HACKENSACK, N.J.—Raycom Media has deployed LiveU’s bonded cellular products in all of its 30 news-producing markets. The deal includes a combination of LiveU’s hardware such as the LU70 backpacks, LU-Smart app for phones, LU-Lite software for laptops, and more.
The station group selected LiveU after “very thorough diligence,” according to David Burke vice president, CIO, Raycom Media. “We completed a very thorough diligence process,” he said. "We developed a matrix of decision criteria. Some of the main criteria included signal stability and quality, customer support, usability in the field and studio, latency, advanced options, product variety, vendor financial stability, and life cycle cost. We invited all players in the space for extensive head-to-head testing.”
Burke said LiveU was selected due to its consistent signal in tough areas, the size and portability of the equipment and the ability to control the units from the field or remotely. Burke added that LiveU’s LU-Smart cellular bonding app for smartphones was also popular with the stations. “At first, we viewed the iPhone app as an added bonus, a secondary option to literally have in our back pocket if needed. After a few months of deployment, it turns out we use LU-Smart much more than we ever imagined.”
Earlier this year, Raycom purchased more than JVC 130 GY-HM650 ProHD mobile news cameras and announced that it was standardizing its newsgathering operations on the camcorders, which now feature live streaming capability. Burke noted that with the deployment of the LiveU bonded cellular solution, the company was working with both vendors to integrate the two platforms.
“We are working with both JVC and LiveU to standardize on a streaming protocol, decoder, and workflow where all of our cellular based news gathering technologies would use a common administrative interface and technical infrastructure,” he said. “We view both the LiveU and JVC technologies as complementary technologies that supplement our existing news gathering capabilities. We continue to evaluate best practice use cases for these various technologies.
