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STADIUMS
behind what’s actually happening in the contest itself. The key at present is the telco provider. A fully connected ‘5G stadium’ ensures that: (a) images can be transferred directly from live production facilities to fans’ phones; and (b) new possibilities arise for never-before-seen camera angles and AR-driven smartphone apps. The main advantage of 5G compared to 4G is capacity; the network’s best use cases are in high-data-demand hotspots such as airports, train stations and sports
venues. As general data demands rise, with the amount consumed per customer going up year-on-year, the capacity of 5G will also increase over its lifetime. Within the sports venue, 5G cameras can be placed in areas inaccessible to manned, wired equipment – such as near the goal netting, on walkways at the top of the stadium, the tunnel from the dressing rooms to the field, and beside team benches. Network slicing is a unique feature of 5G, offering increased
reliability for live production, especially in congested areas. Using this, you can effectively reserve a piece of the 5G spectrum, so your devices won’t compete with anyone else for bandwidth in that slice. Such isolation is impossible when data traffic is on a contended network like 4G or Wi-Fi. This becomes a stumbling block in densely populated areas, where thousands may be using the same phone or cell tower at the same time. 5G also offers the potential of ‘liberated’ production, using ultra low-latency transport. Now, the reality of 5G cameras with vision mixing and live production in the cloud is enabled, with just a laptop. Fewer crew members need to be at the stadium, with traditional production operated by remote teams, across multiple locations. Needless to say, reducing the air, road and rail travel significantly cuts the carbon footprint of broadcasters and content producers.
Action stations: A peek behind the curtain of Vizrt’s set-up
“WITHIN THE VENUE, 5G CAMERAS CAN GO IN AREAS INACCESSIBLE TOMANNED, WIRED EQUIPMENT – SUCH AS NEAR THE GOAL NETTING AND BESIDE TEAMBENCHES”
FEED:XTREME MAY/JUNE 2022
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