NHL partners with GoPro to deliver fans unique perspectives of the game

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=750014

by jschwartz11 • 12 years ago

79 66 12 years ago

tswartz2• 12 years ago

These new views could bring a lot more entertainment to the game, especially if they can stream it live from the devices. Even cooler if they had this in pro cycling.

Does anyone know what attachment they are using on the helmets to get that overhang angle looking back at the player?

thesimon• 12 years ago

Probably something like http://shop.gopro.com/EMEA/mounts/3-way/AFAEM-001.html which obviously won't be used in the real game.

eCa• 12 years ago

Even cooler if they had this in pro cycling.

They started with on-bike cameras last season. Not streamed yet, though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QE97iUvSHk0

tswartz2• 12 years ago

Yes, those have been great to see. But a live stream, similar to F1 would be a huge step forward and make the viewing more engaging to a larger audience.

covati• 12 years ago

This is great for NHL viewers, but even better for GoPro - good to keep getting their name out there as the go to for amazing action footage wherever you are.

at-fates-hands• 12 years ago

This was a video that was making the rounds last year in early 2014 of an AHL ref who wore a GoPro for a game:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEBoOr12BrI

If it's anything like this, I'm all for it. This is about as close as you can get to the action without actually playing. Plus, you get all the commentary from the refs, which is really where all the action is.

You also get to find out all the BS they have to put up with the players and coaches.

EDIT: forgot to mention, you get a good reality check on how big and how fast these guys are, and these are essentially minor league NHL players

evanspa• 12 years ago

I watched for a couple minutes, and started to feel a little nausea. Anyone else? Not sure how this bodes for the general concept of helmet-attached GoPros.

(the Checkers are my home team! - cool seeing them in this vid)

briancurtin• 12 years ago

I umpire college baseball and have looked into mounting a GoPro on my mask for a game, and may do it, but won't be able to do it during the regular season. Could still be fun to show in a summer league where it's slightly more relaxed but still competitive baseball.

Having seen the view of a few other GoPro mask cameras lately, it's pretty cool to see pitches coming in, but commentary is the best part. The chatter was my favorite part of that AHL video by far, but perhaps I'm biased also being an official.

luma• 12 years ago

I'm really curious if they're going to offer the audio feed along with the video feed. We have the technology to broadcast audio from the players in basically every major sport in the US but broadcasters are terrified of doing so because... well let's say pro athletes aren't real big on self-censorship while they're playing.

I get the impression that the NHL (and NFL and everyone else) doesn't want home viewers to actually hear what the players are saying to each other and it drives me nuts, because I really feel like the interpersonal aggression is a part of the sport that nobody wants me to see.

Dwolb• 12 years ago

I wonder what GoPro's end game is here. A partnership to deliver content isn't much of a revenue boost (in terms of #units sold). Seems like GoPro wins because of new market penetration via NHL (i.e. reaching traditional sports with its camera products) and the NHL wins because fans another reason to tune in to NHL content.

I also wouldn't be surprised if this partnership pushes GoPro's mechanical and/or software image stabilization technology forward magnitudes. It's a cool project with a big name customer the engineers will be spurred to find creative solutions to enhance the viewing experience.

Joona2• 12 years ago

I'm not sure, but I don't think GoPros have streaming functionality, so maybe showing off the technology (and advertising it)?

corobo2• 12 years ago

The one I've got can stream - It's a couple seconds lagged via the built in wifi but supposedly instant live-feed via HDMI (untested, yet)

k-mcgrady2• 12 years ago

> "I wonder what GoPro's end game is here."

Marketing. GoPro is at the point now where people use the word to refer to a certain type/style of video. This will help push it further in that direction making GoPro synonymous with point of view/onboard camera. Think of the recent NFL issue with commentators referring to MS Surface as 'an iPad like device'. Or the classic example of tissues being referred to as Kleenex. This will push GoPro further in that direction. There are also probably a lot of hockey playing kids who will want one of the cameras so it could also boost sales more directly.

gk1• 12 years ago

Actually what happened to Kleenex (and Google, and iPad) is what many companies want to _avoid_, because it lowers the value of the trademark. When your trademark becomes the generic word for something, it's more difficult to protect it against infringement.

