Archive of the Company Announcements Category

POTTERS BAR, United Kingdom -Studer is continuing its well-received Studer Broadcast Academy program with training sessions for its Vista and OnAir digital mixing consoles. The free, half-day seminars will be held on May 10, July 12 and September 27 at the Soundcraft Studer facility in Potters Bar, United Kingdom. The training will be particularly useful for freelance engineers and in-house engineers with little or no experience with Vista or OnAir consoles.

Ex-BBC sound engineer Micky Curling will be conducting the sessions in Studer’s dedicated studios. They will provide a unique opportunity for attendees to get practical instruction and hands-on experience with the various consoles that are installed at the facility. To ensure that everyone has plenty of time to learn the capabilities of the consoles, the sessions will be limited to no more than six people per session.

Lunch, as well as morning and afternoon refreshments, will be provided. Participants will also be given a tour of the advanced production facilities where Studer consoles are manufactured, and visit the company’s on-site museum that houses classic Studer tape machines and Soundcraft mixing consoles dating back to the 1950s.

The dates and times for the seminars are as follows:

May 10, 2012 – Introduction to Vista (morning session)
May 10, 2012 – Introduction to OnAir (afternoon session)
July 12, 2012 – Introduction to Vista (morning session)
July 12, 2012 – Introduction to OnAir (afternoon session)
September 27, 2012 – Introduction to Vista (morning session)
September 27, 2012 – Introduction to OnAir (afternoon session)

In the near future, Studer will also be offering in-depth, full-day training on the Vista series consoles. Two levels are currently planned:

Vista Foundation: includes a product overview, use of the Vistonics(tm) user interface and general operation, connection with third-party networks including OPTOCORE and Aviom(r), and integration with Riedel’s RockNet and MediaNet.

Vista Intermediate: will cover more advanced topics including detailed examination of the console’s DSP functions, I/O formats, Virtual Vista remote control and system redundancy.

To register for a session, please visit the following website: http://www.studer.ch/support/training_UK_registration.aspx

HARMAN (www.harman.com) designs, manufactures and markets a wide range of audio and infotainment solutions for the automotive, consumer and professional markets – supported by 15 leading brands, including AKG, Harman Kardon, Infinity, JBL, Lexicon and Mark Levinson. The Company is admired by audiophiles across multiple generations and supports leading professional entertainers and the venues where they perform. More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and infotainment systems. HARMAN has a workforce of about 13,000 people across the Americas, Europe and Asia, and reported net sales of $4.2 billion for twelve months ending December 31, 2011.

Qube XP-D Servers with Barco Projectors Installed in 39 Screens


Los Angeles, CA: April 23, 2012… Digital cinema technology leader Qube Cinema will install 39 Qube XP-D servers for Kuwait’s main theatrical distributor – Kuwait National Cinema Company (KNCC) – completing the chain’s transition to digital cinema. Previously, Qube Cinema had partnered with KNCC to convert an additional 15 screens.


Real Image, the parent company of Qube Cinema, was the system integrator on the project, delivering a turnkey solution for KNCC, pairing Barco projectors with the Qube XP-D servers. Sixteen of the screens also include MasterImage 3D systems for playing stereoscopic content. With a number of recent installations in the Middle East, Egypt, Lebanon, East and South Africa, Qube Cinema’s presence is continuing to grow in the region.


“The choice was easy this time,” said Hisham Al Ghanim, general manager, KNCC. “We looked at several digital systems before adopting Qube, Barco and MasterImage for our first round of installs. We are very pleased with the technology and the support we received.”


The Qube XP-D server is fully DCI compliant and integrates seamlessly with all major Theater Management System software. KNCC will have around-the-clock access to Qube technicians who are able to remotely access a Qube XP-D server via its web interface, ensuring the systems stay up and running.


“We are proud to partner with Qube on this important roll-out for KNCC,” said Abel Garamhegyi, Barco vice president Growth Markets and managing director for India. “These converted theaters now have high-quality systems that allow them flexibility in a rapidly changing environment.”


The Qube digital cinema systems are easily upgradeable and can be outfitted for full 4K playback with the addition of Qube Xi 4K Integrated Media Blocks (IMBs).


“KNCC has always been a technology pioneer, and had moved to digital ahead of the market,” said Raja Enok, chief marketing officer at Qube Cinema. “They were one of our first customers in the region and we are delighted that they have now chosen Qube for their entire network.”


The Qube XP-D digital cinema server is available from Qube Cinema and its worldwide network of resellers. For more information visit www.qubecinema.com/products/XPD or see Qube during CinemaCon at booth #2013.


About Kuwait National Cinema Company (KNCC)
KNCC (Cinescape) has been the sole exhibitor in Kuwait since it was founded in 1954. Cinescape has pioneered the distribution and exhibition of Arabic, English and Indian movies in the Middle East. Cinescape’s investment in digital cinema continues to make it the leading entertainment provider in the region. In 2007, Cinescape theatres showed Taimour and Shafika, the first digital Arabic films to be released.


