Advanced Television

Along the route of the Tour de France with Orange

July 1, 2014

A proud partner of this great sporting event for the past 15 years, Orange provides both the organisers and the media with high-performance, tailor-made telecommunications solutions for the entire duration of the Tour de France to ensure that the event runs smoothly and that it can be broadcast worldwide. Orange also offers a comprehensive system to allow fans to follow the highlights of the competition in real time.

The very best technology at the service of the Tour de France

Thanks to its technological expertise and its capacity to mobilise its experts, Orange offers a tailor-made communications system for every edition of the Tour de France, which takes the unique needs and restrictions of the event into account.

This year’s Tour de France will pass through 23 towns with 4G1 coverage.This means that any Orange customer on a 4G/H+ tariff with a compatible smartphone can share their photos and videos instantly and conveniently.

For the 2014 event, scheduled for 5-27 July and to include 21 stages, Orange is rising to new technological challenges with:

– a fibre optic network at all welcome sites (Press Room, Technical Area)

–          a constant speed of 2 G/s for the press and other professionals

–          5 permanent dedicated Wi-Fi networks at the event for all professionals (organisers, journalists, television channels, photographers, commentators’ stand)

-21 international Gigabit Ethernet circuits constructed between England and France

– 4 complex service sites: the Planche des Belles Filles, Chamrousse, Hautacam, Saint-Lary and Pla d’Adet

– optimised quality for sound transmission and IP Codec radio links in 3G and 4G

– instantaneous network monitoring (SNMP, passive, local and remote)

–  High Definition video conferencing thanks to symmetrical 20 Mbit/s broadband connecting the interview bus to the press room

– pre-video conferencing to capture and broadcast “fresh” reactions, in informal settings, as well as the reactions of the stage winner and those on the jerseys leader board (yellow, green, polka dot and white)

– installation of Livebox Play in the press room and technical area with ADSL, VDSL and FTTH (with download speeds of up to 200 Mbit/s and upload speeds of up to 50Mbit/s, 10 times faster than ADSL)

  • implementation of an Open Touch PABX SIP, allowing for unified communications (GSM, fixed computers, tablets) and total mobility
  • storage of technical databases on the Orange Cloud
  • 100 Mbit/s symmetrical links for sharing photos of the Tour
  • broadcast of arrivals via the Bloc d’Orange
  • video monitoring for remote maintenance, assistance with installing complex solutions (technician teams will wear helmets that are equipped with webcams and receive remote support from experts)
  • 6 official cars, each equipped with a WiFi on board system to allow passengers to stay connected under all circumstances (3 official Orange cars and 3 others sponsored by the A.S.O).

 

A multi-platform device to allow you to be at the very heart of the Grande Boucle

Thanks to Orange, fans can follow all the events of the Tour de France 2014 on their PCs, mobile phones and tablets. To make sure they don’t miss a single moment of the race, cycling fans can live each of the stages directly on their PCs via the Orange portal: http://tourdefrance.sports.orange.fr.

Orange customers can access exclusive content on their mobile phones and tablets:

–           video highlights of the race, almost directly as they happen,

–          the general rankings in real time,

–          all the commentated stages directly as they happen,

–          analysis of each stage by Bernard Hinault,

–          interview with the winner after each stage,

–          slideshows with the photos of the day,

–          unique images with videos of each leg of the race

In partnership with the A.S.O – Amaury Sport Organisation, Orange is also the provider of the official Tour de France application, which is available to everyone and will allow users to discover the highlights of the Tour on their smartphones and tablets.

This application is available for iPhone/ iPod touch/ iPad and Android devices. Cycling fans can download a free version (excluding connection charge) to view all the latest information on the race directly and in real time, including the intervals between competitors, the rankings and the results.

Enthusiasts can also opt for the premium version, priced at €2.69 to access all videos of the race virtually in real time in addition to the services offered by the free version (Orange customers can access these videos directly on the orange.fr mobile portal).

Categories: Broadcast, Press Releases, Services