See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generic_trademark

curun1r• 12 years ago

Yep...ever heard of Coutour? They've arguably got a better product because of their form factor that's less obnoxious to wear. But almost no one has heard of them whereas GoPro, as you point out, is synonymous with this type of video.

But there's another facet to this kind of marketing. Try contrasting videos like this that GoPro puts out for promotional purposes with the kinds of videos that the average person creates with a GoPro. These are fun to watch and full of unique views of cool stuff. The ones that average people create are, for the most part, boring. Yet their market is 99% people who make the boring kind of videos. If their marketing showed the kinds of videos that most people would be creating, no one would buy them. By showing videos like this, they get people inspired enough to think that they can shoot something cool.

niravshah• 12 years ago

Don't underestimate the completely different experience of watching sports from a first-person perspective instead of the God view we get today. As broadcast TV becomes more slanted towards live sports, since all other content can be consumed in other, more convenient ways, these kinds of deals are going to be very important to a space filled with a lot of money.

peeters• 12 years ago

I agree completely. Rogers (or whoever the consortium that bought the Canadian broadcast rights) has added a number of new camera angles to their broadcast this year. Some are gimmicky. But others really let you experience the game in a new way. For instance, because they have a wire cam, they now have an angle that chases an offensive play down the ice. You appreciate a lot of the nuances more when you're not stuck in the nosebleeds at center. And you appreciate the pace a lot more.

BMarkmann• 12 years ago

To be fair, sports content is also already heading in the direction other content is taking. I have NHL Gamecenter Live, for instance, which lets me watch all games timeshifted, select the home or away announcers, watch only the highlights, do relays, etc. Adding features like first-person POV this will only serve to enhance the non-broadcast experience further.

jcastro• 12 years ago

Indeed, the first time someone hits a goalie-mounted one of these with a slapshot from the blue line it's going to make people jump out of their seats.

davidw• 12 years ago

completely different experience of watching sports from a first-person perspective

This is from a crash in the Tour down Under earlier today:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Py_7pYVF664&feature=youtu.be

RobertKerans2• 12 years ago

Hoover, elastoplast, sellotape, gopro, aspirin, dry ice, escalator, thermos

jacquesm• 12 years ago

Kleenex, Xerox, Google... They hate it because it dilutes the trademark but it will happen anyway.

malbiniak• 12 years ago

Sure, it's marketing for the gear, but I also have an unsupported suspicion that GoPro is looking to move into the same space as Red Bull Media House.

schwap• 12 years ago

I think maybe GoPro is angling to become somewhat of a de facto standard in this space. If for example through this partnership they solve a lot problems in the action camera application to pro sports, then when/if another league wants to implement something similar then they will see that hardware/solutions already exist... with GoPro cameras in mind.

kmnc• 12 years ago

It will be amazing when I can watch sports from the first person views of the players.

k-mcgrady2• 12 years ago

Do you think so? I'm not sure I agree. It's useful from time to time but generally you need an overview of everything going on to understand a game. F1 has had this for a while (each weekend you can select from several cars to view live, onboard footage for the entire race. Just watching that you have no idea what's going on overall and it's quite boring. A picture in picture scenario is more useful.

furyofantares• 12 years ago

It probably depends greatly on the sport. American Football seems particularly well suited to first person speciation, given there are only about 11 minutes of actual gameplay in a 3 hour broadcast - there is already a lot of detailed replay after you've seen the bigger picture. There are also lots of individual sports where the big picture isn't as important to understanding what's happening, where a mix of first and third person sounds pretty exciting - skiing, maybe tennis if it isn't too disorienting, for example. And some team sports have predictable moments where the big picture is not necessary, like the pitch and swing in baseball.

Plus, if first person is compelling enough, sports may adapt to be a better fit, especially if they suffer from competition with sports that are already well suited to that type of spectation.

rprospero• 12 years ago

You certainly wouldn't want to watch the whole game that way, but it can make for some interesting replays. When the player made a terrible or great play, it could quite a bit of insight to see the game the way that they saw it.

joeriel• 12 years ago

It could make for interesting cutaway shots or PIP, but as you said, it would only be useful from time to time.

Previous footage I have watched of football players (American) is very disorienting, and the field of vision is very narrow with a helmet mounted camera. It looks like the player has tunnel vision. However, a player's eyes will dart back and forth very quickly taking in a much bigger picture, so you aren't really seeing what they are truly seeing.

