Print
Email
Discuss this article ( Comments)
zoom
After working with broadcast veterans for its launch, Al Kass & Al Dawri sports channel has now engaged the services of a newcomer and undertaken an installation that is uncommon in the Middle East. Digital Studio looks at the reasons behind this decision.
Qatar sports channel, Al Kass & Al Dawri recently went against the norm in the Middle East by favouring an Apple solution over an Avid system with the implementation of a Broadcast Video Server Solution (BVS) at its facility.
Supplied and integrated by Qatar-based firm, Techno Q, a relative newcomer in the broadcast field, with the assistance of BugTV and Apple, the open protocol system includes a playout and editing system as well as a comprehensive storage solution that can be upgraded and expanded as the channel's requirements increase.
"They never had a fully established playout server with editing facilities. This new solution will help do that," says Ziad Al Jaidah, Techno Q's executive director.
The broadcast video server lies at the heart of the sports channel's systems. It integrates the editing functions at the channel that are based on Final Cut Pro while also being fully compatible with the existing PC systems at Al Kass.
A Storage Area Network (SAN) is integrated with this system and is based on Apple's Xserve solution.
Apart from the Xserve, the channel has also invested in BugTV, a Canadian solution that controls the playout functionality, and is used by several TV stations in North America.
14 X servers have been configured at the Qatari sports channel with each having eight inputs and six outputs.
