mandated by content rights holders — with dramatically reduced operational burdens, complexity, and cost.

In addition, the solution removes the challenges of deploying and maintaining the infrastructure required for high-volume, low-latency switching. By deploying NAGRA NexGuard forensic watermarking as a fully managed service on Harmonic’s cloud-native SaaS solution, operators pay only for the events where forensic watermarking is required. Harmonic manages the end-to-end orchestration, scalability and service up-time. This new operational model significantly reduces both per-event cost and internal engineering overheads, Harmonic said.

“As consumers increasingly turn to streaming to watch live events, our customers need powerful security solutions that are effortless to deploy and deliver strong business outcomes,” said Gil Rudge, Senior Vice President, Solutions and Americas Sales at Harmonic.

“Through our long-standing collaboration with Nagravision, we are delivering watermarking-as-a-service that eliminates complexity, lowers costs and activates only when needed. This is exactly the type of agile, event-based security model the market has been asking for.”

“As our industry continues to face high levels of live sports piracy, our customers need solutions that deliver uncompromising security to protect their investments in premium content,” said Stéphane Le Dreau, senior vice president, Global Product Management & Sales Development at Nagravision.

“Our expanded solution with Harmonic makes our well-established edge-based forensic watermarking accessible as an on-demand service that fits the operational realities of today’s major event streamers. It is the pragmatic innovation that the market needs as more live events are delivered via streaming.”

Harmonic will be in Booth W2831 and Nagravision will be in meeting room W2379MR, both in the West Hall of the LVCC during the 2026 NAB Show, April 19-22 in Las Vegas.

ALAMEDA, Calif.—Clear-Com says its communications gear was recently deployed for the ADAC RAVENOL 24h Race at Germany’s Nürburgring circuit, which set a record in June as the longest live TV sports broadcast at nearly 28 hours of continuous coverage.

Throughout the event, Clear-Com and its German distributor, Audio-Technica, provided direct technical support to ensure a reliable setup and operation. Using EHX configuration software and its comprehensive monitoring capabilities, operators maintained complete control of the communication network throughout the marathon broadcast.

A total of 21 FreeSpeak II IP transceivers, 20 FreeSpeak II beltpacks, and four of the new FreeSpeak Icon beltpacks were deployed across the site, ensuring reliable and crystal-clear communications throughout the race. Despite the extremely high density of DECT systems in use across the circuit, Clear-Com says it delivered flawless performance thanks to precise planning and sophisticated configuration.

Featuring 130 cars and 500 drivers, the 24-hour endurance race is among the most demanding in the world. The live broadcast, managed by TV Skyline, one of Europe’s largest mobile TV production companies, utilized three OB vans and more than 70 camera feeds, including helicopter footage, a 650-meter cable camera, elevated platforms, and onboard views.

HDwireless GmbH, a specialist in wireless HD and UHD camera systems, provided the helicopter and wireless camera systems as well as the Clear-Com intercom infrastructure for the pit lane, paddock, start/finish area, and helicopter. HDwireless relied on Clear-Com’s Eclipse HX-Delta matrix system, fitted with an E-IPA-HX card, to connect the FreeSpeak II IP transceivers and intercom panels across an extensive AES67 fiber network.

“At an event as technically demanding as the ADAC RAVENOL 24h Race, communication has to be absolutely reliable,” said Alex Hemme, Regional Sales Manager at Clear-Com. “Working closely with HDwireless and Audio-Technica, we ensured that every team, from the OB vans to the pit lane, had clear, stable communication throughout the entire broadcast.”

NEW YORK—Live sports streamer Fubo announced today that its shareholders have approved its previously announced transaction with The Walt Disney Company to combine Fubo’s business with the Hulu + Live TV business.

The transaction remains subject to regulatory approvals and the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions.

The deal, which was announced in January ended a contentious period between the two companies, when Fubo battled Disney over what it viewed as unfair competition from Disney’s collaboration with Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery on the new Venu streaming service. Days later the companies pulled the plug on the joint venture.

Under the terms of the agreement, at closing, Disney will own approximately 70% of Fubo. Fubo’s existing management team, led by Fubo co-founder and CEO David Gandler, will operate the newly combined Fubo and Hulu + Live TV businesses. Fubo and Hulu + Live TV will continue to be available to consumers as separate offerings after the deal closes.

“We would like to thank Fubo shareholders for voting to approve our business combination with Disney’s Hulu + Live TV business,” Gandler said. “The transaction remains subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, but today we are one step closer to fulfilling our vision of a streaming marketplace that provides consumers with greater choice and flexibility.”

An increasing number of European broadcasters are investing in HDR production and distribution. They recognize that, to audiences, it makes an obvious difference — HDR is a means of attracting and retaining viewers.

Data shows that consumers see HDR as having a big impact: bigger, perhaps, than 4K. It may be that we will see the practical choice of 1080p/HDR as a dominant format — it is much more cost-effective than the jump all the way to 4K HDR, for basically the same audience impact.

HDR is already commonly used in cinema/drama production, where the concepts of color management are well-established, and the standard edit software platforms are HDR-compatible.

The challenge comes in live production — particularly live sports. This is the genre that always drives innovation in broadcasting, because of the stakes involved (expensive rights and giant audiences) and the existing technical challenges (e.g., camera shading for sunlight and shadows in the same scene).

Television production isn’t just about relaying the exact scene to the viewer. Producers and networks may also apply their own specific “looks” — driving their unique brand value, while also showcasing the added dynamic range and color gamut. Frequently, they will apply custom LUTs tuned to create the look they want.

The main cameras are routinely “shaded” by trained professionals to provide the matching and to supervise the output quality. But a large sport shoot will involve many other cameras, i.e., POVs, stump cameras in cricket, goalmouth cameras in football. In HDR, the inter-mixing of these SDR (Standard Dynamic Range) sources into the HDR production is disruptive if not managed — these signals must be processed to match the look of the main signals as closely as possible.

On an outside broadcast, where desk space is limited, any additional color shading must fit into the existing workspace and operator footprint. Imagine has worked on innovative solutions to address this issue — collaborating with Cyanview to enable their control surface for color manipulation, as well as with many other operational control systems to support our SNP UHD/HDR processing engine.

