CUSTOMER
• Cincinnati Reds
INDUSTRY
• Professional baseball organization
• Install Sony BRAVIA™ TVs
connected to a VAIO® computer
and running Sony’s StadiumView
software application, allowing
guests to select the feeds shown
on the HD displays in their suites.
CHALLENGES
BENEFITS
• Upgrade the ballpark’s video
production and suite technology
to high-definition.
• Fans benefit from an enhanced
and interactive entertainment
experience.
• Efficiently capture and produce
video for playback during games
on the stadium’s LED screens and
the HD displays throughout the park.
• The Great American Ballpark
project is an example of Sony’s
managed services approach,
where Sony not only assembles,
designs and maintains a system
but also serves as a prime
contractor.
SOLUTIONS
• Implement a combination of
high-definition video production
and LED technology from Sony
and Daktronics.
Cincinnati Reds Stadium
gets high-definition video
upgrade from Sony and
Daktronics.
HD cameras, displays, LED and fascia
boards, and new in-suite viewing
technology are highlights of re-designed
entertainment destination.
At Great American Ball Park, home of Major League
Baseball’s Cincinnati Reds, fans can get an enhanced
ballpark experience thanks to high-definition video
production and LED technology from Sony and Daktronics.
The Reds’ HD upgrade was completed under the agreement
between Sony and Daktronics to jointly market and provide
complete audio/video systems and services to professional
and collegiate sports operations in the United States.
the fans and we hope that energy will also be
felt by our players on the field.”
The agreement between Sony and Daktronics
combines both companies’ sports resources
to offer organizations a turn-key source for
both stadium upgrades and new construction
projects. The Great American Ballpark project
is an example of Sony’s managed services
approach, where Sony not only assembles,
designs and maintains a system but also serves
as a prime contractor. Diversified Services was
chosen by Sony to provide integration services
for the new HD control room.
“Our work with the Reds is a model for our
future stadium and sports venue approach,”
said Steve Stubelt, director of Sony’s Solutions
Group. “Teaming with Daktronics adds a
critical component of a sports venue system
and allows us to give customers a one-stop
shopping experience.”
The stadium’s new HD control room has Sony
HDC-1450 studio cameras, XDCAM® HD optical
camcorders (model PDW-F355), an MVS-8000G
production switcher and LUMA® 24-inch* LCD
monitors. The Sony equipment is being used
to capture and produce video for playback
during games on the stadium’s LED screens
and the HD displays throughout the park. Plus,
XDCAM PDW-HD1500 decks are being used for
video recording and mastering.
Daktronics installed its HD-16 high-definition
displays, including a 38 by 137-foot main
video board in left field, 768 feet of fascia
board in the outfield and along the first and
third base lines, and out-of-town scoreboard
and Major League Baseball standings
displays behind the left and right field walls.
In addition to the enhanced HD video
technology, Great American Ballpark offers fans
an interactive entertainment experience. Each
Sony Electronics Inc.
1 Sony Drive
Park Ridge, NJ 07656
sony.com/sonysports
SG-0046
of the park’s 64 luxury suites feature a Sony
46-inch* BRAVIA LCD high-definition television
connected to a VAIO® computer running Sony’s
StadiumView software application.
This software lets guests use a touch screen
to select the feeds shown on the HD displays
in their suites, for example, choosing the view
from centerfield or behind home plate. The
StadiumView Network Application Server also
provides graphic signage, branding, and
advertising opportunities, along with other
features like replays.
“Our goal is to create a memorable
experience for all fans the minute they step
foot into the ballpark,” said Jennifer Berger,
the Reds’ senior director of entertainment,
events and productions. “This type of
technology, combined with the HD image
quality across the whole park, will create a
new level of enthusiasm and excitement for
“Working with the Reds and Sony, we’ve put
together an incredible system that will rival
the best in Major League Baseball,” said
Daktronics sales manager Will Ellerbruch.
“The combination of HD-X technology on the
high-definition video display and other LED
displays throughout the ballpark will provide
the Reds with unsurpassed flexibility to
engage fans and activate sponsors.”
Stubelt added that a managed services
project can also include multi-year contracts
for hardware with built-in, regularly scheduled
system updates, services and personnel
training, as well as on-site technical service,
professional services, consultation, project
management, engineering and content
creation for in-game use, and more.
“All these services can be provided for a fixed
monthly fee,” Stubelt said. “It gives customers
a less expensive and faster entry into HD
because they’re not laying out the capital
expenditures all at once.”
*Viewable area, measured diagonally
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in part without written permission is prohibited. Sony, BRAVIA, LUMA, VAIO,
XDCAM,“make.believe” and their respective logos are trademarks of Sony.