ALSD International 2019
The 2019 edition of ALSD International welcomed more than 270 high-ranking, decision-makers from clubs & teams, stadia & arenas, sports & entertainment venues, leagues & federations, architecture, design, engineering & fit-out firms, as well as producers & suppliers.
Attendees began their experience with a very special behind-the-scenes tour of 3Arena, one of the Top 10 busiest arenas in the world, followed by an Opening Luncheon at Aviva Stadium, the joint home of the IRFU and FAI, where Real Mallorca CEO, Maheta Molango, gave a Keynote discussing how the newly-promoted LaLiga side has transformed itself and its fortunes both on and off the pitch.
On return to the event’s host venue, Croke Park - the 82,300-seat home of the GAA and the third largest stadium in Europe - the conference got underway, kicked off with a Welcome Speech by MC, Nicholas Brice of 360 Degree Vision, followed by a session entitled “Renovate with Success: The ROI of Venue Renovations” and a detailed “State of the Industry” presentation by Rob Hunden of Hunden Strategic Partners (HSP); which assessed more than 400 sports facilities worldwide, and highlighted how there are more than 30 major new stadiums predicted to open in the 2020’s, with US$5bn+ in ‘currently underway projects’.
Other conference sessions saw experts discuss “Growing the Revenue Stream”, “A Collaborative Approach to the New Tottenham Hotspur Stadium”, “Re-defining Premium Experiences at Wembley Stadium through Design”, “The Customer Experience & The Role of Technology” and “Giving Up Cash with RSC Anderlecht: Sponsored by PlayPass”.
Day 1 was rounded off in style with an Evening Networking Reception, held in the Exhibition Hall, which gave attendees the opportunity to meet with the exhibitors, speakers, sponsors and other delegates, and even enjoy a spot of Irish dancing, along with a few pints of Guinness.
Day 2 kicked off with a Networking Breakfast and behind-the-scenes tour of Croke Park, before the conference re-commenced with an opening session from Nicholas Brice, who took attendees through the key trends and leadership practices driving the hospitality performance at Brighton & Hove Albion’s American Express Community Stadium and the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium – experiences that are winning a raft of industry awards and top of the league customer experience performance.
This was followed by a Keynote from Marshall Glickman, CEO of G2 Strategic, who discussed adapting US-inspired business practices & fan engagement strategies to European cultural, historic & economic realities; during which he referenced his work with EuroLeague Basketball and LaLiga.
Other Day 2 sessions included: “Setting Up Your Premium Marketplace”; “The High Tech, High Touch Venue”; “Creating a Menu that Separates the Premium Customer from General Admission”; “Innovations in Payment & the Impact on Stadia sponsored by KAPPTURE”; “Top Successes in Sponsorship Activation”; “The Future of Premium Seating”; “The Big Event: How to Truly Maximise Your Value” and “Assessing Innovation: What's Right for Your Venue”.
Overall, attendees benefitted from not only a comprehensive conference program, but also an exhibition hall showcasing the latest innovations, products, technologies and solutions, as well as unrivalled opportunities to network, learn and do business, not least due to the one-on-one meetings ALSD International staff arranged ahead of the event.
The aim moving forward is to transform ALSD International from a once-a-year event to a 365 community, allowing members to knowledge-share, pose questions, advertise RFP's, job news, share venue development news, enjoy informal get-togethers, etc. Filmed roundtables and webinars, as well as video interviews with members, will all be conducted throughout the year, ensuring members are kept abreast of the latest trends and developments within the Premium Seat and Hospitality sector.
Event leaders chart their course together at Host City 2019
The need to work closer together to meet the challenges of an ever-evolving events industry was one of the key messages to emerge from the sixth Host City conference and exhibition.
300 delegates and 30 exhibitors from all around the world gathered in Glasgow over two days to hear a range of high-profile speakers from the fields of sport, culture, business and medicine deliver discussion and debate around the theme “Innovate; Reformulate; Co-Create”.
