The Association for International Broadcasting (AIB) today revealed its climate change portal (climate.aib.org.uk) as part of its social media campaign to attract voters to the Peoples Choice category at the 2010 AIBs (international media excellence awards).
The Peoples Choice is a new category at the annual broadcasting awards and allows online viewers to choose their favourite entry and vote for it. This year the award will be given for Best Coverage of Climate Change.
In September the shortlisted entries will be made available to view online and viewers from around the world will start voting for their favourites and spreading the word to their friends. Latest news on the voting process can be found at theaibs.tv/peoples-choice/view-and-vote/
The climate change portal, powered by technology from UltraKnowledge (www.ultraknowledge.com), automatically pulls in and links the latest news and opinions on climate change from news sources and blogs across the Internet. It allows visitors to check out trending topics and move easily between articles which contain the same keywords. It includes a newswall which gives a visual snapshot of stories by date and a different way of browsing for interesting content.
The portal will include special features and information that draw visitors to the Peoples Choice viewing and voting – so it will not only provide a valuable source of information for those interested in following the discussions and latest research on climate change but will also attract a large audience to vote for select the Best Programme on Climate Change for the 2010 AIBs.
The portal is currently in its initial version with additional content and enhancements being developed. As a not-for-profit organisation, the AIB is looking for support to build this innovative information tool. It will provide an excellent platform for a sponsor to show their commitment to the climate change debate.
It uses technology which can automatically index and aggregate content on any given topic. This technology has already been used on the websites of a number of magazines and newspapers and can easily be adapted to work with audio or video content.
The AIB climate change portal demonstrates how content can automatically and rapidly be cross-indexed and tagged, allowing visitors to follow interesting threads, explains Simon Spanswick, AIB CEO. It has tremendous potential for broadcasters who have vast archives of material which they struggle to utilise in the most profitable way. So alongside using the portal for building the audience of the Peoples Choice award, we are also encouraging our members to investigate the potential of this approach for their own content.
Andrew Lyons, co-founder of UltraKnowledge, comments: We are delighted to be involved in developing AIB’s climate change portal. Our technology helps people follow trending stories more easily, allowing them to access different viewpoints and more details as they emerge. This is particularly important for a subject like climate change which raises such fundamental issues, engages people passionately but invokes such differing views.
The Peoples Choice is one of 16 categories at the 2010 AIBs, the international media awards. Full details of the award categories, judging and information on the awards ceremony can be found on www.theaibs.tv. The 2010 AIBs are sponsored by: 1GOAL (Education for All), ADB (Advanced Digital Broadcast), Bloomberg Television and Eurosport. The 2010 AIBs will be presented at a gala evening in London on 9 November.
Pharos will release a Content Delivery Module for its Mediator content management platform on stand 10.D31 at IBC 2010 in Amsterdam, September 10-14. The new module manages content preparation, metadata production and approvals workflow. It deals with all necessary file transfers and file transcoding for platform-specific content, including stills and metadata for electronic programme guides and Web sites.
“Content owners looking for a content management system to automate material and metadata delivery for On-Demand & Mobile distribution should consider Mediator 4,” comments Pharos Commercial Director Roger Heath. “The Mediator Content Delivery Module provides unprecedented workflow efficiency by integrating new media content preparation with existing programme material processes. Media logistic features include automatic transcoding of assets for each specified delivery platform, plus the ability to combine playout and on-demand infrastructures. The Mediator 4 platform is core for any content-focused business looking to increase revenues through the use of existing media, delivering tightly coupled targeted advertising, promotions and branding whilst keeping operating costs under control.”
Pharos Mediator 4 is a complete content management and workflow platform for video and audio content preparation. A Web-browser user interface provides users and operators with the tools they need to access and view all material at the desktop in a manner which is easy to understand, including content browsing, task prioritising and automatic alerts. Incorporating industry-leading technology Oracle, Java and Adobe Flash as well as utilising MXF and BXF standard files, Mediator manages content efficiently from ingest and quality assessment through to publishing and playout.
Founded in 1997, Pharos has pioneered collaborative desktop workflow and integrated third-party infrastructure management. Pharos solutions today handle millions of media assets across hundreds of television channels and new media distribution networks. Pharos is an open company embracing open standards. Pharos software architecture, integration and support services enable disparate broadcast and IT processes to be unified across the enterprise. The unique Mediator content management platform, with its integrated Playtime playout and Pilot control options, provides efficient tools to deliver multi-format content globally.
Vizrt has announced a new partnership with Zurich-based LiberoVision, www.liberovision.com, a leading global developer of 3D virtual sports enhancements. LiberoVision is integrating its dedicated Libero rendering engine software with Vizrts range of content production software. LiberoVision is well known within the sports broadcast community for its Emmy-nominated 3D technology for sports analysis and virtual replays. Customers include ESPN, NBC, BBC, ZDF, Sky Italia and Televisa.
