HBSAB – Redefining the Television Experience for 25 Years (virtual)
Date: Oct 25, 2022Time: 6:00 PM to 7:15 PM
Oct252022
HBSAB – Redefining the Television Experience for 25 Years (virtual)
Description
Today, Game Creek Video’s fleet of 76 remote video production trucks have a presence at virtually every major televised sports and political event in America. Game Creek continues to set the industry standards. Spend some time with us on Zoom at 7PM Thursday evening October 25th as we take a multi-pivot journey through time with Patrick Sullivan, Founder of Game Creek Video.
Game Creek serves the world’s largest television networks, production companies, and news organizations with state of the art mobile television production units. Game Creek combines an advanced, modern fleet of mobile production units with an accomplished, reliable team of experts to ensure that the largest events in the world are televised flawlessly, including such events as the Super Bowl, baseball’s World Series, NASCAR, golf’s U.S. Open, the Olympics, and the FIS World Ski Championships.
In 1990, after a 30-year association with the Boston/New England Patriots, Sullivan noticed that the television landscape was changing dramatically and that the then big three networks – ABC, CBS and NBC – were using independent firms to provide remote production facilities (TV Trucks) for the production of NFL games. He pondered investing in one of these TV Truck companies. By October 1993, with the purchase of two trucks from Sure Shot Teleproductions, Game Creek Video was born with no customers, a flawed business plan, six employees, and a hope and a prayer. Game Creek’s original business plan was built on serving the regional sports networks, NESN and MSG, but they had other plans.
Opportunity knocked instead in the proliferation of new cable channels, and the Title IX driven burst of televised women’s sports. Game Creek also began to provide surge capacity for FOX sports and ESPN at remote locations that the networks could not cover easily themselves. Game Creek happily and swiftly strayed from the original plan to fulfill these needs. Years later, Game Creek revisited the original idea of serving the regional sports networks and accomplished that goal as well.
A Series of Firsts
Game Creek built a reputation for state of the art engineering and video production. Early hires dealt with the idiosyncrasies of trucks designed by others, but by 1996, Game Creek built its first far from perfect truck. In 2000, Game Creek grew explosively with the acquisition of an unfinished ESPN trailer. ESPN also assigned Game Creek its NASCAR coverage, which solidified Game Creek’s large-scale production capabilities. 2002 saw Game Creek construct the first “router centric” truck, and the basis for all future designs. That truck opened the door for Game Creek to broadcast the 2002 World Series, and established the still continuing long-term relationship with FOX Sports. Further truck iterations enabled Game Creek to introduce high definition production to the 2005 NBA Conference Finals.
In 2010, Game Creek was the first in the industry to build a facility with a complete 3G/1080p infrastructure. The fiber connectivity allows quick set-up and maximum flexibility. This mobile facility has been used for every New York Yankee home game and four World Series since its launch.
Participants must register by Noon on October 24th to receive details on joining the discussion. The Zoom link will be sent out 24 hours before the event.
Please note that no refunds will be issued.
Bios
Speaker
Patrick Sullivan
President and Owner, Game Creek Video LLC
Patrick Sullivan is the President and owner of Game Creek Video LLC which is the largest independently owned mobile television production company in the United States.
Game Creek Video designs, builds, and operates mobile television production trailers to a wide list of national and regional clients including ESPN, FOX Sports, CBS, Amazon Prime, NBC Sports, NBC Sports Boston (Celtics) NBC Sports Philadelphia (Flyers, Phillies, & Sixers) NBC Sports Washington DC (Capitals & Wizards) NBC Sports Chicago (Black Hawks, Bulls, & White Sox) NBC Sports Bay Area (Warriors, Sharks, Kings, Giants, & Athletics) NESN (Red Sox & Bruins) The YES Network (New York Yankees & Brooklyn Nets), Madison Square Garden Network (New York Rangers, Islanders & Knicks, and the New Jersey Devils), Sports New York (New York Mets) Mid Atlantic Sports Network (Baltimore Orioles and Washington Nationals), NFL Network and MLB Network.
Game Creek Video has been responsible for production facilities for the World Series, Super Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Rose Bowl, Bowl Championship Game, Daytona 500, The Masters, The PGA Championship, The NCAA Men’s Final Four, the NBA Finals, and MLB All Star Game.
Game Creek Video also provides pool production facilities for CNN, ABC News, CBS News, and NBC News for virtually all the presidential debates, the State of The Union, each presidential inauguration since 2005.
A 1976 graduate of Boston College, Mr. Sullivan is responsible for all strategic planning and corporate sales for Game Creek. He was inducted into the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame in 2015 and was named the New Hampshire High Tech Council’s Entrepreneur of the Year in 2016.
Mr. Sullivan worked for the Boston and New England Patriots from 1960 to 1990. From 1983 through 1990, he was General Manager of the Patriots. The Patriots played in Super Bowl XX in 1986.
Mr. Sullivan is on the Board of Trustees at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
Patrick Sullivan has been married to Lynne Sullivan for 42 years. They are the parents of three sons: Garrett, Senior Vice President of Finance and New Business Development for Game Creek Video, Kyle, Director of Strategic Planning at Game Creek Video and Terrance, Operations Manager for Game Creek Video. They are also the proud grandparents of 5 children.
Moderator
John Reichenbach
Board Chair - Federation for Children with Special Needs
Mr. Reichenbach, an engineer by training, has been CEO or CFO of six venture capital backed technology companies. He has raised $80mm in venture capital for these companies. The two biggest exits were e-Travel, which was sold to Oracle, and is now owned by Amadeus, and Amicas which was sold to a public company that assumed the Amicas name, and was eventually sold to IBM for $1 BB. He has also worked at United Technologies, Continental Airlines, and Becker Paribas at senior levels in nearly every function. He is an inventor on three issued US patents related to speech technology.
John led the relaunch of HBS Angels of Boston, which had been dormant for seven years. Since the February 2020 relaunch, HBS Angels of Boston has held eight pitch events and over a dozen educational events. 40 companies have presented, and Boston angels have made investments in 12 of them. HBS Angels of Boston has also teed up Smoodi, Beckon Ice Cream, BLDUP, Lupii and Moxie Scrubs for successful global syndication through HBS Angels.
In addition to his Harvard MBA, John holds a BS from Yale. He has been on the board of the Federation for Children with Special Needs since 2008, and currently serves as chair.
Date Time
Date: Oct 25, 2022Time: 6:00 PM to 7:15 PMLocation
Zoom Webinar (Information to be sent to Registrants)1460 BroadwayNew York, NY 10036View Map
Price
- Free / Patron Members (please contact programming@hbscny.org)
- 25 / General Public
- 10 / Member/Member Guest (limit one)
- 20 / Alumni Non-Members
Sponsors
Organizer
HBS Association of BostonZoom Webinar (Information to be sent to Registrants)
1460 Broadway, New York, NY, 10036
