Intel True View offers immersive fan experience
February 7, 2019
By Colin Mann and Nik Roseveare
Three leading clubs in England’s top-flight football tournament the Premier League are offering fans the possibility of watching a season-defining moment, then reliving it from any angle including from the perspective of their favourite player as they run up to take a penalty or make an improbable goal-line clearance.
In partnership with Arsenal FC, Liverpool FC and Manchester City, semiconductor specialist Intel will deliver immersive experiences via Intel True View at Emirates Stadium, Anfield and the Etihad Stadium. Now their fans worldwide can enjoy the biggest moments of the match from every angle, whether they’re watching the Rights Holders’ live broadcast and highlights or reliving the action post-match from their favourite clubs’ official website, mobile app or social media.
As three of the most recognisable football clubs in the world, Arsenal FC, Liverpool FC and Premier League champions Manchester City will leverage Intel True View to capture every match element from every angle. Intel True View re-creates the action on the pitch and presents that from an ideal vantage point or player’s perspective, using Intel’s unmatched data-processing capability to deliver the experience to fans.
Beginning March 10th, Intel says its volumetric technology will bring fans as close to the action on the pitch as the starting eleven from the world’s most iconic football clubs, with Intel True View highlighting the immersive experiences unique to the style and skill of football.
The partnerships will introduce features that include:
- Multi-angle views of a play: Intel Sports’ industry-leading volumetric video process creates thrilling 360-degree replays and highlight reels from every conceivable angle, using 38 5K ultra-high-definition cameras.
- Laser wall: A virtual plane giving viewers a clear picture as to where players are positioned on the pitch.
- Be the player capabilities: Intel True View freezes a moment in the match to let fans see the pitch from the eyes of a player. This also enables presenters and pundits to share a new level of insight into the tactics and decisions made by players to provide an entirely new perspective to fans.
Noting that the sports industry is undergoing a period of significant change as consumer behaviour is shifting, driving technology, leagues and brands to address the expectations of fans, with technology investments into sports reaching nearly $1 billion, Intel suggests that with smart and connected tools, it is uniquely positioned to enable the sports industry to capture, analyse and respond to new levels of insight in real time and create amazing new experiences for fans.
“Immersive media experiences continue to create more opportunities for sports teams and leagues to put the fan experience first,” noted James Carwana, vice president and general manager of Intel Sports. “With the expansion of Intel True View into more stadiums with Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City, we have the chance to transform the experience for fans of one of the world’s top sports leagues with our leading and differentiated volumetric technology.”
“We are always looking to find new ways to bring our 780 million fans and followers around the world closer to the action and this partnership will give our fans a whole new view of the game,” suggested Peter Silverstone, commercial director of Arsenal FC. “The technology effectively allows a supporter to step into the boots of players and see the game from their perspective. We have seen the impact this Intel technology has had in other sports leagues across the world and are excited that it will be installed at Emirates Stadium.”
“At Arsenal we are committed to innovating and keeping at the forefront of developments on and off the pitch so it’s fitting that Emirates Stadium will be the first stadium to bring Intel’s immersive and transformational True View technology to the Premier League.”
“We’re delighted to be working with Intel to bring this advanced Intel True View technology to our supporters,” declared Billy Hogan, Managing Director and Chief Commercial Officer, Liverpool FC. “Intel True View enables fans to immerse themselves even further into the game and has the power to add a new depth to match highlights, which can significantly improve the supporter experience. This technology has the potential to add a new dynamic to how people interact with the game and create different conversations with our fans around the world.”
“We strive to utilise the latest technology to be at the forefront of the experience our supporters have, whether that’s on-screen or online, and with the help of our newest partner Intel, that is certainly set to continue.”
“We’re very excited to integrate Intel True View at the Etihad Stadium and to announce our new partnership with a world-class brand like Intel,” added Damian Willoughby, senior vice president of Partnerships at City Football Group. “We love to be first, both on and off the pitch, so we are delighted to pioneer this game-changing technology at the Etihad Stadium. We are sure City fans, and football fans around the world, will love watching beautiful football from every angle.”
The process begins with volumetric video, the capture and rendering technique behind Intel True View. Using the volumetric capture method, footage is recorded from 38 5K ultra-high-definition cameras that includes height, width and depth of data to produce voxels (pixels with volume). After content is captured, a substantial amount of data is processed with servers powered by Intel Core i7 and Intel Xeon processors.
The software then re-creates all the viewpoints of a fully volumetric 3D person or object. That information renders a virtual environment in spectacular, multi-perspective 3D that enables users to experience a captured scene from any angle and perspective and can provide what Intel says is true six degrees of freedom.