Comcast Media Center opens a new content distribution operations center
Jul 1, 2008 12:00 PM, BY Bill Calton
The center manages demand for occasional satellite use, and will be used during the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver.
Expanded antenna farm
During overnight operations and other periods with limited demand, CDOC can scale down to one control room operator.
The center also features a new and expanded 128 × 64 L-band router that feeds multiple types of satellite receivers. CMC also expanded its antenna farm by adding six additional TV receive-only systems (TVROs), creating a total of eight uplink antennas and 20 downlink antennas. The new router and expanded antenna farm will provide the flexibility and capability for more directly linking receivers to specific transponders on a satellite.
Sixty percent of the antennas are fixed on specific high-traffic volume satellites and static receivers on transponders, minimizing the number of times operators must reposition the antennas and retune receivers. This saves wear and tear, and dramatically reduces the time needed to acquire and verify the appropriate signal. By making it easier to acquire the signal, operators will have more time to work with the source provider on the other end of the feed to ensure that the production facility is sourcing the best possible quality signal for its customers.
Terrestrial fiber connectivity
As with any digital media center, ingest and transmission requirements aren't solely via satellite anymore. The facility has direct connectivity via fiber for acquiring video from the major Denver sports arenas, including Invesco Field at Mile High, the Denver Pepsi Center and the University of Denver's Magness Sports Arena. For longer hauls, it provides connectivity via Vyvx Services, Intelsat, Genesis, Comcast's fiber backbone and The Switch.
Fully operational
Operators managed 1729 events representing 4619 hours of content in January, the first month of full operation. This is a 14 percent increase in the number of live feeds compared with January 2007. It will handle an average of 29 simultaneous live events, during peak periods for the NHL, NBA and college basketball. That's just more than 25 percent of its full capability for more than 100 simultaneous feeds.
Comcast, CMC's parent company, has been named Democratic National Convention's Official Cable Television and VOD provider. The facility's support for the convention, combined with MLB and other live events in August, may provide just the right opportunity for tapping into the center's full potential. The upcoming Democratic National Convention, combined with MLB and other live events in August, may provide just the right opportunity for tapping into its full potential.
Bill Calton is senior director of satellite and IT operations for Comcast Media Center.
Design team
Bill Calton, sr. dir., satellite and IT ops.
Mike Harrell, sr. mgr., earth station ops.
Eric Middlemist, mgr., transmission eng.
Heather Norton, asst. mgr., CDOC
Paul Catterson, dir., broadcast eng.
Technology at work
DekTec DTU-245 MPEG analyzer
Evertz
7710ARC aspect ratio converter
7710DCDA-HD downconverter
XRF6 L-band router
Harris
ENTRIO multi-image processor
Nucleus network control panel
Platinum wideband distribution router
X75HD multiformat synchronizer and signal processor
Motorola DSR-4520X SD IRD
Newpoint Compass network management and control system
Scientific Atlanta 9850 SD IRD
Sencore Atlas MRD 3187A HD IRD
TANDBERG
1260 SD IRD
1282 HD IRD
Tektronix WVR-7120 waveform rasterizer
Tiernan 4022 SD IRD
ViaSat 4.5M satellite downlink antennas
Wohler AMP2-E8 series Dolby E digital audio decoder
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