Broadcaster Magazine September 2008

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September 2008

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Sportsnet 10th Anniversary Celebrated in New HD Facilities

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Broadcaster® September 2008

Volume 67 Number 6

9 Feature Report

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Successful Track Record,

new HD Facilities

Departments 04 The View From Here TVO Lights a Candle for Earth Day

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Industry News: Arpin at OAB; WFN Goes HD News at Astral Sales, NABA, ’RB; DTVLooms Large; FUEL FM Rocks Industry News: Bravo! Series Tapes; Cash and Culture Connectedy

30 Broadcaster

Canadian Achievers Sports Jock Here, There & Everywhere 3

The view from here

Light a Candle, Complete a Survey, Save the Planet The view from here: lush, warm and reddish.

As

it is in the TVO studio where The Agenda with Steve Paikin is taped.

Or at least it was, when a special Earth Day show was produced under candlelight.

The broadcast could not have been taped using older, less sensitive, cameras, nor would it have been taped using older, less informed ideas about the environment and the impact our daily activities have on it.

Surrounded by candles, Paikin and his guests debated the question, “What are we willing to give up for the environment?” It’s being asked by many people, in many industries, not the least of which is broadcast television and media production.

As such, Broadcaster Magazine is asking questions, too.

In a special new online survey posted at www.broadcastermagazine.com (and on the site of its sister publication, www.mediacastermagazine.com), we want to know ‘How green are you?’ I encourage you all to take a moment to fill out the survey, and to describe the ecodevelopments in your company.

What environmentally conscious, eco-friendly steps are you and your business taking in the fight to protect our planet? Is it working? Is being environmentally-conscious a money-saver? Or, is all this talk about green turning you red?

Paikin’s guests at TVO, including Ron Dembo, CEO of eco-firm Zerofootprint; Peter Gorrie, Senior Environment Reporter, Toronto Star; Julia Langer, WWF Canada; Melissa Shin, Associate Editor, Corporate Knights Magazine;

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Mark Sarner, President, Manifest Communications, all came away from the taping with the sense they had made a truly unique and thought-provoking program.

They and the crew were surrounded by a sense of accomplishment and pride.

They were also surrounded by new Sony HDC-1400 cameras.

“Shooting by candlelight isn’t something we put in the specifications when we sent out our Request For Proposals (RFP),” joked Peter Warth, TVO’s Manager of Engineering “But the cameras were sensitive enough that they captured very good images. We had to move up the cameras’ gain a bit, but the image was still excellent.”

Three dB gain is not a major power draw, but 22,000 watts — the studio’s normal lighting load — certainly is. Instead of that, three or four individual candles were used to illuminate each guest. Camera movement were carefully blocked to avoid accidents, and the ‘luminaires’ were sandbagged or weighted for extra stability.

Of course, no flammables were on set.

It’s a small step, for sure. Candles will not replace studio lighting grids. But every clever, creative or symbolic idea that can help illuminate our current condition is more than welcome.

A Chinese proverb says it’s better to light a candle than curse the darkness. In a way, TVO managed to do both. By completing our survey, by telling us about your eco-activities, you can, too.

— Lee Rickwood editor@broadcastermagazine.com

Editor Lee Rickwood editor@broadcastermagazine.com Contributing Editors David Bray; Dick Drew; Derrick Scott; Jonathan Hiltz Senior Publisher Advertising Sales James A. Cook (416) 510-6871 jcook@broadcastermagazine.com Art Director Anne Miron Print Production Manager Phyllis Wright (416) 510-5101 Production Manager Gary White (416) 510-6760 Vice-President Alex Papanou President Bruce Creighton Circulation Manager Cindi Holder (416) 442-5600 ext. 3544 Customer Service Malkit Chana (416) 442-5600 ext. 3539 News Service Broadcast News Limited Editorial Deadline: Five weeks before publication date.

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Industry News CRTC’s Arpin Keynotes at OAB Michel Arpin, Vice-Chairperson, Broadcasting of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission will be the keynote speaker at the Ontario Association of Broadcasters (OAB) Awards luncheon in Toronto, Tuesday, October 7, 2008.

At the same event, the first-ever Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to former CHUM Limited, Vice Chair/CEO and broadcasting pioneer Fred Sherratt.

“We are thrilled that Mr. Arpin has agreed to be our keynote speaker. Prior to becoming Vice-Chair of the CRTC Mr. Arpin has had a distinguished career in broadcasting and so has valuable firsthand knowledge of the significant issues and challenges facing our radio and television members. We very much look forward to his comments and insight,” said OAB President Nancy Brown Dacko.

Prior to his appointment as Vice-Chairperson, Broadcasting of the CRTC, Arpin was Senior Regulatory and Governmental Affairs Advisor for Astral Broadcasting Group. Arpin has worked in broadcasting since 1963 and has held various positions with the CRTC from 1971 to 1979.

Regarding the Lifetime Achievement Award, Dacko added, “CHUM has been a consistent supporter of the OAB since its inception as the Central Broadcasters Association. With his many profound contributions to CHUM and

the industry overall, we are very proud that Fred Sherratt is our first Lifetime Achievement Award Winner.”

Until his retirement in 2002 as Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Sherratt was synonymous with the success of CHUM Limited. Fred joined CHUM in 1960 and during his career has made significant contributions to the broadcasting industry. He was Chairman of the Bureau of Broadcast Measurement (BBM) and participated on various Boards, including the Executive Committee of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters. In 1984, he was awarded the CAB Distinguished Service Gold Ribbon; in 1993 the Ted Rogers Sr./Velma Rogers Award for ‘pioneering spirit and contribution to broadcasting’; and in 1995, he was inducted into the CAB Broadcast Hall of Fame.

The Score’s New Pad Launches Just days before a scheduled ‘block party’ celebrating th e re-opening of the newly-upgraded broadcast facilities at The Score, the finishing touches on what is an $15 million facelift were being put into place.

Larger studio facilities, new production gear and a host of widescreen plasma displays are all a part of The Score’s new look, and are part of the sports specialty channel’s campaign to grab a bigger slice of the sport broadcast pie, especially as new sports services are being launched.

Competition for the lucrative sports TV audience in Canada is heating up, with recent announcements about new services from broadcasters such as TSN, Rogers Sportsnet, CBC and even the COC. It’s new operations open up to the street and will employ “steady cams” and a host of other gadgetry not used by the network before.

The Score reportedly brought in a New York-based production design company for its re-development and facility re-launch.

Score Media Inc.’s The Score Television Network is available in 6.2 million homes. Score Media also operates Hardcore Sports Radio on SIRIUS Satellite Radio and other interactive assets including TheScore.com, Score Mobile, and Score Poker.

Astral Launches ‘Astral Media Radio Sales’ IMS Radio re-launched as Astral Media Radio Sales, marking a new beginning for the business.

Astral Media Radio Sales, under the direction of Lesley Conway-Kelley, Executive Vice-President and General Manager, will bring together the tools, the strategy and Creative Services into one national sales organization, the new entity described. The group says it aims to present focused, integrated solutions to their clients, beyond traditional airtime campaigns, and to change the approach to selling national radio in Canada.

“We are so thrilled to establish this new Astral Media Radio Sales vision as today’s solution for today’s needs,” said Conway-Kelley. “We are committed to working with clients to solve their business needs. We’re setting the bar high and finding new ways to utilize the products and services we offer.”

The launch of Astral Media Radio Sales has meant a significant restructuring plan is set in place. Account representatives now service a National customer base, Research and Marketing becomes ever more prolific, and a new Creative Services Division is created.

The Creative Services Division within Astral Media Radio Sales under the direction of Murray Christenson, Vice President Creative Services, will include the Media Creativity department New HD facilities at The Score’s downtown Toronto location include giant monitors and headline tickers that can be seen from the street.

Broadcaster

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Industry News under the supervision of Melissa Morris, Director of National Promotions and Media Creativity.

With enhanced focus on creativity and integrated brand and marketing solutions — Astral Media Radio Sales will look to marry clients’ objectives with station initiatives at every possible occasion, utilizing a range of Astral Media Radio assets including on-air and online radio content, national promotions, special events and targeted programming. “We’re excited about pioneering this new kind of relationship with our clients and listeners,� added Christenson. “With creative, meaningful and strategic concept development for our clients and partners — we’re now able to build brand awareness for them with a comprehensive approach to their needs. It’s a unique and revolutionary way to exceed their objectives and expectations.�

In an effort to become more creative, service driven and performance-oriented with a focus on the “one client — one representative� philosophy, Lesley Conway-Kelley has

appointed Joan Kaminski to Vice President National Sales. Kaminski’s sales team will each grow their agency relationships to a National level by servicing their clients coast to coast, rather than through regional planning and split territories.

