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News
Hiwire to test mobile DVB-H television in Las Vegas
May 8, 2006 10:55 AM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
Aloha Partners, the largest owner of the 700MHz spectrum in the United States, announced it will soon test a new mobile digital broadcast network in Las Vegas. Area broadcasters, that hope to provide local programming to such services as an additional revenue stream, are watching closely.
Based in Providence, RI, Aloha has created a subsidiary, Hiwire, to deliver 12MHz of high-definition television, music, datacasting and interactive entertainment services for wireless carriers and consumer electronic device makers. The company's spectrum covers about 60 percent of the United States, including all of the top 10 markets.
If the tests are successful, Hiwire will sell its services to wireless carriers and consumer electronic device makers, offering a way for them to deliver high-definition mobile entertainment content to their subscribers.
The company did not specify how many channels it would offer, but said it would offer twice as many as any mobile broadcast TV competitors due to its large amount of spectrum capacity. No dates were given for the testing or anticipated service launch.
Hiwire said it would require one-tenth the number of cell sites as competing services using higher frequencies such as 1600MHz. “The use of 700MHz will result in significant savings and capital expenditures which will ultimately result in lower prices to the consumer and a faster time to market”, said Charlie Townsend, president of Aloha Partners.
Hiwire will be testing its mobile TV offering in Las Vegas on UHF channels 54 and 59. It will use the DVB-H platform, the mobile video platform deployed in Europe but rejected by American broadcasters when a U.S. DTV standard was selected. Transmissions will be made to H.264/MPEG-4 enabled wireless devices.
Aloha said the 700MHz spectrum is widely recognized as a superior frequency for delivering television signals to media-enabled wireless devices because of its propagation characteristics. 700MHz can reach deep inside buildings and travel 2-3 times further than other higher frequencies such as 1600MHz or 1700MHz.
Currently, about one out of four of Aloha's spectrum licensees-secured at FCC auctions in 2001 and 2003 can be used for broadband services due to continued use by UHF television broadcasters. This will change over the next couple of years as stations vacate their analog spectrum and move to full DTV transmission.
CBS launches ad-supported broadband channel
May 8, 2006 12:31 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
 Innertube is part of CBS' strategy to find as many distribution channels and new revenue streams for its programming as possible. |
CBS last week launched innertube, a new broadband channel, to be supported by advertising that offers a variety of free entertainment programming to Internet users.
The new channel features a lineup of original series produced expressly for the Internet, as well as new shows that are companions to popular CBS brands. The genres for the original Internet programs include reality, musical performance, entertainment magazine, talk, sketch comedy and animation.
The formation of innertube creates a new distribution channel for original material and CBS content on the Internet with programming drawn from the resources at the company's entertainment programming divisions, including CBS Entertainment, King World, CBS Paramount Network Television, CBS Paramount Domestic Television and Showtime.
In the coming months, innertube will also become a distribution outlet for streaming repeat episodes from CBS's primetime lineup and for Webcasts of content from the CBS library of 2600 titles and 100,000 hours of television programming. It will also become an alternative programming option for series broadcast on the network that didn't reach a mass audience, but has a following that lends itself to Internet appeal.
Leslie Moonves, CBS president and CEO, said the network is continuing on a strategic course to find as many distribution channels and new revenue streams for its programming as possible. With this new broadband channel, CBS has bypassed cable and created a general entertainment outlet utilizing existing creative and content resources, he said.
NBC Universal also offers television content on its networks' Web sites now, including news programs such as "Today" and "Meet the Press", and is planning to soon offer some original content. ABC News has a broadband channel that airs a preview edition of "World News Tonight" each afternoon.
To access innertube, visit www.cbs.com/innertube.
Microsoft beefs up video programming on MSN
May 8, 2006 1:33 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
Worried that Google is staking out precious new Internet ground with search and advertising services, Microsoft is striking back with an investment of about $1.6 billion next year in MSN and new Web-related business ventures.
