11 September 2006
The Associated Press (AP) and the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) marked the tenth anniversary of the agreement to install ENPS – the electronic news production system – for its global broadcasting operation. Today, ENPS is used in 40% of the world’s newsrooms by more than 40,000 reporters, writers, editors and producers across 48 countries. The ENPS installation at the BBC continues to be the largest broadcast newsroom operation in the world, supporting around 12,000 users responsible for all of the BBCs radio and TV news programmes.
ENPS tracks thousands of words of text, hundreds of hours of audio, and video streaming in and out of the BBC everyday. It feeds online operations and helps the World Service broadcast in more than 30 languages.
ENPS is a vital technological structure which holds together BBC News, from the 24-hour news operations in London, to the smallest regional radio station, to the furthest far-flung foreign correspondent with laptop and modem. This huge global operation gives journalists unparalleled access to networked information and more control from their desktops and in the field.
The BBC – a pioneer in news technology – selected ENPS in 1996 from an original slate of 65 companies. Since then, there has been a revolution in newsroom integration and constant refinement of the system.
“When we started in 1996 with ENPS we had 4,600 work stations, today we have grown to around 7,000 work stations, said Adrian van Klaveren, Deputy Director of BBC News. Throughout, ENPS has been flexible enough to adapt to our growing needs and allowed us to be effective and competitive.”
AP led the development of the MOS protocol introduced in 1998 which has been crucial to the development of the integrated newsroom. It has enabled journalists to access multiple third-party applications through the ENPS window. This means ENPS can integrate a range of production functions including video servers and editors, audio servers and editors, still stores, character generators, and special effects devices. MOS is used by more than 50 manufacturers in development of interfaces for easily connecting and integrating newsroom computer systems and broadcast production equipment.
“ENPS sits at the heart of our domestic and international news output and a complex matrix of broadcast systems. MOS is the communication path that holds this matrix together, linking our core news production system with the necessary video and audio servers to get our programmes to air,” said Julie Foster, the BBCs ENPS Project Director. “It’s a very stable and resilient broadcast environment.”
ENPS is designed for multi-language use and operates in over 40 languages. Different scripts can be selected e.g. Arabic, Greek, simplified and traditional Chinese and the Indian language scripts. In addition, on-screen commands and other text can be modified to native language and even local dialects.
Looking to the future, the BBC and Associated Press have joined forces with the UK’s leading broadcast journalism courses to provide a major free training initiative for the next generation of TV and radio journalists.
Today, all journalism courses accredited by the Broadcast Journalism Training Council (BJTC) can install the ENPS news production system free of charge enabling undergraduate and postgraduate students to gain practical experience of work in a newsroom environment.
11 September 2006
Al Jazeera International, the 24-hour English-language news and current affairs channel, headquartered in Doha, announced that they have appointed renowned factual broadcaster Nick Clark as presenter at their London broadcast centre. Nick will present the news at weekends alongside Barbara Serra who joined Al Jazeera International from Channel Five News. He will report from across Europe during the week.
Royal Television Society award winner, Nick Clark has a diverse background in news journalism. He has worked at the BBC, ITV News, Discovery Channel and the UKs ITV London Weekend Television (LWT) plus Carlton TV.
Speaking on Nicks appointment from the channels headquarters in Doha, Director of News, Steve Clark said, I am delighted to confirm that Nick Clark has joined the line-up of presenters at our London broadcast centre. He brings a wealth of expertise and experience to the channel. Al Jazeera Internationals London bureau chief, Sue Phillips said, Nick Clark is a fantastic addition to our team of talented presenters. I am thrilled to welcome him on board.
Confirming the news that he has joined the channel, Nick Clark said “Im thrilled to be joining Al Jazeera right at the start of a whole new era for global news. Everything about the set-up appeals to my news sensibilities its going to be quite an adventure.
11 September 2006
Arab television network Al Jazeera International has become the first international news channel in more than three years to be allowed to set up a permanent base in Zimbabwe after President Robert Mugabe’s government chased away mostly Western television and radio broadcasters such as the BBC.
Al Jazeera International, a subsidiary of the Qatar-based Arabic television channel Al Jazeera, has opened a two-man bureau in Zimbabwes capital, Harare, the ZimOnline internet site reported.
