CBS Sports, ESPN, and Fox Sports with a variety of high-definition trucks carrying the latest Grass Valley video production switchers

Paris, France/Nevada City, Calif., March 17, 2010 — As they have for more than ten years, many of the top mobile production companies in the US are helping to televise this year’s “March Madness” 2010 NCAA Men’s and Women’s Division I Basketball Tournament for CBS Sports, ESPN, and Fox Sports with a variety of high-definition trucks carrying the latest Grass Valley™ video production switchers. Some will use Grass Valley HD cameras and routers as well, and a Grass Valley switcher will also be used to produce a live 3D broadcast to select theaters.
Beginning with a total of 65 schools playing in single-elimination tournaments across the country, the Men’s “March Madness” college basketball tournament starts on March 16, 2010, while the Men’s Final Four weekend, live from Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind., begins on April 3 and will conclude with the championship game on April 5. The women’s tournament begins March 20 and ends with its own Final Four weekend beginning on April 4 at the University of Texas at San Antonio’s Alamodome.

The numerous HD productions trucks will televise a series of regional tournaments leading up to the Final Four weekend tournament. Games will be produced in either the 1080i or 720p HD formats (depending upon the broadcast network) with full 5.1 surround sound audio. Due to their native multiformat capabilities, Grass Valley HD cameras and production switchers can be used for both types of productions.

“What we continue to see year after year is an industry-wide acceptance of Grass Valley switching technology for the most high-profile sports broadcasts, including college basketball’s main event,” said Jeff Rosica, Senior Vice President of Grass Valley. “No other company can offer the high-quality performance and reliability of Grass Valley gear, that’s why they are used so often and by so many different networks and sports organizations.”

Crosscreek Television Productions (based in Alabaster, Ala.) will send its Voyager 8 with a Grass Valley Kalypso™ HD Video Production Center and Voyager 9 HD truck, features a new Grass Valley Kayenne™ Video Production Center to cover the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Men’s and Women’s tournaments. The Women’s tournament is being held in Duluth, Ga. The weekend of March 6, and the Men’s SEC tournament is the following weekend in Nashville, Tenn. Beginning March 13.

F&F Productions (Clearwater, Fla.) will cover the 2010 NCAA Men’s Division I Final Four Weekend Tournament and National Championship game on Monday in Indianapolis for CBS Sports with its GXT-15 HD truck (this same truck was used for the broadcast last year), which is built around a Kalypso HD switcher, and several “B” support trucks.

Game Creek Video (Hudson, N.H.) will handle the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) tournament for ESPN, live from Greensboro, N.C. with its “Patriot” truck, which carries a Kalypso HD. The company will also send its “Northstar” truck, also housing a Kalypso HD switcher, to cover the ACC men’s and women’s regional tournaments for Fox Sports. Game Creek’s newest mobile unit “Liberty” which has a Kayenne on board will cover some of the NIT tournaments as well as portions of the Woman’s NCAA games.

New Century Productions (Allentown, Penn) will send its NCP 8 53-foot expanding truck to handle the pre- and post- Final Four Weekend game shows in Indianapolis. The truck features a Kalypso HD switcher and numerous Grass Valley GeckoFlex™ signal processing modules—frame syncs, cross converters, etc.—and fiber-optic transmission products on board to handle the numerous cameras located throughout the Lucas Oil Stadium arena.

NEP Supershooters (Pittsburgh, Penn.) will handle a number of Women’s Final Four and NIT tournaments with its SS9 HD truck, which is built around a Kalypso HD switcher. The company will also cover Women’s March Madness as well, with its SS23 truck, which also features a Kalypso HD switcher, LDK 6000 WorldCam HD cameras, and Trinix and Concerto Series routers for video and audio signal distribution. Its SS25 truck carries a Kalypso with more than a dozen LDK 8000 Elite WorldCam HD cameras, a Trinix and Concerto Series routers.

“We have been a longtime user of Grass Valley technology because we know we can rely on it when a major production is on the line,” said George Hoover, Chief Technology Officer at NEP Supershooters. “Our clients expect high-quality results every time out so we have to give them the best tools to achieve their goals. That’s why we continue to use Grass Valley production technology and systems on our trucks.” NEP will also use the SS9 truck, in tandem with Pace Fusion 3D stereoscopic technology, to deliver the Men’s Final Four semifinal and national championship games live in 3D to 100 Cinedigm Certified Digital Cinemas across the country. The complex 3D live production will be handled on site in Indianapolis with a Grass Valley Kalypso HD switcher. “We use a great deal of Grass Valley’s signal processing and distribution modules because of their flexibility of application and ironclad reliability,” said Mike Mundt, Director of Engineering at NCP. “That’s most important in our business.”

* Disclaimer: Grass Valley is not an official sponsor of the March Madness or Final Four tournaments, nor is it affiliated in any way with the NCAA, ESPN, CBS Sports or Fox Sports. Information supplied in this media alert does not imply endorsement from the March Madness, Final Four organizer, NCAA, ESPN, CBS Sports or Fox Sports. March Madness, Final Four, NCAA, ESPN and CBS Sports are registered trademarks of their respective owners.