Creating a consistent production from a large footprint of sources and delivering the artistic vision of the director in HDR are the primary objectives.  But it is also critically important to translate that HDR look back into SDR — the way the vast majority of today’s viewers will see it. Responsibility for these translations is complex; the camera shaders and technical directors must consider how their fantastic HDR scenes will look in SDR, and the eventual translation downstream at the network hub must be done the same way it was “checked” on the truck.

Video processors and converters are found at many steps along the production pipeline, and as these productions shift into HDR, all these processors must be HDR-capable to preserve the signal fidelity — sometimes including custom LUTs and production-specific adjustments. All while fitting into the rack space, power, and other operational requirements of what is already in place.

At Imagine, we have been working on HDR with broadcasters and production companies for years, delivering UHD/HDR capabilities to operations as diverse as QVC Japan and the NFL Network in the USA. That has meant many conversations about HDR and color space conversion, even as the production industry has been trying to standardize on how these HDR workflows should work. Flexibility is key, as there are many aspects of HDR production that are not yet settled or agreed among the production professionals, so our HDR processors must be able to adapt to the needs and wants of each user.

Major broadcasters are continuing to study how HDR affects viewership, with a focus on the practicalities of delivering productions at the right cost. The next wave of broadcasters coming into HDR all benefit from this accumulated knowledge and experience.

With the right technical infrastructure enabling consistent HDR delivery even within established SDR workflows, the scene is set for increased deployment of HDR into more live event productions.

Despite the increase in cordcutting, drawing viewers away from pay-TV, interest in live news and sports—a staple of traditional linear TV—remains high among older, wealthier viewers, according to a recent study from Leichtman Research Group

When asked the importance of various programming genres, overall, 49% of adults rated news as very important (8-10) and 41% rated sports as very important, LRG said. While neither of these are the highest rated genre overall––that distinction goes to movies at 69%––there are significant differences in the importance of news and sports to pay-TV subscribers versus nonsubscribers. 

The study found that:

• 56% of pay-TV subscribers rate news as very important, compared to 32% of non-subscribers
• 49% of pay-TV subscribers rate sports as very important, compared to 21% of non-subscribers

The rated importance of these genres is also higher among those in the demographic categories that (unsurprisingly) are typically more likely to get a pay-TV service.

News is more important among older age individuals, and in higher income households: 

• 66% of ages 55+ rate news as very important, compared to 48% of ages 35-54, and 32% of ages 18-34 
• 57% with annual household incomes >$75,000 rate news as very important, compared to 45% with household incomes <$75,000

Sports is more important in higher income households, as well as among men:

• 52% with household incomes >$75,000 rate sports as very important, compared to 39% with household incomes of $30,000 - $75,000, and 27% with household incomes <$30,000
• 49% of men rate sports as very important, compared to 34% of women

Going forward, these genres will continue to play important roles in balancing the legacy model with direct-to-consumer offerings. However these options are not mutually, LRG added, as consumers will continue to get the services and content that best serve their households’ needs and budgets.

The following op-ed is a preview of topics that Harmonic will discuss during the upcoming TV Tech Summit, March 31.

With so many showpiece sports events happening in 2022, video service providers have an opportunity to expand their streaming services around these highly anticipated occasions.

When it comes to streaming live sports, service providers are looking to grow their audiences and offer them the content they desire. Yet, to be successful, service providers need an infrastructure that can maintain outstanding quality and ensure reliable streaming at scale.

By adopting an end-to-end, cloud-based streaming platform, they can process content with increased efficiency, customize live and video-on-demand (VOD) programming, and increase their ROI beyond typical subscription-based models.

Adapting to the Evolution in Video Consumption 
Video consumption is evolving. Today’s viewers want personalized streaming experiences, and an increasing number of rights holders and content distributors are responding with direct-to-consumer (DTC) offerings. In the sports streaming market, there are a variety of DTC streaming platforms and services from sports clubs, leagues and governing bodies, media organizations, telco operators, and more.

Another major trend in the U.S. is skinny bundles, a slimmed-down version of traditional pay-TV television offerings. Skinny bundles often include many of the linear specialty channels that viewers love, such as ESPN, further fragmenting the sports rights marketplace.

As sports consumption shifts away from broadcast TV toward streaming there are abundant new opportunities to reach broader audiences.

Key Streaming Requirements 
One of the greatest advantages of video streaming is the ability to create digital experiences that cater to individual viewers. Personalized sports content is in high demand. A recent survey from Quantum Market Research found that 96% of British soccer fans are willing to pay more for a subscription streaming service that provides a personalized experience. 

Aside from personalization, delivering an exceptional quality of service is critical. Today’s consumers expect high-quality streaming services that are accessible anytime, anywhere and on any device, with low latency, a mixture of live and VOD content, interactive features, and flexible pricing.

Simplifying Sports Streaming With an End-to-End Cloud Solution
By deploying an end-to-end, cloud-based streaming platform service providers can simplify all stages of media processing and delivery, ensure exceptional-quality video experiences and stay competitive in an increasingly crowded sports streaming market. 

Cloud streaming platforms accelerate the time-to-market for new offerings, enabling D2C services to be launched in a matter of days. With a cloud platform, service providers can spin up and spin down operations as needed, without investing in hardware infrastructure. This aspect is especially beneficial for the sports streaming industry, as events might only last a day or two.

Managing the peak user demand while streaming live sports can be a challenge. Live streaming requires an ultra-robust and flexible operational workflow, and that’s where cloud-based streaming platforms greatly excel. As audience numbers fluctuate throughout live events, cloud platforms enable service providers to stream video at scale and deliver superior quality, including low latency.

SaaS platforms are based on a per-per-use business model that is cost-efficient for sports streaming. With a SaaS platform, the installation and maintenance costs that are typically involved with operating hardware infrastructure are greatly reduced.

Optimizing Resources and ROI With Cloud-Based Streaming 
Using the cloud for sports streaming, service providers can optimize resources, reduce costs and generate new revenue.

For instance, cloud-based streaming opens up the opportunity for ad-supported thematic streaming channels whereby viewers receive content based on their individual preferences. Through user data, service providers can offer targeted advertising and branded content based on viewing behavior and interests.

In addition, cloud streaming platforms can be used to convert live video into on-demand content for pay-per-view (PPV) or distribution to third-party broadcasters after the event is over, opening up another revenue source.

Having a cloud streaming platform with efficient video compression is important, as it allows for more users to stream video at a higher quality. Efficient video compression also reduces costs associated with the delivery of video to expanding audiences.

