Inovonics has released two firmware updates — one each for the INOmini 635 FM SiteStreamer and INOmini 638 HD Radio SiteStreamer, respectively.
According to the company these updates will add RDS Radio Text Alarm features and modifies LED Header displays to the web interface.
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The company has provided instructions to aid in the download and installation of the updated firmware.
The updates for the 635, Rev. 2.2.0.0, and 638, Rev. 1.3.0.0, are available directly from the website. Other Inovonics equipment downloads are also available.
Send your new equipment news to radioworld@futurenet.com.
Info: www.inovonicsbroadcast.com
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LOS ANGELES — A company considered to be a “pioneer for managing, distributing and monetizing content” has received a strategic investment from Fox Corporation.
This, Eluvio says, is designed to accelerate the adoption of Eluvio’s platform across the broader media and entertainment industry.
As part of the investment, the companies also announced that Eluvio will provide the underlying technology platform for Blockchain Creative Labs, FOX Entertainment’s and Bento Box Entertainment’s recently launched NFT business and creative unit.
Fox Corporation’s investment marks the completion of Eluvio’s Series A round at a valuation of $100 million.
Paul Cheesbrough, Chief Technology Officer and President of Digital for Fox Corporation, will also join Eluvio’s Board of Directors.
Launched in 2019, Eluvio is led by technologists Michelle Munson and Serban Simu. The company’s Eluvio Content Fabric is an advanced, open protocol blockchain network purpose-built for owner-controlled storage, distribution, and monetization of digital content at scale. It provides live and file-based content publishing, transcoding, packaging, sequencing, dynamic and static distribution, and minting of derivative NFTs–all backed by blockchain contracts providing proof of ownership and access control.
Eluvio LIVE, powered by the Eluvio Content Fabric, is a multi-tenant turnkey platform for publishers that provides 4K streaming and ticketing of events with media marketplaces.
“At FOX, we believe that the blockchain, and the overall shift towards a more decentralized web, is providing creators with a wealth of opportunities to reach consumers with exciting new experiences,” Cheesbrough said. “Michelle, Serban and the Eluvio team are the best in the business when it comes to the software and scalable infrastructure required to power live, decentralized experiences across the blockchain and our investment will help bring this technology to a wider market of content creators, media partners and advertising clients.”
In May, FOX Entertainment and Bento Box entered the NFT business with the formation of Blockchain Creative Labs and a $100 million creator fund to identify growth opportunities in the space. As such, Blockchain Creative Labs will launch a dedicated digital marketplace for creator Dan Harmon’s upcoming animated comedy, KRAPOPOLIS, marking the first animated series to be curated entirely on the blockchain.
The company will manage and sell digital KRAPOPOLIS goods, including NFTs of one-of-a-kind character and background art and GIFs, as well as tokens that provide exclusive social experiences to engage and reward super fans.
Set in mythical ancient Greece and centered on a flawed family of humans, gods and monsters that tries to run one of the world’s first cities without killing each other, KRAPOPOLIS is fully owned and financed by FOX Entertainment and will be produced by Bento Box.
Additional news about Blockchain Creative Labs-driven content will be disclosed in the coming weeks.
— Editing by Adam R Jacobson
MultiDyne Video & Fiber Optic Solutions is bringing a new version of its flagship SilverBack-V series fiber camera adapters to market.
Ideal for content producers of live concerts, sports and other televised events, the new SilverBack-VB retains the main features required for HD, 4K and even 8K productions while streamlining the feature set for smaller budgets.
The SilverBack-V and SilverBack-VB both convert digital cinema cameras into SMPTE studio cameras for use in live multi-camera productions.
As such, a live production company can now mix and match digital cinema cameras.
“Digital cinema cameras were traditionally used for filmmaking, but a larger sector of content producers now desire these cameras for their 35mm and larger image sensors,” said Jesse Foster, Director of Product Development and Western Region Sales. “The larger imager size provides a shallower depth of field and greater emotion by having the foreground on a different focal plane than the background. Digital cinema cameras also bring 4K resolution, HDR and Wide Color Gamut, as well as 24fps support for film-like motion blur as well as high framerate acquisition for slow motion. These benefits are now available to users that could not achieve their storytelling goals because they were priced out of the market.”
