Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, April 30, 2008 - Leading Brazil station TV Globo International (TVBI) recently offered viewers a front-row view of the famed Rio de Janeiro and Sáo Paulo annual Carnival when it broadcast the event for the first time live in HD. Channel 18 in Sao Paulo was able to deliver 32 hours of real-time action through the use of microwave technology by RF Central, a leading digital microwave technology provider.
While TVGI has televised Brazil‘s renowned Carnival in SD for more than 25 years and has taped it in HD for the past four, 2008 was monumental for TV Globo Sáo Paulo as it served as the only one among the TVG family to broadcast this year‘s Carnival action live and in HD. Capturing the Carnival‘s events, which included spectacular floats surrounded by thousands of dancers, singers, and drummers all parading through the enormous Sambádromo Stadium, was a large task TVGI was able to accomplish through an array of RF Central equipment. Seven RFX-RX6-II six-way diversity receivers were used for wireless camera reception in both SD and HD as well as at the TVGI‘s HD helicopter receiver site. In additional, two TVGI wireless cameras were outfitted with RFX-CMT-II HD rack-mounted camera transmitters, and one RFX-PHT-II HD portable digital transmitter was attached to the station‘s helicopter for aerial shots. An extra PHT-II was used alongside a fixed RF camera for ground coverage.
According to Raymundo Barros, director of engineering for TV Globo Sáo Paulo, a major challenge the station faced in gearing up for Carnival‘s debut in live HD was determining how to achieve reception for six wireless cameras and a helicopter that were to be located within a difficult and demanding working environment, which Barros attributes to “the huge size of the allegoric cars that blocked the line of sight from the camera to the receiver antennas.”
Barros says that this concern became a non-issue due to use of the RFX-RX6-II. “In having RF Central‘s RFX-RX6-II six-way diversity receivers, we were able to establish a high-performance maximum ratio combining technology, resulting in a robust RF signal that offered our audience extraordinary HD picture quality throughout our thirty two hour live broadcast.”
He adds that RF Central proved the ideal solution for taking TVGI‘s Carnival broadcast into HD. “RF Central products are designed by people who have actually worked in broadcasting and have full understanding regarding the challenges we face on the road and in the field,” he explains. “This is why its equipment is able to best suit our needs when it comes to ease of use, flexibility, portability and cost efficiency.”
TV Globo Sáo Paulo was the only station to broadcast the show live in HD. TV Globo International delivered the show live in SD to more than 100 countries. Established in 1966, TV Globo International is the largest station in Brazil serving the largest city in South America, offering more than 4,000 hours a year of entertainment that includes mini-series, music festivals, documentaries, news and live soccer. The channel's signal is generated by TV Globo in Rio de Janeiro and transmitted through satellite to all different international distributors. Access to the channel is available through local operators, either cable or satellite.
About RF Central
RF Central, LLC manufactures and supplies state-of-the-art microwave equipment to television broadcast and government customers throughout the United States. As one of the premier suppliers of broadcast equipment required to complete the 2 GHz BAS transition, RF Central has grown from a few employees in 2005 to over 60 full-time dedicated professionals today. Located in Carlisle, PA, RF Central also provides specialized integration, installation, and engineering services. RF Central is marked by its unique qualifications within the industry, its focus on customer service and its dedication to expanding and improving the terrestrial microwave options available to customers. RF Central, along with Nucomm, Inc. and Microwave Service Company, form the Vitec Group RF Systems business unit, a part of Vitec Group Broadcast Systems Division. For more information, visit www.rfcentral.com.
About The Vitec Group plc
The Vitec Group plc is acknowledged as a global leader in the supply of equipment and services to the broadcasting, entertainment and photographic industries and has established a reputation for technical excellence and superior engineering along with an astute business strategy which has seen it grow by acquisition. Innovation is a cornerstone of the Group‘s activities and the organization is committed to a policy of continuous product development. With revenues (2007) of $546m (£274m) and over 2200 employees world-wide, its products are distributed in almost 100 countries, through a strong, fully-resourced distribution network or direct to the end user or corporate customer. More information can be found at www.vitecgroup.com.
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