Fox Sports has made itself a target for teasing and ridicule over the years with innovations such as the “FoxTrax” glow puck for its hockey coverage and the “Diamond Cam,” which seems to add nothing more to MLB telecasts than what a baseball game would look like from a worm’s point of view.
But the network — and its competitors — deserve credit for consistently trying to push the boundaries of what’s possible in televising sporting events, whether it’s through new graphics like score bugs, first down lines and ball trackers, or skycams and railcams to create the “unique visual difference” that allows certain coverage to stand out from its rivals. Such additions get viewers and fans — along with websites such as ours, of course — talking and posting to social media as they notice something new or distinct on a particular sports broadcast. We always notice something we haven’t seen before.
Now, Fox Sports is going to put these various innovations, along with the relationships formed with vendors and developers, under a single banner to create a brand for the new technological advancements spearheaded by its coverage. The initiative is called Fox Lab, and the brand will be used on upcoming innovations for Fox Sports telecasts.
“I think what [Fox Lab] does is allow us to really put a brand on the different types of innovation that we do,” Fox Sports senior vice-president of graphics and technology Zac Fields told Sports Video Group. “Putting it under one umbrella allows us to partner with different sponsors to give them a unique message and allows us to utilize those tools in interesting ways for our production team to tell stories.”
Some new features already been introduced, such as the use of droves for the network’s U.S. Open golf coverage. Others will be unveiled during the MLB postseason, such as more advanced ball tracking technology and 3D graphics trails. Even the Diamond Cam I made fun of above could get an upgrade, with a camera that pans back and forth to follow the action, rather than provide a stationary angle. More high-speed and higher resolution cameras will also be utilized in the months and years to come, giving analysts and viewers even better technology with which to view replays, and the ability to do so more quickly than ever.
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About Ian Casselberry
Ian is a writer, editor, and podcaster. You can find his work at Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He's written for Sports Illustrated, Yahoo Sports, MLive, Bleacher Report, and SB Nation.