Pixel perfect: Sky Sports uses SMS from Esendex at 152nd Golf Open

Delivering pin sharp TV coverage while communicating with studio, production and outside broadcast crews was made easier with real-time SMS messaging

Results
  • Quickly located and communicated with ground and camera crews across a large geographical area
  • Provided communication assurance during a week-long global sporting fixture
  • Helped align outside broadcast, studio and production teams to provide extensive real-time TV and streaming coverage


Challenge

Communicate with a ground team and studio-based professionals while operating across an expansive golf course during challenging weather conditions


Solution

SMS


HQ

Isleworth, London, UK


Website

https://www.skysports.com


Summary

The Open Championship, one of the oldest and most prestigious golf tournaments in the world, was held at Royal Troon in Ayrshire in Scotland from 14-21 July 2024.

As the world watched on, the Sky Sports team, which holds the rights to UK coverage, orchestrated picture-perfect TV and streaming coverage. 

“Communicating quickly and efficiently to capture events as they unfolded putt by putt, was critical. In particular, we needed a convenient and reliable way to stay in touch with the Sky Sports team as they followed the threesomes and pairings over the course of the championship. SMS provided us with that assurance and capability.

Chrissie Malone, Production Manager | Sky Sports

Challenge & Key Obstacles

The Sky Sports team needed to be able to communicate across a range of terrains, while synchronising live feeds and audio from a variety of live and robo cameras and from crew members in studio, and on site at Royal Troon.

Added to this, and in typical links fashion, the course and local weather systems threw a lot at the production team during the course of the event.

Televising an event like The Open where you need to capture a small white ball as it speeds along in complex lighting conditions against a range of natural and human backdrops is hugely satisfying, if something of a challenge. Ensuring staff are in contact with each other and are in the right place at the right time is another logistical challenge that SMS solved for us very effectively

Chrissie Malone, Production Manager | Sky Sports

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