EVERYONE IN THE FAROE ISLANDS WAS KEEN TO PLAY THEIR PART
AROUND THE WORLD A solution was needed to broadcast from the Faroe Islands to a global audience
– something the Faroe Islands lacks. The terminal works with LEO satellites to deliver a reliable stream, comparable to that of a top-tier event. “The next step would be to get high-speed connectivity from something that fits in hand luggage,” says Kunhya, after detailing the logistical issues surrounding the broadcast. “We had to take the antenna to Heathrow and it kept getting bumped off flights. There are only a few planes to the Faroes every day, and the antenna arrived on the last one. It was really tight – and it wouldn’t have happened without DHL Global Forwarding.” ATLANTIC UNDERDOGS Despite the match ending in a 0-0 draw, supporters from around the world watched the unfolding action, both via traditional TV channels and VOD services like Paramount+. KÍ Klaksvík went on to beat Ferencváros on the latter’s home turf before returning to the Faroes to face – and ultimately defeat – BK Häcken from Sweden. The club used Open Broadcast Systems’ C-100 encoders for subsequent games, delivering live coverage over wired and 4G connections. “It’s remarkable for a team from a town of 5000 people to be beating national champions of other countries. The irony was that we sent the dish back, when actually it would have been useful for subsequent matches,” remarks Kunhya.
ones in a fixed location,” explains Kunhya. “Every three minutes, you need to have a clean handover. Otherwise there will be some kind of break-up or stuttering on the live video feed.” That said, Open Broadcast Systems had plenty of support on the ground. From the volunteer fire brigade installing a satellite terminal on the stadium’s roof, to Faroe-based Ø-Media encoding the signal. “It was a massive team effort,” enthuses Kunhya. “Everyone in the Faroe Islands was keen to play their part and help out.” RIGHT PLACE, RIGHT TIME Kunhya and his colleagues were waiting for the right moment to test this new satellite technology. The match between the Faroese and Hungarian teams offered just that. “I thought this game was a good opportunity,” he recounts. “It was going to lots of broadcasters around the world, and was a chance to do this in a real project, delivering a real sporting event. We offered it to Network Innovations, our OneWeb partner, a week before – and somewhat surprisingly, they said yes.” OneWeb connected its LEO satellites to its flat panel user terminal, the Kymeta Hawk u8. This can deliver low-latency streams with a download speed of 75Mbps and an upload speed of 15Mbps. The Kymeta is a plug-and-play solution, making it easy to install and operate without a satellite vehicle
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