RONCO SCRIVIA, Italy—Racing Force Group has announced a multi-year agreement to supply its Driver’s Eye technology to Fox Sports, the TV rights holder of the NTT Indycar Series. Following the success of its introduction at selected rounds in 2025, starting from the 2026 season the system will be integrated into the broadcast coverage of every event during the season.

Driver’s Eye, developed and patented by Zeronoise, the electronics division of Racing Force Group, is the world’s smallest micro-camera designed for live broadcasting, the company claims. In 2023, Racing Force Group inked deals with Fox Sports and NASCAR to use Driver's Eye for the NASCAR Cup Series events aired by Fox Sports, as well as a similar agreement to deploy the technology in F1 cars.

“We are thrilled to continue our collaboration with Fox Sports to integrate Driver’s Eye into the television coverage of the NTT Indycar Series," said Alex Haristos, Chief Operating Officer of Racing Force Group. Following the excitement generated during selected events in the 2025 season, including the Indianapolis 500, it’s fantastic to extend the Driver's Eye presence to every round, with the goal of making the viewing experience even more engaging and immersive for fans thanks to our leading-edge technology.”

In Indycar, Racing Force Group said it was first deployed at the 2025 Grand Prix of Long Beach: fitted into the helmet of Kyle Kirkwood, it delivered a live, first-person view from the cockpit of the race winner. Driver’s Eye was also featured during the Indianapolis 500, further showcasing its capabilities.

The FIA-homologated system is installed inside the race helmets to offer TV viewers a fully immersive experience from the driver’s exact point of view during the race. The micro-camera measures just 9x9 millimeters and weighs only 1,43 grams.

The 2026 NTT Indycar Series season will kick off with the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg this coming Sunday, March 1, and will feature a total of 18 races, including the 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500, scheduled for May 24.

PARAMUS, NJ—Sony Electronics has announced its agenda for the 2025 NAB Show, April 6-9 in Las Vegas. With its Central Hall home in the LVCC under construction, the company has temporarily set up shop in the North Hall, N439.

Sony says its booth and production introductions support four key areas: live production solutions, news and production workflows, imaging solutions, and virtual production. New highlights include a Super35mm camera system with Variable Neutral Density (VND), an ultra-compact Full-frame camera extension system, and a camera tracking solution for enriching content creation.

Sony’s enhancements and technologies support the latest industry needs and capabilities by enabling new forms of expression and productivity through cloud and IP protocols, cinematic capture, and Spatial Content creation, as well as augmented extended reality (XR) and virtual effects (VFX) workflows. The company is empowering broadcasters, cinematographers, production teams and content creators at all levels to bring their vision to life with more flexibility and efficiency.

“We are excited to connect with and empower the industry at NAB Show and debut innovations and advancements that address the unique and evolving needs of our customers,” said Theresa Alesso, President, Imaging Products and Solutions Americas, Sony Electronics. “We’ve taken a very intentional approach, by providing enhancements to our lineup. Through easy to download firmware updates, we’re adding more value, providing longevity, reflecting the requests of our users and offering a return on their initial investment. With our expansive network of solutions and expertise, we’re creating a more efficient and seamless workflow that enables creativity and meets our broadcast and production customers where they are.”

Cameras
Sony’s newest camera, the HDC-F5500V, is a Super 35mm 4K CMOS system camera for live production, features a global shutter imager and PL lens mount. A new optional software license adds VND capabilities for increased depth of field control and a wide range of brightness control through virtual iris capabilities.

Designed for the demands of today’s live productions, the camera provides beautifully detailed imagery and ND control during on-tally. It also offers workflow advantages including a wealth of features for HDR and SDR production, and the same infrastructure as its HDC-5500V 2/3-inch counterpart, including IP networking, remote multi-camera operation and an in-CCU (camera control unit) record option. It is planned to be available in summer 2025.

The BRC-AM7 4K PTZ (pan-tilt-zoom) camera with AI-enabled Auto Framing and Tracking, which was announced at NAB 2024, is now available. New Version 2 firmware, planned for summer 2025, adds multi-person framing, face registration, enhanced tracking range, lead room effect, and it adds compatibility with the CNA-2 for remote productions.