The two journalists hired by al-Jazeera, Cyrus Nhara and Farai Sevenzo, are said to have already started work. Nhara is a cameraman and producer who has done work for Reuters television in Harare. Sevenzo is a news reporter who has done work for Britains Channel 4.
11 September 2006
The name of the new digital satellite infrastructure of SES ASTRA, an SES GLOBAL company, is entavio.
With the brand entavio, we will offer an infrastructure providing high-performance TV for everyone, said CEO Wolfgang Keuntje at the start of the international Consumer Electronics trade fair IFA in Berlin. For the new digital satellite access, consumers will need a receiver as well as a smartcard. We want to provide all TV households in cities and in the countryside with access to the whole range of digital offers at a low and affordable price, said Keuntje.
With entavio, the viewers will benefit from a broader variety in TV. The offer will enable broadcasters to provide a comprehensive digital programme, additional service packages and value-added services. The offer will include interactive TV and electronic programme guides as well as an easy combination of Free-TV with Pay-TV, Video-On-Demand (VOD), Pay-Per-View (PPV) and a Personal Video Recorder (PVR).
Furthermore, entavio will enable TV reception with a future-proof receiver.
The company offering the new digital satellite infrastructure is also called entavio and is located in Unterföhring near Munich.(www.entavio.com).
11 September 2006
SES ASTRA, an SES GLOBAL company, will launch ASTRA2Connect, a fully satellite-based interactive and low-cost broadband internet access to serve the residential market, the small and home offices as well as small and medium enterprises. ASTRA2Connect will provide a full satellite-based triple play infrastructure service enabling broadband internet access, voice-over-IP and other content related access services such as IPTV or Video-on-Demand. It is expected to be operational in the first quarter of 2007 and will mainly target homes in Europe, which can not easily get terrestrial broadband internet services.
Ferdinand Kayser, President and CEO of SES ASTRA, says: ASTRA2Connect is a great innovation that brings broadband internet access to everyone – whenever and wherever. The end-consumers will benefit from an affordable and always-on two-way connectivity. We are proud to offer this revolutionary satellite-based infrastructure and envisage to extend ASTRA2Connect to other regions of the world in the near future.
ASTRA2Connect is currently offered on a wholesale basis to large European service providers such as telecommunication operators, internet service providers and broadband operators that conduct pro-active marketing and sales activities in the residential and small enterprise markets. The necessary equipment consists of an interactive satellite antenna as well as a low-cost and easy-to-install satellite modem. For the design and procurement of the satellite platform and the related modems, SES ASTRA has entered into a cooperation with Newtec, a recognized market leader in satellite communication systems.
ASTRA2Connect uses advanced technology developed with the support of the European Space Agency (ESA).
11 September 2006
SES ASTRA, an SES GLOBAL company, has announced today at the International Broadcasting Convention (IBC) in Amsterdam that it has signed a second transponder contract with the public Polish television TVP (Telewizja Polska SA). The additional capacity on SES ASTRA`s prime orbital position 19.2 ° East will enable TVP to enhance its existing channel line-up on ASTRA by new thematic channels like TVP SPORT, TVP ROZRYWKA (entertainment), TVP FILM, TVP HISTORIA and TVP INFO.
TVP has been broadcasting from one transponder on ASTRA 19.2° East since last year for its encrypted channels TVP 1 and TVP 2 as well as TVP 3, TV POLONIA and TVP KULTURA, which are free to air.
With almost 40 million inhabitants and 12 million TV households, Poland is SES ASTRA`s largest market in Central and Eastern Europe and TVP is one of the most important broadcasters in the region. SES ASTRA reaches some 107 million households across Europe.
Thanks to this agreement, the Polish people will gain easier access to the new thematic channels to be broadcast by TVP soon. This is very good news for the Polish TV viewers, said Marcin Bochenek, Vice President of TVP.
The new contract with TVP is another important milestone in our strategic partnership and a major step to develop our position in the Polish and Central and Eastern European market, said Alexander Oudendijk, Chief Commercial Officer of SES ASTRA. The contract allows TVP to enhance its offer to its audiences in Poland and all across Europe. We are very pleased with this cooperation which enables us to build an even stronger base for further future growth in this all important market.