The Madden video games implemented a first person perspective (I haven't played for a long time, so not sure if they still have it), and it was nearly impossible for me to play in that mode. You don't have any peripheral vision using that mode, and that same problem will exist for these live sport shots.

Retric2• 12 years ago

I think this depends on the game. You could probably watch 90% of a tennis match from a single player’s viewpoint and not miss much. The other issue is how well you can switch views. Basketball is probably way to fast paced, but you could watch most of a baseball game from a pitchers viewpoint, and only switch to the overview after a big hit/bunt etc which takes long enough that a camera operator can easily follow things. Stealing bases which is normally a fairly borning part of the game would also be much more interesting with a more limited view.

Football would be somewhere between those extremes.

Hockey probably works well from a ref's viewpoint as they try and watch the action, but stand far enough back to get decent coverage.

euphemize3• 12 years ago

As others have mentioned, it depends on the sport. Something like hockey, where you need to go forward/backwards a lot, look out for 9 other players on a small ice surface and be constantly aware of your surroundings to not get leveled means tons of head movement -> not very pleasant to watch. Single player sports are better suited for this, or for specific replays of a few seconds.

atom-morgan• 12 years ago

GoPro right now. Oculus Rift tomorrow?

fredleblanc5• 12 years ago

It's an interesting idea. Will GoPro someday evolve to a "Google-Street-View-esque" camera that sits atop your head and records your entire world in real time. The with Oculus Rift, populate a view so that you can look wherever, which would things like the video in the article less disorienting?

The future sounds crazy.

greeneggs• 12 years ago

An Oculus Rift virtual reality view so you feel like you are there, and a Microsoft HoloLens "holographic" view of the ice rink projected onto your tabletop. Lots of interesting possibilities...

mrob• 12 years ago

I hope it provides some motivation for increased frame rates in television. Hockey is as fast as any arena FPS, and as any serious player knows 60fps is not sufficient to represent that kind of motion.

Even slower paced sports could benefit, because motion interpolation will never be perfect, and strobing to prevent sample-and-hold blur is annoyingly flickery at 60Hz.

joezydeco• 12 years ago

The video seems kind of misleading since it looks like the camera is mounted to an arm extended from the helmets. In a real game they're not going to be like that.

longlivegnu• 12 years ago

I am so hyped for this, I might elect to not go to as many games now so I can watch the NHL channel's POV content.

dingaling• 12 years ago

It is interesting to read the comments here and notice what brand-power GoPro has achieved.

No-one is saying 'I'll attach a mini-cam to my helmet.'

It would be an interesting thesis topic to study how this was achieved.

'Wrote this comment on my LG'

soneca• 12 years ago

That's interesting, but I worry about safety. I saw in the news that the severity of Schumacher's accident was due to the support of the camera (GoPro?) he was using at his helmet at the time.

If someone could confirm this, please. But a rigid cilinder (as I imagine consists a cam support) on a helmet might be an issue.

euphemize3• 12 years ago

They don't have the cameras on for normal games, it's just for the All-star game which is this weekend. It's notorious for being easy-going and low on hits.

Retric2• 12 years ago

Presumably, the issue is a non smooth helment. One option would be to use a fiber optic line to seperate the camera's location from immage capture. The other is a slightly taller helment with a built in camera window. Sure it would be bulky but I doubt an extra inch or so would mean all that much and looking at celphone camra's you could probably make it vary thin.

fredleblanc5• 12 years ago

The NHL has started adding additional "non-standard" camera angles to their streaming (pay) NHL GameCenter app/service. Many (perhaps all, I don't know) now give you a top-down shot of each goalie in addition to the standard home and away broadcasts. I watch them now and then, and it's really interesting if you're a fan of the game.

I know the adoption of this is mostly going to be extracurricular for now, maybe used during All-Star games and such (they've been known to mic up and interview goalies in those while they're in goal).

