News

Pinnacle Systems NAB2005 Preview (21/3/2005)

Pinnacle has been leading the evolution of the broadcast industry since its inception in 1986. As we approach NAB2005, Pinnacle is reasserting its leadership role, investing more than $22 million in research and development during the past year alone. The result is a wave of products that address the heart of the ongoing metamorphosis of broadcast operations.

At NAB2005, Pinnacle will introduce:

GRAPHICS
· Dual-Format Deko 1000HD and Deko 3000HD;
· Deko version 4; · Thunder HD;

EDITING
· Liquid 6 for Broadcast.

DELIVERY
· DekoCast HD;
· MediaStream Media Gateway 3.

Delivering on its promise, PracticalHD continues to be a key emphasis for Pinnacle. The company is reducing complexity for broadcasters, introducing HD versions of its leading SD products including Deko, Thunder, DekoCast, Liquid and MediaStream. To ease the introduction of HD services, Pinnacle products support both SD and HD workflows. The companyÕs longstanding commitment to maximising image quality is enforced throughout its product lines with native SD and native HD processing delivering full resolution, full frame rate quality in real-time.

Pinnacle continues to standardise its products on Inflexion, PinnacleÕs advanced video and graphics engine. This platform readily enables Pinnacle to deliver sophisticated functionality across its entire product family and realise economies of scale that translate into lower priced products than its competitors. By further leveraging standards-based IT systems and technologies, Pinnacle is delivering cost-effective, extremely reliable, multi-product, multi-vendor solutions for todayÕs complex broadcast challenges.

Pinnacle is one of the few companies in the broadcast space truly delivering better customer solutions through an open systems philosophy. Pinnacle embraces the benefits of standards-based cooperation with other manufacturers, increasing customer choice and yielding better solutions than closed systems. Some examples of this include:

1) Video Interoperability: Pinnacle is a long-time proponent of standards-based video formats. Yet other manufacturers continue to introduce new proprietary video formats, increasing complexity of customer solutions and forcing quality-deteriorating transcoding. So, for example, Pinnacle products provide native MXF support for seamless file interchange across broadcast operations. At NAB 2005, Pinnacle is also announcing a QuickTime MXF SD/HD plug-in which allows any QuickTime application to read and write MXF format files.

2) Third-Party Support: Pinnacle supports an open marketplace, in which its products work well with other manufacturerÕs products. Examples of this commitment are its integration with large third-party storage and archive systems, its comprehensive support of P2 and XDCAM and its solid integration with automation products.

New GRAPHICS Products from Pinnacle Systems at NAB2005

Pinnacle Deko 1000HD Real-Time HD/SD Graphics for Everyone

Pinnacle Deko 1000HD is the system of choice for all broadcast television and post-production facilities who want to produce HD graphics with sophisticated real time effects. The Deko 1000HD dramatically raises the standard of capabilities in a low cost real-time HD graphics system by delivering:

¥ Industry-standard Deko power; ¥ 2D motions & effects; ¥ Clip playback w/matte; ¥ Unique SuperChannels - one channel can do transitions from one graphic to another, with video clip and key. Competing systems might require two or more channels and, in some cases, two or more systems to do the same; ¥ Upgradeable to Deko 3000HD effects (3D DVE and motions); ¥ NEW: Switchable HD/SD available May 2005.

Pinnacle Deko 3000HD Flagship HD/SD Real-Time Graphics

Deko3000 HD is Pinnacle SystemsÕ real-time HD character generator with 3D effects. Deko3000 HD supports a wide range of broadcast functionality including content-independent 3D DVE transitions and sound effects, MOS and newsroom automation. Deko 3000HD is now switchable between native SD output and native HD output modes.

Deko3000 HD comes standard with internal clip record and playback functionality, providing full design creativity Ð without the expense of a separate video server. With Deko3000 HDÕs content-independent effects, you can change graphic content Ð even sound effects - without having to rebuild the effect.

Fully featured for news, sports and entertainment environments, Deko3000 HD provides the functionality to easily use your 4:3 SD graphics in the 16:9 HD format, thereby making your transition to HD easier, without duplicating effort.

¥ Industry-standard Deko power; ¥ 3D real-time DVE effects and motions; ¥ Clip playback w/matte; ¥ Unique SuperChannels-- one channel can do transitions from one graphic to another, with video clip and key. Competing systems may require here 2 or more channels and, in some cases, 2 or more systems to do the same; ¥ NEW: Switchable HD/SD available May 2005.

Pinnacle Deko version 4 Software upgrade for all Deko users

¥ New user-definable motion behaviours; ¥ Dual HD/SD Compose; ¥ Smart textures; ¥ Usability improvements; ¥ QuickTime export; ¥ Extended clip format support; ¥ Available summer 2005.