About Barco
Barco, a global technology company, designs and develops visualization products for a variety of selected professional markets. Barco has its own facilities for Sales & Marketing, Customer Support, R&D and Manufacturing in Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. Barco (NYSE Euronext Brussels: BAR) is active in more than 90 countries with more than 3,500 employees worldwide. Barco posted sales of 1.041 billion euro in 2011. For more information, please visit www.barco.com


About Qube Cinema, Inc.
Qube Cinema is an international manufacturer of Digital Cinema technology and mastering solutions. A subsidiary of India-based Real Image Media Technologies, Qube Cinema draws on decades of experience in media, cinema and entertainment. The company is committed to creating a seamless Digital Cinema environment for exhibitors, filmmakers and postproduction companies with technologies that are innovative, flexible and cost-effective. Qube Cinema’s product lines include the Qube XP series of digital cinema servers, Qube Xi 4K Integrated Media Block, QubeMaster software solutions, and Qube Keysmith KDM generation system. Qube Cinema, Inc. is based in Burbank, California. For more information, visit www.qubecinema.com.

LOS ANGELES—Director Joss Whedon and Cinematographer Seamus McGarvey, ASC, BSC recently employed ARRI Alexa cameras in a Codex/ARRIRAW workflow to capture principal photography for Marvel’s The Avengers. Produced by Marvel Studios, the eagerly-awaited Super Hero saga is slated for a May 4th release in the U.S. by Walt Disney Studios.
Marvel’s The Avengers is the first digitally-captured film for McGarvey, whose previous credits include The Soloist, Atonement and The Hours. In order to become comfortable with the new technology, the cinematographer conducted detailed tests with the ARRI camera and the Codex workflow technology during pre-production. “Shooting ARRIRAW with the combination of ARRI Alexa cameras and Codex Onboard Recorders made the transition to digital easy,” he recalls. “Everything worked flawlessly and the images look amazing.”

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Social Control, a technology studio that creates social apps for the world’s leading brands, is pleased to announce its selection as a Facebook Preferred Marketing Developer (PMD). It is one of 141 new companies invited into the prestigious program, bringing the total to 232 companies around the world.

The Facebook Preferred Marketing Developer Program recognizes companies that have developed technologies in one or more of the following specialty areas: Page management solutions, ads management solutions, services and platforms for building socially enabled integrations, and/or tools for Page Insights analysis.

“We are thrilled to be a part of this very exciting program, and look forward to continuously expanding our vast capabilities in Facebook application development,” says Seth Silver, Social Control CEO. “This is a dynamic time in the history of digital marketing and our team remains committed to the progression of social software.”

In the coming months, Social Control will be expanding its business model from a pure service offering to a hybrid of capabilities, including agency services and B2B & B2C proprietary social products. The company’s goal is to offer enterprise brands and advertising agencies a complete suite of social software, from custom application development and social enterprise software to integrated advertising in B2C social products, such as social games, utilities, and networks/portals.

Founded in 2009, Social Control touts a client roster that includes PepsiCo, Reebok, Cisco, and Johnson Products, as well as advertising agencies McCann Erickson, Ogilvy & Mather, and Weiden + Kennedy, among others.

Most recently, the company has created Facebook apps for Wendy’s, Ford, Tabasco, Staples, and Maybelline.

About Social Control:
Social Control helps some of the world’s leading brands connect with consumers by deploying innovative social media applications leading to deeper engagement, more focused brand communication, and greater business success. We are passionate about social media and its ability to transform the way consumers engage, interact and perceive our client brands.

For more info, please visit: http://socialcontrol.com/

Facebook® is a registered trademark of Facebook, Inc.

Las Vegas–April 19, 2012 – Audio specialist Sennheiser [booth C2632] was presented with an ACE (Awesome Cool Exhibit) Award by the NAB Show on Wednesday during a special ceremony. The peer-driven award recognizes NAB Show exhibitors for innovations in booth design and execution. Sennheiser captured the ‘medium sized’ booth category, which is defined as being between 200 and 900 square feet.

The judging criteria for the NAB’s ACE Awards are as follows:

– Creativity: use of color, sound, light and other creative elements
– Effectiveness: how well the booth draws in and engages the visitor
– Overall structure: quality of the build and innovative use of materials
– Peer review: overall “look and feel” as judged by other exhibitors

The NAB Show booth design is based on Sennheiser’s new global booth concept that was debuted at the CES and NAMM shows earlier this year and providesa tangible experience of the audio specialist’s brand values, inviting exploration and interaction. The interior space presents Sennheiser’s products in a series of ‘focused islands,’ each concentrating on a particular theme and providing visitors with a ‘hands-on’ experience. A sophisticated lighting concept spotlights each product and optimizes visibility.

