9 March 2006
Just 12 months after taking delivery of their first eQ, MBC has purchased a second eQ editing/effects/grading/mastering system. The new system comes with the Pay as you Go HD option and will reside along the existing machine in the companys Creative Services Department.
MBC is the leading free-to-air, pan-Arab, news and entertainment channel. The decision to again choose Quantel technology was based on the networks successful experience with its first eQ, and was triggered by the networks decision to look towards the HD future. The addition of a second high-powered eQ resolution co-existent system will enable MBC to seemlessly work with multiple resolution material and take full advantage of the quality and versatility of HD to create the highest quality programmes and promos.
Mr. Keith Dallison, Senior Promotions Editor, said, With its all-round capabilities, the eQ provides the perfect environment to bring our SD and HD production strands together to create the finished project. eQs enormous speed means that it is the ideal system to meet our tight deadlines and stringent quality requirements and the Pay as you Go HD option makes it a low-risk investment for us.
Ramsay Ismail, Quantel Director of Sales, Africa, Middle East & India, commented, We are delighted that a company of such a high profile as MBC has once again chosen Quantel technology. At Quantel we have been working for years to offer our customers the tools to let them adapt to new formats and to widen their business opportunities. This purchase demonstrates MBCs commitment to an HD future, and were very happy that Quantel technology will be an integral part of that vision.
9 March 2006
Al Jazeera International, the 24-hour English language news and current affairs channel, set to launch its global broadcast in late Spring of 2006, announced that respected journalist Dr Shereen El Feki has joined the channel. Based in London, Shereen will host the channels business and politics strand.
People & Power will examine the nature of power today: what it is, who wields it, who wants it and how it is being used, for better or worse. Although People & Power is Al Jazeera Internationals main business programme, it will look at influence far beyond the boardroom.
Our aim is to reveal the shifting nature of global power. People, places and movements which scarcely registered on the richter scale of power a decade ago are now shaking our world, says Shereen. We want to understand the forceseconomic, political, cultural and technologicalthat are changing the winners and losers in todays struggles for influence.
The half-hour programme will air twice a week with a flexible magazine format, allowing for studio discussions and interviews, as well as items filmed on location and special reports. Reflecting the channels fresh take on current affairs, the programme will not only talk to the usual suspectspoliticians, CEOs, religious leaders and military menbut unusual ones too, from bloggers to inventors, from shareholder activists to insurgents.
Explaining her move to Al Jazeera International, Shereen said, Events of the past few yearsfrom 9/11 and the war in Iraq to riots in Paris and the recent cartoon controversieshave made me think long and hard about what it means to be Arab and Muslim. When I look to the Middle East I see enormous possibilities for change. In my travels, I meet many people who are keen to reach out and work with both east and west. But its easier to build those bridges if theres someone on the other side building towards you. For me, Al Jazeera International is a great opportunity to span that gap between cultures and communities around the world.
Director of Programming Paul Gibbs said, In addition to looking at shifting balances of power, People & Power will have a strong investigative strand, uncovering the use and abuse of power in business and politics. We will approach business from a fresh perspective making the world of business and politics accessible to viewers around the globe.
Shereen comes from Canada, where she was raised by Egyptian-Welsh parents. Although I grew up in the west, I like to think of myself as a born-again Arab she says. Shereen speaks fluent English and French and is working on her Arabic. For the moment, I have enough Arabic to get me into trouble, but not quite enough just yet to get me out of it, she says. She joins Al Jazeera International from The Economist.
In addition to producing its own material, People & Power is eager to broadcast work from freelancers and independent companies around the globe through a unique commissioning site: www.ajicommissioning.net
9 March 2006
Harris Corporation’s Broadcast Communications Division announced that R-Time Sales & Marketing, the airtime sales subsidiary of RTL Klub in Hungary, has purchased the Harris Landmark II airtime sales system, marking the first implementation of the system in Central Europe.
R-Time and RTL Klub are associated with RTL Group, the Luxembourg-based media group which operates 34 television and 30 radio stations in 11 countries, including Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, UK, Luxembourg, Spain, Hungary, Portugal and Croatia. RTL Group also is a global content provider, owning production and rights companies in more than 40 counties
The Landmark(TM) II system from Harris is a highly advanced and established software solution for the management and execution of complex airtime campaigns that enables R-Time to take advantage of station average pricing (SAP), the cost-per-thousand method of trading commercial airtime most commonly used in the UK. Landmark II will deliver precise, efficient, advertising campaign delivery against ratings data, thus offering R-Time clients a much improved vehicle for reaching their target audiences. R-Time clients include RTL Klub, Cool TV, Cartoon Network, Film+, Sport1 and Sport2, A+, Hálózat TV and, most recently, The Discovery Channel.