One of those is MSN Originals, a new video programming initiative for the MSN Web site. Originals, the work of Microsoft-financed collaborations with TV content creators, will seek to expand original Web-only video programming on MSN.
In an early partnership, Microsoft will team with Reveille, producer of NBC's "The Office" and "The Biggest Loser," and Be Jane, a specialist in home improvement content on the Web. Both companies will produce new content specifically for the Microsoft site.
Word of the video initiative came at the annual MSN Strategic Account Summit, an annual event in Redmond, WA, at which Microsoft pitches ideas to its advertisers and investors. Originals is one of several Web improvements Microsoft said it would deploy in coming months.
Microsoft is investing in advertising and search technology, and is building computer centers to manage the services it offers in a bid to catch Google, which dominates the search market, the New York Times reported. The software giant, the newspaper said, is having difficulty matching Google's rapid product development and customer appeal.
Microsoft chairman, Bill Gates, admitting that Google had grabbed the lead in search and net advertising, said his company would “keep them honest” by increasing spending on new Internet-related businesses. Gates conceded Microsoft had made mistakes, including picking the wrong people to lead certain efforts.
Telecom bill introduced in Senate
May 8, 2006 1:38 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
A new telecommunications bill, designed to fix the last virtually incomprehensible one from 1996, has been introduced in the Senate.
Introduced last week by Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK), it addresses a hodgepodge of issues affecting virtually every form of electronic communications, including television broadcasting. If passed in its current form, it would make it easier for telephone companies to begin offering video services in competition with cable in markets nationwide.
Stevens, chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, has girded for a fight with the House, a body that wants even more freedom for the telco giants. His proposed bill even faces opposition from the Commerce committee's ranking member, Daniel Inouye (D-HI), who is listed as a co-sponsor but said he does not support the legislation as written.
A key concern to Inouye is the bill's approach to network neutrality, the concept that telco and cable companies be prohibited from acting as content gatekeepers on their high-speed Internet systems.
Among broadcast-related issues, the legislation would allow unused broadcast spectrum for the provision of wireless broadband, and it allows use of the controversial broadcast flag, a television anti-piracy technology.
It also addresses some unresolved issues related to the DTV transition, including a provision that allows cable operators to convert a broadcaster's digital signal to analog for subscribers without a digital receiver.
The bill also makes funds available for improving the interoperability of emergency communications and permits municipalities to offer low-cost broadband service.
For the Stevens' bill, initial votes in committee are planned for some time in June. It is unclear when Congress plans to act on the passage.
FCC & Industry Updates
Warner Bros. television to produce cable programming
May 8, 2006 1:40 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
Warner Brothers Television, the largest producer of primetime series for broadcast networks, is now targeting cable television with lower cost primetime shows.
The company announced it is creating a unit, called Warner Horizon Television, to generate shows specifically for cable TV networks. Peter Roth, longtime head of the broadcast-centric production company, will head it.
In an interview with the New York Times, Roth said the creation of Warner Horizon was an acknowledgment that cable networks are becoming ever more important in the series television business. He called cable “the one clear potential growth opportunity” for series development.
The goal will be to find ways to produce series, both scripted shows and reality shows, for much less than they generally cost on broadcast network television.
Ad-supported cable channels have much smaller production budgets than broadcast networks and have never paid anything close to what networks pay for shows. An hour-long network show generally costs $1.5 million to $2 million an episode.
Roth said that Warner Horizon shows for cable networks would have to be produced at “a significantly lower cost.” He estimated the budgets would have to be $400,000 to $500,000 less per episode.
Roth said he believed that there was “profitability to be had” in making shows for cable, even though cable series have not yet generated the kind of continuing profits that hit network shows have in syndication. He cited the changing marketplace for distributing TV shows as opening up new opportunities.
“There is always library value,” he said. “There is brand extension, and there are windows being created in this new digital age.” Among those are outlets such as the Internet and iPods, which will have increasing demands for video content.
Roth, who took over leadership of the studio in 1999, emphasized that the new venture will have no impact on Warner Brothers' traditional television production business. The studio produced 33 series for broadcast networks last season.
