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Snell & Wilcox at IBC2007

Upgrades to industry-leading iCR mastering and repurposing workstation sets a new standard for lowest cost per deliverable

-- AMSTERDAM -- Sept. 7, 2007 -- The Snell & Wilcox exhibit at IBC2007 focuses on enabling broadcasters and content owners to master once and distribute anywhere in more efficient ways at the industry's lowest costs. The company will also demonstrate new solutions for live production and multi-channel broadcast playout environments.

IBC product introductions include iCR 2.5, a major upgrade of the industry's leading content mastering and repurposing workstation; Alchemist-IP,a file-based motion compensated frame rate standards conversion application; and the next generation of IMPAKT,the integrated 3-D DVE option for the Kahuna multi-format SD/HD production switcher.

The company's products on display at IBC simplify and enhance file-based video workflows, while helping content owners leverage their media assets across the rapidly growing range of delivery platforms with images of the highest quality, regardless of the target device or screen size.

Snell & Wilcox solutions for live production, broadcast playout, and mastering and repurposing enable the delivery of content optimized for the best possible picture quality to any media distribution platform. Products will be on display at the company's main floor stand (8.279) and in the IBC Mobile Zone (M397).

New / Upgraded Products at IBC2007

iCR 2.5: Upgraded version of the leading automated mastering and repurposing workstation At IBC2007, Snell & Wilcox will introduce iCR 2.5,a significant upgrade to its industrial content mastering and repurposing workstation, which further enhances file-based workflows to deliver the industry's highest image quality at the lowest cost per deliverable.

iCR 2.5 enables fully automated content mastering and repurposing with advanced real-time quality control (QC) monitoring. Because as much as 40 percent of a typical customer's ingested content needs to be re-encoded due to QC issues, the system's automated QC functionality is a key differentiator. Operating in both the stream and file-based domains, iCR?s automated QC tools enable it to offer the industry's lowest cost per deliverable by mitigating one of the most costly and labor-intensive components of the content repurposing value chain.

iCR 2.5 enables users to create high-quality, error-free digital masters of their content and then repurpose these for distribution on multiple revenue-generating platforms. The new version of iCR, being introduced at IBC2007, offers significant enhancements, including:

• Expanded and enhanced automated real-time quality control (QC) functionality for a wide range of 3rd party file types and video tape ingest
• Comprehensive QC review tools that generate detailed error reports and allow operators to review and annotate QC alarms
• Support for uncompressed video and an expanded range of codecs including DV, DVCPRO, and QuickTime, offering streamlined repurposing support for new devices like Apple TV, iPhone, Xbox 360, and web applications using QuickTime and Flash video
• Up to a 30 percent increase in overall repurposing speed
• Optional built-in Alchemist IP file-based standards conversion for MPEG-2 files, offering 525/625 motion-compensated conversion in the software domain
• Support for the AMWA-sponsored MXF Master File format adopted by major content providers and equipment manufacturers
• Real-time MPEG-1, WM9 and QuickTime proxies with burn-in timecode. Creates a more efficient workflow without the need of a separate proxy generation system.

Alchemist IP File-Based Standards Conversion Software Alchemist IP,a software-based version of the industry-leading Alchemist Ph.C standards conversion family, dramatically streamlines file-based international program exchange. Available on standard PC infrastructure hardware or as an integrated option to the iCR 2.5 workstation, Alchemist IP delivers transparent bidirectional conversion of file-based video, audio, and metadata between 50-Hz and 60-Hz television standards. Alchemist IP eliminates the need to decode, process in a tape-based environment, and then re-ingest content--a time-consuming workflow that can be costly and vulnerable to error. This new solution from Snell & Wilcox offers a radical improvement in quality over other software-based converters currently on the market.

Second Generation DVE Effects for the Kahuna SD/HD Multiformat Production Switcher New at IBC is the second generation of IMPAKT, the powerful 3-D DVE (digital video effects) option for the company's multi-award-winning Kahuna SD/HD multiformat production switcher. Shipping now, this second generation technology is available for all Kahuna products, including existing systems in the field, which can be upgraded simply and easily.

With the introduction of this second generation technology, the IMPAKT DVE now features twelve new effects and effects models that extend the image-manipulation capabilities of Kahuna operators while simplifying application of these effects during live production. These include circular 'pond' ripples, swirl, glow effect, warp, melt, and flat and 3-D shatter effects. Other enhancements enable greater flexibility through the use of preset triangular-based effects, trail-based effects, and a lighting generator. These new transition models complement the IMPAKT?s original effects offering, which includes spheres, slabs, zooms, warps, tiling, ripples, rolls and peels, fragmentation, lighting effects, and corner pinning.

With IMPAKT, Kahuna offers up to four twin-channel 3-D DVEs that users can apply in either SD, HD, or both, and which work in source-based or bus-based modes, allowing both background and fill-and-key manipulation. Offered across the whole Kahuna family, these advanced 3-D DVE effects and effects models are available through the switcher's mainframe and require no additional connections or extra rack space.

Also on Display at IBC2007

Alchemist Ph.C - HD Standards Converter A result of extensive research into HD frame-rate standards conversion, the new Alchemist Ph.C - HD yields converted images of unparalleled quality and clarity. Even the most dynamic inputs are delivered with stunning detail, free from artifacts and virtually indistinguishable from the original HD content. A complete standards and format conversion solution in a compact yet robust package, Alchemist Ph.C - HD offers HD frame-rate conversion for both 1080i and 720p standards, as well as SD standards conversion between 50-Hz and 60-Hz material and HDTV upconversion, downconversion, and crossconversion. Virtually artifact-free, low in noise, and high in detail and fidelity--especially in fast-paced HD news, sports, and live events--the Alchemist Ph.C -- HD allows users to leverage content around the world in virtually any standard or format without compromising quality.

Quasar Ph.C Motion Compensated HD Upconverter The Quasar Ph.C is the world's finest HDTV upconverter and the first to integrate motion estimation technology. Developed from the ground up to deliver the ultimate conversion to HD formats, Quasar Ph.C combines no fewer than three industry-leading, Emmy® Award-winning Snell & Wilcox technologies in a single compact 1-RU package. These include Ph.C motion estimation, DEFT 3:2 cadence correction, and Prefix compression pre-processing, in addition to FormatFusion HDTV conversion. Because it incorporates powerful Ph.C motion estimation technology, Quasar Ph.C delivers twice the resolution of other upconverters. This level of technology - and stunning HD quality - has never before been available at such an affordable price and in such a compact form factor.

More information about Snell & Wilcox products is available online at www.snellwilcox.com

Snell & Wilcox designs and builds the world's most advanced systems for video playout, mastering, repurposing, infrastructure, and live production switching. Providing solutions that deliver immediate value while enabling a controlled and cost-effective transition to HD and file-based systems, the company serves a worldwide base of customers in the broadcast, postproduction, cable, satellite, mobile TV, and IPTV markets. In business since 1973, Snell & Wilcox maintains its U.S. headquarters in Burbank, Calif., and European headquarters in Hampshire, U.K. Additional offices are located in New York, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Lebanon, Malaysia, and Russia. Further information is available at www.snellwilcox.com.

Press Contact: Susan Warren, Wall Street Communications, Phone: +1 631 261 1013. E-mail: susan@wallstcom.com.

Snell & Wilcox, Putting Pictures to Work, iCR, Ph.C, Prefix, DEFT, FormatFusion, and MOLE are trademarks of the Snell & Wilcox Group. All other trademarks mentioned herein are acknowledged as property of their respective owners.