JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, June 17, 2010 - Cisco announced today that it collaborated with Control Room, a leading producer of global music events, to showcase the Cisco® Digital Media Suite (DMS) solution at the FIFA World Cup™ Kick-Off Celebration Concert last week. The event took place on the eve of the first match on 10 June 2010, in the newly renovated Orlando Stadium in Soweto, Johannesburg.
Topping the bill at the event were international superstars Alicia Keys, Black Eyed Peas, John Legend, Shakira, and the Parlotones. All net proceeds from the event benefited "20 Centers for 2010", the official campaign of the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa, and the event also provided a communications platform for 1GOAL, a campaign to which Cisco already donates.
Highlights / Key Facts:
- For this musical extravaganza Cisco provided 42-inch high-definition screens, 25 in all, as well as the local area network and wireless access points to some sections of the stadium. This enabled broadcast to several other levels and hospitality areas in the stadium. After the concert Cisco donated portions of the wireless solution to Orlando Stadium.
- The Cisco Digital Media Suite is an integrated platform for video collaboration, digital signage, and live and on-demand IPTV applications. Cisco DMS streams broadcasts to entertainment venues to provide audiences with the flexibility to access live and on-demand content. It is designed to deliver compelling global communications as well as an improved user, marketing and branding experience.
- As an integral part of the Cisco DMS large format, professional-quality Cisco LCD Professional Series Displays provide complete end-to-end solutions for Cisco Digital Signs and Cisco Cast applications. Cisco LCD Professional Series Displays offer 32-, 40- and 52-inch models with full 1080p resolution as well as centralized, remote management through the Cisco Digital Media Manager to control on and off, volume, contrast, and brightness.
- Produced by the Emmy Award-winning producer Kevin Wall and his company Control Room, in partnership with local promoter Showtime Entertainment, the event featured musical performances by major international superstars and popular African artists collaborating together, along with special appearances by Patrick Vieira, Lucas Radebe and other football legends.
- The event, which proved to be the 'must have' ticket for audiences not only across the African continent but globally, was televised to tens of millions of viewers worldwide.
Executive Quotes:
- Kevin Wall, founder of Control Room
- David Meads, managing director, Cisco, South Africa
"This year marked the first time the FIFA World Cup tournament was played in Africa, so it seemed fitting to celebrate this momentous occasion with a festival of live music from Africa and beyond. Cisco helped us to deliver this experience to over 30,000 at the Orlando Stadium."
"The FIFA World Cup™ Kick-off Celebration Concert in South Africa proved to be the ultimate global entertainment event and experience in the 2010 calendar so far. Everyone around the world wanted to be a part of it. Cisco's strategy is about connecting people, information, and teams, providing context so they can find the right information and people quickly and securely and our DMS solution demonstrates this capability. We are confident that we now have a winning formula that can be replicated across other stadia in South Africa."
Links / URLs:
- RSS Feed for Cisco: http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/rss.html
- News@Cisco in Africa: http://newsroom.cisco.com/africa
- News@Cisco in South Africa: http://www.cisco.com/web/ZA/index.html
- For more details about Cisco DMS - Cisco Digital Media Suite Services
About Control Room
Founded by Emmy-award winning producer Kevin Wall and headed by company president and co-executive producer Aaron Grosky, Control Room is the world's leading producer of massive global events leveraging unparalleled expertise to deliver once-in-a-life time entertainment experiences to audiences around the world. Through a combination of expertise – event production, television production, media architecture design, artist and celebrity relationships, sponsorship development, and creative vision – Control Room evolves events into cultural phenomena.
Control Room is an end-to-end solution for brands, artists, broadcasters and sponsors committed to connecting global audiences with compelling entertainment. The company has built long-standing business relationships and successfully navigated the complexities of culture, government, and production in countries in every region of the world. Since 2005, Control Room has illustrated a history of measurable results through a comprehensive body of work including more than 100 live events ranging from single-artist concerts to worldwide movements. For more news visit: http://controlroom.com/2010/05/vevo-to-live-stream-fifa-world-cup-kick-off-celebration-concert/
