Quantel acquires Snell
NEWBURY, U.K.–Quantel, an innovator in news and sports production systems and high quality post, has acquired Snell, a leader in broadcast and media technology providing a range of solutions for Live TV production and the creation, management and distribution of content for TV everywhere–on tablets, mobiles and web. The acquisition enables the combined business to offer customers a complete product range to create, version and deliver high quality content efficiently across multiple platforms.
“This acquisition brings two great companies together to create a major new force in the global broadcast and media technology market. This will enable us to better serve Quantel and Snell customers around the globe,” said Ray Cross, executive chairman and CEO, Quantel. “Our product ranges are entirely complementary so the excellent Snell and Quantel brands and product ranges will continue. We’ll be able to combine the best in class talent and technologies from Quantel and Snell to bring exciting new products and solutions to market to help our customers transform their businesses. More local offices across the world will enable us to build closer relationships with our customers and to offer even better support.”
Paul Martin, managing director of the Snell TV Everywhere division, and Robert Rowe, managing director of the Snell Live TV division, will join the Quantel board “to make sure it is business as usual for Snell customers,” continued Cross. Tim Banks, Snell sales director, and Peter Fredericks, Snell finance director, are also taking leading roles in the new combined organization. “I’m really delighted that the Snell and Quantel businesses have come together to increase the scale and scope for both,” said Simon Derry, outgoing CEO at Snell. “Under Ray’s leadership the combined business will be able to write a new and exciting chapter moving forwards. I look forward to supporting Ray during the important period of transition.”
“We will be creating a new world class facility at the company headquarters in Newbury to produce the complete Quantel and Snell product range and we look forward to the new ideas generated when the two R&D teams start to interact,” said Cross.
The new business has the scale, talent and IP to achieve even greater success in the competitive global media technology market. With offices in 16 locations all around the globe and with combined revenues of more than $170m,
FilmLight and industry partners to exhibit integration at NAB2014
LONDON–FilmLight is focusing its NAB2014 presence on four of its most creative and industry-leading partners: Codex, Dolby, The Foundry and Sony. With innovative and highly cost-efficient technologies being shown for the first time across the exhibition, this year’s visitors will be able to experience the best color management solutions in a real-world context–as part of a collaborative, creative workflow.
New at NAB is a collaboration which links the Codex Vault to Baselight, allowing grading decisions made on-set with the Baselight FLIP real-time image processor to be rendered into dailies deliverables on Vault–including Avid, Apple, or other deliverables with audio sync and comprehensive metadata support. Metadata is stored in the same OpenEXR-based BLG file format used by Baselight and Baselight Editions, so grading decisions can be passed seamlessly and transparently from set to editorial, VFX to grade.
The Codex booth also features Baselight Dailies as part of a complete camera-to-post solution. Baselight Dailies is a new addition to FilmLight’s color range, designed for mobile postproduction on location. It will be offered as a cost-effective and intuitive software solution, running on standard Mac hardware. Baselight Dailies forms part of an integrated end-to-end FilmLight workflow with Baselight finishing systems, Baselight Editions, Baselight FLIP and other FilmLight products.
This complete workflow can be seen in the Codex booth.
Alongside Dolby Laboratories, FilmLight will present high dynamic range (HDR) mastering and grading, featuring the new Dolby Vision technology on Baselight’s high-performance color grading system. Dolby Vision, which launched at the recent CES exhibition, improves the quality of each individual pixel by providing high dynamic range (HDR) and a wider color gamut. This new partnership combines both companies’ technical leadership and creates a dramatically improved video experience with true-to-life brightness, colors, and contrast. Visitors to the Dolby booth will be able to discover the complete Dolby Vision ecosystem, including a remarkable 4000 nit P3 high contrast display.
FilmLight has been working with The Foundry on the innovative new Baselight for Nuke. Baselight for Nuke gives VFX artists the ability to accurately preview fully graded shots, resulting in better compositing control while alleviating the need for additional amends due to changes made in color correction. The new Baselight for Nuke can be seen at The Foundry booth.
