IMG chooses Forscene

LONDON — March 10, 2015 — Forbidden, makers of the market-leading professional video editing software, Forscene, have announced that the world’s largest independent distributor of sports programming, IMG, have licensed the use of Forscene for all of IMG’s digital rights channels in 2015. Under the agreement, IMG will use Forscene to edit and distribute sports highlight video content from the Forscene platform.

The contract was awarded after a comprehensive evaluation process during which Forscene was tested ingesting multiple concurrent live SDI feeds, editing highlights packages, conforming edits that included client-specified metadata, and publishing to the IMG content delivery network. IMG’s original brief was for a fast-turnaround subclipping and sharing solution but, after testing Forscene, the project scope was expanded to include highlights editing and packaging.

“We’re thrilled that IMG has chosen Forscene for its digital rights sports video editing and distribution needs,” said Jason Cowan, director of business development at Forbidden. “Licencing Forscene to such an important sports brand is a great start to 2015 and we look forward to growing the relationship as IMG signs additional channels in the coming months.”

IMG distributes over 20,000 hours of content to major global broadcasters annually. This content originates from more than 200 clients and events including Wimbledon, the Australian Open, the ATP Masters Series, the R&A (governing body and organiser of The Open Championship), International Rugby Board (IRB), MotoGP, the National Football League (NFL), and the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB). IMG operates from over 30 offices worldwide and has daily exchanges with over 4,000 key media contacts. IMG distributes across all forms of media including TV, audio, fixed media, inflight and closed circuit, broadband, and mobile. IMG also maintains the world’s largest sports archive with more than 250,000 hours of footage and is partner in three leading joint ventures — Sports News Television, European Tour Productions and Asian Tour Media.

“My team tested a number of potential market solutions before selecting Forscene,” said Brian Leonard, IMG lead live engineer. “We were impressed with the range of features Forscene offers within a user-friendly interface, their competitive annual pricing model, and their fantastic support.”

NAB Debut for Ensemble Designs NXT 450 Clean Streaming Router

GRASS VALLEY, CA – Ensemble Designs, manufacturer of Video and Audio Routing, Processing, Display, and Effects Systems, announces the NAB 2015 debut of its NXT 450 Clean Streaming Router.

The NXT 450 combines traditional SD/HD SDI inputs and outputs with high performance H.264 (MPEG-4) encoding and decoding. The result is an integrated solution that bridges between baseband and streaming video formats. Baseband (SDI) sources are routed through frame-synchronizing Clean Switches before being passed to the built-in Encoder. Both IPTV (Unicast or Multicast) and DVB-ASI outputs are simultaneously available.

Control over the switching and configuration of the NXT 450 is available from the front panel, through web, and serial interfaces. The web interface provides operators with live thumbnail views of all of the connected sources.

Decoding of incoming IPTV and ASI signals are provided independently of the Encoding functions. The Decoder output can be switched to any of the outputs and integrated with all of the other connected sources.

The flexibility and choice of signal types is enhanced by two SFP interfaces which can provide fiber, HDMI, analog, or additional SDI connections.

At only 1/3 of a rack unit, the NXT 450 offers an unprecedented level of feature integration in a remarkably small package. This makes it a great choice for portable systems, News trucks and helicopters, remote studios, and distance backhaul.

GB Labs HyperSpace brings SSD performance levels to HDD NAS storage systems

With its new HyperSpace technology, GB Labs brings broadcasters and post facilities a next generation storage technology for IBC 2014. 

HyperSpace uses a unique, ground-breaking SSD enhancement technology to accelerate the Space tier 1 HDD NAS system to unbelievable levels of performance. This provides users the capacity of the HDD range with the ultra-high data rates that the company’s SSD range can provide, at an incredible price point.

Ben Pearce, Sales & Marketing Director of GB Labs remarked:

“Many of our customers require large capacities - up to 1.7PB - and very high performance for demanding media applications and large workgroups. Our new Space HDD platform has fulfilled these needs for most clients. However certain deployments require DPX image sequence capabilities or very large HD stream counts for concurrent editing, transcoding and rendering. The random access capabilities of HyperSpace are ideally suited to these environments.”

HyperSpace’s SSD hardware and control software combine to preserve the life of the disks and intelligently manage the way the system uses its resources. Unlike the earlier generation of hybrid HDD / SSD disk systems that were designed for general IT deployments, HyperSpace is optimized for heavy duty usage in media environments. The GB Labs system incorporates entirely new technology which easily outperforms the offerings of existing hybrid storage manufacturers, in terms of real-world media usage and long term reliability. 

