Etisalat, with more than 100 million customers one of the world’s largest telecommunications companies, has commissioned the broadcasting system integrator Qvest Media with the construction of a multi-format playout center for the production and transmission of nine playout channels. With this move the telecom operator, which owns a cellular network as well as one of the largest Internet and IPTV networks in the whole Middle East region, is pushing ahead with the organic growth of its triple play strategy in the TV sector.

Blackmagic Design today announced a new lower price on 6 of its popular Mini Converters. From today, Mini Converter SDI to HDMI, Mini Converter HDMI to SDI, Mini Converter SDI to Analog and Mini Converter Analog to SDI models will be reduced to US$295. The Heavy Duty models of these 4 Mini Converters, featuring ultra tough machined aluminum design, will be lowered to US$395. These models are all shipping now.

Video Equipment Rentals (VER)—a premiere AV/broadcast equipment rental company based in Glendale, Calif., has added a variety of new high-definition cameras and a new video production switcher from Grass Valley™ to its extensive inventory of HD production equipment.

Following the successful launch of the Carbonite mid-size production switcher earlier this year, Ross Video unveiled the new Carbonite 1M - 1 MLE control panel at IBC 2011.

Bert Blümer, a leading rental house for wireless cameras in Germany, has added four additional Grass Valley™ LDK 8000 Elite HD wireless camera systems to its inventory, in order to meet the growing demands from broadcasters and events production companies. This new order brings the total number of Grass Valley wireless cameras in Bert Blümer's inventory to nine.

At IBC 2011, JVC has introduced the GY-HM150 – the latest model in their popular ProHD handheld camera line. The GY-HM150 includes a range of technological improvements that offers users total flexibility and a fast editing workflow, including the option to record in both SD and HD formats and the ingenious Pre Rec mode.

Leading UK broadcast hire company, Pro Motion Hire, has today announced the expansion of its Sony PMW-500 XDCAM fleet – making it the largest rental fleet in the UK - as the file-based camera reinforces its position as the camera of choice for factual programming.

Sony Corporation has expanded its XDCAM™ Professional Disc product line with the addition of a triple-layer 100GB rewritable disc. This new version of the XDCAM™ Professional Disc is twice as large the storage capacity of the original dual-layer optical media. This upgrade significantly enhances the XDCAM™ system’s potential as an efficient technology option for long-term archiving.

Sting’s recording engineer Donal Hodgson has been awarded an Emmy for Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for his work on A&E's Private Sessions, Sting at Red Rocks, for which he used his DPA 4099 instrument clip mics.

Sony Professional has announced that its market-leading HD media and broadcast technology will play a key role in ESPN’s coverage of the 2011/2012 Premier League football season following the HD upgrade of IMG’s Mediahouse Studio facilities in West London.

Jünger Audio and Merging Technologies announced that they have signed a technology partnership that will see Jünger Audio’s groundbreaking LEVEL MAGIC™ Loudness control solution incorporated into Merging’s new MXFix™ batch-processing wrap tool. The combination of industry proven MXF metadata conformity wrapping, Final Check loudness analysis, Surcode Dolby E® decoding and encoding plug-ins and LEVEL MAGIC™ provides a powerful all-in-one media compliance batch processing wrap tool.

Litepanels, a Vitec Group brand, announced the premier of the Croma LED light at September’s IBC equipment exhibition in Amsterdam. Ideal for use on-camera or off, the new sleekly designed fixture provides Litepanels’ hallmark HD-friendly soft light, with variable color temperature output from daylight (5600°K) to tungsten (3200°K).

HARMAN’s Soundcraft is bringing its “Mixing With Professionals” series to the United States for the first time with two seminars featuring Gert Sanner, front of house engineer for legendary rock band Deep Purple. The half-day seminars will take place at the HARMAN campus in Northridge, California, and will give attendees the opportunity to hear Sanner discuss his use of Soundcraft digital consoles in the high-pressure environment of live sound mixing for one of rock’s biggest bands.

At this year's IBC, Riedel Communications, one of the leading manufacturers and providers of real-time networks for audio, video and communications, introduced RiLink, its global fiber service for long distance HD video, audio and data transport in the broadcast markets.

DutchView Multicam, the Netherlands all-inclusive multimedia company, has signed a five-year exclusive vendor contract with Grass Valley™. This contract includes delivery of the latest state-of-the art Grass Valley cameras, switchers, routers, and servers over the five year term of the agreement.