Newsletter from 16/02/2016
IBC Preview #2 - ‘The Future of Media in an Age of Disruption’
The IBC Conference is an unrivalled global destination for networking, discussion and debate, presenting a mix of visionary keynotes, panel discussions and master classes with the most influential thought-leaders and innovators in their fields. With the rapid convergence of broadcast, IT and telecoms, this year’s conference theme ‘The Future of Media in an Age of Disruption’ provides the forum to explore new strategies, gain insight into business disruptors, chart future technological progress and examine how the industry can seize the new opportunities being created by the explosive growth in the consumption of TV and video content on smartphones, tablets and laptops.
We currently have IBC Previews online of the following companies:
Axon - AVIWEST - Bluebell - Broadcast Solutions - Calrec - Camerobot - ChyronHego - Clear-Com - EVS - eyevis - Gearhouse Broadcast - Grass Valley - Guntermann & Drunck - Hitachi - i-movix - IABM - IHSE - Ikegami - Jünger Audio - MHz - NewTek - Riedel - Roland - Sommer Cable - Sony - Vizrt
The new entries from this week are displayed in bold. The previews will be maintained on a daily basis and the link IBC2015 will always show the growing number of featured companies in alphabetical order.
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MOBILE PRODUCTION
NEP Group Announces Postponement of Initial Public Offering
NEP Group, one of the largest global outsourced provider of comprehensive live and broadcast production solutions, announced that it has postponed its previously announced initial public offering. NEP's board of directors, management and sponsor elected to postpone the offering as a result of unfavorable equity market conditions. NEP will continue to evaluate the timing for the proposed offering as market conditions develop. "Due to the recent volatility and uncertainty in the public markets, we have decided that this is not the right time for NEP to move forward with an IPO," stated Kevin Rabbitt, CEO of NEP Group, Inc. "We remain a very healthy company with backing from a supportive financial investor, a strong growth strategy in place and great traction executing against that strategy. We are committed to continuing to execute our plan, and we do not believe this decision will impact our ability to meet our on-going growth goals. At NEP, it is business as usual as our team continues to focus on delivering superior service to our clients each and every day," Mr. Rabbitt added.
Welk Aviation Takes Flight with AERIGON, Aerial Remote Camera Head for Professionals
Welk Aviation has made a bold move into the professional unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) market with the purchase of two AERIGON aerial remote camera heads (ARCH™) from Intuitive Aerial. The AERIGON, for which Welk Aviation has received an FAA 333 exemption, will provide an expanded palette of HD and UHD aerial camera capture for the helicopter company’s TV and motion picture clients. This is a significant development for Hollywood filmmakers and L.A. broadcasters, who now have access right in their backyard to the only professional ARCH capable of operating heavy broadcast and feature film-ready cameras and lenses. The AERIGON is the first serially manufactured ARCH built for use with heavier cameras and lenses.
Editec Equips with I-MOVIX Wireless Ultra Motion
The now industry standard Ultra Motion I-MOVIX camera has reached yet another milestone in its flexibility – hand-held RF operation. This option is now available from Editec in the UK - using the very latest X10 UHD camera, I-MOVIX have released a simple but powerful interface module that enables both camera live and replay channels together with control data to be passed over standard camera RF links. Steve Cotterill, Editec’s MD: “Presenting the signals for connection to RF equipment is only part of the challenge and a specialist supplier is required to achieve that goal. It was very important to us that we chose the right company to integrate our camera into the hand-held environment. Having worked on many OBs where RF cameras were being used, I was always particularly impressed with the solid performance of RF facilities provided by BSI so my choice of supplier was straightforward.”
Largest ever full RAVENNA implementation for live event in Lille
Over 16,000 people attended the 40th anniversary concert of the Orchestre Nationale de Lille (ONL) in July. It was the first time the orchestra had performed in the impressive Pierre-Mauroy stadium just outside Lille, usually reserved for premiership football matches; however, the stadium’s extraordinary design in which the northern half of the pitch lifts up and slides over the southern half to reveal a “showcase” arena for concerts and indoor sporting competitions complete with terraced seating below pitch level, provided the perfect venue for this momentous occasion. Indeed, the event ticked off a number of “firsts”; the first time for the ONL in the venue which is the first of its kind in Europe, and the first time that a full RAVENNA digital network has been deployed on a live event of this scale.