The SilverBack-VB is a 1RU half-rack-width enclosure that provides a full-bandwidth fiber optic link between any 12G, 4K or HD camera and a truck, control room or video village position. The design puts more emphasis on video payload across four I/O options, including bi-directional 12G-SDI and 3G-SDI, while streamlining audio transport options to the essentials. Live multicamera production features such as intercom, genlock, timecode and serial data, along with front-panel status monitoring, are retained to optimize live cinematic production flexibility.
The SilverBack-VB is also vendor-agnostic. When paired with MultiDyne’s JUICE-48 power supply, users can operate on a hybrid cable and provide power to the camera, or use lightweight, robust tactical fiber and power the camera locally. The SilverBack-VB also adds PoE capability to power remote control panels and other production workflows over Ethernet – a first for the SilverBack series.
“The modular design of the SilverBack-VB ensures that the system can be customized with various types, amounts and directions of video inputs and outputs, while our agnostic approach provides no limitations to camera choice for our customers,” said Frank Jachetta, CEO at MultiDyne. “Our latest SilverBack innovation, one of our flagship product lines today, incorporates the proven connectivity solutions of MultiDyne’s decades of experience outfitting high-end, broadcast-quality production requirements.”
— Brian Galante
Borrell Associates has just completed the analysis of its annual local advertiser survey, conducted in April, May and June. The findings are now available for all to digest.
What’s the biggest takeaway?
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HOUSTON — A facility exchange agreement is in the works that sets the stage for a move of a Tropical-formatted Spanish-language operation branded as “La Calle.”
It involves Daij Media, and two religious broadcasting licensees.
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On the evening of November 15, 2020, outdoors enthusiast turned radio station owner Jamie McKibbin died in a boating accident near Tippecanoe, Ohio.
Now, the properties associated with his McKibbin Media Group are being transferred from his estate to his widow.
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) has selected an individual to serve in the newly created SVP/Innovation and System Strategies, effective Sept. 13.
He will be responsible for the development and implementation of a multi-faceted strategy to advance innovation and sustainability of public media through accelerating public media’s digital transformation.
Taking the role is Stacey Decker.
“Stacey is a strategic and creative thinker with more than two decades of innovative leadership in public media,” said Patricia Harrison, president and CEO of CPB. “He is a technology leader whose experience with broadcast technology, navigation, and communications systems was enhanced through five years of service in the U.S. Coast Guard. He will help CPB develop and create strategies and services to assist the public media industry in many areas, including implementing and leveraging the new Next Gen TV broadcast standard.”
For the last two years, Decker has served as president of Public Media Management, a media management and content distribution service, and chief technology officer at Signal Infrastructure Group, which builds and operates the physical and digital infrastructure to enable all broadcasters – commercial and public – to leverage the full power and revenue opportunities of ATSC 3.0.
From 2013 to 2019, Decker served as chief technology officer for WGBH in Boston, playing a key role in evolving the organization’s strategic planning, production, audience development, and technology direction. For 11 years before that, Decker held technology leadership roles for Nebraska Educational Telecommunication and South Dakota Public Broadcasting. He also served on the PBS Technical Advisory Committee from 2010 to 2016.
Between Clarksville and Jackson, Tenn. is the town of Camden, perhaps best-known as the closest municipality to the Patsy Cline plane crash memorial.
Camden is also home to an AM/FM combo and FM translator owned by an individual who recently passed away. Now, his stations are moving into a trust.
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Logitek Electronic Systems has moved its console manufacturing facility in Houston, Texas, to a new location a few blocks away.
The company had been in its previous location for about 20 years.
In its announcement, President Tag Borland said the prior plant was “analog only.”
“With our more efficient manufacturing methods and space-saving console designs that take up less room on the floor, combined with the fact that we haven’t been making VU meters for quite some time, we found that we could work just as well in a more streamlined space,” he said.
The company’s networkable AoIP products include the mixIT and Helix touchscreen-controlled consoles and the virtual console Helix Studio.
Its new address is 5403 Bissonnet Street, Suite B, Houston TX 77081. Phone numbers remain the same.
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The National Association of Broadcasters has announced that #GALSNGEAR, in partnership with the NAB, will host the Emerging Leaders Women’s Career Accelerator program at the 2021 NAB Show in Las Vegas. The one-day program will take place Tuesday, Oct. 12 and include multiple networking opportunities and two leadership workshops.
#GALSNGEAR works to ensure women in media tech gain visibility at industry events, access to the latest technology, and high-level networking and educational opportunities.
[For More News on the NAB Show See Our NAB Show News Page]
“We’re excited to partner with NAB to bring our Women’s Career Accelerator to NAB Show, empowering emerging leaders ready to advance their careers in screen media,” said director/producer and #GALSNGEAR founder Amy DeLouise.
