Sony's IPELA® Line is Top Pick of Professional Sports Teams
Sony's IPELA® line of Internet protocol (IP)-based communications technology is getting a lot of playing time in the professional sports world. Recently, both the National Football League (NFL) and National Basketball Association (NBA) used Sony's IPELA technology to provide broadcasting services during the live television coverage of each league's respective drafts by a major cable sports network.
During the NBA draft, for example, on-air personalities conducted interviews with team coaches, players and other key personnel located at 17 remote locations throughout the country using broadcast-quality IP-based technology.
This was done through a joint IP-based broadcasting solution that utilized a combination of Sony IPELA video conferencing systems and GlowPoint's video communication services.
NBA team representatives located at remote locations throughout the country connected to the GlowPoint network via Sony PCS-1 and PCS-G70 video communication systems located at the network's studios. The remote team locations used the Sony Event Server, which has been specially designed and configured for remote video communication-based content acquisition to bring a new level of versatility, spontaneity and convenience to IP-based video broadcasting.
"Sony is committed to providing top-quality, two-way communication equipment built to record and transmit high quality video and audio that meets the demanding requirements of live broadcast television," said Michael McCausland, vice president for visual communications at Sony Electronics.
Drafts aren't the only major sports application of IPELA technology. Recently, Sony announced an agreement with the NFL Network, the only television network dedicated to the NFL and the sport of football, to use an IPELA-based integrated IPbased video communication solution. The solution will be implemented across the NFL Network's footprint, including the 32 team locations, with installation completed in the summer of 2005.
"This solution is the most high-quality, reliable and cost-effective way for NFL Network to go live to any location at any time," said Peter Brickman, the NFL's senior director of broadcast operations and technology. "The power and reliability of IP-based broadcasting proved its value during the work NFL Network did with GlowPoint during last year's training camps. Deploying the Sony-GlowPoint solution is the natural next step and a great complement to our traditional broadcast tools."
The Sony-GlowPoint solution will be used to support NFL Network's signature show, NFL Total Access, during this summer's training camps and throughout the upcoming season by enabling live interviews with coaches and players to air via "Team Cam."
"NFL Network's use of the Sony-GlowPoint IP-based broadcast solution is a testament to the strength of the offering," said Michael McCausland, vice president of Sony Electronics' Visual Communications division. "This is the only complete solution, combining our hardware with GlowPoint's applications and services, which simplifies implementation and enables customers to start enjoying the benefits of video in a matter of weeks."
