Production-Broadcast Technology Magazine Issue #1 March - April 2013مجلة ا�نتاج وتكنولوجيا البث

الفاتح 1453 إنتاج تركي ضخم

غرفة أخبار مؤسسة دبي ل�عالم ا�كبر وا�كثر تقدم� في الشرق ا�وسط

ماجستير الهندسة المرئية والمسموعة في الجامعة اللبنانية

العدد # 1 أذار (مارس)-نيسان (أبريل) 2013

Issue # 1

ييري كوشان وأنجح البرامج العربية

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Dory AounInnovative

Lebanese Director

The Rise of LiveMobile Broadcast

Grass Valley The LDX Series

DMI Upgraded News room

THIS ISSUE

Tech News: A mobile that gives a real-time field editing capability.

Dubai TV: The goal is to become the number one Pan-Arab station within the next two years.

Lebanese Director Dory Aoun modifies a High Speed camera in order to film “Table Top”.

Grass valley: unveiling at NAB 2013 new and highly inventive additions to their Live Production lineup.

One Shot Advertisement takes time and requires effort to emerge harmoniously.

Ali Wazani, special touches on mtv offices

The tapeless workflow saves time and simplifies the work on footage

TVU, Uplink technology has gone from a curiosity to a strategically important tool that is relied upon by broadcasters around the world

Evertz at NAB 2013: Workflow and video wall are among our Complete Solutions at the show

HBB TV allows broadcaster to create a direct interactive chain with the viewers

Compact Full HD OB Van for Al Mayadeen TV in Beirut by Sony

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FRAMING NEXT...• Robot Sam Cam

• The Future TV

• Smoke

• Program: Crazy Lab

PublisherMedia Street

GM/ Editor in ChiefHala El Khatib

Hala@firstframe.me

Executive ManagerRuba Dika

Ruba@firstframe.me

Managing EditorFatima Kassem

Fatima@firstframe.me

Executive EditorImane Kallassy

Imane@firstframe.me

ConsultantMuhammad Irfan Gondal

Irfan@firstframe.me

DesignerAntoinette Moubarak

Joumana Srouji

Consultants - Alphabetical orderAli Wazani, Bassem Christo, Hassan

Chahine, Muhammad Irfan Gondal, Nayef Krayem, Peri Cochin, Salaheddine Awad

Reporters

UAEAlaa Krayem

Firstframe@firstframe.meTel: +971 556 086 948

Egypt and TurkeySalha Allam

Salhaallam@hotmail.comTel: +20 100 498 4849

USANathalie Fares

Nathalie@firstframe.meTel: +1 904 955 5632

Beirut - LebanonBir Hassan - quds street - Cornish Blg.

Tel: +961 1 843 422Mob: 961 70 929 746

www.firstframe.me

Print Press:Arab Printing Press

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Production-Broadcast Technology Magazine

You Can Read All English Articles transtated to Arabic in our websitewww.firstframe.me

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Publishing - Media Event Organizing

Advertisement - Media Campaign

Media Consultancy

Media street is the publisher of First Frame Magazine

Lebanon, Beirut - Jnah media@mediastreet.me +96170929746 +96170788955

Publishing - Media Event Organizing

Advertisement - Media Campaign

Media Consultancy

Media street is the publisher of First Frame Magazine

Lebanon, Beirut - Jnah media@mediastreet.me +96170929746 +96170788955

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Despite the belief of some that publications are considered a burden on the world of media, and others that would prefer paper documents over technology, we appreciate and target both though our mission and our vision.

Today, we publish First Frame magazine believing fully that our Arab market lacks coverage of technology in general and specifically broadcast technology. So our magazine aims to take its place in the world of specialists in this field, and its position in their projects and aspirations.

First Frame “broadcast technology magazine” is continuously in search for new equipment used in television stations for shooting, editing, graphics, lighting, sound, outdoor broadcasting and satellite... It holds secrets of the success of programs and films, starting with devices used to the creative human factor such as directors, producers, lighting and sound engineers, technical engineers, production teams and preparation and implementation teams. Launched from Lebanon; the home of production in the field of television programs and advertising, and Cairo; one of the best in film production, and Dubai; the land where cinema, media, and programs of the Arab world meet.

First Frame is delivered to all who are interested the media industry, cinema, events and exhibitions in the Arab world using simple technical language, participates in the stories of success makers in this field, interferes in the backstage production, provides the latest technologies directly from hardware manufacturers, TV stations and production companies in order to share experience and high professionalism in this business.

The first issue holds in its cover the story of Dubai TV’s newsroom in all its details and mechanism, the LDX series cameras manufactured by Grass Valley, Diplomas in broadcast Engineering, Turkish cinema production, Evertz’ and Grass Valley’s new equipments in the Nab Show, latest TVU equipment, the installation of SONY’s OB Van for Mayadeen channel with HD technology, an interview with the Lebanese French producer Peri Cochin, a meeting with Lebanese director Dory Aoun telling the story of how he adjusted the camera, topics for the Lebanese Broadcasting, The Doctors program, and the latest hardware and inventions in the world of broadcasting...

First Frame magazine’s name was suggested by the Lebanese director Bassem Christo on the grounds that the frame or the fraction of a second is understood differently by professionals in this field, and the first part of the second is the beginning or the (top) sign for any TV or cinema filming…

We are filled with that First Frame magazine occupies some of your time, a place in your offices, and a value in your expectations. We hope to satisfy your taste, earn your trust, and boost your enthusiasm in waiting for our next issue...

oUR FRAME

Hala

what is the grass valley storm mobile

TECH NEWS

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STORM Mobile from Grass Valley strengthens the EDIUS 6 NLE’s real-time field editing capability, while giving you the freedom to edit wherever your work takes you in the studio or on location. You can monitor a separate composite output to always show an SD picture regardless of the original resolution. This is handy when you are editing HD but want to make sure your picture is good in SD, such as when creating DVDs. Downconversion is hardware-based, so the process doesn’t use any CPU power, and has no affect on editing performance.

The STORM mobile adds analogue and HDMI inputs and outputs to EDIUS 6.x. It replaces the popular HDSTORM PLUS, and does the same job and a few extras as well. The STORM Mobile can work on either a laptop or desktop. They are available in two interface versions, either a PCIe card for a desktop computer or an Express card for a laptop computer.

TVU Networks, the global technology leader in mobile live broadcast solutions, announced that the company has secured a new round of investment funding. SoftBank Ventures Korea (SBVK) has joined TVU’s initial investors Altos Ventures and New Atlantic Ventures in providing a new round of funding that will enable TVU to accelerate its industry-leading innovation in IP-based video transmission, management and distribution solutions; further its market leadership in North America, Asia, the Middle East and Africa; and expand its global market presence in Europe and Latin America.

SVP Broadcast Microwave offers new digital microwave links with latest encoding and modulation technology as well as new system features. This new generation has all the features for current ENG, sports, outdoor productions and studio production applications. It has an H.264 HD/SD professional broadcast quality encoder/ decoder, based on NTT technology. The HDT-02 is the new H.264 and MPEG-2 multifunction transmitter that accepts analogue video, SD/HD-SDI and HDMI video input signals. Analogue, SDI embedded, HDMI embedded and AES audio inputs are available as standard, and user data or GPS data can be transmitted over the data channel. It performs DVB-T, DVB-T2 and DVB-S2 modulations. The HDR-100 is a diversity receiver that integrates COFDM demodulation and spatial diversity based on MRC (Maximum Ratio Combining) technique, which reduces the effects of multipath and fading losses.

