Archive of the HDTV Category

November 20, 2009 — Markham, Ontario: Digital Rapids – the leading provider of tools and solutions for bringing television, film and web content to wider audiences — announced today that the StreamZHD multi-format, live and on-demand encoding system has won a 2009 Streaming Media Readers’ Choice Award as the top high definition (HD) hardware encoder. The award was presented this week at a special reception during the Streaming Media West conference and exhibition in San Jose.

The Readers’ Choice Awards are held annually by Streaming Media magazine and recognize the leading streaming and online video solutions, services and innovations as judged by end users, rather than the magazine staff. Over 200 products, companies and services competed in this year’s awards. more

November 18, 2009 – Across South America, Grass Valley™ continues to be the vendor of choice for live high-definition production. As the most recent example, D2 Video Produções Ltda, a premiere live production company in São Paulo, Brazil, has made a significant investment in new HD production equipment from Grass Valley to meet the growing need for high-quality sports and other types of production.

D2 is building a brand new high-definition OB van and updating its HD studio production infrastructure with new Grass Valley HD cameras, 3X SloMo cameras, slow-motion replay systems, video routers, audio routers, and HD video production switchers. The significant order also includes a comprehensive three-year service contract that will provide D2 Video with warranty extension for all Grass Valley products.

“As a steady customer for many years, we have always appreciated more

New from Crystal Vision is Up-and-down-AAFD, one multi-functional board designed to up, down or cross convert video signals containing embedded audio, provide fully flexible aspect ratio conversion for SD sources and insert SMPTE 2016 Active Format Description data into the output video for aspect ratio correction by downstream equipment.

Up-and-down-AAFD offers exceptional performance for up conversions of Standard Definition to 720p and 1080i at 50Hz and 59.94Hz, down conversions of 720p and 1080i to Standard Definition at 50Hz and 59.94Hz, and cross conversions of 720p to 1080i and 1080i to 720p. Motion adaptive video de-interlacing ensures that the best processing method will be chosen based on the video content, while the adjustable detail enhancement feature allows the image to be sharpened and further picture enhancements come from full RGB adjustment more

Outside Broadcast, a Belgian pioneer and high profile company in HD television facilities has transmitted its first 3D event with the help of AXON’s Synapse modules, especially the HXH150. The HXH150 is a HD, SD up/down/cross converter/synchronizer with side curtain conversion. The Memorial Van Damme, an athletics event held in Brussels, has been captured in 3D in order to show the complete chain from capture to delivery to the consumer cameras. The, by the 3D camera, captured signals were fed into the mixer, and the right and left eye were processed in parallel more

Digital TV service provider relies on Net Insight’s Nimbra to Deliver Trans-Pacific Virtual Headend Service to Soldiers Stationed in Japan

9 November 2009

ORLANDO, Florida – Net Insight, a leading developer of efficient and scalable optical transport solutions for media, IP and broadcast networks, today announced that is has supplied Nimbra switches to Midwest Video Solutions (“MVS”), a leading provider of robust Digital TV solutions, to provide a virtual headend feed from their facilities in Westby, Wisconsin to a US military base in Japan.

Net Insight delivers 100 percent Quality of Service, allowing customers to transport any service to any network location without packet loss. The optimized Nimbra platform meets the needs of broadcasters, media networks, IPTV/CATV operators, Metro Ethernet and telecom operators in a one-system solution. Headend operators can use the Nimbra platform to form virtual headend services with scalable layer-2 multicast and no packet loss. more

DENVER — OCTOBER 28, 2009 — SCTE Cable-Tec Expo 2009 Booth #11107 — Harmonic Inc. (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced that Blue Ridge Communications has deployed Harmonic’s Electra® 8000 universal encoder in an extensive network upgrade that marks the first live installation of the platform by a cable operator. The one rack-unit, multi-channel, multi-format Electra 8000 is enabling Blue Ridge to substantially expand its HD offering to its subscribers in central and eastern Pennsylvania. The system provides a highly cost-effective solution for Blue Ridge’s rollout of additional HD content of exceptional video quality over its existing MPEG-2 cable infrastructure. more

Production Facility Uses AJA Solutions for CBBC Series ‘Shaun the Sheep’ and Playhouse Disney’s ‘Timmy’

AJA Video Systems, a leading manufacturer of professional video interface and conversion solutions, announced today that 15 KONA video capture and playback cards are in use at the UK’s Aardman Animations, producers of the Academy Award-winning “Wallace and Gromit” films and television series. The KONA family is AJA’s line of 10-bit uncompressed capture and playback cards for video and audio input and output on the Mac platform, including KONA 3, AJA’s top-of-the-line video card for SD, HD, Dual Link 4:4:4 HD and 2K formats.

Recent Aardman projects using AJA’s KONA 3 include the second season of the stop-motion animated children’s series, “Shaun the Sheep,” a “Wallace and Gromit” spin-off airing in late 2009 on CBBC, the children’s arm of the BBC more

Crystal Vision has introduced a new five year warranty for customers who register their products. This extended five year back-to-base warranty is applicable to all products shipped after 20th August 2009, and is available to those who register their products within 60 days of their shipping date.

The new five year warranty, which was launched on 20th August and which is an extension of the standard three year warranty, covers all labour and parts and is applicable to modules, frames, power supplies, rear modules, fans, active frame front panels and remote control panels. Crystal Vision will repair or replace any defective items free of charge for the period of the warranty, guaranteeing availability of spare parts for five years following purchase, and will also provide critical software updates throughout the lifetime of the board. more

— Long-running animated hit comedy series relies on Waves audio tools for stereo and surround processing —

— Waves is now a featured brand in the show’s end credits —

TEL AVIV, ISRAEL, October 27, 2009 — Waves Audio, a leading provider of digital signal processing software and hardware solutions, announces an ongoing relationship with South Park Studios, the producers of the Peabody Award- and four-time EMMY® Award-winning animated comedy series South Park. Waves will be added as a featured partner in the show’s end credit roll, and the two companies will carry on a mutually beneficial relationship as the show continues its impressive run.

South Park has long been one of television’s primary outlets for satirical and current-event-based comedy. Such an approach necessitates a hectic production schedule – often going from more

CHARLOTTE, NC – Linear Acoustic, the leading authority in loudness control and upmixing solutions for digital television, is helping the FOX-owned SPEED Network bring the action and excitement of motor sporting events to viewers’ living rooms via the company’s UPMAX™ 5.1 channel upmixing technology. more