One solution to ensure this never happens again, is to play all the commercials and trailers from the gallery/studio of the programme itself. In other words, they are played in manually in just the same way as all the other recorded elements of the show.
I doubt there are any regional ads at least as far as England and Wales are concerned. It would provide problems for STV and UTV, but again I'm sure that something could be agreed, and only unified national ads sold for the breaks.
That's totally unfeasable, not only because of the issue of regional adverts. The logistics of sending out and playing the adverts from a gallery/scanner just defy logic, plus each would need extra equipment and staff. I'm sure the ad sales team wouldn't be keen on it either, imagine trying to explain to your client that they can't change their advert at the last minute because they're all coming from South Africa. The production team would also use the breaks for preparing the next part, they wouldn't want to do it.
The actual playing out of commercial breaks is fairly complicated and not something you want done on an OB.
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Having an automation system upstream inserting content has been shown not to be reliable (this is not the first time this has happened remember !).
Not sure what 'inserting content' means but remember that the automation system works perfectly well 24 hours a day 7 days a week, including during all those hours of live programming every day
Interesting. I heard it was NOT human error that caused the break - though it could be deemed human error that it stayed on for so long.
It can't see how it could be anything else but human error, the computers will only do what a human tells them to! They don't tend to just do stuff by themselves, at least not without warning.
I remember a very big broadcast technology company remarking to the BBC that their systems worked fine as long as they were left alone and not interfered with by humans! Of course you can't have no human intervention
An alternative solution is to do what most large US sports broadcasters do. They have "Commercial Integration" areas for live shows which are separate to their playout areas.
The live OB/Studio works into the Commercial Integration area, where the network sponsorship and network commercials for that particular event are inserted, and then the output of that area goes to the main playout area, where it is distributed to affiliates / O&Os and local commercials are dropped in.
I believe this model is used to absolutely ensure all network adverts are played out perfectly - as they are worth millions of dollars in big sporting events. The playout area still handles commercials dropped into pre-recorded shows - commercial integration galleries are only used for live shows.
Interesting. I heard it was NOT human error that caused the break - though it could be deemed human error that it stayed on for so long.
It can't see how it could be anything else but human error, the computers will only do what a human tells them to! They don't tend to just do stuff by themselves, at least not without warning.
I remember a very big broadcast technology company remarking to the BBC that their systems worked fine as long as they were left alone and not interfered with by humans! Of course you can't have no human intervention
Have you never heard of intermittent hardware? I've seen dodgy buttons "press themselves", I've seen optical mice start drifting the pointer across the screen on their own.
I've also seen instances where configuration issues have meant that combinations of external factors can cause events that are unforeseen. (Someone doing something totally separate triggers an event that is mis-interpreted by the code etc. )
There is also poor operational design in dynamic panel allocation - where a panel can be re-assigned to multiple functions to easily (and sometimes remotely). You think you are pressing a button to do one thing, and then find out it has done another.
Just heard that some reckon the break in transmission was sabotage due to the fact that there is a four second delay between SD and HD. Bookmaker Paddy Power were offering bets on a break in transmission.
There maybe a 4 second delay between HD and SD at home, but quite a bit of that delay will occur between the playout centre and the home. There won't be that much of a delay where the feeds are coming into Technicolour. So unless the TC had a crystal ball or lightning fast reactions (faster than the system would probably react) then it's unlikely.... but a nice story
One solution to ensure this never happens again, is to play all the commercials and trailers from the gallery/studio of the programme itself. In other words, they are played in manually in just the same way as all the other recorded elements of the show.
I doubt there are any regional ads at least as far as England and Wales are concerned. It would provide problems for STV and UTV, but again I'm sure that something could be agreed, and only unified national ads sold for the breaks.
That's totally unfeasable, not only because of the issue of regional adverts. The logistics of sending out and playing the adverts from a gallery/scanner just defy logic, plus each would need extra equipment and staff. I'm sure the ad sales team wouldn't be keen on it either, imagine trying to explain to your client that they can't change their advert at the last minute because they're all coming from South Africa. The production team would also use the breaks for preparing the next part, they wouldn't want to do it.
The actual playing out of commercial breaks is fairly complicated and not something you want done on an OB.
Doesn't need to be done from an OB on site or anywhere else, it can be done by the London support gallery, or another gallery dedicated to the task. Playing out commercials is no more complicated than the other recorded packages during a programme. The point is the commercials during such national prime events need to be under manual control, and also under direct control of the broadcaster, not external contractors.
Having an automation system upstream inserting content has been shown not to be reliable (this is not the first time this has happened remember !).