According to LiberoVision CEO, Stephan Würmlin Stadler, many of LiberoVisions customers are also Vizrt customers, and they were looking for more integration between the two systems. Our clients are very happy with their Vizrt systems and the features they provide, explained Würmlin Stadler. They like the configurability of the Viz Engine renderer and the graphic look and feel of the different software modules. We thought it would be a win/win to bring our state-of-the-art sports enhancement technology together with the customization and interaction that Vizrt products provide. Clients wish to put their own computer-generated graphics and annotations over the imagery created with our rendering system to have their own look and feel. With this partnership, were combining the technology our clients want and enabling them to use their experience with Vizrt and LiberoVision to the fullest. We foresee a variety of different exploitations of how our products could work together. Were very excited about the expanded creativity this will generate for our combined clientele.
LiberoVision will showcase its Libero Highlight within the Vizrt booth at IBC 2010. Libero Highlight provides realistic 3D replays that are indistinguishable from the images produced by the on-site television cameras. It enables the broadcaster to move the viewers perspective to areas not covered by the in-stadium cameras, such as over-the-shoulder of the quarterback or the birdseye view showing the entire field. The software combines 3D replays with dynamic telestration for live game analysis. It does not require any additional infrastructure in the stadium, making it suitable for both remote productions and for fully-featured studio applications. http://www.liberovision.com/?t=pro_highlight
At IBC, LiberoVision will introduce its new Libero Offside for instant offsides 3D analysis during soccer games. Its a dedicated application aimed at resolving offsides disputes during soccer games. The key feature is that its an instant replay tool, said Würmlin Stadler. Within a couple of seconds, Libero Offside creates a new perspective. Viewers can see the linesmans view at the exact moment the player makes the kick.
http://www.liberovision.com/?t=pro_offside
The key difference between LiberoVisions virtual instant replay systems and others is its realism, said Würmlin Stadler. Other systems look like virtual animation. When you transform a great player into a virtual player, he comes out looking like an avatar. With our technology, you know that player is Lionel Messi. You feel like youre standing on the field with the player or behind the goal post.
That realism is attributable to LiberoVisions patented image processing technology that transforms the camera feeds into 3D representation. Sports involves highly complex, moving imagery. The LiberoVision system enables the broadcaster to take those images in 3D form and move them anywhere within the scene as if a 3D camera were capturing it. Initially, the computer doesnt know where the camera is, where the players are or where the stand is. Our software answers those questions and fuses the data together into a 3D model instantly. Most great technology can do this in a way thats pixel perfect, but it takes two days. No ones interested in two days. We can do it instantly.
Martin Burkhalter, CEO of Vizrt, commented: This is a very promising partnership, and were excited to showcase the latest LiberoVision products at our IBC booth. The partnership between the two companies represents a great opportunity for Vizrts extensive customer base to further enhance their sports coverage.
Video examples of LiberoVision technology in action can be viewed by clicking on the following links:
Capacity on the EUROBIRD 9A satellite operated by Eutelsat Communications (Euronext Paris: ETL) has been chosen by Eurosport to transmit the TENNIS US Open in 3D for demonstrations at IFA – Europes largest consumer electronics show held in Berlin from 3 -8 September. The US OPEN in 3D will be available on a dedicated Eurosport 3D signal for an exclusive broadcast on Panasonics booth at IFA (hall 5.2 a/b).
The 3D signals are being transmitted to Panasonics booth by the EUROBIRD 9A satellite that pioneered regular broadcasting of 3D content in Europe via a permanent channel launched by Eutelsat in 2009. The images are displayed on Panasonics state-of-the-art Viera 3D Plasma TVs, giving the entire industry and consumers visiting the IFA the unique opportunity to experience world-class sport in immersive high-quality 3D. The event is showcasing the potential of sport as a driver for the consumer 3D market and Panasonics full end-to-end 3D capabilities, from 3D professional camcorders on court, to new-generation consumer Viera plasma displays.
Pascal Crochemore, Technical Director at Eurosport welcomed the partnership with Eutelsat: We are delighted that Eutelsat has agreed to partner once again with Eurosport for the distribution of a Tennis Grand Slam 3D signal. Eutelsat is a longstanding partner of Eurosport and we are happy to build on the strong relationship that we enjoy through this latest exciting initiative.”
Andrew Wallace, Eutelsat Chief Commercial Officer added: This partnership with Eurosport leverages Eutelsats 3D experience and the core asset of our broadcast satellites to deliver a new generation of rich content requiring a 15 Mbit/s signal to fully appreciate stunning 3D effects in the home. Following our collaboration with Eurosport for 3D transmissions of Roland Garros tennis in May this year, we are delighted to team once again with Europes premier all-sports channel and to transmit this compelling sports content to Panasonics 3D-enabled displays at IFA.
Workshop organised by the OECD, EBU and the European Audiovisual Observatory in the framework of the Internet Governance Forum (Vilnius, 15 September 2010).
The workshop will take place in room 5 of the Lithuanian Exhibition Centre LITEXPO in Vilnius between 4.30 and 6.30 PM and will be webcast live on the website of the IGF: http://www.intgovforum.org
The objective of the workshop is to raise the awareness of the problems in measuring the impact of the Internet on the audiovisual industry. The development of broadband has made possible the rapid development of web TV, VoD, catch-up TV, video sharing and non authorized file sharing, but it is still difficult to provide coherent statistics on the level of equipment, new consumer practices, the importance of new services in media companies investments and revenues. The workshop will focus on two introductory reports (by experts from the OECD and the European Audiovisual Observatory) as well as a survey from the EBU. A discussion panel involving experts and representatives from of the civil society will also take place.
