Imagine how hectic it can get in a television news room, with accuracy being the key player, and speed always a part of the equation. Today ScheduALL announced that Independent Television News (ITN), major independent producers of news, entertainment, and factual content across a range of platforms from TV to mobile and online, is using ScheduLINK transmission management and optimization software to streamline management of all lines bookings in and out of master control for the company's news operations. ScheduLINK enables ITN staff to expedite the accelerated, accurate bookings that are so critical in the fast-paced news production environment, and it makes valuable real-time feed status and cost data available to authorized staff throughout the company's newsgathering operations.

"ScheduLINK allowed us to replace an aging line plan system with a flexible, reliable solution that quickly met our immediate specifications and going forward, provides a robust foundation for further streamlining of our operations," said Malcolm Smith, head of newsgathering operations at ITN. "As we continue to expand our use of ScheduALL solutions, we expect that consolidated management of our resources through ScheduLINK will help us realize a significant improvement in time and cost savings."

Every day the ITN newsrooms gather news footage from all around the world. Their operations necessitate the request of feeds from other stations, uplink trucks, and a variety of other sources, both internal and abroad. More than 200 requests may be made on any given day, and each of these is logged into ScheduLINK, which in turn guides the control room operations engineers who coordinate and bring in those feeds. In streamlining critical processes, the ScheduLINK software saves ITN staff valuable time and expense by providing an extensive resource list which reduces data entry required, simplifies planning, and prevents costly bookings conflicts.

"ITN presents an excellent news environment that can take advantage of the full range of ScheduLINK's cross-departmental management tools," noted Barry Lyne, managing director for ScheduALL in EMEA. "With ScheduLINK, rather than call the control room to find out when their material is coming in, ITN journalists access the system to check on the real-time status of bookings and feeds. Additionally, financial staff members use the software's current cost data and reporting capabilities to track costs across different customers."

Following this first phase of successful implementation for lines booking, the company plans to extend its ScheduLINK system to accommodate scheduling for satellite trucks and microwave vehicles and personnel. ITN also plans to further consolidate workflows and integrate ScheduALL solutions with other internal systems, such as its Avid® server system to facilitate direct recordings, and possibly to connect the software with its vendors' ScheduALL systems, bringing even greater efficiency and value to the acquisition and allocation of external resources.