21 May 2013
Vizrt Inc. announced today that a world-wide agreement has been entered with Mosart to provide an optimized newsroom automation system for the broadcast industry.
Mosart is the number one newsroom automation system used by broadcasters inEurope. The software-based automation system offers an extremely efficient workflow for controlling complex, content-rich productions with only a single operator. Using off the shelf client/server hardware, Mosart requires little infrastructure for creating a fully automated news environment.
Combined with the Vizrt end-to-end graphics and video workflow, the Mosart automation system now is a complete package for the entire newsroom workflow from the news editorial process to live on-air production. With just a single Viz Engine added to the Mosart production, broadcasters can create a full show with advanced graphics and video playback in a light-weight and cost-effective solution.
“Vizrt is the global market leader in broadcast graphics. We are therefore grateful that Vizrt have chosen a close cooperation with Mosart for the future,” Mosart’s CEO John Kjellevold states in a comment. “Our aim has been that automation systems like Mosart shall be a natural part of gallery upgrades in the future. Soon, we will be able to make solutions taking care of an even greater part of the workflow starting with newsroom system tools. Broadcasters need to enhance quality, reduce costs and simplify news desk work. The Vizrt – Mosart partnership offers such solutions.”
“This agreement represents a major shift in how broadcasters will look at controlling their news broadcasts”, said Petter Ole Jakobsen, Chief Technology Officer, Vizrt. “When adding the Viz Engine real-time compositing capabilities to the Mosart automation system, any operator can drive the most complex transitions and studio effects from a single interface.”
Together Vizrt and Mosart lead the way bringing this powerful automation system to broadcasters as the most advanced news production platform on the market.
Petter Ole Jakobsen will present the Vizrt TV in a box solution at the Mosart Broadcast Summit in London May 23rd and 24th. At Broadcast Asia in Singapore, Mosart and Vizrt will display their automated integration, June 18th – 21st booth 5H3-01.
3 April 2013
Vizrt Ltd. and Zeebox announced today a partnership that allows broadcasters and program makers to integrate interactive second screen experiences into live TV shows.
The partnerships allows votes, polls, audience metrics and other real-time audience participation within zeebox to be fed in real time into the broadcast stream for participating shows, allowing broadcasters to create dynamic new forms of interactive broadcast entertainment.
Zeebox provides viewers a unique social user experience on their mobile device to enhance programs they are viewing on television. With tools to help manage program guides, interface with social media and find out quick information about virtually anything talked about on television, Zeebox becomes a powerful source for broadcasters to interact with their audience.
Vizrt’s Social TV solution, the interactive social media visualization solution from Vizrt, brings in user generated content from Zeebox – live. This data is then visualized based on multiple parameters that give media houses a new source of content for their broadcast. Location, social media interactions including Facebook and Twitter, polls and viewing preferences can all be visualized to create a unique story.
“Our integration with Zeebox places the social interaction between the media house and the viewer directly in the hands of the viewers at home in a controlled workflow,” said Håvard Myklebust, Executive VP Products and Marketing. “With the additional integration to the Vizrt Online Suite, broadcasters have a powerful tool to maintain their content on every platform while giving the end user the best possible user experience supported by a cost-effective workflow which makes 2nd screen production affordable.”
“People have always wanted to participate in TV shows. Once upon a time viewers’ letters would be read on screen, then you could text in messages, then you could tweet at the show” said Anthony Rose, Co-founder & CTO at Zeebox. “The Zeebox – Vizrt integration takes that to the next level, providing broadcasters and program makers with a wide range of creative ways to incorporate audience participation in TV shows. From talent and games shows to news and comedy programs, broadcasters can now engage with their viewers and bring audience participation directly into the show in a way that wasn’t previously practical.”
20 March 2013
Vizrt Ltd. announced today a deal worth USD 950,000 with Thai PBS, the only public broadcasting service in Thailand. The purchase includes a full complement of Vizrt’s broadcast graphics tools for the graphics department, newsroom, control room, and studio.
“Southeast Asia in general, and Thailand especially, have become very sophisticated broadcast markets” commented Martin Burkhalter, Vizrt CEO. “Thai PBS selected Vizrt for its ability to meet the specific demands of this market, our extensive local support capabilities, and because Vizrt has proven to be a trusted partner and a quality brand for broadcasters”
In the design department, designers will work on creating a new look for Thai PBS using Viz Artist, Vizrt’s 3D design platform. Viz Artist will power the channel’s ability to produce daily graphics for news, promotions and the broadcaster’s various Virtual Studios.
The purchase also includes Vizrt’s template-based newsroom workflow driven by Viz Content Pilot. Journalists in the newsroom access graphics templates directly from within their newsroom control systems (NCRS). Once the templates are edited, the journalists build playlists that are then triggered live on-air in the control room using Viz Content Pilot.