Not sure what 'inserting content' means but remember that the automation system works perfectly well 24 hours a day 7 days a week, including during all those hours of live programming every day
But it doesn't does it, and sod's law dictates when it does go wrong it'll be at the worst possible moment. Saturday's 'error' was not the first, and won't be the last
There is also poor operational design in dynamic panel allocation - where a panel can be re-assigned to multiple functions to easily (and sometimes remotely). You think you are pressing a button to do one thing, and then find out it has done another.
That is a good point (and it falls in with my post earlier about bolt-ons), although wouldn't that sort of thing be known and any experienced operator be aware of it?
The fact it happened during a major broadcast would lead me to think that it's partially down to the pressure that the TC was under. Maybe a combination of human error and bad implementation
Doesn't need to be done from an OB on site or anywhere else, it can be done by the London support gallery, or another gallery dedicated to the task.
Which playout still have to cut to from the feed carrying the football at the correct time. It's irrelevant if the next source is the advert server or a gallery, it can still be cut away to early.
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Playing out commercials is no more complicated than the other recorded packages during a programme.
It is more complicated, they very rarely play multiple 30 second packages one after the other and wouldn't want to tie up an edit suite comping them all. An OB wouldn't be used to playing commercial breaks or be aware of the legalities surrounding them.
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The point is the commercials during such national prime events need to be under manual control, and also under direct control of the broadcaster, not external contractors.
So they pay a company to playout their channels and then do some of it themselves? What do you define as manual control?
But it doesn't does it, and sod's law dictates when it does go wrong it'll be at the worst possible moment. Saturday's 'error' was not the first, and won't be the last
Of course not, errors will always happen. Believe me, errors were more frequent when everything was done manually.
Doesn't need to be done from an OB on site or anywhere else, it can be done by the London support gallery, or another gallery dedicated to the task.
Which playout still have to cut to from the feed carrying the football at the correct time. It's irrelevant if the next source is the advert server or a gallery, it can still be cut away to early.
NO !! The gallery providing the commercials feeds the playout centre. As far as playout is concerned they are receiving a 2 hour fully presented package, with no intervention required by them. As a further precaution the playout company should totally by-pass the pres mixer/system. Line in, straight to the Tx network. Of couse this re-routing should be performed during the opening and closing credits, not during the match !
See noggin's post from 10:44, sounds very similar to what American broadcasters do for key events. Works for them ?
Playing out commercials is no more complicated than the other recorded packages during a programme.
It is more complicated, they very rarely play multiple 30 second packages one after the other and wouldn't want to tie up an edit suite comping them all. An OB wouldn't be used to playing commercial breaks or be aware of the legalities surrounding them.
You pre compile the breaks into 3 minute or what ever lumps. (Exactly what TVS did during the 80s, because they didn't trust their ACR-25 in a live envciroiment BTW). Again, you dedicate an edit suite in London to do that, and it can be done hours in advance. I've aleady stated there's no need for the remote OB to handle that
The point is the commercials during such national prime events need to be under manual control, and also under direct control of the broadcaster, not external contractors.
So they pay a company to playout their channels and then do some of it themselves?
For national key events where half the UK population are watching, Yes !
But it doesn't does it, and sod's law dictates when it does go wrong it'll be at the worst possible moment. Saturday's 'error' was not the first, and won't be the last
Of course not, errors will always happen. Believe me, errors were more frequent when everything was done manually.
Name me one goal lost, or action missing for more than 5 seconds in the days before automation ?
Looking at the attempted PR spin for a second, I think that is another fail on ITV's part.
Punters won't care that it was their contractor at fault. They were watching ITV HD, the fault occured on ITV HD, the ITV HD logo appeared therefore in most viewers' minds ITV is to blame.
The pathetic 'we-were-as-annoyed-as-you-were' tone ITV seems to be trying to adopt is completely the wrong approach. Apologise, say you have taken steps to ensure it can't happen again, and move on.
Issuing a press release with your contractor's name mentioned as many times as possible to try and shift the blame is just pretty lame.
Looking at the attempted PR spin for a second, I think that is another fail on ITV's part.
Punters won't care that it was their contractor at fault. They were watching ITV HD, the fault occured on ITV HD, the ITV HD logo appeared therefore in most viewers' minds ITV is to blame.
The pathetic 'we-were-as-annoyed-as-you-were' tone ITV seems to be trying to adopt is completely the wrong approach. Apologise, say you have taken steps to ensure it can't happen again, and move on.
Issuing a press release with your contractor's name mentioned as many times as possible to try and shift the blame is just pretty lame.
I fully agree. The buck should stop with ITV as far as public domain statements are concerned. Just as the buck stops with BP over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
It's bad form at any level to blame your subordinates, basic management practice !