NEW MICROWAVE LINKS

capture anything andedit anywhere

tvu networks secures signicant round of investment funding

Mobile Newsgathering is now faster and better then ever with the introduction of JVC’s GY-HM650. Small and light enough to be used anywhere, this advanced camera surpasses the performance of many traditional ENG style units and offers capabilities never before available on any model. Dual codecs make it possible to record for 2 screens simultaneously: full HD on one memory card and a smaller web-friendly file on another card. Transfer the footage back to the station with the GY-HM650’s built-in FTP and WiFi connectivity.

The JVC GY-HMQ10 is the first handheld camcorder capable of capturing and recording 3840 x 2160 images at 24p, 50p and 60p. It employs an F2.8 to F4.5, 10X, f=6.7mm-67mm (42.4mm-424mm) zoom lens specifically designed for 4K imaging. The HMQ10 employs optical stabilization. A high-speed 1/2.3in back-illuminated CMOS sensor with 8.3 million active photosites (3840 x 2160) captures progressive images at up to 60fps. Data from the sensor are processed using an array of custom JVC Falconbrid LSI chips that deBayer the image and provide image control, while simultaneously compressing four video streams that are recorded onto four solid-state memory cards. Two-channel 48kHz, 16-bit audio is recorded using AAC compression.

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A new version of its Live-Link Remote Camera Interface System is now available for 4K applications. Especially suited for live sports and event productions, the 07X-series is designed to deliver the power and flexibility of the standard Live-Link systems along with the unique resources required by broadcasters seeking a 4K solution.

TECH NEWS

Bond enables streaming 1080p HD video over five 3G/4G cellular modems from carriers worldwide. The device aggregates bandwidth from several cellular connections simultaneously and uses them in parallel to create a single, higher capacity connection for broadcasting over the Internet. Whether you are streaming directly to the Web or feeding content back to the control room, the Teradek Bond can transmit video to nearly any platform.

bond hd videoover 3g /4g networks

PAG, camera power and lighting systems provider is now shipping its new, ultra-compact battery charger designed to fit any kit bag and suit any budget. The PAGlink Micro Charger is ideal when one wants to travel light and needs to charge PAGlink or standard V-Mount Li-Ion batteries. The Micro Charger is smaller than a PAGlink battery and weighs approximately 200g.The charger clips over the battery contacts and is connected to a plug-in power supply unit that accepts a 100-240V AC input, and interchangeable plug adaptors, for use worldwide.

ultra-compact battery chargerfrom paglink

Rohde and Schwarz launched the new TMU9 UHF medium-power transmitter and THU9 UHF high-power transmitter clock in with the top energy efficiency scores. With efficiency of up to 38 percent for COFDM standards, the two transmitters claim to reduce energy costs and use Doherty technology to achieve these performance values. The basic principle is to split signal amplification between two paths. The advantage is that the carrier amplifier amplifies only the average signal. As a result, this path does not require any reserve capacity for power peaks. The peaking amplifier, on the other hand, only operates when the power level peaks, which saves energy in both amplifiers.

ENERGY EFFICIENCY WITH RHODE AND SCHWARZ

studio technologies introduces 07x-series

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Sony announces the new NEX-FS700 Full-HD Super Slow Motion camcorder, the latest in Sony’s line-up of NXCAM interchangeable E-mount camcorders. The FS700 is designed for high-speed shooting, capable of capturing footage at up to 960 frames per second and features a range of capabilities such as 3G HD-SDI output and built-in ND filters. The NEX-FS700 utilizes a new 4K “Exmor” Super 35 CMOS sensor and the E-Mount flexibility is designed to accept virtually all SLR and DSLR 35mm lenses with the use of simple, inexpensive adapters. Users can also capture high-quality still images with “face detection” and auto focus to help ensure that a subject is always in focus. The NEX-FS700 offers creative options, shooting styles and enhanced ergonomics to deliver a flexible production tool that can fit seamlessly into a variety of shooting applications.

FULL HD SUPER SLOW MOTION CAMCORDER

The AG-AF101A Series is an HD AVCCAM camera recorder with a Micro Four Thirds mount. It can use a wide range of lenses including Micro Four Thirds compatible DSLR lenses and Cinema lenses with a mount adapter. I also features two-channel XLR audio input terminals. In addition to the PH mode (average approx. 21Mbps, maximum 24Mbps), the AG-AF101A Series complies with the AVCHD ver. 2.0 (AVCHD Progressive) standard in its new PS mode (average approx. 25Mbps, maximum 28Mbps) for recording, playing and outputting (via HDMI only) Full-HD progressive (1080/59.94p, 1080/50p) images. The PS/PH modes support uncompressed 16-bit LPCM 2-channel audio recording. It has the ability to output HD signals with 10 bit 4:2:2 qualities via the camera’s live output function and record onto the external devices, such as P2 Recorder, compatible with 10-bit recording through SDI. The P2 Recorder also syncs Rec Start/Stop with the AG-AF101A series trigger. It is equipped with the expand focus assist function, which enlarges the centre of the displayed image, and 2.39:1 (cinema scope size) safety zone marker.

panasonic new camera recorder

DECA LARGE LIGHTWEIGHT AUDIO BAG Petrol Bag, part of Vitec Videocom, a Vitec Group company premiers the new Deca Large Lightweight Audio Bag (PS617) which is optimally designed to safely carry around the Sound Devices SD 664 mixer – with or without the CL6 Controller. The spacious and flexible interior of the bag securely houses the six-channel production mixer that is held in place with four security straps. The rugged and elaborated construction offers easy access to the unit’s XLR connectors and maximum storage for all cables and extra equipment a sound man needs. The exterior front accessories pocket features a detachable frame that holds up to eight wireless receivers and transmitters. The bag also comes with a transparent top cover that allows a clear view of the controls. The smartly designed access area at the bottom of the bag offers four individual doors with unique locking magnets and grants free access to all mixer panels.

FOR-A has announced a new update for its FRC-8000HS HD/SD frame rate converter to better accommodate the production of winter sports. With the software release, the FRC-8000 offers a unique level of in-depth user control, giving operators the ability to customize settings based on their specific needs. Users will be able to select a “winter sports” scene type, a special mode created to optimize the conversion process in environments with high-speed moving objects in highly saturated backgrounds that contain a lot of bright white, such as snow or ice. The FRC-8000 offers simultaneous HD and SD output and an optional front-touch panel for easy operation. It supports a wide range of signals, including 1080i, 720p, NTSC and PAL. Up-, down- and cross-converters provide both frame rate and format conversion in a single unit.

TECH NEWS

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First Frame magazine’s crew took an interesting tour in Dubai’s Newsroom. Spending the day at Dubai TV was a nice experience that included watching the noon news. A photo shoot was managed, as an extremely helpful team accompanied us. This article holds an overview of that visit which included interview with Samer Hamzeh Head of international news department in Dubai TV.

