- Club has been given assurances by EFL central providers that new equipment has been purchased and sound problems will be solved
- Supporters can listen to a test audio stream on Thursday evening
The club will be testing audio on Thursday evening ahead of Sunday’s game at Lincoln City.
During the last two games on Valley Pass, audio interference has affected the commentary. We haven’t lost any of the live video but we have this week prioritised getting the audio problem solved.
We were told, following the Crewe Alexandra game, that the problem had been identified and so we were frustrated and disappointed that we had issues during the game against Doncaster Rovers on Saturday.
The club has followed up with the EFL central providers who have identified a second issue and purchased new equipment to make sure the same problem doesn’t happen again. We have been told that clubs that experienced similar problems at the weekend, did not experience any issues during midweek games this week.
As the interferences have impacted the last two league games, the club, and no doubt our supporters, will want to see evidence that the problem has been solved, which is why we have set up a test stream for Thursday.
Following the update from government on Tuesday that sport will remain behind-closed-doors for the immediate future, the streaming of games remains incredibly important to allow supporters to follow their team. From a club point of view, it remains our main, regular revenue stream and therefore it is vitally important that the streams go ahead without audio issues.
We have looked at the option of taking the whole of the production in-house but that adds an extra level of risk and complication. A second option involves producing part of the production in-house from The Valley, which is potentially more manageable.
We don’t anticipate any further problems, following the assurances we have been given, but should we have any major issues, we will look to move forward with the second option of producing part of the streaming production in-house.
As it is the audio that is causing the problem, supporters can tune in to a live audio test production on Thursday evening between 6pm and 7pm. The production will be hosted by Valley Pass commentator Terry Smith and include interviews with Academy coaches Steve Avory and Anthony Hayes, as well as plenty of discussion ahead of Sunday’s game against Lincoln City.
The club will also be carrying out testing during Saturday’s 3pm kick-offs, when Charlton aren't playing, and again on Sunday, well ahead of kick-off from the LNER Stadium. Should there be any unforeseen issues on the matchday, the club will update on the club website and the Valley Pass Twitter page.
Supporters can purchase the live stream of Sunday’s game against Lincoln City by clicking here.