Speakers tackled a vast array of different topics including the drive for sustainability, community engagement, creating partnerships, addressing equality imbalance and adapting events to meet the needs of the digital era.
In her keynote address, Dame Louise Martin DBE, President, of the Commonwealth Games Federation, underlined how vital it has become for different parties to co-create and reformulate to deliver the best events possible.
She said: “Now more than ever, it is essential for rights holders and federations to collaborate with host city partners and stakeholders to develop sustainable, impactful, world-class and community-relevant events that engage and benefit the widest possible audience.
“I feel extremely optimistic about the future of Commonwealth Sport. There is still much to be done but we are very confident, although never complacent, about the positive impact and huge success that can be derived from Birmingham 2022 and beyond.
“The three pillars of this conference – Innovate, Reformulate, Cocreate – map almost exactly to three of our four strategic objectives. The one not covered is our final pillar in the strategic plan: our collective impact. That fundamentally drives our vision.
“Let’s make sure we widen the conversation beyond delivery and collaboration to our wider purpose. Let’s think not just about our models but our meaning.”
One of the best examples of co-creation in event planning was the 2018 European Championships co-hosted by Berlin and Glasgow.
Stefan Kuerten, Executive Director at Eurovision Sport, gave some insight into the process.
He said: “We had to do something for European sport. There was a risk in a few sports of the level of interest in their European Championships going down. So we put seven of them together to create a new event.
“We looked at cities that might be interested and two stood out: Glasgow and Berlin. They both had the same complaints and questions about sharing the event. But they understood that sharing was better as it helped reduce the cost. Both cities discovered that one plus one didn’t make two but three.”
Sven Bossu, Head of Innovation, ESTRO (European Society for Radiotherapy & Oncology), revealed that planning medical events also requires co-operation with others and the need to engage with the local community.
He explained: “Our yearly congress welcomes 6500 people for four days. But we had to ask if it was having a positive impact on patients in that region. And the answer was no. We couldn’t end our annual congress, but we wanted to reinvent the process for selecting a host city.
“Of course, we wanted it have all the functional things we needed for a conference. But we also wanted to integrate a project that could be shaped and managed to have an impact on cancer patients in that region.”
Emily Blitz, Director of Conferences of the International AIDS Society, added: “Ours is a scientific conference. But because of the nature of HIV it goes beyond scientists to the people most affected.
“At our conference we also have an exhibition and programme that’s open to the local community. It means we can leave a little bit of the experience behind. It makes it more of a global village where research meets the real world.”
Frederik Nemeth, Chief Financial Officer of the Roskilde Festival Group, revealed how events must start to reflect the wishes of a more climate-conscious younger audience or pay the ultimate price.
He said: “The average person coming to our festival is 24 years old and they want to change the world and have no carbon emissions.
“And if we don’t fix that problem the festival will close within the next 10 years. The people won’t come to our event. So we need to address that issue.”
Mandy Keegan, Director of Media Operations at Expo 2020 Dubai, underscored the importance of varying an event’s focus for each of its target markets.
She said: “The biggest issue facing major events today is how you engage with such a wide variety of people around the world. At Expo 2020 Dubai we have so many things happening over the six months of the event. We need to tell our story to so many different types of people. We’re expecting 150000 visitors every day and we need to make it relevant to all of them.”
Markus Stenger, Managing Director of DFB EURO 2024, spoke about the important of co-creating the tournament in conjunction with different parties.
He said: “Everyone is aware that Germany is able to host big major events with infrastructure. But if we want to be successful, we have to deliver more. We’ve really focused on talking to stakeholders but also on listening. What are their demands, hopes and issues? We want to make it a tournament that brings out the best in everyone with transparency, integrity and sustainability.”
Paul Bush OBE, Director of Events at VisitScotland, opened the conference with a keynote speech on his key takeaways from the world of sport in 2019.
