SUNNYVALE, Calif. — May 26, 2009 — Omneon Inc., a leading provider of media server and active storage systems, today announced that the Barrington Broadcasting Group is standardizing on the Spectrum™ media server system for master control rebuilds across select stations over the next seven years. In partnership with systems integrator Roscor, Barrington so far has installed Spectrum servers for ingest and playout at NBC affiliate WNWO-TV in Toledo, Ohio, and at NBC affiliate and satellite stations WPBN/WTOM TV 7&4 in Traverse City, Mich. The Omneon server systems offer these Barrington stations the performance and reliability they require, as well as the scalability and easy upgrade path critical to future growth.
"We've been an analog broadcaster for the past 54 years, and we took the digital transition as an opportunity to jump in with both feet and build an HD-capable master control based on Omneon server technology," said Mike Miller, chief engineer at TV 7&4. "There are many different server manufacturers out there, but Omneon offers the cream of the crop. Both the company's hardware design and customer support are excellent. Thanks to seamless integration with third-party solutions, the Spectrum server installation was probably the easiest part of our master control rebuild."
Barrington has deployed a 16-channel Spectrum system at TV 7&4 to support HD ingest and playout. The six-channel SD Spectrum server at WNWO-TV has enabled the Toledo station to move to a streamlined tapeless workflow with an easy HD upgrade path. At each station, the Omneon media server operates in conjunction with Sundance Digital automation and Pathfire™ digital media distribution and management systems.
"We chose to work with the Spectrum system because it offers proven reliability, scalability, and performance while supporting our desired workflow," said Keith Bland, senior vice president, acquisitions and development, at Barrington Broadcast Group. "Roscor's knowledge and expertise in working with Omneon servers and other applications ensured that our master control rebuilds were completed according to plan. We're extremely pleased with the result."
"In establishing sophisticated technology solutions for its broadcast stations, Barrington is building a strong foundation for continued growth," said Geoff Stedman, Omneon senior vice president for products and markets. "The Spectrum server system supports this growth, serving as a flexible and scalable ingest and playout platform as the group makes its shift to HD."
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About Barrington Broadcasting Group
Barrington Broadcasting is one of the fastest growing media companies in the nation — and one of the fastest growing companies in the Chicago area, according to Crain's Chicago Business. Barrington was founded on the premise that smaller-sized television markets offer superior opportunities to deliver improved financial results, assist local advertisers to meaningful business improvements through the effective use of advertising, and affect the communities through the positive power of television and local news efforts. Barrington owns 21 television stations in 15 geographically diverse markets. The group's stations are in DMAs ranked 65 to 199, reach approximately 3.4 percent of the U.S. households, and are affiliated with the NBC, CBS, ABC, FOX, and CW networks. More information is available at www.barringtontv.com.
About Roscor
Roscor is an ISO 9001:2000 registered communications technology systems integrator headquartered in Mount Prospect (Chicago), Ill. with offices in Ohio, Wisconsin, Michigan, Missouri, and Jakarta, Indonesia providing integrated communications solutions and professional services to broadcasters and commercial institutions. More information is available on the Web at www.roscor.com.
About Omneon
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. The company's 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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