Monday Workshop Grid

The world of remote production is changing more than ever, and it’s the engineers who are at the center of making new ways of working possible. Leading engineers from remote production facility providers take to the stage to discuss the latest advances that are changing the way they design production facilities, what new tools are on the horizon that they think can make a difference, and how the industry needs to work together to move the industry forward.
Moderator: Ken Kerschbaumer, SVG, Co-Executive Director, Editorial
Panelists:
Casper Choffat, NEP Group, SVP, Global Product
Erling Hedkvist, arkona, Sales and Business Development
Peter Riordan, AWS, Broadcast Global Strategy Leader
Jason Taubman, Game Creek Video, SVP, Technology
Melinda Wright, Mobile TV Group, Director of Operations

A growing trend within sports, driven by millennials and Gen Z fans, show how these highly sought-after viewers are showing increasing interest in watching sports via their cell phones while on the go. Earlier this year, Sky Sports Germany addressed this important audience directly when they created watch parties for fans to stream the 2023 Super Cup, Formula 1, and Premiere League straight from Tik Tok.

This interview-style Case Study answers the question of how Sky Sports Germany, which teamed-up with Vizrt for the live 9:16 event, produced a multi-split screen format production that delivered a unique fan experience.
Moderator: Nick Jameson, Vizrt, Senior Customer Success Manager
Speaker: Alessandro Reitano, Sky Deutschland Fernsehen GmbH & Co. KG, SVP, Continental Production Operations; SVG Europe Chairman

AI and Generative AI are two of the hottest topics in the industry. But what do they really mean to the future of the sports production industry? How are leagues and networks working with AI today and how will Generative AI change the way they work in the future? And how is it impacting the way production tools are designed and deployed?
Moderator: Ken Kerschbaumer, SVG, Co-Executive Director, Editorial
Panelists:
Mike Davies, Fox Sports, EVP, Technical and Field Operations; SVG Chairman
Alessandro Reitano, Sky Deutschland Fernsehen GmbH & Co. KG, SVP, Continental Production Operations; SVG Europe Chairman
Linda Rheinstein, Space Games Federation, Founder and CEO
Kunal Sawarkar, IBM, Distinguished Engineer – Generative AI & Chief Data Scientist

Considering today’s fast-paced sports-media landscape, efficient collaboration is essential for success. With that in mind, many organizations are turning to the cloud in order to enhance productivity and collaboration. Hear how broadcasters, leagues, and teams are revolutionizing content creation, postproduction, and content management by leaning into the cloud.
Moderator: Jason Dachman, SVG, Editorial Director, U.S.
Panelists:
Eric Bolten, Zixi, VP, Business Development
Jeremy Dujardin, Tata Communications, CTO, Global Media & Entertainment Services
Kendall Ginsbach, Riot Games, Global Lead, Content Operations
Marco Lopez, Clear-Com, VP of Engineering
Nima Malekmanesh, Evertz, Director of Business Development – Live Media
Scott Rinehart, Notre Dame Studios, Senior Director

The NHL is leading the way when it comes to innovating in the cloud. Whether its UHD video contribution from all 32 arenas, a sprawling league-wide enterprise video platform, or intriguing new AI- and ML-based workflows, hear how the league is plotting its future roadmap by leveraging the cloud.
Moderator: Jason Dachman, SVG, Editorial Director, U.S.
Speaker: Grant Nodine, NHL, SVP, Technology

Considering today’s fast-paced sports-media landscape, efficient collaboration is essential for success. With that in mind, many organizations are turning to the cloud in order to enhance productivity and collaboration. Hear how broadcasters, leagues, and teams are revolutionizing content creation, postproduction, and content management by leaning into the cloud.
Moderator: Dave Klee, A+E Networks, VP, Strategic Media Solutions
Panelists:
Marwan Al-Habbal, Matrox Video, Senior Product Manager
David Boland, Wasabi Technologies, VP of Cloud Strategy
Robert Erickson, TAG Video Systems, VP, Live Production and Sports
Adam Marshall, Grass Valley, Chief Product Officer
Michael Raimondo, PGA TOUR Entertainment, VP, Broadcast Technology
Julie Souza, AWS, Head of Sports, Global Professional Services

