March 2014 www.tvbeurope.com


Megahertz has been building OB and SNG vehicles, and implementing fixed installations, since 1982


The new Megahertz


In late 2013, Megahertz Ltd was acquired by the shareholders of Russian systems integrator, OKNO-TV. Neal Romanek talked to Megahertz managing director Jon Flay to learn how the acquisition has affected Megahertz and what is on the company’s horizon.


What does the new ownership mean for the Megahertz brand? The Megahertz brand is alive


and stronger than ever. So much so, that we have just completed a process of re- branding OKNO-TV UK to Megahertz Ltd, a new company that combines the strengths of both, along with greater resources in terms of sales, commercial and technical expertise. Building on the solid foundations laid by Megahertz, we are expanding our international reach. An example of this is the appointment of Igor Orlov, our new managing partner, who is a very well-known figure in the broadcast community in Eastern Europe, the CIS countries and Africa.


If the Megahertz name is being used more widely, will that dilute your core business, the systems integration you are known for?


Megahertz has been building outside broadcast and SNG vehicles, and implementing fixed installations, since 1982. Our unique strength is that we are a real one-stop shop for large and small projects, with coach-building and specialist furniture construction provided in-house alongside design and wiring. That is definitely not going to change. Our shareholders, OKNO-


TV, are also major systems integrators, which is their core business. So last year, whilst Megahertz was completing the new BT Sport headquarters in the old Olympic broadcast centre, OKNO-TV were completing projects for events such as the World Athletics Championships and with international news channel, RT.


Does the Megahertz brand really extend beyond the UK? Yes, definitely. Recent


projects have included satellite uplink vehicles for Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation, parliamentary television in Norway, and a fleet of outside


TVBEurope 33 Systems Integrators


Forum NEWS INBRIEF


Panorama chooses Fujinon lenses for Sochi


Russian video production company ANO Sports Broadcasting (also known as Panorama) selected Fujifilm to supply lenses for the production of the country’s national HDTV feed of the Winter Olympics and Paralymic Games in Sochi. A total of 292 Fujinon lenses were provided to Panorama by Sony Moscow and Broadcast Solutions. Included were 20 XA101x8.9BESM-TK telephoto field lenses, 41 XA88x8.8BESM telephoto field lenses, 24 HA2x9.7BERD telephoto ENG-style lenses, 53 HA14x4.5BERD wide-angle ENG/EFP lenses, and 54 ZA22x7.6BERD telephoto remote-controlled lenses. The lenses were used by several European and Russian outside broadcast companies. www.fujinon.com


Last year Megahertz built the new BT Sport headquarters in the former Olympic broadcast centre


“Our job will be less about rack and stack, and more about developing bespoke interfaces to get the very best out of file-based infrastructures and modern workflows”


Flay: “We are talking to our new partners and seeing where we can learn”


broadcast units for Astro in Malaysia and Oman TV. While I am a relatively new


appointment as managing director, we have a core team that has been with Megahertz for numerous years, so there is a great heritage in our system design and integration. We also combine this heritage and tradition with the right blend of younger fresh-thinking talent, giving us a strong team to move the company forward.


Is the systems integration business undergoing a change? We are talking to our new partners and seeing where we can learn. In many of its major systems integration projects, for example, OKNO-


TV takes a life-cycle approach to the installation. Rather than selling a system design, implementing it then walking away, it will take over the client’s installation, and perhaps even leasing it or operating it as a managed facility, providing the engineering resources to allow the broadcaster to reduce its in-house staff. So we are certainly


reviewing everything we do, and seeing how we can best serve our clients. In the near future I am sure we will be adding new ways of working and commercial services to match the real requirements of our clients, helping them move their business case from capital to operational expenditure if that is what they want.


How are technological changes affecting SI’s? The future of systems


integration is all about staying ahead of the technical curve. Obviously we are looking at IP infrastructures today, with new technologies like 4K production,


or Ka-band communication, coming fast.


As a systems integrator your task is to make all systems whether large or small work well, and you have to ensure that the client gets a fast return on the investment. We bring that commercial angle, that consideration of return on investment, which in-house engineers with their different mindsets would not have. We know that a good part


of that is the changing nature of the technology. Broadcast facilities will become more and more IT-centric. Our job will be less about rack and stack, and more about developing the bespoke interfaces that will get the very best out of file- based infrastructures and modern workflows. We are not talking a


transformation here, because that is not what we need. But it is right that we take a fresh look at the systems integration business and see how we can help our clients even more effectively.


Jon Flay, Megahertz


Riedel’s feat of communication for Sochi Olympcis Riedel Communications’ MediorNet fibre-based network supported the transport of HD video and audio signals, data, and Riedel Artist intercom signals for the duration of the Games. The Mass Cast deployment, including 14 transmitters and thousands of receivers and earpieces, provided support during the opening and closing ceremonies. Riedel’s modular MediorNet and


MediorNet Compact systems were deployed during the Games in double-redundant rings to serve as a fibre backbone for audio and HD video (with timecode), data, and intercom signal transport within the stadium and several other venues that fed back to the IBC. www.riedel.net


Sky and SIS LIVE in satellite deal


Copy: SIS LIVE has signed an agreement with Sky Sports News for the provision of satellite capacity for its newsgathering operations. The four-year contract delivers 73MHz of capacity on the Eutelsat E16A satellite for the Sky Sports and Sky Sports News fleet of SNG vehicles, supplied and operated by SIS LIVE. Sky Sports will make use of this satellite bandwidth for its live coverage of weekend football matches, which are also transmitted by SIS LIVE SNG vehicles. SIS LIVE is able to provide full resilience for the Sky downlink system, using its two broadcast teleport/MCR systems which offer round the clock coverage. www.sislive.tv


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