The addition of the v2 software will ensure a common feature set and operational style with the ILME-FR7 Full frame camera. Planned for early summer 2025, both the BRC-AM7 and FR7 will add compatibility with Sony’s latest Camera Remote Toolkit for remote camera operation and settings adjustments.

The recently announced VENICE Extension System Mini adds flexibility to Sony’s flagship VENICE 2 full-frame digital cinema camera, enabling the camera’s sensor to be separated and extended from the camera body via a thin, detachable cable. It is approximately 70% smaller than the previous extension system, for use in small and challenging locations. When using two units side-by-side, stereoscopic clips can be captured naturally for Spatial Content Creation and VFX background capture. The system is planned to be available in summer 2025.

A v2 firmware update for the BURANO full-frame cinema camera will include new recording formats for faster sensor performance, led by a 3.8K Full Frame crop up to 120 fps and a 1.9K Super 35 mode that can capture up to 240 fps. Further additions include standardized SDI video output for monitoring across X-OCN and XAVC, as well as an improved on-screen display, enhanced image output, additional exposure tools, broader auto focus capabilities, and live event and multi-camera functionality.

Also on display will be the compact PXW-Z200 XDCAM and HXR-NX800 NXCAM 4K HDR handheld camcorders with network connectivity, AI-powered subject recognition, precise auto focus and the option to add MPEG HD422. The PXW-Z200 supports SDI output and timecode, and with firmware expected in summer 2025, will add XAVC MXF recording.

For the first time at NAB Show, the new HDC-P50A compact and lightweight POV box camera will be on display. Now shipping, the multi-purpose camera features a 2/3-inch 3-chip 4K global shutter image sensor, installation flexibility, up to 8x HD and 4x 4K output, direct IP connectivity, and full CCU integration while offering the same image quality and operational features as the Sony HDC Global Shutter family. The camera can be paired with an optional HKC-VND50 variable ND filter unit, as well as the CNA-2 camera control network adapter, for centralized monitoring and remote operations.

Sony will demo a v1.1 firmware update for its CNA-2 Camera Control Network Adapter, now with support for integrated management of multiple sites through Sony's Global Multi Camera System (GMCS), enabling remote operation of numerous cameras for large-scale sporting events and other applications. Furthermore, through the optional HZC-MSUCN2 license, simultaneous configuration changes and color adjustments for multiple cameras can be enabled via a web browser.

Monitors
Sony’s latest 4K professional monitors, the 16.5-inch BVM-HX1710 and BVM-HX1710N (with IP interface), offer a peak luminance of 3,000 nits, excellent contrast and deep blacks, and will come equipped with new operational tools including a side-by-side display feature enabling direct comparison between two 4K signals or between 4K and HD video.

In addition, closed captioning over 3G-SD1 1920x1080/59.94P and flexible control over the maximum brightness settings allows for adjustment in eight steps – from 4000 nits to 400 nits. Settings created on the BVM-HX1710(N) can be shared with the flagship BVM-HX3110 color-grading monitor. The BVM-HX3110 will also receive new capabilities through a free v2.0 upgrade that mirrors the BVM-HX1710(N)’s features. The BVM-HX1710(N) and v2 firmware for the BVM-HX3110 are scheduled for summer 2025.

Networked Transport
Key enhancements to Sony’s Networked Live portfolio include updates to the Live Production switcher lineup. Newly released v2.3 firmware for the MLS-X1, highlighted by the Conditional Action Macros feature, allows operators to pre-build actions that can be executed based on the status of the switcher, enhancing the efficiency of the production and reducing the burden on the technical director. Additionally, the M2L-X software-based production switcher is being demonstrated on Commercial Off the Shelf (COTS) equipment, as well as the cloud while the M2 Live cloud-based production platform will show new integration with third-party audio mixing boards.

Nevion, a Sony Group Company focused on real-time media transport processing and orchestration, will showcase recent updates. The software-defined media node, Nevion Virtuoso, expands with a new high-density AES/Analog/MADI converter and add-on that provides more audio sources. Virtuoso’s HEVC low-latency and low-bitrate technologies will also be highlighted. The Nevion VideoIPath Media Orchestration Platform, which can now orchestrate 5G and cloud environments, will be on display, giving customers greater flexibility for their contribution or production environments.