The latest Space HDD platform, announced at NAB this year, will greatly benefit from the ability to connect the low-profile rack-mounted HyperSpace. Available in three different capacities, the system will dramatically improve the dynamics of the ‘Space’ HDD storage solution.

The Space platform can already scale its performance significantly using additional RAID controllers and more ‘Space EX’ units. The new HyperSpace unit will improve performance even further regardless of the scale of the original configuration. The HyperSpace-enabled system can be expanded dynamically in the same way as every other Space and archive storage unit.

VidiGo enters Asian Market with official “conquer launch” at Broadcast Asia 2014

AMSTERDAM – VidiGo and Premium Partner Techtel Group are about to conquer the Asian market and will demonstrate their revolutionary IT-based solutions for live production at the Broadcast Asia Show in Singapore.
VidiGo is the hottest news in the broadcast industry bringing innovative and intuitive software based workflows for live TV production in a world still dominated by hardware. VidiGo has a strong position in Studio Automation (news & current affairs) and is market leader in Visual Radio. In the last few years VidiGo has built a successful installed base of users in the broadcast industry in Europe and the USA and is now expanding to Asia.

“We are very happy that we found a strong partner in Techtel. They have a very good reputation and strong network in the Asian market. But even more important is that they really embrace our vision and understand the shift to IT based solutions that is happening right now. It is not always easy in this industry to find partners that are able to bridge the gab between software technology and traditional broadcast workflows.” Said Reinout Lempers COO of VidiGo. “Our red pants crew really looks forward to entering this interesting and growing part of the world together with Techtel.”

David Elsmore, Managing Director at Techtel commented: “We met VidiGo last IBC and we were fascinated by their technology and what they have realized in Europe. Building a new technology is one thing, but creating a successful installed base with happy users in this demanding industry is a complete different ball game. VidiGo realized both, which gave us all the confidence we needed to bring this new technology to Asia. We see a strong growing need for intuitive workflows and automation in live production, and we believe VidiGo is a perfect fit to this needs.”

For more info please visit Techtel Stand at Broadcast Asia
Stand 5J3-03, 17th-20th June, Marina Bay Sands - Singapore

About VidiGo
We believe broadcasting should be fun, easy and cost effective. That’s why we’ve designed the best software solutions for live production in the world. We are defining the future of broadcasting. Our software seamlessly integrates with third party equipment and you can update and upgrade as desired. VidiGo lets you do more with less, but with the same quality end result. Together with our support team we are committed to only have happy users.
Our clients include industry leading broadcasters, commercial and public radio stations, sports arenas and video production companies all around the world. We offer a full portfolio of broadcasting workflows and solutions. Whether you want to fully automate a newscast, create a high quality visual radio experience or boost stadium experiences, we do it all.

More information: www.vidigo.tv

Ensemble Designs To Demonstrate Version 2.0 Mulitviewer And NXT Software At Broadcast Asia

GRASS VALLEY, CALIFORNIA – Ensemble Designs announced today that it will be demonstrating version 2.0 feature sets of its popular Avenue Multiviewer and BrightEye NXT family of compact routers at the Broadcast Asia International Digital Multimedia & Entertainment Technology Exhibition & Conference in Singapore June 17-20, 2014. Both software versions were singled out for awards at NAB this past April. The Ensemble Designs demonstration located on the Techtel stand 5J3-03 will include a comprehensive, hands-on opportunity to explore all of the exciting new features.

The all new Multiviewer Magic 2.0 delivers an offline mode for creating screen layouts, alarms for ensuring signal integrity, new fast authoring tools with eye dropper and paste functions, closed caption support, and countdown clocks. Also new are independent Edit and Control modes, giving users the precise controls needed for their particular jobs.

“The staff setting up and configuring a Multiviewer have very different needs from the day-to-day operators,” said Mondae Hott, Director of Sales for Ensemble Designs. “Engineers and installers are configuring the hardware, setting up alarms and creating screen layouts. Segment producers, floor directors and QC staff need to see a lot of different sources and look at signal quality. We’ve addressed those two types of workflows in Multiviewer Magic 2.0.”

An unlimited number of layouts can be created offline. The layout editing window is so accurate that one can design a layout without looking at the actual Multiviewer video output. Multiple screen layouts can be created, saved, and easily recalled, or applied to other Multiviewer outputs. One Multiviewer screen layout might be for a QC position while others could be created for a control room, remote truck or producer position. New screen layouts can be designed while the Multiviewer hardware is in use.