The first leadership workshop, titled “Elevate Your Leadership Effectiveness,” will use a personalized leadership assessment and breakout sessions to help participants identify their natural leadership style, strengths, challenges and priorities. A second workshop, “Propel Your Leadership Brand,” will explore how to engage and align a personal leadership brand in-person and across digital channels.
Check out the current schedule of events.
“#GALSNGEAR educational and networking events at NAB Show have consistently supported and amplified women in media, entertainment and technology,” said April Carty-Sipp, executive vice president, Industry Affairs at NAB. “The #GALSNGEAR Career Accelerator brings together a new generation of leaders gaining valuable professional skills to advance in their chosen careers. I’m even more thrilled to participate in the program this year and do my part to help empower and encourage women in this business.”
For more information visit 2021 NAB Show.
The post #GALSNGEAR Announces Program for 2021 NAB Show appeared first on Radio World.
In Central Florida, Mike McClain has gained national recognition as the SVP/GM of FOX O&O’s WOFL-35 and WRBW-65 in Orlando and WOGX-51 in Gainesville-Ocala.
Now, the FOX operation along the I-4 corridor is getting attention for its choice of a video software provider that will support its rollout of ATSC 3.0-based broadcast TV signals in the market.
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Shure says its latest podium mic, the Microflex MX415Dual, is aiming to be a standout with two condenser cartridges for “delivering reliable, high-quality audio for high-stake moments.” The dual elements allow for more than one feed, for instance, a house feed and a multbox or broadcast feed. Or if one fails or is damaged there is another to carry on.
The MX415 is mounted on a 15-inch gooseneck. It has a cardioid pattern though the cartridges are swappable with other Microflex cartridges of different patterns.
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It outputs to twin 5-foot (1.5 meter) cables exiting from the bottom of mic, terminating in two TQG 4-pin female connectors that can connect to included in-line mic preamps with XLR connectors.
There is an integrated shockmount to minimize podium noise, foam windscreen and mesh ball grille along with communications RF shielding to go after mobile phone interference. It ships with mounting accessories.
Send your new equipment news to radioworld@futurenet.com.
Info: www.shure.com
The post Shure Intros Broadcast-Quality Podium Mic appeared first on Radio World.
LOS ANGELES — Earlier this month, the SXM-8 satellite completed in-orbit testing and was handed over to SiriusXM.
It’s the ninth high-powered, digital, audio radio satellite built by Maxar Technologies for SiriusXM.
A 11th one is on the way.
Westminister, Colo.-based Maxar late Tuesday (8/24) announced it received an order to build another geostationary communications satellite for longtime customer SiriusXM.
And, it follows the SXM-9 satellite order that was announced earlier this month.
SXM-10 will be built on Maxar’s 1300-class platform at the company’s manufacturing facility in Palo Alto, Calif.
Maxar has been building satellites for SiriusXM for more than two decades, including the first-generation Sirius satellites launched in 2000, the second-generation Sirius satellites launched in 2009 and 2013, and the company’s third-generation satellites, the last one of which was launched earlier this year.
“We’re proud to continue this relationship for both SXM-9 and SXM-10,” said Chris Johnson, Maxar’s Senior Vice President of Space Programs Delivery.
— Adam R Jacobson
Nexstar Media Group is partnering up with the company behind a streaming video network that provides extensive coverage of sports betting by way of a just-signed multi-year agreement that will see the launch of what’s being billed as the nation’s first-ever diginet devoted to sports wagering and fantasy sports.
Beginning September 1, SportsGrid Network from SportsGrid Inc. will be distributed across nine digital subchannels licensed to Nexstar in nine major U.S. markets: San Francisco; Washington, D.C.; Tampa-St. Petersburg; Portland, Ore.; Nashville; Norfolk; Grand Rapids; Knoxville; and Des Moines.
SportsGrid considers itself to be the nation’s “first and only 24-hour sports wagering and fantasy sports program service.”
That said, it is in many ways a competitor to such established brands as DraftKings, BetQL and VSiN, bringing Nexstar into a highly active and burgeoning non-traditional revenue stream for both television and radio in the broadcast media space.
At present, SportsGrid’s content is distributed across over-the-air broadcast and cable television, connected Smart TVs, a variety of streaming platforms, mobile devices and on the internet. The new network is being added to recently vacated digital sub-channels licensed to Nexstar.
