- The Dutch cable operator Kabel Noord has deployed an Agama head-end video monitoring solution for its digital cable TV service, all to ensure high level of TV service quality and customer satisfaction. The independently owned Dutch cable operator Kabel Noord has, in line with their focus on continuous service quality improvements, selected Agama Technologies to provide a future proof head-end monitoring solution for its digital cable television service. In a head-end, where services are created and processed, it is essential to monitor all layers of the DTV service; from the physical layer, through the transport stream, and into the audio and video content layers. Issues such as audio silence, black screen, freeze frame, and macroblocking can originate in a stream even before it enters the head-end, but can also be created within head-end equipment and processes. Discovering these problems and their origin requires content level monitoring, as they can’t be detected in regular transport stream or deep packet inspection analysis. The deployed solution includes the Agama Analyzer H-E, with support for analyzing muxes on multiple RF interfaces and advanced monitoring of MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 AVC streams up to the video content layer. The powerful Analyzer detects audio and video content conditions, but also provides complete syntactic and semantic verification of all levels of the TV service. The real-time monitoring data is handled by an Agama Alarm Server, a solution for efficient alarm generation, enabling SNMP, syslog, and email alarms to be filtered and sent to separate NMS:s.
- At the 2011 NAB Show, The IABM (International Association of Broadcasting Manufacturers) announced it is accepting nominations for the 2011 Design and Innovation Awards. Open to all global manufacturers and suppliers, the awards program recognizes products and solutions that tangibly aid the progression of the broadcast and media technology industry. From the pool of nominees, five will be chosen at the IBC2011 show in Amsterdam to receive an IABM Award for Excellence, with the prestigious IABM Peter Wayne Award going to the top entrant. An international panel of judges will review all entries for the IABM Design and Innovation Awards and choose a short list of five products. Finalists will demonstrate their products for judges during the IBC2011 show, and awards will be announced at a presentation ceremony there. The top award is named in memory of Peter Wayne, a highly respected industry figure who, through his career and participation in many groups including the IABM, made outstanding contributions to broadcasting. The deadline for awards submissions is June 30. More information, complete rules, and the submission form are available at www.theiabm.org/designawards.
- SmartJog welcomes UGC as one of its newest clients and announced today that UGC Ciné Cité Lyon is the 300th theatre in France to connect to the SmartJog network. SmartJog plans to connect a total of 20 UGC sites in France and three in Belgium by the end of May. All of the theatres will use the SmartJog’s solutions and technology. Cinego.net, a theatre booking system which was designed for distributors and developed by CN films, interfaces with the SmartJog platform and relies on the network roll-out to allow distributors to activate and monitor the digital sending of content. “SmartJog has already linked 60 percent of French cinemas with digital transfer capabilities. By using Cinego.net, a distributor is able to systematically digitally deliver films as soon as the cinema has been connected. This simplifies logistics for the distributor and allows the operator to receive films and trailers directly into their projection booth”, said Thierry Delpit, Development Director at CN films. With UGC, SmartJog has successfully connected all of France’s largest cinema screen networks, and as well as many French independent cinemas. On average, SmartJog installs around twenty new sites a month in France and plans to connect 500 of the country’s cinemas by the end of 2011. SmartJog’s technology and its satellite platform lie at the heart of the TDF Group’s digital cinema strategy. The SmartJog teams work very closely with TDF’s European subsidiaries, allowing SmartJog to expand in Europe with more than 80 cinemas connected across Belgium, Germany, Finland, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland and England.
Agama Called Into Action | IABM Into Awarding Others | SmartJog’s Newest Client [SatBroadcasting™]
[SatNews] The Dutch cable operator Kabel Noord has deployed an Agamahead-end video monitoring solution for its digital cable TV service… The IABM is accepting nominations… SmartJog welcomes a new digital cinema client…
