BT
Broadcast Services and Pathfire Create First-Ever
TransAtlantic Video File Transfer Service
BT Mediarelay will offer a fast, secure, easy-to-use,
and cost-effective alternative to distributing broadcast
content via videotapes or by linear satellite services.
Using a simple drag-and-drop PC interface to queue
files for transfer, BT Mediarelay requires no technical
knowledge to operate and streamlines the process
of transferring content, giving complete control
to users.
Bringing together BT Broadcast Service’s robust
global telecommunications capabilities with Pathfire’s
innovative and widely deployed Digital Media Gateway
distribution and management platform, BT Mediarelay
is expected to revolutionize transatlantic content
delivery. The new service will allow BTBS’s
European and global customer base to connect to
over 1,000 Pathfire-enabled broadcast television
stations in the USA. As a result, broadcast content
owners, news providers, advertising agencies and
film production companies will be able to quickly
and easily send and receive video content within
and between both networks, opening up new markets
and commercial opportunities for content.
Paul Claydon, Head of New Product Development at
BT Broadcast Services, said, “Pathfire’s
solutions are already widely deployed in the US,
creating enormous efficiencies for its users. By
offering a transatlantic service, we are seeking
to extend this capability, while laying the foundations
for new commercial and production opportunities
throughout the television, film and advertising
industries. We already have a lot of interest from
international broadcasters and content owners, keen
to take advantage of a service that makes sending
and receiving video content as simple as using email.”
A subsequent development phase will include a local
server allowing, for example, a news broadcaster
to operate a 48-hour archive of recent news reports
for on-demand retrieval. Users taking content will
be able to browse the local server, then dub off
the video file to tape or direct to an editing or
play-to-air server. Content owners utilising the
system in this way can instantly see what is popular,
enabling them to tailor output and, consequently,
increase the value of their service to broadcasters.
Brad Ferris, VP Business Development at Pathfire,
added, “This is the most complete VFT service
of its kind and will open up a powerful new conduit
that allows the seamless transfer of content between
Europe or North America, in the shortest possible
time. BT Mediarelay along with Pathfire will lay
the foundation for international store and forward
delivery of broadcast media. This demonstrates Pathfire’s
commitment to expanding the value of store and forward
delivery via video file transfer not just in the
United States but internationally, as well.”
About BT Broadcast
Services
BT Broadcast Services is a media solutions industry
leader, providing content transportation, management,
scheduling and play-out services to content-owners
worldwide. BT Broadcast Services is also a pioneer
in digital content technology. Its revolutionary
BT Mediahive platform manages all kinds of content,
cutting storage costs and opening up new revenue
streams for content owners by enabling play-out
to mobile, broadband, PC, corporate networks and
traditional TV. BTBS
is part of BT Global Services. BT Global Services
is BT’s business services and solutions
division, serving customers worldwide. As an information
and communications technology service provider,
BT Global Services provides integrated data and
value-added services to meet the European needs
of global multi-site corporations and the global
needs of European corporations.
About
Pathfire:
Pathfire (www.pathfire.com), a private technology
company headquartered in Atlanta, is the leading
provider of digital content distribution and management
solutions for the broadcast television industry,
supplying innovative digital content distribution
solutions, from delivery to air, for broadcasters,
news organizations, television networks, Hollywood
studios and other media and entertainment companies.
Through its advanced digital store-and-forward
platform, Pathfire delivers news stories, syndicated
programming, commercial spots, public service
announcements and video news releases to more
than 1,100 broadcasters throughout North America.
Contact:
Paul Borge, Band & Brown Communications. Tel:
+44 (0) 20 7419 6953
Email: paul.borge@bbpr.com
Or visit www.broadcast.bt.com
Stacey Hurter, Pathfire. Tel:
+1 678-566-5201
Email: shurter@pathfire.com
Or visit www.pathfire.com
|