Cloud-based streaming is reliable and secure. With the cloud, service providers can reduce the  likelihood of a security breach and operational downtime, which is critical for maintaining viewer satisfaction during live events.

Unifying the Value Chain with SaaS and Cloud
Another benefit of adopting cloud-based SaaS for video streaming is that it unifies delivery to affiliates and distribution partners. With a cloud-based delivery model, rights holders can distribute content in overseas markets, increasing their reach and meeting increased demands for content without worrying about how to scale.

Conclusion
Live sports streaming is on an accelerated path for growth. During the pandemic, the demand for live streamed sports has reached record levels, especially as fans were kept away from stadiums. Service providers are now looking to capitalize on this trend and want to expand their subscriber numbers and address broader audiences. Live streamed sports offers a catalyst to make this happen. 

With SaaS solutions, such as Harmonic’s VOS360 cloud streaming platform, video service providers can simplify the delivery of live sports streaming services and drive new revenue. 

To register for the TV Tech Summit, visit tvtechsummit.com/march

MLB’s fall sports classic is over. ESPN, TBS and Fox Sports all had excellent coverage, but I have often wondered why the same sport, played in similar outdoor stadiums, using a very aggressive microphone plan all sound different. Is the tone of the program different because of the broadcaster or the mixer?

Live audio and particularly live sports sound can be especially challenging because often audio is unpredictable, difficult to tame and there usually is no dress rehearsal till you go to air—and even then, there are the audio gremlins. 

With mandated loudness requirements and a wide digital audio dynamic range it seems the oldest instrument in the audio toolbox, the compressor/limiter is getting a good workout. I used to get my feathers ruffled when my BBC friends would comment about how over-compressed and jerky sounding live American television sports was. And you know what—I think the criticism is warranted. 

DYNAMIC RANGE

A compressor squeezes the wide range of volume levels (dynamic range) that sports captures and combines into a fixed pipeline. Clearly this process shapes the tone of the audio signal with significant consequences. Before the time when each audio channel and group had its own compressor, compressors were usually patched across the mix groups and would affect all the sounds in that mix group. Compressing the groups or master channels is usually a compromise setting between many sound sources with different dynamic characteristics and can easily result in audible pumping from over compression. 

Compressors have a threshold that tells the compressor where the process should begin, a ratio control that sets the amount of compression, along with a control for the attack and release time of the effect. The threshold, compression ratio, attack and release are decided by the dynamics of the sound source, but ultimately the ears of the sound mixer should be the test. 

I know you have heard over-compression or maladjustments when a sharp sound, like the crack of the bat triggers a fast attack on a compressor, which reduces the spike in the volume level. That’s what a compressor does. But my biggest complaint is that too often there is a disturbingly slow ramp back to regular volume levels.

Audio dynamics are also controlled by limiting and gating. Limiting the extreme volume is valuable because when audio becomes excessive in the digital conversion the corrupt data is probably not usable. Gating keeps an audio channel closed until a certain threshold level or event opens up the sound channel and audio passes through. 

Gating can be an automated process where the gate can be adjusted to open at a particular sound threshold, or a gate can be externally triggered by a video switcher. Additionally in sports a “gated sound” can be purely manual and accomplished by the finger dexterity of the audio mixer. The problem with a tight, fast gate is there can be an apparent “sound bumping” as that unique sound is being added to the mix. 

SOUND BUMPING

You would have experienced sound bumping when you hear the football referee microphone being turned on and off during a football telecast, or when you hear the baseball home plate sound bump in as the ball crosses the plate. The sound bump in football seems perfectly natural because the viewer sees and hears the official switch their own sound on and off, but I find sound bumping in baseball distracting.

Manually bumping up the sound to try and heighten the crack of the bat, smack of the ball to leather or the call of the umpire is a method to try and accentuate a key aspect of baseball sound—the home plate. As a young fledgling mixer, I was in awe of the sound of CBS Sports and certainly noticed the bump in sound as the ball crossed home plate. I thought if that was the way CBS did it, it had to be right—and I did it too. 

The degree and artistic difference of the bumping varies between the mixers, yet with a wireless microphone on the umpire I seriously question the necessity to try and dig any deeper for the home plate sound and inevitably causing a noticeable sound bump.

Like the delay/lip sync issue, compression exists at the OB van, maybe during backhaul, or finally in master control and transmission to the viewer/listener. So it is hard to be critical of overly compressed audio when I am uncertain of the exact source. If the entire program ramps down and rises back up then the source of the over-compression is likely master control or in the transmission path. 

If only a single aspect of the sound, like the effects mix or just the announcers are pumping in and out then the source of the over-compression is likely at the OB van. If the compression issue happens during backhaul, in the master control room or in the retransmission process, the audio mixer in the OB van would never hear it, but if the compression is at the OB van the mixer should be able to hear it and adjust. There are a lot of places for something to go wrong.

Sports sound changed when sports type games amped up the intensity and expectations for in-your-face sound. Since then there has been tremendous pressure for more sound and sound detail especially during championships and big events. Compressors and sound bumping are an attempt to entertain and engage the audience and I doubt if the phone lines are burning up with complaints about too much compression. 

But it is obnoxious if repetitive and certainly unnecessary. I enjoyed the sound of all the divisional and series playoffs, but a smooth-balanced soundscape is easily just as entertaining without any trampoline sound dynamics.

The landscape of live events—and the connected value of such events—was irrevocably changed in 2020. Even prior to the global pandemic, there were exploratory discussions taking place determining how the relationship between live events and broadcast might need to be refreshed. At the focus of these discussions was live sports.

Live sports carry with them a perishable value. Once the match is settled, the focus of the viewer turns swiftly to the next game or next event. Even the teams with the most devoutly committed fans see sharp drop-offs for their replay numbers. 

This is further compounded by the fact that viewership numbers are largely down across the board. Our golden age of content is fueling a hyper-competitive landscape for viewers’ eyes. Sports no longer competes with just alternative programming—but also alternative devices and displays.

That isn’t to say this is all bad. Consider how a magnificent goal by one of the world’s top footballers might be viewed millions of times on YouTube. This, of course, has an extreme amount of value—but are we measuring that value correctly? Sponsors of teams and events currently work to discover it through a number of metrics.

Then, of course, there is the global pandemic. The disruption of the fixture sheet was incredibly problematic for leagues, broadcasters and sponsors alike. Further, with fans no longer able to get into venues, there was a consensus among sponsors that they were no longer receiving the best possible exposure.

