With the Olympics seemingly set to begin next month after a long period of Covid-related uncertainty, a number of broadcasters and technology providers have announced details of production workflows to cover the delayed Games. These include NBC Olympics, a division of the NBC Sports Groups, which has selected MediaKind to provide video contribution and distribution solutions for its production of the Games of the XXXII Olympiad.
The announcement was made by Christopher Connolly, VP of Transmission Engineering and Operations at NBC Olympics, and MediaKind CEO Matt McConnell.
MediaKind will provide a range of its video processing and advanced modular receiver technologies to support NBC Olympics’ high quality video distribution to millions of viewers. MediaKind’s specialist engineers will also provide assistance through the installation of equipment and system set-up. The engineers will be present on-site 24/7 to offer multi-site support throughout the event.
“We are delighted to extend our long-standing partnership with NBC Olympics and to help support its coverage and production of the Olympic Games in Tokyo,” said McConnell. “The Olympic Games continue to captivate viewers all over the world and the enduring appeal of this prestigious live event underlines the critical importance of high-performing, ultra-reliable broadcast delivery. By providing our leading compression solutions and services, including our market-leading encoder and receiver technologies, NBC Olympics will benefit from a high-quality, satellite distribution solution that realises the immersive viewing expectations of today’s US audiences.”
“Based on MediaKind’s innovative solutions for the media industry, we are excited to once again partner with them for our production of the Olympic Games,” said Connolly. “With their partnership, we will be able maximize our resources to deliver the highest quality content to all platforms.”
MediaKind’s encoding solutions were most recently used by NBC Olympics for the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea. Prior to this, MediaKind supported NBC Olympics’ production of Turin 2006, Beijing 2008, Vancouver 2010, London 2012, Sochi 2014 and Rio 2016.