Hungary joined the European Union in 2004 and our television advertising market has grown rapidly in recent years, said R-Time Managing Director Steve Varcoe. As a result, our airtime sales market has become far more complex and sophisticated, and will become even more so with the impending rollout of digital cable and IPTV services. The optimisation functionality of Landmark II will give us an unchallenged competitive edge going forward.
Landmark II provides multi-channel operators, networks and regional sales houses with the ability to maximise the efficiency of all advertising revenue-generating opportunities including spot, sponsorship and interactive. It was developed in conjunction with some of the worlds largest airtime sales organisations, and currently processes transactions worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
The contract for Landmark II with R-Time includes software licensing, support, facilities management, plus development and implementation. Implementation is already underway and completion is scheduled for the fourth quarter of this calendar year.
Harris Vice President of Software Sales for Europe, Middle East and Africa John Phipps said, The selection of Landmark(TM) II by R-Time is a tremendous vote of confidence in the flexible, robust nature of this industry-leading software system.
9 March 2006
The Associated Press and MSN have launched the AP Online Video Network tailored for websites. ‘Our job is to bring the sites’ readers to the scene of the story,’ said Brad Kalbfeld, deputy director and managing editor of AP’s broadcast division, in a statement. ‘When people read a story on the web, they want to know what things looked like, what it felt like to be there.’
The service is available to network AP newspaper and broadcast member websites for free and offers 40 video clips per day covering national, international, technology, business, and entertainment news.
Those members participating in the service receive a custom-branded MSN Video player. Advertising will run prior to the video clip and members will get a portion of the ad revenue.
9 March 2006
Harris Corporation announced that its Leitch NEXIO NewsNet server newsroom system – along with a range of content management and distribution products from the comprehensive Harris portfolio – was selected by Sao Paulo, Brazil-based TV Bandeirantes (Rede Bandeirantes de Televisão). Spanning from media ingest through storage, news production, post production and playout, the fully integrated system will provide TV Bandeirantes with a streamlined workflow throughout the total content delivery chain.
TV Bandeirantes is one of Brazils leading broadcasters, with its signals transmitted over 77 channels across the country and reaching 94 percent of television households in Brazil. The company will use the NEXIO NewsNet system to transmit a variety of programming, including local network news, 24-hour news and sports.
We have had a long-term, positive experience with Leitch newsroom solutions, as our entire 24-hour news channel, Band News, is built around a Leitch legacy server system and NewsFlash® non-linear editor, said Gilberto Verzoni, director of engineering and technology of Bandeirantes Group. We decided to return to Leitch server technology for our new network news operation because of this excellent history and because we know we can count on the company for superior service and support. Also, the new NEXIO systems multi-standard functionality, open interoperability and advanced software ensure that we are fully prepared for any future requirements.
The Leitch NEXIO NewsNet system comprises a NEXIO transmission server system, NEXIO NewsFlash® networked editing systems and a NewsFlash Preditor low-resolution browse and edit solution, all connected to a shared storage system. The system enables a news operation to ingest, edit and air material without requiring content transfer. Critical to the systems functionality are Ingest Control Manager, which streamlines acquisition; Rundown Manager, a MOS-enabled gateway and play-to-air system; NEXIO Remote, which enables control of up to four NEXIO channels over a standard LAN connection; and the NEXIO Playlist event sequencing application. In addition, the system features 14 TB of storage in a mirrored configuration.
Harris also supplied TV Bandeirantes with a complete peripheral system, which includes Leitch X75SD multiple-path converter/synchronizers; Integrator® large routers with a host of remote control panels; SuiteView multi-source display processors; and 6800+ modular interface products. Test and measurement is handled by Videotek® TVM-950 multi-format HD/SD-SDI video and audio signal analyzers and Videotek® PTM-305 handheld, multi-function, personal test monitors. Rounding out the system are Leitch VelocityQ non-linear editors for post production applications and the 1RU Leitch CCS Remote Control Panel, which provides control and monitoring of CCS-enabled devices on the network.
