32 TVBEurope IBC Wrap-Up IBC: Something in the air
Delivering great-looking content to a multitude of consumer platforms is well and good – but what was there to learn at IBC about satellite technologies that actually distribute much of that content around the world?Ian McMurray was a willing pupil and finds out more
2012 MARKS the 50th birthday of the first ever TV broadcast by satellite on 10 July 1962 — an event commemorated by The Tornadoes’ record Telstar, in which the electronic sound of the clavioline (a precursor to the synthesiser) was meant to reflect the dawn of a brave new world of technology. Telstar became the first record by a British group to reach number one in the American charts. But if celebration of the milestone was muted — to the point of invisibility — at IBC this year, there was still plenty of excitement to be found on the stands of the many satellite companies exhibiting at the RAI. Much of that excitement
revolved around Ka-band, which provides increased spectrum compared to C-band and Ku- band, enabling greater volumes of traffic to be transmitted. The satellites are powerful too, which makes smaller end-user antennas possible, offering increased mobility. “Satellite technologies
continue to be at the forefront of television delivery, both to the viewer and from producers in the field who have to file content,” noted Lance Hiley, chief marketing officer at Vislink. “A key trend in the content delivery area is the arrival of powerful Ka-band satellites with a much more attractive cost and form factor proposition.” Vislink took the opportunity
afforded by IBC to introduce a Ka-band capability for its Advent Mantis MSAT portable satellite terminal. Designed to address the emerging Ka-band satellite newsgathering requirements of broadcasters around the world, the MSAT is a 12.5kg go-anywhere satellite terminal that can be set-up and start providing data and video transmission in as little as five minutes, according to Vislink. “Over the next decade, demand for Ka-band satellite capacity is expected to grow, especially across the Middle East, South Asia and Africa,” added Hiley. “With the global focus of Vislink, this means that a product like the Mantis MSAT
will be key to our growth in the coming years.” The response of visitors to
Vislink’s stand was, said Hiley, “very positive”, with many saying that it was “just what we’ve been waiting for. We took numerous orders during the show,” he smiled.
Causing a stir Also addressing the Ka-band SNG opportunity at IBC was Cobham. “The launch of high capacity Ka-band ‘broadband- over-satellite’ services in Europe and the US has caused quite a stir in the newsgathering community,” said Stuart Brown,
“Many of the technologies enabling the improvement of services are based on compression of the signals” — Jacob Keret, AMOS Spacecom
the company’s broadcast systems director. “The use of Ka-band means dishes of less than one metre diameter can be used to transmit genuine HD live video. This has not been possible before.” Cobham showcased MediaMesh — a turnkey solution specifically designed to be operated by non-technical staff. The compact 75cm satellite antenna is said to be compatible with all the major Ka-band services and one of only three systems approved by Inmarsat as a development partner for their new Ka-band GX system, which is launching next year. The rest of the system uses Cobham’s COFDM mesh technology to give wireless connectivity to live positions, journalist laptops and so on, and can even provide a micro-cell for cell-phone coverage. According to Brown, small dishes and low power consumption make the logistics of transporting these systems quicker and easier — essential for getting breaking news on air as soon as possible. The fact that MediaMesh is an IP-based platform also means file transfer, internet/email access and access to newsroom IT facilities are included as part of the package. Equipment and satellite time are also said to be significantly less expensive than traditional DSNG systems. “I can honestly say,” said
Brown, “that I have never had such an overwhelmingly positive response to a product launch.”
Operators need to evolve “The growing trend for consuming content in a nonlinear fashion and on multiple devices is already starting to have an impact on satellite TV delivery,” pointed out Michele Franci, VP Commercial, Global Xpress at Inmarsat. “Satellite operators, who have traditionally optimised their services for static broadcast operations that deliver high volumes of content to millions of fixed dishes from a satellite, need to evolve to meet the changing requirements of the broadcast industry and its end customers. “As Ka-band offerings come
online,” concluded Franci, “broadcasters will benefit from unprecedented improvements in bandwidth, coverage, mobility and flexibility that will further enhance the quality of the news services they provide to their customers.” Steven Soenens, director, product
David Hochner: “Our move into OTT distribution is also something the company as a whole is very excited about”
marketing broadcast at Newtec, picked up the Ka-band theme.
www.tvbeurope.com November2012
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