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STUDIO PRODUCTION
GLP impression X4’s faultless Strictly Ballroom performance
Lighting designer for the production is Hugh Vanstone who was keen to specify the GLP impression X4 into the show, describing them as “tremendously useful” and declaring himself to be a big fan. Consequently there are 19 impression X4 fixtures in the lighting design, primarily rigged low. Some act as footlights, some are in low FOH box boom/ashtray positions and some are on the tops of each of the roving booms used throughout the show. The impression X4 is principally used for tight lighting of faces, as well as to highlight scenery. The face lighting is generally in skin tone colours, whilst the scenery shots use the rich colours that the X4 is particularly effective at delivering. For example, they do a gorgeous deep red colour that is used several times in the show.
Adlib Invests for Mrs Brown’s Boys Tour
Adlib’s remarkable working relationship with the touring version of multi award-winning mega-successful sitcom Mrs Brown’s Boys hits the 15 year mark this year, with the Liverpool based company providing full technical production – sound, lighting and video - for the various legs of the 2015 arena tour, scheduled to conclude in December, plus a live DVD shoot in September. Adlib also made a major investment in new Absen high definition LED screen, Sony broadcast cameras and Prolyte pre-rigged trussing in time for the first leg of the tour in the spring. LED video screen has replaced the projection systems of previous tours this year taking everything up a level, complete with 252 panels of the new 3mm Absen A3 screen. The lighting, sound and video production were all based around the brand new 2015 set designed by Frankie & Brian.
PURE LIVE 2015 will be ready for IBC
In addition to 22 case studies our 2015 PURE LIVE Directory will present 20 HD OBVans & HD Studios: _wige HD_one & _wige HD_two, Bayerischer Rundfunk FÜ2, CTV OB11, Gearhouse Broadcast OBPod, Gearhouse Broadcast Supertrucks 5 & 8, JSBC 4K OBVan, Nydalen Studios, OB-Team HD 2 & OB-Team HD 3, OB-Team SNG 9 HD, Oman TV HD1 Salalah & HD2 Muscat, Telerecord Unit 24, TopVision Ü2, TV Skyline Flight Pack, Videohouse HD one & HD two
Subscribe to our newsletter and leave your postal address with us and in early September you will find the PURE LIVE directory on your desk.
SPORTS
Kinetic Media Deploys Dejero LIVE+ Mobile Transmitters for Live TV Coverage of Challenge Dubai Triathlon
"Once again, Dejero's LIVE+ transmitters gave us a first-rate alternative to traditional satellite and microwave trucks for capturing the excitement of a triathlon. Also, Dejero's mobile transmitters are more affordable to invest in than traditional microwave equipment," said Richard Sutcliffe, producer, Kinetic Media. "For example, on the Challenge Dubai shoot, the Dejero transmitters enabled us to transmit video from places that would have been impossible with traditional methods — and the units even outperformed the RF links on the chopper. The rugged cases were easy to handle and mount, and the V-lock battery option gave us a reliable source of power since we couldn't draw power from the bikes. And through it all, we retained the frame rate even when the signal would fade."
Virtual Reality for Sports – The Next Big Thing?
In sports media we often describe our industry’s evolution in terms of major paradigm shifts. These shifts tend to be driven by new methods to consume content. These innovative methods breed new user habits, which in turn lead to numerous market opportunities. Despite the benefits, every paradigm shift presents some sort of disruption. The disruption is rarely immediate and revolutionary, but rather, a gradual evolution. Often, the initial reaction to new technology by the established players is often dismissive and complacent. So, within this context, the big question on our mind is whether VR will bring a paradigm shift to the sports media business. Is it the “Next Big Thing”? For many of us who have tried it, the answer is definitely ‘YES.’
British pilot Bonhomme clings to the lead as Red Bull Air Race lands in Ascot
Bonhomme’s sensational victory in Ascot a year ago in tricky wind conditions, with compatriot Nigel Lamb in a close second en route to his winning his first championship, gave the home country plenty to cheer about on a brilliant day for racing at the world-famous horse racing track. But Bonhomme, the 2009 and 2010 champion who won the first two races of this year’s eight-race season, knows this year’s race will be not easy, with Arch and Hall flying fast in the last two races and the new knock-out format causing upsets. The high-speed, low-altitude racing competition has never seen a championship fight this close with six of the 14 pilots still in contention for the world championship.
