SVG Advisory Board Chairman’s Letter: Looking Back, and Forward

by SVG Advisory Board Chairman Tom Sahara, VP, Operations and Technology, Turner Sports

This year marked the tenth anniversary of the first SVG Technology Summit, an event that brought out more than 400 top executives from across the industry. At the time, it was the largest gathering of sports-technology professionals, with a full day of conference activities and exhibits. This year’s SVG Summit, which took place Dec. 14-15 in New York City, was once again the largest gathering of sports-technology professionals: more than 1,200 people attended the event, which has expanded to two full days and will offered more than 70 exhibits and multiple tracks of sessions.

SVG Advisory Board Chairman Tom Sahara

Among the topics that have been covered at past Summits were the HDTV transition (during the first, it was still not clear how the industry would make the move to full HD production), surround sound, virtual-graphics and replay technologies, 3D, file-based workflows, high-frame-rate cameras, second-screen productions, and TV-truck and production trends.

Technology is not the only focus of the Sports Video Group; supporting members of the sports-production community is also a priority. The SVG has brought us such programs as Veterans in Production, Women’s Sports Media Initiative, and now SVGNEXT, a new program designed to match the best and brightest college broadcasting students with mentors and internships.

The SVG Summit also coincides with the Sports Broadcasting Hall Of Fame, an event that marked its ninth year in December. It has had an indelible impact on our industry and serves as the largest fundraising effort for the Sports Broadcast Fund, a charity that provides crisis support for industry professionals in need.

The work of the SVG continues to grow as we embark on the next 10 years. The television industry is in transition, fueled by rapid technology change that is reshaping the media landscape. Change is the new norm, and businesses must adapt to an easily distracted, mobile consumer.

We now look at the world through a different lens than we did 10 years ago: the lens of the Internet. And at a new pace: Internet speed. The frontiers are no longer the highest mountains or the deepest oceans. They are much closer: at the limits of our imagination.

As technology and consumer behaviors evolve, the SVG will be there to support you and your staff with knowledge, information, and lasting relationships to help your company prosper into the future.

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this letter was originally published in the Fall Edition of the SVG SportsTech Journal.