Bexel, a unit of the Vitec Group’s Services Division, and the most respected and sought-after provider of broadcast services and solutions, is pleased to announce its new partnership with VidyoCast, the broadcast division of Vidyo®, Inc., to provide HD video over Internet. By teaming up with VidyoCast, Bexel will offer innovative, cost-effective service solutions for clients looking to incorporate remote content/commentary contribution into newscasts and live productions, including A3 Firefly, a light weight, small but powerful solution for Internet broadcasting, part of Bexel’s A3 (anyone, anytime, anywhere) line of flypack systems.
“By teaming up with VidyoCast, we can now offer live video over Internet in a compact and turnkey package,” says Tom Dickinson, chief technology officer, Bexel. “Not only is the gear simple to use for the contributor, the stream can be easily controlled back at the studio base. Especially with the elections coming later this year, we look forward to offering this customized service offering to our clients with this new, cost-effective technology.”
Recognizing the growing need for IP-based live production over Internet, Bexel will expand its service offerings to introduce new scalable, live video feed kit options for clients at NAB. Featuring robotic technology controlled by a network’s base operation, the new A3 Firefly solution will be introduced as an offering that is easily configurable in a contributor’s home. Through the use of low-latency H.264-SVC scalable video coding and VidyoCast’s revolutionary VidyoRouter, reporters and guests are brought on air with a couple of clicks, without leaving their home.
“The H.264 codec is a cost-effective technology that sends the video back to base from someone’s home without the need for a satellite or news truck,” adds Dickinson. Using this method, video signals are sent through a public cable modem, sending the HD video streams from the house to the station, where it is decoded and incorporated into a news show. This service is now available from Bexel as a full-service offering or integrated within an IT department. Also, Bexel is now also offering on-location production essentials including Camera Corps’ Q-Ball robotic head and Litepanels lighting, in addition to an audio console, microphone and Apple Macbook Pro computer for return feeds.
“We hope NAB attendees will come by the booth to learn more this new service offering, especially as Firefly’s scalable capabilities are such a hot topic. From the political arena to the sports field, we can provide tailored solutions for individuals or networks,” says Dickinson. The company anticipates offering options in addition to the robotic setup, including camera rigs for athletic events that would include gear and encoder setup onsite. “We’ll provide the complete service from the installation and technicians to simple setup in one complete streamlined package. We look forward to discussing the many options during this year’s NAB,” adds Dickinson.
"We are thrilled to work with Bexel,” says Jim O'Brien, general manager of VidyoCast. “Our technology coupled with Bexel's market leadership will provide important innovations in contribution feeds, remote production, camera robotics control and video monitoring. This is a great stamp of approval for the VidyoCast product line and we're confident we'll make a great contribution to a wide range of Bexel broadcast and production services."
For more information, visit www.bexel.com.
About BexelBexel is the pre-eminent worldwide provider of broadcast services including video and audio equipment rentals, fiber services, new audio sales, used equipment sales, and repairs/maintenance. Bexel provides brilliantly designed and flawlessly executed systems and solutions to all customers – including producers of the biggest and most important televised events in the world. For more information, visit http://www.bexel.com.
A Snapshot of The Vitec Group Vitec is an international Group principally serving customers in the broadcast, photographic and military, aerospace and government (MAG) markets. Listed on the London Stock Exchange with 2011 revenue of £351 million, Vitec is based on strong, well known, premium brands on which its customers worldwide rely. Vitec is organized in three divisions: Imaging & Staging, Videocom and Services. Imaging & Staging designs, manufactures and distributes equipment and accessories for photography, video and events. Videocom designs and distributes systems and products used in broadcasting and live entertainment, film and video production and MAG. Services provides equipment rental, workflow design and technical support for camera, video, audio, fiber optic and wireless technology used by TV production teams and film crews. More information can be found at http://www.vitecgroup.com.
