Major South Indian Broadcaster Moves Toward Tapeless Workflow With Installation of Omneon Spectrum™ Servers for Ingest, Playout
Sunnyvale, Calif. — November 11, 2008
Omneon, Inc. today announced that the Raj Television Network, South India's leading Tamil broadcaster for news and entertainment, has deployed the Omneon Spectrum™ media server for multichannel SD broadcasting, including four-channel ingest and six-channel playout. The move means Raj Television can now store as much as 10 days or 500 hours of programming in digital files rather than on videotape, enabling automated rather than manual playout with corresponding improvements to efficiency, reliability, and broadcast quality.
At Raj Television, the Spectrum systems interface with AP ENPS for electronic news gathering, Apple Final Cut Pro for editing, and Orad DVG for three-dimensional graphics and channel branding. Omneon partner and local systems integration company Shaf Broadcast Pvt. Ltd. implemented the project, which went on air in June 2008.
Founded in 1994, Raj Television operates two channels with diverse programming that includes music videos, movies, game shows, talk shows, serials, comedy, and news. The installation of the Spectrum servers is part of a facility upgrade corresponding with the rollout of Raj's first 24-hour news station, which began broadcasting in June 2008. In addition to an increasing viewership in South India and Sri Lanka, Raj Television has recently expanded its reach into the Tamil community in Malaysia via Astro-DTH, a major direct-to-home player in the region.
"The Spectrum system simplifies our operation considerably by enabling us to schedule and perform simultaneous ingest and playout and by affording real-time control of our complex broadcast workflow," said Mr. Ravindran, director of Raj Television. "We have been impressed with how easy it has been for us to learn to use the system. Significant benefits were experienced almost immediately not only for our team but also for our viewers, who saw the improvement in reliability and quality."
The Omneon Spectrum system enables broadcasters moving to a tapeless environment to use the latest digital technologies to increase efficiency without increasing the complexity of their operation. The Spectrum media server is the industry's most scalable, reliable, and cost effective for television production, playout, and archive applications — a solution that is transforming the economics of broadcasting for television operations worldwide.
About Omneon
Omneon is a leading provider of flexible media server and active storage systems that optimize workflow productivity and on-air reliability for the production, distribution, and management of digital media. Omneon is a pioneer in the use of advanced IT technologies and open systems for broadcast applications, producing a modular and expandable video server architecture in the Omneon Spectrum. The company's MediaGrid active storage system delivers centralized content storage that is scalable in capacity, bandwidth, and media-processing power. The company has an extensive global presence with customers in 45 countries on six continents. Omneon is on the Web at www.Omneon.com.
About Raj TV
Raj Television Network began 1994 to provide wholesome entertainment for the entire family. With programs targeting young and old, male and female, the network has positioned itself as the people's channel. Through its five channels — Raj TV, Raj Digital Plus, Raj News 24x7, Raj Musix, and Vissa — the network offers its viewers a vast selection of some of the best shows in South Indian entertainment today. Thanks to its close interaction with the local market, the network has come to understand not just the South Indian entertainment industry, but also the needs of the South Indian audience, its culture and aesthetic sense. Raj TV is on the Web at www.rajtvnet.in.
About Shaf Broadcast Pvt. Ltd
Shaf Broadcast Pvt. Ltd. has been delivering pioneering solutions to the digital content creation industry since 1993. Shaf currently has a nationwide network of sales and support offices that provide consultancy, analysis, system design, project management and planning, visualization and building design, equipment sourcing and performance testing, integration and software configuration, on-site installation, acceptance testing, and technical documentation. The company also provides commissioning and training to customers in various industry verticals encompassing broadcast television channels, film and video post-production studios, special effects and animation houses, digital intermediary facilities, and educational institutions representing a broad spectrum of media production facilities across India and the SAARC region. Shaf is on the Web at www.shafindia.com.
Contact:
Omneon Sales