He said: “Pay parity for me remains a topical subject in the events world. While tennis may have parity, the majority of other areas in our industry do not. At a recent men’s golf event in the USA the winner earned $1.5m. On the same weekend, at a European women’s tour event the winner got 23,000 Euros. Even here at the home of golf we have some work to do.
“All events require contingency planning but 2019 for me has raised a number of interesting scenarios that should require further consideration. The destruction and tragic loss of life caused by Typhoon Hagibis during the Rugby World Cup left many wanting, exposed and acting in haste.
“In my personal view, it lacked a detailed contingency plan that the event, sport, athletes, media, and supporters should have been afforded.”
Ian Reid, chief executive of the organising committee, spoke about the need to make the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games relevant to the area’s demographics.
He said: “We worked closely with the Federation to create a product that we hope will resonate with the people of the West Midlands. We are really focusing on youth, as Birmingham is the youngest city in Europe.
“So, our sports programme will have beach volleyball and three-on-three basketball, while we want to introduce city centre hubs that work around that with DJs and live site programmes to resonate with a demographic that perhaps hasn’t always engaged with the Commonwealth’s sports programme in the past.”
Dr Bridget McConnell CBE, chief executive of Glasgow Life, also emphasised the need to take local communities with you on the journey that is event planning.
She said: “In the next couple of weeks Glasgow will be awarded the accolade of the world’s top city for festivals and events. And it’s out already that we will be European Capital of Sport in 2023. That’s recognition of Glasgow seeing culture, sport and events as a way to regenerate the city.
“But I think this conference has to be aware of the very real challenges facing cities like Glasgow which is pressures on public funding for other priorities such as social care and education. The losers will often be the kinds of services like the ones we are delivering.”
David Lappartient, President, Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) spoke about the need to co-create to deliver the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships in Glasgow.
“Having strong partnerships is fundamental. If you want to be a huge success everyone has to be on board. And we have been working together with Glasgow to really co-create this.
“Cycling has reacted well to this new vision. We have disciplines that are totally different. But all of them use a bicycle and they are proud to be part of the same event.”
David de Behr, Head of Sales at Aggreko Event Services, spoke about the possibility of co-creating events that provide sustainability solution.
“The Solheim Cup was a huge success and that will change dynamics in the future. Do you bring events together to be sustainable? Could you have the Ryder Cup and Solheim Cup at the same time and venue? Men’s and Women’s World Cup also? That is something to think about if you want to be sustainable.”
Sarah Lewis OBE, Secretary General of the International Ski Federation (FIS) and the Association of Winter Olympic International Federations (AIOWF), said: “From the context of co-creation in the six FIS ski and snowboard disciplines which are on the Olympic Winter Games programme, they have diverse characteristics and wide range of cities, resorts and venues.
“Co-creation and partnerships are different depending on locations. So the model can’t be one size fits all. You have to find different ways of working together to achieve successful events. That's the key.”
Sir Craig Reedie GBE, Member of the International Olympic Committee, gave a heart-warming answer to the question of legacy definition.
“At London 2012, we rebuilt a scene of industrial devastation and turned it into a magical venue. Figures produced six months ago showed that within the six boroughs surrounding the London Stadium since the end of the Olympic Games there have been 125,000 new jobs. I don’t know what the definition of legacy is but that’s pretty high in my book.
“And there is supposed to be another 135,000 more jobs planned by 2030. So, I’m sure when the IOC get their minds around that they’ll be happy with that.”
www.hostcity.com
Absen Steals the Show at Fête des Vignerons with the World’s Largest LED Floor
An event like no other, the Fête des Vignerons is held once every 20 years at a temporary stadium at the edge of Lake Geneva. The celebration, which features a vast troupe of performers donning elaborate costumes, as well as animals and vehicles, is held every day for a month to honour the winegrowers of the region, which stretches from Lavaux to Chablais in Switzerland.
This year’s event also received a technological boost in the form of a gargantuan LED floor from Absen subsidiary VISS Display, provided by rental house, Alabama.
