TEWKSBURY, Mass., August 18, 2009 - Avid® (NASDAQ: AVID) today announced a number of new deployments of its industry-leading audio and video solutions. Customers that have invested in Avid solutions to enhance productivity and streamline workflows include: Cologne Broadcasting Center (CBC), Carlson Audio Systems, Ecuavisa, Fox Television, Iraqi Media Network, Métropole Télévision (M6), the SAE Institute, Swedish Television (SVT), Telepictures Productions and Wexler Video and PostWorks/Orbit Digital.
“Our teams are working to ensure that we collaborate closely with our customers from initial engagement through implementation and ongoing support,” said Kirk Arnold, Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President at Avid. “By focusing on customers’ objectives and delivering integrated and reliable audio and video workflow solutions, we are helping our customers accomplish goals like improving media sharing across several geographic locations, linking together disparate newsrooms and teaching the next-generation of professionals on industry-standard media creation tools.”
Studio Productions
The Ellen DeGeneres Show chose an all Avid workflow in place of Final Cut Pro systems to provide reliable solutions that support the production demands of a nationally syndicated program.
• Telepictures Productions, the producers of The Ellen DeGeneres Show and the forthcoming Fall season’s Lopez Tonight, selected eight Media Composer® Nitris® DX systems, connected to Avid Unity™ MediaNetwork shared storage, to overcome the challenges of meeting strict and intense deadlines associated with delivering a one hour show, five days a week. The show’s post production sought Avid’s solutions after limitations with Final Cut Pro systems made it difficult for the editorial team to create the type and style of content that met show criteria and supported a collaborative workflow. The Avid systems offer unique performance and allow the show’s editors to simultaneously access all media content, at any time during the creative process to ensure on-time network delivery.
"Avid's ability to perform seamless high-definition, multi-camera editing is one of the most valuable features of the Avid system," said Chuck Dages, EVP Emerging Technology at Warner Bros. "The capability to provide collaboration between editors led us to return The Ellen DeGeneres Show to Avid’s platform. Choosing Avid's workflow with bin sharing and Unity's high-performance characteristics was required to meet the stringent demands of this quality production."
Broadcast
Broadcasters SVT (Switzerland), M6 (France), CBC (Germany), Ecuavisa (Ecuador) and the Iraqi Media Network have invested in a number of Avid audio and video solutions to make newsroom operations more efficient.
• SVT was looking for a solution to improve production processes in its main program site in Stockholm and facilitate collaborative workflows between its regional production sites, which are dispersed throughout the country and interconnected through nine Avid Interplay® systems. SVT Stockholm’s new Avid HD production solution consists of approximately 60 Media Composer® Nitris® DX systems, several Media Composer software and Pro Tools|HD® systems linked via Video Satellite, as well as several Interplay Assist systems. SVT has also invested in Avid Unity™ ISIS® shared storage and Interplay cluster systems to facilitate SD and HD workflows across approximately 70 clients and improve media sharing across its newsrooms.
• M6 is making the transition to HD and selected an Avid HD News solution to improve overall programming quality and ensure stability of its technical operations throughout the transition.
• CBC recently purchased a number of additional Digidesign® ICON D-Control™ ES sound mixing consoles to integrate with its Pro Tools|HD-based audio post-production environment for use on trailer and documentary-like productions.
• The Iraqi Media Network migrated from a manual, tape-based system and built a state-of-the-art news facility with an end-to-end Avid newsroom workflow solution, scheduled to go live later this year. The solution, installed by Kholoud Telecom & Broadcast System Solutions (KTBS), includes Avid iNEWS® newsroom computer systems, Avid Unity ISIS and Interplay systems for production asset management, AirSpeed® Multi Stream ingest and playout servers, Avid Active™ Content Manager, and a number of Avid editing solutions.
• In an effort to connect its disparate newsrooms and facilitate enterprise-wide collaborative news production, Ecuadorian broadcaster Ecuavisa recently invested in iNEWS and several AirSpeed systems.
“With two geographically dispersed stations - one in Quito and the other 165 miles south in Guayaquil - Ecuavisa was looking for a comprehensive news production solution to create a reliable network between newsrooms,” said Leonardo Cumba, director of technology for Ecuavisa. “The Community feature in iNEWS, along with a fully-redundant and reliable workflow, which includes Avid iNEWS Command and Avid AirSpeed, enables both of our stations to work locally and collaboratively to deliver the news consistently.”
Rental Companies
A number of audio and video rental companies have invested in Avid solutions to provide customers producing television, feature films and “live” concert tours with fast, reliable workflows that are designed to enhance creativity.
• Wexler Video, the industry’s leading provider of end-to-end broadcast rental solutions serving productions such as House, The Amazing Race and Heroes, recently upgraded its fleet of editing products to include several Media Composer Nitris DX and Symphony™ Nitris DX systems.
“Wexler and Avid have a long relationship of providing groundbreaking tools to the post community,” said Chris Thompson, president and CEO of Wexler Video. “With the expansion of our Avid Media Composer Nitris DX fleet, Wexler is well positioned to support our clients’ transition with optimal, stable and reliable HD solutions.”
• Jane’s Addiction and Nine Inch Nails rocked the Sasquatch Musical Festival in Quincy, Washington during Memorial Day weekend, which featured a new VENUE SC48 live sound production console, provided by Seattle-based Carlson Audio Systems. Carlson selected VENUE SC48 to provide front of house engineers with a fully integrated, easy-to-use mixing console that allowed for an abundance of creative mix options.
Education
Global educators, including the SAE Institute, have deployed Avid’s audio and video solutions to prepare students for advanced education and careers in media production.
• SAE Institute recently purchased 400 Pro Tools® 8 system upgrades, which included 80 Pro Tools|HD licenses to provide students with access to the same tools and techniques used by industry professionals. The company's San Francisco, Istanbul and Oxford campuses also added Digidesign ICON D-Control ES sound mixing consoles.
“It is critical that we prepare students on the industry-standard tools they will use as they make the transition into the professional world,” said Rudi Grieme, managing director at SAE. “Avid has education-friendly pricing, a deep knowledge of audio and video workflows and a real commitment to working closely with educators to help bring real-world solutions to students. This allows us to ensure our students are among the best prepared for the rigors of film, TV and music production.”
About Avid
Avid creates the digital audio and video technology used to make the most listened to, most watched and most loved media in the world – from the most prestigious and award-winning feature films, music recordings, television shows, live concert tours and news broadcasts, to music and movies made at home. Some of Avid’s most influential and pioneering solutions include Media Composer, Pro Tools, Avid Unity, Interplay, Oxygen 8, Sibelius® and Pinnacle Studio™. For more information about Avid solutions and services, visit www.avid.com, del.icio.us, Flickr, Twitter and YouTube; connect with Avid on Facebook; or subscribe to Avid Industry Buzz.
© 2009 Avid Technology, Inc. All rights reserved. Avid, the Avid Logo, Avid Active, Avid Unity, Airspeed, D-Control, Digidesign, iNEWS, Interplay, ISIS, Media Composer, Nitris, Pinnacle Studio, Pro Tools, Pro Tools|HD, Sibelius and Symphony are trademarks or registered trademarks of Avid Technology, Inc. or its subsidiaries in the United States and/or other countries. The Interplay name is used with the permission of Interplay Entertainment Corp., which bears no responsibility for Avid products. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
