Broadcast
Latest
FCC vote likely dooms Sinclair-Tribune merger
The FCC has voted to send the proposed sale of Tribune Media properties to Sinclair to a hearing, effectively hammering the second-to-last nail in the coffin on the buyout. The agency's commissioners unanimously agreed on a Hearing Designation Order (HDO), which re fers the matter to a judge -- at which point mergers usually die.
Facebook will broadcast live Premier League games in Asia
Facebook made clear its intentions to move into sport earlier this year, when it hired Eurosport CEO Peter Hutton to lead negotiations for worldwide live sports streams. Hutton's been earning his keep, because the company has just agreed a £200 million broadcast deal with the Premier League.
Facebook patent turns phone mics on to record reactions to ads
Facebook has repeatedly denied tapping into phones microphones for targeted advertising, but just because it isn't doesn't mean it can't. According to Metro, Facebook has applied for a controversial patent for software that will allow smartphones to begin recording when they hear secret messages hidden in TV ads.
The Weather Channel's mixed reality broadcasts debut tomorrow
In April, the Weather Channel announced that it would be incorporating immersive, mixed reality content into its broadcasts that will give viewers a realistic look at weather events. Well it's ready to debut that content and tomorrow morning, you'll be able to watch meteorologist Jim Cantore follow the development of a hyper-realistic tornado from its early stages all the way up to it becoming a destructive EF5 behemoth. Cantore will also share ways you can keep safe if faced with severe weather events.
Inside Fox Sports’ plan to bring the World Cup to your living room
Tucked in the back of Fox Sports' Charlotte facility, a typically unused storage space was abuzz with activity in early April. A Los Angeles-based crew took advantage of the extra room in what used to be the headquarters of the Speed network to test gear that will be used to broadcast live soccer action from this summer's World Cup. There's no eye candy inside this warehouse space, but the final preparations that went on here are essential to sniffing out any potential issues before all the gear is packed into shipping containers for a monthlong voyage to Russia. In the span of a few hours, I'd learn what Fox had planned for the 2018 World Cup -- from in-depth preparations to a special studio, AR, VR and streaming.
The BBC will stream the World Cup in 4K and VR, but not to all
The BBC is finally embracing live 4K. After a run of very limited tests back in 2014 and the recent FA Cup Final, the revered broadcasting institution plans on proving its mettle by showing the FIFA World Cup live to audiences in Ultra HD and virtual reality. It'll be the first time the Beeb has shown a live tournament in this way, and it's a heck of a tournament to start with.
Watch the first-ever NBA 2K League draft right here at 1PM ET!
Interested in watching the first-ever NBA 2K League draft? Then tune into NBA TV or Twitch today at 1PM from the Hulu Theater at New York's Madison Square Garden. Each team in the league will pick six players. Pre-show coverage including a press conference with commissioner Adam Silver, Brendan Donohue from 2K League and Take-Two Interactive (2K's publisher) CEO Strauss Zelnick will live on NBA TV as well, with the NBA's website and 2K League's Twitter account doling out additional updates. However, only the first round will be broadcast on NBA TV -- you'll have to peep Twitch for the rest.
Facebook has exclusive rights to 25 MLB games this season
Facebook will get exclusive rights to stream 25 afternoon MLB games, starting with one on April 4th between the Philadelphia Phillies and the New York Mets. This isn't the first time the platform has aired baseball games -- they started livestreaming some back in May 2017 -- but it will be the first time a US major league has granted a social network sole rights to broadcast games.
FCC watchdog is investigating Pai's moves before Sinclair merger (updated)
Last April, the Federal Communications Commission, led by its Trump-appointed chairman Ajit Pai, eliminated a restriction that had capped how many stations media companies could own. Weeks later, Sinclair Broadcast Group announced a long-suspected deal to acquire Tribune Media for $3.9 billion. Anyone finding that timing suspicious wouldn't be alone: For two months, the FCC's internal watchdog has been investigating whether Pai and his aides improperly pushed to change the rules and timed it to help Sinclair, Representative Frank Pallone (D-NJ) confirmed to The New York Times.
Aereo-like NYC nonprofit Locast streams local TV for free
A nonprofit is bringing local broadcast television to the online masses for free, but who knows how long that will last. The organization, Sports Fans Coalition, launched the streaming site Locast.org on January 11th, letting anyone in New York City's five boroughs watch content from 15 local channels without paying a dime -- at least until the lawsuits start flying.
