BBC STUDIOS AND POST PRODUCTION SUPPORTS VANCOUVER 2010 WINTER OLYMPIC GAMES COVERAGE

BBC Studios and Post Production is providing full live commentary mixing, presentation, transmission and post production services for BBC Sport?s multi-platform coverage of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics.

Coverage begins on 12th February and will go out simultaneously on BBC Two and BBC HD, as well as on BBC Sport Online, BBC Mobile and BBC Red Button.
Team GB is looking to emulate their summer counterparts by achieving one of their highest ever medal hauls and BBC Sport?s programmes will give particular focus to Alpine skiing, Skating events, Snowboarding, Bobsleigh, Skeleton and Curling.
Studio Five Gallery Two at Television Centre is acting as the hub for the HD operation and the Broadcast Interactive Production (BiP) area is controlling the Red Button feeds.  Studio Five Gallery Two is receiving up to seven HD vision feeds from the International Broadcast Centre in Vancouver and the multiple sound feeds are being handled by its associated sub-mix areas, before being returned as packages to Siemens? Central Circuit Area (CCA) for HD and SD distribution.
Studio Five Gallery Two is being converted to HD for the event. A new Sony 6000 mixer and multiple fibre transmitters and receivers are being installed to cope with the HD lines needed to transfer material to and from the CCA and the post production operation. Following recent HD investment, BBC Studios and Post Production can now deliver HD from any of its Television Centre Studios.
For the first time on a sports event, extensive use has been made of BBC Studios and Post Production?s MADI optical tie lines for sound and commentary feeds, as well as for the complex talkback requirements around Television Centre. The MADI tie lines enable multi-channel digital audio to be sent from studio to studio and are far more reliable and efficient than the previous analogue based technology used.
The post production operation is predominantly based in BBC Television Centre, with just four editors working out in Canada. It will be split between standard and high definition, with LSMs, multiplexer, Avid and tape suites supporting the SD content along with a SD logging and record bank operation. An HD LSM in DVT 4 and two Avid suites, including one HD Avid suite will support the daily HD highlights programme.