As two decades have passed since the last Fête took place, the 200-strong technical team had to ensure that the 2019 edition lived up to expectations, as well as demonstrating the best of the last 20 years in live event technology.
After the installation of the first technical elements in May 2019, the project evolved for budgetary reasons as well as from a creative perspective to guarantee it was in line with the vision of artistic director, Daniele Finzi Pasca - the designer behind the Olympic Games opening and closing ceremonies in Turin and Sochi as well as some Cirque du Soleil productions. To allow the technical team to understand the key themes and narrative, workshops were carried out alongside event organiser, Confrérie des Vignerons.
The product was co-developed with Alabama, which supplied all video equipment for the arena. As well as covering almost the entire floor area with outdoor LED, the company supplied 150 sqm of Absen AT5 Pro outdoor LED screens in the form of columns at the top of four stages; provided a visual technical control system based around Barco’s E2 system and several Smode media servers; and installed a camera system and return monitoring to ensure a smooth running show was delivered to all screens.
Headed up by Alabama’s CEO and project manager for the Fête des Vignerons, Dominique Lassarat, the process of developing the product involved creating LED technology that would guarantee images could be clearly seen even during performances taking place in daylight as well as offer controlled electricity consumption.
“A horse managed to crack the concrete floor around the edge of the LED floor which stayed intact. This really shows how durable the product is.”
Around the edge of the stadium, 200 panels of the Altair AT5 series - Absen’s 5.5mm, 4,500 nits ultra-lightweight touring LED – displayed content which complemented or mirrored the visuals on the floor or close-ups of performers. The product was selected in part due to its Common Cathode Technology which requires low power, offers low heat dissipation, high refresh rates and reduces pixel failure. Alabama worked alongside Absen once again during the R&D stages to ensure it was strong and light and helped develop a back frame to speed up rigging.
Daktronics Selected by Alerus Center to Upgrade Marquee
Daktronics has continued a partnership with Alerus Center to design, manufacture and install eight new LED displays. Four new marquee and exterior displays along with four new concourse displays were installed to connect with passersby and patrons inside the facility.
“The new video boards look fantastic,” said Spectra’s Danny Melise, assistant general manager of Alerus Center. “We are always looking for ways to enhance the customer experience here at Alerus Center so the ability to customize our concourse displays and even have a live feed of the University of North Dakota football games displayed in the middle is something our fans can enjoy.”
Outside the venue, two billboards featuring 10-millimeter line spacing were installed. Each measures 11 feet high by 35 feet wide. Additionally, two marquee displays featuring 8-millimeter line spacing were installed on the exterior of the building. Each measures 11 feet high by 21.5 feet high. These four displays appeal to those passing by and arriving at the venue to share upcoming events, sponsorships and other special messages.
“Daktronics appreciates the opportunity to once again partner with the Alerus Center and the City of Grand Forks on these new displays,” said Matt Warnke, Daktronics sales representative. “The image quality for these exterior and interior displays once again shows Daktronics' ability to provide state-of-the-art display technology with unmatched image quality. These new displays will offer the facility to digitally market their building and events in a variety of ways.
RCF Arena Reggio Emilia The Largest Outdoor Venue in Italy
With 100,000 seats, the RCF Arena is said to be the largest outdoor arena in Italy. It was created in the area already known as Campovolo and will be ready and operational by September 2020. The venue will allow for a capacity of 10,000 to 100,000 people, with a raked audience floor of 5% to ensure optimal visibility and acoustics. The stage is placed in the lower part of the Arena in a central position and with a maximum viewing angle of 110° - optimal value to allow the public good visibility throughout the entire Arena.
“RCF was born in 1949 in Reggio Emilia. From here we brought the excellence of Italian sound throughout the globe and today we are among the major players in the market", said Arturo Vicari, CEO of RCF Group. “Giving our name to RCF Arena is a source of pride for us, but also a mission and a commitment. We have a strong bond with this region and we intend to treat it in the best possible way. With this wonderful project, we will bring our innovation and technology to our back yard, in Reggio Emilia.” It is a prestigious signature that fully reveals RCF's devotion and commitment in the continuous search for sound quality in this new Music Valley.
