Liberty Sports Group has completed the transition of three regional sports networks — FSN Northwest, FSN Pittsburgh, and FSN Rocky Mountain (and sub-region FSN Utah) — to full-time HD broadcast, and, with the help of Cisco technology, the channels now operate fully in MPEG-4.

Game Creek Video’s Liberty production truck hit the road once again this past weekend after being rebuilt following a massive fire a little more than four months ago on a lonely Texas highway. “It’s a remarkable story,” says Game Creek Video President Pat Sullivan. “On the day of the accident in April, I thought it would be the worst business nightmare I ever encountered, but there have been some real positives. And while I’m proud the truck is back on the road, I’m more proud of the people involved.”

Since April, new stadiums costing nearly $3.5 billion have opened in New York and Texas, the New York Times reported this week. For that money, you’d think they’d be perfect expressions of modern sports architecture. But no. At Yankee Stadium, 1,048 seat dwellers in two outfield sections can’t see into the outfield opposite because of a protruding structure that accommodates the bleacher cafe and the Mohegan Sun Sports Bar. Over at Citi Field, fans in some far-off outfield sections also have diminished views. At Cowboys Stadium, the twin video boards that measure 72 ft. high and 160 ft. long and stretch nearly from one 20-yard line to the other, hang too low. In the stadium’s first game, the high-definition boards proved to be an obstruction — to a punt…

F&F Productions is proud to announce the launch of its new Website. Visitors to the new site can tour F&F’s HD fleet, review truck specs and layouts, and even submit information for a quote. F&F has also included a tech section with equipment software information and Web links so users can get greater detail and downloads. Visit F&F's new online home at http://fandfhd.tv/.

Every match from the 2009 U.S. Open tennis tournament that airs on ESPN2 or Tennis Channel will also be streamed free-of-charge on USOpen.org, with the live streaming sponsored by USTA promotional partners Westin Hotels and Stonyfield Farm.

VideoBase S.A., a leading A/V system integration and video production services company in Colombia, South America, has completed installation of the first phase of a nationwide digital signage network for the Almacenes Éxito S.A. Retail Company in Colombia that is based on a Grass Valley MEDIAEDGE3 digital content delivery system.

Systems-integration firm Advanced Broadcast Solutions hosted a two-day, invitation-only event last month at Microsoft Studios and ABS headquarters to demonstrate Fairlight’s Xynergi media-production center audio postproduction tool for mixing audio and video in surround sound.

Communications Concepts upgraded its new HD/standard-definition mobile truck with a Ross Video Ross Vision 3 multidefinition production switcher, which was configured with seven paths of up/downconversion, as well as SD and HD output.

Patterson, NJ-based On the Road Marketing received the President’s Award from Audio-Technica for its “legacy of excellence in service and support” when selling A-T products to retailers and sound contractors in New York, surrounding areas, and additional regions of New Jersey.

Calrec Audio will supply four digital-audio-mixing consoles and a distributed I/O network system to the MediaCityUK project in Salford Quays, Manchester, United Kingdom, after being awarded a contract by U.K.-based integrated-broadcast-systems creator TSL.

Anton/Bauer is introducing its new LED EledZ and ULHM-LED light modules at IBC 2009 (Stand 9.D28b). Together with Litepanels, a sister Vitec Group brand, Anton/Bauer has developed the signature EledZ and ULHM-LED LED lights to complement the UltraLight Series and ElipZ battery system.

The Cincinnati Reds have tapped Chyron’s HyperX² and MicroX graphics systems to generate and manage promotional player clips, graphic messages, and community billboard announcements at their home field, The Great American Ball Park.

MultiDyne Video & Fiber Optic Systems is bringing its LiGHTBoX fiber optic field transport system with brand new features to IBC 2009 (Stand 2.A54).

Mobile-production company All Mobile Video, which will provide the integrated HD feed for global broadcasts of the 2009 U.S. Open Tennis Championships, will use Fast Forward Video’s Omega HD digital-video recorder for video playout and replay throughout the tournament, which will run Aug. 31-Sept. 13.

Gepco will introduce its new field-deployable and expandable HMS and HMD modular hybrid fiber distribution racks, which offer an on-site termination solution for SMPTE 304M-format camera connectors.

Illumination Dynamics (ID) has moved to a new location in San Fernando, California, that features easy access, ample space, and thoughtful amenities for production crews. With 70,000 square feet of warehouse space to house ID’s expanding inventory of state-of-the-art motion picture lighting and grip, automated and theatrical lighting, HVAC equipment and expendables, the rental house offers improved equipment accessibility, working environment and customer service.

Scenic Road Productions (SRP), a video production house based in Kansas City, Mo., has selected a Fujinon XA17X7.6BRM ENG-style HD lens as part of its high definition production services for commercials, training and recruitment videos, and other promotional materials for a variety of clientele.

Several TV stations in Latin America recently relied on Vizrt systems, software, and graphics to display voting returns during their election coverage. A system made up of Viz Engine, Vizrt’s renderer; Viz Artist animation and visual effects tool; and Viz Trio character generator powered the election graphics.

The Jim Norick State Fair in Oklahoma City, Okla., has chosen Daktronics to design, manufacture, and install an integrated display system in its arena. Patrons of the arena will soon experience concerts, rodeos, and other sporting events under the glow of five different Daktronics light emitting diode (LED) video displays, four of which will hang high above the arena floor as part of a centerhung display system. The fifth video screen will hang in the Performance Arena.

