TVBE Dec P1 news_TVBE_Aug_P_news 09/12/2011 12:28 Page 1
Inside: OB Focus — America’s Cup, Rugby Four Nations, Premier League
TVBEUROPE www.tvbeurope.com
Europe’s television technology business magazine
DECEMBER 2011
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Race on for London 2012 Olympics Preview
Richard Dean looks at the current state of play in frequency regulation and broadcast spectrum demand, during what is clearly set to be one of the most bandwidthhungry events in history
The Sony Impact Award went to Jezza Neumann for Zimbabwe’s Forgotten Children, which concentrated on three desperate and courageous youngsters
A reward for bravery George Jarrett covers the recent Rory Peck Awards recognising broadcast journalists reporting from frontline danger zones around the world The Rory Peck Trust, now a global player with a footprint in 60 countries, confirmed its hugely improved reach to the recklessly brave brigade known as freelance news gatherers with an awards event that attracted entries from over 25 nationalities. The British share of credits was a significantly less dominant 30%, and it was stories from Libya that took the news and feature awards. The deaths of Tim Hetherington, Mohammed alNabbous and Anton Hammerl in that theatre of the Arab Spring amplified the achievements of Ahmed Bahaddou (Belgium) and Abdallah Omeish (America), and added huge
weight to comments by trust Chairman Michael Jermey. He said: “Freelancers are the most vulnerable in news gathering. So many cameramen and women have been killed in the course of their work. The great courage and initiative of freelancers is not in question, but without safety training, insurance, security and the other back up that staffers take for granted, what happens when things go wrong? “On a daily basis (our team) is in touch with a wide network of partners and contacts all over the world,” he added. “Some of these organisations lobby and others investigate. Within this network we have a special role. The Trust is the only one that is 100% dedicated to providing direct, practical help to freelancers and their families.” More details, page 6
When London’s bid for the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games in 2012 crossed the International Olympics Committee’s (IOC) finishing line on 6 July 2005, the mood within the UK contingent was ecstatic. London had beaten Paris, widely considered to be front-runner, by 54 to 50 votes in the fourth and final round of the IOC’s two-year search for a host nation in seven years’ time. Team UK delegates yelped and jumped for joy and partied late into the night at the dramatic announcement in Singapore, with many no doubt nursing a sore head in the morning. But arguably the biggest headache was reserved for frequency regulator Ofcom. Not only had the governmentbacked London 2012 bid given a cast-iron guarantee that the spectrum requirements of the entire ‘Olympic Family’ — organisers, athletes, broadcasters and sponsors — would be met in full, but that none of it would cost any of them a penny.
LOCOG, the BBC, host broadcaster Olympic Broadcasting Services and others have lobbied hard for access to 2,500-2,690MHz (‘the 2.6GHz band’) for wireless cameras, especially for airborne coverage of the Games
This last concession removes the facility to moderate demand with a pricing mechanism, but Ofcom is confident that professional etiquette will prevail. “The London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG) and Ofcom are working with the spectrum users to ensure that the spectrum is deployed as efficiently
Outside Broadcast Focus Part I Of course the industry is gearing up now for London 2012 — but there’s a lot more going on around Europe in the OB business! In our OB Focus Part I this issue, starting page 12, we bring you in-depth feature stories on technologies behind America’s Cup, Rugby League Four Nations, Horse Racing, Premier League, Volvo Ocean Race and much more. Allied to OB Focus, we’ve also launched our new Fast Turnaround conference and enewsletter — see page 6 for more. — Fergal Ringrose
Global Award Winner
To learn more, please visit www.broadcast.harris.com/Selenio.
as possible,” says Peter Bury, London 2012 Spectrum Policy director at Ofcom. “This will be in everyone’s interest, given the exceptionally high level of demand from programme makers and others.” The huge demand for London 2012 spectrum is driven by a heady cocktail of massive global media interest, a spectacular growth in the use of wireless technology including bandwidth-guzzling 20MHz HD links, and the sheer scale of an event covering multiple locations where in many cases signal traffic levels are already high. For example, the last time London hosted a Grand Prix, the broadcast media used up to 44 wireless cameras, but during the Olympics this could rise to more than 75. Similarly while peak demand for wireless microphones at Glastonbury reaches 85, Ofcom is planning for 400 at the Games — plus a range of other uses including Wi-Fi hotspots for visitors and in-ear monitors (IEM) for event participants. Some 20,000 members of the world’s media are expected to attend the games. Full story, page 24