Television
Appear | Appear, Zeop and Lucas Telecom bring French digital television services to Reunion Island
2 September, Oslo, Norway — Appear, the global leader in media processing and delivery technology, today announced that it has successfully upgraded Zeop’s broadcasting infrastructure with its reseller partner Lucas Telecom to bring French digital television services to viewers on Reunion Island.
Located approximately 550 km (340 mi) east of Madagascar, Reunion Island is a French territory in the Indian Ocean. The island’s leading network carrier, Zeop, offers services through optical fibre (FTTH) to residential and business customers and needed to refresh their legacy video network to be able to deliver unique triple play services to those customers.
To deliver Linear TV using broadcast technologies, IP multicast for FTTH and RF for Cable TV customers, Zeop has deployed Appear’s X Platform at two data centres in Paris. From the data centres, video content is transmitted by submarine cable to a new Appear headend on Reunion Island, where the X and XC Platforms combined technology is deployed, and where content can be distributed across the island.
Lucas Telecom remotely managed the deployment of Appear’s technology for Zeop. Appear’s X10 has been deployed at its Paris datacentres, while Appear’s XC5100 and X20 have been operating at the Reunion Island headend for Satellite and DTT reception. An additional X Platform has also been deployed at the headend for video processing and scrambling. Finally, the XC5100 is being used for distributing TV services through FTTH and Cable access networks.
Appear was able to solve Zeop’s challenge, providing the foundation of a new future proof video headend enabling the expansion of new services such as OTT streaming in addition to support channel line-up extension for the next years.
“Our priority is first and foremost to deliver the best television experiences for our customers, but we weren’t able to offer the new and unique services that our customers want and expect. We knew we needed to modernise, but wanted to avoid the pitfalls of the past and future proof ourselves,” said Xavier Joseph, CEO at Zeop. “Lucas Telecom is a company we’ve worked with in the past, and we fully trusted its advice and technology recommendations from Appear. The implementation was seamless, even though it was conducted remotely during the pandemic. What is perhaps most important though, is that our customers can now enjoy the television services they want and love.”
Christophe Lucas, CEO at Lucas Telecom also commented, “As a longstanding partner to Zeop, we wanted to ensure that we had both the technical knowledge and capability to complete this complex project. Appear was the perfect partner for us on this — the versatility and reliability of its technologies, along with the ease of integration, were precisely what was needed to fulfil the needs of this project, and to ensure Zeop’s television services are future proofed for the next 10 years.”
Speaking on the project Thomas Bostrøm Jørgensen, Chief Executive Officer at Appear said, “The Zeop project with Lucas Telecom was a massive logistical challenge. The island’s location, the global situation, and the very specific needs of Zeop presented a challenge which only Appear’s solutions could solve. The benefits that Zeop is already seeing is a testament to both the quality of Lucas Telecom’s consultancy, orchestrating a complex implementation under difficult circumstances, as well as the flexibility, reliability and capability of our technology.”
The project was completed remotely due to ongoing global travel restrictions. It began in February 2021 and was completed in May.
ENDS
About Appear
Appear is a leading provider of media processing and delivery technology. Headquartered in Oslo, Norway and with customers in over 100 countries, Appear provides the backbone that production companies, telcos and broadcasters rely on to make immersive live experiences possible for their viewers. With world-class products and expertise, Appear’s focus on modularity, efficiency and high quality helps customers stay ahead of competition in a market where expectations and requirements are constantly changing and evolving.
About Lucas Telecom
Lucas Telecom is a Systems Integrator providing integrated solutions to carriers and service providers, so that they deliver triple-play telecommunications services (Telephony, Internet, Television) to their Customers over any fix broadband access network (Cable TV, ADSL/VDSL, Fibre, Wireless network).
Lucas Telecom sells then multi-supplier equipment with a full set of professional services from network design to installation, commissioning and on-site training with maintenance technical support on delivered solutions, as well as possible additional consultancy services such as network assessment and full remote operations of the carrier’s network over EMEA and The Caribbean area.
About Zeop
ZEOP is the leading fix broadband and 4G+ mobile carrier in Reunion Island. ZEOP deploys its own very high-speed optical fibre network (FTTH, FTTO and FTTC), completely independent of ADSL network of Incumbent carrier. ZEOP is the top broadband carrier in terms of market share and offers up to 2.4 Gb/s for all its subscribers. 100% of its customers have access to triple-play offers with HD TV and VOD. Reunion-based carrier for Reunion citizens, ZEOP employs more than 200 people in Reunion. Since the 14th of May 2019, ZEOP operates also its own 4G+ mobile network, first French mobile network offering unlimited Internet in all its packages.
