20 June 2006
BroadcastAsia has opened in Singapore, with the AIB exhibiting at this annual meeting of the broadcasting industry in the Asia-Pacific region.
With around 800 exhibitors, BroadcastAsia is showcasing the latest technology for programme making, newsgathering and delivery. Running alongside is CommunicAsia which covers the telecommunications world – increasingly converged with the broadcasting sector with the delivery of content via mobile devices that not only serve as phones but also MP3 and MP4 players, games consoles and TV sets.
It has to be said that there’s more of a buzz in halls 3 to 6 where CommunicAsia is taking place than in 7 and 8, where broadcasting is featured. It seems that the hype around telecommunications – so in evidence a few years ago before the dot-com bubble burst – is back with a vengance. There’s a huge number of companies competing for attention, offering everything from IPTV solutions to innovative billing for content on hand-held devices.
Meanwhile in BroadcastAsia, any emphasis on particular themes is difficult to find; lighting, camera booms and lenses are proving somewhat less attractive to visitors who come from throughout the Asia-Pacific region than the mobile solutions on show in CommunicAsia.
At the AIB exhibit, visitors have the opportunity to find out more about the AIB and its members (many of whom have sent promotional material, providing them with a point-of-presence at the exhibition that they might otherwise not have), as well as seeing copies of the new AIB Directory of Global Broadcasting and the AIB’s quarterly magazine, The Channel.
In addition, the AIB is holding a private networking dinner on Thursday 22nd June, with members and a number of specially invited guests from the media industry across the Asia-Pacific region.
We’ll be updating this news from Singapore throughout the week. And if you’re in Singapore, visit the AIB at stand 8H4-02.
20 June 2006
The July 2005 launch of the world’s first high-power trial of digital video broadcast to handheld (DVB-H) technology marked an important milestone for digital television. Conducted over the past year by Broadcast Australia, Australia’s leading independent broadcast transmission provider, using an Atlas(TM) Digital DTV660L liquid-cooled DVB-T transmitter from Harris Corporation (NYSE: HRS), the DVB-H trial aimed to test the technical capability and commercial prospects for DVB-H applications in Australia and globally.
For this trial, Broadcast Australia worked with Harris, telecommunications provider Telstra, and wireless antenna and cable manufacturer Radio Frequency Systems (RFS). Comprising the delivery of 16 channels of live-streamed, diverse content to 400 trial users, the trial explored the technical aspects and usage patterns of multi-channel mobile media services.
“By selecting the Harris Atlas Digital DTV660L transmitters, Broadcast Australia has been able to achieve its objectives for two high-profile digital broadcasting trials,” said Clive Morton, Broadcast Australia broadcast services director. “In addition, the transmitters have reduced operating costs through efficient energy consumption, along with compact and quiet operation, while permitting easy monitoring and control of the system from anywhere at anytime.”
Broadcast Australia selected The Bridge Networks to supply a Harris Atlas Digital DTV660L liquid-cooled DVB-T transmitter (operating in DVB-H mode) for the task. The transmitter provides 3.4kW of power from a single cabinet into an existing, multi-coupled UHF antenna system, delivering 80kW effective radiated power (ERP), covering the major part of the Sydney metropolitan area.
Key benefits of the Harris transmitter are its compact design and quiet operation. Being liquid-cooled, it presents a single-cabinet footprint, while the cooling system, pump module and heat exchanger are located conveniently away from the main cabinet. This made it an ideal fit into Broadcast Australia’s newly built transmitter hall at the Gore Hill broadcast site.
Based on these attributes, Broadcast Australia also decided to upgrade the transmission system of its digital datacasting trial. This involved installing an identical Harris 3.4kW liquid-cooled transmitter (operating in DVB-T mode) in the same transmitter hall.
Since both systems now use the same model transmitter, Broadcast Australia can employ common spare components across both the DVB-H and datacasting trials, and enjoy streamlined operations and maintenance procedures. The front-access, modular design and redundant amplifier system provide the ability to service the power amplifier modules on-air without service interruption. The transmitter front-end user interface is common for low- and high-power operation.
