Tech Fest 2018 finishes with the large-scale Sports Tech Innovation Forum at BT Sport studio

An audience of 200 descended on BT Sport’s Studios at the Olympic Park, Stratford yesterday for a series of compelling panel discussions and case study presentations at Broadcast’s Sports Tech Innovation Forum.

Many thanks for the overwhelming amount of great feedback we received during and after the event, and the huge amount of positive coverage the event received on social media.

There will be a full round-up of the event in a few weeks’ time, in Broadcast magazine, but, to give you an idea of how the day unfolded, the agenda is below.

Broadcast filmed each of the sessions using a multi-camera studio setup, and highlights of each session will be available on Broadcast over the coming weeks, along with a recently filmed roundtable interview with Sky Sports heads of sport, which was filmed at Sky Sports studio.

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The Sports Tech Innovation Forum also became the launch event for Broadcast Sport – a dedicated sports brand, covering sports production, content distribution and tech innovation. Broadcast Sport will reach the market next year with a quarterly magazine, sports news website, newsletters and more sports tech conferences and events.

The Sports Tech Innovation Forum brought to an end Broadcast’s Tech Fest 2018 – four free to attend seminars held during October and November. Broadcast would like to thank all the sponsors of the different Tech Fest 2018 events for their support, which enabled us to bring these incredible events to you free of charge. We shall be running Tech Fest again in 2019.

The Sports Tech Innovation Forum schedule, 22 November | BT Sport Studios, Stratford

10:15 – 10:20 Opening remarks

Jake Bickerton, Editor, Broadcast Tech

10:20 – 10:40 Keynote BT Sport

Jamie Hindhaugh, Chief Operating Officer, BT Sport

10:40 – 11:30 State of the nation

Mike Norrish, Digital Director, BT Sport

Steve Smith, Director of Content, Production & Operations, Sky Sports

Jaine Sykes, Head of Digital – Daytime, Sport & Factual, ITV

Gordon Castle, SVP Technology, Eurosport

Chair: Jake Bickerton, Technology Editor, Broadcast

UK sports broadcasters provide an overview of current consumer trends in sports viewing and how they are setting the agenda for the future.

11:30 – 11:45 European championships case study

11:45 – 12:05 Break

12:05 – 12:45 Fan engagement

Damien Cullen, Senior Video Manager, The FA

Luc Osbourne, VP of Insight and Analytics, DAZN

Paul Bojarski, CEO, Sceenic

Chair: Jessica Goodfellow, International Editor, Broadcast

How content owners are creating event formats, broadcasting experiences and digital narratives to make sports exciting and relevant to fans today. Plus the panel explores how non-revenue generating programs can be important to increasing fan engagement.

12:45 – 13:05 Extending reality: the convergence of studio sets, displays, graphics and lighting to create immersive production environments

Andy Hook, Technical Solutions Director, White Light

13:05 – 13:20 Arena case study

Dafydd Rees, Deputy Director of Operations, Arena Television Limited

13:20 - 14:10 Lunch

14:10 – 14:50 How to use data to bring sports broadcast to life

Laurie Beamont, Head of Graphics, MOOV

Duncan Alexander, VP Data Editorial, Opta (Perform Content)

Mark Hyde, Head of Design, BT Sport

Chair: Chris Curtis, Editor in Chief, Broadcast

How graphics are being used to bring viewers closer to the action and take presenters closer to the field of play without having to leave the studio.

14:50 – 15:10 DR1 Champions Series case study

David O’Carroll, Operations Director, Aurora Media

Stan Stanworth, Senior Producer, Aurora Media

Aurora Media showcase the production of the European Drone Racing Series and the tech innovations used to film and distribute the event.

15:10 – 15:40 The rise and rise of eSports

Michael Valentine, Global Head of Broadcast Technology, Gfinity

Dominic Sacco, Content Director, British Esports Association

Chair: Jonathan Broughton, Lead Analyst, Broadcast Intelligence

Behind the scenes look into the production and distribution of the Gfinity Series and the opportunities presented by this new sport.

15:40 – 16:00 Break

16:00– 16:40 Mobile remote production: 4G today, 5G tomorrow case study

Andy Beale, Chief Engineer, BT Sport

Matt Stagg, Director of Mobile Strategy, BT Sport

Dan McDonnell, Managing Director, Timeline

Martijn van Erven, Sales Manager, Mobile Viewpoint

16:40 – 17:20 Production innovation

Tim De Marco, Head of Engineering, IMG

Andy Beale, Chief Engineer, BT Sport

Nia Wyn Thomas, Senior Producer, Premier League Productions

Chair: Conor Dignam, CEO, Media Business Insight

How the latest tech innovations identified in the state of a nation session are making their mark on the production of sports events.

17:20– 17:25 Closing remarks

Jake Bickerton, Technology Editor, Broadcast