NTV Moscow selects Rascular for precision channel branding control technologies

NTV Moscow has ordered and installed six channels of Rascular’s Commander-IS and Commander-PC technologies as well as six channels of Mediant-IS.

NTV Moscow has turned to Rascular for manual channel branding control technologies for the launch of two new channels: NTV Moscow HD and NTV Moscow SD. The deal has been overseen by Rascular partner OKNO TV.

NTV Moscow has ordered and installed six channels of Rascular’s Commander-IS and Commander-PC technologies as well as six channels of Mediant-IS. Commander is a software-based set-up and control tool that gives broadcasters easy and complete access to all the functionality of Grass Valley Imagestores. Settings can be quickly changed and problems resolved via any Windows computer from a powerful and intuitive user interface.

Mediant is a media management system for branding devices, allowing PC-based, drag-and-drop media management, automatically converting assets to the required formats. It also provides device monitoring.

There are six Grass Valley Imagstores in the new playout chain: one HD channel main and backup; one SD channel main and backup; and a preview channel for each service. Mediant is being used to move channel branding elements from central storage to the branding units and for the deletion of old graphical elements. Commander is being used to provide Imagestore control from a central workstation, for example moving the graphics onscreen when required.

Valery Potapov, Head of Automated Broadcasting Department, NTV Moscow, said, “The installation is part of a major project to migrate to HD broadcasting and to allow simulcasting of HD and SD services. These services benefit from new playout chains. Rascular’s software is important to us because it allows very easy and effective remote access to branding devices and assets, meaning that operators can precisely control the onscreen look as and when required.”

Ephraim Barrett, Sales Director with Rascular, said, “We have had considerable success in Russia, in no small part down to the efforts of OKNO TV. NTV is a major brand in the Russian market and we’re glad that it has once again selected our technology to help drive its channel branding, particularly crucial when launching new channels.”