Radio Station-specific business analytics will be the priorities of both Dean Rutherford and Robert Montanaro. Dean Rutherford has been named Director of National Sales, Manager Toronto and Western Canada, while Robert Montanaro takes on the role of Sales Manager Eastern Canada. “Dean and Robert’s focus will be on proactively servicing our station partners,� explained Kaminski. “We’re proud to have such a smart and passionate group of account representatives, who are really looking forward to the transition to a ‘one rep-one client’ relationship. They’re excited to dig deeper into the clients’ objectives and brands from a truly national perspective. I really believe that by knowing each and every one of our agencies and clients on a meaningful one-on-one level

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Broadcaster

September 2008

BROADCAST AUTOMATION SOLUTIONS

and developing measurably successful plans for them, we are going to elevate the expectations of this entire industry.�

Research and Marketing plays a key role in the new Astral Media Radio Sales. “Astral Media has been a huge supporter of industry and proprietary research,� said Olson-Keating “We have a resource-rich department with a focus on consumers, and the media’s ability to deliver those consumers. We take pride in being an indispensable resource to our partners and are rewarded when we see measurable results for them.�

NABA Appoints New Executive Director The North American Broadcasters Association appointed Toronto resident John A. Harding as Executive Director. NABA’s Board of Directors is confident that Harding’s unique set of skills, depth of knowledge and organizational leadership will serve the Association well at this time of great change in the industry.

In the new appointment, David Baylor, NABA’s Secretary General, said: “John brings extensive experience in serving the needs of broadcasters. He’s a creative leader who will assist NABA in addressing the changing broadcast environment.�

Recently, Harding served as the President of the Strategic Marketing Group. Prior to that he was President with the Radio Marketing Bureau where he was recognized for driving revenue and membership growth during a period of tremendous industry consolidation. Harding has over 20 years experience in highly visible leadership roles with a consistent record of dramatically exceeding goals. Harding takes over the role from Carol Darling who served as NABA’s Executive Director since 2004.

Harding attended Ryerson University for Business & Commerce. Harding is also a former Committee Member of the Bureau of Broadcast Measurements and a former Director for both the Canadian Association of Broadcasters and the Canadian Association of Broadcast Representatives.

Rick Hodge Joins CFRB and EZ Rock, Toronto After over two decades as one of the mainstays in Toronto’s #1 morning show, Rick Hodge joined the Bill Carroll Morning Show on Newstalk 1010 CFRB for sports and more. In addition, Rick just

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steps down the hall to be a part of the new EZ Morning Show with Humble Howard, Kim Stockwood, and Colleen Rusholme.

“We’re thrilled that Rick is joining our morning shows. No one does sports better and I’m sure sparks will fly when Bill and Rick start weighing in on all the other big news stories of the day,” says Pat Holiday, Vice President & General Manager of Astral Media radio stations in Toronto. “And then there’s all the quirky, funny, shake your head bits that Rick is famous for. I can’t wait to hear him throw those into the works with Humble, Kim, and Colleen on 97.3 EZ Rock in the morning. Those moments should be priceless.”

Hodge was born and raised in St. Catharines, ON. He moved to Toronto when he was 19 and attended Centennial College in Scarborough. He’s been in radio for over 30 years and has been recognized with broadcasting awards for his work on morning shows and sports casting.

“Moving to CFRB and into talk radio is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time; there’s

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an immediacy to this format that you don’t get anywhere else. The opportunity to work with Bill Carroll and the ‘RB morning team was a huge factor in my decision. Being asked to join and contribute to the ‘EZ Rock morning show makes it doubly exciting — I’ve admired Humble Howard and Colleen for years and having Kim on board is a huge bonus,” said Hodge.

U.S. Broadcasters Pledge Continuation Around DTV Transition The National Association of Broadcasters says that television stations across the U.S. have embraced a pro-consumer initiative ensuring continued television service in the weeks leading up to and following the digital television (DTV) transition.

The boards of directors of the ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC affiliate organizations have agreed to support a voluntary month-long ‘quiet period’ ensuring no disruption of local television service in the weeks leading up to and following the

digital television transition.

“We are delighted that all of the affiliate boards have agreed to support the NAB Television Board initiative,” said Jack Sander, Senior Adviser to Belo Corp. “This pledge — coupled with our unprecedented campaign to educate America on the DTV transition — will minimize consumer confusion and help local broadcasters and government achieve our joint objective of a seamless transition to the next generation of television.”

The NAB action came in the form of a resolution passed unanimously by the NAB Television Board of Directors and reads as follows: Resolution: The National Association of Broadcasters and local TV stations are committed to the success of the digital television transition. In furtherance of that goal and to minimize any potential for consumer confusion during the DTV transition, NAB’s Television Board of Directors and their member companies hereby commit, on a voluntary basis, to continue to make available to all their distribution partners those broadcast

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Spyder, a 25 metre wide projection screen, dominates the new Rogers facility - but Doug Beeforth is in charge.

Successful Track Record,

new HD Facilities

But Always ‘More to Come’ at Sportsnet

As

birthday presents go, this one has got to take the cake. A multi-million dollar, custom-designed, state-of-theart high definition broadcast facility, centrally located in one of North America’s most vibrant media centres.

Wow! This sweet treat could be seen as part of the tenth anniversary celebrations for one of the most successful specialty channels — some might say most successful Canadian businesses — of recent memory.

But the new Rogers facility — located on the Rogers Campus at One Mount Pleasant in Toronto — had many other reasons for its creation and construction beyond a great birthday party.

It fulfills a long standing need at the sports specialty channel to spread its wings, having outgrown its original home, and embrace new broadcast techniques and technologies, including HD and multi-platform program delivery.

It fulfills a tremendous need among viewers across Canada — who hunger for more and more high definition sports programming, both from a local and an international perspective, presented in an engaging and informative way.

S2

And, it opens the door for information and idea exchange among the many operating divisions within the Rogers corporate structure — cable, wireless, media among them — who visit, work, learn and play ‘on Campus’.

On October 9, 2008, the tenth anniversary of the first Sportsnet broadcast will be acknowledged, but very shortly thereafter, you can bet the current Sportsnet team will be back at work.

Like the many fans they serve across the country, these folks are fanatical themselves — about sports, about broadcasting, about the new opportunities that high definition and multi-platform content delivery will present over the next ten years!

The energy and enthusiasm the Sportsnet staff exudes is only heightened in the new digs.

It’s one of the largest facilities of its kind, some 55,000-square-feet, designed to support Rogers Sportsnet’s regional feeds, its HD program delivery, as well as a myriad of other media formats and program delivery options.

“We wanted to get [Sportsnet] out of enemy territory,” commented Rogers Media 10 YEARS

President and CEO Tony Viner, referencing the fact that, still seven years after Rogers Media acquired the channel, it was still housed in the shared facilities with former owner CTV (now CTVglobemedia), and competitor TSN. “But we also recognized we needed a new technical platform, as digital and HD are clearly the wave of the future. It made sense then, in more ways than one, to move Sportsnet to another location,” Viner explained.

Sportsnet president Doug Beeforth added, “HD is what sports fans expect; this tremendous new facility will enable us to meet those needs, and we’ll be more competitive as a result.

Another real benefit that we saw was to end up with a top-notch facility — not just as a broadcaster, but as a content provider — that really makes us leading edge.”

What first catches one’s eye walking into this “palace of content” is the Spyder, described as the largest indoor projection screen in Canada.

Of course, there are the new production studios, all in high-definition. The largest, designed as a unique, theatre-in-the-round style, that lets cameras can get new creative angles into the 360 degree stage.

Catching the eye almost as quickly as the

Rogers Communications President and CEO Ted Rogers (right), with Rogers Media President Tony Viner (middle) and Rogers Sportsnet President Doug Beeforth (left), pictured during opening celebrations at the new Rogers Sportsnet facility.

As Viner commented later, “Ted always wanted us to be a showpiece, a demonstration of our brand characteristics, as a leading technology provider, and the embodiment of the excitement of live broadcasting.”

Beeforth added that “Ted has always been described as a visionary over the years; well, that’s been proven right again this time, as he has given us everything we need. Not just our current needs, but in this facility, we’re able to deal with undefined needs.”

Rogers Vice Chair Phil Lind (not pictured) said of the facility: “Blame Ted for that!

