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NEP Expands Access to Premium Live Production Capabilities Across Europe

Business

NEP Expands Access to Premium Live Production Capabilities Across Europe
Business

Business

NEP Expands Access to Premium Live Production Capabilities Across Europe

2026-08-20 15:00 Last Updated At:15:10

HILVERSUM, Netherlands--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 20, 2026--

NEP Group, the leading media services provider for live sports and entertainment worldwide, today announced the launch of EU-01, its newest outside broadcast unit and another major step in its strategy to build new units around a common technical framework designed to operate across European markets. The approach gives customers a consistent production experience, with familiar tools, workflows and production environments wherever their events take them across the region.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260820481592/en/

Built on a common IP-based technical architecture, EU-01 takes a hybrid approach, bringing together software-defined capabilities and traditional hardware-based solutions engineered to work seamlessly together. This gives NEP greater flexibility to deploy production capacity across European markets while preserving a familiar operating environment for customers and production teams.

NEP Platform, the industry’s largest ecosystem of trusted software applications for live media production, is a key enabler of this standardised approach, helping teams deploy and configure software-defined capabilities faster and respond more efficiently to the evolving needs of live production.

Designed to UEFA technical specifications, EU-01 is capable of supporting the highest levels of international production while remaining flexible enough to move between sports, entertainment and other live productions. The unit will begin supporting ESPN's coverage of the Eredivisie in the Netherlands and will be showcased during the IBC Show 2026, where customers and partners will have the opportunity to tour EU-01 in person.

“Our customers want the confidence that wherever they’re producing across Europe, they’ll have access to the tools, workflows and production environments they know and trust,” said Lise Heidal, President of NEP Europe.

“That’s what we’re building toward with a more standardised fleet. EU-01 brings that strategy to life, giving our teams the consistency and agility to respond quickly to customer needs while delivering a seamless production experience wherever their events take them.”

A Standardised Approach Across Europe

NEP Europe’s standardised approach enables production teams to move more easily between markets while maintaining familiar tools and workflows. It also gives NEP greater flexibility to deploy production capacity across countries as customer needs change, helping maximise the scale and utilisation of its European fleet.

The approach builds on NEP’s launch earlier this year of EU-03, which is also equipped with NEP Platform and TFC and supports hybrid production by combining traditional broadcast hardware with software-defined capabilities.

Software-Defined Production with NEP Platform

Integrated into EU-01, NEP Platform orchestrates trusted software applications through a single, secure interface, simplifying configuration and enabling faster deployment of production-ready capabilities. At launch, EU-01 utilises Lawo HOME, Manifold and Bridge Technologies’ VB440 through NEP Platform, demonstrating how software-defined capabilities can operate alongside traditional broadcast hardware.

The same approach is already deployed in NEP facilities supporting major productions worldwide. NEP Platform is also available to customers for deployment within their own facilities, backed by NEP’s global engineering expertise and operational experience.

Software Orchestration Meets Broadcast Control

EU-01 also incorporates NEP’s TFC broadcast control system, complementing NEP Platform with the monitoring and operational control required for live production. Together, NEP Platform and TFC bring software orchestration and broadcast control into a unified environment, giving production teams greater visibility, efficiency and flexibility.

Built on a UHD HDR SMPTE ST 2110 architecture, EU-01 features 14 production workspaces across two control rooms and supports 24 cameras, with expansion capability to 48 when required. Additional capabilities include six EVS replay positions, support for up to 192 video inputs and outputs, a Riedel intercom solution and a Dolby Atmos-ready audio room.

NEP Europe’s EU-01 will be on display at the IBC Show in Amsterdam, 11-14 September. To participate in a walkthrough or to learn how NEP Platform and TFC can modernise and simplify media operations, connect with an NEP expert today.

About NEP

Celebrating 40 years of innovation, NEP is the world’s most trusted media services partner for content creators of live sports and entertainment. With a global network of experts, cutting-edge technology, and an expansive portfolio of customer-driven, innovative solutions, we empower our customers to tell their stories in breakthrough ways.

Headquartered in the United States and operating in 25 countries, our teams have supported thousands of major productions and events on every continent with innovation, excellence and reliability. See how we bring content to life at nepgroup.com.

NEP Europe’s standardised fleet approach enables production teams to move more easily between markets while maintaining familiar tools and workflows.

NEP Europe’s standardised fleet approach enables production teams to move more easily between markets while maintaining familiar tools and workflows.

NEP's EU-01 is capable of supporting the highest levels of international production while remaining flexible enough to move between sports, entertainment and other live productions.

