In order to push the boundaries of its live sports coverage, Sky Sports recently decided to convert two studio spaces at its Osterley campus in West London into a single flexible-use mixed-reality presentation studio that will be used for its flagship Monday Night Football (MNF) show as well as 2023 US Open tennis coverage and, in the future, other sports output. Incorporating AR and VR into their broadcasting, Sky Sports wanted to create a truly immersive studio space, with which their presenters, pundits and guests could fully interact. Given their award-winning work on other VR sporting broadcasts, WL was approached to provide the consultancy, technology, integration and continued technical support for this project.
Sky Sports wanted to create a space that would conceptualise to merge sports coverage, entertainment, and data insight. They wanted to explore new ways of using a broadcasting space to integrate AR objects, extend the set, and use innovative lighting and LED installations to build an immersive, engaging, and fun environment for presenters and customers alike. Having made several site visits as well as spoke to the Sky Sports team about their vision for the studio, WL was chosen after a period of consultancy and conducted a series of demonstrations, experimenting with a variety of LED panels as well as different workflow systems. Given the company’s reputation and heritage, it has strong ties to leading manufacturers; meaning it has immediate access to the latest technology. This would prove invaluable given the studio had to be installed, integrated and ready for use in a matter of months.
WL installed a mixture of the ROE Ruby 1.9V2 and Ruby 2.3 curved LED panels - over 200 panels in total. Both products are designed for use in film studios and virtual production owing to their high-speed components, colour representation and excellent visual performance; both direct viewing and in-camera. WL also supplied over 100 ROE Black Marble BM4 LED floor panels to display high-quality video content across the studio floor.
To deliver this high-end workflow, WL had to draw on a processor which would provide the highest video quality and be reliable for live broadcast. The Megapixel VR’s HELIOS LED Processing Platform has been specifically created to support large-format LED displays for use in demanding pro AV, broadcast and installation applications – making it the ideal solution. To manage the 3D graphics, the studio runs a total of 15 Real-time Engines, 11 Control Systems and 6 Optical tracking systems.
To fully immerse the customer in the space, Sky Sports also created a set extension in the ceiling and a unique, ‘4th wall’, allowing the cameras to shoot back into the working space, completing the 360 degree studio. All this can be captured in new and dynamic ways with a four-point flying wire cam.
In use, the LEDs and lighting deliver rich and vibrant creative, from the evening tones of MNF, to the vibrant graffiti of the US Open, all with sharp and clear text and data. Pundits can use their situational and athletic knowledge using the LED floor, from interactive football counters to tennis serves and points. The walls give space for imagery, data points, branding and live coverage (including the cloud based multiple court feed at the US Open). The 4th wall can be used for dramatic promos, but also opened up to place the presenter in a 1:1 scale recreation of the Arthur Ashe court, giving unique insight into tennis dynamics provided by Hawkeye. All this is achieved with tight data integration with 3rd party providers pitch/court side.
The touchscreen analysis of MNF was upgraded in conjunction with Rezzil, integrating live skeletal and ball tracking from the match into the studio, and powering the Sky Virtual View, so the pundits could replay key events from infinite perspectives, including the eyes of the players.
For the main backdrop of the studio, WL decided to draw on a mixture of the ROE Ruby 1.9V2 along with the ROE Ruby 2.3 curved LED panels. Supplying over 200 panels in total, both products are designed for use in film studios and virtual production applications and their high-speed components and “true-to-content” colour representation results in an excellent visual performance for both direct viewing and in-camera visuals. WL also supplied over 100 ROE Black Marble BM4 LED floor panels in order for high-quality video content to be simultaneously displayed across the studio floor; with this playing a pivotal role in creating the overall immersive feeling of the studio. To deliver such a busy workflow, WL had to draw on a processor which would not only provide the highest video quality but also be reliable for live broadcast. As such, they drew on the Megapixel VR’s HELIOS LED Processing Platform which has been specifically created to support large-format LED displays for use in demanding pro AV, broadcast and installation applications – making it the ideal solution for the new Studio.