"RCF audio systems have amplified the music of national and international artists in every corner of the globe, and in some wonderful arenas," continues Vicari. "The RCF sound is based on the expertise and reliability of a company made up of people and passion. We have just turned 70 and we still want to play.”
The RCF Arena is equipped with the most modern technologies for the best concert performance. It will also include an RCF TT + permanently installed audio system, the flagship line of RCF audio systems for live events, with 10 additional distributed systems (delay towers) in fixed steel structures, also used as supports for video/lighting equipment. At the same time, the orientation of the system will be optimized to ensure the lowest noise impact towards the inhabited areas of the city.
ChyronHego Launches Dynamic Sports Venues Solution with Dedicated Sales Team
ChyronHego have announced the formation of a new sports venue team for North America comprising senior industry veterans from stadium and venue production, broadcasting, and production backgrounds, offering customers a collective 60-plus years of in-stadium production experience.
"We're very excited to welcome our new sports venue experts to the ChyronHego team," said ChyronHego President Ariel Garcia. "Their extensive customer-centric experience working within sports venue production and broadcasting markets will accelerate the delivery and deployment by our customers of advanced venues solutions that transform the in-stadium experience and boosting fan engagement."
ChyronHego Venue Team
Doug Price - Director, Venue Sales
Doug's experience in venue production gives him the expertise to address the most complex system challenges. Prior to joining ChyronHego, Price helped shape Avid's sports portfolio, allowing teams to highlight specific players, programs, and community work for venues via broadcast.
Jennifer Paonessa - National Account Executive, Sports Venues
Coming from Learfield IMG, Jennifer began her career in sports with the ANC client services team. Assisting in the growth of the LED business for professional sports teams including the Indiana Pacers and Seattle Mariners, she brings a wealth of in-depth industry knowledge which, when paired with her broadcasting, sponsorship, marketing, and in-venue technology experience, allows her to anticipate customer needs — whether in overall game production, fan engagement, revenue opportunities, or workflow efficiency.
John Greer - System Integration Engineer
John's expertise in venue production helps production teams unlock the true capabilities of ChyronHego's Click Effects PRIME arena graphics solution. His 25 years of experience in live and post-production video, television, and graphic animation includes three years with the Tennessee Titans preparing game day video elements, editing broadcast programs and spots, and leading file management.
Aungelina Taglia - Product Specialist
Recipient of the IDEA 2019 Inspire the Passion award, Augelina joins ChyronHego's venue team with standout experience in video production and editing. Having worked with pro-league and college teams alike, Augelina has held key video roles with Sporting Kansas City, the University of Kansas, and the Kansas City Royals. Her technical expertise will be invaluable for customers exploring the potential of ChyronHego's evolving venues ecosystem.
ChyronHego's comprehensive new venues solution features the company's flagship sports graphics and analysis products, including Paint for illustrated replays and Virtual Placement for data-driven virtual graphics. These tools empower top-notch game day productions powered by TRACAB, the Emmy Award-winning, camera-based player tracking system, and Click Effects PRIME, the single-seat content control and delivery system.
VIP Speakers to Kick Off Host City 2019 Talks
VIP speakers will kick off the opening talks at Host City 2019 in Glasgow on 26-27 November with conversations that explore new paradigms of how rights holders, cities and brands are working together to create exciting events, and which areas of the major events sector are ripe for disruption through creative new partnerships.
Co-creation is also a big discussion point as a way of taking all stakeholders in major events with you. These eminent speakers will share invaluable insights into creative leadership and how to promote a culture of innovation and collaboration while staying ahead of the competition.
The opening conversations will be led by conference Chair: Paul Bush OBE, Director of Events, VisitScotland
joined by: Sarah Lewis OBE, Secretary General of the International Ski Federation (FIS) and the Association of Winter Olympic International Federations (AIOWF), Ian Reid, CEO, Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games Organising Committee, Markus Stenger, Managing Director, DFB EURO 2024, Antonio Arimany, Secretary General, International Triathlon Union.
