Fox Sports is once again relying on the talent of its crew and the ability to tell a clean story instead of a massive technology outlay for the 2009 World Series. “You can only cover so much, and you can’t have equipment for the sake of having equipment,” says Jerry Steinberg, Fox Sports, SVP of Field Operations. “When you reach a point with optimum coverage, why add more stuff if it doesn’t add anything?”

When IMG and the New York Road Runners had to slash the broadcast budget for coverage of the 2009 New York City Marathon on Nov. 1, no one was pleased, but NEP Senior Project Engineer John Tomlinson saw an opportunity. NEP’s ESU truck is equipped to handle more than just transmission support, and, for Sunday’s race, ESU will house production of the world feed, which means that the truck will finally be used as Tomlinson intended.

MLB Network, along with technology partners HTN, Clark Media, Bexel, and CP Communications, will cover all the action from the Bronx tonight with the help of a flypack and seven discreet transmission paths that will deliver signals to the network’s broadcast headquarters in Secaucus, NJ.

During three decades of ABC Sports’ broadcast dominance, the nation’s sports heavyweight had just one top-flight producer: Chuck Howard. Between 1960 and 1986, Howard lent his skills to nearly every ABC Sports event, from Olympic skiing and the Kentucky Derby to the Super Bowl and World Series. A sports fan first and a television executive second, Howard left his legacy as much in the people he trained as in the events he covered.

MLB Network’s use of an innovative flypack/fiber-based transmission set up during the first game of the World Series was as free of errors as Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Cliff Lee’s performance. The system pumps camera signals, along with clean and dirty feeds of the game and press conferences, back to the MLB Network facility in Secaucus, NJ.

F&F Productions is once again at the center of MLB International’s coverage of the World Series, with its GTX15 production unit serving as home base for telecasts from Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. “We’ve been using the same vendors for at least three years,” says Russell Gabay, MLB International VP and Executive Producer. “International feeds can be complicated and their familiarity with the show makes the set up that much more efficient. And their engineers make suggestions on how to do things better.”

Once the first pitch is thrown tonight ESPN domestic will take a backseat to Fox Sports in terms of game coverage but ESPN International will be all over it courtesy of MLB International’s world feed. And for Michelle Lynch, ESPN International operations producer, the first pitch is actually the beginning of a quiet period that lasts until the game ends.

“The next wave of 3D is going to be in the home,” said Rob Engle, Sony Pictures Worldwide, senior stereographer and digital effects supervisor, ImageWorks, in a keynote address during the 2009 SMPTE Tech Conference and Expo at The Renaissance Hollywood Hotel this week. “And live sports and videogames will get people to buy 3D TV sets. The Super Bowl in 3D will be important to getting the TVs out there [in homes], and we need to ensure that there is diligence in delivering quality content.”

The TV-broadcast industry is expected to take a major step toward solving the loudness problem next week, when members of the Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) are expected to approve ATSC Loudness Recommended Practices (RP). The practices will be known as ATSC A/85 and will give TV stations and networks more guidance, so that programs and interstitials have more-consistent loudness levels both within a station’s DTV signal and between one channel and the next.

For the sixth year in a row, Riedel Communications served as the official global supplier of the Red Bull Air Race World Championship. Riedel is at the forefront of the event, providing the entire communications and signal distribution solutions, integrating both HD video and audio signals as well as wireless and wired digital intercom systems. Additionally, Riedel supplied the wireless video links for the race planes’ onboard cameras enabling pictures to be delivered from the pilots’ perspectives.

The 3D stereoscopic business is looking more and more like a powerhouse. Motion-picture revenues passed $1 billion this year, according to Matt Cowan, chief scientific officer at technology supplier RealD. The home-entertainment front also looks encouraging, with an estimated 10 million 3D TV sets expected to be sold next year. And after Televisa delivered a soccer match to theaters in 3D this past Sunday, similar efforts in the U.S. are likely.

When Miami Heat fans walked into the American Airlines Arena for the team’s home opener Wednesday night, they were greeted by new high-definition displays, digital food-menu boards, and electronic signposts. Wednesday’s season opener unveiled the multimillion-dollar digital makeover that team execs say will juice up the viewer experience and generate huge ad revenues. “I think it has positioned us really at the forefront of the sports-entertainment industry in terms of technology and in terms of our ability to present sponsor images in a truly dynamic way,” says Eric Woolworth, president of business operations for the Heat. “If we were opening a new building today, the technology that we have is the technology that you would see”…

Intelsat, Ltd. was the successful bidder in the public auction for the ProtoStar 1 satellite with a $210 million, all cash offer. Upon conclusion of the transaction, the satellite will be re-named Intelsat 25 and will join Intelsat’s global fleet, serving with the company’s other assets in the Atlantic Ocean region.

Utah Scientific introduced a combined dual-channel master-control and routing system that constitutes a complete solution for broadcasters moving to multichannel operation, Dot.Box.

Grass Valley says its end-to-end, fully integrated Thomson ATSC Mobile DTV-transmission system is now ready for deployment by broadcasters following the completion of testing.

The Los Angeles Times today weighs in on whether or not Major League Baseball should have expanded the use of instant replay for the World Series. The sport is coming off of a number of high-profile umpiring gaffs during the division series and championship series but MLB Commissioner Bud Selig has no plans to expand its use for the World Series. ”I think you can overreact to situations,” Selig said. “It isn’t change I’m afraid of. I’m not sure that would contribute to the improvement of the sport.”

