h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

When the matches are broadcast by the BBC, the television feed and the radio run exactly in lockstep.

ITV have about a 2 second delay in the broadcast of their feed compared to the BBC.

The only reason I can think that they're doing this is to stop people watching ITV with the sound off and using the BBC's FiveLive as their commentary.

Sods!

It could, of course, be because getting a live TV signal from Germany is a complex process and that different companies will be using different satellites for the purpose.

B

In 2 seconds the signal will travel 600,000km.

So the sattelite would need to be at 300,000km further distant to the one that the BBC is using.

That's way beyond geo-stationary orbit, and most of the way to the

**sigh**

You know I'm talking about signal processing equipment and the like.

Besides, if I was working for a company that was employing Ally McCoist, Robbie Earle and Stuart Pearce, I'd incorporate a 2-second delay to make sure I can edit out any swearing.

B

OK, but I would imagine that the BBC radio and television feeds don't use exactly the same routes and processes to get from Germany to my house. Yet they come out of my radio and TV at precisely the same time.

So I ask again what could ITV be doing with their delay if it weren't deliberate in some way?

However after watching/listening to the first half of the Argentina match I've realised that this delay is a positive for me. I'm far more used to listening to football on the radio than I am to watching it on TV - Sheffield United webcasts of Radio Sheffield commentaries. Therefore I can sit at my desk cheerfully typing away on hootoo and listening to the match on FiveLive. Then if something dramatic sounds like it's about to happen, I can swing around to my right and pick it up on the (silent) TV that's sitting at the other side of the room. Result

(I don't think that this divergence would work if I was watching the TV broadcast at all times.)

That was an interesting game.

There was I pottering around in the kitchen and listening to the match on FiveLive. On a three second delay I got a crowd reaction of Oh's and Ah's from the pub in the next street.

Erm... what?!

Forgive me but I've had a few to drink, so maybe I'm not as lightning fast as I normally am, but what? A football game is a football game...

Anyway, roll on England Vs Sweden!

Well having been at work I managed to only catch the last ten minutes yesterday.

Perfect timing or what?

Forget which channel it was but the ten o'clock(ish) news coverage of the game included a bit that went something like this...

"Fortunately England, seven minutes from time went ahead through a Peter Crouch header"



"...And one from Gerrard finished it off"





Say WHAT!? Let's all show the dodgy goal and leave out footage of probably the best goal England will score in the competition.

my experience listening to the radio while watching tv at the same time is that the radio is BEHIND the telecast, and my guess is that the radio broadcasters themselves are taking an extra 2-3 seconds to improve the quality of their report.