The threat of manipulated content to broadcast journalism, news, sports, and other curated media.
Moderator: Rebecca Hanson, NABA, Director-General
Speaker: Bruce MacCormack, Neural Transform, Principal

Cybersecurity remains a fundamental threat to broadcast operations, including live events. NABA members will focus on the evolution of the threat landscape and what broadcasters can do to protect themselves.
Moderator: John Lee, NABA Cybersecurity Sub-Committee, Chairman
Panelists:
Josh Arensberg, Verizon Business Group, CTO, Media & Entertainment
Carlo Joseph, Paramount Global, SVP, Strategy and Governance
Kristen Maynes, PwC, Cybersecurity Partner
John Naylor, Ross Video, VP of Products, Enterprise Management, and Director of Product Security

How are broadcast technology and service providers working to protect the sports production supply chain from disruption?
Moderator: Gary Olson, SVG Cybersecurity Work Group, Chair; GHO Group, Managing Director
Panelists:
Bob Burkhardt, Fortinet, VP, System Engineering Enterprise, North & Global Financial Services
John Naylor, Ross Video, VP of Products, Enterprise Management, and Director of Product Security

For decades the technical side of the broadcast industry has been male dominated and women have had to work harder to not only achieve equality in terms of position, but also in order to gain access to technical educational resources. The goal of Tequity is to change that and to give women greater access to new technical knowledge that will allow them to grow their career and have greater impact on everything from product development to workflows and more.
Moderator: Amy DeLouise, DeLouise Enterprises, Chief Creative Officer and #GALSNGEAR, Founder
Panelists:
Samira Bakhtiar, AWS, General Manager, Media, Entertainment & Sports
Carol Bettencourt, Chyron, VP of Marketing
Yolanda Starks White, YoSy Media, CEO and Co-Founder, HBCU Bridge

We’ll conclude the 2023 SVG Diversity and Inclusion Workshop by breaking into groups and discussing how the industry can move ahead effectively. Working Group leaders will share their experiences and be available for questions and conversation. Topics include:

• Hiring: How can we add more diverse perspectives to our hiring workflow?
• Training: What steps can we take to include anti-bias training for employees at all levels?
• Retention: What are tangible ways we can support, retain and give voice to diverse emerging leaders (but not give them added work of running internal diversity committees)?
• Product Engineering and Testing: How can women become a bigger part of product engineering and testing? Why is it important to make sure women are involved in all aspects of product and software design, testing, and deployment?
• HBCU Bridge: Learn how your company can get involved with the HBCU Bridge program and help engage a new generation of diverse talent.

Join us to go inside the latest facilities and trucks that have entered the sports production marketplace. Leaders in the industry will discuss their latest facilities, the technologies and components that provide their production power, and what kind of productions the facility has been used for.
Moderator: Ken Kerschbaumer, SVG, Co-Executive Director, Editorial
Presenters:
Paul Bonar, Game Creek Video, VP of Engineering
Mike Johnson, Dome Productions, Director of Engineering
Josh Liemer, NEP VISTA Worldlink, President
Jason Taubman, Game Creek Video, SVP, Technology
Dakota Timmons, Mobile TV Group, Cloud Control Engineer
Dan Turk, NEP U.S. Broadcast Services, VP and Chief Engineer

In this case study we show how “altcasts” – alternative productions derived from a standard linear broadcast, can help diversify and grow your audience. We demonstrate how this low-lift format can efficiently scale an existing broadcast into many versions tailored for a variety of audiences through cloud based production technology where both operators and talent can work remotely. We include examples and use cases from work done with the NBA and NFL teams.
Presenter: Wim Sweldens, Kiswe, Co-Founder and CMO

We’ll take a look at a number of products that leverage AI to either make the operation of a tool easier or to open up new creativity for the production team.
Moderator: Jeff Jacobs, NEP Group, SVP, Production
Panelists:
Colby Adamson, Pixellot, COO
Alex Redfern, EVS, Chief Technology Officer

2024 is poised to be the year when HDR moves to the mainstream for nearly all big productions and plenty of smaller ones. Experts in HDR take to the stage to discuss their learnings and offer best practices.
Moderator: Ken Kerschbaumer, SVG, Co-Executive Director, Editorial
Panelists:
Kenny Elcock, NESN, VP of Engineering
Felix Nemirovsky, Dolby Laboratories, Solutions Architect
Chris Seeger, NBCUniversal, Director, Advanced Content Production Technology, Office of the CTO