Comcast SportsNet, home of the Philadelphia Phillies, is giving it’s coverage of Philadelphia’s version of the Big Red Machine the Red Carpet treatment, with pre- and post-game programs for all games, plus never-before-seen footage, nightly specials and additional World Series related programming.

The Sports Video Group is pleased to announce that Utah Scientific has upgraded its sponsorship to the premier level. Utah Scientific is focused on providing technically advanced routing products all backed by a 10-year warranty and no-fee service and support.

The Sports Video Group is pleased to welcome our newest sponsor, Trio Video. Trio Video is a mobile-production-facilities vendor providing high-definition and digital/analog mobile facilities for almost three decades.

The Sports Video Group is pleased to announce that NeuLion has upgraded its sponsorship to the premier level. NeuLion is a leading service provider that builds sports broadcasting networks.

Game One of the 2009 World Series Wednesday night on Fox was the second-highest-rated World Series opener of the decade, trailing only Game One of the 2004 World Series, when the St. Louis Cardinals visited the Boston Red Sox, reports Variety’s Stuart Levine.

Former ESPN Major League Baseball analyst and New York Mets general manager Steve Phillips may be down, but he’s not out—of the television business, writes Michael Hiestand of USA Today.

Fox’s Tim McCarver and Joe Buck would not shut up about how quiet they thought Yankee Stadium was during game two of Major League Baseball’s World Series between the Philadelphia Phillies and the New York Yankees, writes Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News.

Rodney Harrison and Tony Dungy display “refreshing candor” in the studio for NBC’s coverage of the National Football League, while ESPN’s Ron Jaworski provides “sharper analysis,” writes Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald.

Fox will debut a new innovation during Sunday’s telecast of the National Football League match-up featuring Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings visiting Favre’s former team, the Green Bay Packers: the Favre Cam.

One of the National Football League’s most flamboyant wide receivers, Chad Ochocinco of the Cincinnati Bengals, appeared on CBS’ The Late Show with David Letterman Thursday night, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported.

Long-suffering fans of Major League Baseball’s Chicago Cubs may not be too thrilled with ESPN’s promo for one of its upcoming 30 for 30 documentaries, Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reports.

When the National Hockey League’s Edmonton Oilers visit the Boston Bruins Saturday, NESN Bruins color analyst Andy Brickley will not call the game from his usual perch in The Fred Cusick broadcast booth on the ninth level of TD Garden.

Maxell Corp. of America debuted its E series of P2 cards for use with P2 cameras and professional solid-state P2 memory recording systems.

NBC Sports and Universal Sports will team up for 26.2 miles Sunday, as the two outlets will provide full coverage, both TV and online, of the ING New York City Marathon.

The National Basketball Association launched NBA League Pass Mobile in Apple’s iTunes App Store and the Android Marketplace Thursday morning, and the league plans to offer the out-of-market games package for Blackberry, as well, Staci D. Kramer of paidContent reports.

After near-misses in its bids to host the 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympic Games, Pyeongchang, South Korea, is a virtual lock to get the nod for 2018, writes John Powers of The Boston Globe.

Atlanta radio station Sports Radio 790 The Zone will provide all on-air content and hosts for CBS Atlanta affiliate WGCL-TV’s newscasts and original sports programming under terms of a deal announced Wednesday, Atlanta Business Chronicle reported.

In a live TV environment, split-second decisions are required: There’s no time to gather the opinions of a committee. And in Fox’s coverage o the World Series, those split-second decisions will be on the shoulders of one man, reports Michael Hiestand of USA Today.

Bryant Gumbel, host of HBO’s Real Sports, didn’t make many friends on the West Coast with his comments on the latest edition of the premium cable network’s series, reports Mike Penner of the Los Angeles Times.

Broadcast Pix has released Version 7.3 of Slate, their integrated live video production system. The update features Fluent Macros, a file-based switcher macro memory system. It also provides enhancements to its Fluent Multi-View and its 2 M/E Slate 5000 switcher control panel, as well as support for the new low-cost Slate 100 Control Panel.

Denver Broncos wide receiver Brandon Marshall will host Sports Soup on Versus next Tuesday, The Denver Post reported.

One of the main reasons why the International Olympic Committee backed NBC, aside from the $5.7 billion it paid for the rights to Summer Olympic Games and Winter Olympic Games from 2000-12: The programmer will use all of its broadcast platforms to promote the upcoming 2010 Winter Olympics from Vancouver, British Columbia, for 100 days prior to the event’s start, writes Philip Hersh of the Chicago Tribune.

The National Basketball Association is offering its broadband subscribers the choice between having access to every NBA game or just those of certain teams, reports R. Thomas Umstead of Multichannel News.

Hulk Hogan is back in the wrestling game, signing an agreement with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling that was negotiated by Bischoff Hervey Entertainment, reports Alex Weprin of Broadcasting & Cable.

Fox Sports en Español will present live Spanish-language coverage of Major League Baseball’s 2009 World Series, featuring the defending World Champion Philadelphia Phillies taking on the American League Champion New York Yankees.

Broadcast Microwave Services’ European office worked with German sports-production company TopVision to provide a full-service system of HD-broadcast services at the 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics Berlin 2009.