SUNNYVALE, Calif. — Aug. 26, 2009 — Omneon Inc. today announced that TV Globo, Latin America's largest national network, is using Omneon Spectrum™ media servers for playout of both national and international programming from its main transmission center at the Jardim Botânico facility located in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
"Our application requires that we have the most reliable server platform available to support our critical transmission needs and to provide us with the flexibility to operate in either SD or HD," said Paulo Santos, director of playout operations division for TV Globo. "The Omneon systems met those requirements, and they were easy to install, allowing us to bring our operators up to speed in a short amount of time."
As the primary distribution center for the network's worldwide programming, TV Globo Jardim Botânico required servers with exceptional reliability, ease of expansion, and a proven track record. To this end, the broadcaster initially installed two six-channel servers, main and back-up, plus a third two-channel server for added redundancy and to enable future expansion. All three systems are SD/HD-capable with built-in up- and down-conversion.
TV Globo later leveraged the Spectrum systems' modular design to convert these media servers, along with additional Omneon MediaDirector and MediaPort components, into main and backup systems providing more storage and supporting a higher channel count. Omneon systems are built on an open architecture based on industry standards, and the company's proven platform enabled TV Globo engineers to develop their own automation and media management software for the server systems.
Within TV Globo's current Spectrum server-based workflow, material is ingested and transferred via FTP to a main central storage system, then prepared for playout and transferred via FTP to the Omneon playout servers, all under the control of TV Globo's in-house automation and media management system. TV Globo relies on the Omneon servers to transmit SD and HD programming to its national affiliates, a local channel for the city and state of Rio de Janeiro, Globo International for satellite distribution throughout the Americas, and Globo Europe for satellite distribution throughout Europe. Full mirroring of the main and back-up playout systems also is managed by TV Globo's custom control software.
"The open platform of the Omneon Spectrum server system has given TV Globo the flexibility to establish custom control, transmission, and media management capabilities based on its specific transmission needs," said Geoff Stedman, Omneon senior vice president of marketing and business development. "The Spectrum media server is built on advanced IT technologies that make it a perfect fit for broadcast applications, and we are pleased to see TV Globo leverage these strengths in developing a versatile and scalable playout infrastructure."
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About TV Globo
Launched in 1965, Globo's network is the largest television programmer in Brazil, reaching audiences in 99.84 percent of Brazil's 5,043 municipal districts. Globo network is composed of 121 full-power television stations.
On the air 24 hours a day, Globo records and airs a multitude of soap operas, mini-series, comedy hours, musical events, and news programs and specials throughout the year. Programming totals nearly 4,500 hours a year, equivalent to 2,210 full-length features, which ranks it as one of the world's largest television program producers. Dubbed in a wide variety of languages, this treasure-trove of small-screen gems relays all the myth and magic of Brazil to some 130 countries all over the world. For more information, visit Globo on the Internet at http://redeglobo.globo.com/.
About Omneon Inc.
Omneon, Inc., is a leading provider of scalable 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 media server. The company's Omneon 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 more than 50 countries on six continents. Omneon is on the Web at www.omneon.com.
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