Sky Sports football and cricket broadcast live to mobile phones in the United Kingdom
May 8, 2006 1:42 PM
Sky Sports and Vodafone UK are offering live international cricket and the Football League playoffs to Vodafone live! customers with 3G phones.
For the first time in the UK, football matches were shown simultaneously live on mobile and on TV, starting with the semifinals of the Championship playoffs last Saturday.
In the first month alone around 100 hours of coverage have been scheduled, including 15 live football matches. Live cricket will continue through the summer until the final test against Pakistan in September.
Live football and cricket from Sky Sports is being made available as part of the Sky Mobile TV service, which offers Vodafone live! with 3G customers the chance to receive a range of mobile TV channels, including news, sports, entertainment, documentary and music channels.
Pixel Power and Red Bee Media supply automated graphics at ESPN Classic
May 8, 2006 1:51 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
ESPN Classic in Europe is implementing automated promo production and in-program graphics using products from Pixel Power and Red Bee Media. The process is said to eliminate the need for post-production.
Pixel Power's Pixel Promo provides automated promos and in-program graphics for score updates, branding and historical information for the broadcaster's 24-hour multichannel European operations.
ESPN Classic builds multilanguage graphics with audio tags from templates for promo creation just prior to air. It overlays the view time and program titles by searching the automation and listings schedules for the correct appointment to view.
To increase flexibility, Pixel Power applies graphics live to air rather than burning them to master tape. Working from prepared job files, events such as a score change, automatically trigger the corresponding on-screen graphics. Revising the look and feel requires a job-file update rather than post-production.
Following its migration to Red Bee Media for playout, ESPN Classic broadcasts its dedicated sporting content in Italian, French and English with graphics in each appropriate language for additional information and a distinctive on-air look.
For more information, visit www.pixelpower.com and www.redbeemedia.com.
Harmonic names new president/CEO
May 8, 2006 2:02 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
The Board of Directors at Harmonic has appointed Dr. Patrick Harshman as its new president and chief executive officer. Harshman has also been elected to a position on the Board.
Harshman, 41, succeeds Anthony Ley, 67, who has led Harmonic for 18 years. Ley is retiring from active, full-time service with the company, but will continue as the non-executive Chairman of the Board of Directors.
Joining Harmonic in 1993, Harshman has held key leadership positions in marketing, international sales, and research and development. In December 2005, he was appointed executive vice president responsible for the majority of the company's operational functions, including the unified digital video and broadband optical networking divisions as well as global manufacturing.
Prior to the consolidation of the company's product divisions, Harshman held the position of president of the Convergent Systems division and, for more than four years, was president of the Broadband Access Networks division.
For more information, visit www.harmonicinc.com.
AccuWeather to launch interactive weather channel
May 8, 2006 2:08 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
AccuWeather has announced the creation of a new television channel for cable and IPTV subscribers that will deliver interactive real-time local forecasts and weather information.
The new channel, part of the ICTV ActiveVideo Distribution Network (AVDN), will enable access to and viewership on television of a wide range of AccuWeather content, including searchable local forecasts, animated satellite-generated weather maps and local television weather broadcast programming.
The channel will allow AccuWeather and participating network operators to deliver a viewer experience that combines television quality and immediacy with the flexibility and searchability of the Internet.
AVDN is a usage-based content distribution service that enables operators, programmers and advertisers to bring broadband video programming and advertising models from the Internet to the television, including ads that are targeted, auditable and interactive.
AVDN delivers Web-driven programming and live and VOD streams as MPEG video over the existing VOD infrastructure to any digital set-top box. The service offers television resolution, fast response times, and heightened interactivity-with the customizability and targetability of Web-based programming and advertising models.
For more information, visit www.ictv.com.
Battison receives SBE Lifetime Achievement Award
May 8, 2006 2:11 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
 John H. Battison receiving the SBE Lifetime Achievement Award last month at NAB2006 in Las Vegas. |
John H. Battison, P.E., CPBE, has received a Lifetime Achievement Award from The Society of Broadcast Engineers, the very organization he helped start.
