Sports TV Awards 2021 Finalist: Sky Virtual Production Suite by Sky Sports

Sky Sports, StudioCoast, SimplyLive, Grass Valley, LiveU, and Hyper launched a next generation production environment that supports remote working

Credit: Sky Sports (2021)

Launched just 10 days into the UK’s nationwide lockdown in March 2020, Sky Virtual Production Suite (Sky VPS) has been shortlisted in the ‘Outstanding Production Achievement – Innovation’ category at SVG Europe’s prestigious Sports TV Awards 2021.

Originally mapped out for completion years down the line, Sky Production Services and Sky Content, Technology & Innovation sprang into action to accelerate the development of the next generation VPS due to the global pandemic and the immediate need for safe and socially distant content production. Together with StudioCoast, SimplyLive, Grass Valley, LiveU, and Hyper, they designed VPS to be fully operational via technology and devices readily available at home – laptops, tablets, and phones – from the outset.

Sky VPS has been used on dozens of productions since then, including The Football Show, The Boxing Show, Solheim Cup, Grand Prix, and more. Ben Burdon, Studio Manager, Sky Production Services, said: “The accessibility of VPS will allow us to join together to make great content again wherever we are located and with whatever technology we have to hand.”

The winners of the SVG Europe Sports TV Awards 2021, sponsored by Canon, will be announced on Thursday 28 October at Chelsea F.C. during the Sport Production & Technology Summit 2021. Registration for both events is now open to members and sponsors here.