Movistar, a Téléfonica brand, offered an unique live coverage of the 2021 Copa del Rey basketball tournament using their 5G network and the AVIWEST AIR320-5G bonded cellular transmitter.
From 11 to 14 February, eight basketball teams faced each other at the Wizink Center in Madrid. Movistar provided the first full 5G Live coverage of basketball tournament. As a new and pioneering initiative in 5G television broadcasting, they’ve connected professional cameras to Movistar’s public 5G network.
Their team in the field used a small and compact AVIWEST AIR320-5G unit to send the remote camera video feeds to the Movistar+ studios located in Tres Cantos.
Equipped with a 5G modem and an advanced hardware video encoder, the AIR320-5G allowed broadcasting at much higher bandwidths than those currently used. This solution enabled broadcast-grade live streaming with greater efficiency, flexibility and lower costs than those usually required, increasing the viability of live TV for all types of events. The project was promoted by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation through Red.es.
For this atypical 2021 edition, Movistar also offered the opportunity to all fans to “meet” and be virtually present at the Copa del Rey to support their favorite team from their homes and demonstrate they were the best fans ever. To do so, viewers found specific Instagram filters especially created for the Copa del Rey via both Movistar Spain and ACB’s profiles. Then they were invited to share encouragement videos on the Movistar Virtual Fan Zone.
