EURO 2016 broadcasters rely on VIDI for signal planning and distribution
The current European football championship in France features a gigantic media presence. Sports reporters are reporting remotely from the stadiums, team headquarters, temporary TV studies, and many other locations around France at all times of day and to all parts of the world.
This benefits all-live reporting even if it is not apparent to audiences at home. Large rights-holding TV stations from several European countries rely on expertise and international experience from VIDI engineers for coordination and technology in the unilateral signal distribution of live reports.
Is Mustafi playing now or is it Hummels? Is Schweinsteiger continuing his comeback? German soccer fans can find out live and first-hand about all the most important stories with help from VIDI Technologies.
The VIDI teams were on the road across Europe well ahead of the tournament to work with various partners to set up the required technology — for example in Evian-les-Bains on Lake Geneva, where the team headquarters for the German national men’s soccer team is located.
Additional technology was set up in Paris, Vienna, Mallemort, London, and Mainz. All connections were established on-schedule and were available to the broadcasters right on time to start their on-site reporting. The experienced VIDI technology team working under Jürgen Schwinge, Rainer Bernius and Tilman Oldelehr was responsible for all technical planning, engineering, and commissioning of connections. Overall project management, including contract negotiations with rightsholders and sub-suppliers of VIDI, was handled by Robert Oszvald.
Signal paths for German rights holders ARD and ZDF: provision of 2 x 10 GB/s between the International Broadcasting Centre (IBC) in Paris and Mainz. VIDI also provided 2 x 1 GB/s between the team headquarters on Lake Geneva and the IBC in Paris.
For Austrian broadcaster ORF, the following signal paths were planned and technically implemented in cooperation with partner ORS: connection with 2 x 1 GB/s between the IBC in Paris and the ORF headquarters in Vienna. VIDI provides ORF with the set-up for transporting all match signals from the IBC in Paris to the ORF master control room (MCR) in Vienna. Individual match signals are likewise routed for broadcast on ATV via a direct connection on the existing network in Austria over the MD8000 nodes to ATV in Vienna.
The configuration and hardware set-up for video and audio data adaption was performed at all signal terminals. Modular media link MD8000 frames were used for transmission of HD H.264 compressed video, STM-1 data lines for commentator audio, and GbE data lines for data exchange, file transfer, and intercom.
The VIDI proprietary network management system VIDI NMS was used to manage the entire network. The system takes care of the complete monitoring and switching of all signals, and is permanently available to ORF and VIDI in the corresponding control rooms.
For a large British broadcasting institution, VIDI provided the hardware for video and audio data adaption and set-up of equipment at locations of the Paris TV studio Champs de Mars, Paris IBS and in London, working together with a national partner.