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Pixellot Productions On Rise

September 19, 2018

By John Johnson
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties

A year ago, Pixellot – the automated production solution for schools wishing to stream live video of their athletic events on the NFHS Network and MHSAA.tv – was in use at six schools across Michigan.

With the new school year underway, nearly two dozen schools are actively streaming events using Pixellot, with half of those schools streaming indoor and outdoor events. Several schools have more than two Pixellot units in place.

“Schools are finding that Pixellot provides a great opportunity to get a lot of their games out to their fans in a way they could never achieve,” said Mark Uyl, executive director of the MHSAA.  “We have some schools which are using a mix of their traditional, student-staffed, School Broadcast Program efforts along with Pixellot to be able to add subvarsity coverage; and schools going exclusively with Pixellot with installations at multiple venues.”

Pixellot units use from two to four High Definition cameras that cover the length of the playing surface and then focus on the ball and player movement to deliver the action. The unit communicates with the scoreboard to insert a time and score graphic on the screen. Ambient audio is picked up by the device, but the commentary of the public address announcer or the radio style play-by-play of an in-person announcing team also can be patched in.

All that has to be done from a school’s perspective is type in the event schedule and promote the fact that the games are available on MHSAA.tv. Pixellot does the rest. The unit also can be set up to isolate a camera on a fixed location, which allows for activities like cheer and wrestling to be streamed.

Schools actively engaged in Pixellot productions now include: Ann Arbor Greenhills, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, Brighton, Calumet, Dollar Bay, Frankenmuth, Freeland, Fremont, Grand Blanc, Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian, Harrison, Howell, Kalamazoo Christian, Macomb Lutheran North, Manchester, Norway, Novi, Otisville-LakeVille, Ovid-Elsie, Plainwell, Saginaw Heritage, Saline, Stevensville Lakeshore, Warren DeLaSalle and Williamston. Schools using indoor and outdoor units include Cranbrook Kingswood, Frankenmuth, Freeland, Grand Blanc, Howell, Manchester, Norway, Novi, Ovid-Elsie, Plainwell, Saginaw Heritage, Saline and Stevensville Lakeshore. Additional schools will have their Pixellot units coming online soon.

More than 70 percent of the programming taking place this week on MHSAA.tv will be Pixellot productions, featuring a football game Friday evening with two of the top-ranked Division 1 teams facing off for the top spot in the Saginaw Valley League’s Red division. Grand Blanc hosts Davison at 7 p.m. Both teams are 4-0 overall and 2-0 in league play, tied with Lapeer for first place.

Here’s this week’s MHSAA.tv schedule of video streams being produced by School Broadcast Program members and the NFHS Network:

Tuesday - Sept. 18

Wednesday - Sept. 19 

Thursday - Sept. 20

Friday - Sept. 21

Saturday - Sept. 22

Monday - Sept. 24

Tuesday - Sept. 25

All sporting events – live or delayed - are available on a subscription basis only for their first 72 hours online. They become available for free, on-demand viewing approximately 72 hours following their completion.

NFHS Network subscriptions begin at $9.95 a month. Subscribers will have access to all live video and streaming statistics across the country. All content becomes available for free, on-demand viewing 72 hours after being shown live. School Broadcast Program participants also will be selling Season and Annual Passes at a discounted rate. A portion of every subscription sold by a school goes to benefit its program. 

Highlights of games broadcast during the past week by MHSAA School Broadcast Program contributors feature a pair of close football contests – Marquette’s 36-35 overtime win over Escanaba and Howell topping Novi, 21-17 – and a volleyball match with Lake Orion defeating Oxford, 3-0.

Highlights can be found each week on the MHSAA.tv website, the home page of the MHSAA Website, and the MHSAASports Channel on YouTube.

A complete list of participating schools can be found on the School Broadcast Program page of the MHSAA website.

Streams Continue with Saturday Lacrosse

June 4, 2019

By John Johnson
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties

There will be live streaming audio and video coverage of the MHSAA Boys & Girls Lacrosse Finals on Saturday (June 8) on the MHSAA Network and MHSAA.tv.

The MHSAA’s audio streaming website – MHSAANetwork.com – goes back on the air for the last two weekends of the Spring sports tournament run for live coverage of the Lacrosse and Girls Soccer Finals, as well as the Semifinals and Finals in Baseball and Softball.

Here’s the complete Lacrosse Finals schedule with direct links to the live video streams on MHSAA.tv:

Girls Finals at Novi High School

2 p.m. – Division 2 – Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood/East Grand Rapids Semifinal winner v. Okemos/Bloomfield Hills Marian Semifinal winner

4:30 p.m. – Division 1 – Birmingham Seaholm/Rockford Semifinal winner v. Hartland/Brighton Semifinal winner

Boys Finals at Parker Middle School, Howell

2 p.m. – Division 1 – Birmingham Brother Rice/Rockford Semifinal winner v. Detroit Catholic Central/Lake Orion Semifinal winner

4:30 p.m. – Division 2 – Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central/Orchard Lake St. Mary’s Semifinal winner v. East Grand Rapids/Ada Forest Hills Eastern Semifinal winner

Subscribe for a Month Pass to the NFHS Network for $9.95, which will provide access to more than 100 hours of live programming of Spring Finals. Next weekend, MHSAA Finals in Lower Peninsula Girls Soccer (June 14-15) and Semifinals and Finals in Baseball and Softball (June 13-15) will be streamed live.

All events will be archived for free on-demand viewing, beginning three days after their completion. Subscriptions must be cancelled before the 30-day period is over to avoid recurring charges.

Instant audio and video downloads of events taking place on the MHSAA Network and MHSAA.tv will be available shortly following the conclusion of each stream. Click the appropriate button next to the media player of the broadcast to order. Audio downloads are $4.99. Video downloads are priced at $19.95.

MHSAA members participating in the School Broadcast Program will be providing bonus coverage during the final days of the spring sports season. SBP participants routinely stream MHSAA tournament events their schools host. 

Brighton is one of more than 100 SBP schools using the NFHS Network’s automated production solution – Pixellot – to produce games and has a Pixellot unit installed at its outdoor multi-purpose field. Brighton will provide Pixellot coverage of two Semifinal games Wednesday (June 6) in the MHSAA Girls Lacrosse Tournament. 

Here’s the schedule:

Division 2 – Okemos v. Bloomfield Hills Marian – 5:30 p.m.

Division 1 – Hartland v. Brighton – 7:30 p.m.

Cedar Springs High School will cover a Division 3 Girls Soccer Semifinal at 6 p.m. on June 11 involving the winners of the Hope College and Clare Regionals. 

In its 10th year, the School Broadcast Program gives members an opportunity to showcase excellence in their schools by creating video programming of athletic and non-athletic events, with students gaining skills in announcing, camera operation, directing/producing and graphics. Pixellot – the NFHS Network’s automated streaming solution – is used by schools wishing to live stream games but lacking the ability to staff events. The SBP also gives schools the opportunity to raise money through advertising and viewing subscriptions.
 
NFHS Network subscriptions begin at $9.95 a month. Subscribers will have access to all live video and streaming statistics across the country. All content becomes available for free, on-demand viewing 72 hours after being shown live. School Broadcast Program participants also sell Season and Annual Passes at a discounted rate. A portion of every subscription sold by a school goes to benefit its program. 
 
A complete list of participating schools can be found on the School Broadcast Program page of the MHSAA Website.