CBS Sports Deploys Orad MVP to Enhance Viewer Understanding of NFL Match-Up

Orad Hi-Tec Systems Ltd. has announced that CBS Sports is using its MVP (Motion Video Play) graphics platform, deployed most recently during the broadcast of an NFL contest between the Cincinnati Bengals and New York Giants in late September. Because MVP is uniquely customizable, CBS was able to tailor its functions and features to create CBS Flomotion, which highlights play elements while they are in motion to help viewers understand exactly how players contributed to key plays.

CBS Sports also deployed MVP’s HyperZoom feature to zoom in on key elements of plays and controversial calls. For example, commentators highlighted a receiver’s feet so viewers could determine whether he was in bounds on a touchdown catch, and a linebacker’s hand when it tipped the ball on a field goal attempt.

“CBS also deployed MVP for the U.S. Open tennis championships over Labor Day weekend, so this is the second time in a month that CBS has relied on Orad to help viewers understand and appreciate the accomplishments of elite athletes,” said Avi Sharir, CEO and president of Orad Hi-Tec Systems.
Because MVP enables graphics elements to run with the clip, it is an improvement on previous graphics applications that only display illustrations frozen on fixed frames. During the Giants-Bengals game, CBS’s tech crew worked closely with the analyst in the booth to select which plays should be enhanced with MVP and re-played for viewers. Once the decision was made, a CBS operator played out the appropriate clip to the Orad team who overlaid animation and rolled it back to air within seconds. MVP features an embedded chromakey so that graphic elements either can be keyed over the playing field or drawn in the foreground.

Orad’s MVP is a turnkey platform that provides comprehensive video and graphics enhancements to distinguish the broadcast of any sporting event. SD- and HDcompatible, MVP can be used for both live productions and highlight shows.

Posted on Fri, 10/10/2008 - 13:28