VCI Solutions is promising something completely new for station management and automation in a product it will debut at NAB2009. The company claims its Velocity system will revolutionize broadcast and cable operations. The company is keeping details of Velocity under wraps but is encouraging visitors to check out a demo during the show in VCI’s hospitality suite at the Renaissance Hotel. If you can’t make the show, a video presentation will be posted on the Web site. Jamie Meyer, VP of product development, explained how current products exist in silos: sales, traffic and automation. “BXF breaks down walls to communicate effectively between silos, but BXF is an enabling protocol,” he said. “Velocity breaks down the [process] silos even further."
In most stations, the master control operator does not have all the information to make informed decisions about changing the ads in a pod. When the inevitable need arises to swap an ad, the operator can easily substitute an ad to a slot that does not comply with the sales contract, leading to no payment. “Today's technology is operating in a digital mode and yet our manual operation is in analog mode, which factors a delay into any process,” Meyer said.
The move of stations to digital, file-based operations allows for faster, more agile operation. The ability to change ads at the last moment can allow sales to optimize revenues. “Velocity leverages a single management system for sales, traffic and automation activities, providing numerous benefits beyond traditional ROI, such as best practices workflow, consolidated reporting, crosstraining, etc.,” Meyer said. VCI believes that Velocity is a new way to manage the back office that goes far beyond integration of multivendor products using BXF.
"We understand that the dynamics of the today's market are constantly changing, especially given the economy compounded by diminishing advertising revenue," said Sarah Foss, president/CEO of VCI Solutions. "It has become imperative for media companies to either gain revenue through new sources or reduce operational costs. Our new Velocity product is a necessary solution that will enable media companies to immediately eliminate costs and positively impact their bottom line ROI."
