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JSAT Expands Distribution Capacity With Snell & Wilcox Infrastructure

JSAT maintains seamless distribution, centralizes control and monitoring

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HONG KONG — September 7, 2004 — JSAT, the largest satellite operator in Asia, has expanded its video distribution capacity, supported by a complete set of Snell & Wilcox IQ Modular intelligent infrastructure products for conversion, processing, distribution and encoding. JSAT has also acquired a Snell & Wilcox RollCall control and monitoring solution for the system.

Koichi Sonoda, Manager of JSAT’s System Engineering Division, said, "In line with our customers' needs, we have increased the number of channels we can handle. As we did so, we needed to ensure that the entire distribution system is seamless, fast and easy to monitor. We evaluated a number of solutions and found that Snell & Wilcox could provide the best real-time, centralized solution with the best control and monitoring. We can remotely make timely adjustments to individual modules and equipment as well as quickly identify any possible system fault."

With Snell & Wilcox's system, program content including embedded audio from the satellite or SDI signal undergoes frame synchronization and is fed to a master switcher for program selection and transmission. Transmitted programs can be monitored when composite video and audio signals received from the satellite downlink are converted to SDI and fed to multi-viewing equipment.

Mark Parlett, Managing Director of Snell & Wilcox Asia Pacific Limited, said, “We have provided a system that will ensure reliability at every level of the process. Our IQ Modular systems are designed to bring efficiency to the control room despite ever-increasing numbers of channels.”

The IQ Modular range offers a wide choice of modules and enclosures, with customizable control interfaces that are designed to support the broadest array of activities while still maintaining ease of use and control. All essential information about any module—its status, setting, menu structure, configuration details, and PC window—is held on the card itself, for instant access by the central control system. This system integration allows users to configure video, audio, digital, analog, SD and HD functions all in the same box that takes up just 16 modules per 3-RU enclosure.

RollCall is a PC-based application that enables remote control functionality, monitoring of status and error condition, and gathering and viewing of error and status information reported from all equipment present on the RollCall network.

The key IQ Modular System components being used by JSAT include:

• Module IQDAFS—ensures that SDI signals with embedded audio will be frame-synchronized ready for transmission;
• Module IQBAAID—enables SDI signals to be reliably embedded with analog audio tracks ready for transmission;
• Module IQDAMDA—allows distributed analog composite video to be converted into SDI signals and frame-synchronized, ready for transmission.

ENDS

Snell & Wilcox, the leader in its field, delivers technologies and products that enable television and satellite broadcasters, post production facilities, film makers, and communications professionals to move content seamlessly between analog, digital, high definition, and file-based systems and to bridge the world’s multiplicity of line/field and color standards. The company provides switchers and keyers, standards conversion systems, networked infrastructure components, and products for noise reduction, image enhancement, and restoration. In business since 1973, Snell & Wilcox Ltd. maintains its Asia headquarters in Hong Kong and European headquarters in Hampshire, United Kingdom. Additional offices are located in New York, California, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, Lebanon, Malaysia, and Russia. Visit www.snellwilcox.com for more information.

Snell & Wilcox Asia Pacific Headquarters Contact: Mark Parlett, Managing Director, Snell & Wilcox Asia Pacific Limited, Unit E, 10/F, China Overseas Building, 139 Hennessy Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong, Phone: +852-2356-1660, Fax: +852-2356-1603 or Email: mparlett@snellwilcox.com.hk Web: www.snellwilcox.com.

Asia Pacific Press Contact: Genevieve Hilton, Managing Director, All Rivers Public Relations, Phone: +852-3106-3961, Fax: +852-3106-3962 or Email: genevievehilton@allriverspr.com.

Americas Press Contact: Laura Schoeggl, Wall Street Communications, Phone: 253-404-0020. Email: laura@wallstreetcom.tv.

EMEA Press Contact: Karen David, Wall Street Communications Europe, Phone: +44 (0) 1865 310422. Email: karen@wallstreetcom.tv.

Snell & Wilcox, Engineering with Vision, Alchemist, Ph.C, Kudos, Magic Dave, IQ Modular, RollCall, RollTrack, Mosalina and Kahuna are all Trade Marks of the Snell & Wilcox Group.