Although these videos did make me dizzy, it's such an interesting way to become more engaged in the game. I love that the NHL (being the "4th-place league" in the US) is always doing interesting, creative things to try to make their league better.

smoorman10243• 12 years ago

Its true. I think the Winter Classic is another example of the League branching out into new territory and making the game exciting for a wider audience. Not to mention how the lockout made the game more competitive and exciting to watch. When you're in 4th you have no choice but to be scrappy.

fredleblanc5• 12 years ago

Yes, you're absolutely right. Last year, in an attempt to "make it up to the fans," they added all of those extra "Stadium Series" outdoor games. Although I'd rather see more standard games, they're neat things to see.

A side note on the GoPro video on that site is similar to how I felt attending an actual game this year with really good seats: you don't fully get the sense of how fast the game moves and how incredibly talented these guys are as pushing a little rubber puck around ice. This video made me feel like I did watching it live and right in front of me: just wow.

cpwright• 12 years ago

I'd be interested in that, but as I understand it they black out your home games; so I'd still have to watch them on cable anyway without the whiz-bang features. I'd guess most people are like me and are fans of the team in their market.

fredleblanc5• 12 years ago

They blackout your home games and all nationally televised games (although there may be a carrier-exclusive deal worked out here and there).

It's a shame that the NHL signed such a long deal with NBC. I know it was just a couple years ago, but everything was so different then. I hope when their next deal comes around, the NHL is the first to abandon these stupid blackout restrictions.

Besides, if you stream it live, you're still watching the commercials.

protomyth2• 12 years ago

I hope it works and is safe for the players. Hockey is one of those sports that looks like crud on a TV as opposed to having ok seats at an arena. Hockey is one of those sports that I have only met fans that became fans by watching a live game. Its not quite as bad for motorsports since TV seems ok for them, but in person is so much better.

fredleblanc5• 12 years ago

Agreed, but I found watching this video that I felt more like I did while at the game than the standard "god view" that you usually see. It wasn't fully as good, but it was closer.

I believe they experimented with the refs wearing GoPro cameras for a couple of games. You rarely saw them live, but when they were helpful or interesting or worth watching for novelty they were included in the replays.

protomyth2• 12 years ago

Good, anything they can do to make it more like going to the game will help. I would dearly like live views off the ref cams. It might (note I said might) help the folks see things for penalties and such.

swframe• 12 years ago

It would be interesting if they could stitch the video together so we could see the play from any angle. Kind of like using street view and microsoft photosynth to create something like the latest star-trek khan bombing photo.

smoorman10243• 12 years ago

IMHO adding the new camera angle is only half the battle. The other really important half is having a director that can use that angle to add value to the viewer.

euphemize3• 12 years ago

This is interesting for GoPro (good client, huge promo), the fans (great new angles, different perspectives), but I like to see this as big upgrade for the NHL and the players too, as they rely more and more on cameras to enforce the rulebook, review plays, rewatch sequences, etc.. For example:

- Illegal & dangerous checks often come with a suspension, which is always dished out after video evidence is reviewed by the department of player safety - It's very common for goals to get reviewed in-game to check whether there was goalie interference, high stick, kicked in, etc. - All players watch countless hours of video during a week to improve their game and study their opponents (ex: shootout moves)

All in all, more power to the referees, more power to the coaches/players = better, safer, more entertaining hockey, IMO.

osard2• 12 years ago

Great idea. Next best thing to getting people inside the arena. It really is a great spectator sport. Even passes look like laser beams at ice level.

rynop3• 12 years ago

How awesome would it be if they could pull off 3D? A 3D view from the goalie would actually make me want to break out those 3D glasses I got with my TV that are still in the plastic wrapping.

This is a great first step however - getting into the market will open the doors for some really cool stuff - and hopefully give fans a better appreciation for the real speed of the game .

macNchz• 12 years ago

I'd never thought much about that because I've always found 3D to be kind of gimmicky, but POV 3D video in realtime sports broadcasts could really make for an unreal experience.

rynop3• 12 years ago

Totally agree - 3D is a fn gimmick. Hockey goalie view is the only scenario i can currently think of that would make me really want to use it. GoPRO I'm here for you if you want help in implementing :)

jmhobbs• 12 years ago

This is amazing. I love hockey, but I had no idea how amazingly good these guys are at handling the puck. I didn't even read the article, just watched the video a couple times.

neylonbill• 12 years ago

I read this as "NHL partners with GoPro to deliver fans' unique perspectives of the game" and thought that would be very boring.

NHL partners with GoPro to deliver fans unique perspectives of the game

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