He’s a fanatic about engineering excellence, and he’s been driving us to HD more than anybody!”

Spyder are all the edit and viewing workstations, each one aglow from large LCD screens.

They are all connected to the heart of the new facility’s production capabilities, the Enterprise sQ server-based production system from Quantel.

As implemented at Sportsnet, it includes eight sQ servers with more than a thousand hours of HD storage. There are 84 seats of October 2008

S3

SPORTSNET TIMELINE Key dates and benchmark achievements in Sportsnet history: 1993 - Rogers partners with CTV, Molson and American cable company Liberty Media to pursue the concept of a regional sports channel

1994 - Application is made for regional sports channel license, working title “S3”, however it is denied

1996 - Second regional sports application is successful, channel name is changed from “S3” to “CTV Sportsnet”

1997 - CTV Sportsnet acquires national NHL cable package

1998 - CTV Sportsnet signs regional broadcast deals with Canadian NHL clubs

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sQ View, where basic cuts and only, lower res segments can be screened and assembled by journalists and on-air staff. There are 14 seats of sQ Edit, where senior editors take over the process, and there are six sQ Edit Plus systems, for the addition of graphics and special effects, as well as two sQ Records and four sQ Plays.

“Quantel is a company that understands broadcasting,” said Frank Bruno, Vice President, TV Engineering for Rogers Media. “We opted for the sQ for many reasons — sQ is specifically designed for live broadcasting, with ingest, editing and playout all being achieved in the same box, it’s all HD, and we liked Quantel’s established track record.”

The entire system, acquired through Quantel’s Canadian representative BSE Broadcast Systems & Equipment, is described as the second largest in North America after ESPN, and its 6,000 hours of storage. Applied Electronics was a key part of the systems integration team, providing engineering, installa-

The Vault is where Sportsnet stores the over 35,000 tapes it’s collected since 1998. It will soon begin the process of archiving that footage onto a digital server.

tion and logistical services.

Among the other key partners in the buildout of the new broadcast facility were Christie Digital, SONY, Harris (Leitch), Ross Video, Calrec, UP Workstations and many more.

“We took a little risk, as we wanted to be more cutting edge,” acknowledges Virginia Gibberd, Vice-President, Operations. “But I think that is going to weigh in our favour.

It’s not ‘bleeding edge’, as the technology has been implemented before, but with our combination and volume of HD moving through the plant, with the amalgamation of video on desktop network, it is quite a challenge in terms of the cumulative amount of new

10 YEARS

1998 - Channel is launched as “CTV Sportsnet” - October

1999 - CTV Sportsnet airs Memorial Cup for first-time

2000 - CTV Sportsnet launches ctvsportsnet.ca

2000 - After purchase of TSN, CTV is directed to CRTC to divest its’ 40% controlling interest in CTV Sportsnet, which is put in trust for an interim period.

Channel is renamed “Sportsnet”

and different technologies.”

Gibberd and Bruno have both lived with Sportsnet throughout its life, so they are immersed in not only its technology, but in the business of sports broadcasting. As such, they challenged themselves in trying to create not only the most tech savvy facility around, but one that worked most appropriately for the business at hand.

That business is changing as fast as the technology that supports it.

“It leaves me out of breath....” Beeforth says frankly of the changing sports broadcast landscape.

“There is a much more appetite for sports.

There’s more passion for sports in general, and more for specific genres of content, too.

And, there are even more avenues for content distribution — not just traditional broadcast either, but many more platforms in fact. I can’t remember the last time we talked here about being a broadcaster; we are sports content provider.”

Sports is a shared activity, and traditional TV has helped to foster that sense of shared experience — albeit, in days past, mostly around the

Sony of Canada would like to congratulate Rogers Sportsnet on 10 years of broadcasting.

©2008 Sony of Canada Ltd. All rights reserved. ®Sony is a registered trademark of Sony Corporation.

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water cooler or at the neighbourhood pub.

Now, broadband connectivity, mobile digital devices, interactive and always-on communications have been added to the mix, so sports fan can share, connect, complain or commiserate almost instantaneously, fuelled by their passion and these new platforms, including Web 2.0 trends like social networking and blogging.

Blogging is one of the new tools that on-air personalities must now master, as Sports net’s Jamie Campbell points out. He’s another one of “the lifers” who have been with the service since its inception.

“I remember thinking that somewhat arrogantly I was the perfect hire when we started,” Campbell laughs now. “I had lived and done four years of anchoring in Edmonton, moved east to work in Ottawa, I understood regionality, I understood what was important to sports fans in the Prairies, in the capital region. Like the station itself, I recognized and understood the value of regional sports, and the importance of the home team.”

But both his evolving work assignments, and the technology with which he did that work, was changing.

“I had to learn what a blog was; I admit I did not have a clue! But we all knew the value of having a conversation with the viewer, so being able to share in the insights and experiences of the fan is great — no matter what the technology!”

“Sports gives us that enhanced social sharing opportunity,” Beeforth agrees. “If it’s not the water cooler, it’s IM (instant messaging). That’s what fits into the sports fans chosen lifestyle these days. It’s forced us from being a TV broadcaster to being a content provider — and you know what, some of that content is our customers’. They have their own comments, they want to connect with our sports personalities, they want to express their passion.

Quantel sQ Edit and sQ Edit Plus suites compliment numerous cuts-only workstations.

10 YEARS

Enterprise sQ Newsbox HD

ROGERS SPORTSNET CONGRATULATIONS ON 10 YEARS AT THE TOP Congratulations to Rogers Sportsnet on its 10th Anniversary. 10 years at the top is a great achievement and we are proud to be playing a part in the future of such a success story.

Quantel, BSE and Rogers Sportsnet – sharing the passion

BSE WWW.BSE.ON.CA

Broadcast Systems & Equipment INC.

quantel.com

2001 - Rogers acquires CTV’s 40% stake and assumes management of Sportsnet; unveils new logo and visual ID (July). Renamed, re-branded “Rogers Sportsnet” in November

2002 - Doug Beeforth, an original employee of Sportsnet, is promoted to President

2002 - Rogers Sportsnet televises FIFA Women’s U-19 World Soccer Championship tournament, the final match of which establishes then record audience of 914,000

914,000

2003 - Rogers Sportsnet becomes leader in Canadian sports HD production, televising all Blue Jay home games in HD 2004 - Rogers Sportsnet acquires rights to 2006 FIFA World Cup (February)

There’s so much opportunity as a result, you never get to the point where you say, ‘Yeah, we’re here!’”

How Sportsnet got here, from there, is one of sports broadcasting’s great success stories.

Prior to October 9, 1998, there was no Sportsnet in Canada — Rogers or otherwise.

There was only one sports specialty channel back then — hard to believe, when today, you could say we have ten or more!

But back then, some people felt another sports channel could not be financially supportable, even if it were able to get regulatory approval.

“It was more than a risk,” recalls Nick Kypreos, one the many professional athletes who have migrated to sports broadcasting, and one of the Sportsnet originals. “They flat out told us it would never fly! Outside of the people directly involved in it there was a general feeling out there that this thing was going to fail, that there was no room in the country for another all sports channel. We had one already, so the feeling — very mistaken as we know — was that it would not last!”

But understanding the difference between national and regional sports, and understanding the incredible passion that fans have for their own, local, team, was key to seeing the value of other, regional, outlets.

As Beeforth sees it, however, “It’s very easy to say this now, but from day one I always

believed there was more than enough room for more than one sports channel in Canada.

“You look south of the border, they had ESPN national, and then they had a large number of what they called regional sports channels.

“It was Phil Lind, the Vice Chair at Rogers, who got the ball rolling.”

Phil Lind recalls the importance of the many significant cable partnerships Rogers had in the U.S. throughout the 1990’s, and the fact that regional sports was a big factor in the success of the early FOX Sports.

“Friendships and partnerships, that’s what the foundation was built upon. Our partners down there asked us, ‘Why don’t you have a regional sports channel in Canada?’ We thought, ‘It’s worth trying!’”

One problem, Lind recalls, was the CRTC, and its rule limiting ownership by cable companies of TV outlets to 19%. “We wanted to own the network, so we had to put a partnership together.

“We went to see John (Cassaday, President of CTV). He understood right away, and he was an outstanding performer in our applications. He was leading the charge, and without him, this thing would not have got going!