NEP's EU-01 is capable of supporting the highest levels of international production while remaining flexible enough to move between sports, entertainment and other live productions.

HONG KONG--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 20, 2026--

Ant International and Bank of China (Hong Kong) (“BOCHK”) announced that the two parties have forged a strategic partnership. Leveraging BOCHK’s banking strengths and Ant International’s leading fintech and AI technologies, the two parties seek to explore the frontier of AI-driven innovative financial services, empower real-time treasury management and cross-border payments, deliver efficient and intelligent liquidity management and financial service solutions for global enterprises, while continuously enhancing financial services for small and medium-sized enterprises (“SMEs”).

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260820387312/en/

Sun Yu, Vice Chairman and Chief Executive of BOCHK, said, “BOCHK is committed to promoting cross-border financial connectivity, with deep expertise in areas such as cross-border payments, treasury management, and fintech. We are pleased to join forces with Ant International, an industry-leading fintech company, not only to explore innovative cross-border financial service solutions, but also to advance fintech innovation and application in Hong Kong, fostering mutually beneficial cooperation in cross-border finance across Southeast Asia. Capitalising on our extensive experience in cross-border personal payment settlements and corporate global liquidity management, as well as our unique strength as Bank of China’s Southeast Asia regional headquarters, BOCHK is dedicated to providing Ant International and its clients with secure and efficient cross-border financial services.”

Eric Jing, Chairman of Ant International, said, “We are proud to forge a strategic partnership with BOCHK, a trusted collaborator since 2013. By combining BOCHK’s strengths with Ant International’s, we are bringing our shared vision to life – ensuring seamless and accessible financial payments for every business and everyone. We look forward to creating even stronger synergy together, bridging our ecosystems to elevate customer satisfaction and deliver the next generation of seamless experiences that empower our users in their everyday lives.”

Ant International’s Alipay+, WorldFirst and Bettr will collaborate with BOCHK to explore in-depth cooperation in several strategic areas. These include:

Enhancing cross-border payment connectivity for global retail consumers

Building on BOCHK’s strong presence as well as product and service capabilities across Hong Kong and Southeast Asia (“SEA”), the Bank will provide Alipay+, Ant International’s unified wallet gateway, with supporting accounts and settlement banking services required for cross-border payment across SEA, hence enhancing the cross-border payment experience for Alipay+ users, while meeting local retailers’ demand for convenient and efficient cross-border payment solutions. The Alipay+ payment ecosystem currently spans over 50 mobile payment partners worldwide, covering more than 2 billion user accounts.

Closer partnership will also be sought between Ant International’s Hong Kong wallet – AlipayHK and BOCHK to enhance user experience for both BOCHK and AlipayHK customers. BOCHK customers can now link their bank accounts and credit cards to AlipayHK for peer-to-peer transfers, payments and top-ups. In the near future, BOCHK and AlipayHK will also launch joint campaigns to engage consumers through tailored marketing initiatives and exclusive user privileges.

Advancing real-time corporate liquidity management

Bettr, Ant International’s inclusive and embedded finance business, will collaborate with BOCHK to jointly explore innovations in blockchain-based solutions. Leveraging distributed ledger technology and tokenisation, a suite of real-time cash flow management and investment solutions will be tailored for Ant International, boosting flexibility and settlement efficiency in serving their global payment needs. Furthermore, combining BOCHK’s strong foreign exchange pricing capabilities and Ant International’s advanced AI technologies, both parties will jointly explore more intelligent treasury solutions to provide Ant International and its businesses with a superior service experience.

Supporting SMEs to go global

WorldFirst, Ant International’s global account service provider, will work with BOCHK to provide SMEs engaging in cross-border trade with a comprehensive suite of integrated cross-border fund management solutions, supporting Chinese enterprises to go global. Currently, WorldFirst offers businesses a one-stop cross-border financial solution covering more than 220 countries and regions, including multi-currency collection and payment, AI-powered foreign exchange services, treasury management and compliance support, enabling enterprises to expand overseas markets efficiently and securely amid complex global conditions.

From left to right: Kelvin Li, General Manager of Platform Tech and Senior Vice President of Ant International, Eric Jing, Chairman of Ant International, Sun Yu, Vice Chairman and Chief Executive of BOCHK, and Wang Huabin, Deputy Chief Executive of BOCHK

From left to right: Kelvin Li, General Manager of Platform Tech and Senior Vice President of Ant International, Eric Jing, Chairman of Ant International, Sun Yu, Vice Chairman and Chief Executive of BOCHK, and Wang Huabin, Deputy Chief Executive of BOCHK

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