The Sports Video Group is pleased to welcome Cisco as a corporate sponsor. The networking technology giant recently rebranded its “sports and entertainment division” under a new title: Retail, Hospitality, Sports, Media and Entertainment. As part of the new strategy, industry veteran Bryan Bedford has been named as Global Industry Director for Retail, Hospitality, Sports, Media and Entertainment. Bedford and his team are responsible for driving innovation, enablement, new offers and driving the programmatic scaling efforts for the Cisco for all consumer industries.

Cisco has also been chosen once again by NBC Sports to provide networking technology for its all-IP production of the 2024 Paris Olympics and Paralympics. Cisco is delivering networking technology for the broadcaster’s all-IP production, including deployment of Cisco’s IP Fabric for Media at the International Broadcast Center (IBC) in Paris, which enables secure and efficient delivery of 4K and 8K content to viewers in the U.S., as well as new mobility and wireless technologies to put viewers closer to the action than ever before. NBC Sports is also leveraging Cisco’s market-leading security and observability solutions to deliver a real-time unified view of the entire network, helping proactively defend critical infrastructure, prevent outages, and refine the overall digital experience.

In other Olympics news, Cisco recently announced a partnership with the LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games and Team USA to serve as the Official Network Equipment Partner. As the next four years promise to bring incredible growth and transformation that will impact all aspects of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, Cisco will deliver on its long-standing history with the Olympic and Paralympic Movement to not only provide secure connectivity through its industry-leading networking infrastructure, but also positively impact the city of Los Angeles and people in the region.

SVG sat down with Bedford to discuss why Cisco is focused on listening to its customers and growing in the market, Cisco’s role in the rise of IP and cloud-based workflows, the company’s role in the Paris 2024 and LA 2024 Games, and why Cisco is reemphasizing its commitment to the sports-production industry.