Avid’s Kovalick awarded 2009 David Sarnoff Medal from SMPTE

AV/IT systems engineer Al Kovalick has been recognized with the SMPTE 2009 David Sarnoff Medal for his contributions to the advancement of file-based video storage, playback and interchange for use in television production.

Kovalick, who currently serves as enterprise product strategist at Avid, received the award during a special ceremony at the SMPTE Technical Conference on Thursday, Oct. 29 in Hollywood, CA.

Since 1993 Kovalick has worked in the field of hybrid A/V and IT systems at Pinnacle Systems and elsewhere. He is a SMPTE Fellow and a founding member of Pro MPEG Forum and the Advanced Media Workflow Association (AMWA). He has 18 U.S. and international patents, is the author of the first book in the field on converged A/V and IT systems, “Video Systems in an IT Environment, Second Edition: The Basics of Professional Networked Media and File-based Workflows,” and has authored more than 50 published papers.

Kovalick has a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from San Jose State University and a Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from UC Berkeley.