The PDT-FP1 portable data transmitter is updated with new features including support for external camera recording, in addition to high-quality live streaming from a connected camera and streaming app. Immediate workflow for delivering photos and videos from the field has been improved with the Transfer & Tagging app (T&T), as well as direct upload from camera-to-the-cloud services.

Together with the PDT-FP1 and NXL-ME80 media edge processor, Sony's CBK-RPU7 remote production unit transforms into a remote production solution. New enhancements to the solution add remote camera control, tally, capture with return video monitoring, and connection management via Nevion's VideoIPath, enhancing multi-camera operations and monitoring. Recent v1.2 firmware for the NXL-ME80 achieves more stable video transmission with even lower bitrate transmission, enhanced jitter resistance for increased stability, and newly equipped encryption functionality (AES256). It also provides virtually lossless ultra-low latency H.265/HEVC codec. Integration with Nevion Virtuoso is planned for a future update.

Sony’s Hawk-Eye Innovations, which provides sports organizations with leading broadcast production, officiating, and performance solutions, is showcasing HawkREPLAY—an instant replay broadcast solution for flexible on-premise, hybrid, and remote production workflows. It can be used alongside Sony’s HDC-5500 4x 4K camera or HDC-P50A POV camera and CCU for enabling 4K HFR and UHD pan and scan capabilities along with a cloud technology showcase. Within the Broadcast Solutions ecosystem, HawkNEST, an asset management and ISO record system, will also be on display with new Control Console and Channel Navigator tool features.

The DWX series expands with the DWM-30 digital wireless transmitter. For use in a range of professional audio applications including broadcast and live music, the updated model supports a wider range of frequencies and codecs, as well as multichannel simultaneous operation.

News and Production Workflow
Ci Media Cloud, a media asset management and collaboration service available as part of Sony’s Creators’ Cloud suite, has added new format support and exciting integrations to simplify and automate post-production workflows. Ci Workflow now supports nearly all camera RAW formats, making its self-service VFX pull solution even more powerful. Ci also added a DaVinci Resolve Studio extension which allows editors to seamlessly access Ci files, edit, relink, render, and share cuts without having to leave their NLE (non-linear editing).

Additionally, Sony has added direct camera-to-the-cloud support for FX3, FX30 and Alpha 7S III (sequentially) with additional model compatibility to come, allowing camera owners to automatically upload to Ci without the need for additional hardware.

Crispin, a Sony Group Company providing leading master control and asset management solutions, has rolled out new services, including CORE Dashboard, which provides customers with the ability to monitor all critical system components, playlist alerts or discrepancies, and a high-level supervisory view all within the CORE ecosystem, which empowers users with flexible browser-based user interfaces.

Record & Prep Manager (RPM) now includes Quality Control (QC) and prep functionality to accompany the scheduled recording, allowing for complete management of all resources available for prep and records. A new addition to the portfolio is List Assist, an innovative approach to playlist management using intelligent analysis for easy review and response to changes. FAST Wheel automatically creates a News rundown based on content available on a station’s website.

Sony’s Creators’ Cloud suite of software, services and apps includes Monitor & Control (M&C), a mobile app for video creators that enables wired or wireless video monitoring and precise remote-control for single or multi-camera operations. M&C is expanding functionality in the latest v2.3 update and will support additional features such as electronic crop framing functions for the PXW-Z200 and HXR-NX800 and improved focus maps resolution on mobile devices.

Virtual Production
Sony will showcase a suite of virtual production offerings that support Spatial Content Creation. New this year is the OCELLUS (ASR-CT1) camera tracking system, a marker-free tracking system that can be used both indoors and outdoors. The system is camera agnostic and uses four out of five image sensors on a sensor unit to track feature points on video signals. The OCELLUS is ideal for use in both broadcast applications such as news, sports and weather, as well as cinematic applications. The camera tracking system is expected to be available in fall 2025.

