22 November 2005
GlobeCast – a leading global content management and delivery company and subsidiary of France Telecom – has completed the build out of its new Technical Operations Center (TOC) in Miami. The new center is designed to support the companys newly inaugurated IPTV Super Headend, capable of aggregating hundreds of television signals from around the globe in MPEG-2 and MPEG-4, and providing IP encapsulation and retransmission of content via satellite for distribution to local IPTV headends across North America. The upgrade of the Miami facility is a central component to the companys expanding offer of fully managed content delivery services for emerging IP-based video and rich media.
All current and future IPTV services, including IPTVComplete – a joint offering with Eagle Broadband (AMEX: EAG) providing more than 200 channels via IP video – will originate from the new TOC in Miami, situated at GlobeCasts existing 85,000 square foot digital broadcast complex.
GlobeCasts plan and design considerations have maximized the facilitys versatility enabling it to deliver and manage its wide range of IP-based Content Management Services, including IPTV. Technical capabilities at the TOC enable the use of multiple compression technologies and allow compatibility with multiple middleware providers.
The TOCs throughput capacity of the uplink infrastructure exceeds data rates used in most C-Band, Ku-Band and Ka-Band satellite services. The uplink multiplexing system provides an advanced Digital Video Broadcast (DVB) Conditional Access System (CAS) scrambling in addition to the broadcast industrys standard Conditional Access systems. This technology, Advanced Encryption System (AES) enables secure and reliable distribution of data and/or video services to be downlinked, and multicast to commercial and residential subscribers from one or more digital headends.
22 November 2005
While the national press and media in Russia face severe restrictions — in some cases outright government control — local newspapers still have the freedom to report independent stories, said the editor of a local Russian newspaper. Diana Kachalova, Editor-in-Chief of “Moi Rayon,” a regional weekly newspaper in St. Petersburg, told an RFE/RL audience last week that local newspapers that show they are committed to covering local news can survive, because of a growing sense of community in some Russian cities.
Kachalova, winner of the 2005 Paul Klebnikov Prize, said she and her colleagues started “Moi Rayon” three years ago with three regional editions, but have since expanded to 11 editions covering all 13 districts of St. Petersburg. The newspaper, which is free to the public, relies on advertising fees for income — mostly from local merchants. It is distributed at 500 sidewalk stands, all “painted a bright orange” according to Kachalova, and often protected by the “local businesses who keep an eye on the stands.” The newspaper also receives financial support from its primary investors — the owners of a construction business whom, Kachalova said, “decided to also serve the public” by helping to start the newspaper. The owners, according to Kachalova, “in three years have never tried to change the paper’s editorial policy or articles,” although “they would like to see [the paper produce] a profit” — so the challenge for the staff is “to match the audience and the advertisers.”
In order to maintain its independence, the newspaper does not accept grants from the Russian government, at neither the local nor national level, Kachalova said, and has until now also turned down political advertisements — even during the Duma elections. For these reasons, she said, the newspaper can have a great deal of independence, because “there are no instruments for the government to threaten the newspaper.” Although the staff does get three to four angry calls every week from businessmen unhappy about a story, few result in court cases.
One of the goals of “Moi Rayon,” Kachalova said, is to present to its readers how local and national events affect them. She believes that if the newspaper delivers the facts about a story, readers can then draw their own conclusions and form opinions for themselves. Kachalova said that earning the trust of readers is paramount. Giving people the information so that “they can fight for justice and that they can win,” is also an important goal for the newspaper. “Small voices on the small local level,” Kachalova said, are key to changing attitudes and improving life for Russians. Coverage of issues often includes “side bars which tell the readers what you can do to help yourself,” said Kachalova, and “one reader has already won a first court case.”
Some of the local issues that “Moi Rayon” has covered include construction projects, health care, and corruption. For example, Kachalova said, there is a great deal of local concern that residents of St. Petersburg are losing their neighborhood parks and open space as a result of the city’s construction boom. A survey of local businessmen by the newspaper showed that “if there were no bribes, prices [for goods] would be 15 to 25 percent lower,” she said. Even on national stories Kachalova looks for the “local angle,” to show readers how they are directly affected by events and policies. Kachalova added, however, that her readers “don’t care about the war in Chechnya anymore,” unlike the first war in Chechnya when “everyone talked” about it.
21 November 2005
Harris Corporation announced that Zee TV, India’s pioneering Hindi entertainment channel and the largest producer and aggregator of Hindi programming in the world, has purchased four Leitch VelocityHD format-flexible, high-definition/standard-definition (HD/SD) non-linear editing systems. Zee TV will use VelocityHD to edit current affairs programming and promotions.
Zee TV is the flagship channel of the Zee Network, with its award-winning Indian programming accessible to over 225 million viewers in more than 80 countries across five continents. Zee TVs programming delivers a variety of choices for all segments of its audience, including primetime comedy and drama series, television movies, miniseries, theatrical films, specials, childrens programs, daytime dramas, game shows and late-night shows.
