WDIV-TV, the Post-Newsweek station in Detroit, reached a deal earlier this year to equip 25 city snow plows with smartphones capable of broadcasting live video via Sprint 3G service and Streambox, reports Broadcasting & Cable.
“On big weather days, the question is always, ‘How do we show people what the conditions on the road are and what’s going on?’” says WDIV News Operations Manager Jeff Liebman. “Then we had an idea: Why don’t we show people what the inside of the county snowplows are looking at? They’re traveling on the roads themselves, and you’ve got to figure they’re pretty safe.”
Unfortunately, the setup hasn’t gotten much use this winter since Detroit has managed to avoid a heavy number of major storms. However, the idea is certainly interesting and worth considering for other types of coverage.