At its launch, SportsGrid Network will feature 18 hours of exclusive live original programming hosted by a team of on-air personalities, sports and gambling experts, and guest contributors, as well as a variety of pre-produced programming and encore presentations of the network’s most popular shows.
The network’s mission: to provide real-time sports news, data, analytics, and statistics to engage sports audiences whenever and wherever they choose. SportsGrid’s reporting and analytic platform includes daily odds, lines, matchups, injury reports, statistics, news, and more across the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, college sports, golf, tennis, and soccer.
SportsGrid’s live programming originates from television production facilities adjacent to Madison Square Garden in New York and at the SG Studios & Production Hub, across the Hudson River in the state of New Jersey.
SportsGrid was founded by President Louis Maione. He said, “Nexstar’s national reach across 199 owned or operated television stations in 116 markets throughout the U.S. is a great platform for distributing our content to fantasy sports fans and gamblers everywhere. This agreement provides both companies the opportunity to share content and to strategically expand the network to additional Nexstar markets.”
Sean Compton, the former radio industry executive who today is President of Nexstar’s Networks Division, commented, “Our nation is sports obsessed and we are delighted to deliver SportsGrid’s programming to address the rapidly growing interest in sports betting and fantasy sports. Distributing SportsGrid’s programming across digital subchannels in nine of our markets will enable us to connect with new audiences and continue expanding a new and fast growing revenue stream.”
The severity of the global computer chip shortage has broadcast equipment manufacturers finding creative ways to manage supply channels while trying to meet product demand.
Despite the semiconductor shortages, people in the radio technology marketplace who spoke with Radio World say products are still being shipped, with mostly minor delays, thanks to prior planning. Equipment suppliers said they hope the semiconductor shortage will ease soon, perhaps by early 2022.
The pandemic has disrupted global supply chains for integrated circuits since early 2020, as factories closed and transportation was delayed. Surging demand for motor vehicles and other consumer electronic products, prompted in part by economic stimulus measures, have exacerbated the situation.
While some suppliers were reluctant to discuss workflow issues for this story, others confirmed that their difficulty in sourcing components has worsened in recent months. Broadcasters are primarily seeing delays on computers and computer-based audio gear, sources said, but even transmitter delivery dates are being affected in some instances.
The scarcity of chips has had an impact on HD Radio. General Motors this summer decided to exclude HD Radio on certain pickup truck models in the 2021 and 2022 model years.
HD Radio parent Xperi Corp. acknowledged there could be some “feature reductions in radios” in some cars but expressed confidence that HD Radio deployment in vehicles will continue to progress.
Global logisticsScott Stiefel, COO of Telos Alliance, said a series of unplanned events — including fires at two chip factories in Japan — combined with the pandemic to contribute to the shortage.
“The same challenges affecting the auto, computer or household electronics industry are there for us,” he said.
“Chip shortages, end-of-life issues for low-volume components, as well as global logistics problems. But without question, the factory fires at the AKM and Renesas Fabrication facilities have impacted the electronics industry, already taxed by the COVID-related shortages. The mass buying and stockpiling over and above the normal demand have also created shortages in both supply as well as in logistics. Again not directly attributable to COVID, but a side effect of consumer behavior.”
Inovonics President/CEO Ben Barber said chips and virtually all components have been affected.
“Earlier this year we made the decision to ramp up our purchasing in order to get ahead of the delays. Making this type of investment has been expensive, but at the same time we have the raw inventory to continue to manufacture all of our product lines without being backordered,” Barber said.
Prices for chips are up. One microprocessor for which Inovonics normally pays $14 is now $60. “And lead times have also been extended in many cases to 42 weeks plus,” he said.
The shortage has affected virtually all parts including ICs, SMD parts, power supplies and even metal chassis, Barber said.
Tony Peterle, manager in the Americas for WorldCast Systems Broadcast, said the radio technology sector has been affected by the semiconductor shortage like every other area of industry.
“Broadcast equipment is certainly no exception, but thanks to all our partners all over the world we have found immediate solutions and we continue to deliver,” he said.
Peterle said most of WorldCast’s broadcast customers are thinking far enough ahead to give his company solid estimates on lead times.
“Most broadcasters are obviously aware of the component crisis and they are planning their project timelines accordingly.”
Another observer who asked not to be named said there are only a handful of companies that make the analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog components used in phones, cameras and just about anything that converts audio between analog and digital.
And of those, only two major chip makers, Cirrus Logic and AKM, produce the kind used in most pro audio and broadcast products.
