Big Game Technology

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February 2, 2013 by Marc Cunningham

Super Bowl XLVII

Every one is talking about the Super Bowl- Who will win? Who is advertising? What will we be drinking? How much money are they making?

Let’s take a minute to talk about the broadcast itself and the technology behind it:

CBS will broadcast Super Bowl XLVII Sunday Feb. 3 from the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans.

The big game will broadcast over the air and on cable in HD, as well as online.

TV Production

CBS Sports will be recording with the latest HD technology to capture every corner of the event.

Six of the cameras will be able to capture 4K resolution at 300- 500 frames per second (FPS), in order to show slow-motion replays and maintain video fidelity without any lag or jitter in the video.

CBS is calling these cameras, “Heyeper Zoom.”

Additional Hi Motion II cameras will be deployed to record in 300-500 fps in 1080i.

Although you won’t be able to see the 4K video on your TV, CBS Sports is using this technology to future-proof the footage for archival use and is being down-converted for viewing.

Consumer televisions are only capable of producing a maximum resolution of 1080p, and digital broadcasts are still limited to displaying a 720p/1080i signal.

1080p refers to the number of horizontal lines being progressively displayed on the screen, as opposed interlaced in 1080i (720p is equivalent to 1080i).

4K in an Ultra-High Definition format twice the resolution of 1080p.

Years from now, Super Bowl 47 will still look amazing on ESPN Classic.

Audio will be recorded and transmitted via new technology by DTS.

In a press release DTS said, “Neural Surround allows broadcast production teams to preserve the integrity of the 5.1 surround mix while transmitting audio in a stereo format at the highest resolution possible.”

Whether you’re listening to the game with the TV speakers or surround sound, it’s going to sound like you’re there. 

Online

The Big Game looks best on the big screen but CBS is looking to capitalize on the second screen.

For the second year in a row the NFL and their partner network is making the game available online on NFL.com and CBSSports.com.

Four camera angles will be available to view online, and can be voted on interactively through social media.

According to Harris Interactive, 36% of viewers watching the game will also use a non-TV device.

There’s big money to be made with online advertising, and with the shifting of viewership on the TV the technology will only get better in the future.

Gizmodo provides several interesting ways to watch the game as well.