You may not know the company SkyCam, but you have definitely seen it in one capacity or another. The Skycam system is that wire stretching across a football stadium, connected to a camera that moves with the players. It is responsible for all of the aerial shots and much of the on-field audio for major sporting events.
Well, SkyCam is up for a facelift in time for the 2015 AT&T MLS All-Star Game in Denver, which will air on FOX Sports 1. The system, dubbed the Wildcat, will possess a few new features in addition to general improvement.
Once topping out at 15 miles per hour, the new SkyCam will be whizzing over MLS and Tottenham Hotspur players at a maximum speed of 25 miles per hour. That means that it will be able to keep up with even the fastest of athletes.
While the Wildcat is faster, it will also feature even smoother videography, thanks to it now being stabilized on four axes. The speed and smoothness of the Wildcat should be readily apparent with even the pre-game festivities, as another modification makes the system able to sync up with pyrotechnics displays.
Get The Latest Sports Tech News In Your Inbox!
So, expect some pretty amazing shots from the SkyCam zipping through on-field fireworks.
It will also feature modifications that will support virtual graphics—the most important of all is first-down markers.
As part of the overall upgrading of the SkyCam system, the Wildcat will have an “open architecture,” which will make it much easier for operators to mount different kinds of cameras.
This is designed with the future in mind, as 4K, 8K and virtual reality are all competing to be the next big thing in sports broadcasting.
For football fans, the Wildcat will be in action for this fall’s upcoming college football and NFL season—even Yahoo’s live stream of the Jaguars and Bills game in London. It will also be used for selected NHL broadcasts.
But, for now, let us just hope that MLS All-Star goalkeeper Nick Rimando does not destroy the system with a monster clearance.