DirecTV Branches out to cover the US OPEN

I spoke to the man in charge David Feldstein, senior project manager/producer of DirecTV’s advanced services & content unit.

Feldstein on the success of DirecTV’s interactive channels: “We have seen NFL, Major League Baseball, NASCAR, and Tennis and now golf all grow into interactive experiences that our subscribers not only enjoy but use. At present on some sports we see 50% of our viewers trying our interactive platforms and liking what they see.”

Feldstein on the balance between just enough interactivity and a little too much: “Our goal is to give the viewer the complete interactive experience without losing sight of our goal and that is the base telecast. They all want to see what is going on with the game, or the race but the graphics, as well as our multiple screens and audio channels are there to compliment and enhance the event, not to take away from it.”Clearly the folks at DirecTV get it. They have the most innovative and entertaining package of interactive sports broadcast toys in the industry and are by far the trend setters.

DIRECTV’s U.S. Open Mix channel (216) will offer four channels on one screen, tunable by remote to full-screen channels that will include ESPN’s weekday national telecast and three channels that will air live from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday, June 14, and Friday, June 15.

DIRECTV’s U.S. Open coverage will include:

ESPN National Telecast – The first mix cell will be devoted to the ESPN national telecast of the championship.  During the 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. ET window, the channel will feature the NBC national broadcast to coincide with NBC’s national broadcast rights for the event.

“Featured Group” and “Featured Holes” – During the morning and early afternoon, the second channelwill feature specific players as they make their way through their round.  On Thursday’s opening round, the channel will feature Tiger Woods and his player group; on Friday, Phil Mickelson and his player group will be the focus.

During the late afternoon and evening, the channel will feature coverage of championship play specific to either the 8^th and 9^th holes or 17^th and 18^th holes.

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U.S.
Open Up Close” – This channel will be a hosted production featuring a mix of player interviews from the Oakmont Country Club driving range, as well as press conferences with players and championship officials as they occur.

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U.S.
Open Highlights” – The fourth and final corresponding channel will offer a loop ofU.S. Open highlights that will be continually updated as the first two rounds unfold.