The Savannah Bananas is a growing franchise who has taken traditional baseball and turned it on its side with an emphasis on entertainment and the fan experience. Learn how league organizers implemented a remote production workflow to expand their reach, create a demand to go to games, build a fan base, drive ticket sales, and sell merchandise. Chad Reese, Coordinating Producer for the Savannah Bananas and Steve Wind-Mozley, LiveU’s CMO join SVG on stage to discuss how the innovative league utilized LiveU’s EcoSystem of hardware, software, and services to deliver powerful, sustainable and highly effective fan engagement. Find out how you can gain important production tips and tricks from the playbook of the masters of Banana Ball!
Moderator: Steve Wind-Mozley, LiveU, CMO
Presenter: Chad Reese, Savannah Bananas, Coordinating Producer

The use of Augmented Reality continues to expand and play a larger part in productions. What are some of the latest developments in AR workflows that are improving the quality of the experience? What is being done to make AR more accessible to lower-tier productions? And how can AR increase revenue opportunities?
Moderator: Kristian Hernández, SVG, Senior Editor
Panelists:
Jason Black, Disney Entertainment & ESPN Technology, Manager, Creative Automation and Studio Technology
Andy Blondin, Epic Games, Product Management Director, Broadcast
Amir Hochfeld, Zero Density, Chief Product Officer
Miguel Yabrudes, disguise, Chief Creative Officer, Broadcast

In the ever-evolving landscape of sports content management, the integration of AI and ML technologies has emerged as a game-changer. This panel session examines how AI and ML are automating tasks, such as content tagging and retrieval, and improving the overall efficiency of sports-media organizations. This group of leaders from the sports industry, tech innovators, and AI/ML specialists will share their insights, experiences, and visions for the future.
Moderator: Jason Dachman, SVG, Editorial Director, U.S.
Panelists:
Garron Bateman, Veritone, Director, Sales Engineering and Live Events
Daniel Evans, Magnifi, SVP of Sales, U.S.
Dustin Myers, Fox Sports, SVP, Production Operations
Andrew Reich, AWS, Senior Consultant, Sports, Professional Services

INDYCAR already knew it needed a better way to deliver content to media outlets – but after discovering a security issue with their existing solution, the team couldn’t afford to keep spinning their wheels. In this fireside chat, discover how INDYCAR merged its content-delivery lanes, accelerated asset retrieval, and drove value with a one stop shop for video, imagery, and more.
Presenters:
Olivia Cianci, Imagen from Reuters, Senior Account Manager
Kate Davis, INDYCAR, Director of Communications

With sports-media organizations managing large files between geographically dispersed team members on tight deadlines, the need for a robust, flexible storage solution has never been greater. This session will provide an overview of the latest developments in hybrid cloud storage and how you can leverage the power of on-premises and cloud storage to get the best of both worlds. Also don’t miss this session for the latest on archiving solutions from spinning disk to LTO and beyond.
Moderator: Brent Angle, CineSys, CTO
Panelists:
Chris Cruz, CBS Sports, Senior Director of Media Services
Adam Japhet, Major League Baseball, Senior Director of IT Infrastructure
Jeremy Strootman, Backlight, Director, Channel Sales
Hossein ZiaShakeri, Spectra Logic, SVP, Business Development and Strategic Alliances

Join us for a discussion on how the Hawks worked with IMT to leverage a multi-vendor solution for MAM, production workflow, and Backup & Archive – featuring iconik MAM, CloudSoda data management, LucidLink, AWS, and Quantum. Learn how this reference architecture helped the Hawks streamline their media workflow for both home and away games.
Presenters:
Roy Burns, IMT, SVP, Media Solutions
Charles Gilbert, Atlanta Hawks & State Farm Arena, Manager, Digital Assets