“Cassaday got it right away. Molson’s needed to be convinced a bit, but we knew it was going to work, because we knew how much sports people watch. It was obvious we needed more sports in Canada. So, it wasn’t difficult to convince the investors; it certainly wasn’t

Rogers Sportsnet signs two-year deal with MLB to air playoffs and World Series (April)

Rogers Sportsnet airs 100th live-event in high definition (August)

It’s a construction site, and it’s a TV studio. Together, it is much more than sum of its parts. Virginia Gibberd, VicePresident, Operations (at left) and Frank Bruno, Vice President, TV Engineering (right) for Rogers Media helped steer the new facility’s design, construction and installation.

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10 YEARS

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Rogers Media acquires 20 percent final stake of Sportsnet from Liberty Media Rogers Sportsnet registers first audience of over one-million with telecast of 2004 ALCS Game #7 (Boston vs. New York): 1.144 million (October)

1,144,000 2005 - The International Olympic Committee awards the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games and the 2012 London Summer Games’ broadcasting rights to the CTVRogers consortium (Bell Globemedia and Rogers Media)

Rogers Sportsnet is first Sports broadcaster in North America to deploy a live- to screen SMS chat ticker, and first to deploy SMS Text Message Alerts

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difficult to convince the cable companies.

But, at the CRTC, there was a challenge to show that regional sports were different than national sports. So we had to prove that there was an appetite for that kind of sports, based around home team passions and interests. The CRTC had already given a sports licence; they believed they were done, that was it. But we had another vision.”

Many discussions, consultations, presentations and applications to the CRTC later, CTV was given the go-ahead for something called Sportsnet. CTV owned 40% and was the managing partner of the new network; Rogers, Molson and Fox owned 20% each.

The name was chosen to match the regional “Fox Sports Net” operations across the United States, one of the inspirations for the launch here.

Lind noted with some irony that the new network gained immediate credibility before it went on the air by stick handling the NHL Canadian cable package away from long-time holder TSN. “The things that got us launched was a deal with the NHL, which we worked out with Gary Bettman, but ironically that was national!”

(From 1998-99 until 2001-02, Sportsnet aired Tuesday Night Hockey nationally, throughout the regular season. It covered firstround playoff series not involving Canadian teams.)

“We needed something big to launch our service,” recalls Lind. “Now, we have the regional deals and TSN has the national. That’s the way it should have been from the start!”

Well, it is now. In 2008-2009, Rogers Sportsnet will air regional NHL broad-

casts from five Canadian teams including 28-Toronto Maple Leaf games, 40-Ottawa Senator games, 47-Edmonton Oiler games, 46-Calgary Flame games, and 45-Vancouver Canuck games — more NHL games than any other Canadian broadcaster.

But, on the day CTV Sportsnet went on the air, its first live sports event was an NHL opening-night double header — one telecast between the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers from Madison Square Garden, and the Calgary Flames versus the San Jose Sharks from Japan!

“I can still remember the buzz of activity, trying to get everything done for that deadline,” remembers Rob Faulds, one of the original CTV Sportsnet on-air personalities, and still with the service today.

“I was in the office, getting ready to call hockey off a tube from Tokyo; Calgary playing San Jose in our second game. Everyone was running around, doing their prep, getting ready for the 6 o’clock sign-on. The energy was building and building — you could feel it!”

The original studios were something like an old hospital operating room. Small, sunken down, surrounded by a viewing level.

“We’re gathered around, everyone’s on the balcony, looking down into the studio,” Faulds describes. “And, there’s Suneel (Joshi), who, following the opening animation, said calmly: ‘Welcome, everybody, to the dawn of a new sports era, with Sportsnet!’

“Well, there was a real explosion of applause after the first commercial break...and then we

10 YEARS

all had to go back to work, and do what we were doing. The next day, I left to do curling in Winnipeg!�

That early assignment both typifies the regional sports concept so critical to Sportsnet’s mandate, and even back then, it was a technological teaser of things to come.

Sports: anywhere, anytime. “Making video content available to handheld mobile devices is a very fast-growing segment for us,� explains Bruno. “Highlights from a game are edited down in to a time and format that’s required by the carriers. We need to be careful about edits, selective about on screen graphics or titles, and flexible in our ability to down-converted to the right cell phone format. “When you’re looking at HD, for example, it’s 1920 X 1080i,� Bruno details. “But most cell phones are about 240 X 200, so we have to get the resolution, the format and the screen size correct, for any number of platforms, from cell phones to websites,� he notes, adding that some 13 or 14 different formats are regularly output.�

Providing content to online or mobile plat-

forms means Sportsnet can extend its brand into the living room or den. It mean Sportsnet can bring value added items, like promotions, contests, coupons and other callsto-action, and build a new business there. It’s one more way the broadcaster becomes a content provider.

Whatever the flavour of digital high definition video, Sportsnet has to be able to move it around the new facility quickly and easily. Accordingly, it ordered a new Evertz EQX 576 X 576 router, one that supports signals from 3Mb/s all the way up to 3Gb/s, so it is able to handle the most demanding digital video formats.

Production control rooms have been outfitted with Ross Vision Switchers, Ross’ newest line of switchers. “We’ve tried to support the Canadian industry whenever possible,� says Bruno, noting strong products and competitive pricing makes that approach easier. Audio consoles from Calrec Omega bring full 5.1 surround sound capabilities to the full HD video signal.

As the audio and video signals emerging from the new facility will be of the highest quality, serving four distinct regional chan-

WE ARE

Sportsnet just would not be Sportsnet without the faces and voices of three of its most well-known on-air team members: Jamie Campbell (top), Rob Faulds (middle) and Nick Kypreos (bottom) who have been with Sportsnet since the beginning.

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2005 - During NHL work stoppage, Rogers Sportsnet registers highest ever audience for a Memorial Cup final: 827,000 viewers for Rimouski vs. London (May)

827,000 2006 - Wireless alerts from Rogers Sportsnet supplement on-air NHL trade deadline coverage (March)

World Baseball Classic airs on Rogers Sportsnet (April)

Applied Electronics and Christie congratulate Rogers Sportsnet on 10 years of dynamic broadcasting.

We look forward to the future of high definition sports broadcast innovation.

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10 YEARS

Extending the brand across multiple media platforms makes perfect sense for Rogers Sportsnet, with its cable, TV, Internet and wireless properties. But it’s important that the brand extend across physical properties, too, with the sleek and dynamic look established at the new facility.

nels with HD content, Sportsnet has also installed a Harris IconMaster SD and HD master control and branding system, adding critical master control functions with integrated branding capabilities.

Barely two years after Sportsnet’s historic sign-on, its brand was changing.

CTV purchased NetStar, the parent company to TSN, and the CRTC told it to sell one or the other to avoid a conflict.

CTV chose to sell Sportsnet, and Rogers acquired the channel, renaming it Rogers Sportsnet in November, 2001. Rogers would subsequently acquire the outstanding shares to become sole owner.

It was huge news at the time, but in a way, it was overshadowed by news of other Rogers’ acquisitions.

In September 2000, Rogers Communications had bought the Toronto Blue Jays Baseball Club and in 2004, it acquired SkyDome, renaming it Rogers Centre. Another sports property, The FAN 590 radio station, joined Rogers Media in August 2001 along with 14 other Northern Ontario radio stations.

The series of buys made perfect sports

sense, but the purchases were the result of a happy string of coincidences and opportunistic business acumen, not a careful strategic plan, Lind recalls.

“Owning a team was not a part of the vision, but when considering the purchase of the team, it certainly factored in at that point,” he explains. “But no, we didn’t go into the sports channel with the view of owning a team; it was fortuitous, and a sign of the times, and perhaps, it was a sign of things to come in the sports world overall.”

Certainly, being able to fill the content pipe with more and more live sports is part of the vision.

By 2003, for example, Sportsnet had a huge slate of hoops games from the NBA — over 200, in fact. The channel’s programming deal with the NBA let it air games nationwide, and on its regional feeds. Sportsnet’s national average audience averaged 60,000 viewers per game, according to Neilsen Media Research figures released at the time.

In 2004, facing a lack of hockey on anybody’s TV, Rogers Sportsnet was blazing trails with its other sports coverage, especially HD baseball.

Sportsnet had by this point produced over 50 games in high definition since it launched Sportsnet HD in September 2003, focused on the home games of the Blue Jays and Toronto Raptors. By August 2004, Sportsnet HD hit the century mark, broadcasting its 100th HD live sports event — the Blue Jays hosting the Boston Red Sox. Having established its bona fides in the dominant North American sports — hockey, baseball, basketball, football, NASCAR — and by offering the Super Sports Pack as an attractive way of bundling them together, the world of international sports was soon being targeted, with good reason and strong precedent, explains Lind.