Additionally, Sony’s Virtual Production Tool Set, a series of resources that streamlines pre-production and on-set workflows, is gaining new features which will be previewed to bring pre-visualization to life, before a production takes place. Updated software addresses viewing angle correction, and adds Crystal LED off-axis color compensations. In addition, it provides rendering of high picture quality CG backgrounds at high frames per second by ray-tracing acceleration, and also supports real-time moiré alerts for VENICE 2 operation.

For more information about Sony’s presence at NAB Show, please visit https://pro.sony/nab.

FORT WORTH, Texas—“Chopper Cops,” an all-new docuseries produced by SEE IT NOW Studios and V1 Productions, recently debuted on CBS/Paramount+. The 10-episode series offers an unprecedented look at the Marion County Sheriff’s Department’s state-of-the-art helicopters, operated by elite police pilots known as “Air One.” Throughout each half-hour episode, the series showcases these “chopper cops” as they utilize high-tech infrared cameras and augmented-reality mapping to support ground units in locating and apprehending suspects, providing a critical “eye in the sky.”

V1 Productions, a Texas-based, full-service production house that offers television and film production, live broadcast and post-production services, has built a reputation for delivering compelling, humanistic stories through its unscripted and live productions as well as breathtaking cinematography.

Unique Cameras, Unique Angles
For “Chopper Cops,” the production needed to capture content from various sources, including helicopters and the deputy police cars. To achieve these unique angles in extremely space-conscious locations, we relied on a selection of POV cameras from Marshall Electronics, including eight CV506 Miniature Full-HD Cameras, two CV568 Miniature HD Cameras with Global Shutter with Genlock and two CV504-WP All-Weather Micro Cameras.

The cutting-edge technology of these cameras allowed us to provide an immersive and authentic viewing experience without interfering with police work in the air or on the ground. The camera’s compact size and robust capabilities are essential for capturing the intense and often unpredictable nature of police aviation operations.

Marshall’s CV506 camera was used in the interior of deputies’ cars and helicopters, including scenes captured from the dashboard of the squad cars, as well as the footage that was filmed over the shoulder of the pilot and Tactical Flight Officer (TFO). For these aerial police applications, the pilot is responsible for the safe operation of the helicopter, and the TFO is responsible for law enforcement and coordinating ground resources.

The Marshall cameras were also used to capture some footage from the dashboard of the Sheriff helicopter looking back at the Pilot and TFO. The CV506 can capture detailed shots while maintaining an ultra-discreet miniature POV perspective without sacrificing versatility or convenience.

Miniature POV
In addition to being used in a similar capacity to the CV506, Marshall’s CV568 miniature global camera with genlock delivered synchronized, HD footage critical for capturing coordinated movements and actions within the vehicles and aircraft. The CV568 is built around an impressive 1/1.8-inch Sony global sensor with 25% larger pixels and interchangeable M12 lens mount, making this the most capable POV camera in the miniature camera lineup.

In addition to the exterior of the sheriff helicopters, the Marshall CV504-WP camera was used to film from the exterior of the deputy squad cars. Footage captured from the exterior squad cars depict the cars in motion and highlights the sheriff decals. Footage captured from the exterior sheriff helicopters includes POV from the skids that show the helicopters flying over the city, and shots of the infrared camera on the belly of the helicopter.

The CV504-WP delivers exceptional 10-bit 4:2:2 video performance from a durable aluminum alloy body through weatherproof breakout cable and flexible, interchangeable lenses. The new Sony sensors offer rich color, accurate video with improved low-light sensitivity and refined remote adjust-and-match capability.

This series would not have been possible without Marshall. They were able to have several cameras on board without interfering with the actual mission of the aircraft and real police work being done. We have used Marshall cameras across a number of productions, and we will continue to use them to capture unique perspectives as we push the envelope in documentary filmmaking by combining compelling storytelling with innovative technology to bring audiences closer to the action than ever before. l

W. Hulsey Smith is the founder, president & executive producer, V1 Productions. More information about the company is available at https://v1.live/. He can be reached at Hulsey@v1.live.

More information is available at https://marshall-usa.com.

