Game Creek Video completes first phase of major HDR upgrade with EVS

Driven by increased demand for higher resolution live productions from major US sports broadcasters such as Fox Sports, ESPN and CBS, Game Creek Video is forging ahead with continued investment in EVS solutions across its entire fleet of high-end mobile television production units.

The intensive upgrade programme to LiveCeption Signature is due for completion by 2023 and will see 40 new XT-VIA live production servers deployed to enable crews to replay, edit and produce content of game-day action in high quality. As part of this integrated solution, these new servers will be teamed up with LSM-VIA, EVS’ all new IP-based replay and highlights system, to create super slow-motion in-game replays.

LiveCeption Signature combines the latest EVS technologies to achieve full HD 1080p or UHD-4K production in either HDR or SDR with accurate, fast-turnaround replays. It leverages the XT-VIA production server to support all new formats and protocols from HD to 8K, SDR to HDR, and SDI to IP in a single solution.

Working together with the XT-VIA server, LSM-VIA replay and highlights system sits at the heart of LiveCeption Signature. LSM-VIA provides access to all the content on the network and control for live operations. With full IP connectivity and software-defined technology onboard, the system enables full production resources to be made available anywhere at speed, opening up highly-collaborative workflows that adapt to each production and scale as needed.

LSM-VIA ensures replay operators working from remote locations can have a seamless multiview user experience – even in UHD-4K. Leveraging the Secure Reliable Transport (SRT) network protocol through certified integration with Haivision’s Maktio X series of real-time video encoders and decoders, the system delivers low latency and high enough quality over any managed network or public internet connection to let them create replays and highlight packages. This remote workflow has been successfully deployed for the GCV Anywhere platform that was used this summer to cover the Concacaf Gold Cup.

Productions supported by Game Creek’s PeacockOne unit will also benefit from simplified live media content browsing, control, live edit and playout delivered by EVS’ MediaCeption production asset management (PAM) solution. MediaCeption allows production teams to manage assets from just about anywhere, facilitating multisite and remote collaboration for publication across digital platforms.

Garrett Sullivan, SVP production & finance at Game Creek Video, said: “For us, EVS is the gold standard for mobile production, providing the power, reliability and flexibility to create our best work. As our business has grown, integrating EVS solutions into our roadmap has enabled us to continually adapt to client demands and stay competitive. With this latest investment in LiveCeption and MediaCeption, we’re leading the way in agile HDR sports production and it’s an exciting road ahead for our teams who can now efficiently collaborate wherever they are.”

“Game Creek is a true pioneer in large-scale production and we’re proud of their continued investment in our solutions,” said Quentin Grutman, chief customer officer at EVS. “Our LiveCeption and MediaCeption solutions are opening the door to incredibly powerful, flexible and scalable workflows, which enable broadcasters to deliver ground-breaking live viewing experiences and keep audiences engaged.”