Revamping Largest News Floor Space in the Region

Dubai MeDia iNcoRpoRateD

Muhammad Irfan Gondal

CoVER SToRY

Dubai TV in the United Arab Emirates is now broadcasting live from the largest and most advanced studio of its kind in the Middle East.Their goal is to become the number one Pan-Arab station within the next two years. To accomplish the ambitious goal Dubai TV invested in a brand new studio in Dubai Media City. And it was not an ordinary studio Dubai TV had in mind: The studio had to be able to cover any type of broadcasting - including international bulletins and briefs, sports news, political programs, talk shows and debates, current affairs, local news briefs, stand-up shows, weather forecasts and VIP guest programs.

Dubai Media Incorporated (DMI)’s news centre at Dubai Media City had a revamping of its studio infrastructure with HD broadcast vehicles. This new studio is considered to have the largest news floor space in the region.The Dubai news center is an entity within dubai media incorporated that provide all the news materials and bulletins as well political and social programming to all the channels under DMI. It’s known that DMI is one of the biggest media

houses in the gulf and the Arab world.DMI strategy goals include moving to a full HD satellite broadcast by DMI’s TV channels, restructuring transmission rooms to adopt tapeless technology and electronic archiving, extending satellite broadcast to cover the six world continents in addition to creating an advanced emergency transmission infrastructure. “The goal of this huge change is providing the emirate and gulf and the Arab audience with a class A news material and political and social programming. It’s not only a good looking improvement, the goal was to move forward.The whole settings and graphics can change the way people approach the content. In television, both look and feel are much attached”, said Samer Hamzeh, head of the international news at Dubai TV. “170 people work in this news room which its work flow begins with news coming from the major sources which is being dealt with, or news

CoVER SToRY

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and reportages from about 20 correspondents all over the world. We start our day with editorial meeting. There are no bureaus, we work with service providers, our in house journalists are trained to be multi-tasking; they edit, record, write and do their own graphics”, Hamze explained. “It was a challenge to train the staff and carry out the improvements to the studios and sets, in addition to installing and integrating the new system, while keeping the old system operating, a corner was reserved for daily work. The hardest task was deciding to shift from old system to the new one. The upgrading began in February 2012 and finished and launched in August”.

Hamze explained that the project was another step in Dubai’s media achievements; the solutions that were used there made us concentrate on art and technology in both software and hardware, “we have now the most advanced technology in TV business from lighting to whole construction and cabling and prepared ourselves to go HD at anytime. The editing software is Avid, we upgraded video wall year ago too, it is 10 meters long. We have 8 cameras’ set ups”. The news center

was established in 2004. It was built to produce the 10 pm news bulletin each day. As the center intended to produce seven daily news bulletins and three weekly shows about politics and news, it was ready to be upgraded in both appearance and technology. One of the problems that lead Dubai Tv to upgrade was the limited storage we had. They used to clean the system daily, they have 8 main editing machines and two as a support. They used to have avid news room and a unity system. All of these are changed. The old system was still running while upgrading, it’s a new system completely. They backed up the data through our external storage with the help of avid company.

After the new system was finished they had to couple it with their network system, the joining wasn’t easy.

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CoVER SToRY

Users can more efficiently locate and manage the content they need, and all the content is available online, so the speed of moving it between locations is greatly improved with no additional ingest-content can simply be moved across the network. The avid system is connected with digital archive the media on digital format on LTO5 drives rather than storing them on analogue tapes.

The increased number of ingest channels means there are no delays getting news into the system. The design of the new studios was carried out in–house by DMI, the sets were built by local companies and the integration was carried out by locally based Salam Media Cast. Phase one focused on decor, technical infrastructure and archiving. The new center has gained the new AVID newsroom system, new graphics set up from Vizrt, digital archiving, a brand new video wall from Prysm and both touch screen functionality and new media interactivity. Since the whole world is moving towards HD and tapeless workflows, there is an intention to turn to fully HD and Tapeless by 2014. Phase two will witness all the cameras on the studio floor replaced alongside

their Eng counterparts, in addition to updates for both the galleries and MCR. Some of new equipment used can save 70 percent of energy over its predecessors. All the set and studio lightings are now using a higher percentage of cool lights that is in terms of making steps to limit energy consumption.

A new fully integrated HQ in Dubai studio city will be built in future, the designs were approved, and it will ultimately be the main center of DMI’s infrastructure for the next 30 years. There are 1500 employees on the broadcast side and more than 3000 across DMI which also includes print, radio, and digital media.This DMI’s news center upgrade made the institution moves to become among the best quality production facilities in the region

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CoVER SToRY

What is the modification you made to the camera?

What is High Speed camera?

Were there any complexities during the modification process?

How did IDT deal with you then?

Shots of Table Top

I modified the camera by transforming its lens mount to Pl Mount that is specially manufactured in Germany to hold cinematic lenses and capture high quality scenes. These cameras are often used in laboratory tests to examine small particles and their interaction. In addition, modifications were applied on the software of the camera to be compatible with our use.

The regular camera shoots at a speed of 25 frames/sec, while the High Speed camera reaches a speed of 1200 frame/sec cinematic use “2.5K res” up to 100,000 fps. Therefore, the scene becomes slower, allowing us to see the flow of food while pouring it or water drops or particles of an explosion and other precise elements.

Actually, I went to six factories that manufacture cameras inter Germany, Amsterdam, London and America, but eventually I chose two cameras. One is made by IDT Company and the other by Phantom Company. The latter informed me that it is working on developing a camera with the same characteristics I propose.

Dealing with IDT Company was more like cooperation not trade. Its representatives were attuned and welcomed my ideas. We were constantly in contact throughout the manufacturing process of PL MOUNT. We emailed each other for six months until I received the camera in 2005. I was the first person in the Middle East to obtain such a camera. I kept it as a secret until 2011, for no one knew what kind of camera I am using.

Since the scenes he shot were lacking some of their smallest specifics, Lebanese director and cinematographer Dory Aoun decided to reveal these details. He monitored simple movements through modifying the camera and transforming it into a high speed camera in order to film “Table Top”, i.e. to film food. Then, he filmed cinematic scenes in the American movie “The Hurt Locker” that was released in 2008 and “The Viral Factor” in 2011.First frame magazine took a tour in the studio of his production house “Third Eye FX”, which is the first studio of its kind, for it possesses modern techniques that are not available anywhere else in the Middle East. “Third Eye Fx” is considered a popular destination for foreign photographers and directors who use its latest equipments and technology.

The regular camera shoots at speed of 25 frames/sec… The high speed camera reaches 1200 frames/sec

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Shots of Table Top

Did you terminate your relationship with the company after that?

Why Camera Red is unique?

What about the Milo Motion Control in the studio?

How is that accomplished?

What is the difference between the two cameras?

Tell me more about your experience with the camera in the Hurt Locker film.

What was the camera used for Covert Affairs?

No, After the Hurt Locker film won the Oscars in 2010, IDT CEO, Louis Lorenzo, called me. He invited me to his house and to Florida State University where I met the dean and discussed the camera’s modifications with the students. Moreover, the company bestowed me a high-tech camera that was invented based on my ideas, and cited that on its website.