PR contact
Charlie O’Toole/Medha Pal
CCgroup
Appear@CCgroupPR.com
Television
Newsflare | Newsflare Ranked in ScaleUp Tech Top 50
Newsflare logo
Speaking about the ranking, Newsflare CEO Jon Cornwell commented:
“We’re delighted and excited to be part of this elite group of fast-growth businesses. The creator economy is worth over $100 billion dollars, and video monetisation is playing a key role in economic growth across the globe. Online publishers, television producers and marketers all know that premium user-generated video (UGV) is highly effective at driving both audience growth and engagement.”
Newsflare provides a front row seat to the greatest show on earth. The largest collection of rights-cleared user generated video in the world, Newsflare’s ever-growing global army of filmers are constantly capturing life as it happens, and through its highly automated platform, TV production companies, online and social publishers and brands can gain access to a wealth of highly compelling video content with which to delight audiences, attract eyeballs, drive engagement and boost monetisation.”
Now in its 16th year, SVC2UK selects a group of the fastest-growing companies to join the cohort each year, providing them with access to knowledge and mentoring from US and UK business leaders to help them scale further.
“This diverse group of founders represent the innovation and creativity of tech in the UK,” said Janet Coyle, managing director for business growth at SVC2UK. “They also demonstrate not only a thriving technology ecosystem ready to offer unique innovations, but the importance of promoting greater inclusivity in the tech ecosystem.”
NOTES TO THE EDITORS
For more information about Newsflare please contact:
Kelly Prior, PR Consultant
Tel: 07730 572878
Email: Kelly@kellyprior.co.uk
About Newsflare
Life, with all its colour and craziness, sights and sounds, triumphs and tragedies, is the greatest show on earth. A spectacle that demands to be shared with audiences everywhere, through engaging captivating and enthralling user-generated video. Newsflare’s constantly growing global membership of filmers are out there capturing life as it happens, uploading new clips all day, every day, to our huge, ever-expanding vault. It’s alive with diverse, emotionally powerful content and fresh ideas that will resonate deeply with anyone audience on any platform – and we’ve made it quick and easy to search, select and license your clips. Moments that matter are being captured everywhere, all the time, and your audiences are hungry to see them. So, dive into Newsflare, and give them a front-row seat to the greatest show on earth.
Newsflare.com
Television
Appear | Appear launches dedicated solution for digital satellite news gathering
13 October, Oslo, Norway – Appear, the global leader in media processing and delivery technology, today announced it has launched a new tailor-made solution dedicated to Digital Satellite News Gathering (DSNG). The X10 DSNG includes a switch module, with built-in satellite reception and ASI IO ports that supports encoding and satellite uplink in a single, 1 rack unit (RU) chassis. With increasing demands for live event coverage, the X10 DSNG is a compact, powerful solution that meets the very specific and challenging needs of DSNG and mobile production.
DSNG vans are often needed in conjunction with outside broadcast (OB) vans to support live production for large events. While fibre connectivity has become more widespread, or associated with live event broadcast, there are still many venues that do not have high capacity fibre connectivity, or require satellite transmission as a backup for fibre—which means DSNG vans still play an important role in contribution. For DSNG vans, it is vital to have equipment that can deliver content via satellite or IP ports to support the use of satellite and fibre delivery simultaneously. Moreover, DSNG vans are generally small with very limited space. Equipment size and power consumption are important factors when selecting equipment for DSNG operators, and a solution which offers as much functionality as possible is a necessity.
Supporting both fibre and satellite delivery, Appear’s X10 DSNG provides all the functionality DSNG operators need for contribution, including encoding/decoding and satellite uplink/downlink, as well as integrated reception and monitoring of uplinked signals. With the power to support 1G to 10G of traffic, the X10 DSNG features:
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- 1 x switch module with dual 1G IP IO ports, satellite demodulator and 2 ASI IO ports
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- 1 x encoder module
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- 1 x satellite modulator module
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- 1 x decoder module
Typically, this level of functionality is needed in multiple RUs. The compact, power efficient X10 DSNG offers:
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- Multiple channel support: Operators can flexibly define the number of channels to be encoded and decoded, plus the number of satellite modulated outputs needed. It can support encoding of 32 HD or 16 UHD channels with 4 HD or 2 UHD channels of decoding (for monitoring), while uplinking to one or two satellite transponders.
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- High-capacity streams: The X10 DSNG can support 250 streams ensuring it meets contribution needs.
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- Compression standards support: Common compression technologies and video protocols are supported, which makes the X10 DSNG adaptable to all operational requirements within contribution, remote production, video networking and distribution. With the modular nature of the X10 DSNG, additional compression standards can be supported through adding JPEG XS and JPEG2000 features.
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- Built-in redundancy: The X10 DSNG is designed to be as reliable and failsafe as possible, even when used stand-alone, thanks to its integrated modulator redundancy switch. Should an internal failure take place, a range of redundancy options can take effect to keep the chassis fully operational.
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- IP network security: The X10 DSNG has a high-capacity firewall feature that can monitor and regenerate traffic as required.
