Gravity Media, a leading provider of outside broadcast trucks and flyaway production kits, is building further systems in preparation for premier sporting events in 2020, including a major football competition in Europe. Central to the new flyaway kits is the Platinum™ IP3 router from Imagine Communications.

The key to success in building flyaways is to create a system which provides all the resilience and reliability needed for live broadcasting, but in a compact footprint. As the name suggests, these often have to travel by air freight to meet deadlines, where additional space and weight can be prohibitively expensive.

“We picked the Platinum IP3 because we know it is reliable — we know what it does,” said Peter Newton, technical and operations director at Gravity Media. “Because of the established partnership with Imagine, we knew that we would get good support if we need it, and we will get ample utilization of the equipment. It is a good solid product that does what it says it will.”

Gravity Media has used equipment from Imagine Communications for over 15 years, which has established Imagine as a trusted partner. When it came to choosing routers for the new flyaways, Gravity Media compared all the popular models on the market, but was confident in selecting the field-proven Platinum IP3. The new flyaways will use both the 15RU and 28RU routers.

The key project for which these flyaways are designed requires support in 12 locations over a four-week period in June 2020. The kits will provide live production functionality. The Platinum IP3 routers incorporate integral multiviewer technology, reducing space in the racks and simplifying setup. The order also includes a number of modules from Imagine’s Selenio 6800+™ processing range, along with Magellan™ router control panels.

“While the headlines are about the transition to IP, it is important to remember that a lot of broadcasters and production companies need to extend and enhance existing, SDI-based systems,” said Mathias Eckert, SVP & GM EMEA/APAC, Playout & Networking, at Imagine Communications. “Because of our close partnerships with major operators like Gravity Media, we clearly understand the need for high-functionality, high-reliability SDI solutions, as well as IP technology, and we are committed to supporting our customers for as long as they need SDI, as part of our ‘your path, your pace’ approach to the IP transition.”

For more information about Imagine Communications’ products and solutions, please visit https://www.imaginecommunications.com.

TVU Networks, the global technology and innovation leader in live IP video solutions, announced that Spanish public broadcaster RTVE chose TVU equipment to follow the 2019 Rally of Morocco. RTVE’s coverage was a unique blend of action captured at close range with a smartphone running TVU Anywhere and more static moments shot using a standard camera setup with TVU One.

The Rally of Morocco is the most renowned rally in the country, bringing in the best racers every year. To provide viewers with an engaging live broadcast, RTVE sought a set of solutions whose versatility could match the liveliness of the rally.

RTVE found the answer in TVU Anywhere, the powerful application that turns mobile smart devices into HEVC transmitters with IS+ transmission algorithm. The Spanish broadcaster paired TVU Anywhere with the ultra-compact TVU Nano Router, which helped to ensure smooth, interruption-free transmissions by providing up to 200Mbps of secure, high-speed Internet by combining data from three different SIM providers. 

TVU One, the mobile live video transmitter with HEVC encoding, was also on standby for the event, deployed when RTVE needed to switch to a higher resolution transmission with ultra-low, sub-second latency. The combination of these TVU products helped RTVE effectively capture the fast-paced action of the 2019 Rally of Morocco, and the live broadcast was successfully aired to RTVE’s flagship website and TV channel.

Blackmagic Design today announced that Teleclub, Switzerland’s leading Pay TV network, has implemented an UltraHD video playout system, built around a Blackmagic Design 12G infrastructure, to support an increased volume of linear and pay per view (PPV) live sports channels.

The network recently expanded its output to offer more than 83 channels, including eight in Ultra HD, broadcasting in German, French and Italian, and covering a wide range of sports including top flight European and national football leagues, ice hockey and others via its IPTV platform.

“We needed to double Teleclub’s capacity to feed additional HD and UHD PPV channels, studio production facilities, as well as additional commentary and graphics elements,” explains Remo Val, system and software engineer, Teleclub. “When we considered our UltraHD requirements, it was clear that a single link 12G-SDI network would ensure we had enough capacity in our server rooms and keep cabling and signal distribution hubs as streamlined as possible.”

18 ATEM 4 M/E Broadcast Studio 4K have been installed, with each one serving two of the HD or UltraHD channels, with a separate M/E attributed to each channel. Each switcher is paired with a video/CG server, developed inhouse at Teleclub using DeckLink Quad 2 capture cards and Caspar CG, for live video playout.

At IBC2019, Telstra Broadcast Services will showcase a portfolio of next generation high quality broadcast solutions and launch a global remote production solution allowing broadcasters and sport media customers to tailor their remote production solutions.

MediaKind, a global media technology leader, has been selected by Síminn, the Icelandic broadcaster, to protect and deliver its live high definition (HD) and ultra-high definition (UHD) broadcasts of football matches from the English Premier League to fans across Iceland.

Stand 14.D10, IBC 2019, RAI, Amsterdam — Intinor Technology, Sweden’s leading developer of products and solutions for high quality video over IP networks, has announced that ESL, the world's largest esports company, has deployed a combination of Intinor’s Direkt router, Direkt router lite, and Direkt receiver units to cover its linear broadcasting needs.

Following the ground-breaking acquisition of NewTek by Vizrt earlier this year, IBC2019 will play host to the newly combined group’s first joint presentation on stand 7.B01.

Appear TV, a leading global provider of next-generation video processing platforms for broadcast and streaming high-quality video, is presenting updates to its high-capacity, ultra-low latency X-Series platform at BroadcastAsia (Stand 1M2-01). The X10 and X20 now support digital video broadcasting satellite (DVB-S2x) systems and digital satellite news gathering (DSNG) with a new S2x contribution modulator and demodulator. In addition, its new X-Series transcoder complements its XC platform transcoder and its software-based video compression tools, providing transcoders that fit any task or deployment.

35 UK companies will demonstrate the best of British technology and innovation at this year’s ConnecTechAsia. Organised by Tradefair on behalf of techUK, the GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland Pavilion will welcome 14 new companies to the show and 16 eligible companies will receive a grant through the Tradeshow Access Programme (TAP), a Department for International Trade (DIT) supported programme that assists UK companies in attending certain overseas events.

Imagine Communications has implemented a disaster recovery solution for Sharjah Broadcasting Authority (SBA, formerly known as Sharjah Media Corporation) at its backup center in Al Thaid, UAE, using software-defined technology in a primarily IP-connected environment. The hybrid disaster recovery site will provide full cover for SBA’s four television channels, which are delivered by a primary playout system also implemented by Imagine.

New online research from Edgeware and YouGov, an international data and analytics group with access to an online panel of five million people worldwide, has found that a high proportion of consumers would welcome TV content that is tailored to their personal preferences. According to the study, 89% of adults across the UK, USA, Hong Kong, Mexico and Spain would be interested in content that is aimed at their personal interests when watching traditional TV channels.

Viewsat, one of the fastest-growing operators within the global broadcast and transmission services industry, today announced that is has substantially expanded the platform upon which it will deliver a range of new, quality services to customers worldwide.

At NAB Show 2019 MediaKind, a global media technology leader, promises to take its booth visitors (#SU720) on an adventure of exploration through the MediaKind Universe, its next-generation solution and service portfolio. The MediaKind Universe enables content owners and originators, broadcasters and pay TV operators to efficiently deliver unique, immersive experiences that meet a variety of consumer demands and drive experience innovation.