I got this camera in 2008, it films with a 4k resolution, and thus it surpassed HD that films with a 1.8k resolution. On the other hand, I would like to point out that the latest “Red Epic” camera films with a 5K resolution.

Milo Motion Control is a big rig similar to a robot. There are around 40 machines around the world, and two of them are in the Middle East; one in Lebanon and the other in Egypt. It is a revolution in the world of Graphics and Postproduction, and it is able to repeat high-speed moves with precision and stability precise.

We control the Milo Motion Control via a remote computer. The actor is filmed, and his movements are followed and recorded on a specialized modifying program. Then, we move to the phase of assembling the scene either by adding a certain background or elements or pictures or even mixing scenes with motion and then we can add the 3D graphics. For example in James Bond movies and Harry Potter, they shot the actors on Chroma then added the surrounding and all VFX later in post.

The new camera named Diablo or Y5 is more sophisticated in terms of appearance, ventilation system, programming system, and resolution. IDT’s camera has a nice image look due to its sensor, which pushed me to select it.

In 2008, while I was shooting tabletop in my studio, I was surprised by the Production Manager of the film “The Hurt Locker” directed by Catherine Bigelow, asking to give him a test from my camera, which I did, then after a week I got the reply that they liked the test! The film dealt with Iraq’s war and won 6 Oscars in 2010. It was filmed with 6 cinematic cameras and my modified camera was the seventh. Most of the High Speed Shots taken by me were displayed in the trailer of the film, which proves the success of this camera. Then I returned and filmed “The Viral Factor” directed by the Chinese director Dante Lam in 2011 and the Covert Affair in 2012, but with a different camera.

It’s the “Epic” camera made by “Red “. It is a new invention that was released after the Red One camera that is considered a revolution in the world of cinema, for it transformed filming on classical rolls into digital ones.

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Milo Motion Control

IDT CEO, Louis Lorenzo offering the Y5 camera to Dory

A Lebanese director and cinematographer, who started his journey in 1994 when he redirected the famous play “Film Ameriki Tawil” play for which he received the blessings of Ziad al-Rahbani. He participated in filming three international films, which are: The Hurt Locker, The Viral Factor, and The Covert Affair. Furthermore, he filmed more than 1000 advertisements in Lebanon, the Middle East and Europe for Pepsi, Sony, Nestle, Toyota, Dove, Exxon Mobile, American Garden, McDonald’s, Galaxy, Pringles, Nescafe, Grohe, Braun, Mirinda, etc… In 2005 he established Third Eye FX Company and equipped it with advanced instruments. He was the one who first obtained such equipment like the Milo motion control, the High Speed camera and the Red Camera to the Middle East region.

Who Is Behind Third Eye FX?

Is there any new technology you seek to obtain?Technology is relentlessly evolving and we need to take advantage of it. I am seeking to bring the Flying Cam to Lebanon. It is a helicopter with high speed or epic camera attached to it. We can shoot from space with high technology and definition. I’ve already filmed with a Flying Cam in Jordan. We are currently working on the logistic situation given the security measurements in Lebanon

WHo?

What is the problem of 3D?If you mean watching a 3D movie in cinema theaters or on TV through 3D glasses, I personally still don’t appreciate it a lot. I don’t believe it reached the stage of maturity. We have to reach a stage where we can watch a 3D movie without any special glasses. Until then, 3D is still annoying to many viewers.

We control the Milo Motion Control via a remote computer.

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High speed camera, Milo motion control, and epic camera… the latest equipments in the Arab world

Flying cam

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Grass Valley Believes that the Future of Live Production,News, and Playout is now

Grass Valley’s Nonlinear Production helps broadcasters, media companies, mobile truck operators, and playout providers save time and money, by simplifying the way live content is produced and delivered across multiple platforms.

Grass Valley will be exhibiting at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) show in Las Vegas from April 8-11, 2013, in the South Hall lower level, booth SL206. Where is shall demonstrate how Nonlinear Production, a single joint stage providing a true create once, publish everywhere environment, delivers greater workflow efficiency by enabling group effort that may work in parallel, while eliminating costly and complicated processes needed to repurpose TV content for multiple platform distribution.

Grass Valley will unveil new and highly inventive additions to their Live Production lineup, in order to support the Nonlinear Production platform. The latest updates to their established line of solutions for Live, News, and Playout will also be presented.

GV STRATUS that provides the backbone for Nonlinear Production is accomplished, by combining production tools, device control, and content management into a single, highly configurable multitasking user interface. GV STRATUS works with the K2 Summit platform of media server and storage products to provide a unified database for all content management use cases and an expandable foundation for new applications and workflows.

The latest release of GV STRATUS includes powerful new tools to increase efficiency through automated, rules-based file operations, and sets a new standard in proxy editing workflows with the introduction of the EDIUS XS nonlinear low-resolution proxy editor. EDIUS XS includes most of the effects capability of the full resolution EDIUS editor, delivering without comparison capability for newsroom desktop editing and opens the door to production workflows that have previously required more expensive full resolution editing tools.

GV STRATUS along with EDIUS Elite deliver better editing and faster operations for full-resolution broadcast applications, new possibilities for workgroup collaboration and eliminating the need for conversions, processes, and extra components, for high speed production in news and studio environments.

For ultimate production power and flexibility, both the Kayenne and Karrera Video Production Center switchers now feature K-Frame; a new modular video frame approach to switchers that meets growing requirements whether input/output, M/Es or functionality, providing liberate 3G 1080p50/60 operation, while consuming less power than ever before.

Detaining the best images possible, the Grass Valley LDX Series of Xensium, FT-based camera systems, consisting of the LDX Première, LDX Elite, and LDX World Cam, will demonstrate the simplicity in buying a camera system. Customers will choose the level of acquisition format they require today, with confidence that their production may be upgraded as they require.

The Grass Valley Smart Playout Center is a fully integrated playout platform that combines K2 Edge playout nodes, playlist management, media asset management, graphics management, channel branding, and master control functionality. This combination not only dramatically simplifies the amount of equipment required to build a playout channel, but also simplifies operations. Grass Valley’s Cobalt playlist management software is also included in each Smart Playout Center to manage all on-air events. For increased reliability Cobalt runs completely on K2 Edge, independent from the database.

LDX Flex, the new entry level model from the LDX Series Camera family

Grass Valley has added the LDX Flex studio camera system as an entry-level offering to its LDX Series of upgradable system cameras. The affordable LDX Flex delivers the same high-quality

NEW PRoDUCTS

shows and demonstrates Non Linear Production, GV STRATUS LDX Flex Studio Camera and XCU exchangeable Control Unit in NAB Show

Grass Valley

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NEW PRoDUCTS

images and performance, and supports the use of the same accessories, as other cameras in the LDX Series for a single production format, but can be upgraded through the entire LDX range: LDX Première, LDX Elite, and LDX WorldCam as required.

Designed as a cost effective acquisition camera, perfect for news/talk, corporate, educational, studio, and small mobile truck environments the LDX Flex provides a wide range of gamma and knee adjustments, a powerful secondary color corrector for two independent colors at the same time, and the choice of fiber or triax camera transmission using all the different versions of the 3G base stations, including the new XC (eXchangeable Control Unit) WorldCam base station.

