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Success Factors
Strategic Router Placement
FNIT identified the locations outside the venue with the strongest cellular reception. They then deployed six Peplink 5G routers to those locations in waterproof, dustproof antenna enclosures. This approach reduced cable loss and maximized the total bandwidth available for live streaming.
Dedicated Connectivity for Live Production
FNIT designed the network to separate livestream production traffic from attendee, vendor, and staff usage. This prevented congestion from the larger PickleCon audience from impacting live match broadcasts during peak event hours.
Bandwidth Aggregation Using Peplink SpeedFusion
FNIT used Peplink SpeedFusion technology to leverage bandwidth from multiple 5G connections. This allowed the network to reliably support 12 simultaneous livestreams without compromising stream quality or stability.
Built-In Redundancy and Automatic Failover
FNIT designed the network with multiple independent internet connections and automatic failover. If a connection degraded or dropped, traffic shifted without interrupting live streams.
Designed for Repeatable, Traveling Deployments
FNIT built the solution to be portable and easy to redeploy at different venues, recognizing that league events move from city to city. This allowed the National Pickleball League to reuse the same Peplink solution while adapting to each venue’s infrastructure and layout.
Starlink Backup Connectivity
FNIT included Starlink satellite connectivity to protect against widespread cellular issues that could impact a large, shared venue. This added an independent layer of redundancy, ensuring livestreams could continue even if local wireless conditions were disrupted.
Pickleball has grown rapidly in recent years, with increasing interest in professional competition and live coverage. In response to that interest, the National Pickleball League began livestreaming matches on YouTube with Livestream Pickleball to enhance fan engagement.
To support this effort, the league partnered with Frontier partner FNIT to deliver reliable internet connectivity for match livestreaming and event operations.
Challenge: Connectivity Demands for Pickleball Livestreaming
Match livestreaming requires reliable connectivity, particularly when multiple matches are broadcast at the same time. For this event, FNIT needed to support 12 concurrent livestreams, creating significant bandwidth demands.
Those demands extended beyond livestreaming alone. The tournament took place alongside PickleCon, a large co-located event with hundreds of participants and more than 100 vendors. In addition to live broadcasts, FNIT provided connectivity for exhibitors, attendees, and the onsite technical team, all within the same venue.
The scale and layout of the venue added further complexity. The tournament took place at the Kansas City Convention Center, with more than 100 courts spread across a large footprint.
Finally, FNIT could not design the solution for a single location. It needed to be portable and adaptable for league events held at venues across the country, each with different infrastructure and constraints.
Solution: Creative Router Placement and Peplink Technology
To address these challenges, FNIT began with a detailed assessment of the venue and surrounding environment. This included evaluating cellular coverage, identifying areas with the strongest signal, and understanding how the space would be used for match livestreaming, exhibitors, and event operations.
Based on that assessment, FNIT designed a solution focused on reliability, capacity, and portability. The strategy prioritized aggregating multiple wireless connections, separating livestream traffic from general event usage, and ensuring the solution could be reused at future league events with minimal changes.
Network Deployment
FNIT deployed a Peplink-based connectivity solution designed from the ground up to support high-bandwidth livestreaming and event operations. Their team distributed multiple 5G routers around the venue as connectivity sources. A high-capacity enterprise Peplink router inside the venue served as the core of the network, managing traffic and ensuring reliability.
Strategic Router Placement
To improve cellular performance, FNIT placed 5G routers outside the venue in waterproof, dustproof antenna enclosures. This approach reduced cable loss, improved signal strength, and maximized the total bandwidth available for match livestreaming and event operations.
Traffic Management and Aggregation
The core Peplink router used SpeedFusion to leverage bandwidth from the individual 5G connections and manage traffic across the network. Livestreaming traffic was prioritized and kept separate from general event usage, ensuring that attendee and vendor activity did not interfere with live broadcasts.
Resilience and Continuity
They built redundancy into the deployment through multiple independent internet connections with automatic failover handled at the core router. If a connection degraded or dropped, traffic was shifted without interrupting active livestreams, maintaining continuous coverage throughout the event.
Starlink Backup Connectivity
As an additional safeguard, FNIT included Starlink satellite connectivity as a backup internet path. This provided an independent connection that did not rely on local cellular networks or venue infrastructure.
In the event of broader cellular degradation or congestion, traffic could automatically shift to the satellite connection, ensuring livestream continuity even under worst-case conditions.
Outcome: Uninterrupted Livestreams and a Futureproof Network
The solution delivered consistent, reliable internet connectivity for all 12 livestreams throughout the event. The league streamed matches without interruption, providing a stable viewing experience for online audiences.
Beyond livestreaming, the network supported smooth event operations for the National Pickleball League, Livestream Pickleball, and onsite staff. Connectivity remained reliable despite the demands of a large, shared venue environment.
The deployment also provided significant operational flexibility. Outdoor placement of the 5G routers and centralized network management allowed FNIT to optimize performance for this event while preserving the ability to adapt the same approach for future venues.
The solution can scale as league requirements evolve. Additional wireless connections can expand capacity as needed as needed to increase available bandwidth, allowing the league to grow streaming capacity incrementally while continuing to leverage its initial investment.
Looking ahead, the National Pickleball League has the option to further centralize production. By deploying similar Peplink solutions at individual arenas, they could produce livestreams from a permanent central location, reducing the number of staff required onsite and lowering travel and operational costs over time.
