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digiBITZ
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A new Aerosmith-themed Guitar Hero game is planned by developer and publisher, Activision, for release early this summer… targeted are the Sony Playstation 3 and Playstation 2, Microsoft‘s Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii console units… as with other of the Guitar Hero ilk, you progress from an unknown music wonder to the status or a rock legend via great concerts and venues made famous by this megaRockband…
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Much of the digital world is focused on the more youthful members who enjoy such technologies—Emporia has not forgotten about older folk! The company has debuted their LIFEplus cell phone which includes an emergency button that will continue to ring a saved number if the first round of calls are unsuccessful. Five names may be stored for phone access and this button works even if in an area where this is no network service operator… the international emergency number will then be used. Other inclusions — a slider for important menu items, a hands-free kit, an alarm to assist in ensuring medications are taken and even a built-in flashlight…
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When it comes to the much ballyhooed XM + SIRIUS satellite radio merger, the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) continues to oppose the move. Now the organization wants the FCC to include a rule to block satellite radio companies from broadcasting local content. There is specific language they wish included for adoption consideration, that being, “SDARS (Satellite Digital Audio Radio Service) repeaters are restricted to the simultaneous retransmission of the complete programming, and only that programming, transmitted by the satellite directly to the SDARS subscribers’ receivers, and may not be used to distribute any information not also transmitted to all subscribers’ receivers.”
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The freebie music parade continues as News Corp. is now chatting with some major labels to start distribution of their tracks at no cost. The idea is to offer the music on such portals as the company’s MySpace and others and to support the entire process via advertising. We can guarantee that the ad-support music space is an environment most media folk are drooling over when it comes to ad revenues… however, major labels have an extreme dislike for this music distribution format. And with such folk as Universal already filing 20 copyright infringement lawsuits against MySpace, News Corp. is probably not terribly high on their “must do business with” whiteboard diagrams for business growth. The suits are still working their way through the molasses-like legal system for civil litigants.
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digiDELIVERY—
DVEO, the broadcast division of CMI, will introduce their new low latency MPEG-4 HD or SD encoder/decoder system at the Hollywood Post Alliance Technical Retreat for post production professionals. The retreat will be held in Rancho Mirage, California, from February 20 to February 22. DVEO’s InstaView HD is a real time, 4:2:2, high resolution HD or SD encoder/decoder system. H.264, also called MPEG-4 Part 10, or MPEG-4 AVC, is a video compression standard and has the same video quality as MPEG-2, while using less than 60 percent of the bandwidth. DVEO’s new system delivers HD (up to 1080p) or SD video and super wideband audio across IP networks at bandwidths from 256 kbps to 10 Mbps with end-to-end latency of less than 70 milliseconds. The system includes a built-in decoder for two-way video communication, making it particularly valuable for applications such as viewing and discussing movie “dailies” in a video conference. DVEO’s encoder/decoder supports full motion video at 720p/60, 720p/50, and 1080i, plus 1080p at 30 frames per second. There are two input ports — one for HD-SDI/SD-SDI with embedded digital audio, and one for analog video (RGBHV/YPbPr) and audio. The decoder has two output ports — HD-SDI/SD-SDI with embedded digital audio, and analog video — RGBHV/YpbPr, or DVI. Both types of inputs and outputs can be compressed at the same time, at adjusted frame rates. Audio and video are synchronized to within 20 milliseconds or less. The system also features web-based management, closed captioning support, video noise filtering and reduction, and text or logo insertion.
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digiDELIVERY—Miranda Technologies will be launching new HD audio capabilities for its Imagestore 750 master control switching and branding graphics processor at NAB, including Dolby E/AC-3 encoding/decoding. Traditionally, it has been expensive and complex to encode and decode Dolby E and AC-3 audio in master control—no longer. This processing will be performed more simply and cost-effectively within the Imagestore 750. The Imagestore 750’s integral audio mixer provides advanced audio processing with 16 audio channels, de-embedded from each of four video inputs, together with up to 32 channels of AES. The audio channels can be mixed, shuffled and modified before being embedded into the video output, or being made available as discrete AES. The Imagestore 750 is designed for the playout of sophisticated channel branding graphics, and can offer dual DVEs, automated character generation, EAS support, clock insertion, and four independent keyers for insertion of internally stored graphics or external signals. An optional co-processor, the Intuition XG, extends the Imagestore 750’s HD/SD graphics capabilities to allow the playout of highly complex multi-level, data-driven character generation, along with multi-level animation and clip playback. The Imagestore 750 integrates with Miranda’s Xmedia Suite template-based graphics workflow tools to provide highly productive graphics authoring, media management, data-interfacing and automated playout. The Imagestore 750 offers easy selection between SD and HD at 1080i or 720p, at 50Hz or 59.94Hz. The processor also features independent preview, clean feed and auxiliary outputs. Automation control is provided by serial and Ethernet interfaces, using the widely supported Oxtel protocol—Montreal, Quebec
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digiDELIVERY—NEC Electronics, Viaccess, and 27M Technologies have made available a complete cost-optimized manufacturer’s kit based on NEC Electronics’ EMMA2SL and EMMA2SL/P MPEG2 Digital TV Processors. These processors drastically reduce the time to market of set-top boxes (STBs) which incorporate Viaccess CA technology to meet today’s advanced security anti-piracy standards. Viaccess and 27M aim to increase service operators’ confidence level and choice by promoting a pre-certified, manufacturing-ready, but still customizable, STB design. With this approach the sophisticated and usually time-consuming design tasks and certification process needed to bring a pay TV receiver to mass production are reduced to the minimum. A complete hardware kit, schematics and material list up to PCB layout, tested to production level, optimized for low cost and reusability and based on the low cost EMMA2SLx LSIs, is available from NEC Electronics. 27M is offering a reference software combination of the 27M DVB Software stack and Viaccess ACS3.0 Conditional Access which has already passed the Viaccess Certification Process. The Viaccess certification process guaranties that the Set Top Box platform meet the highest level of compatibility with the Viaccess Content protection mechanism—Duesseldorf, Germany
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Sky Angel network is growing ever larger — by 70 to be exact. Well known for providing faith-based and family entertainment to America for more than a decade, a new company, Sky Angel U.S. LLC, unveiled the nation’s first broad-based Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) service devoted to Christian and family TV and radio programming. This in addition to their numerous mainstream family channels that include news and sports. Earlier this year we mentioned that Sky Angel was adding the NFL Sports Network just in time to show the Super Bowl. The programming is packaged as follows: a Faith Package ($14.99/mo.), a Family Package ($19.99/mo.) and both packages offered as a Family Values Pak ($24.99/mo.). Faith channels include FamilyNet, Liberty Channel, God TV, JCTV, Gospel Music Channel, EWTN, CatholicTV and many others. Some of the family channels are Discovery Channel, Fox Business Network, The Weather Channel, Discovery Kids, Hallmark Channel and more—Naples, Florida
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