“By offering a single format entry point, with the same excellent picture quality as the whole range, our customers can buy what they need when they need it, confident that as their business grows, so can their cameras” said Graham Sharp, SVP and Chief Marketing Officer for Grass Valley. “It is part of our strategy to innovate in business engagement as well as technology – making cameras software upgradable, provides lots of future flexibility in the product for both us and our customers”

The LDX Series makes buying a camera system simple.

Customers select the level of acquisition format they require today, confident that as their production needs change, they can upgrade as required:The LDX Series support the following formats:LDX Flex: 1080i50, or 1080i59.94 or 720p50 or 720p59.94LDX Première: 1080i50/59.94 & 720p50/59.94LDX Elite: 1080PsF25/29.97, 1080i50/59.94 & 720p50/59.94LDX WorldCam: 1080p50/59.94, 1080PsF25/29.97, 1080i50/59.94 & 720p50/59.94

A simple upgrade advances every LDX Series camera to the next camera in the range.

XCU WorldCam eXchangeable Camera Control Unit

The XCU brings unique flexibility to mobile production truck operators and studios. It is designed around a unique cradle concept—a pre-mounted and pre-wired cradle which allows for easy “slide-in” and “slide-out” of the XCU as needed. All connectivity remains in place with the cradle, except for the power and triax/fiber connection. The cradle stores the previous XCU settings and automatically re-configures the incoming unit to the requirements of the production environment. XCUs are hot-swappable, and each comes with one cradle. Additional low-cost cradles are available separately.

The XCU is the next logical step to the revolutionary 3G Transmission concept, bringing even more operational flexibility and efficiency, and is the perfect match for Grass Valley’s LDX Series and LDK 8000 Series cameras.

“There are many times when additional cameras are needed in production trucks, and those cameras may come from other trucks in the fleet or be rented.

Typically, this would mean moving not only the camera, but the base station as well—not the best of situations,” said Graham Sharp, SVP

and Chief Marketing Officer for Grass Valley. “The XCU easily solves this problem by giving one camera multiple set-up possibilities with the ability to easily reallocate cameras with spare XCU cradles located in each truck

and without time-consuming and costly cabling mistakes.”

The XCU WorldCam serves all current HD formats: 1080P, 1080i, 720P and is available in 4 configurations, XCU WorldCam Triax, XCU WorldCam Fiber, (XCU WorldCam Twin (Triax and Dark Fiber) and the LDX WorldCam Dual (Triax and SMPTE Fiber)

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The closer you are to hardware, the farther you are from the creative process. When we speak to customers about their creative goals, we show them how we can help do the same work with less physical technology. They immediately become interested. Who wouldn’t? As a company, Grass Valley is working hard to enable creativity. So, the tools do not define the task, but vice versa. That’s how we’ll keep our customers and help them migrate to the next best thing and allow them to increase their productivity and realize their business and creative objectives.”

Getting there in the next few years is a challenge that Schubert has taken on with enthusiasm, so the digital workflow transition might happen slower than expected. This is especially true, he said, in emerging countries like China and South America, where many broadcast and production facilities are just now being converted from standard definition to high definition operations. “There’s still a lot of opportunity to move customers through the digital transition as painlessly as possible,” he said. “Our goal in 2103 is to accelerate that transition as much as we can by making it affordable and future-proof.” To this end, Schubert is currently leading several R&D teams at Grass Valley that are focused on adding new levels of capability, in the form of software applications, across Grass Valley’s live production solutions and networked nonlinear editing platforms.

“There will always be a need for specialized hardware in some parts of a facility and the live production chain, where FPGA chips and real-time

processing cannot be substituted. But the amount of dedicated hardware required is diminishing.” Yet “There will always be something that creative minds want that we can’t accomplish fast enough on the CPU/GPU combination,” Schubert said. “However, as the CPUs and GPUs get faster, it creates room for us to move today’s requirements to software and perform more advanced processing in hardware. I think there will be a frequent movement of function to the CPU/GPU combination platform.”

For Grass Valley, software-based products are faster to bring to market and can be enhanced with new versions on a continual basis, all to the benefit of the customer. Grass Valley has already started to move, from using only traditional tools to a combination of traditional tools and software interfaces that control those tools,” Schubert says.

IT

Schubert said he’s focused on bringing the same flexibility that virtualization has brought to the IT world. He refers to it as an “abstracted infrastructure,” whereby the user does not care where their video

Karl Schubert, CTO at Grass Valley forecasts that broadcasters and media companies around the world will maintain an industry-wide migration to file-based and IP infrastructures, and manufacturers will support that initiative with an increasing amount of software and networked platforms that allow users to work collaboratively and efficiently. The coming year will be rich with significant innovations at Grass Valley and a focus on connected workflow optimization. “The advantage of software is that it allows us to get closer to realizing what the creators want to do,” Schubert said. “At the end of the day, that’s what it’s all about for a technology vendor.

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CAMERA

21

CAMERA

The whole idea of This new paTh is ThaT we need To connecT The newer Things we’re developing To our exisTing sysTems. iT’s really abouT giving cusTomers more for Their money

server, or router, or video switcher is located, as long as they have access to the content. IT brings new freedom in 2013; Grass Valley is bringing this IT-centric concept to its current portfolio of solutions. This includes the ability to “send back to the camera what the camera is sending in to us,” Schubert said.

“We can use fiber and IP networks to locate cameras remotely. This approach will allow creative to have an evolving vision of what they would like to see — and have us as viewers see — and realize it just moments after. We also see, over time, OB vans being built smaller, to accommodate smaller spaces and more limited budgets. This means a production company could send a smaller truck on-site, but have many of the production tools located remotely, yet accessible and controlled from inside the truck.” He added, “This mobility is critical to providing creators with new ways to accomplish the same thing they have been doing for many years.”

The company’s new LDX series cameras are designed to accommodate continual software upgrades. The company is preparing to launch a new service that will see Grass Valley license specific capabilities on a basis of user need: per feature, timed, or pool of cameras. This central service would allow a customer to turn on a feature for a specific event while in the field, and then turn it off when finished.

Features and Creativity

There’s a new feature button on the LDX cameras called “Pick Me” that allows a camera operator to tell the director that he or she has a shot that is important. The feature allows the camera operator to tag his or her shot so that the director is alerted in the production truck, but the tagging metadata can also stay with the recorded content after the event is over.

The camera operator can also mark clips that can be sent directly to the Internet to give viewers at home an alternate view of the action (or a different take on a news story). Again, it expands the creativity of the operator. That’s never been possible before. Schubert said, “With distributed, nonlinear production, people working on a particular project don’t have to all be in the same place.”

Then there’s the Grass Valley STRATUS Media Workflow Application platform that acts like a workflow manager and provides a common interface for creative people that don’t want to be burdened by technology. This platform changing the way people think about nonlinear production by facilitating the idea that content can be developed and distributed by multiple people simultaneously working from different locations.