Recognized around the SBE as its “Member #1,” Battison moved to the United States from England in 1945. Two years later he worked for ABC in New York City, where he designed network TV and FM stations. In 1952 he became the Director of Education for the National Radio Institute in Washington, D.C.
During the 1950s and 1960s he produced Burl Ives on the ABC Network and produced two shows on Dumont, CBS and NBC Networks. From 1968 to 1970 he worked in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, as chief engineer of Saudi Television. Years later Battison designed a 1200kW directional antenna system in Yugoslavia and was a consultant to the Ugandan government in planning their national TV system.
Much of John's career has been as a consultant. His clients included Bing Crosby, owner of KCOP-TV in Los Angeles, the former Governor of New Mexico, John Burroughs, and American University.
Battison has authored more than 15 technical books and more than 500 technical articles. From 1964 to 1967 he served as editor of the Journal of Society of Broadcast Engineers and was a former editor of Broadcast Engineering magazine, a contributing editor for Public Telecommunications Review and technical editor of Radio magazine.
The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented during the SBE's spring Membership Meeting, held during the NAB convention last month.
For more information, visit www.sbe.org.
New Products & Reviews
London's StormHD selects Leader SD/HD rasteriser
May 8, 2006 2:20 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
 Paul Ingvarsson in StormHD's new online editing/color-grading suite with the LV7700 display at left. |
International Broadcast Facilities (IBF) and StormHD, a newly established postproduction house within IBF, have each selected the Leader LV7700 multiformat rasteriser. The LV7700 is installed in StormHD's online-editing color-grading suite and has already been used in postproduction projects delivered on SkyTV's new HD service.
Leader's LV7700 rasteriser enables waveform, vector, picture, audio and status/protocol screens to be selected individually or as four-in-one simultaneous displays. Source images can be captured and stored for subsequent superimposition over live measurements. Once captured, source images can be stored to Compact Flash memory card as a bitmap for production applications such as stage set and position matching as well as proof-of-performance logging.
The LV7700 can convert Y/Cb/Cr to Y/R/G/B or NTSC display to help with gamut monitoring and to assist in color correction. Y/R/G/B can be viewed as a waveform or bar graph display. Embedded audio monitoring features include surround sound, a multi-lissajous image and bar graphs.
StormHD and IBF both purchased their LV7700 rasterisers from Thameside, the UK partner of elQuip BV, Leader's Europe master distributor.
For more information, visit www.leaderinstruments.com.
Litepanels intros new Ringlite mini LED lighting system
May 8, 2006 2:31 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
 The lens mountable Ringlite Mini is designed to easily interface with popular DV camcorders. |
Litepanels has introduced its new Ringlite Mini, a smaller version of the original LED Ringlite. Available in 5600°K and 3200°K models, Ringlite Mini measures just 10.5in in diameter, 2in thick, and weighs 3.5lbs. This ultra-low profile, lightweight professional lighting tool offers bright, soft directional lighting.
Ringlite Mini employs LEDs laid out in a tightly plotted concentric grid. Lighting is divided vertically into three user selectable channels of output, each controlled by an independent, adjustable circuit. On the back, four toggle switches regulate power and control upper, center, and lower illumination.
This ultra-efficient LED light source draws just 3.5 amps (40W @12VDC). An external 110-220VAC international AC adapter provides power. Equipped with an XLR power connector cable, the system can be run off of a variety of 9-30VDC sources.
Litepanels Ringlite Mini comes packed in a carrying case. A set of eight interchangeable conversion and diffusion filters is available for greater lighting control.
For more information, visit www.litepanels.com.
BTi technology automates on-screen display for SportsNet New York
May 8, 2006 2:35 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
SportsNet New York (SNY), the TV home of the New York Mets baseball team and the New York Jets football team, has selected Attendant Solutions from BTi to automate the collection and on air delivery of up-to-the minute sports scores and other data. BTi News Update Attendant will be used to integrate SNY's HD graphics infrastructure with real-time data sources to create a continuously updated graphics ticker for the network.
