BSkyB Selects Grass Valley Ignite Automated Production for 24-Hour Sports News Channel

“As a major broadcaster in the UK, it was crucial for us to have a highly sophisticated automation system that would be delivered on time and on budget and could be integrated with our existing production infrastructure and workflow,” said Mike Ruddell, Head of Technology, Sky Sports. "Grass Valley has met our expectations in all of those areas. We required a solution designed to handle dynamic live production as well as event programming. With our new Ignite system in place, we now have a central point of management within our control room and we’re able to produce content efficiently.”

The comprehensive, file-based Ignite system delivers a single workflow and multi-distribution model. It tightly integrates with BSkyB’s newsroom computer system (NRCS) and provides the production staff with greater control and efficiency while delivering a high-end on-air look that its viewers have come to expect. Production staff can now easily control on-air timing, accommodate last-minute show changes, and direct any type of production on-the-fly to produce more and enhanced content. The scalable Ignite platform supports a wide range of third-party devices making it highly cost-effective and reducing the time required to go live with breaking news.

“We’re so pleased to announce BSkyB as the latest in an ever-growing list of broadcasters around the world who have tapped into Ignite’s powerful capabilities for their control rooms so they can take full advantage of the streamlined workflow it offers,” said Tim Thorsteinson, President and CEO, Grass Valley. “We designed Ignite so that broadcasters can generate greater value from their existing resources and allocate more of their staff to the field which, in turn, increases their programming opportunities.”

Grass Valley is changing the way live television is made and delivered. Recognized with 18 Emmy® awards for technology innovation, Grass Valley’s product portfolio—from image acquisition to playout—offers a complete end-to-end workflow of flexible, future-proofed solutions which enable broadcasters and content owners to build multiscreen, multiplatform futures. By simplifying and enhancing the way content is produced and distributed, Grass Valley gives customers the freedom they need to be creative in the studio, the field, and the newsroom. Merging optimizations of IT technologies with best-in-breed media systems, Grass Valley’s next generation solutions deliver higher quality and greater efficiencies. Customers include world-leading broadcasters, teleproduction facilities, service providers, government, religious, educational, corporate, and independent video professionals. Grass Valley is headquartered in Hillsboro, OR, and maintains local presence across the globe with offices throughout North and Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific regions.