Formula E driving evolution of live sports broadcasting

Formula E is pioneering a new broadcast production facility in London that delivers state-of-the-art coverage of its live motor racing action from around the world while reducing the environmental impact typical of major live international sports events on TV.

Now in its ninth season, the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship will race in Hyderabad this Saturday, the first time the series has visited India. The race will air live in the UK on Channel 4 and Eurosport from 9am GMT.

Beginning this season, the live international race feed distributed to more than 40 broadcasters and airing in more than 150 countries will be produced remotely from The Production Centre in London, a new state-of-the-art production facility developed by Gravity Media and located at the same address as the former BBC Television Centre in White City.

The innovative production setup allows for the seamless remote integration of replay, audio and graphics into the live programme output, as well as a resilient disaster recovery system to ensure the broadcast feed remains uninterrupted in the event of technical difficulties.

A new multi-year partnership with Gravity Media, the leading media and broadcast company, alongside Formula E’s existing editorial partner, Aurora Media Worldwide, means the live broadcast feed of Formula E’s international races will be produced at Gravity Media’s Production Centre in London instead of a temporary broadcast facility installed at each race location.

Live broadcast coverage of an international sports event is typically an environmentally-intensive process with staff and equipment travelling by air. Centralising the majority of live editing and production at the 50,000 sq.ft facility in London significantly reduces the impact of staff travel and shipping of heavy production equipment.

Formula E has developed an on-board camera system installed on each race car with a live team radio feed that is considered the best-in-class in the motorsport industry. More than 200 cameras cover each race from every angle giving viewers an immersive, informative, action-driven experience.

Aarti Dabas, Chief Media Officer, Formula E, said: “At Formula E, as the world’s first net zero carbon sport since inception, we are constantly challenging ourselves to show how delivering world-class sports entertainment and maintaining industry-leading sustainable practices can co-exist without compromise. Our technology and broadcast teams have worked closely with Gravity Media and Aurora Media Worldwide to help us achieve this. The London-based facility and new approach to presenting Formula E coverage helps us stay true to our vision of accelerating human progress and encouraging the adoption of EV transportation while entertaining millions of viewers around the world.”

Ed Tischler, EMEA Managing Director, Gravity Media, said: “We are thrilled to be working with Formula E as the first partner to use our brand new, next-generation Gravity Media Production Centre in White City. By taking the bold, innovative step of relocating TV production from a temporary facility in a remote world city to London, we are changing the game for how major global sports events are covered on television. Our new Production Centre located in the heart of White City in The Westworks building will house a growing team of creative and innovative media specialists and we hope to encourage more major sports to adopt a similar approach for TV coverage of their live events.” BCS Bureau