What metadata schema are you using to describe your content: a home-grown one or an established schema as a backbone? What taxonomy/ontology do you use to populate it? Are there any emerging industry standards? Media managers and technology leaders take the stage to discuss best practices in metadata assignment.
Moderator: Anne Graham, WBD Sports, Manager of Strategy and Planning, Sports Media Services; 2023 SVG Sports Content Management Committee Chair
Panelists:
Matthew Green, NBC Sports and Olympics, Senior Digital Media Engineer
Ian Owen, Riot Games, Manager, Media Asset Management, Esports
Kevin Varnell, IPV, Senior Solution Engineer

Systemic change is once again impacting sports & entertainment businesses – and existential questions are on the table. With the recent strikes voicing concerns about the rise of generative AI & deep fake technology, the autonomy and value of talent’s identity essence (NIL: Name, Image, Likeness) is on everyone’s radar. Talent will increasingly want the option to be virtual — to have a digital twin — and will want to properly license, track, and monetize themselves. Accordingly, the need for tools using a standards-based approach to help attest to the provenance and authenticity of ALL the players in the value chain is essential. It is said that “you cannot Automate what you cannot Identify” and this session explores the arrival of the interoperable HAND (Human & Digital) Talent ID – the first global ID registry for notable legal, virtual, and fictional talent in sports & entertainment.
Presenter: Will Kreth, HAND (Human & Digital), CEO

In this rapid-fire-style panel session, leaders from sports leagues and broadcasters will take the stage to answer today’s most tantalizing media-management questions. Some of the biggest hot-button topics will include: the growing role of AI and ML, how to integrate the cloud, staffing and recruiting young talent, the impact of industry consolidation and M&A, remote vs. in-office work, and where the industry is headed in the coming year.
Moderator: Jason Dachman, SVG, Editorial Director, U.S.
Panelists:
Kendall Ginsbach, Riot Games, Global Lead, Content Operations
Anne Graham, WBD Sports, Manager of Strategy and Planning, Sports Media Services; 2023 SVG Sports Content Management Committee Chair
Jim Miles, NBC Sports & Olympics, Senior Director, Live Event Workflows
Scott Rinehart, Notre Dame Studios, Senior Director

Presenter: Dan Marshall, Amagi, EVP, Sales (Global SaaS)

In live sports streaming, expectations are higher than ever. Lightning-fast delivery married with interactive experiences are tasking content producers and technology vendors to raise their game in innovative ways. In this roundtable discussion between industry leaders, get an inside look at what innovations are proving worthy of investment, how live streaming is revolutionizing their businesses, and what’s next for the sports media industry?
Moderator: Brandon Costa, SVG, Director of Digital
Panelists:
Colin Brown, Evertz, Senior Director, D2C Technology
Ken DeGennaro, NBA, SVP, Media Operations and Technology
Dave Giancola, USGA, Director, Digital Strategy and Innovation
Nematolah Kashanian, Multicasting.io, Founder and CIO
Tim Stevens, Verizon Business Group, Global Leader, Strategic Innovation for Sports, Media & Entertainment

Alpha Video and VITEC partnered to upgrade the IPTV platform at Churchill Downs to provide a truly premium experience for the track and attendees of the Kentucky Derby. Prior to the 2023 Derby, the First Turn was upgraded with a VITEC IPTV system to engage fans and offer new sponsorship opportunities throughout the venue. Learn more about the deployment and how Churchill Downs is leveraging the successful launch to scale up the IPTV platform around the track and event facilities.
Presenters:
Jeff Volk, Alpha, EVP – Strategic Accounts, Sports & Live Events
Andy Wagner, VITEC, Sales Manager, Sports & Entertainment

The industry’s newest sports network has also launched one of its newest streaming products. The Washington D.C.-based RSN Monumental Sports Network recently released a fresh direct-to-consumer streaming platform and you’ll get one of the first in-depth looks at the work that went into building it, what the primary goals were for launch, and what’s to come next.
Interviewer: Brandon Costa, SVG, Director of Digital
Speaker: Chris Thorman, Monumental Sports and Entertainment, SVP, Digital Media

A key executive from the sports media industry shares their best examples of streaming and digital content and offers a peek inside the innovations they are investing in to grow their business and advance the greater industry. SVG is proud to produce this session in partnership with SPORTEL.
Interviewer: Joanna Merchie, SPORTEL, Conference Director
Interviewee: Sean Loughlin, PFL, SVP of Global Brand, Digital & Social