“I always thought one of the great things about Rogers was that we were multicultural from the get go, 30 years October 2008

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2006 - Rogers Sportsnet partners with TSN and CTV to provide most comprehensive coverage of FIFA World Cup in history, airing all 64-games in high definition (February)

Rogers Sportsnet registers most watched live event when 1.180 million tune in to see 2006 FIFA World Cup Semi-final featuring Italy vs. Germany (July)

1,180,000 2007 - Sportsnet announces multi-year contract extensions with both Vancouver Canucks and Calgary Flames

MySportsnet launches; customizable online service from Sportsnet.ca (June)

Sportsnet announces eight-year agreement with Toronto Maple Leafs; becomes Official Broadcaster of Team (September)

Rogers Sportsnet and Setanta Sports announce Canadian version of international sports channel (October)

Sportsnetnews re-branded as Sportsnet Connected (November)

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ago with multilingual television,” he says, referencing the family tree that started as MTV/ CFMT at one point, but grew under the Rogers umbrella to become OMNI 1 and 2. “I could see in multicultural programming that, besides news or drama, our audience wanted sports. This was particularly important in our markets in southern Ontario and lower B.C. — so many viewers are not originally from Canada, and they want to see the sports from back home.

“Now we get sports from all over the world,” he says with obvious pride and enthusiasm, citing the European football arrangements with Setanta and the English Premier League, as well as rubgy and other international sports.

In May 2006, Rogers Communications signed a major multi-platform broadcast agreement with Infront Sports & Media, the worldwide electronic media distribution partner of FIFA and the 2006 World Cup, giving it exclusive rights to live coverage, highlights and more content across multiple platforms.

Rogers Sportsnet (together with TSN and CTV), Rogers Wireless, Rogers Personal TV, Rogers Yahoo! Hi-Speed Internet, and Rogers OMNI Television were involved.

Later that year, Rogers Sportsnet, together with TSN and CTV, announced an agreement to jointly televise all 64 games from the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany (Sportsnet had acquired Canadian broadcast rights for the event the previous year).

One of the company’s biggest international live sports event coups came in February, 2005, when the International Olympic Committee awarded broadcasting rights to the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver and the 2012 Summer Olympics to an alliance of CTV Inc. and Rogers Communications. IOC president Jacques Rogge said at the time that the winning bid was $153 million U.S., an increase of 124 per cent on the $73 million for the 2006 and 2008 Games.

The deal was significant in a number of ways, and it opened the door to new and, dynamic partnerships in the sports arena, partnerships that could make a competitor on one day, a partner on the next.

“It’s a new way of thinking, undoubtedly, but in today’s world, any company that doesn’t think that way does so at their own peril,” explains Beeforth. “I think that what you see in our business is a smaller snapshot of how life in the world is these days. Both in personal life and in business, it is relationships that bring opportunities and different situations.

Another interesting new partnership for Rogers, one with great potential impact, is

the Rogers/NFL deal. It brings the Buffalo Bills football team to Toronto and the Rogers Centre for a series of historical, precedent-setting football telecasts.

“That’s absolutely thrilling for us,” exclaims Lind with obvious pleasure and satisfaction.

“We are so happy we made this deal with Bills, I think you’re going to see that there will be more games than what we’ve heard about already, before the five-year deal is over!”

Well before the five year deal concludes, still more changes will have been realized within the new facility itself.

Even now, the plant is very close to going tapeless. Thanks to its new server based, file based infrastructure, the core of the plant is digital, and ingest, editing, delivery takes place in that domain.

“We’re going into Phase Two very soon,” Gibberd describes, “to integrate our asset management, archiving and storage systems. After completion of testing and training, probably at the end of September, we will be totally tapeless. So when apiece of content comes into Sportsnet — via one of nearly 75 possible spigots — it doesn’t necessarily have to touch tape in anyway shape or form.”

That ability to digitally access a wealth of archived and library footage, as well as call current material, is due in part to Sportsnet’s acquisition of additional offline storage from Ardendo.

10 YEARS

“The Ardendo system is totally scalable so it really depends on how big your wallet is, but with the Ardendo system we’ll probably go for another 5,000 hours of offline or near-line storage,” explained Bruno.

Likewise, he says, Sportsnet’s move to solid state memory card recoding, such as with its four new Panasonic AJ-HPX2000 P2 cameras that store SD or HD footage on P2 memory cards.

“That was another reason we went to Quantel,” said Bruno. “Quantel will read those cards directly. So when you attach Panasonic P2 reader, it shows up as content in the Quantel server system. But you’re dealing with cards, not disks or tapes, so there is a learning process for us.”

That learning process involves mastering skills and technologies that seem more at home in an IT data centre than a TV production studio. Ten years ago, most studios survived with a very basic naming protocol, or slug system, to identify raw materials and media assets.

Today, it’s all about metadata, deeply imbedded digital data that can convey so much more information about a video clip — and make it so much easier to find and locate that clip when it’s needed. The need to understand metadata, and the implications for content delivery, is a big learning curve for all involved, agrees Gibberd, who says it now involves all the different departments, not just production.

“Provide training, give folks information, communicate openly, these are pretty practical things to do to get people up to speed with new equipment and new processes,” explains Gibberd. “But you need to reinforce that approach with your overall business priorities.

So, yes, we will send staff up to Ross, or down to L.A., for system specific training, and then connect that training to the business goals when you get back home.”

eteria, is incredibly important to our team. We shouldn’t downplay the time spent getting to know one another, getting to trust one another, as a value contribution to the company. We get a lot of knowledge and learning from the informal synergies here.”

In many ways, the informal learning has never stopped. Over the past ten years, Sportsnet’s management and staff have learned at the very least to be patient, to understand that you might not get where you want to go in a straight line.

Beeforth often cites an old line from Mark

Evanka Osmak (behind the desk), Martine Gaillard & Sean McCormick (opposite page) are among the next generation of Sportsnet hosts and anchors keeping the energy, excitement and passion alive.

As mentioned, the new facility provides several benefits for the corporation, and not just from a high quality signal production and delivery perspective, as Viner points out: “One of the benefits of moving to this location is the way it contributes to the Rogers culture,” he says. “We benefit from cross-sharing, cross-promotion, with staff from various operating areas in one location. Idea exchange, the sort of thing that happens in an informal manner walking down the hall, or having lunch in the cafOctober 2008

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Sportsnet signs three-year deal with NFL for 4 pm Sunday games (November)

2008 - Rogers Sportsnet opens new HD facility at Rogers Campus in downtown Toronto (April)

Rogers Sportsnet announces new multiyear contract extensions with Edmonton Oilers and Ottawa Senators

Rogers Sportsnet teams with TSN to televise Euro 2008 tournament (June)

Twain, who talked about the good ol’ days of steam boat navigation on the Mississippi. ‘You navigate to the next turn’ the advice goes, ‘and once you get there, you navigate to the next turn.’

Use whatever maps, information, knowledge, you have, and once you get a little closer, you will see a little further down river, to the bend at least.

Asked how far that the next bend was, in terms of strategic business planning, Beeforth replies, “Maybe three years. Once Sportsnet gets a business plan approved, we are given the authority to operate our business as we see fit, so we can be nimble enough when chance comes along.”

There are some things you can take forward, Beeforth notes, which can be seen as certain — as much as anything can be certain on this winding river called sports broadcasting.

“In ten years, there will not be fewer sports out there. In ten years, there will be more avenues for distribution of those sports than there are now. There will be more opportunities for fans to be interactive to an extent that we can’t even imagine today!”

Hard to imagine that ten years ago this fledgling broadcaster would be on a list of some of the great business success stories in Canada, and the fact that — as Beeforth is proud to say — “Sportsnet would be on that list!”

He rightly describes it as “the most successful specialty launch in history in Canada” and that the sports service “got to profitability faster than any other channel.”

But Beeforth has another unique take on the valuation of the service: “My perspective, if

top

you ask others, they would not refute it, is that if Sportsnet had not launched, at least two or three of the Canadian NHL teams today would not be in Canada! And the teams themselves would be among those who would not refute it. The fact that we came along, and became a revenue stream for them, and a way for them to build their brands, well, if that hadn’t happened, we might be back to two or three teams here.”

There may be no way to prove his assertion, but if the Canadian sports fan appreciates sports on TV for any reason, that should be a big one.

Over the years, Sportsnet has become not only the number one sports channel in a significant number of locations in Canada, it has become a ubiquitous brand across the country.