In short, the past year has made people think differently about how we provide continued value to sponsors. The answer is almost assuredly in reconsidering our approach to virtual advertising.

WHAT CHANGES FIRST?

For this discussion we will look specifically at one area of advertising real estate: advertisements seen on the field of play during the match. This real estate is traditionally painted onto a court or field or is displayed using digital billboards along the boundaries.

This challenge is not so much an issue of seeing broadcast change, per se, but rather in broadcast, offering new ways for sponsors to interact with sporting events. As sponsorships increasingly move to a return-on-investment approach we see the need to target audiences based on a number of considerations—and static, physical advertisements won’t provide that.

The good news here is that when you begin looking at new ways to consider these sponsorships you quickly find very interesting options in which to transform them. If data can be effectively collected from the subscriber, personalized advertisements can be placed digitally into a match so they are directly addressable to the viewer. This is not just a matter of showing a different brand but rather showing it at the correct time, in the correct context and in the appropriate language. It may even differ depending on team fanship.

With this change, the advertising inventory within the game could be dynamic; and this offers flexibility. Templates based on different regions and languages suddenly become a very interesting concept—and an attractive option not just for global sponsors, but regional and national sponsors.

The challenge to this, of course, is ensuring it has a benefit for the multiple stakeholders. This is extra work for all involved. Long term sponsorship deals may need to be renegotiated, and generating multiple feeds to multiple regions requires more salespeople to sell more advertising space. The benefits are there, but the challenges have traditionally held back the winds of change.

WHAT ELSE NEEDS TO BE CONSIDERED?

Other components in this discussion require thoughts on mobile devices and second screen viewing. Hyper-personalization can only go so far within the game. If someone is viewing on a mobile device, the effectiveness of an on-field advertisement may be diminished. Thus, we need to begin looking at on-device applications that can deliver advertising locally.

Further, multiple feeds can become unwieldy at a point. Giving every single individual their own feed of a game would be unreasonable—at least for now. The truth is that we need to find the right blend of feeds that make sense for this. Do we provide new feeds based on language? On region? On fanship? Or is it a blend of these factors?

MAKING IT HAPPEN 

As we sort out the logistics and data involved in this new approach, the one thing that is clear is the answer: graphics. Providing technology that can offer dynamic graphics for both unilateral and multilateral feeds is crucial.

Manufacturers must offer both virtual insertion and replacement technology solutions that deliver simplicity, reliability, flexibility and scalability to operational partners. This enables them to replace physical inventory confidently and consistently.

By providing this first step, manufacturers not only create a platform for enabling new capabilities—they enable a platform for the discussion of change to take place. The future of in-event sponsorships has been pushed closer to reality as a result of the global pandemic—and we all need to be ready to have the discussions in a collaborative way. If we do that, we will see an incredible amount of innovation occur in this space. It will be beneficial to every stakeholder involved and result in more stories, better told.

Jonathan Roberts is Global SVP of Sports at Vizrt Group.

NEW YORK—Notwithstanding the cratering of viewership in last month’s Super Bowl LV—which collapsed quicker than the Kansas City Chiefs’ offensive line—streaming services could be poised to snatch what has been the last vestige of appointment television: live sports, according to at least one influential analyst.

According to Nielsen, 96.4 million homes watched Super Bowl LV on TV, the lowest number since 2007. About 5.7 million homes streamed the game, the highest level for that metric ever.

In a research note that was issued before those ratings numbers were released, MoffettNathanson media analyst Michael Nathanson pointed to the growing trend of younger viewers migrating to streaming video, and that it would likely mean that sports would have to follow them. Nathanson didn’t expect big tent sporting events like the Super Bowl or the World Series to switch exclusively online, but he said games from various professional and college sports leagues, a staple of cable networks like TBS, TNT and regional sports networks owned by teams, could be in danger.

“We would think that the NFL, NCAA, ‘March Madness,’ NBA and MLB Playoffs will remain the domain of broadcast and will have digital rights that are monetized via affiliated services like Paramount+, Peacock or ESPN+,” Nathanson wrote. “Fox, the odd man out without a paid OTT service, will have a decision to make about how they move forward.”

Fox bought entertainment streaming service Tubi last year, which offers free ad-supported movies and shows from several networks, including Fox, but doesn’t have a sports component. On Feb. 9, Fox said it expects Tubi to reach $1 billion in revenue over the next few years. In 2021, it anticipates revenue at the service will double to about $300 million.

WHERE THE VIEWERS ARE

Keeping tentpole sporting events on the four major broadcasters makes sense for now because that’s where the majority of viewers are. Even the worst-viewed Super Bowl in 14 years was watched on traditional TV by a nearly 20:1 margin over streaming.

But for nationally televised sports like the NHL, NBA, golf, tennis and college sports, the staples of sports-based cable channels, networks may have to make some hard choices soon, Nathanson continued, adding they may have to adopt a hybrid approach like Peacock and NBCU, putting a limited number of events across a smaller number of networks. That, Nathanson wrote, in turn “would mean the end of FS2, ESPNU, CBS Sports Networks and a greater number of games carried on OTT products also now including HBO Max.”

Analysts have been warning that streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and the like could disrupt the televised sports business for years, but so far they have only dipped their toes in the sports business. But as new services emerge, they are beginning to pay attention to sports, and that should have linear networks worried.

In January, Peacock, Comcast NBCUniversal’s streaming offering, said it will assume sports programming from NBCSN at the end of the year, when that regional sports network shuts down.

Peacock also reached a deal with WWE, where its WWE Network streaming service will be available exclusively to Peacock subscribers for $4.99 per month (free to Comcast Xfinity customers, who also get Peacock premium for free). In addition, WWE renewed its licensing relationship with NBCU’s USA Network, which airs WWE’s Monday Night Raw.

Viewership on cable sports channels has been slipping as younger viewers cut the traditional pay-TV cord. ESPN has lost about 9% of its subscribers since 2015 because of cord cutting, while FS1 has lost 5% and the Golf Channel has dipped 11%, according to MoffettNathanson.

At the same time, overall time viewed on cable sports channels like ESPN and Fox Sports 2 has fallen a collective 5% since 2015. For some channels the drop is more pronounced— ESPN2 dropped 12% and ESPNU fell 11% in that time frame. Also during that period, remaining viewers are getting older. According to MoffettNathanson, 65% of all cable network viewers are over the age of 50.