Streann Media presents the arrival of TV 3.0 in sports with the successful completion of the Santiago 2023 Panam Games apps. The award-winning streaming platform elevated the Panam Sports Channel viewing experience to unprecedented heights, with its revolutionary live multi-screen content experience (an impressive selection of 18 layouts and 18 live channels), and unique engagement features. Viewers enjoyed an immersive and customizable interface that enhanced their connection to sports.
Presenter: Gio Punzo, Streann Media, CEO

In this panel discussion presented by our friends at SPORTEL, get an insiders’ perspective on the present successes and the future opportunities built into the rise of FAST channels. What technologies are fueling the services and how are sports entities utilizing them as a valuable product in their digital distribution portfolio?
Moderator: Joanna Merchie, SPORTEL, Conference Director
Panelists:
Portia Archer, NBA G League, Chief Operating Officer
Pamela Duckworth, Fubo, Head of Fubo Studios
Chris Foster, NHL, VP, Digital Business Development
Dan Marshall, Amagi, EVP, Sales (Global SaaS)
Colin Moran, LTN, VP of Production Products

Presented by:
Roger Charlesworth, SVG Audio, Executive Director
Jim Starzynski, NBCUniversal, Director and Principal Audio Engineer; SVG Audio, Chairman

As live sports programing migrates to premium streaming platforms, the legacy barriers to improved video and audio are being removed at the same time live content is sharing these distribution channels with higher quality cinematically-derived and premium-episodic content. We will take an assessment of the transition to HDR video and immersive audio as the default standard for global events and major sports leagues.
Presenter: Cherylene McKinney, Dolby Laboratories, Director, Commercial Partnerships

The rapidly evolving television distribution landscape has expanded the possibilities for improved accessibly and personalization features, whether by next generation codecs, or by dynamically adaptive streams. What are the current and future best-in-class solutions and what can legacy platforms do to raise minimum standards and enhance user experiences?
Presenter: Derik Yarnell, Comcast Cable, Architect

As European broadcasters begin to finally roll-out next generation audio codecs, they are able to take advantage of the expanding capabilities of ST-2110 to support more audio channels, along with reliable transport of audio and video metadata throughout the production process. We will take a look at how ST-2110-enabled plant architecture is empowering HDR and immersive audio, along with object audio-enhanced accessibility and personalization features coordinated via serial ADM.
Presenters:
James Cowdery, Dolby Laboratories, Senior Staff Architect
Felix Nemirovsky, Dolby Laboratories, Solutions Architect

ESPN’s multi-week coverage of the US Open tennis has become a sandbox for new ideas and innovation. Audio production coordinator, Florian Brown shares some highlights from this year’s Open and give us a glimpse of the scale and unique fly-packed audio production model for this event.
Presenter: Florian Brown, ESPN, Senior Audio Engineer and Audio Production Consultant

Karl Malone shares a behind-the-scenes preview of audio production for the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics. He will discuss how IP signal acquisition at the venue, and full scale at home production in Stamford, are revolutionizing how audio for the games is created.
Presenter: Karl Malone, NBC Sports and Olympics, Senior Director of Audio Engineering

An impact of the transition to streamed distribution of sports content is the ability to cover more events simultaneously and thus the need to do so without greatly expanding staffing or facilities. Inevitably the result will be to move more production into the cloud. While sophisticated audio solutions are starting to emerge, does moving to the cloud create an opportunity to leverage AI-powered autonomous mixing at the same time? Rob Oldfield provides a behind the scenes look at the solutions being tested and deployed now.
Presenter: Rob Oldfield, Salsa Sound, Co-Founder and CEO

Panelists will share their perspectives on live audio production and distribution, including the role of the streaming migration on opening up premium immersive production, while expanding the volume of content produced for wide distribution. This discussion will explore the ongoing transition to production-hubbing and assess the potential future impact of artificial intelligence and large-scale cloud-based production virtualization.
Panelists:
Florian Brown, ESPN, Senior Audio Engineer and Audio Production Consultant
Karl Malone, NBC Sports and Olympics, Senior Director of Audio Engineering
Brian Rio, Warner Bros Discovery Sports, Director of Creative Services
Glenn Stilwell, Friday Night Baseball, Live Mixing Consultant, Sound Supervisor