SNY will use the BTi News Attendant system to capture data from service provider SportsTicker, which is then delivered as a continuous stream of relevant information to the viewing audience.
BTi News Attendant automatically captures, formats and plays to air real-time data from almost any wire- or Web-based source. News Attendant enhances the capability of existing graphics systems, such as the Vizrt equipment selected by SportsNet New York, by turning a constant stream of raw data into real-time data and formatting it so that it is ready for instant playout to air. BTi News Update Attendant helps eliminate repetitive, manual processes, freeing operator and equipment resources for other productive tasks.
For more information, visit www.bti.tv.
Canon unveils HDgc lenses for general use
May 8, 2006 2:45 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
Canon Broadcast has introduced a new series of lenses designed for the new economical, mid-range HD cameras now on the market, including the Grass Valley Infinity (2/3in) and Sony XDCAM HD (1/2in) camcorders. The lenses are designed for compactness and low weight in direct response to these equally compact new tapeless HD camcorders.
The new HDgc lens line includes for 1/2in CCD cameras: the KH21ex5.7 IRSE telephoto lens, the KH10ex3.6 IRSE wide-angle lens, and a 16X standard lens, which will be available in late 2006. Digital “eDrive” is available on all three of these lenses and represents a principal difference (along with a built-in 2X extender) between these models, and the more economical KH20x6.4 KRS lens (for 1/2in HD CCD cameras) and the KJ20x8.5B KRS lens (for 2/3in HD CCD cameras).
The KH20x6.4 KRS and the KJ20x8.5B KRS lenses feature Canon's Shuttle Shot function, an advanced servo system that facilitates zooming back and forth between any two focal length positions and brings an entirely new range of value-added creativity to handheld acquisition systems. These two lenses also feature a new ergonomic drive unit that achieves an ideal balance in comfort and operation.
Canon said it is manufacturing all of its lenses, including the new HDgc models, without lead, cadmium, mercury, and other toxins as part of the company's policy to minimize the impact on the environment.
For more information, visit www.usa.canon.com.
Gepco offers G37 series 12-channel connectors
May 8, 2006 2:48 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
 Gepco's G37 12-channel DT12 connectors feature a new hard anodized aluminum backshell that locks in place with two set screws into a series of castellations. |
At the recent NAB convention, Gepco International introduced the G37 12-channel DT12 connectors, which offer a new level of performance and reliability to the industry standard, 12-channel DT12 format.
Gepco's G37 connectors feature a new hard anodized aluminum backshell that locks in place with two setscrews into a series of castellations. The setscrews and castellation prevent accidental loosening of the connector shell thereby extending the operating life.
For additional durability, the male connector shell is constructed from stainless steel to prevent damage and keyway wear. The crack-proof neoprene insulator has been improved, now featuring a bonded and scalloped design that prevents rotation. As with previous Gepco DT12 connectors, the G37 is completely weather-tight, allowing for use in remote and hostile environments.
The electrical contacts — the critical part of the audio path — have also been improved. Both the pins and sockets feature a new three-micron, mil-spec gold plating for improved soldering and tarnish resistance. For strain relief, the G37 features an oversized nut and rubber gland seal with an optional kellem cord grip and heat shrink.
For more information, visit www.gepco.com.
NVISION NV8288 router a hit at NAB
May 8, 2006 4:48 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
 NVISION's 3Gb/s HD-SDI routers enable users to develop systems that accommodate the 1080p HD standard. |
At NAB2006, NVISION's new NV8288 digital video router, powered by Gennum's 3Gb/s SDI chipset, received a lot of attention from attendees. Integrating the 3Gb/s chipset into NVISION routing systems gives customers an upward migration path for future high bandwidth requirements.
The 3Gb/s HD-SDI routers are fully compliant with the emerging SMPTE 424M standard. This chipset operates at speeds up to 3Gb/s, enabling users to accommodate the 1080p HD standard and will also be used in other high bandwidth applications such as 3-D HDTV, digital cinema, and slow motion image capture.