To make matters more difficult, the observer continued, AKM ADC ICs pinouts are different than Cirrus Technology’s equivalent ADC/DAC ICs, which makes it impossible to substitute one for the other without some redesign.
“A year or more out”The good news for broadcasters is that supply chain disruptions caused by the chip shortage haven’t necessarily resulted in immediate price increases for products.
“For now, we’re pricing our products based on our reserve inventories of components and materials, and re-evaluating by the month,” said Dee McVicker, a representative of Wheatstone. “We’ve been through volatile supply situations in the past — never this severe though, and one thing is always certain; things will change.”
She described lead times on important components as “insane.” Nevertheless, McVicker said, Wheatstone’s manufacturing runs haven’t been compromised.
“We do both production runs of some products and customized runs of others, and that hasn’t changed any. But since we’re our own plant, we can scale our production according to our own needs,” McVicker said.
“If we had to rely on third parties to manufacture our products, we’d probably be in a situation where we’d have to batch our runs or, worse, have long wait times competing for component availability.”
Several equipment manufacturers described extra steps taken to limit the effects of the shortage and control supply chain volatility.
“We are meeting daily with our vendors to make sure we can source chips and materials a year or more out. That takes a little bit of planning on our part and also close communication with our customers on their project time lines,” McVicker said.
IP audio codec maker Tieline said it manufactures its codecs in-house, which ensures as much control over the supply of critical components as possible; still, lead times have become exaggerated because of the chip shortage.
“We are definitely seeing lead times for components blow out, and it’s not always semiconductors that seem to have been affected,” said Charlie Gawley, vice president of sales for Tieline.
“For some components, average lead times of 26 weeks or less have extended out to 52 weeks or more. And in one case, as far out to 2024. As you can imagine, this adds an additional layer of complexity to ensure the bill of materials for each product is available for manufacturing when required.”
Tieline believes the chip shortage will extend at least into early 2022, Gawley said. “However, we do not expect to be impacted given our order placements for components already placed.”
Gawley said Tieline has been able to absorb any extra costs and has not adjusted prices.
Several equipment vendors told Radio World that the chip shortage is affecting their research and development efforts and work on new products.
Possibly softening the impact of the shortage is that more broadcast products now are based on software. However, “Our experience has shown us that not all products can be replaced by software,” said Todor Ivanov, CEO and owner of DEVA Broadcast. “Many of our devices are intended for use in the field and at transmitter sites where using PC-based solutions is not reliable enough. For all of those products, we have taken the necessary measures to make sure that no hardware shortages are experienced and that our customers can rely on our products at any given time.”
Sidebar: Steel Also Feels the Pinch Image: ERISteel prices in July were up 215% from 16 months prior, according to Fortune.
A worsening shortage may scramble supply chains and increase the cost of broadcast towers.
Tom Silliman, president of Electronics Research Inc., told Radio World in July that material for current projects was largely on hand and that work was continuing. However, he said, ERI’s supplier of steel for broadcast towers, O’Neal Steel, was unable to order additional material from steel mills other than what was on order.
“Rollings are closed at this time and there is not a date on when they will open them again. Definitely no additional orders for 2021,” Silliman said.
Prices for the material that goes into tower members are going up terribly, Silliman said.
“Some of the solid rod suppliers don’t want to sell any more solid rod tower material now because the cost of the material is so high. They would rather sell other material,” he said.
ERI designs, fabricates and installs self-supporting towers, guyed towers and antenna mounts used by the broadcast industry. As of mid-summer it was experiencing only minor project delays, due mostly to a shortage of guy wire insulators for AM towers.
“This causes a problem because it pushes our crews into late fall, causing higher numbers of weather days,” Silliman said.
For new tower orders, Silliman said broadcasters should expect higher material costs and long delays in receiving tower steel.
“Material delivery time is way out. In 2020, O’Neal Steal was quoting us six-week delivery of tower steel, and now they are quoting six-month deliveries. And since prices for material has gone way up, tower prices will have to go up, too.”
The post Chip Shortage Hits Radio Technology Marketplace appeared first on Radio World.
A Class B AM licensed to Horseheads, N.Y., that serves the Corning-Elmira market and reaches nearby Ithaca is being spun.
It’s a facility that was owned in recent years by Jim Leven and Bruce Mittman’s Community Broadcasters and later spun by Seven Mountains Media, the dominant radio operator in the market today, to a non-commercial religious entity.
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