verall the
contribution
business
represents 20‐30%
of what GlobeCast
does. By
contribution we
mean contributing signals from an
event to a broadcaster ‐ mostly live
content from a sports or news event
‐ or distributing a world feed out to
the broadcasters that have the
rights to that event. Sports has the
most live content so within our
contribution business it probably
accounts for 60‐70%. Itʹs an area
where we have seen the most
growth over the last five years or so.
Sports is also important for us in
a wider context because it gives us
the opportunity to work on very
high profile events and to be
present at all points in the
broadcast chain: from production to
delivery, on the contribution side of
things, offering playout services
and OTT, and our standard
distribution as well. It also pushes
us from the technology point of
view because – particularly in
sports broadcasting — new
technologies get adopted quite
early on – for example the World
Cup in 2006 was a turning point for
HD production.
What do you offer typically?
There is no typical offer as every
event is quite different in scale and
requirements. Let’s first take the
example of the Confederations Cup
in Brazil. GlobeCast provided
satellite contribution between the
venues – in at least five different
stadiums – through to the IBC, the
International Broadcast Centre,
located in Belo Horizonte. Our
client for all of these services was
the host broadcaster. To provide
this service, we had to install 4.5m
C band antennas in each of the
venues, provide the compression
and monitoring equipment and
ensure that everything is fully
backed up in terms of both
redundant equipment and power
on the uplinks. In addition to those
on‐site services, we provided the
satellite space segment ‐ which we
bought in from a third party, in this
‘You can't delay the opening
ceremony', says Liz
McParland, GlobeCast's
Commercial Director for
Contribution. Whether it's the
World Cup or the Olympics, her
role is vital. It combines
coordinating resources with
global project/client
management to ensure that
signals from a live sports event
get to the broadcasters, right
on time. With the
Confederations Cup in Brazil
behind her, she has Sochi and
Rio in her sights – how
important is the sports
business for GlobeCast?
O
28
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ISSUE 2 2013
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THE CHANNEL
TEAMEVENT
