August 2, 2013
SMPTE to Receive 2013 Technology and Engineering EmmyWHITE PLAINS, N.Y.–The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) will be presented with an Emmy Award for Technology and Engineering for 2013 by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. The honor is being conferred upon SMPTE in recognition of the society’s work on development, standardization, and productization of the High-Definition Serial Digital Interface (HD-SDI) standard.
“For an organization such as ours, the Emmy Award for Technology and Engineering is not only a tremendous honor, but also confirmation that we’re successfully carrying out our mission as the leading technical society for the motion-imaging industry,” said SMPTE executive director Barbara Lange. “We’re very proud of the work our members have done in advancing the HD-SDI standard, as well as the value that the standard itself brings to the field.”
This Technology and Engineering Emmy Award recognizes the work behind the SMPTE 292 standard for high-definition digital video transmission. The SMPTE 292 standard is the foundation for the family of serial digital interface (SDI) standards for transmitting uncompressed HD video signals. The SMPTE 292 standard has proven to be robust and versatile, and a large number of additional standards have been created based on SMPTE’s original work. The derivative standards address higher data-rate versions and the use of multiple interfaces for advanced applications such as D-Cinema connectivity. These derivative standards have also provided for packaging and identification of many additional signal types, making the HD-SDI standard the workhorse of high-speed synchronous communication. The HD-SDI interface standard is one of more than 650 engineering documents that have been published by SMPTE.
The Technology and Engineering Emmy Awards will be presented Jan. 9, 2014, in conjunction with the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.
ARRI CSC Florida Celebrates Its 10th Anniversary
FT.LAUDERDALE, Fla.–ARRI CSC, a full service equipment rental, is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its facility in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. That is 10 years of a bricks and mortar presence, of employing and training Florida residents, of commitment to the Florida production industry and of steady investment.
VP and general manager Ed Stamm started the Ft. Lauderdale operation with four staffers and has grown it to 14 employees, providing access to one of the largest equipment inventories in the country.
ARRI CSC Florida continues to expand its customer base throughout the Southeast offering equipment, customer service, training, workshops and support for the local community and film schools.
Grass Valley Enhances K2 Architecture to Support Panasonic’s New AVC-LongG RecordingSAN FRANCISCO–Working with its longtime partner Panasonic, Grass Valley announces the newest upgrade to its K2 server products to include powerful compression support for Panasonic’s new AVC-LongG (Advanced Video Codec/Long Group Of Pictures) compression type, which the company announced at NAB 2013. Grass Valley’s K2 Summit and K2 Solo are the first broadcast servers on the market to support playout of the AVC-LongG recording format, which is part of Panasonic’s new AVC-ULTRA codec family of products. The new versions of K2 Summit and K2 Solo will be available August 2013, with software upgrades available for models sold within the past year. Older versions of K2 Summit are field-upgradable.
“With support for Panasonic’s new AVC-LongG recording, Grass Valley takes advantage of the sophistication of our K2 architecture to allow for the rapid implementation of the newest ENG formats in the industry,” said Mike Cronk, sr. VP, marketing, Grass Valley. “News organizations and media groups looking for the latest generation of ENG cameras will now have the confidence they need to deliver content using a proven server platform.”
K2 Summit and K2 Solo are based on Grass Valley’s unique architecture that delivers the highest bandwidth capability of any system in the industry. The K2 Summit and K2 Solo guarantee that on-air channels never drop a frame of video, while simultaneously delivering consistent bandwidth for file transfers and editing operations. In addition, Grass Valley’s newly announced EDIUS๏ฟฝ 7 nonlinear video editing software also supports the AVC-LongG format.
Panasonic’s AVC-ULTRA offers recording in full HD to meet a variety of user needs from mastering to transmission. AVC-LongG, designed for applications where file size is critical, offers up to 10-bit, 4:2:2 sampled recording in a much smaller file size, saving storage costs and transfer times over MPEG-2 while maintaining equal or better video quality.
“Our customers have been eager to utilize the high video quality and efficient workflow of AVC-LongG from shooting to editing and playout,” said Kunihiko Miyagi, director of Panasonic’s Imaging Business Division. “Thanks to our long-term partnership with Grass Valley, AVC-LongG editing on EDIUS 7 and material management on K2 servers will be possible. We believe that AVC-LongG content captured by the Panasonic AJ-PX5000 P2 cameras and AJ-PD500 recorders will enhance data transfer efficiency while maintaining high video quality, allowing us to provide our customers with an improved workflow.”
The updated versions of K2 Summit, K2 Solo and EDIUS 7 will be on display at Grass Valley’s booth at IBC, #1.D11, 1.E02 as well as the Panasonic booth, #9.C45, 9.D40.
Bexel expands equipment offeringsBURBANK, Calif.–Bexel, a unit of the Vitec Group’s Services Division and a worldwide provider of broadcast services and solutions, has expanded its new equipment offerings of high-end video and audio products. Bexel’s Technical Sales & Solutions (TSS) business segment is now the first authorized U.S. reseller of Lawo, and has added five new product lines: Lawo’s V_pro8 video processors, AJA acquisition/edit/conversion products, Grass Valley production solutions, Harris Broadcast, and Panasonic professional video products and displays. These brands join over 200 products available from Bexel TSS to the broadcast and production segments of the industry.
These products will also be incorporated into Bexel’s Engineered Systems & Solutions (ESS) business segment, which designs and implements solutions for the broadcast industry, including systems integration, fiber, engineering expertise, and technical production support.