Paul Bush said: “I’m delighted to be chairing such an esteemed panel of speakers for the opening conversation of this year Host City conference. We operate in a dynamic and ever-changing world and as an industry we need to be agile, smart and brave to deliver meaningful major events for all. By putting collaboration and co-creation at the heart of the event delivery model, we can ensure that real transformational change, both socially and economically is delivered for everyone.”
Sarah Lewis said: “FIS and the International Winter Sports Federations are constantly endeavouring to innovate and evolve our event properties. Partnerships with other stakeholders is a key component of our event strategy. I look forward to exploring these themes from the different perspectives of cities, sports and business at Host City, which is always a valuable opportunity for the different organisation and entities involved with events to learn and exchange amongst each other.”
Ian Reid said: “I’m really pleased to be invited to be part of Host City 2019 and I’m looking forward to talking to attendees about the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, an event which is being organised by a group of partners, who have all come together to jointly create what will be the biggest sports and culture event ever to be staged in Birmingham and the West Midlands region.”
Markus Stenger commented: “With the UEFA EURO 2024 we want to organize a EURO for everyone. We want everyone to get involved and participate for the good of the community.”
Antonio Arimany said: “I’m very happy to be able to attend and honoured to have been asked to speak at the event. We have seen time and time again that working closely with cities brings enormous mutual benefits and that is the message that I hope will be underpinning the conference.”
Host City is delivered with support from EventScotland, its primary Supporting Partner
UK Sports & Venues Summit Limited Ticket Offer
The UK Sports & Venues Summit brings greater focus to activities in the UK: focusing on venue development and support requirements.
With a number of upcoming major sports events taking place in the UK, including the UEFA Euros semi-finals, and finals 2020; Rugby League World Cup 2021 and the Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham, this is a unique opportunity for UK Sports and Venues to share knowledge and challenges with peers and suppliers.
To secure your discount, email fguerrini@majoreventsint.com and include the code: MEIUK15 with your telephone number.
For more info on the programme and speaker line-up visit: https://meievents.eventsair.com/uk-sports-venues-summit-19/
The UK Sports & Venues Summit focuses on past lessons learnt, present challenges that venues face, and future opportunities from upcoming UK sporting events. Below is our programme for the day:
Thought Leadership Panel
The strategic intent for the UK and wider plans for hosting the upcoming Commonwealth Games 2022
The Challenges Faced by Sporting Venues
Understanding the challenges of modern sports venues and how to overcome them
Sector Workshops & Open Discussion
Shared learning across various sectors
Games Organisers
Briefings on the Pink Guide, Sustainability & Shared Experiences on current procurement practices and Key Trends for the future
Lessons from Past Events & Overview of Future UK Sporting Events
A view to the future: Organisers and Governing Bodies will discuss their current plans and opportunities to partner and support
Growth of US Sports in the UK
Discussion on the opportunities and threats provided by the North American invasion
www.majoreventsinternational.com
Supponor and FC Barcelona strike deal to provide Virtual Advertising during LaLiga home games
Supponor, the global leader in virtual advertising technology within live tier 1 sports, is delighted to announce the signing of a long-term agreement with FC Barcelona to supply their virtual advertising technology at all LaLiga home games, starting in the 2019/2020 season.
Supponor’s virtual advertising technology increases the availability, relevance and value of pitch-side LED boards by creating new, regionalized inventory in the live international broadcast feeds. Advertising seen on these boards will be different to that seen by fans watching in Camp Nou or viewing the domestic broadcast coverage. The technology, therefore, allows global sponsors to tailor their brand messages for different LaLiga audiences around the world, or for new sponsors to target their most relevant LaLiga audience watching live broadcasts from FC Barcelona games.