The TV network’s studio is driven by Viz Virtual Studio. This virtual set technology allows the network to have complete and flexible creative control of their virtual set content. It also allows templated graphics from the newsroom to be triggered as part of the set.
All graphic content throughout the network is rendered in real-time with Viz Engine.
About Vizrt: Vizrt provides real-time 3D graphics and asset management tools for the broadcast industry – from award-winning animations & maps to online publishing tools. Vizrt’s products are used by the world’s leading broadcasters and publishing houses, including: CNN, CBS, Fox, the BBC, BSkyB, ITN, ZDF, Star TV, Network 18, TV Today, CCTV, NHK, The Globe and Mail, Times Online, The Telegraph, and Welt Online. Furthermore, many world-class production houses and corporate institutions such as the Stock Exchanges in New York and London use Vizrt systems.
16 January 2013
beIN SPORT, a global network of sports channels operated by Al Jazeera, launched a Viz Media Engine based workflow for archiving and overall media asset management of its extensive programming content. The system is being used for the launch of two new U.S. channels under the umbrella of beIN SPORT USA – beIN Sport HD, in English and beIN Ñ , in Spanish, both having SAP capabilities.
beIN SPORT USA is a Miami-based 24-hour provider of international sports coverage, currently being carried by Time Warner Cable, Bright House Networks, Dish, Comcast, Liberty Cablevision and Direct TV.
The Viz Media Engine selection was made by Unitecnic, a Barcelona-based broadcast and multimedia engineering firm, for beIN SPORT. Unitecnic chose Viz Media Engine based upon the specific technical requirements of beIN SPORT and worked closely with the broadcaster throughout the installation and initial implementation of the system. Unitecnic worked with the Miami-based Imagina U.S., a production and broadcast services provider company, who provided the full operational service for beIN SPORT’s new channels in his own facility.
The Viz Media Engine is integrated with beIN’s Avid Media Composer editing system and its Grass Valley K2 video servers for both import and export. The Viz Media Engine provides access to all media. Using the K2 servers, it manages all of the channel’s playout tasks. WTVision’s Channelmaker playout automation system interfaces with the Viz Media Engine, monitoring playout and triggering transfer request between the Viz Media Engine and K2 servers as needed.
beIN went live with the Viz Media Engine MAM/archiving system at the end of October 2012. The hardware and software installation was completed in just four weeks, making the overall project duration from start to launch just two months. The rapid launch was a critical requirement for beIN SPORT.
Thanks to the Viz Media Engine integration, two new archiving workflows are possible:
From the Avid editing system, content can be manually imported into the Viz Media Engine and then exported (either manually or via an automated request) to the K2 playout server for review before on-air delivery.
- From the K2 server, files can be manually transferred to the Viz Media Engine after broadcast. These files can originate as a direct ingest into the K2 or as a transferred file from Avid.
WTVision, a provider of real-time graphics and channel automation solutions, used the Viz Media Engine APIs, that are REST-based, to integrate the Viz Media Engine with beIN’s traffic and billing software from Broadway Systems.
Critical to beIN’s selection of the Viz Media Engine was the systems’ support of Sony’s XDCAM HD422 and how it handles partial restores. Viz Media Engine include advanced and proven technology to work with partial restore throughout the complete workflow from archiving to restoring media from the LTO tape library.
The storage capacity of the archive system is designed to last beIN well into the future, but the network is already looking into extending the size of the system and adding more groups to the MAM set up.
“The Viz Media Engine had everything we were looking for in a MAM and archive system to launch these important new channels in the U.S. market,” said Marc Andreu, Media Manager, beIN SPORT. “The ease of integration with the other manufacturers, ease of use for our operators and ability to restore XDCAM files were all must-haves to make our facility function as we envisioned. We are so excited to share this way with Vizrt.”
15 November 2012
Vizrt Ltd. today signed a deal worth $306,000 for the implementation of media asset management (MAM) products with ORF -Oesterreichischer Rundfunk- in Austria.
The deal is an add-on investment by ORF to their existing MAM system. The deal will provide additional functionality to ORF’s news gathering process, their control room workflow and will allow ORF to use their MAM as the central storage facility for their still images.
About Vizrt: Vizrt provides real-time 3D graphics and asset management tools for the broadcast industry – from award-winning animations & maps to online publishing tools. Vizrt’s products are used by the world’s leading broadcasters and publishing houses, including: CNN, CBS, Fox, the BBC, BSkyB, ITN, ZDF, Star TV, Network 18, TV Today, CCTV, NHK, The Globe and Mail, Times Online, The Telegraph, and Welt Online. Furthermore, many world-class production houses and corporate institutions such as the Stock Exchanges inNew YorkandLondonuse Vizrt systems.
