Considering its roots as primarily a state-of-the-art ball-tracking technology, developed initially for tennis, soccer and cricket, Hawk-Eye Innovations continues to deliver game-changing results across the global sports market.
Hawk-Eye, which was developed in 2001, became a wholly owned LLC of Sony in 2014. Since then, the many ways that the technology has developed and progressed has not only enhanced the way that fans view top-level competition, but has also helped to maximize the quality with which games and matches in 24 different sports are officiated.
Hawk-Eye’s precision-based technology provides instant and on-the-spot video imaging from a variety of angles to game officials. It provides those charged with making split-second decisions access to the same pinpointed views that fans watching at home or in the venues themselves have at their disposal.
“Hawk-Eye Innovations brings sport and technology together to create engagement among fans, which is the cornerstone of our business and why our tools are tailored towards enhancing the fan experience and generating excitement,” said James Japhet, Hawk-Eye Innovations’ managing director for North America.
Although top-level federations and leagues have needed time to embrace the kind of technological advances that Hawk-Eye provides, the decision to include it – as well as video assistant referee (VAR) technology more recently – has proven to be a win-win for everyone involved.
“We have seen a real change over the years whereby officials who were previously reticent about engaging with technology are now encouraging leagues and federations to engage with us, as they know that we will help them make better decisions, which is ultimately good for them and their sports,” said Japhet.
Now armed with the ability to have their initial decisions either confirmed or to have the video evidence required to make needed call reversals, officiating crews – regardless of sport – are receiving additional assistance and support like never before.
The results, Japhet says, speak for themselves – not only for game and match officials, but also for a worldwide audience, which now receives a fairer finished product thanks to improved technology and the willingness by sporting leagues to use what’s available.
“In addition to getting decisions correct, you can’t forget that in professional sport, the ultimate decision maker is the fan, and working closely with broadcasters to help tell the story of what is happening on the field of play is an essential part of being successful,” Japhet said. “If we do a great job, the next morning people aren’t talking about how the game was impacted by a decision, but about the quality of the match itself and the skills on display.”
Last year alone, Hawk-Eye technology was used to cover 15,000 days of sport in 90 different countries around the world. While some of the world’s top sporting leagues – including the Premier League, German League, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), World Rugby and others – have continued to rely on the ball-tracking and goal-line technologies that made Hawk-Eye a world and industry leader in its field, they have also continued to take on more technological advances as they have become available.
In the United States, Hawk-Eye’s SMART (Synchronized Multi-Angle Replay Technology) system, while being paired with Sony’s proprietary video imaging products, is being used by MLB and NHL, which have discovered the same benefits that Hawk-Eye’s European sporting customers have been utilizing for years.
Hawk-Eye has long provided its services to some of the world’s largest and most popular sporting events, including the 2014 World Cup and Olympic Games, while its VAR technology was used in this year’s FIFA U-20 Korea Republic as well as the FIFA Confederations Cup in Russia.
NASCAR has recently added Hawk-Eye’s pit row tracking technology, which not only provides immediate rule infringement monitoring, but also greatly improves the safety of NASCAR officials charged with overseeing activity along the pit lane.
In the high-speed world of racing where the action takes place at a fast and furious level, pit row can be a highly dangerous place to be working. Although NASCAR was satisfied with the overall level of officiating that was taking place, Japhet said that they were looking for a much safer solution for infringement monitoring.
NASCAR officials, Japhet said, found it with Hawk-Eye.
And yet, while Hawk-Eye Innovations has become a staple at the top-tier of the world sporting scene, the company, Japhet said, is looking to widen its scope. Hawk-Eye is working to provide cost-effective services to lower-level federations and leagues that want to take advantage of the technology that has become so useful in the way sports have been covered over the past 16 years. And while Hawk-Eye’s SMART Replay technology is primarily an officiating tool, other areas have been built to support a more comprehensive offering including broadcast enhancement, coaching and analysis, medical, content management and content distribution.
Prior to an event, Hawk-Eye deploys a team of people to sporting venues around the globe to set up equipment that will be used not only to provide quality television coverage, but that will also make the lives of game officials easier.
The intuitive technology, which runs video through a server in real time, provides the precise tracking, but also gives users the added ability to manipulate video so they can see exactly what they need to see at the exact time when they need to do so.
Once the event is over, Hawk-Eye technicians then tear down the system and move on to the next venue, again keeping costs low for content producers.
While the systems may be lighter and perhaps not as expansive as those used on some of the world’s largest sporting stages, Hawk-Eye’s commitment to excellence remains the same.
“Sport teaches us that you only win at the elite level if you are entirely focused on being the best,” Japhet said. “Therefore everything we produce needs to be best in class, and culturally we do not accept anything less.”