Planet TV, the Slovenian commercial TV station, recently deployed TVU Networks’ solutions for coverage of the Ljubljana Marathon.
   

Both the TVU One and TVU Anywhere solutions were utilised to cover the largest running event held in Slovenia. The marathon’s international recognition is largely due to its attractive course, which runs through the streets of Ljubljana. The two main races are a marathon (42km) and a half marathon (21km), but the event also consists of recreational runs of varying lengths and degrees of difficulty for runners of all ages and fitness levels.

Planet TV required a reliable and flexible solution to continuously live broadcast from various locations throughout the city, where large crowds gathered to watch the action. Ultimately, the network deployed four TVU One mobile live video transmitters in addition to TVU Anywhere, the application that turns mobile smart devices into HEVC transmitters with TVU’s patented IS+ transmission algorithm, allowing live HD IP video to transport at sub-second latency with bitrates as low as 3Mbps.

The compact nature and reliability of these TVU solutions provided Planet TV a successful platform to capture the event from moving cars, motorbikes and on foot. The live broadcast was successfully aired directly to Planet TV and the Ljubljana Marathon website, where over 30,000 viewers live streamed the event.

“We wanted to be forward-thinking in our coverage of an event as dynamic as the Ljubljana Marathon. Our solution had to be dependable and powerful but also small in size and low in weight for our crew to guarantee mobility. A highlight of the equipment was the H.265 encoding which produced high quality video in hard conditions,” said Rok Mareš, Technical Director at Planet TV. “The combination of TVU Networks’ solutions allowed us to achieve the video quality and stability that was necessary for our live broadcast, but beyond that, it also made it possible to capture footage from different angles, locations and speeds.”

“We’re very proud that our solutions were chosen by Planet TV to cover Slovenia’s largest marathon,” added David Jorba, Managing Director Europe, at TVU Networks. “The TVU One and TVU Anywhere are ideal for a wide variety of scenarios, particularly requiring reliable and high quality live video transmission. The Ljubljana Marathon is a perfect example of how applicable and useful our products can be, regardless of the environment and circumstances.”