Were very pleased that Zee TV has chosen VelocityHD for its editing requirements, said Randy Fowlie, Leitch vice president and general manager for Digital Media. Zee TV is a respected innovator in global media, and were excited that they have recognized VelocityHDs outstanding combination of performance, quality, flexibility and cost-effectiveness.
Six-time award-winning VelocityHD combines the innovative Altitude hardware platform with the acclaimed Velocity software interface, delivering exceptional high-performance, real-time post-production editing flexibility. VelocityHD features full-quality, real-time HD playback of multiple video and dynamic graphics streams with true dual-stream, real-time HD transitions and effects. VelocityHD supports 1080i, 1080PsF and 720p frame formats at all common frame rates, with mixable compressed and uncompressed video. All VelocityHD systems also offer outstanding multi-stream standard-definition editing performance.
21 November 2005
The EBU has once again chosen Quantel server-based production technology for its sports highlights production, this time at the Torino 2006 Winter Olympics. This follows the EBUs success with Quantel sQ server-based systems at both the 2004 Summer Games and the Euro 2004 football championships in Portugal.
For the Torino Olympics, the EBU has selected two of Quantels recently introduced Newsbox systems to implement and manage the production of daily news reports and highlights at the games, which take place between 10 and 26 February 2006 in Italy.
Two 60 minute daily reports will be produced on the Newsboxes and distributed to all the EBUs 74 members spread through 54 countries in Europe, Northern Africa and the Middle East, as well as to an additional 48 Associates in 29 further countries.
Any major international event is potentially a massive organisational and technological nightmare no two event requirements are ever the same, said Norman Rouse, Quantel Group Marketing Manager. The totally integrated production concept that Quantel has pioneered removes one very major worry from any event managers list – the Newsbox news system in a box concept is as close to plug-and play, worry-free broadcasting as is reasonably possible.
The Newsboxes will be the Newsbox Four and Newsbox Five models, each handling the production of highlights for different disciplines within the Games, and providing the security of 100% system redundancy that near-live event coverage by its nature ideally requires. Each Newsbox is a complete, self-contained system with 110 hours of storage of broadcast and co-located browse material, QRecord and QPlay automation, and a number of sQ View and sQ Cut applications for selection and editing of material.
Our previous experience with Quantel systems in covering large sporting events played an important role in our decision about which system would this time enable us to give our members the quality and efficiency of service they expect from the EBU, said Fernando Pardo, Head of the EBUs Sports Operations Group. In addition, since last summer Quantel has made further major developments to its sQ technology which made it even more attractive to us. We think we will be supplying our members and associates with the best coverage yet seen from a major event at Torino.
14 November 2005
GlobeCast the global content management and distribution company has won the contract to design, build and operate the Media Centre for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) to be held in Malta later this month.
CHOGM takes place every two years, providing an informal three-day forum for Presidents and Prime Ministers of Commonwealth countries to discuss world and Commonwealth issues, and to agree collective policies and initiatives. Between 750 to 1000 journalists are expected to cover the event which will see 54 heads of state, almost a third of the worlds leaders, convene on Valleta, Malta from 25-27 November 2005.
In addition to overseeing construction of the Media Centre, GlobeCast is working with the Maltese state broadcaster PBS to provide television coverage of pool opportunities during CHOGM. Pictures will be fed on two pool channels and will be available for recording and editing by broadcasters at the Media Centre.
Coverage will include: – a one hour live feed of the opening ceremony, provided by a 10-camera outside broadcast unit; – the arrival at the airport of heads of state; – live feeds from the main venue the Retreat which is about thirty minutes traveling distance from the Media Centre.
Work began on 1 November, with GlobeCast overseeing the conversion of an ice rink into a 3,000 sq m Media Centre, consisting of 35 separate areas including eight edit suites, an MCR, two briefing rooms (one seating 150 people), media work room with PCs, internet access and large screens, accommodating more than 120 journalists.
GlobeCast will also provide SNG facilities and five uplink paths, routing all feeds via London for onward distribution via its global satellite and fibre network. Where available, GlobeCast has worked with local contractors and Maltese people, bringing in specialist technical facilities and staff as required.
GlobeCasts technical project manager, Stefan Wiederkehr, is currently in Malta overseeing the build. He said: We have a long-standing relationship with CHOGM and after providing the media centre for the last meeting, held in Nigeria two years ago, we are delighted to be involved again. Malta is a fantastic place and it is a great venue. And in terms of ad hoc events, this is a big deployment, bigger even than what we have done for the Olympic Games and World Cups.
14 November 2005
Intelsat reported results for the nine months ended 30 September 2005.
It had revenue of $876.6 million (up 15 per cent) and a net loss of $259.6 million. EBITDA for the nine-month period was $461.1 million, and covenant EBITDA was $616.9 million.
“Intelsats performance in lease services and managed solutions provides improved balance given the continued expected run-off in contracted channel revenue, and operating costs are now reflecting the changes we implemented earlier this year,” said Intelsat CEO David McGlade. “Meanwhile, we are working diligently on securing the necessary approvals for our planned merger with PanAmSat.”
In the summer the companies agreed a takeover valuing PanAmSat at $3.2bn.