“Imagine a segment producer of a live show who’s got 20 cameras or sources available and one Avenue Multiviewer output has been allocated to her,” said David Wood, Chief Design Engineer and President at Ensemble Designs. “She can use the Web Control Panel on her iPad to recall any number of preset Multiviewer layouts, easily looking at all of her sources.”

The Avenue Multiviewer’s web control panel can be used on a Mac, PC or tablet, which means the Multiviewer can literally be used from any location. The browser-based control panel provides intuitive controls for selecting and monitoring particular video and audio sources.

“The segment producer may want to verify that the microwave feed is good, for example,” said Mr. Wood. “With an iPad, she can switch the Multiviewer output to Fullscreen to see that specific source.”

The Avenue MV82 is an eight input/two output Multiviewer. All eight sources can be displayed on one screen, or split into two quad splits. The MV164 is a sixteen input/four output Multiviewer. All sixteen sources can be displayed on one screen, or divided between the outputs. Output configurations are extremely flexible, allowing a variable number of sources on the different outputs. The 9480 Multiviewer option can be added to the Avenue Integrated Routing System, providing incredible flexibility, drawing from the sources to the router, and returning Multiviewer outputs directly to the router matrix without tying up valuable routing inputs. This level of integration is unique to the Ensemble system, delivering routing, production switching and Multiviewing, all in a very small footprint.

The BrightEye NXT 2.0 software upgrade, provided at no charge to owners of Ensemble Designs BrightEye NXT Video Routing Switchers, provides dissolves and direct take transitions of HDMI as well as SDI sources, external control via TCP/IP or DB9 connector, and configuration and salvo memory registers.

“Now you can dissolve between HDMI sources, SDI sources, or any combination of SDI and HDMI without glitches, hiccups, or black screens to both HDMI and SDI destinations,” said John Pichitino, Technology Evangelist at Ensemble Designs. “It’s now possible to ‘mix’ a show directly from the field using a box about the size of a club sandwich.”

The software upgrade is available to all BrightEye NXT customers under Ensemble Designs “Five-year hardware, software for life” warranty on all products.

“This sweet little router supports several different external control protocols via either TCP/IP –RG45 or DB9 – RS 232 connection that allows interfacing with automation control,” said Robert Nunez, Sales at Ensemble Designs. “And, recalling router matrix configurations on the fly allows router volleys and quick destination and source reconfiguration – all at the touch of a button.”

“We continue to bring upgrades and advanced features to our customers without additional expense thanks to our ‘software for life’ warranty. This is the second major release of software for the BrightEye NXT this year, and the product continues to improve and provide value. All our customers reap the benefit of our software development,” said Mondae Hott, Director of Sales for Ensemble Designs.
Based in Grass Valley, California and formed in 1989, Ensemble Designs is a leading provider of signal processing and infrastructure products. Customers include CBS News, NASA, Major League Baseball, Olympic Broadcast Organisation, General Atomics, and ESPN.

Based in Grass Valley, California and formed in 1989, Ensemble Designs is a leading provider of signal processing and infrastructure products. Customers include Lockhead, NASA, Major League Baseball, Olympic Broadcast Organisation, General Atomics, and ESPN.

Press Contact:
John Pichitino
Ensemble Designs
www.ensembledesigns.com
+1 530.478.8328
pich@ensembledesigns.com

Haivision's Makito X with SRT at BroadcAst Asia 2014-Stand 5J3-03

SINGAPORE - Techtel will be demonstrating Haivision's recently announced Makito X Series of encoding and decoding products, now featuring Secure Reliable Transport (SRT) technology at Broadcast Asia 2014 Stand 5J3-03

Haivision's  newest Makito X Series of video encoders/decoders are designed for the most demanding encoding applications in enterprise, broadcast and federal/military environments. The Makito X Series delivers higher performance, superior quality video and extremely efficient encoding. Built on Haivision’s field-proven encoding platform, the Makito X brings users a complete point-to-point video distribution solution with improved user experience, reduced costs and increased channel count.

New Secure Reliable Transport Technology

Haivision’s Secure Reliable Transport (SRT) technology is now featured within the Makito X Series of encoding/decoding technology, providing high quality, low cost video transport over the Internet. SRT optimizes video streaming performance across unpredictable Internet networks, where packet loss, jitter, network congestion and bandwidth fluctuations can severely affect the viewing experience. By combining end-to-end security, resiliency and dynamic endpoint adjustment, SRT tames common Internet streaming challenges by detecting network conditions in real-time and adjusts the stream to deliver the highest quality video.