After 5 years of commercial deployment in LaLiga focusing on the production of key away matches of the leading clubs, including FC Barcelona, Supponor will now also enable virtual advertising on FC Barcelona home matches. This will allow Barça’s fans and club partners to engage in new and innovative ways of communicating during live matches.
James B Gambrell, CEO, Supponor said: “After intensely researching and developing our technology for the past 15 years it is now proven and commercially deployed with many leading clubs, leagues and federations. As one of the most influential clubs in world football, we are delighted to be part of FC Barcelona’s rapidly growing international reach as Barca continues to consolidate its brand positioning in key international markets. It is set to achieve its historic goal of exceeding €1B in annual revenues at the same time as joining our growing roster of clients.”
Esports Stadium Arlington Integrates TSL Products’ Advanced Control System
Esports Stadium Arlington in Texas needed to establish a broadcast workflow suitable for its modern, 100,000-square-foot event space. The stadium’s integrator suggested adding TSL Products’ advanced control system into the facility’s workflow to achieve a seamless, universal broadcast control surface.
“We needed an advanced and user-friendly system to transition between live hosts and various player cameras to help organize who should be live at each point of the event,” said Corey Dunn, VP of Broadcast for the stadium. “Operating with TSL’s advanced control system benefits both the production crew and on-camera talent. From the hosts at the desk transitioning from camera-to-camera to our production crew knowing who is live and when – the integration of TSL into our workflow doesn’t just impact camera operators, but the entire production.”
The stadium uses TSL Products’ advanced control to significantly improve its workflow, especially with the multitude of camera angles required in esports productions. In addition to the sheer volume of inputs and potential places that the technical director needs to locate and select for preview/program, the fast-paced and ever-changing “action movie” nature of the environment also lends itself to a dedicated advanced control system. Additionally, many Esports workflows require interfacing a bevy of both traditional broadcast as well as IT and COTS equipment to run properly. Using Virtual Panel Interfaces, the stadium can create an easily configurable process to customize these operations with intuitive, drag-and-drop controls.
“TSL helped solve our biggest challenge: integrating the many different types of equipment and technology we have at the facility,” said Corey. “The system provided us with the opportunity to put on smooth shows on a consistent basis. Our integrator helped us make the best possible selection for the facility, and TSL continues to deliver.”
TSL’s intuitive control interface enables users to establish seamless broadcast communication on a single, unified layer. The system was initially built as a tally system, and therefore had to be independent, universal, configurable and infinitely scalable. With over 2,000 installations worldwide, TSL can now manage complex control tasks, such as router control, studio failover and delegation. With TSL, customers can achieve interoperability between equipment routed through analog, IP or hybrid networks, regardless of differing manufacturers and format specifications. TSL’s Tallyman control system is a globally trusted and road-tested broadcast production control solution that bridges the gap between IP framework components and any broadcast or live presentation technical equipment.
“In traditional sports, the production has gameplay cameras - our gameplay cameras are our in-game observers,” added Corey. “This could be a console, PC and even a mobile observer. We even have tally lights for our observers. TSL has allowed us to expand our storytelling capabilities with its ability to control and interface with third-party devices, which in this case is mainly Grass Valley cameras and multi-viewers.”
For Esports applications, it’s important for the observer to have an advanced tally and control system because its helps to tie in the entire production ecosystem. Esports productions are very similar to traditional sports, but the potential for exponentially more inputs and sources to choose from in the production control room creates an even greater need for advanced control. In addition, there is an additional workflow challenge when working with game servers and video game consoles acting as inputs. Advanced control and tally systems, such as TSL’s solutions, can help bridge the gap for production personnel in order to achieve a smooth broadcast or live stream.
At 100,000 square-feet, Esports Stadium Arlington is the largest dedicated esports facility in North America. The facility serves as a turnkey solution for esports events and productions and was built to serve the unique needs and demands of the esports community. Recent events held at the facility include Esports Championship Series – Season 6, the Super Smash Bros. ULTIMATE regional tournament, the 2018 Collegiate Rocket League National Championship and the Guns of Boom Pro Series – Season 2.