But, as Beeforth cautions, “We cannot sit on the bench, and sit on our laurels. I think any business that looked back over ten years, and had the same kind of successful impact in the industry as we have. I think they would be very pleased with what they had accomplished.

For something that didn’t exist ten years ago, it is now a very important part of the Canadian sport landscape.”

Think back ten years, back to the start of Sportsnet. Were you predicting sports highlights over your cell phone? If so, some people probably called you ‘nuts’.

Another, more fitting and appropriate description, would be ‘visionary’.

As Ted Rogers is known for saying, “Stay tuned. The best is yet to come!”

Top-ten live event broadcasts to date on Sportsnet:

ten

1. 2006 FIFA World Cup semi-final (Italy vs Germany) 1.180 million 2. 2004 ALCS Game #7 (Boston vs New York 1.144 million 3. 2006 FIFA World Cup round of 16 (England vs Ecuador) 922,000 4. 2002 FIFA Women’s U-19 Final (Canada vs. USA) 914,000 5. 2004 World Series Game #4 (Boston vs. St. Louis) 912,000 6. 2004 ALCS Game #6 (Boston vs New York) 863,000 7. 2005 Memorial Cup Final (Rimouski vs London) 827,000

8. 2007 Toronto Maple Leafs regular season hockey (New York vs Toronto) 804,000 9. 2006 FIFA World Cup quarter final (Italy vs Ukraine) 799,000 10. 2005 Toronto Maple Leafs regular season hockey (Boston vs Toronto) 794,000 S16

10 YEARS

Industry News

Stephen Peck, Newcap Radio Calgary GM (at right), Jolayne Motiuk, Manager of Canadian Content (at left) join recent Rock Star winners, “The Shagbots”, the final band who will join previous for a chance to win $200,000 in support.

signals being provided as of February 4, 2009; for a period of time beginning on February 4, 2009 through March 4, 2009 — a full two weeks prior to and after the DTV transition date of February 17, 2009. In addition, the TV board is making every effort to secure the same voluntary commitment from the television broadcast industry, including NAB’s television members, the networks and the network affiliate stations.

The voluntary industry pledge has been endorsed by the following NAB Television Board member companies: ABC, Inc., NBC TV Network, ION Media Networks, Univision, Telemundo, Belo, Barrington Broadcasting, Bonneville International Corp., Post-Newsweek Stations, Gannett Broadcasting, Citadel Communications, HearstArgyle Television, LIN TV Corp., Morgan Murphy Media, Media General Broadcast Group, Dispatch Broadcast Group, Cox Television, Meredith Broadcasting Group, News-Press and Gazette Broadcasting, Raycom Media, Quincy Newspapers, E.W. Scripps TV Station Group, Tribune Broadcasting, Freedom Communications, Young Broadcasting and Woods Communications. Fed-

eral Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Kevin Martin was fully briefed on the voluntary broadcast industry outreach effort in a Monday conference call with NAB Joint Board Chairman Jack Sander, senior advisor to Belo Corp., and NAB Television Board Chairman K. James Yager, president and CEO of Barrington Broadcasting.

In addition, NAB President and CEO David K. Rehr notified Chairman Martin of the NAB Board action in an August 11 letter.

“By approval of the resolution, NAB’s Television Board of Directors is committing to the FCC that companies will not withhold broadcast signals during this important transition period,” wrote Rehr. “As the number of companies and stations joining this effort continues to grow, we will keep you and your fellow commissioners updated. America’s television broadcasters will continue to focus on educating the public on the importance of the digital transition. A successful transition is a top priority of NAB and we will continue to show leadership in our public-private partnership.”

Broadcaster

Fuel FM Fuels Battle of the Bands More than $300,000 in prize money and support grants is available to the five winners in FUEL 90.3 FM’s Rock Star Promotion.

“The Shagbots” the latest contest winners, now join “The Dudes”, “Static in the Stars”, “The Matt Blais Connection” & “Zoo Lion” in the last event of the first of a seven year talent promotion process for the Calgary-based Newcap radio station.

The grand prize is $200,000 in support; each of the five winning bands has already picked up $25,000 support grants.

Over the course of the next seven years FUEL 90.3 fm will be contributing in excess of $2,000,000 to develop the careers of Calgary performers, reports Marketing Director Michael Godfrey.

“This is not Canadian Idol. We are looking for serious musicians who are developing original material and have been doing gigs in Calgary already. This is about artists who are ready to more news on page 29

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section, indexed, carbon fiber no-tools extendable post. A safety system inside the post eliminates flex in normal operation. The index system and increased post diameter assures the stability and alignment of the sled.

EyeCon Audio/Video Transmission Diagnostic Tool

eyeCon Debuts Web-based System Controller Eyeheight’s new eyeCon allows PC-based control of any module in the company’s FB-9E Ether-Box platform.

Integral diagnostics provide instant assurance that the module under interrogation is fully operational, the company reports. If an error is detected, holding the cursor over the red status light reveals information such as loss of source video. eyeCon can be run on any computer with Java installed, including Apple OS-X, Linux or Microsoft Windows operating platforms.

The Ethernet interface allows device communication and control via intranet or internet, giving the ability to check a compatible Eyeheight product anywhere in the world via TCP/IP link.

Current Eyeheight products controllable via eyeCon are the AR-2MD and AR-2SD aspect ratio converters, AS-2MD audio shuffler, BA-2 and BB-2 logo inserters, DK-2 downstream keyer, LI-1DM compact multi-definition logo inserter, LK-2 bug inserter, mw-2 mix/wipe module and SA-2U 4:4:4 dual-link safe-area generator.

Eyeheight produces a wide range of serial digital video and digital audio equipment for use in transmission, digital edit suites, telecine, graphics, studios, dubbing and associated areas.

Flying with New Film and TV Camera Stabilizer Steadicam has introduced its new Flyer-LE Camera Stabilization System.

The new Flyer-LE has been redefined with upgraded sled features, ergonomically designed vest, newly designed stabilizer arm and an enhanced battery package system, the manufacturer describes.

The Flyer-LE features a newly designed sled assembly (camera mounting platform) that has a robust, 2New Flyer-LE Camera Stabilization System

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Broadcaster

September 2008

Ross, Link, Calrec Expanding openGear Platform Ontario’s Ross Video and Link Electronics announced a partnership to expand the openGear terminal equipment platform.

Link Electronics designs and manufactures more than 250 professional broadcast products for television stations, production facilities and close caption providers worldwide. They will join other terminal equipment vendors in supporting the award winning platform. openGear is one terminal equipment platform with over 100 solutions available from different partners all within one common control and monitoring system. openGear, developed

by Ross and offered to partner companies in the industry, allows partner companies to develop their own cards within openGear.

The openGear rackframe is a 2RU modular frame designed to accommodate up to 20 cards. A wide variety of cards are available from openGear terminal equipment manufacturers.

This allows facilities the freedom and flexibility to choose the best technology for their particular applications and not be locked into one manufacturer’s frame standard and module choices. Cards from all openGear manufacturers adhere to common control protocols and are controllable via the Ross DashBoard openGear control system which allows quick and easy IP based monitoring and control over all frames and modules on the network.

Ross Video also announced the launch of RAP, the Ross Audio, supporting the integration between video production switchers and audio mixers.

Resulting from an initial collaboration between Ross Video and Calrec Audio, the protocol enables an operator seated at the video switcher to turn audio faders on/off, set autofade, set pan position, to set levels on up to 192 individual faders and prefade listen (PFL) on the audio console. This optional software upgrade requires no additional video production switcher hardware. The feature can be enabled or disabled locally on the fly to allow seamless transitions between audio-follow-video functionality and manual audio mixer operation.

Audio-follow-video is used to tightly automate transitions in dynamic broadcast productions such as news and sports programs. The RAP protocol allows operators of Ross’ leading Vision QMD/X, Vision MD/X, Synergy MD or Synergy SD production switchers or of the OverDrive APC system to manage Calrec Alpha, Sigma and Omega with Bluefin consoles directly from the production switcher.

Holophone N-CODE supports remote surround sound production.

Holophone D-Code for Surround Sound Production Toronto-based Holophone is simplifying surround sound production in the filed with its new N-CODE portable multi-channel encoder and in the production workflow with the D-CODE multichannel Pro Logic II decoder.

The N-CODE helps bring the convenience and portability of a two-channel recorder setup to larger productions which require the more detailed 5.1 channel surround recordings of Holophone’s larger microphones. Based on the H4’s and PortaMic 5.1’s encoders, the Holophone N-CODE takes six channels of audio from the H2-PRO or H3-D and converts them to two channels using Dolby’s Pro Logic II technology.