To make an appointment for a demo, kindly contact Din at 63340848 or email to sales@techtel.com.sg.

NewTek Reinforces Leadership in Multi-Camera Live Video Production with Major Enhancements to Professional TriCasters

 New capabilities simplify workflows, improve quality, and further reduce production costs for customers.

SAN ANTONIO – NewTek™ today announced major enhancements for its professional line of TriCaster™ multi-camera video production systems. The new features––which further eliminate the need for racks of specialized equipment and multiple operators to produce video content that offers the same professional quality and look of a network-style television broadcast––are now available at no cost to current TriCaster 8000, 860, 460 and 410 model owners.

“Our sole focus at NewTek is to advance the way we help video producers become better at what they do––allowing a single person to produce a show with a TriCaster and bypass the traditional broadcast equipment that typically costs ten times as much,” said Dr. Andrew Cross, chief technology officer for NewTek. “This latest release, which we’re making available at no charge, does just that with a range of refinements and new feature introductions designed to help our customer produce even higher quality shows for their rapidly growing audiences.”

The latest enhancements to the professional family of TriCaster systems include:

· More comprehensive multi-format, multi-channel recording capabilities. All systems, including the TriCaster 410, now offer full ISO recording capabilities and the ability to instantly recall highlights with integrated replay. Users will enjoy the introduction of “virtual genlock”––which ensures frame accuracy between every ISO recording and vastly simplifies the use of recorded media in non-linear editing systems.

· Improved monitoring and content viewing­. All systems now give producers significant monitoring flexibility with full support for four VGA outputs, including dual projector configurations and more. Each display port supports an independently selectable output signal and increases choices for multi-screen monitoring and output. Multi-view displays are also fully configurable for more flexible monitoring, workspace customization and overlay marking selection.

· Improved interoperability with 3Play integrated sports production systems. When used together, TriCaster and 3Play systems now deliver integrated performance unlike any other live production switcher and sports production system on the market. Operators can take advantage of deep cross-platform integration, reciprocal commands and automation for remote operation of specific functions that simplify complex, multi-system productions.

· Broad integration with third-party products. Customers working in facilities or larger-scale production environments now have access to a vast ecosystem of workflows with other industry-leading products, such as networked shared-storage, full Vizrt Trio graphics systems, broad GPI support, and more. Direct support for products from 50 different vendors offers the most complete workflow choices of any live video production system.

· Streamlined control of operational commands. Automatic media retrieval further helps operators by automatically locating and populating session media, even when drive settings have changed—virtually eliminating the time spent searching for missing media and rebuilding sessions.

· Enhanced visual capabilities. Using the new advanced rendering engine that is optimized for processing image sampling, downscaling and warping, producers will experience higher-quality video images in shorter amounts of time. New Photoshop blending modes allow users to combine mix/effect layers for more sophisticated compositing, new visual effects, and higher production value.

To view the new capabilities in detail, customers can visit www.newtek.com, select a product model and choose the “New In” tab.

Visit Techtel Stand 5J3-03 at Broadcast Asia 2014 for a demonstration of NewTek TriCaster!

Telestream Features Vantage HEVC, 4K and Cloud at Broadcast Asia 2014

NEVADA CITY, CALIFORNIA – Telestream®, the leading provider of digital media tools and workflow solutions, today announced that its software-based Vantage video transcoding and workflow automation products will be featured in Techtel (S.E, Asia) Pte Ltd booth 5J3-03  at BroadcastAsia2014 which takes place June 17-20 in Singapore. Telestream will demonstrate the latest file formats and technologies, including HEVC and 4K, transcoding and packaging for multiplatform distribution, and the ability to quickly respond to fluctuating needs in the cloud.

Telestream will also participate in the BroadcastAsia International Conference. Paul Turner, Telestream VP of Enterprise Product Management, will present ‘HEVC: The Next Evolution in Video Encoding Technology’ on Tuesday, June 17 at 10:50 am as part of Track T1: Harnessing the Next Wave of Technologies for TV.

“We’ll be showcasing the advanced technologies that come as standard features in the Vantage product line, demonstrating the highest video quality, the fastest video processing, and the broadest format support,” said Paul Turner, VP of enterprise product management at Telestream. “These exciting software solutions solve real-world problems for our customers in an economical and repeatable fashion.”