SHOWS
Those About to Rock … Salute Robe BMFLs on AC/DC
Arguably one of the greatest rock bands of all time – with their instantly recognisable hard driving guitar power chords, screeching acerbic lyrics about life on the edge and renowned for some of the most awesome hi-energy live performances in the history of the genre … rock gods AC/DC are once again taking the world by storm with their Rock or Bust stadium tour. Another amazing raw, industrial production design by Ray Winkler of Stufish is complimented by an equally inspired and dramatic rock lightshow created by Patrick Woodroffe of Woodroffe Bassett Design (WBD) … with a little help from 39 x Robe BMFLs.
Sennheiser Digital 9000 revolutionizes Ed Sheeran’s sound
Singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran’s star continues to rise. His latest UK tour, although not lengthy, was incredibly successful with 400,000 tickets sold over his two weekend appearances at London’s Wembley Stadium and Dublin’s Croke Park. Pretty impressive for one man and a guitar. Supplied by production company Major Tom, Sennheiser’s 2000 series wireless monitors and its flagship Digital 9000 Series microphones were in use throughout, with the latter, according to front-of-house and monitor engineer Chris Marsh, having revolutionized Ed’s sound. Chris decided to change microphone during Ed’s last US tour, using Digital 9000 for his vocal, loop vocal and guitar.
Broadway's The Lion King Upgrades to Clear-Com's FreeSpeak II
The Lion King is currently using 16 FreeSpeak II wireless beltpacks. It has been able to add additional beltpacks for its backstage staff due to the system’s exceptional capacity and scalability. Previous to this upgrade, the production used 85-90 channels of UHF-based radios for wireless intercom backstage coordination and performers’ wireless microphones. Due to the number of RF channels and the theatre’s location in Times Square, where there is a tremendous amount of wireless traffic congestion, the stage managers and crew frequently experienced signal drop-outs, interference, and intermodulation noise during the run of the show. This was particularly challenging for the Lion King team, given the need for many of the performers to enter on cue from the rear of the theatre.
PRODUCTS
IABM announces Category Finalists for Design & Innovation Awards
IABM has announced the shortlist of nominees for its 2015 Design & Innovation Awards. A record number of entrants were received for this year’s industry accolades, which recognise those products that offer significant solutions or new opportunities to the broadcast and media industry. The shortlisted candidates have been designated by the nine IABM Design & Innovation Awards categories, which reflect the entire breadth of the broadcast industry pipeline, from acquisition of content to playout and delivery.
DT 1770 PRO - New reference headphones for studio and monitoring applications
The DT 1770 PRO meets the high requirements of musicians, sound engineers and producers who are looking for the best equipment available on the market. The new headphones are clearly positioned as a new premium model in the range of professional beyerdynamic headphones. The systems are the driving force of all headphones. As the centrepiece they are essential for a powerful and analytical sound reproduction.The Tesla drivers are a part of the outstanding features of the closed 250 ohm headphones. These drivers, which are being used in professional studio headphones for the first time, are characterised by a high magnetic flux density for significantly enhanced performance and accuracy.
Grass Valley Celebrates 1000th NVISION Enterprise Router Sold Worldwide
Often referred to as a “hybrid technology routing platform,” the NVISION router was designed with an eye toward the future and is easily adapted to support increased levels of processing, bandwidth and even connectivity. When the series originally launched it was a family of one, designed and shipped as the NV8576 that supported SDI over coax and fiber as well as Async AES. Since then, the series has expanded to include four additional frames: the NV8144, the NV8280, the NV8576-Plus and the NV8140. By creating a family of routers, Grass Valley made more components interchangeable between frames and as a result, the company experienced a significant response from the market.
4K/8K ARISING
OTT, 4K Content Driving Infrastructure, Viewing Changes
Netflix’ Reed Hastings has warped reality … TV isn’t dead. It’s in the middle of a gut-wrenching change to keep pace with consumer expectations and the dizzying array of options that are emerging that they are up against. There are shiploads of big, bad, sharp, smart 4K UHD TV sets. And there’s the cheap route to not-so-smart TV … the dongles. If you look at set sales figure (30M projected this year) and the entertainment demographics, conventional TV isn’t dying … it’s maturing. TV Traditionalists (boomers plus) are perfectly happy with their linear cable bundle, but after a certain amount of aging, they … Unlike 3D – which I swore 3 years ago would take over the world (didn’t) – 4K content is strong everywhere. The New Hollywood does nothing but 4K because all of the tools – cameras, systems, storage – are affordable and easy-to-use. Hollywood and network studios aren’t taking it lying down; all of their new material is in 4K. In addition, they are having the huge vaults of SD/HD content repurposed (recycled) in 4K.