Pinnacle Thunder HD The Most Powerful Thunder Ever

Thunder HD is a flexible live production server, based on the Inflexion engine with the familiar and powerful Thunder application user interface. Thunder HD delivers enormous live production capability including real-time DVE transitions.

Thunder HD includes support for numerous video formats including MXF, and easily integrates to share content with Pinnacle Deko and Liquid, or other MXF-based broadcast devices. Available as a still store or with a clip option, Thunder HD serves video and key on each of its one to two channels and utilizes internal RAID 5 storage and dual power supplies, providing flexibility and speeding operations in your fast-paced live production workflow.

¥ Leading Thunder Capabilities: MOS, DVE Transitions; ¥ Native MPEG 2 MXF; ¥ 1 or 2 channels plus key; ¥ 1 TB storage+; ¥ 20 hours at 125 Mbps; ¥ RAID 5; ¥ Available autumn 2005.

New EDITING Products from Pinnacle Systems at NAB 2005

Pinnacle Liquid 6 The Next-Generation Editor

Pinnacle announces version 6 of its complete Liquid broadcast family of powerful real-time SD and HD video editing systems. The latest version of the Liquid software boosts the powerful foundation feature-set shared by all Liquid family products to industry-leading levels by adding true multi-stream native HD editing, format-independent real-time effects, integrated DVD authoring, advanced audio tools, Multicam support and a new highly intuitive interface.

¥ Multi-stream HD / SD ¥ Format Independent FX ¥ Multi-cam ¥ New audio engine ¥ Choice of I/O boxes including HD-SDI, HDV ¥ Improved Windows user interface ¥ Broadcast configurations available March 2005

Leading capabilities including: ¥ SmartEDIT Native Formats ¥ SmartRT Real-Time FX ¥ Background Render ¥ Advanced Collaboration ¥ Networked Editing ¥ InstantSave ¥ XSend / XReceive

¥ Liquid 6 Software Ð Provides true broadcast editing by combining a plug-and-play USB-2 based I/O breakout box with feature-rich software and support for MXF, MPEG-2 4:2:2, XML project export, Sony XDCAM and Panasonic P2.

¥ ChromeHD Turnkey System Ð Liquid chrome HD is the successor to the award-winning Liquid chrome product. Liquid chrome HD is a hardware/software package that offers all of the broadcast quality SD and HD I/O options, including HD-SDI I/O, to complement the native FireWire¨ support. With Liquid chrome HD, you can seamlessly connect to a variety of professional breakout boxes as well as output SD and HD to tape simultaneously.

¥ Blue Turnkey System Ð PinnacleÕs all-format broadcast editor has also been markedly enhanced with version 6. Liquid blue complements the new base software features of version 6 by adding unique features such as multi-speed SDTI capture, background capture and full DVCPRO50 support. Pinnacle Liquid blue is the first system to offer end to end native digital production in all formats, supporting DV, DVCAM, DVCPRO 25/50, MPEG-2, MPEG IMX, and uncompressed, all with faster than real-time SDTI transfer, both 2x and 4x.

New DELIVERY Products from Pinnacle Systems at NAB 2005

DekoCast HD
Complete HD/SD Production Edge Server

DekoCast HD is an advanced, cost-effective solution for a wide range of master control, channel branding and localisation applications. From weather alerts to coming attractions, DekoCast HD handles video, audio, clips and graphics all in one box. DekoCast HD is a turnkey combination of real-time character generator, video and audio clip player, audio mixer and router, multi-channel DVE and advanced keying engine. It is the complete solution for automated squeeze and crawl, squeeze and tease, credit sequences, and other broadcast combinations of re-scaled and positioned video with real-time playback of clips, graphics, and effects.

¥ HD / SD Switchable; ¥ Three uncompressed HD channels w/real-time effects; ¥ Powerful Deko real-time graphics, effects, transitions and audio capabilities; ¥ MPEG and DV video clips; ¥ Available autumn 2005.

MediaStream Media Gateway 3

This sophisticated interconnectivity software lets users transfer MediaStream video files directly to Liquid or other applications in networked environments. Media Gateway is a software application that runs on the ConnectPlus hardware option for MediaStream. Media Gateway version 3 enables networked users to read files from MediaStream, add additional audio channels (such as multiple foreign languages, up to 32 audio channels per video clip), add closed caption information, and write back to MediaStream. ItÕs also now certified for use with Liquid 6 on both SD & HD.

¥ Up to 32 audio channels remux (multiple languages); ¥ Closed caption remux; ¥ Available June 2005; ¥ (Interim version 2.5 that supports Liquid version 6 MPEG IBP SD/HD available April 2005).

www.pinnaclesys.com