“Obviously, if you are a sports league trying to build long-term connections with the next generation of fans, this is an increasingly terrifying outcome,” Nathanson wrote.

Nathanson pointed to both the WWE deal and the NBCSN closing as signs of a sea change in the industry.

“If a Comcast-owned network decides the economics of a standalone national sports network no longer makes sense, what does this mean for other national sports networks?” Nathanson wrote.

NOT EITHER/OR

Sports consultant Lee Berke, president and CEO of LHB Media & Entertainment, said that while the business is changing, it won’t necessarily be an either/or scenario. Berke believes that most sports networks won’t pick sides in the streaming wars, but will instead continue on a path toward multiplatform offerings.

“I don’t see pay TV going away. I don’t see sports going away on pay TV. I think you see less of it,” Berke said. “I think you see a more consolidated bundle of fewer networks, that are general interest, sports, entertainment and news. Even in the worst scenarios, they’re still going to have 50–60 million TV homes that are subscribers to these bundles. So there’s still value there. There’s an audience there.”

Berke added that networks will continue to beef up their direct-to-consumer services with sports. He pointed to ESPN+, which has added considerable content from its launch in 2018, and which he believes will be nearly indistinguishable from ESPN-proper in the next few years.

“You’ll see this sag in the pay-TV universe,” Berke said, adding that some sports will migrate to streaming services, some will revert to broadcast and some will remain on pay TV. “I think the key is there has to be a multiplatform strategy. The idea of a linear-only sports network just is not going to work going forward.”

Content companies already have started putting much of their linear content on their direct-to-consumer offerings. During the Super Bowl, ViacomCBS spent a lot of money on ads for its upcoming Paramount + launch, mainly showing shows that are already available on their linear channels.

Making all of a network’s linear content available to stream on a separate app hasn’t sat too well with distributors in the past, especially if the streaming app is priced lower than the rate the distributor is paying. That, Berke said, will have to be negotiated out.

“There will have to be a reckoning,” Berke said. Programmers will have to start making those decisions soon. Although streaming has obviously been a part of at least some sports rights deals—and the major broadcasters have already locked up Major League Baseball, PGA Golf and SEC Football agreements recently—there are still several left to negotiate.

According to Nathanson, ESPN’s MLB rights deals come due in 2022, as does NBC’s Premier League pact. In 2023, several NFL rights deals expire: ESPN’s Monday Night Football, Fox’s Thursday Night Football and Sunday NFC packages, NBC’s Sunday Night Football and CBS’s Sunday AFC football package. Also that year, Fox and ABC/ESPN’s Big Ten college football packages are set to be renegotiated.

Further out, ESPN’s and Fox Sports’ Pac-12 and ESPN’s UFC deals expire in 2024. In 2025, the NBA’s rights agreements with ABC/ESPN and TNT come due; as do Fox and NBC Sports pacts with NASCAR.

While streaming is expected to play a big role in those negotiations, and sports has come under fire for driving most of the rate increases for pay TV, Berke said he still expects a robust rights market.

“Because every technology, every new platform needs sports to drive subs, the key properties that are out there will have healthy increases in rights fees,” Berke said. “I think the NFL is going to come close to doubling.

“The NBA, which has acknowledged that the one issue they have is that they haven’t established a strong streaming presence in a sport that skews young, when their deals are up in 2025 they will go much more heavily into streaming platforms and direct-to-consumer,” Berke added. Because these media businesses will have multiple screens and multiple ways to make money, and because they need to drive subscribers across all of them, the rights fees will go up substantially.”

LONDON—Sports fans aren’t the only ones missing the live action put on hold because of the coronavirus pandemic, pay-TV providers and content rights holders are facing difficult times as they are forced to continue paying for the license rights to sports even while they are off the air, and subsequently charge their viewers for them.

Pay-TV providers who have rights to broadcast NBA, NHL, MLB and NCAA games (all currently cancelled or suspended) still have to pay the fees associated with carrying the games. As a result, service providers are still charging end users for things like regional sports networks even though the most popular content they provide is currently not available.

“Content rights holders and pay-TV providers must sort out license fee issues due to cancelled sporting events as soon as possible to insulate against customer enmity and defections,” said Tammy Parker, senior analyst at GlobalData.

Some providers have said they are considering offering refunds for the charged sports fees, but no decision has been made by any as of publication.

Instead, many are turning to esports to offer sports-related content to viewers. Networks like ESPN have been airing live esports matches—occasionally featuring professional athletes—to fill the gap in live sports. NASCAR even held full-on virtual races with its stock of professional drivers, including some retired fan favorites, while its season was suspended.

“Esports in the U.S. is finally having its day in the sun,” said Parker. “Communication service providers should take this opportunity to build on their existing initiatives to sponsor events and teams, which are becoming more well-known to mainstream audiences.”

However, live sports—in some capacity—are on the verge of returning. As more options become available, it is unclear how this new emergence of esports will be impacted.

Live sports are back, just not as you remember them prior to the outbreak of COVID-19. This past weekend saw some of the first live, broadcast TV action of multiple sports, highlighted by the return of NASCAR, a PGA golf match for charity and the German Bundesliga professional soccer league.

NASCAR and Fox Sports worked together to bring the first of seven races over the next 11 days to TV viewers on May 17 at the Darlington Raceway in South Carolina. Kevin Harvick was the winner, and he acknowledged the different circumstances of the race, saying that he missed the fans in the stands.

NASCAR’s live race schedule continues on May 20 from Darlington, with other races scheduled up to May 27 at this point. Additional races are expected to be announced.

NBC Sports, meanwhile, was tasked with bringing live golf back to its airwaves on May 17 as well, just in a different format. Rather than a full-fledged tournament, top professionals Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson, Rickie Fowler and Matthew Wolfe played a “teamed skins” competition at Seminole Golf Club in Juno Beach, Fla. The players carried their own bags, had an audio pack attached to capture their dialogue and practiced social distancing. 

The broadcast crew also adjusted to the new realities. Commentator Mike Tirico called the action remotely from his home in Michigan, while other commentators Rich Lerner, Paul Azinger and Gary Koch worked from the PGA Tour’s production facility in St. Augustine, Fla. On the course, a skeleton crew manned six cameras and utilized LiveU technology to capture the action. The broadcast also featured some call-in interviews, including Bill Murray and President Donald Trump.