Transcoding is at the core of the Vantage file-based video processing platform. Telestream will showcase its complete family of multiplatform Vantage Transcode products for broadcast, cable, VOD, IPTV, multiscreen and OTT distribution. These software products utilize the latest technologies to deliver pristine quality, exceptional processing speeds, plus the industry’s most extensive workflow automation and system support. HEVC and 4K are hot topics this year, and Vantage support for both will be demonstrated.
Vantage Cloud is a new product that complements on-premise Vantage systems by allowing users to quickly and easily spin up and tear down transcode farms in the cloud, making it possible to dynamically respond to fluctuating workflow needs. Vantage Cloud offers all the capabilities of Vantage – including automated transcoding, media processing, automated decision-making, and third-party integrations – on cloud-based infrastructure. With global reach and pay-as-you-go pricing at Amazon Web Services, Vantage Cloud offers greater flexibility and choice in where and how users get their work done.

Post Producer is a new content production and assembly software product that automates repetitive production processes which would otherwise tie up editors and costly editing suites. Based on user-supplied templates, Post Producer automatically assembles a segment or spot, compositing video, graphics, titles, and captions or subtitles, and applies audio processing as required. In addition to providing significant cost savings, Post Producer accelerates the versioning process which allows more jobs to be completed and billed. Post Producer leverages the unique capabilities of Vantage to address multiple market segments, while providing workflow consistency, scalability and reliability. New features include support for popular NLE timelines, composition input from Sony Creative Media Services, and Canoe DAI (dynamic ad insertion) asset creation.

Pipeline HD Dual network video capture systems provide real-time ingest into Vantage file-based workflows. Pipeline allows users to ingest media from tape or live sources, encode and playout media in multiple standard and high-definition SDI formats, all in a single, two-channel box. Pipeline allows users to edit or transcode video during capture for quick turnaround processing.

For more information about Telestream and its products, visit www.telestream.net. To request a meeting at BroadcastAsia2014, visit http://www.telestream.net/company/meeting-request.htm. or call Techtel at 63340848
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Trademarked company and product names are the property of their respective companies.

Techtel signs premium partnership agreement with VidiGo

SINGAPORE – The Techtel Group, a leading supplier of broadcast solutions to the South East Asian, Australian and New Zealand markets has announced today it has signed a premium partnership agreement with VidiGo, a leading broadcast software producer, to provide their clients with new innovative technologies to improve production efficiency and enhance viewing quality. With its head office in Sydney, the Techtel Group will be covering the S.E. Asian region out of its Singapore offices, having fully trained staff and mobile demo capabilities to support their activity. Australia and New Zealand will have similar capabilities to cover their local markets. “We considered Techtel’s knowledge of the market and their ability to deliver solutions paramount in our decision to align with them in this broad region”, commented Reinout Lempers, VidiGo CCO. “Our customers depend on the expertise of independent partners like Techtel to provide end-to-end services, from consulting and integration through to ongoing technical support.” says Lempers. Techtel has offices in Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland covering the geographically diverse Australia and New Zealand market region, whilst Techtel (S.E. Asia) covers Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, Cambodia and Vietnam out of its Singapore offices.

David Elsmore, group CEO says ”The Techtel Group has a long and strong history in all facets of television and radio broadcast and the rapidly evolving telco and CDN segments. The lines are now blurred between where television starts and stops… actually it does not stop so our strength lies in our expertise to support these ever-changing television markets. VidiGo provides a unique software platform of automation and integration to the expanding radio and broadcast industry. Our objective is to present their unique set of solutions to the region enabling new cost effective workflows tailored for the unique operational needs of broadcast for radio, television and internet programming.”

Other solutions in the VidiGo range are; VidiGo Studio Automation, the ultimate control to create and supervise rundowns for a fully automated newscast, VidiGo Visual Radio, the best solution in the market to create an entertaining and compelling visual radio show without the need for extra staff and VidiGo Graphics, the tool that allows users to create broadcast graphics in Adobe Photoshop and animate them in Flash. The newly released Social Media Hub is a combined Social Media Management and CG product to deliver efficient and cost effective social media capabilities for all broadcasters. The integration of never.no’s Social TV Interactivity Suite with VidiGo Graphics provides broadcasters with a cost effective social media solution. Operators can now control incoming social media content and effortlessly publish on air, with a full toolkit available to control the graphics.

For more information on this press release please contact Rosalind Ho at Techtel on +65 6334 0848 or ros@techtel.com.sg.