April 2016 – Page 103 – Welcome to Wyandotte Daily!

SkyCam to make debut at Sporting KC match Saturday in KCK

Sporting Kansas City will change the way soccer is televised when SKCTV introduces the cutting-edge SkyCam Wildcat system during Saturday’s match against Real Salt Lake at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kan.

SkyCam, a cable-suspended aerial camera that floats above the playing field, will offer thrilling and dynamic angles of in-game action throughout every SKCTV telecast at Children’s Mercy Park in 2016. Sporting Kansas City becomes the first MLS club to feature a semi-permanent installation of SkyCam at its home stadium.

“Bringing SkyCam to professional soccer will help SKCTV deliver the best television viewing experience in the sport,” Sporting KC president Jake Reid said. “This state-of-the-art addition will showcase the game to supporters in a whole new way and aligns with the club’s commitment to innovation and originality.”

Following a multi-million dollar investment program to further upgrade its already groundbreaking aerial camera platform, SkyCam unveiled its next-generation Wildcat system in July 2015 during the 2015 AT&T MLS All-Star Game.

Wildcat blends the best in engineering, automation and broadcast technology, creating the world’s most advanced and flexible aerial camera system. The 4-axis system delivers a stable, rich and varied stream of live-action sports footage and other entertainment programming. Its open architecture also allows for many different enhancements, such as microphones responsible for capturing the on-the-field player conversations and game play sounds; the ability to superimpose on-screen graphics; and built-in anemometers to measure wind force, velocity and direction.

“We are very proud to be the first MLS club to use SkyCam in all of our regular season broadcasts at Children’s Mercy Park,” SKCTV producer Joe Loverro said. “This technology will bring fans closer to the action than ever before and show the game in a more exciting way to better demonstrate the incredible skill, speed and strength of players in MLS. SkyCam will make what is already the beautiful game even more so.”

With the capability of moving at speeds in excess of 25 miles per hour, the lightweight and compact Wildcat camera system can both exceed the speed of play and provide viewers at home with breathtaking views. The new semi-permanent Sporting Kansas City installation at Children’s Mercy Park also includes two elevated robotic cameras positioned behind the goal and above the crossbar to further heighten the fan experience.

“Thanks to our relationship with Sporting Kansas City and the support of Major League Soccer, we’re able to unveil our first-ever semi-permanent MLS installation at this Saturday’s home game,” said Endre Buxton, president and CEO, SkyCam. “Putting the viewer right in the middle of the action, the use of our trailblazing aerial camera – the Wildcat system, along with our other elevated robotic cameras, will significantly enhance the way these soccer games are broadcast by delivering dynamic angles and revealing thrilling perspectives that dramatically boost the quality of the team’s live coverage.”

“Sporting Kansas City is truly a progressive team, and by making a commitment for a season-long installation, we’re leveraging our proprietary technology to change the way stadium sports are experienced on TV and beyond,” Buxton added.

– Story from Sporting KC

State revenue shortfall narrowly misses mark; Democrats still have concerns

Kansas Democrats still have concerns for the overall shortfall of the year despite state revenue figures for March announced today that narrowly missed the projections.

The state Department of Revenue announced today that corporate, sales and use taxes reversed several months of weaker-than-expected receipts and total taxes were $1.7 million below, or 99.63 percent of estimates. Individual income tax receipts – while $6.9 million more than March 2014 – fell short of projections by $14.4 million, the department stated in a news release.

Total tax receipts for the fiscal year through March are $4.1 billion or $81.3 million below estimates, which is $53.1 million more than the previous fiscal year-to-date, according to the state’s news release.

“After a weak month in February, withholding rebounded in March but not quite as strongly as anticipated,” said Revenue Secretary Nick Jordan in the news release. “While corporate income, sales and use tax receipts are up, oil severance payments are down. It is a trend that is contributing to a sluggish economy in many rural counties which depend heavily on oil and commodities.”

“More will have to be done when the Legislature reconvenes in late April to balance the budget and chart a new, fiscally responsible and sustainable path forward,” Rep. Burroughs said in a statement.

“The budget deficit is only a single symptom of what is an increasingly unhealthy economy in our state. Looking at other economic indicators, we see Kansas families struggling to improve their quality of life. Job growth is well below the national average, workers’ wages remain stagnant, and families are paying record high sales taxes for basic necessities like food and clothing.”