Sony has long led the way with high-resolution digital cinematography cameras. As a long-standing partner, FilmLight has collaborated with Sony to help form some of the most powerful creative platforms. At NAB2014 it is showing its support for the latest enhancements to the F55 camera, S-log 3 and S-gamut 3 Cine color space modes. The greater dynamic range and wider color gamut, handled by Baselight for dailies and finishing, can be seen at the Sony booth.
“All the feedback we get from our users worldwide is about how well Baselight fits into the practical post workflow,” said Wolfgang Lempp, co-founder of FilmLight. “That is no accident: we play well with other top-end creative tools because we devote a lot of energy to our partnerships with other developers.
“At this year’s NAB we are showcasing these partnerships and demonstrating true cost saving opportunities. For the professional, the real return on investment comes through simplified, efficient workflows combined with the best technologies available.”
Turkey’s Digiturk upgrades broadcast infrastructure with Grass Valley
HILLSBORO, Ore.–Turkish satellite television provider Digiturk will be expanding its broadcast facility and improving its current infrastructure with the addition of a new Grass Valley Trinix NXT 192×192 Digital Video Routing Switcher, a new Apex Plus 384×384 Digital Audio Routing Switcher, a Maestro Scalable Master Control system, and a Jupiter Routing Switcher Control, to quickly and efficiently deliver programming to its satellite platform
The new broadcast infrastructure will enable Digiturk to further enhance the performance of its on-air programming while consolidating its current broadcast infrastructure, allowing for increased control and creative freedom for its broadcasts. The Apex Plus and Trinix routing switchers offer field-proven performance, scalability, and reliability that provides solid investment protection now and into the future.
4DX to showcase upgraded features at CinemaCon
SEOUL, Korea–CJ 4DPlex, a 4D cinema company for feature films, will be bringing the next generation of its 4DX technology to CinemaCon. Taking place March 24-27 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, CinemaCon is the largest and most important gathering of movie theater owners from around the world. The convention will serve as a showcase for the 4D effect cinema solution, which will be on display in a mini-theatre at Booth #2003A in the Augustus Ballroom.
Since debuting with a 4D screening of Avatar in 2010, more than 14,000 4DX seats are now operating in 91 theaters in 23 countries–opening on approximately one new screen every two weeks as theaters recognize the power of being able to offer a wider range of formats and experiences to moviegoers. In fact, in 2013 alone, 4DX was installed for the first time in 14 countries–Bulgaria, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Guatemala, Hungary, Indonesia, Japan, Poland, Taiwan, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates and Venezuela–with 47 new screens compared with 13 openings in 2012.
At CinemaCon, CJ 4DPlex will announce additional expansions, including the 100th theatre to incorporate the absolute cinema experience. Additionally, visitors to the CinemaCon booth will experience a demonstration of the next generation 4DX motion chair, which includes the following features:
· Upgraded, more realistic motion effect including natural chair movement.
· An upgraded water effect system that simulates rain from above;
· The ability to switch the water on or off; and
· LED lights on the foot rest for increased safety.
“We are incredibly proud of how quickly 4DX has been adopted, particularly over the past 12-18 months, and are looking forward to showcasing this state of the art technology to additional exhibitors looking to build premium cinema experiences in the United States, as we look to aggressively expand in 2014,” said Byung Hwan Choi, CEO of CJ 4DPlex. “Not only are we committed to improving the experience and 4D effects featured in theatres, but also to working with the studios to bring the world’s best films to theaters equipped with 4DX. This has proven to be valuable to theatres and fans alike – with fandom being developed in different markets, leading to unique events that generated incredible social media attention and word of mouth buzz for the theaters. These included costume parties held in Europe and Asia for Pacific Rim and The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug.”
Exciting all five human senses with motion, wind, strobe, fog, vibration, mist, rain and even scent-based special effects that go far beyond 3D, 4DX offers a complete visual, aural, olfactory and tactile experience to the latest blockbusters, and lends itself perfectly to high-action movies.