With the N-CODE, these encoded two channels of audio can be captured to virtually any stereo recording device, or can be broadcast over the existing stereo infrastructure, the company reports.

Through six high-quality microphone preamps, the N-CODE provides 48v of phantom power and is also battery powered.

The D-CODE is the final piece in Holophone’s Dolby Pro Logic II encoded audio workflow.

It takes the stereo recordings made with the Holophone N-CODE and easily converts them back to six channels of discrete audio. These files can then be edited as multi-channel audio and synced with video in any standard editing program, such as Apple’s Final Cut Studio, Sony Vegas and Adobe Premiere.

The recording device is connected to the D-CODE through two RCA inputs and the audio decoded is delivered via 6 RCA outputs or MultiChannel USB directly to the user’s computer.

www.broadcastermagazine.com

New Products

Harris Corporation Announces Strategic Alliance with Freescale Semiconductor for New Range of TV Transmitters Harris will integrate technology from Freescale Semiconductor into its new TV transmitters for terrestrial broadcasters.

Using Freescale’s laterally diffused MOS (LDMOS) UHF technology will enable Harris to produce its most compact and power-efficient UHF transmitters, the company announced.

Freescale’s latest LDMOS solutions provide unprecedented UHF power levels for analog and digital TV broadcasting, while enabling systemlevel power reductions that can potentially save broadcasters thousands of dollars in operating costs. The advanced design is engineered to provide a dramatic increase in device power, allowing Harris to design, build and deliver its most compact and efficient TV transmitters to date.

Harris and Freescale engineers have collaborated on the development process for months, testing the interoperability of the two platforms and revising the products as needed to reach a common goal.

The advanced Freescale LDMOS solutions allow fewer “gain stages” to be used than in previous designs, reducing the physical space required while improving reliability. The improved efficiency and power density of the design is passed on to the Harris transmitter platform, allowing Harris to produce a transmitter footprint of less than half of the previous size.

This efficient, space-saving design ultimately passes savings to the customer related to longterm cost of ownership, improved transmitter cooling and reduced electricity costs.

The QuStream IntegrityCS packaged solution for SD and HD signal processing.

IntegrityCS Packaged Signal Processing Solutions Introduced Toronto-based QuStream is introducing the new IntegrityCS series of stand-alone, single rack-unit solutions, complementing its existing Integrity 500 and Integrity 600 modular signal processing lines.

The 1RU packages ship standard with a local front panel control, power supply, and system controller, with the option of remote or networked system control from a single panel to

suit requirements. Solutions are available for SD and HD television video and audio to enable industry professionals to maintain the correct sound and picture specifications within their facilities - essential for producing consistent high quality results.

The new series designed to address the requirements of a broad range of customers working in areas such as post-production, tape duplication and media transfer, where multiple source formats are used, the manufacturer describes. In broadcast facilities, the processors may be incorporated to ensure video and audio quality is consistent with industry standards.

The CS line comprises ten single rack-unit solutions that contain one or more signal processing applications for HD and SD. These include Color Corrector, Legalizer, Dobly-E Synchronizer with Embedder/De-Embedder, Analog and AES Multiplexer/De-Multiplexer, Pre-Processing Amplifier, and two models of Analog to HD-SDI Converters.

Leader Intros Multi-SDI Monitor Leader’s new LV5380 is a new multi-SDI monitor that displays video and audio signal information in a wide choice of operator-selectable combinations.

Designed to permit easy on-camera mounting or rack-mounting, the 8.4 inch 1024 x 768 pixel XGA colour LCD screen provides accurate source-picture representations, high-resolution waveforms and clearly readable text. Screen calibration can be switched to 6500K or 9300K colour temperature or to storable user-specified settings. Measuring 315 x 176 x 85mm and weighing 2 kg, the LV5380 can be powered from battery (10 to 18 V DC) or via an external universal mains adapter.

The LV5380 incorporates user-selectable multi-display modes which can be switched to show YCbCr, YRGB, YGBR, GBR or RGB luminance waveform, colour vector, five-bar, surround-sound level, status and video source. Freeze mode allows comparisons of different SDI input signals. Thumbnail picture display can be selected with other multi-display operating modes for easy source identification.

Integral dual auto-detecting inputs allow the LV5380 to be used for monitoring and analysis of over 20 HD-SDI/SD-SDI formats including SMPTE 259M, 274M, 292M and 296M. Input format, colorimetry, black burst or tri-level external reference input are auto-sensed. Frontpanel USB drive connectivity allows video stills to

Broadcaster

The Leader LV5380 multi-SDI monitor handles some 20 HD/SD formats

be captured at the press of a button as well as storing presets and software updates. Additional features include signal status and protocol checks, user-settable error monitoring and detection, digital line-selection and menu control of storage of 30 front-panel configurations.

An option for the LV5380, Leader’s unique new CINEZONE software (also being introduced at IBC 2008) provides an intuitive real-time overview of luminance levels using colour coding.

27

New Products

Miranda’s Kaleido-X multi-viewer, integrated with up-stream routers from NVISION, Pro-Bel or Utah Scientific, using the new MV-LiNK interconnection standard.

Miranda, NVISION, Pro-Bel and Utah Scientific collaborate on new connection standard between multi-viewers and routers Montreal’s Miranda Technologies is creating new interconnection standards between multiviewers and routers, working with NVISION, Pro-Bel and Utah Scientific.

The new MV-LiNK standard allows Miranda’s Kaleido-X multi-viewer to be tightly integrated with an upstream router from NVISION, Pro-Bel or Utah Scientific. A single 3Gpbs capable MVLiNK provides interconnection for up to eight HD/SD signals.

The MV-LiNK allows the Kaleido-X multiviewer to offer On-screen Mouse router control, as well as dynamically updated UMDs using the router source labels. Other benefits include reduced cabling and easier installation, and a

lower overall system cost due to streamlined multi-image/routing hardware, with removal of BNC equalizers, cable drivers and reclockers.

The Kaleido-X multi-room, multi-image display processor offers the highest picture definition across all image sizes for the most critical monitoring applications. The processor also offers unsurpassed signal flexibility, with the ability to display signals freely across multiple displays, without restrictions on signal position, repetition, format or aspect ratio.

Logitek Introduces JetStream Mini IP Audio Router Logitek Electronic Systems unveiled the JetStream series, IP-based audio routers that provide audio I/O, mixing, processing and audio distribution needs for Radio applications. The JetStream Mini, provides enough capacity for one 24 channel radio console. Logitek’s existing control surfaces - Mosaic, Artisan, and Remora - provide the user interface to the JetStream.

One JetStream Mini unit provides eight I/O card slots that accommodate five types of I/O cards: four mic preamps (with phantom power); four stereo analog line inputs; four stereo analog line outputs; four stereo AES or S/PDIF digital inputs and four stereo AES or S/PDIF digital outputs. All I/O connections use StudioHub+ compatible RJ-45 connectors.

Also included are 12 GPI and 16 GPO contacts;

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28

Broadcaster

September 2008

four RS-485 ports with AES cue audio; 2 GbE ethernet ports and redundant power supplies in a single two rack unit enclosure. The unit’s 24 stereo channels of mixing can be shared by one to four control surfaces. A DVI connector provides connection of a video monitor for operating Logitek’s vScreen application (meters, router controls, and system information; user-configurable).

The company is now accepting orders for JetStream Mini units and plans initial deliveries by the end of the year.

Cinezone Luminance-monitoring Software Leader’s CINEZONE software-based option for Leader test instruments such as the LV5800 provides ultra-friendly camera set-up facilities, allowing camera sensitivity to be set to full advantage. HD and film technicians and digital cinematographers can evaluate lighting and

exposure intuitively without needing detailed understanding of video waveforms.

CINEZONE offers real-time pixel accuracy across the entire image, augmenting the full range of troubleshooting functionality found in Leader test instrumentation.

It uses the colour spectrum to represent luminance values on an otherwise normal and recognizable picture. It allows quick and easy confirmation of luminance levels without need for complicated waveform representations. Levels over the adjustable maximum are displayed in white, highlights in red, mid-greys in green, shadows in blue and levels under the adjustable minimum in black.

CINEZONE can be viewed as one of four simultaneous test images on Leader’s LV5800 studio monitor. It is also available on the newly-introduced LV5380 and LV5330 portable instruments.

www.broadcastermagazine.com

Industry News tracks from their hit albums: Sometimes and Bring Me Your Love, including Comin’ Home and Waiting... City and Colour dazzle the crowd with alluring guitar riffs harmonized by Green’s signature delicate vocals. During interviews with host Lance Chilton, Green reminisces about his high school days and the teacher who inspired him to achieve his dream despite his fear of singing in public.