“We want people to envision a future where they have more freedom and can launch new services and more channels quickly and cost-effectively,” he said. “We’ll still make great production switchers and routers, but these traditional tools will be tightly integrated with newer software tools that bring more capability in the same or even smaller amount of space”

Karl Schubert, CTO at Grass Valley

The advertisement that was shown in 60 seconds, took a long time to draw the idea, clarify it, and then execute as pointed by Phillipa Claire, head of technical relations and communications in the company of “JWT”, the one that carried out and produced this add. The most prominent idea in this advertisement is the method of filming, based on a single snapshot also known as the ONE SHOT, the least commonly used filming technology in the world, and the most difficult to implement, as it takes time and requires effort emerge harmoniously. It required the use of the one of a kind camera ALEXA, that is the most advanced and most used nowadays in the advertising market and huge media, its advantage is that it provides superior picture purity thanks to its lens and speed in capturing images (35 shots per second).

The camera was installed on a technocrane, and moves from left to right and up and down with a remote control connected to both the crane and the camera. Photography took one day (14 hours straight), the movement of the camera was from the left to the right, sometimes up to shoot the second floor of the building, then go down filming horizontally. Difficulty

as described by Claire was how combine every shot with the words of the song, and the second point after filming is lighting, which is an important aspect of the filming process, which most viewer are unaware of, nevertheless they realize and sense it in purity of the lighting.

Three types of lighting were used, for each neighborhood box had its own normal lighting, which constitutes of bulbs like the one found in our homes, which is surely not enough in the filming process, therefore additional lighting was used that enhanced the general atmosphere for net image. That light is Frensel and Kinos. This type of lighting is usually used in many businesses, which is internal filming where it gives completely similar temperature to a natural sunny day. So it seems by this lighting, which measures between 3600 and 5500 Kelvin, as if the filming took

22

SPoT

14 consecutive filming hours, followed 15 days of preparations in building a neighborhood made of cardboard boxes, was installed by a team of 38 technicians, whose mission was confined on installing the decoration, painting it, and packing the furniture that was shown in the “mtc touch” advertisement dedicated for marketing “my plan”.

It is worth mentioning that no effects or graphics were used on the advertisement in the editing process, and as we previously mentioned, the scenes were not collected and combined as usually happens in works of art, because the concept of the advertisement is “The One Shot”, and from the technical aspect this type of filming gives a realistic environment, as if the viewer is in that place seeing in his own eyes the atmosphere there.

Effects were normal, through the use of ordinary accessories, including the soap scene which was also real, even the car in the garage that appeared in the penultimate shot in the advertisement. As for the work site, it composed of a district divided into 14 large boxes, each representing a house or a shop, and was built on an area 30 meters in length and 8 meters in width. 14 sections, each equipped to a number of songs in the ad, the difficulty was in how to apply the sentence with the appropriate snapshot, and the movement speed of the camera which was neither quick nor slow, especially since the camera is attached to a technocrane, that which requires agility in the photographer’s handling.

The area of the setup is considered the largest in the field of internal advertisement filming in the Arab world. It took about 12 days to build this neighborhood, with two working shifts; one during the day and the other during the night, under the supervision of directors, producers, engineers and a number of workers, 23 Actor and Actress engaged in the performance of this advertisement

23

SPoT

Philippa ClaireHead of technical relations and communications

place outside and in the daytime. The Frensel is a white light with very high temperature, that usually decreases by filters, and it is never addressed directly to the face, while the Kinos is a mild light imposing a calm and romantic environment to the scene, it is used to break the strong beam caused by the Frensel.

35 frames were implemented, each shot in 60 seconds, to choose one of the 35 at the end, that which we have seen in the advertisement. After completion of the filming process, the film was sent to the editing section, and done on the final cut pro program. This device works only on “Apple Macintosh”.

For the construction of this floor, the main aim was to create a space that is open and unbroken by any structures. We layered the spaciousness of the room by making use of the double height to establish an area which feels fluid and airy.

For this season, the mezzanines that we built had to reflect said concept; hence, their structure was supported not by columns or pillars, but by tensile cables attached to the ceiling beams. This helped maintain an open office space environment, and also created a richer texture to the room. We constructed a glass bridge that divided the atrium passing from one side of the mezzanine to the other. This interruption segments the space into unequal voids, giving a more cohesive feel to the entirely of the room. However, in order to avoid a disruption in the view and concept, we used completely transparent glass to provide a continued natural quality. The result of such a design was the added advantage of being able to see the outside world through the private offices.

To bring the concept together, we used monochromatic tones, and utilized texture color lights for the remaining architecture. This made the room less exposed and added an airiness that was stabilized by our choices of color, and the minimal structures of our design

24

oFFICES

d e s i g n e d b y a l i w a z a n i

Throughout the development of broadcasting, tapes were first relied on in order to transmit data to the viewers. That process involved shooting the footage, taking it to the TV station where it is viewed and then transferred into tapes that are enlisted after undergoing a final edit. Currently this process is being eliminated and relatively replaced by a more practical way of production: The Tapeless one. In the professional broadcast world, a tapeless workflow is when part, or all of it, is made without any tape; video and audio sources being ingested, recorded, edited and played out on digital systems.

The tapeless workflow has enhanced the way of broadcasting in terms of time saving and simplifying the work on the footage. With powerful capture, logging, searching, sequence creation, and project sharing, as well as easy archiving integrated under one system, the workflow becomes efficient. From start to finish, metadata and media are easily searchable and accessible. Background processes are transparent to users, allowing them to focus on creative efforts as opposed to technical workarounds.

To illustrate the differences, we can compare the classic video recorder where you need to wait for some mechanical operations such as forward, rewind, eject, copy, etc..., with a hard disk recorder where you instantly and directly go to the selected part of the recording. When looking at tape productions, the compatibility between the recording format and the editing should be considered, as any mistake will lead to diminishing the quality of the footage. On the other hand, working with tapeless workflow proves to have multiple rewards, and is now being implemented in several top Broadcast Stations. These advantages include: Direct and instant access to a precise time code, time saving, easy and fast editing, requiring less machines, and researches on media are easy with those metadata Costless storages.

As a conclusion, tapeless has served to decrease time consumption in making a show, facilitated teamwork by increasing their control over the footage, reduced the cost of material, and improved the ways in which footage can be re-used and exploited further down the line. Looking at the advantages provided and keeping in mind that there are many others, it is promising to say that tapeless workflows are much proficient productions that serve our expectations of better broadcast operations and their further advancement

26

ARTICLE

Engineering Manager Al Jazeera English salaheddine.awad@aljazeera.net

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A new era of live broadcasting has arrived. The ability to go live from virtually any location is compelling for broadcasters as they search for ways to get better and faster footage of live news and events to viewers. To meet this need, the past two years have seen an explosion in the use of mobile cellular uplink for electronic newsgathering (ENG). During this time, uplink technology has gone from a curiosity that many broadcasters were hesitant to use in critical broadcasts to a strategically important tool that is relied upon by broadcasters around the world.

At TVU, we have helped broadcast organizations around the world deliver live coverage the biggest news stories of the year using TVUPack ranging from global sporting events such as the London Olympics, natural disasters such as Hurricane Sandy in the United States, and events that impact world affairs such as events surrounding armed conflicts in North Africa.

Cellular uplink systems such as TVUPack use multiple wireless connections – whether they be 3G, 4G/LTE, WiFi, WiMax, or even BGAN satellite links – to deliver a live video feed to the broadcast facility. This versatile technology gives broadcasters a flexible, portable alternative to traditional OB vans as they look to deliver video of breaking news or live events. Cellular uplink can be used in locations that could never work with traditional ENG vehicles, such as moving vehicles, remote locations, or during weather events.

