NBC to Utilize Sony Broadcast & Production Equipment For 2016 Olympic Games in Rio

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One of the most delightful things about attending CES is that Sony has the ability to show off sporting events like the World Cup and Olympics in glorious, uncompressed 4K. 4K over the airwaves is already next to non-existent and when you can get it, be it from satellite or streaming services, chances are that it’s gone through multiple layers of compression before it ever hits your screen. But when you’re at CES, Sony can just bring you that 4K content in the most pure way possible and boy does it dazzle. Not so coincidentally, all that footage is captured on various professional Sony cameras and other related production equipment and the 2016 Olympic games in Rio won’t be any different.

NBC Olympics crews will use more than 100 Sony cameras to capture footage at event venues and record athlete arrivals, interviews, press conferences and other assignments that require studio and portable recording and capture. NBC Olympics will also use Sony’s HDC-4300 4K high frame rate camera system for HD replays and the PWS-4500 XAVC server to capture and store high speed HD content from the HDC-4300.

Hopefully one day soon we’ll have access to all the beautiful footage that’s captured via these Sony cameras because a sporting event in beautiful 4K and a proper sound system is like nothing you’ve ever witnessed before. Unless it’s golf – then it’s just people wacking away at a ball every 30 minutes. After the jump, the full breakdown of Sony gear used in this year’s Olympic games.

PARK RIDGE, N.J., April 20, 2016 – Sony is providing HD production technology to NBC Olympics, a division of the NBC Sports Group, for its production of the Games of the XXXI Olympiad, which take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, August 5 – August 21.

NBC Olympics crews will use more than 100 Sony cameras to capture footage at event venues and record athlete arrivals, interviews, press conferences and other assignments that require studio and portable recording and capture. NBC Olympics will also use Sony’s HDC-4300 4K high frame rate camera system for HD replays and the PWS-4500 XAVC server to capture and store high speed HD content from the HDC-4300.

NBC will use several of Sony’s MVS production switcher models – including the MVS-7000X series — to handle feeds from each sports venue to the compound within the International Broadcast Center, and also to originate HD cable coverage on its various networks.

Hundreds of Sony professional monitors, a combination of its professional LCD video production and public displays and hundreds of the TRIMASTER EL OLED monitors (BVM and PVM series) will be used for critical evaluation.

In each new Olympics we are challenged to stay ahead of the curve and offer the best possible images to our viewers, and the most production firepower and flexibility to our production teams, said David Mazza, CTO & SVP of Engineering, NBC Olympics. Sony is always rolling out new production gear that ultimately impacts the viewing experience in the home, and this year will be no exception.

To keep everything running smoothly until the Closing Ceremony, Sony’s Professional Services Group is deploying an extensive network of resources to provide 24/7 support for all broadcasting equipment and coverage. Sony’s Systems Solutions team and its Project Management Office has once again been selected to help integrate the NBC Olympics production compound and studio within the International Broadcast Center in Rio.

The equipment we will have on the ground in Rio, from our HD production technology to our newest 4K cameras for crisp replays, is the perfect combination of technology to meet the production requirements and deliver an outstanding telecast, said Alec Shapiro, president of Sony Electronics’ Professional Solutions Americas group

Discuss:

Have you ever had a chance to use Sony’s more professional equipment, and if so, what did you think?

[Via Sony]