Bravo! is owned by CTV Limited, a division of CTVglobemedia.

Cultural Industries Worth $85 Billion

City and Colour perform at the Bravo! Concert Hall in Toronto’s historic Masonic Temple.

Producer Robert Benson , director Bob Haller and music producer Anthony Montano collaborated on the first series episode.

PHOTO CREDIT: GEOFF GEORGE

take their career to another level” added Jolayne Motiuk, Newcap Radio Calgary Manager of Canadian Content Development.

New Bravo! Series Taped at Masonic Temple The inaugural episode of the Bravo! Concert Hall, featuring JUNO award-winning Dallas Green’s solo project City and Colour in the inaugural episode, is taped at the legendary Concert Hall in Toronto’s historic Masonic Temple.

City and Colour performs in a room that has hosted a who’s who of music royalty in the past 50 years. The Rolling Stones rehearsed numerous times in the Concert Hall while Led Zeppelin played its first Toronto concert there. One of Canada’s best live music venues, the Masonic Temple’s Concert Hall has also housed historic performances by The Supremes, The Who, Bob Dylan, James Brown, The Grateful Dead, The Cure, Duran Duran, R.E.M., The Tragically Hip, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and recently Kanye West and Sam Roberts.

The Bravo! Concert Hall series fuses exciting live performances with insightful interviews featuring today’s most urbane musical artists. In this premiere episode, City and Colour perform

Valuing Culture, a report from the Conference Board of Canada and Canadian Heritage on the value of the creative economy, says cultural industries employ, directly or indirectly, more than a million people.

The report notes that broadcasting is one of the most significant cultural industries contributing to GDP and employment, and a major outlet for culture-oriented spending.

The Conference Board estimates that the economic footprint of Canada’s culture sector was $84.6 billion in 2007, or 7.4 per cent of Canada’s total real GDP, including direct, indirect, and induced contributions. Culture sector employment exceeded 1.1 million jobs in 2007.

Valuing Culture: Measuring and Understanding Canada’s Creative Economy describes the culture sector as a cornerstone of the creative economy. It plays a vital role in attracting people, business and investment, the report asserts, and it distinguishes Canada as a dynamic and exciting place to live and work.

The report also suggests that technology is

revolutionizing business models in the creative economy, altering the way culture is created and consumed. Consumers are becoming “prosumers” who actively create and customize content, such as with popular social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace, and so-called “citizen journalism” activities.

The report states that the GDP of the creative industries in Canada was $43 billion in 2003, with broadcasting accounting for 16%. In the same year, consumers spent some $20 billion on cultural activities, one-third on broadcasting.

Canadian society also benefits from broadcasting, the report suggests, reinforcing community and personal development, social cohesion and national identity and improving quality of life.

“Not only does the arts and cultural industry make a valuable economic contribution in its own right, it also stimulates creative activity in other sectors of the economy,” said Michael Bloom, Vice-President, Organizational Effectiveness and Learning.

“Countries around the world, as well as many cities and regions, recognize that a dynamic culture sector plays a key role as a magnet for talent, enhances economic output, and acts as a catalyst for prosperity.”

This research was part of a multi-faceted project in collaboration with the Department of Canadian Heritage. The International Forum on the Creative Economy, held in March 2008, brought together 200 scholars, researchers, professionals, industry leaders, and public officials from across Canada and around the world.

The conference proceedings and a compendium report — including academic papers from leading researchers from around the world — are available online at www.e-library.ca.

September 18th to 21st, 2008

CCBE 2008 FOR THE 2008 CONFERENCE ROOMS WILL BE GOING FAST.

Broadcaster

29

Canadian Achievers

Don Taylor He’s Here, He’s There, He’s Everywhere - And We’ve Got Him!

by Dick Drew

Ed’s Note: This column continues our series of profiles of “Canadian Achievers” in the Canadian broadcast TV and radio industry, written exclusively for Broadcaster Magazine by Dick Drew, a well-known achiever himself.

M

ake no mistake, sports broadcasting is a very competitive business. I shudder when I hear of the outrageous broadcast rights fees that are now being demanded for the privilege of broadcasting a sports event.

Then, in return for all of that money paid to the franchise, the franchise gives no guarantee they will actually deliver a championship or even finish anywhere near the top.

Reminds me of negotiating, as GM of CHML, with Ralph Sazio and his Hamilton Tiger Cats for their radio rights back in the 70’s. Ralph was tough and fair, but he never offered satisfaction guaranteed or money cheerfully refunded!

So the vision, work effort and success engrained into the Rogers Sportsnet story anniversary (well reported and celebrated on pages 9 24 of this issue) is truly one of great achievements by the individuals and the organization alike.

Allow me to add a view from the west, where Sportsnet has consistently topped the audience ratings for sports specialty channels.

You will gather from reading the commemorative article and watching Rogers Sportsnet that they are a high-energy team. Not unlike the fast paced sports they cover 24/7/52, and not unlike their dynamic owner Ted Rogers. Energy flows from the main source to all the parts of an ecosystem.

In Ted’s case, I can tell you it energy and The Cross Border Shopping… Terminator

influence simply gushes. I worked with Ted in the late 60’s; I am still trying to catch my breath.

Well, I can tell you that Rogers Sportsnet’s Vancouver based sports reporter Don Taylor is to sports what Ted is to business. Don is the poster boy for the image and enthusiasm of many Rogers Sportsnet projects.

Don is much like Rogers Sportsnet itself, always looking around, always digging up great sports stories in order to maintain that special edge.

I have long been impressed with Don’s work ethic and his work on the air. I have seen how he works while away from the studio. I’ve smiled watching him hustle in the press box at Canucks games. While most of us were enjoying a beer and a hot dog, watching the action on the ice, Don is like a nervous cat -- always looking around to see which sports person is nearby, whom he can nail with his portable tape recorder, what story he can pull together.

Unfortunately, viewers living outside the Rogers Sportsnet West coverage area don’t get to see this sports ferret in action. Living here on the west coast, we get to see Don on TV with his nightly “Sportsnet Connected” wrap up show.

Or hear him, afternoons with his daily four hour radio open line sports show on Team 1040.

Or read him - at one point, he was also writing a regular feature in the Vancouver Province plus a column for Sports Lotto BC. But, one day his wife Lisa, a high school teacher, blew her whistle and signalled a time out, telling Don: “Enough already!” She convinced him to cut back to a respectable 60-70 hour work week.

Taylor was born and raised in the Vancouver

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September 2008

suburb of North Burnaby, and was able to balance seasonal sports demands with those of his three older brothers: “Dick, I led the perfect life for a Canadian kid. Hockey all winter, lacrosse and baseball all summer, my brothers to learn from. It was the perfect life.”

Turning that lifelong passion into a career is part of what contributes to his success, and that of his co-workers at Sportsnet: “The best part of my job is going out on the field, talking to the players, then putting it all together. Honestly, if I wasn’t doing this I don’t know what I would do...it’s a once in a lifetime experience. And then, there’s the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.”

Mike English, Executive Producer at Sportsnet Toronto, is Don’s boss. He told me, “I have to say that Don is the quintessential broadcaster. For us, he is BC sports and we know the viewers feel the same way based on the success we have had with Sportsnet Connected in the B.C. market” Robert Gray is Don’s boss at Team 1040 is equally impressed. “Don is a true entertainer. He undeniably gets what we in sports radio do.”

Over the years I have worked with some of Canada’s finest sports broadcasters including, Foster Hewitt, Norm Marshall, Al McCann, Perc Allen, Cactus Jack Wells, Bill Good Sr. and others. Each brought their own unique style and enthusiasm to their craft - and it is a craft.

Don Taylor is right up there with them. He is a solid contributor to this wonderful broadcast profession that has been so very good to so very many of us. He is another Canadian Achiever. B Dick Drew is a Canadian broadcaster and writer. His “Canadian Achievers” series ran in radio syndication from 1984 to 1999, and now appears as a weekly syndicated newspaper column. This column is exclusive to Broadcaster Magazine, and there is more about all the Achievers profiled at www.canadianachievers.com

www.broadcastermagazine.com

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Learn more about the opportunities and challenges facing private broadcasters

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Discover what Canadian and international experts think about the latest industry trends

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Studio photo is courtesy of WTVR-TV (Raycom Media) in Richmond, VA. ©2008 JVC Professional Products Company.