Case Study: No seven-year tennis itch for Gearhouse Broadcast - February 2008  

International broadcast facilities company Gearhouse Broadcast has recently been awarded the Technical Facilities Contract for the ATP Masters Series for the next three years by ATP Media, continuing a relationship between the two parties that has lasted seven years. S&T takes a closer look to see what the deal will actually serve up….

Gearhouse already has a successful track record in the provision of facilities at large scale sports events such as the FIFA World Cup and Olympic Games through working with leading technical and production specialists. As part of its new multi-million pound contract with ATP Media, Gearhouse will provide a comprehensive package of crewing and technical facilities which will be delivered consistently across each venue. “We are completing revamping ATP Media’s technology for the ATP Masters Series 2008, which will take place from March to November,” explains Gearhouse’s managing director, Eamonn Dowdall, “through taking their standard definition system and turning it into a high definition system as well as managing the system for the workflow of media involved in producing their tennis events.”
In summary, Gearhouse will provide an integrated server-based tapeless system meaning that everyone will have access to the material while it is still recording, thus dramatically improving workflows. “Users will be able to take images and manipulate them while the tennis is taking place, which will help ATP Media both to revolutionise and offer a better service to their clients - the broadcasters,” adds Dowdall. “The whole set-up is going to be re-engineered to make it more compact, easier to transport and integrate. The design of the flyaway systems has been built to ensure additional facilities can be created with relative ease and cost effectively.” Also new will be a fibre ring audio system which reduces the cable used, the redundant path, improving the technical quality. “It will distribute signals easily to other broadcasters using a computerised system,” says Dowdall.
Flexible, multi-platform solutions have been the key to the renewal of this deal with the ATP, according to Dowdall. “What we are doing is making ATP Media a state-of-the-art, leading edge production company, offering their clients a full range of flexible solutions. It’s wrong to think that all broadcasters have the same needs or require the same pictures, or even that they require traditional pictures at all. Our facilities will also enable ATP Media to deliver to other platforms such as web-based services or any other technologies coming on board downstream.”

Systems technical specification

And so to the science. Gearhouse’s broadcast system for ATP Media will consist of four production control rooms, three audio control rooms, one central EVS/VTR area and a MCR/CAR where all the technical equipment will be housed. The solution Gearhouse is proposing will be capable of delivering the whole production in either HD or SDI standards. While operating in HD, Gearhouse will be able to deliver SDI signals to unilaterals who may require this video standard.
“I don’t believe that production budgets in sport are willing to pay high premiums for high definition yet,” explains Dowdall. “There’s still sensitivity for best solution versus the cost that’s willing to be paid.”
The heart of the system will be a Pro-Bel 256x256 HD/SDI video router. This will achieve maximum flexibility and will give various control rooms routable inputs to enable them to cut to any court feed or source. Production galleries will use Sony MVS vision mixers and all monitor galleries will utilise LCD screens with built in mnemonics and tallies. Gearhouse is supplying an EVS server system to improve the workflow and connectivity between the host broadcast, edit suites and unilateral facilities with the ability to share the same recorded media.

The logistics

So, what are the main challenges of servicing a series of events compared with a one-off major event such as a FIFA Word Cup? Dowdall explains: “It’s a logistical challenge because we are constantly on the road with this project apart from one period of downtime during the major European Grand Slams. Transporting all this equipment from venue to venue is a challenge as is managing all the crew. We also have to do a lot of training as we embrace this new technology with both our clients and our operators to ensure we know what the client wants to do with their content.”
In terms of actual kit, Gearhouse utilises flyaway rigs consisting of audio and video routing, distribution, communication, CCU and monitor gallery rigs. These rigs are configured prior to arriving on site and are then integrated with other key elements and installed by specialist project engineers.  Gearhouse’s range of services at the ATP events will include: Consistent set up and supply of broadcast equipment and facilities at every venue; Provision of core crew at every venue with full technical back up and support; Organisation of infrastructure including porta cabins to house equipment, office modules, power requirements, catering facilities; Logistics - movement of equipment and crew, including planning for back to back events; Accommodation and administrative support for all crew; Forward planning, site surveys and liaising with all venue managers throughout the tournament; Provision of any top up facilities and equipment to meet additional broadcaster requirements.

Busy times ahead

A year such as 2008, with many major sports events on the horizon, can put a strain on the resources of a company such as Gearhouse, so intensive planning has been essential, says Dowdall. He attributes the company’s successful relationship with the ATP to being consistent at all levels. “While some events are bigger than others, the client wants to see the same people at each venue and we do use a large element of core crew that travels around the world on this project. With the equipment, it’s somewhat similar - it’s a bespoke solution for the client’s requirements. It makes it easier for us to invest in the solution and understand the challenges that we have between preparing the equipment back in base compared with putting it together on site. We try and get that downtime as minimal as possible and reduce costs.”
Dowdall shares a general concern in the facilities industry that because so much is being spent by broadcasters on acquiring rights fees, often less is available to spend on production. “I don’t think that situation is going away anytime soon,” he explains. “Our advantage however is we’re not coming in as a guinea pig – the market has settled down for us and there have been a lot of improvements meaning that we can come in and offer a reliable, solid technology solution.”
But is reliable and solid technology enough? “There’s an expectation now within tennis due to the use of new technology such as Hawkeye, that the sport has to be covered in bigger and better ways,” says John Rowlinson, director of television at the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club, home of the Wimbledon Tennis Championship. “That’s OK if you are a Grand Slam such as Wimbledon, but not so affordable if you are a smaller or more niche tennis property. A big problem is deciding who should pay for what.”
When it comes to tennis in particular, high production values are essential because other sports and forms of entertainment are competing for an audience’s time and money, points out John Taylor, chairman of Sports Impact, a sports sponsorship agency. “Tennis is one of those sports where huge money goes to the top players in terms of prize funds and sponsorships. It goes without saying that better quality production will attract a larger TV audience, leading to bigger rights fees and commercial partnerships. Television audiences for tennis have been declining over recent years so the sport has to remember to move with the times,” Taylor adds.
But, although traditional consumption of tennis through television has been waning, and facilities companies such as Gearhouse continue to balance cost versus making a living, there are positive times ahead. Indeed, according to Betfair, the internet betting exchange, improvements in online technology have led to tennis becoming the third most popular sport globally with gamblers after horse racing and football. Now that’s a development Gearhouse might want to have its next punt on………

This feature also appears in the first edition of Sport Media Technology, the new quarterly supplement from SportBusiness International, edited by S&T Editor Rachael Church-Sanders, starting in March 2008. See www.sportbusiness.com for details of how to subscribe to SportBusiness International, the leading magazine for sports business professionals.

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