Connecting multiple offices starts with one decision: which sites only receive the broadcast and which sites contribute to it. Receiving sites need a reliable viewing set-up and good room audio. Contributing sites need cameras, microphones, a return feed and a tested connection back to the production.
Receiving sites versus contributing sites
Treating every location as a full production site is expensive and usually unnecessary. Most organisations have one or two sites that speak and many that watch.
- Receiving site: display, room audio, a viewing device and a named local contact
- Contributing site: camera, microphone, return video and audio, and a tested uplink
Connectivity is the real constraint
Corporate networks are built for downloads, not for sustained uploads. Contributing sites need verified upload bandwidth, ideally a dedicated or separate connection, and a tested path through the corporate firewall.
This is checked days before the broadcast, not on the morning of it.
One programme, one direction
A company-wide broadcast should feel like one production. That means one graphics package, one director calling the programme, one running order and one point of contact per site.
Rehearse the hand-offs
The riskiest moments in a multi-site broadcast are transitions between locations. Rehearse each hand-off, including the cue the local contact receives and what happens if a site drops.