Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Where is the Technological Breakthrough in the NHL's Television Broadcast?

John from OnFrozenBlog asks the question after hockey fans "were promised bold new broadcast initiatives" following the lockout.

My suggestion: Look no further than the leader in professional sports broadcasting, the NFL, and their invention of the "Cablecam." If applied to the NHL this could dramatically improve their television presentation and at the same time put the league's failed "Rail Cam" out of commission.

What do you think? Is this the answer to the NHL's television problems? Or do you have a better suggestion?

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Fantastic idea!

It may not change in-game video much, since unlike football the NHL's action is far more non-stop & ever-changing. The NFL has plenty of TV-friendly breaks in the action -- or, as my Oma says, "The run around, then they fall down, then they hug." :)

But a wire-cam type approach could revolutionize NHL replays for sure, and improve the overall TV experience.

Allen Popels said...

I think especially on power play situations where the play is focused to one end of the ice, this cam could be used for live action as well.

Anonymous said...

Lets also take into account how annoying this would be if you were at the game live. I think the league would be better if they used some fixed cams to we could see the north south action of the game.

The only problem is that the scoreboard will get in the way.

Anonymous said...

Ugh..no. I find it annoying as hell in football. I Think it would be just nauseating in hockey. Besides, it's not responsive enough, and cameramen have enough trouble keeping up with the action as it is, and that's just by turning left and right. Can you imagine the problems they'll have with a full 360 motion system.