Large Format Football

We spoke with Midwich Product Manager, John Turner about the benefits of LFDs. He was keen to point out that they offer versatility of size and ease of installation.

“Many businesses will want to acknowledge the interest of employees in the World Cup and offer to screen matches as a perk, and also to prevent absentees”

For many companies and organisations, LFDs (classed as 32-in and above) will be the medium of choice for bringing coverage of the World Cup to their customers, employees and guests.

However, in most cases this will be a secondary application after the primary use case of IPTV or digital signage.

“Businesses might want to lay on World Cup viewing for their staff”, says Midwich Product Manager, John Turner. “The majority of the time the LFD will be used as display signage, perhaps in a reception area or for piping corporate messages via an IPTV across a campus, but many businesses will want to acknowledge the interest of employees in the World Cup and offer to screen matches as a perk and also to prevent absentees.”

Rising quality

Today’s LFDs deliver unprecedented image quality and with the advent of 4K/Ultra HD 16x9 screens, that’s only getting better. They come in an enormous array of sizes, with something to fit almost any space. Plus, they fit almost any budget: LFDs have never been as affordable as they are today.

“With the advent of LED-illuminated LCD LFDs, screens are now remarkably slim and lightweight, substantially increasing the range of locations in which they can be installed – and the ease of doing so,” says Turner. “Unlike a consumer TV, professional LFD models won’t overheat even if run all day. In a typical office environment, or any public area with large windows, a LFD picture will typically be a lot brighter than a traditional TV. If your average consumer TV is 300 ANSI lumens, an LFD will rate up to 700. Our LFDs come with a range of anti-glare coatings and weather-proof and/or vandal-proof enclosures which only add to its flexibility.”

For signage, such as in QSRs wanting to run special promotions around the tournament, LFDs have a further advantage.

“Brands such as McDonald’s or Coca-Cola put a premium on accurate rendition of their logos and with LFDs you can calibrate colour precisely whereas with consumer TVs this will always be compromised.” Informs Turner.

Strength in numbers

During the 2018 World Cup, we’re likely to see videowalls widely deployed, if the experience of four years previously is anything to go by. Sports broadcasters favour them for studios; stadiums use them to enhance the fan experience; and the fan zones that have become a feature of world Cups will leverage either videowalls or projectors.

“Videowalls bring two key advantages: flexibility and scalability,” says Turner. “Both attributes, combined with the sophisticated image processing of which many videowalls are capable that can produce some eye-catching effects, lend themselves to a high degree of creativity – capable of turning the coverage of a game into a unique visual experience that can attract a crowd.”

Such is the virtually bezel-less nature of today’s videowall screens, it’s possible to construct a single, contiguous, apparently seamless image of almost any shape, size or geometry, while their slim profile lends itself readily to being installed in almost any location.

“Don’t forget about weight,” he advises. “A single 98-in screen can weigh over 90 kg, so before even attempting to mount it you have to consider what the wall is constructed from and make sure it’s capable of supporting the weight. Luckily, Midwich have a whole team here to specializes in mounts and structures.”