JVC Professional Products Company, a division of JVC Americas Corp., has announced that Raycom Media has purchased more than 130 GY-HM650 ProHD mobile news cameras. It is the first in a series of purchases that will standardize all ENG operations in the company on the GY-HM650 camera.
The major differentiator for the GY-HM650 is its IP capabilities. Between the built-in live streaming and FTP file transfer capabilities, Raycom is anxious to get the new cameras in the field.
Raycom began with 15 stations in 1996, and now owns or provides services for 52 stations in 36 markets in 18 states, covering more than 12 percent of U.S. TV households. The new cameras began arriving this month and are being distributed between the 31 Raycom stations that produce local news. This large adoption follows an earlier Raycom purchase of JVC cameras for studio use.
Like many groups, Raycom has a lot of aging cameras at many of its stations. Raycom intends to buy many more cameras going forward because it has to replace as well as greatly expand its fleet over the next few years.
Many of the older ENG cameras are larger, heavier shoulder-mount models that use proprietary recording media. JVC’s new ProHD cameras are much lighter, have great performance and far more features. Raycom tested the cameras in a couple of locations, and shooters loved the images and the sensitivity. In addition, the SD cards are ubiquitous, easier to use and cheaper than proprietary systems.
Beyond a one-to-one replacement, Raycom is expanding the number of cameras in use and increasing its commitment to local news coverage. One hundred of the new JVC cameras will be used to directly replace aging ENG cameras, and more than 30 new cameras will be used to increase the number of cameras at select stations.
Designed for mobile news and reality documentary production, the lightweight GY-HM650 features three, 12-bit CMOS sensors and a built-in Fujinon wide angle 23X zoom lens with auto-focus, optical image stabilizer and manual controls. When equipped with a Verizon 4G LTE modem connected to the back of the camera via USB, the camera’s unique dual codec technology allows shooters to stream live HD video transmissions while continuing to record footage. The camera is also able to transfer recorded clips to a remote server via built in FTP. The GY-HM650 records HD or SD footage in multiple file formats, including native XDCAM EX (MP4), Final Cut Pro (.MOV), .MXF and AVCHD, to non-proprietary SDHC or SDXC media cards.