PLUS: How Remote Production Can Help Get Live Sports Back on the Air Amid COVID-19

The skins match raised money for charity, with the winning team of McIlroy and Johnson earning $1.85 million for the American Nurses Foundation, and Fowler and Wolfe earning $1.15 million for the CDC. In addition, more than $5 million was donated by event partners and individual fans for COVID-19 relief efforts.

Another live golf match will take place on May 24—with Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Peyton Manning and Tom Brady—before the PGA Tour is slated to return to its usual schedule (sans fans) in June.

Across the pond in Europe, Bundesliga, Germany’s professional soccer league, returned with live matches, again with safety guidelines for both players and broadcast crews, which included a limit of 300 people allowed in the stands among teams and staff, but no fans—though the league tried to address that by putting up cutouts of fans in the stands. 

Six games were held over the weekend, with Fox Sports’ broadcast of the Borussia Dortmund vs. Schalke match earning a record .33 rating. Bundesliga is expected to continue playing, and broadcasting, the remaining nine weeks of its season.

With lockdown measures easing in many places around the globe and a return to something resembling “life as normal” hopefully on the horizon, one thing in particular is on the minds of ardent sports fans: namely, getting live games back on their screens. Rebroadcasts of classic games and sports documentaries such as “The Last Dance,” the acclaimed Netflix and ESPN series, are feeding the appetite for all things sports while live events have been put on hold. A spike in esports on TV screens, such as the record breaking eNascar iRacing series, has also helped. Yet these options only go so far in satisfying sports fans’ hunger for genuine, live physical events.

As the world steadily comes to grips with the global pandemic, leagues and broadcasters are now keen to find the most straightforward ways to get live sporting events back on air as soon as they can. A return to life-as-normal is of course a shared goal for most industries, but what has become clear is that, even with an easing of restrictions and economies slowly opening up, the effects of COVID-19 will continue to reverberate in sports and other walks of life.

A world in which arenas are packed with fans, and international travel is once again the norm for teams and sporting personalities, will not return any time soon. Instead, sports leagues and rights owners must prioritize the welfare and well-being of staff, fans and players, likely leading to a “halfway house” scenario: games played behind-closed-doors with just key participants attending. As broadcasters and sports leagues around the world look at ways to begin bringing live sports back on air, one approach makes more sense than ever: remote production (REMI).

PLUS: Fox Sports, NASCAR Prep for Live Production

KICK-STARTING THE SPORTING CALENDAR

While the remote approach to live production has been leveraged for some larger events, it is still the exception rather than the rule for mainstream sports. However, as broadcasters, other rights holders and leagues make the gradual transition towards normality, finding new, safer ways to deliver the compelling live sports content that fans demand is imperative. Indeed, the time is right for remote production. It is a practical, deliverable and proven option for producing live events that lightens the load when it comes to travel, equipment and on-site staffing.

Remote production eliminates the need for large mobile units and crews at the event venue itself, creating a safer environment for production staff by ensuring that social distancing guidelines can easily be met. Employing remote capabilities means broadcasters and leagues can centralize production at their home studios or a dedicated third-party location—such as one of The Switch’s remote production facilities in Burbank or New York—with minimal crews onsite. This model involves broadcasters transmitting camera feeds, audio and equipment control over a private fiber network, at low latency, to the central facility. From here, operators can then remotely configure cameras and other equipment at the event site. 

In short, as lockdown conditions ease, the REMI approach—pioneered over the past few years by The Switch and other live broadcast innovators—offers a faster and safer route for leagues, rights holders and fans to get what they want: live sports back on air.

As we steadily move into the post-COVID era, remote production of live sports events is coming into its own—especially where rights holders tap into the expertise of a partner that understands live sports and has deep experience in remote production. In fact, remote production has already been leveraged by major sports networks and rights owners, such as NFL Network, which leveraged The Switch’s REMI services to produce and deliver a 10-game Conference USA college football schedule in 2019. 

PREPARING FOR THE ‘NEW NORMAL’ OF LIVE SPORTS

Post lockdown, the advantages of remote production go far beyond the ability to have smaller crews and less equipment on site. The more than 30% cost savings give broadcasters and other rights holders the scope to improve efficiency and even explore ways that they can deliver live content, from online streaming of shoulder programming through to social media integration.

Traditional linear TV has traditionally dominated live sports viewing, but it is far from the only game in town today. The live sports on-air vacuum is accelerating consumer take-up of streaming, with the new stay-at-home society accessing more streamed content than ever. Online streaming platforms have witnessed a 43% jump in viewership in the week starting March 29, according to analytics firm Stream Hatchet. Similarly, esports streaming service Twitch saw a 60% jump in viewership in March this year. When normal conditions resume, traditional sports broadcasters and leagues will need to meet this uptick in the demand for content across all platforms.

Aside from significant cost savings, remote production offers the potential for higher-quality production, with the ability to support more camera feeds and specialty equipment, such as SkyCam and RF cameras. Centralizing production also brings the advantage of greater flexibility, and the ability to cover multiple events in one day—and REMI’s reduced need for travel and shipping of equipment makes it more environmentally friendly.

What’s more, having a core group of experienced technicians covering a series of games for the same league is of huge value to broadcasters. An experienced crew knows what to expect, what to do and, critically, having worked together on a number of high-level broadcasts they will have established great communication, ensuring productions flow seamlessly and maintain the same look and feel across the season. 

LIFE BEYOND LOCKDOWN

By enabling production crews to work in a home studio with reduced travel, remote production can also transform the impact on the work-life balance of staff, making careers more sustainable. This also means the pool of talent widens; skilled people who are normally unable or unwilling to constantly travel will now be drawn to working in the sector. These considerations will likely play an increasingly central role in the future evolution of live production.

Remote production offers a win-win for fans and rights holders, and it makes a compelling case for becoming the “new normal” for live sports. With rising costs and elevated consumer expectations already putting pressure on the live sports industry, remote production provides many of the answers that broadcasters and content producers seek. In addition to providing a means to get live sports back on air as soon as possible, this approach also provides the tools broadcasters need to take sports production to the next level. 

Glenn Adamo is managing director of Production Services at The Switch.

BRISTOL, Conn.—A majority of sports fans, from the casual to the avid, are eagerly awaiting the return of live sports to their TV sets and are open to games without crowds in the stands to help accelerate that return during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new survey from ESPN.

ESPN Research & Insights conducted the “ESPN Coronavirus Lockdown Fan Study” nationwide, with just over 1,000 sports fans 18 years old and older from April 17-20 participating, broken down into “avid” fans and “all” sports fans. The key takeaway, fans want sports back as soon as possible in practically any format.