Marshall Electronics has announced that it will be showing four new POV camera models, the CV570/CV574 Miniature Cameras and CV370/CV374 Compact Cameras, at IBC2023.

These new camera models, which will be on display at IBC 2023 Stand 2.A47, all feature low latency NDI|HX3 streaming as well as standard IP (HEVC) encoding with SRT and other common streaming codecs along with a simultaneous HDMI output for traditional workflows.  

The company reported that the CV570 miniature and CV370 compact NDI|HX3 cameras both contain the new Sony sensor with larger pixels and square pixel array that Marshall is implementing into all of its next generation POV cameras this year. 

These will offer resolutions of up to 1920x1080p (progressive), 1920x1080i (interlaced) and 1280x720p. 

Also, these cameras are designed with the same flexible features including interchangeable lenses, multiple broadcast and proAV framerates, remote adjustability and very discreet and durable bodies made of lightweight aluminum alloy with rear I/O protection wings, Marshall reported.

All four cameras can be set to NDI|HX3, NDI|HX2 as well as standard IP with SRT and other common streaming codec settings, with a simultaneous HDMI output for traditional processing or switching equipment.

The CV570 (HD) and CV574 (UHD) use a miniature M12 lens mount and is built into an ultra-durable and lightweight body with dimensions of roughly 2 inches x 2 inches x 3.5 inches. The CV370 (HD) and CV374 (UHD) use a slightly larger aluminum alloy body with CS/C lens mount recommended for longer throws and longer focal length lenses, Marshall reported.

The new NDI|HX3 format requires slightly higher bandwidth than previous NDI|HX2, but much less than is required for full-NDI|HB. NDI|HX3 delivers similar low latency as full-NDI at less than 100ms end-to-end and has video quality performance closer to premium full-NDI lossless video quality. NDI|HX3 is a big step forward for NDI|HX while reducing the bandwidth requirements of full-NDI and delivering similar speeds while delivering the high quality of the camera source.

DAYTONA, Fla.–Fox Sports, NASCAR and Racing Force Group have inked a deal to use the leading-edge Driver's Eye micro-camera POV technology for the NASCAR Cup Series events aired by Fox Sports. The racing league began using the helmet camera tech during its biggest annual event, the Daytona 500 over the weekend. 

Racing Force Group says its Driver's Eye is the first and only FIA homologated micro camera in the world that can be integrated inside a racing helmet, and the world's most compact camera for live broadcasting: this gives the audience an exact view of what the drivers see in the car during the race. In its latest spec, the camera achieved an impressive size of 0.35x0.35 inches and a weight of 0.003 pounds, according to the company.

The NASCAR deal follows a similar announcement from Formula 1 last month to deploy the POV cameras for the upcoming 2023 Grand Prix season. 

Adopting the camera tech is part of NASCAR’s campaign to increase viewership, which had been on the decline in recent years. However in 2022, 3,696,000 viewers on average watched the NASCAR Cup Series events broadcast on Fox and FS1 channels, and across the entire 2022 season, viewership was up 4% and household share was up 10% year-over-year.

Fox Sports' portion of the 2023 season will end with the coverage of the Toyota/Save Mart 350 event at Sonoma Raceway on Sunday, June 11.

"This agreement is yet another landmark for the growth of the Driver's Eye technology in the car racing industry," said Alexandros Miotto Haristos, COO of Racing Force Group in Italy. "Few brands in motorsports are as popular as NASCAR, even outside the United States, and this three-axis partnership with NASCAR Cup Series and Fox is a further proof about our product's quality. We thank both NASCAR and Fox for trusting our system, which is already adopted by other top championships. 

"Moreover, Racing Force Group can strengthen its prestige across the American market, where it is already playing a leading role through all its brands, plus an expansion project in place."

After several years of trials, Italian company Racing Force Group announced that it has struck a deal with Formula 1 to supply helmet cameras for all F1 drivers in the upcoming Grand Prix season. 

The “Driver’s Eye” is a POV micro camera (8 millimeters in diameter and weighing 2.5 grams) positioned at eye-level on the protective padding on the inside of the driver’s helmet.

