Omneon Spectrum Media Server Supports 96 Languages for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints' Global Broadcasts

February 10, 2009

Source: Omneon

Highly Scalable Media Server Enables Streamlined Tapeless Workflow for Complex Audio Playout Operations

Omneon Inc., a leading provider of media server and active storage systems, today announced that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has implemented an Omneon Spectrum(TM) media server system for playout of church programming worldwide, with support for audio in 96 different languages. The Spectrum system enables the church to record 96 live audio channels and play out video and the complement of language tracks appropriate to each satellite transponder and its target broadcast area. The church's broadcasts reach an estimated 90 percent of the Earth's populated areas.

"Anyone would recognize the need for tapeless recording and playback in a modern broadcast environment, but the complexity of our operations required a uniquely robust server solution," said Sean D. McFarland, chief engineer at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. "We waited a long time before finding a solution that could handle the high volume of discrete audio tracks associated with our programming, and Omneon was the only company capable of meeting the demands of this sizable undertaking. By incorporating the company's highly scalable Spectrum media server into our broadcast facilities, we've been able make dramatic improvements to our broadcast operations, simplifying our workflow, reducing the time required to manage audio tracks, and minimizing the potential for playout error."

The Church of Jesus Christ maintains a broadcast network that reaches local church buildings across the globe, and these are the primary target of its multilingual program offerings. The Omneon media server manages audio as a collection of discrete tracks, and this approach makes it easy for church staff to make simple edits to different tracks without taking apart a multiplexed signal and rebuilding it for broadcast.

All content ingested into the Spectrum system is recorded in HD, but programming is delivered via satellite in SD to maintain lower bandwidth requirements. During transmission, four different satellite transponders accept a selection of the 96 audio channels, and each transponder delivers between 20 and 40 outbound channels along with the video feed. The Spectrum server, which operates under the control of NVerzion automation, uses dedicated players to deliver a different combination of language tracks to each transponder.

The Omneon Spectrum system also serves as a platform for internal production, supporting creation of church programming for local Salt Lake City stations and for BYU Broadcasting, which features Brigham Young University programming. Because it's now equipped with a single ingest point for digital program capture, the church also is better positioned to transcode and repurpose content for distribution to a wide range of target devices.

"The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has built an extensive global network of churches and church members, and its multilingual broadcasts illustrate the church's commitment to serving members in communities everywhere," said Geoff Stedman, Omneon senior vice president for products and markets. "The Spectrum media server offers the church much-needed flexibility in handling an unmatched number of audio tracks, and the system's stability is key to the church's ability to deliver messaging to its members in a familiar and accessible language."

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