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- Future proof video protocols: Not only does the X10 DSNG have the ability to handle all commonly used video protocols, but the programmable hardware also means that it can support new standards as and when they are defined.
“Over the past 18 months we’ve seen more remote productions and large-scale events take place, which has thrust OB and DSNG into the spotlight, and put more demands on operators. DSNG has an important role to play, and we’re delighted to bring a new solution to market that addresses their specific needs,” says Thomas Bostrøm Jørgensen, Chief Executive Officer at Appear. “The X10 DSNG not only supports fibre and satellite, but with built-in security, redundancy and support for an array of compression technologies and protocols, it is a solution that not only meets operators needs today, but will continue to support them for years to come. It is a comprehensive, powerful solution, and we’re excited to see how it fulfils its huge potential in this market.”
The X10 DSNG is available for commercial deployment immediately.
Television
ST Engineering iDirect | ST Engineering iDirect and USSI Global close C-band Clearing – Programmer Uplink Compression Integration Deal
Herndon, VA. and Melbourne, FL. September 28, 2021 – ST Engineering iDirect’s broadcast technology has been selected by USSI Global, a leading provider of customized network, broadcast and digital signage systems and services worldwide, to enable the modernization and compression of satellite programmers’ distribution uplinks to comply with the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) C-band spectrum transition.
ST Engineering logo
The upgrade work is part of the FCC’s initiative to clear 300MHz of the C-band’s 500MHz bandwidth frequency for 5G mobile services and relocate service providers within that spectrum to the remaining 200MHz. As the C-band spectrum is mostly used for TV and radio operations, many providers will vacate the 300MHz targeted for 5G services. These transitions will require affected providers to navigate complex technical changes including installation of new and existing antennas and the repointing and filtering required for the antenna upgrades.
ST Engineering iDirect is a key technology partner in the upgrade and will be providing broadcast equipment including M6100 modulators, USS0212 redundancy switches and FR0730 up and down converters, enabling USSI Global to ensure a smooth transition and high-efficiency, future-proof infrastructure. The modernized compression systems will serve extensive sports distribution encompassing MLB, NHL and NBA teams, as well as several major programmer distribution systems in the USA. The upgrade is expected to be completed by August 2023.
“This is a critical and highly visible project that represents an important first element in the FCC initiative to clear the C-band spectrum for 5G. The ground solutions track is part of our core business focus, both now and in the future for our company,” said Bob Dunbar, SVP of Business Development at USSI Global. “We have worked with ST Engineering iDirect for a number of decades and they are a trusted technology partner. We have used its equipment as the solution in most all of our customer uplink modernizations around the globe with several compression vendors. Through its highly innovative and efficient technology and our strong, proven partnership, we know that we can enable the smooth transition for the programmers affected by the C-band clearing compression requirement. We also look forward to seeing our partnership continue to flourish in the future as we jointly leverage emerging opportunities in satellite ground segment.”
“Sports broadcasting is integral to the media sector in the United States, and the transition from the C-band is a critical one,” said Darren Ludington, Regional Vice President of Sales, Americas at ST Engineering iDirect. “We are delighted to support our partner, USSI Global, in what is an important venture for the company. Through this deal, they have truly demonstrated the continued trust they have in our broadcast technology. We look forward to further building on our solid relationship in the future.”
*****
ST Engineering North America is the U.S. headquarters of ST Engineering, a global technology, defense and engineering group with a diverse portfolio of businesses across the aerospace, smart city, defense and public security segments. Based in Alexandria, VA, it has major operations across 16 cities in 12 states and employs about 5,000 people providing innovative products and solutions to commercial and government customers across diverse market segments.
ST Engineering iDirect, a subsidiary of ST Engineering North America, is a global leader in satellite communications (satcom) providing technology and solutions that enable its customers to expand their business, differentiate their services and optimize their satcom networks. Through the merger with Newtec, a recognized industry pioneer, the combined business unites over 35 years of innovation focused on solving satellite’s most critical economic and technology challenges and expands a shared commitment to shaping the future of how the world connects. The product portfolio, branded under the names iDirect and Newtec, represents the highest standards in performance, efficiency and reliability, making it possible for its customers to deliver the best satcom connectivity experience anywhere in the world. ST Engineering iDirect is the world’s largest TDMA enterprise VSAT manufacturer and is the leader in key industries including broadcast, mobility and military/government. In 2007, iDirect Government was formed to better serve the U.S. government and defense communities. For more information on our platforms please visit www.idirect.net.
Media contacts:
Julie Bettinger
Vice President, Corporate Marketing
ST Engineering iDirect
Phone: +1 703 648 8155
Email: jbettinger@idirect.net
Guy Shields
Director, Corporate Communications
ST Engineering North America
Phone: +1 703 739 2610
Email: guy.shields@stengg.us
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