In 2021, the cameras were tested by  Fernando Alonso in practice for the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix and became available in 2022 to all drivers on the Formula1 grid who wore a Bell Helmet. During the 2022 season, Formula 1 had announced its intention to mandate “Driver’s Eye” for all drivers and this week’s announcement confirms it. 

Check out this demo:

TORRANCE, Calif.—Marshall Electronics is introducing a new version of its CV503 line of POV cameras, the CV503-U3. This new model is a dedicated USB 3.0 HD POV camera for working with USB-based workflows for both work-from-home and remote live streaming appliances.

The CV503-U3 features a lockable 6.5-foot USB 3.0 cable for simultaneous power and video capture, interchangeable lenses and adjustable settings via UVC1.5 for switching between soft codecs. It provides plug-and-play connectivity through capture device drivers already built into Mac, PC, laptop of Linux systems, as well as a software agnostic design to  integrate into any USB capture soft codec.

The camera comes with a CVM-5 monitor/desktop stand, but can adapt to any 1/4-inch-20 mount type for custom installations. It also has a 90-degree lens, plus interchangeable lens function.

The CV503-U3 is designed for use with video conferencing, video chat, streaming or other computer video capture services, including Zoom, Skype, OBS Studio, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet.

For more information, visit www.marshall-usa.com.  

ATLANTA—Fox Sports is deploying a series of small, unobtrusive POV cameras for coverage Dec. 8 of the MLS Cup game between host Atlanta United FC and the Portland Timbers as part of its 26-camera setup at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

“This is the big, ultimate event for the MLS. We have it covered as an elite game to make sure we don’t miss anything,” said Michael Davies, senior vice president of Field and Technical Operations for Fox Sports. “The new thing is all of the POVs [point-of-video cameras] around the stadium.”

For the game, Fox Sports has added small POV cameras in the goals, the locker rooms and along the tunnels leading from the locker rooms to the stadium floor as well as four corner flag cameras –soccer’s equivalent of NFL and college football pylon cameras. “I think the corner cams fit nicely into that portfolio of small POV cams,” he said.

The corner flag cams are the handiwork of Admiral Video, the Lancaster, N.Y.,-based company that has teamed with Fox over the past few years to design and build a variety of specialty cameras for sports coverage. “I’ve asked Paul Halsey, the principal there, to make these cameras,” said Davies. “We’ve had him do all sorts of strange things.”

“Companies like Admiral Video are able to take apart cameras that exist and reconstruct them in the space that you have available for something like a corner flag, a pylon or a set of NFL chains–whatever you have to work with,” he said.

The corner flag cameras to be used during this weekend’s MLS Cup will feed a 720p HD signal via a modified USB connector and copper cable to Fox Sports’ switching matrix. The connection enables two-way communications providing for control over camera iris and other camera painting functions. Super-wide lenses are part of the corner flag camera assembly as they are with all POV cameras that are being deployed for the game.

“When you are dealing with any type of POV camera –worn or otherwise—it needs to be super wide angle because you never know where the action is going to take place,” he said. “It’s not like a camera that you can pan and tilt.”

The POV cameras in the corner flags are the same type of miniature cameras Fox Sports uses as part of its production of Thursday Night Football, Davies said, adding that for those NFL games the cameras are operated in 1080p mode to match the networks’ overall production setup.

Davies looks forward to the day when 4K and higher t frame rates become available in small POV cameras, he said. “That will be pretty cool because you could even get an element of super motion.”

For now, however, Davies is hopeful the corner flag cameras used this weekend can “catch lightning in a bottle.” He fully acknowledges there are no certainties about whether they will capture shots that are airworthy. “Cameras like this don’t get used all of the time. You can’t even guarantee that they will be used at all,” he said.

However, occasionally these POV camera setups can capture some amazing shots. “You may not put these types of cameras out for your garden-variety regular season game, but when you are dealing with something like the MSL final, you want to go out with all of your guns blazing and be ready for anything,” said Davies.

“That’s why we decided to put those corner cams in. Either they play a very minor role, or they end up being the star of the show. You never know.”

Fox Sports coverage of the MLS Cup begins on Fox and the Fox Sports app at 7:30 p.m. ET.