To deliver a live HD signal over 3G/4G wireless networks, TVUPack uses a proprietary technology called Inverse StatMux. Inverse StatMux takes a video signal and then reverse multiplexes the signal across multiple wireless channels. The transmission is then re-aggregated at the receiving end. With Inverse StatMux, TVUPack is able to mitigate the effects of constrained bandwidth of a 3G/4G network by transmitting the video signal over multiple channels simultaneously, enabling broadcasters to push a larger amount of data over the network, resulting in a better picture signal.

Not all cellular uplink products are created equal. There are a number of mobile uplink products that transmit over wireless networks available, so if they all use similar connections, why should anyone care how the signal is pushed through the pipe? At the end of the day, television broadcasters should care how the data is transmitted because it affects the one thing that matters most: picture quality. It doesn’t matter how skilled a camera crew or field reporter is if they can’t deliver quality video back to the broadcast facility. When evaluating and testing uplink solutions, broadcast engineers should focus on three critical factors: superior picture quality, flexibility, and ease of use.

When examining wireless uplink solutions, engineers first and foremost should identify robust solutions that can mitigate the effects of bandwidth limitations and network instability and transmit picture in HD with true resolution. Even if an uplink product uses multiple 3G and 4G connections to transmit the signal, many products are incapable of transmitting a true HD signal because they can’t optimize the data in transmit. Many products use shortcuts such as downsampling the image prior to transmission and upsampling the image when it reaches the receiver. These shortcuts result in color loss and softer picture. Even though they may claim the picture is in HD, it isn’t true HD.

Other products may transmit signal over multiple wireless networks, but lack the necessary processing power to encode an HD video signal, because the hardware itself has limited performance. Picture quality once again suffers because the product doesn’t have the computational power to do encoding in HD. The bottom line is that professional broadcasters need to select an uplink solution that is powerful and robust enough to transmit a true HD signal, even under challenging network conditions.

How It WorksWhat to Look for In A Cellular Uplink Solution

Superior Picture

bRoADCAST

live mobile broadcastt h e r i s e o ftvu

Regional BDM, MEA & TurkeyTVU Networks corp.

For live demo in Beirut, contact star media services office email: starmedia@starmedia.me - tel: +9613718752

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Professional-grade cellular uplink solutions need to provide broadcasters with flexibility to capture and deliver video in a number of ways. For example, TVUPack provides broadcasters with an entire ecosystem of uplink solutions to fit every mobile broadcast need. Whether it’s a small but powerful backpack system, an ultra-portable camera-mounted system, or the ability to capture and broadcast video from mobile devices such as laptops, cell phones and tablets, TVU customers have a wide range of tools to capture and transmit video in any situation. Additionally, TVUPack has implemented a modular design that enables users to remove components for easy use in studios, fly-packs, vans and helicopters.

Flexibility

It’s no question that mobile cellular uplink is a powerful newsgathering tool for broadcast organizations. We have seen hundreds of broadcasters around the globe use TVUPack to supplement or even replace their legacy ENG vehicles and deliver amazing live video that brings in viewers. However, broadcasters must take care to keep the proper objective in mind when evaluating different offerings. Because no matter how well a camera crew can capture a breaking news story or live event, trusting the wrong uplink technology to deliver the picture can leave viewers in the dark, which is the last thing broadcasterscan afford in today’s competitive broadcast environment.

Conclusion

Another important factor to consider before selecting a cellular uplink solution is ease of use. TVUPack is the original mobile cellular uplink solution that operates with just the push of a button, with no manual in-field configuration required. Camera crews in the field shouldn’t have to be worried about preconfiguring equipment to be able to broadcast live. As a result, TVUPack was designed with the simple one button operation philosophy that enables camera crews to do what they do best – capturing compelling video.

Ease of Use

bRoADCAST

bRoADCAST

Evertz will showcasing a suite of new 4K/Ultra HD Live workflow tools at this year’s NAB. Evertz has recognized the challenge faced by the industry leaders who are looking to incorporate the advantages of 4K/Ultra HD to enhance their production value. Evertz was quick to respond with a new suite of tools, including compression, routing, processing/conversion, monitoring and a unified control system using MAGNUM to make the use of 4K/Ultra HD a reality.

Evertz will demonstrating the EFX Video Wall solution for studio back drop applications. At the core of the EFX Video Wall solution is the 3000DVT-18x18, a large scale video wall processor with transition effects and the ability to scale any video across any size video wall. Already in use today by many of the industry’s leading broadcasters, the EFX Video Wall solution fulfills the growing demand for a simple and cost effective video wall solution.

4K / Ultra HD Live Work Flow Solutions

Guaranteed to be the hottest topic of conversation on the booth at this year’s NAB, Evertz will be showcasing their future of broadcast infrastructure solutions. This exciting new infrastructure solution will demonstrate how nearly limitless routing sizes can be achieved as well as how the number of cables in a broadcast center can be significantly reduced.

Future of Broadcast Infrastructure

Fresh off its recent debut at North America’s most watched sporting event, where it was used to replay live 4K camera angles, Evertz’ Dreamcatcher will be front and center at this year’s NAB. Showcasing its superior editing technology and highly scalable and flexible system architecture, Dreamcatcher is a must see at this year’s NAB.

New Generation Slow Motion Replay

Evertz will be showcasing the highly innovative and extensive capabilities of VUE, a user customizable graphical software interface that unifies the control of various products in the broadcast chain. VUE’s user friendly interface provides flexible and reliable control across all broadcast operations from content creation to distribution, thereby increasing productivity and reducing operating costs. Designed for touch surfaces, VUE moves operators from simple push-button panels to an interactive “look-and-feel” found in today’s smartphones and tablets.

Simple, Customizable Tablet Control Interface

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Evertz On Set Video Wall Solution

Multi-Image Processor

3-screens

3-screens

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A major transformation in the media industry occurred during the last decade, driven by the booming technology and the internet penetration. While the number of satellite TV channels continued to increase, acquired and generated content became available online in the form of video on demand ( VOD ) or streaming, creating another business opportunity to broadcasters and a different viewing choice for viewers with an interactive gateway for the future.Meanwhile TV sets was developed in a similar way trying to maintain the attention to the big screen against the computer, mobile and tablet. Connected TV or Smart TV was the first try to merge high quality satellite and terrestrial TV channel with online digital media, interactive social networking gaming and other applications. According to the latest release of connected TV forecast report , the number of TV connections to the Internet will reach 596 million by 2017, up from 105 million at end 2010 Published by Digital TV Research.

global connected tv forecasts by country (000)

SouRCE: DIGITAL TV RESEARCH

The US contributed 48 million to the 2010 total (or 45% of the global total), and will grow to 147 million by 2017 (only 25% of the Global total). China will have 93 million connected TVs by 2017, up from a mere 2 million at end 2010. So Japan will drop from second place in 2010 (13 million) to third in 2017 (43 million). This global connected

TV total translates to 21.4% of global TV sets by 2017, up from only 4.7% at end-2010. The US will have the highest penetration of TV sets by 2017 at 38.1%, closely followed by Norway (37.7%) and South Korea (37.2%).

