svgeuropeupdate
Live 5G Remote Broadcast
BT Sport presenter Matt Smith and Matt Stagg, director of mobile strategy, at Wembley Stadium
unlock it. People are really still finding out the possibilities [that 5G will provide]; it’s not just about doing things more efficiently, it’s doing things you haven’t even thought of doing before.” Referring to sports broadcasting, Hindhaugh added: “Normally the first thing your team asks is “can we?”.With 5G, it’s “where do you want to go?”.” The transmission used EE’s 5G test network in the stadium, plus a first-generation 5G encoded dongle from Huawei. The test network used EE’s 3.4GHz spectrum from its 5G antenna in the stadium, connected to a 10Gbps backhaul link. With a throughput of 75MBps at Wembley, feeds from three cameras at 25MBps each were relayed through the Huawei 5G encoder to the 5G cell in the stadium. From there the transmission passed onto the EE backhaul network, and then to the internet. Going forward, EE will use 5G network slicing technology to create a broadcast grade network for clients, providing the guaranteed latency, bandwidth and quality required for live broadcast. The company stated 5G will enable broadcasters to send match footage back to base within minutes, opening up more coverage possibilities and reducing costs by reducing the number of technicians required at each game. Stagg stated: “What we can do with 5G is network slicing, where you build a virtual network so you can use the properties of 5G but outside the consumer network. We can give you 100GBps and it’s sewn up; you don’t need to worry about latency,” he said, giving an example of what will be possible with 5G for broadcasters. “It’s just about getting the best connectivity you can get to enable creativity.” BT Group is working hard to get 5G up and running for 24
2019. The BT Technology team is virtualising elements of the core network for 5G rollout in 2019 and is building a next-generation 5G core in line with the next stage of global 5G standards, with virtualised network functions on a cloud-native infrastructure, creating the basis for a smart and fully converged agile network. The BT 21CN backbone network is Petabit-class, and will ensure the future-proofed scale required to enable a world-leading 5G experience. Earlier this month, EE announced that nine 5G trial sites went live across East London. The trial has so far encompassed every element of building a new 5G network, from obtaining planning permission and access agreements, through to managing power outputs. The trial will go on to assess the customer experience of the new 5G spectrum. A week later, the mobile operator stated it is switching on 5G sites in 16 UK cities in 2019. The first launch cities will be the UK’s four capital cities — London, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Belfast — and Birmingham and Manchester. Throughout 2019 EE will also be introducing 5G across the busiest parts of ten more UK cities: Glasgow, Newcastle, Liverpool, Leeds, Hull, Sheffield, Nottingham, Leicester, Coventry and Bristol. EE will launch with multiple smartphone partners, as well as an EE 5G Home router with an external antenna, to showcase the power of 5G for broadband. EE is the lead partner of Wembley Stadium. Since the partnership kicked off in 2014, EE has introduced several technological advancements to the stadium, including delivering significant network upgrades preceding the latest 5G implementation, ensuring fans can stay connected during events. EE also worked with the Wembley team to deliver the first official Wembley app. SportTechJOURNAL AUTUMN 2019