OPINION
Monitoring the next step for esports TV By Erik Otto, chief executive, Mediaproxy
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elevision broadcasting used to be a well-defined area, with its own dedicated technology and standards. Today, the definition of broadcast has broadened considerably to incorporate other video-based platforms, of which the streaming sector is the most prominent. The crossover has gone in the opposite direction with broadcasters launching their own streaming services for both live and video-on-demand (VoD) programmes. This sector is now well established but the convergence is expanding and esports is the next area building on the adoption of broadcasting techniques and technologies. Whilst esports may appear to be a somewhat tangential market to professional broadcast, the requirement to maintain a high standard for quality of experience is not only comparable to TV but increasingly a priority. Gamers are, of course, used to the highquality graphics and sound on their computers or game stations at home, but most, if not all, will also be watching films and high-end dramas, likely in 4K and HDR (high dynamic range) with Dolby Atmos immersive audio. They will expect the same technical levels for coverage of the big arena-based live esports tournaments that are becoming part of the mainstream sporting calendar. Competitions are now streamed live on various platforms, including YouTube and Twitch, by individual esports teams, clubs and governing bodies. All have navigated a steep learning curve. They are not broadcasters but have been thrown into the world of broadcasting, which has meant adopting the technologies and methodologies associated with professional TV production. Clicking a button on a browser to make a video available to everyone in the world was fine for multiple-player gaming on the internet when there was no responsibility to stay on air or provide a quality of service for which people were paying. That’s all changed now and the stakes are even higher, with advertisers and sponsors to satisfy as well as the viewing audience. There is also increasing pressure and competition from established broadcasters, including the BBC, Sky and ESPN, which are now covering the major esports events. In 2025 UK Forces broadcaster BFBS not only joined these ranks but also established its own tournament, the Pro League. Its output includes BFBS Esports live on the BFBS Sport channel and streamed coverage on YouTube and Twitch. The new dedicated esports channels have accumulated the
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necessary equipment to transmit and record all the action, including cameras, microphones, audio mixing consoles and vision mixers, plus routers, switchers and encoders to get everything on the right platform. After that, the priority should be to ensure the coverage stays on air and maintains an acceptable level of quality. In mainstream broadcasting, this is where monitoring comes in, although, at one time, it was something of an afterthought. But it has been refined over the years to be the crucial part of the distribution chain it undoubtedly is today. The need to monitor outgoing signals is equally important for esports channels, but at this stage of the sector’s development, it is almost certainly an afterthought, if considered at all. As more money funnels into esports, the issue of the quality of coverage and matching broadcast standards will come up. The fundamental problem is that specialised gaming outlets, and Twitch and YouTube, are websites. There is video capability within them, but it’s not a video source; it’s a website source. One of the more difficult aspects to solve efficiently is dealing with HTML-based content that is available on public platforms such as Twitch. Broadcasters have faced similar inherent problems in monitoring public consumer feeds from their own websites and third-party platforms like YouTube. Dedicated streaming services, including Netflix, have their own end-to-end distribution chains and know exactly who is hitting the server, what file is being played out, how many times a file has failed to play or if it has had to be buffered for VoD. But publishing to public sites means letting go of that control and monitoring certainty. As well as not being able to skim the feed to see what is going on, it is difficult to record the content. This is something Mediaproxy has been working on, enabling services going on to public internet video sites to record not only from a media stream but also from a web content stream. This means it is possible to record and monitor generic HTML content, which is the basis of the platforms being used for most esports channels. This offers a true end-to-end system that is comparable to what is used by both linear broadcasters and the major streaming platforms. And for esports channels it is potentially the missing piece of the puzzle that will ensure output quality and put them on the same level as their broadcast and streamer counterparts.
JANUARY 2026 2024 || 07 07 JANUARY/FEBRUARY