TV

33

Hbbtv concept source: Hbbtv consortium

advanced epg, catcH-up-tv & vod services

Hbbtv online sHop

All these changes and growth in the media broadcast and display technology trigger broadcasters and broadband TV provider to harmonize the delivery of satellite and broadband TV through a new standard (HBBTV) or (Hybrid Broadcast Broadband TV). This technology standard will allow broadcasters to create a direct interactive chain with the viewers through the main big screen maintaining the delivery of high quality programs. The standard provides the features and functionality required to deliver feature rich broadcast and internet services.

This interactive gateway will enhance the existing satellite content offering for video and radio through an over the top layer of services and interactive engagement in the programs like sports, entertainment and others creating a future opportunity for a social networking in between program fans and groups of similar content interest. It will provide additional live information about the content or the topic and even an extended media content when viewer want to know more (ex. full story in case of news)

It is an immediate advertisement and sales opportunity, as per its capability to trigger ads and promotion about a product in an automated way, while it is viewed through one of the programs whereby viewer can purchase it on the spot (HBBTV online shop). The future of this development is converting our large TV set in our living rooms to an enhanced entertaining machine that could become a virtual member of the family who can interact with us, providing the media we want and information we request. It will even go further through an intelligent interaction and response to our favorite interest providing us exactly what we want to see and hear from the worldwide content databases.

TV

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Due to the increase in demand for HD services, Al Mayadeen TV required a compact van full High Definition. One of the main characteristics of the van is that it is the first with full HD system built for Beirut, starting from its acquisition up to its final transmission. “OB system is configured to have a 4 Sony HXC-100 Digital TriaxCamera with one additional wireless camera for mobile use. The system is fitted with a DFS900 Sony Vision Mixer that would allow the system to have the flexibility and capability of making elaborate effects on Air while considering the space allocation within the truck”, said Giovanni Ramilo, senior project engineer at Sony Professional Solutions MEA.

“Our clients requested us to incorporate the same old system but with Digital High Definition. Based on their desire, they now have the HXC-100 Camera system which is a Digital camera having the quality and resolution of a digital Broadcast Camera and fitted with a triax system that can handle the toughness of the environment” added Ramilo.

The HXC-100 camera supports versatile applications for HD with a high-quality SD output. It uses the latest 14-bit A/D conversion circuit as well as the superb 2/3-inch Power HAD FX CCDs to bring out high picture quality. The system is built-in with its counterpart, HXCU-100 Camera Control Unit and a remote control panel from Sony, the HXC-100 camera offers a fairly simple system, with a variety of beneficial functions packed into the camera including its Focus Assist function. The HXC uses Power HAD FX CCD. The use of a new, state-of-the-art CCD sensor ensures high quality images even at low light level. It has a high sensitivity of F11 at 2000 lux, together with a signal to noise ratio of -55 dB combine to deliver unprecedented picture quality. The HXC-100 can operate in a wide variety of capturing modes, including 1080 50i and 720/50p.

b y s o n y p r o f e s s i o n a l s o l u t i o n s m e a

Although the outside broadcasting business mostly covers sports, news and documentaries are substantial in this field, hence Al Mayadeen Television recommended a truck to be built for that sake. SONY executed the project as Star Media Services was the system integrator which provided the television with complete high-performance workflows that seamlessly perform all media processing, delivery and management tasks, from ingest to broadcast, including Sonaps news production system which Sony performed; one of its kind in the middle east; since Star Media Services focuses on understanding and addressing the needs of customers in media-rich environments by developing and implementing high-performance workflows, providing media processing, and introducing managed services.

hd ob van for

ob VAN

How is the ob van divided?

“Even though the size of the truck is very compact, it contains two sections basically, the most productive workspace we’ve got is the first room; the area that comprises the operator for the switcher and the VTR operator as well as the camera operator”, Ramilo explained and added “the driver’s seat is modified in a way that when the vehicle is parked it becomes the audio operator; it turns around and faces the audio mixer”.According to the desired design, the truck’s capacity is five people, in addition to a space where the director or the producer sits by the main switcher. The seat of the character generator, this can be turned around where there is a folding monitor.In terms of coverage, it is better to occur in circumstances with fewer obstacles around, where the van has a dual antenna system. In connection to servers, Al Mayadeen TV preferred VTRs which are incorporated in mpeg IMX system which is very nice, according to Ramilo, “It has a good backward compatibility, as in the old system the user had the oxide beta cam and the digital beta cam. That entire different tapes produced can be handled or played using this VT”. To be more specific, the regular IVECO truck (four –wheel drive) was designed to be 6.5 feet long, and to incorporate the height, platforms were put on the top for the cameras so that it turns into a stage. A distinctive difference in this truck is that it also has the LED system fitted in its lighting system to have additional lighting function and enhance the ambience for the operators in the outside broadcast van

In addition, this system has wide-band down convertor, which offers this system as top quality HD ready SD system camera. RCP-1500 Camera control panel is a highly versatile panel fitted with a touch panel LCD display and user friendly buttons which makes it a remote control panel that offers both ease of operation and multi-functionality the same as that of the MSU. It has the same control units for iris and master black adjustment block including the joystick type control. Illuminated buttons with high visibility flash and light to notify the user of the operation status to enable operation even in dark locations. The panel is connected using Ethernet cable in this system to minimize the trouble shooting function of the Engineer in isolating the faults.

All the cameras are wired to the DFS900 vision mixer. The vision mixer is designed for live productions, especially if space is limited, design and effects delivery are also considered. Bursting with features in a small, ergonomic package, it is designed to work with a variety of input formats, including SD and HD signals. It has a built-in resizes integrate HD and SD video feeds without external converters, and can connect directly to computer and consumer sources.

35

The managing editor Fatima Kassem interviewing Giovanni Ramilo

one of The main equipmenTs of The van is The wireless camera for mobile use

ob VAN

www.nabshow.com

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CONFERENCES April 6–11, 2013 / EXHIBITS April 8–11Las Vegas Convention Center / Las Vegas, Nevada USA

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It’s all about ME, and how the Mobile Experience is energizing the transformation of Media & Entertainment. Second screens, OTT and smart TVs are enhancing television with interactive content and applications.

Meeting Expectations to seamlessly deliver dynamic content that thrives in Multiple Environments will depend on how well you integrate new strategies, technologies and players. NAB Show® is a Marketplace Energized…addressing the toughest challenges for station engineers and distributors across all platforms, including news and sports coverage, studio production, high effi ciency video encoding and workfl ow, big data, asset management and cloud. Give yourself something to smile about. Register today!

AHEAD OF

THE GAME

BEHIND

THE SCENES

With tightly integrated, file-based systems and infrastructure that provide unmatched workflow

efficiencies for live entertainment, sports, and studio productions, Grass Valley™ live production solutions

can help you face any challenge. With our deep understanding of live production business models, we’ll develop a strategy that places our production

tools as part of a no-compromise solution designedto unleash your full creative power.

more info at: www.grassvalley.com/solutions/live-production

LIVE PRODUCTION SOLUTIONSSoftware Production Tools

CamerasVideo Infrastructure

Replay SystemsMedia Servers

Production SwitchersRouting Switchers

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