The transmitter has been readily integrated into Broadcast Australia’s existing 24×7 Network Operations Centre (NOC) for monitoring and forward control purposes. The SNMP, GUI and Web browser interface make it easy for the NOC team to interrogate the transmission system from the NOC or any other location.
19 June 2006
Germany’s broadcaster Deutsche Welle is offering a special Internet service for the duration of the Football World Cup.
The service covers all matches from the opening match to the final.
Relevant links are:
http://www.dw-world.de/wm2006 (German)
http://www.dw-world.de/worldcup (English)
http://www.dw-world.de/mundial2006 (Spanish)
http://www.dw-world.de/copa2006 (Portuguese for Brazil)
http://www.dw-world.de/championship2006 (Arabic)
http://www.dw-world.de/cup (Russian)
http://www.tor.cn (Chinese)
19 June 2006
SES ASTRA, an SES GLOBAL company, announces today that its new satellite ASTRA 1KR has been deployed at the companys prime orbital 19.2° East and is now operational. The satellite was successfully launched from Cape Canaveral on 20 April onboard an Atlas V rocket and has now completed extensive testings of its hardware and broadcasting functionalities.
ASTRA 1KR has 32 active transponders and provides distribution of Direct-to-Home (DTH) broadcast services for SES ASTRA customers across Europe, with an extended reach into Eastern Europe. The new satellite allows SES ASTRA to replace its satellites ASTRA 1B and ASTRA 1C at the same orbital position. ASTRA 1B has reached the end of its life after 15 years of service and will be deorbited within the coming weeks.
We are very pleased that our ASTRA 1KR mission has been completed and that we can welcome a new member in the ASTRA satellite fleet, says Ferdinand Kayser, President and CEO of SES ASTRA. ASTRA 1KR will further strengthen the ASTRA fleet at our prime orbital position 19.2° East and will allow us to maintain the best possible service and quality for our customers across Europe.
19 June 2006
The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences has named the Voice of America Special English service’s Web site an “Official Honoree” in its 10th annual Webby Awards. “Our Web site is extremely popular with people around the world,” said Rochelle Gollust, chief of Special English. “We’re very proud that it’s been recognized.”
The Web site, www.VOANews.com/SpecialEnglish , is a tool for non-native speakers to practice and improve their American English. It acts in concert with VOA’s Special English radio and television programs. The Web site provides both transcripts and audio of radio programs, downloads of television programs, English language learning links, word games, and a dictionary of the words used in programming. It is one of the most popular destinations within www.VOANews.com , receiving an average of 500,000 visits per month.
The Special English service helps VOA listeners and viewers around the world learn American English through coverage of world news, science, and American life and history. It uses a 1,500-word vocabulary, simple sentence structure, and a slower pace when read on air. Television programs also feature slow scrolling captions.
The Webby Awards, hailed by Time magazine as the “online Oscars,” were created by the Academy in 1996 to honor “excellence in Web design, creativity, usability and functionality.” The Academy consists of 500 leading Web experts, business figures and others. In the past, the Academy has recognized Amazon.com, eBay, Google, BBC News, PBS and CNN.
This year, the Academy received a record number of entries from all 50 American states and over 40 other countries. Of the more than 5,500 entries, fewer than 20 percent were named Official Honorees. The judging criteria included “content, structure and navigation, visual design, functionality, interactivity and overall experience.”
19 June 2006
For the past six months, WRN’s DRM Regional channel has successfully broadcast the WRN English language network from a site in South East Europe. The channel offers excellent coverage of the whole of the UK and Western Europe. The directional antenna allows WRN to direct the signal toward specific regions, providing those key national markets with almost FM-quality sound.
WRN is now officially launching the DRM channel, offering up slots to its clients. This is a now or never opportunity to get onto DRM before it is commercially launched, when, WRN predicts, prices will soar and prohibit those smaller broadcasters from securing a place on DRM.
DRM is set to revolutionise the shortwave and AM radio market, and, with new DRM receivers set to go on sale shortly, it won’t be long before this technology supersedes existing analogue AM services.
For more information regarding WRN’s DRM Regional service, including prices, please contact Sophie Wilson at Tel: +44 20 7896 4154 or email: sophie.wilson@wrn.org
