QTV SPORTS is one of the UK’s leading providers of sports livestreaming and digital content strategies. The fast-growing online producer is committed to providing sports fans with compelling high-quality video coverage at a fraction of the cost of TV outside broadcasting, delivered using a multicamera set-up and pioneering live streaming solutions from STREAMSTAR.
QTV Sports’ USP is being a multi-faceted sports coverage provider, helping clients create, curate and distribute digital content across social media, livestreaming channels or TV broadcasts to engage audiences around the world. Over the past two years, it has streamed an impressive 1700 hours of international sports events for over a dozen national governing bodies and international federations, achieving audiences of over three million viewers in 160 countries.
It has also secured the rights to broadcast some of the most followed sports around the world, including tournaments hosted by the International Cricket Council and British Tennis. Through digital platforms, it strives to generate long-term fan engagement for customers and convert live events into marketable products that activate commercial partnerships. They go the extra mile to give fans added value, with access to a range of benefits, including match highlights, interviews, and behind the scenes features via real-time social media clips.
Knocking the competition out of the park
It’s no secret that tier two and three international sports federations, and national government sporting bodies, struggle to compete with mainstream broadcast coverage. Supporting this level of sports programming is also considered too expensive, often requiring the deployment of traditional forms of outside broadcast technology that’s costly to transport, set up and run.
Jack McGill, CEO of QTV Sports:
“From day one, it was vital for us to employ an efficient and cost-effective system to achieve seamless productions to meet the demands of delivering live sports content to hundreds of thousands of sports fans. After considering various options from other manufacturers, we decided to choose STREAMSTAR’s innovative streaming solutions because of their versatility and ease-of-use. We felt that this would give our viewers unrivalled access to an extensive range of sports content in real-time.”
McGill continues, “With avid fans demanding anytime, anywhere content, the call for streaming live sports events of any disciplinary has snowballed. Therefore it was essential for us to implement a remote production solution that would stand the test of time and remain a long-term investment. We were looking to develop a more cost effective live sports production model for our clients. The team had been following STREAMSTAR’s progress. After some experimentation with other providers, we proudly became the first UK-based operator of STREAMSTAR’s ground-breaking livestreaming infrastructure.”
Cost effective streaming solution
Utilising a multitude of STREAMSTAR’s high-end products from its portfolio of innovative technologies allows QTV Sports’ clients to benefit from a constantly high-level of production expertise. The WEBCAST TOUCH PRO allows for full HD 1080p streaming through a professional 23” touch screen multi-camera streaming production switcher with additional HD-SDI output and instant media playout. The high performance switcher also has five sets of STREAMSTAR’S WEBCAST tally and intercom, and four unique instant replays and slow-motion, giving operators total control over every aspect of content output.
Another key product of the revolutionary workflow allowing QTV Sports to provide effortless, yet professional streaming to their customers, is STREAMSTAR’s WEBCAST CASE. Just the size of a briefcase, these pioneering functional units offer everything a professional remote streaming production requires in one compact and portable package. They enable QTV Sports to give added value to its customers and viewers alike, with the unique benefits of built-in replays, slow motion and comprehensive media playlists, which are currently not found on any other product on the market. This places complete, touch-screen control of the content output into the operator’s hands for instant results, a functionality that could only previously be applied at a later stage from the control room or edit suite.
“The curation of content is as key to any livestreaming business as the live production itself. Since we implemented STREAMSTAR’s innovative technology, we’re working with international sports across the world to raise their profile and improve fan engagement. We’re also helping our customers understand the potential of digital media, particularly YouTube channels, through analytics and real-time results, and educating them on using this data effectively to help them grow a loyal online audience,” added McGill.
Since implementing STREAMSTAR’s incredibly versatile and mobile products QTV Sports has made major advancements as a livestreaming broadcaster, allowing them to go into venues that traditional TV companies could not even consider without a substantial budget.
“Recently at a four day sports event, a TV broadcaster covering the same schedule brought in three OB trucks and an extensive crew. However, with STREAMSTAR’s mobile workflow, we were able to cover the same event with only one fewer camera and a small, unobtrusive set up across two trestle tables, demonstrating the versatility and quality of STREAMSTAR’s systems,” stated McGill.
Scoring high
When considering options for a new livestreaming infrastructure, QTV Sports wanted to provide its clients with an all-encompassing solution that didn’t just cover a single match or individual element of a sports competition, but offered a platform for them to build loyal fan engagement to ultimately drive new revenue streams for rights-holder.
“We’ve discovered a solution for sports producers made by sports producers. With STREAMSTAR we’ve continued to identify practical feedback, changes and improvements from our experiences on the front line and the team has listened to us and integrated updates into newer models. We’ve just purchased another WEBCAST CASE due to its competitive price point, and because this new model gives us added versatility, meaning we can continue to produce exceptionally high-quality multi-camera broadcasts that exceed the expectations of all of our clients. In 2015 we’re looking at expanding our portfolio of content within various cricket, rugby, football and netball leagues, and with constant understanding and support from the STREAMSTAR team, we’re proud to be producing quality content with the most advanced live production tools on the market. We hope to continue this valuable partnership with STREAMSTAR,” concluded McGill.
Rado Toth, chief executive officer of STREAMSTAR said, “At STREAMSTAR we’re delighted to be working with such a forward-thinking company like QTV Sports. They’re bringing exceptionally high-quality multi-camera content to sports fans with our unique technology, allowing fans to view quality streaming productions of their favourite sports. With coverage of a multitude of different disciplinaries, every match or event throws QTV Sports its own unique challenge, and our set-up is flexible and robust enough to ensure that the production team can broadcast the action as it happens and retain and grown a loyal fan base.”