Ross Video has tapped Quebec-based Dextera Labs as the developer for the openGear terminal equipment platform. openGear is an open-architecture, modular frame system designed by Ross Video and supported by a range of terminal equipment manufacturers and developers. The platform offers clients the freedom to choose technology from a wide range of products to meet the needs of a broadcast, production, or distribution facility while maintaining a compatible openGear frame infrastructure.

The official PGA Tour App for iPhone and iPod touch, which leverages PGATour.com’s live video streaming and live scoring, is now available at no cost on the App Store. The PGA Tour App will provide an enhanced experience to iPhone and iPod touch users for each of the four PGA Tour Playoffs for the FedExCup tournaments beginning with The Barclays (Aug. 27-30).

Every golf course has its signature hole, and the four sites of the tournaments that make up the PGA Tour Playoffs for the FedExCup are no exception. So, for the first time ever, PGATour.com will offer live video coverage from those signature holes, as well as interactive social media components throughout the Playoffs.

Gepco is debuting its new field-deployable and expandable HMS & HMD Modular Hybrid Fiber distribution racks. The HMD and HMS series of distribution racks deliver an on-site termination solution for SMPTE 304M format camera connectors which are typically challenging to field terminate.

NFL Network’s RedZone Channel found two takers, as cable operator Comcast and satellite-TV provider Dish Network reached carriage agreements for the spinoff of the National Football League’s cable network, reports Stuart Levine of Variety.

At IBC2009, Utah Scientific will mark the European debut of its UTAH-100 Professional Products series as well as a new visual control panel for its UTAH-400 routers.

After 17 years of being tied to Television Satelital Codificada, which aired most of its matches on cable and pay-per-view, the Argentine Football Association is selling its TV rights to the government in a 10-year pact for at least $155 million annually, Charles Newbery of Variety reports.

Monday Night Football alumnus Frank Gifford is not a big fan of the way National Football League games are currently called.

The economy may be showing slight signs of recovery, but that optimism hasn’t spread to ad sales for big-ticket sports event yet. Super Bowl XLIV and the 2010 Winter Olympic Games are off to a slow start, John Ourand and Tripp Mickle of SportsBusiness Journal report.

Motor-sports cable network Speed enlisted some superstar power for its newest ad campaign, as Mercury Records/Island Def Jam recording artist Jessie James will appear in spots supporting “Speed Dream Ride,” the channel’s fully integrated holiday programming and promotional event, set to kick off Thanksgiving Day, Multichannel News reports.

Undefeated boxer Floyd Mayweather will make an appearance on WWE Monday Night Raw, but not in the ring: Mayweather will guest-host the wrestling show on USA Network, following in the footsteps of celebrities including Seth Green, Jeremy Piven, Donald Trump, and LeBron James, Louisa Ada Seltzer of Media Life reports.

The National Football League returns of quarterbacks Michael Vick of the Philadelphia Eagles and Brett Favre of the Minnesota Vikings will not only test defenses, but will present challenges for local TV channels trying to cover them, reports Michael Malone of Broadcasting & Cable.

The process that took nearly as long as the Chicago Cubs’ World Series drought is finally over: Tribune announced Friday that the Ricketts family acquired a 95% interest in a package that includes the ball club, Wrigley Field and Tribune’s 25% stake in regional sports network Comcast SportsNet Chicago, Ameet Sachdev of the Chicago Tribune reported.

Broadcasting & Cable published a special sports issue, which features an interview with NBC Sports executive producer and NBC Olympics executive vice president David Neal; a look at HD super-slow-motion cameras; boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s return to HBO’s 24/7 reality series; the National Football League’s busy offseason as far as its TV deals; ESPN and Tennis Channel grabbing the U.S. Open from USA Network; and a look at DirecTV’s sports strategy over the years, as well as an examination of its customer service, and its Video Everywhere strategy.

World Wrestling Entertainment chairman Vince McMahon hopes to launch a WWE cable network within the next two years, telling Joe Flint of the Los Angeles Times, “We have a lot of clout.”

DirecTV will present the U.S. Open Experience in Manhattan’s Bryant Park Wednesday, featuring a USTA clinic with Venus and Serena Williams, the Bryan and Jensen brothers, ATP star James Blake, and Hall of Famer John McEnroe, Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News reports.

HBO’s Eastbound and Down and ABC Family’s Make It or Break It bucked the stereotype that sports-related scripted TV shows can’t succeed, and Spike TV will debut two such series in 2010, while FX is considering a boxing-themed series, R. Thomas Umstead of Multichannel News reports.

Nearly $3.5 billion was spent on new stadiums in New York and Arlington, TX, yet issues aplenty remain: 1,048 bleacher seats in the new Yankee Stadium with views of the opposite outfield obstructed by a sports bar; several obstructed seats in Citi Field; and a video board that blocks punts in Cowboys Stadium, Richard Sandomir of The New York Times writes.

The pride and joy of the new Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, TX, is, unfortunately, also in the way. The National Football League is reviewing its options after a punt by the Tennessee Titans’ A.J. Trapasso hit the massive center-hung video board in the Dallas Cowboys’ new stadium during a preseason game Friday night, reports Skip Wood of USA Today.