EA and the CW team up for a 'Madden NFL' eSports special
Sure, Madden NFL is a massively popular video game series that began in 1993 as John Madden Football, but it has never really broken through to the mainstream. The franchise has been making inroads to the eSports space over the last couple of years, though, with a live broadcast last year on ESPN 2. Now the CW is set to air a one-hour primetime special, co-produced by EA and NFL Films called the EA Madden NFL 18 Challenge. The mouthful of a title will air December 27th of this year.
Now you can ask to join a friend's Instagram live video
Just a couple of weeks ago, Instagram made it easy to invite a friend to view your live broadcasts on the photo sharing network. Unfortunately, the invitation was only one way. Instagram has fixed that, however, with a new option: you can now request to join your friend's live video.
Dish customers can no longer access CBS TV channels
If you're looking forward to watching the NFL this Thanksgiving you might find yourself stuck watching holiday reruns instead, as CBS is making good on its threat to black out dozens of channels in response to its ongoing subscription feud with Dish. According to Dish, the network last night barred customer access to 28 local channels in 18 markets across 26 states.
FCC paves way for 4K over-the-air TV broadcasting
4K films and TV shows have been relegated to streaming services and on-demand media, but the FCC just paved the way for television broadcasters to show programming in the ultra high resolution. The commission adopted new rules today that allow companies to use the Next Generation TV broadcast standard (aka ATSC 3.0) on a 'voluntary, market-driven basis,' according to the FCC press release.
Vevo is working on a 'TRL-style' live show
Vevo's Watch Party app was a weird sell at first. Use it to watch music videos with online friends and C-list artists, and chat with them. Well, that's because we didn't know the end goal for it at the time. Now we do: A Total Request Live-style show. Variety reports that Vevo has been testing the show, dubbed "Vevo Live," over the summer and that a broadcast from last Friday with Fifth Harmony (above) netted some 3 million viewers across Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. That's in addition to a live studio audience. Put it in Times Square and it all starts sounding a bit familiar, no?
Microsoft's Twitch rival gives mobile streamers a new option
If Microsoft has any hope of taking on Twitch with its Mixer (formerly Beam) game streaming service, it's going to need strong mobile host software. Luckily, Mixer Create, which has been in beta for awhile, has been released to all. It lets you broadcast mobile games and yourself from a phone, with no extra software or equipment needed. You can also do something called Co-Streaming, which lets you combine up to four streams "into a single viewing experience," Microsoft says.
Fox Sports is airing the Champions League final in VR
Samsung just announced that it's adding UFC fights and other events to its new immersive programming lineup. It's the latest company to start broadcasting sports events in VR, but it's far from the first. Fox Sports has been uploading virtual reality coverage of big-name events for years, most recently livestreaming this year's Super Bowl. But the network is airing in VR a match that folks outside the US might consider just as massive: This Saturday's UEFA Champions League final between Real Madrid and Juventus.
Twitter plans to broadcast live videos all day, every day
Twitter wants to air more live videos on its platform, and it wants to air them all day every day. In an interview with Buzzfeed News, the company's COO and CFO Anthony Noto said Twitter plans to show live sports, news and entertainment videos in its apps and desktop site 24/7. It recently lost the right to broadcast NFL games to Amazon, but it's apparently "working on many, many things" to make its vision a reality even without Thursday night football in its repertoire.
The FCC just sold a chunk of the wireless spectrum to T-Mobile
The results are in. After a year-long process, the Federal Communications Commission today announced the conclusion of its first-ever broadcast incentive auction, naming T-Mobile, Dish, Comcast and US Cellular as the biggest winners.
Exploit attacks your smart TV through over-the-air signals
Worries that someone could hijack your TV with a broadcast have been present for decades (ever see The Outer Limits?), and it's clear that they're not going away any time soon. Oneconsult security researcher Rafael Scheel has outlined an attack that can control smart TVs by embedding code into digital (specifically, DVB-T) over-the-air broadcasts. The intrusion takes advantage of flaws in a set's web browser to get root-level access and issue virtually any command. You only need to have a transmission powerful enough to reach compatible TVs, and at least one attack will work without revealing that something is wrong.