With professional sports leagues having been suspended since mid March, 90% of avid sports fans say they miss watching live sporting events on TV; among all sports fans, the number is at 56%. Not currently having sports on the horizon brings sorrow to 78% of avid sports fans and 53% of all sports fans.

Fans are indicating that they want the professional leagues to do what they have to so the leagues can return as soon as possible. This could include watching games without fans in the stands (65% in favor, 35% opposed) and keeping players in hotels to minimize contact with others (76% in favor).

PLUS: NASCAR Live Races Returning in May

Avid sports fans live up to their billing, with 88% saying they can’t wait until live sports are back on TV and plan to watch as much as they can; 56% of all sports fans feel the same. This was proven when the NFL Draft, which was conducted virtually, drew record ratings.

Two-thirds (67%) of sports fans—85% of avid sports fans—feel that the return of sports would help bring normalcy back during the pandemic.

NEW YORK—Sixty percent of U.S. households have kept their pay-TV subscriptions because of live sports, but with the coronavirus pandemic shutting down all live sporting events, the effect could be an acceleration of cord cutting, according to a survey from The Trade Desk

The Trade Desk survey also indicated that 64% of respondents with at least one screen have cut the cord with cable TV, are planning to cut the cord or never subscribed. Here it is broken down by age group:

• All households – 64% 
• 18-34 age group – 74% 
• 35-54 age group – 64% 
• 55+ age group – 56% 

The fact that the much coveted viewers, ages 18-34, are less likely to sign up for pay-TV means TV broadcasters and advertisers will have to develop new strategies for reaching them, the researcher said.

The pandemic has forced viewers to shelter from home and the result is a rise in media consumption. Of those households that do still have cable TV subscriptions, 11% plan to cut the cord by the end of the year. That figure jumps to 18% within the 18-34 age group. This data represents a significant increase over the approximately 3% annual decrease in traditional pay TV subscriptions as predicted by eMarketer in July 2019 (prior to the stay-at-home directives).

These trends are expected to accelerate the longer that live sports programming remains suspended in the U.S., according to The Trade Desk.  

“With only a quarter of young adults having any long-term interest in traditional cable TV, in a few years we won’t be talking about linear or cable TV at all. It will all be online and streaming,” said Brian Stempeck, chief strategy officer, The Trade Desk. “For broadcasters and advertisers, it’s now all about how quickly they can pivot to where the eyeballs are moving and many of them are already investing heavily in order to succeed in a world of connected TV.”

The survey indicates that American TV consumers favor ad-supported streaming over subscription-based streaming as more and more Americans watch TV content via connected devices such as smart TVs—and 18-to-34-year-olds are once again leading that trend. Overall, 35% of these consumers would rather watch a free streaming service with advertising or some ads for a cheaper subscription, versus 31% who would prefer to pay for a subscription with no ads.

The research also shows that the leading cause of frustration with streaming advertising among American subscribers is having to watch the same ad repeated multiple times (cited by 48% of subscribers). The second leading cause of frustration is having to watch too many ads overall (cited by 45%), followed by the number of ad breaks (cited by 37%).

PLUS: Nielsen: Sports Viewers Still Lead the Way in TV Viewership

“As more consumers shift to connected TV, broadcasters and advertisers can more easily address issues of ad frequency and ad volume, in ways that are not possible in a traditional TV environment,” said Stempeck. “With CTV, the advertiser can work with an ad tech partner to understand who was exposed to an ad, even across devices, and can reduce ad frequency as a result. In addition, with CTV, advertisers can apply more data science to their advertising, making it more relevant to the consumer without compromising their privacy. This increases the value of the ads, which means lower ad volume, over time.”

This survey was conducted online for The Trade Desk by YouGov. Fieldwork for this survey was conducted on April 1-3, 2020. It’s a representative survey with a total sample size of 2,681 adults in the U.S. 

Live video streaming is gaining momentum, especially for live sports. Recent industry research shows that sports fans are willing to pay for all-sports OTT channels. A study by Verizon found that 63% of consumers already paying for live sports streaming services would be willing to pay more for a more personalized user experience.

Yet, to have a successful live streaming channel, OTT service providers need to deliver a high quality of experience (QoE) to viewers, with a latency comparable to broadcast. Overcoming scalability issues that may occur during peaks in viewership is also critical. 

There are two main types of live events that are popular for video streaming. One type of live content that viewers demand is premium live sports events, such as NFL games. Pop-up channels are also becoming trendy for special events that only last a couple of hours or weeks.   

Let’s look at some of the key challenges of delivering live OTT services and solutions.

 EFFECTIVELY MANAGING TRAFFIC 

The traffic pattern for live video streaming is very specific. Unlike SVOD, which has regular daily peaks with higher values on weekends, it’s harder to predict how many viewers will watch a live event. Peaks can jump to multiple times the average traffic during a weekend football game. 

Public CDNs (content delivery networks) are the only solution up to the task of scaling on-demand for the duration of a high-demand live event. When a CDN is used during high audience peaks, it drives a peak of traffic from the origin server. In this situation, it’s advantageous to have an origin server in the cloud to sustain super high peak of traffic.

 KEEPING BITRATES LOW 

During a live event, video bitrate is key. Using advanced encoding technology such as artificial intelligence and content-aware encoding algorithms service providers can reduce the bitrate for live video streaming by up to 50%. This results in 50% less egress traffic at the output of the CDN. Encoding solutions are central to service providers reducing the overall traffic and cost of distribution. 

 INCREASING SCALABILITY 

Today, premium live events are generally watched on the TV screen as opposed to a mobile handheld device. As fiber high-speed broadband access grows, and core network upgrades are completed, the average bandwidth used by consumers is continuously increasing. A number of HD OTT services require at least 5 Mbps—with UHD on the distant horizon, scaling issues are only going to intensify. Adopting a multi-CDN strategy is one way to increase scalability.

Using a live streaming platform with a multitiered, multi-CDN approach to delivery, operators can achieve real-time scalability for mission-critical, high-demand live video streaming services. This type of capability has successfully been deployed by leading mobile network operators to deliver live sports content.

 IMPROVING VIDEO QUALITY 

Live sports video has to be extremely high quality. Sports fans won’t settle for a low QoE. A number of premium events are now produced in UHD, and in many cases OTT is the only practical way to distribute UHD signals to UHD screens to the home. Delivering live UHD streams requires a bit of media processing and using a cloud-based live streaming platform is a cost-efficient approach for short-term events.