The NV8288 delivers the same high level of performance and reliability of the company's large-scale studio routers at half the size (10RU), half the depth (12in deep), half the weight (approximately 150lb), and half the power consumption (less than 2kW). Additionally, the Gennum 3Gb/s technology enables superior equalization and re-clocking functions.
For more information, visit www.nvision.tv.
Raycom increases commitment to Panasonic P2
May 8, 2006 4:55 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
Raycom Media, an independent station group, has increased its complement of Panasonic DVCPRO P2 camcorders and drives with a new order valued at more than $2.2 million.
Raycom initially bought P2 gear about a year ago. The news operations at 21 Raycom stations will utilize DVCPRO P2 by the end of this year.
For more information, visit www.panasonic.com.
Kanal 75 uses Bluefish444 cards for graphics
May 8, 2006 4:56 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
 Kanal 75 is using Bluefish4444's Deepblue LT, SD Envy (pictured) and SD Greed digital video cards for a variety of broadcast and production functions. |
Kanal 75, a television station based in Sweden, is using Bluefish4444 cards in character generator, graphics/animation and master control systems.
Kanal 75's in-house developers designed an automated graphics control system, and subsequently decided to create its own character generator based on Bluefish444 products. Now Kanal 75 is moving to animated graphics, and playout/ingest based on Windows Media technology.
Kanal 75 is using Bluefish444's Deepblue LT, SD Envy and SD Greed cards for use with the Radix-branded line of products they were developing. Among them is Radix CG Basic, a fast character generator being used at television stations and some Swedish racetracks.
The Radix TGA Sequencer plays TGA files directly from the hard drive with about one frame start delay. It is used to play out live effects such as smoke or confetti rain in Kanal 75's daily shows.
For more information, visit www.bluefish444.com.
Broadcasters continue to rely on Autodesk graphics solutions
May 8, 2006 5:06 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
 Broadcast customers from all over the world have all purchased Autodesk systems, such as the discreet flint system (pictured), to streamline their operations. |
Autodesk announced that several broadcasters have recently purchased its graphics and editing systems, continuing a trend that has increased over the past two years. They include FOX News in New York City, Zee Telefilms in Mumbai, and Radio-Canada.
Autodesk's suite of broadcast production solutions includes the Discreet Flint visual effects system, Discreet Smoke editing/finishing system, and Autodesk Combustion desktop compositing software.
Other recent customers include KTVU-TV, a California-based independent television station using two of Autodesk's Discreet Smoke systems, and RTÉ (Radio Telefix Éireann), a public service broadcaster in Ireland using a Discreet Flint system running on the Linux operating system.
NBC used Autodesk's Maya 3D animation software technology and onsite support for the 2006 Olympic Winter games in Turin, Italy. CCTV (China Central Television), China's largest national television network, recently expanded its post-production capabilities by adding Discreet Flint and Discreet Flame visual effects systems.
Sogecable, a subscription-based television group in Spain, has purchased a complete Autodesk broadcast pipeline, including numerous Discreet Flint systems running Linux and multiple seats of Combustion software.
For more information, visit www.autodesk.com.
Wexler to purchase Sony XDCAM HD camcorders and Canon lenses
May 8, 2006 5:11 PM, Beyond The Headlines e-newsletter
Wexler Video has bought 25 Sony XDCAM HD optical disc camcorders and more than 50 Canon HD lenses to add to its inventory.
To be delivered this month, Wexler's clients targeted for the XDCAM cameras include those working in TV and motion picture applications, as well as independent cinematography, documentary and industrial video production.
The new PDW-F350 model offers variable frame rate recording capabilities. According to Wexler, this feature, among others, will appeal to professionals in reality TV production and newsmagazine programming, where the SD version of the XDCAM system is already prevalent.
The Sony camcorders will be equipped with Canon's portable HD lenses, including the KH21ex5.7 IRSE telephoto and KH10ex3.6 IRSE wide-angle models.
For more information, visit www.sony.com.