Another important consideration is that live video streaming requires low latency. Viewers expect the same latency as broadcast. Using a live streaming platform that supports MPEG DASH CMAF for Android and LL HLS for iOS, OTT service providers can deliver low latency for OTT.

 PREPARING FOR A DISASTER 

A premium live event can’t fail. If service providers are investing a significant amount of money in acquiring the content rights they don’t want to experience a black screen or even glitches in the middle of the event. 

Cloud infrastructure is a cost-efficient way to duplicate the video workflow infrastructure for the duration of a live event. Having a live streaming platform that can run on a datacenter and in the cloud, in parallel, is not only cost-effective, it’s convenient and flexible. Under this type of deployment, it’s critical to ensure seamless failover in case something goes wrong in the datacenter. For example, service providers can deploy one workflow on Microsoft Azure and the redundant workflow on Google Cloud or AWS. If anything happens to the Microsoft Azure datacenter, TV viewers will not see any impact.

 MONETIZING LIVE OTT EVENTS 

Monetization is essential for live events. In particular, live sports events tend to attract a large audience. Not taking advantage of ad insertion opportunities can result in lost revenue. 

In the OTT world, the trend is to deploy dynamic ad insertion (DAI) with a server-side architecture, where service providers replace the national ad with a targeted ad for each user by manipulating the OTT manifest. This operation requires strong scalability because one manifest needs to be processed and served for each user. Only cloud-based solutions can effectively scale without restraint.

 LAUNCHING ON THE FLY 

Pop-up channels are another use case that benefits greatly from cloud deployments. When service providers are launching an OTT channel for a short-term event, they don’t want to invest in an entirely new infrastructure. 

A cloud-based solution is a fraction of the cost and won’t incur any cost for streaming video in between events. As an added advantage, cloud-based live streaming platforms speed up the time to market for new offerings, enabling service providers to launch pop-up channels in minutes.

 CONCLUSION 

There is a growing industry trend toward more on-demand content. Consumers today want more choice, content on mobile devices, personalized advertising and the ability to view live sports events on OTT channels. As consumer viewing habits evolve, the complexity of media workflows is increasing. The challenge of scaling OTT unicast distribution and keeping costs low is likely to get worse.

Relying on a cloud-based live streaming platform with multi-CDN capabilities, OTT service providers can rapidly scale during live events, reduce costs and deliver exceptional video quality on every screen.

 Alain Pellen is the senior market manager, OTT & IPTV at Harmonic 

Cypress, CA, May 14, 2019 – The newly launched Spanish-language Hipica TV (TSG Network) selected Envivo Replay from Variant Systems as the heart of its production system. The daily live show features races, replays and offers handicapping selections on races from The Stronach Group-owned (TSG) Gulfstream Park, Santa Anita Park, Laurel Park, Golden Gate Fields, and Pimlico Race Course. The horse race programming is available every day at GulfstreamPark.com and youtube.com/HipicaTV.

The HD broadcast is independent of its English broadcast with separate producers, directors, cameras, on-air talent, race caller and now replay using Envivo Replay. Envivo Replay is being used to capture all TSG tracks to archive the day’s races, create race re-caps, and upload Spanish content to social media.

“For us, it was critical to archive each race track simultaneously and provide quick re-caps,” said Guillermo Burgos, Vice President & Executive Producer at Sellitto Video Systems (SVS). SVS produces the live broadcast for both Gulfstream Park simulcast and Hipica TV. SVS also manages all A/V requirements at Gulfstream Park. “It was so easy to archive all the race tracks in the Envivo system. The only thing we spent time learning was the sequence that would work best for the production team. The system is very intuitive and smart. And the company’s technical support is top notch. We’ve been very impressed so far with Envivo.”

In addition to race replays and highlights, the Hipica TV team is taking advantage of Envivo Replay’s built-in social media interface. This capability allows Gulfstream to streamline their social media postings of individual race highlights and race day summaries.

“One huge plus Envivo had was its social media upload extension tool. There was no learning curve at all,” added Burgos. “There are a lot of components in our control room. With the Envivo replay system, our team can easily save clips from our different race tracks, make playback recaps and upload to social media content faster than any other tool we’ve ever seen. It is simply amazing how fast we can load content to social media, which for us, is a must.”

“We are delighted that Guillermo and his team selected Envivo Replay to cover race replays, highlights and social media clips for their Spanish broadcasts," said Adolfo Rodriguez, Variant Systems Group Co-Founder and CEO. “It’s fantastic to see how the capabilities of Envivo Replay are enabling Hipica TV to streamline their workflow.”

During its first month on GulfstreamPark.com and LaurelPark.com in March of this year, Hipica TV reached an average of 76,000 unique viewers each week and nearly 800,000 total views. Along with live races, Hipica TV will include live interviews, feature stories, and insights from its four anchors.

FOR-A is the exclusive seller of the Envivo Replay solution in North, Central and South America. The distribution agreement gives live event producers and broadcasters the ability to use Envivo Replay as part of a complete live event workflow with FOR-A’s HANABI series of video switchers, ClassX 3D graphics and video writer telestrators.

Launched in 2017, Envivo Replay offers a complete replay solution packaged in an intuitive user interface with continuous multiple iso-channel recording capabilities, simultaneous clip storage of multiple angles to clip bins, playlists for highlights playback, built-in branding capabilities, direct publishing to social media platforms, as well as support for high speed super slow-motion cameras.

LAS VEGAS–At the 2018 NAB Show, Friend MTS, a U.K.-based provider of content and revenue protection technology, launched a 4K/UHD variant of its ASiD service for subscriber level watermarking, to protect premium sports and entertainment content from streaming piracy sourced from set-top boxes and OTT players.

The automated ASiD global monitoring and watermarking service allows scaling for the largest live sports events, which can generate thousands of pirate streams. By connecting directly with pay TV operators’ subscriber management systems, ASiD deactivates thousands of pirate streams within minutes, preventing content theft and allowing broadcasters and rights owners to maximize their audiences and revenues.

A key service within Friend MTS’ portfolio, the ASiD global channel monitoring uses fingerprint-based content recognition to identify broadcasters’ assets in seconds. This monitoring connects with the invisible watermarking extraction to precisely identify subscribers who are responsible for streaming piracy.