This new booth design is yet another milestone in the audio specialist’s premium brand strategy. The design concept, developed by the German design agency Syndicate, was first brought to life two years ago in Sennheiser’s point of purchase program that was executed worldwide. Sennheiser is now consolidating the presentation of its brand profile at shows and trade fairs throughout the world.

“Our team is very proud to have been recognized by the NAB with the ACE Award,” commented Greg Beebe, President of Sennheiser USA. “Our U.S. team was the first to execute this important global concept from Sennheiser, and we have received a great deal of positive feedback from booth attendees — both during NAB Show and at other important U.S. trade shows.”

Over the coming year, the new concept will be used at all Sennheiser leading shows and trade fairs in the Consumer Electronics, Installed Sound and Professional Systems markets.

Military simulation show highlights renewed focus on raising performance and reducing cost of ownership.

Norway’s projectiondesign® returns to the ITEC Defence, Training, Simulation and Education show this year with the most comprehensive line-up of products it has ever offered to the defence training and simulation market.

FS33 IR makes its debut
Making its worldwide debut at ExCeL, London from 22-24 May is the FS33 IR, the company’s latest LED-illuminated projector to stimulate Night Vision Goggles (NVG) for unrivalled simulated night-time vision. Built around the manufacturer’s ReaLED™ solid-state illumination platform, the FS33 IR adds a fourth LED to the conventional red, green and blue light sources, emitting infra-red light beyond the range visible to the human eye. This produces brighter night-vision imagery when stimulated by NVGs and provides a completely constant light output over time, eliminating the need for recalibration, reducing the maintenance and total cost of ownership to an absolute minimum.

The FS33 IR offers a brightness of unprecedented 1200 ANSI lumens, being by far the brightest projector available that’s capable of realistically visualising night-time and limited visibility scenario, visible day-time or pitch black scenarios from one single channel input. The FS33 IR is optimised for NVGs of all generations, including Generation 3 and Generation 4, as well as versions using specific IR stimuli.

FL35 ReaLED™ line-up of LED projectors
projectiondesign now offer the FL35 ReaLED illumination projectors in three resolution variants (WQXGA, WUXGA and 1080p). The FL35 wqxga is the world’s highest-resolution LED projector and on the projectiondesign stand at ITEC 2012, it will be demonstrated in a breathtaking immersive dome display. Offering 100,000 hours of typical service life and double the brightness of projectiondesign’s previous LED models, the FL35 enables the deployment of higher acuity systems and reduced channel counts, making it an ideal visual platform for multi-channel simulation environments.

Immersive displays and breathtaking images
projectiondesign will be showing their F35 AS3D high-resolution active stereoscopic 3D projector in a maritime training and simulation scenario. The F35 AS3D projector will be integrated with 3D submarine content provided by TechViz and motion capture and systems from Vicon.

Additionally, projectiondesign’s F82 sx+ projectors will be integrated to showcase command and control monitoring. SXGA+ resolution users of systems that require 4:3 or closer to 1:1 aspect ratios optimise the usage of pixels. SXGA+ resolution has traditionally been hard to find in three-chip projection. It is particularly useful in simulation and training to address the burgeoning update market where many manufacturers’ legacy projectors require replacement due to age.

ITEC show wide support
As well as taking its own stand, projectiondesign is supporting a number of partners at ITEC, among them Simulation Displays, a division of Paradigm AV Ltd (Stand L100) – all of whom will use the manufacturer’s projectors as part of real-world simulation and training solutions. projectiondesign will also support the ITEC event with the provision of F12 projectors for the ITEC Keynote Welcome Speech held in the Platinum Suite, and breakout conference tracks in the North Gallery Rooms. All projectors on the projectiondesign booth will be displayed using the finest screens from Projecta.

Innovation Showcase and ITEC show hospitality
Additionally, on Wednesday 23 May as part of the ITEC Innovation Showcase, Håkon Andersen, projectiondesign’s Visual Simulation Specialist for APAC and EMEA, will present a paper titled ‘Solid State LED Projection For Full Mission Simulators’ – highlighting the end-user benefits of the latest LED technologies and applications.

On the same day, projectiondesign will participate in the exhibitor hospitality evening, serving traditional Norwegian delicacies and entertainment to ITEC attendees.

Maria Dahl Aagaard, Product Marketing Manager, projectiondesign, enthuses: “ITEC has always been a great platform from which to launch new initiatives in the military training and simulation space, and we are confident that our solutions will again be well-received by this demanding but receptive audience.

“We are looking forward to three days of exacting product demonstrations, productive partner initiatives, and informed conversations with attendees keen to learn more about how projectiondesign’s visual technology know-how can offer them new simulation solutions while simultaneously reducing their operating costs.”

projectiondesign will be on Stand H110 at ITEC from 22-24 May 2012 at the ExCel in London, UK.

Less is more for the Cinépolis Luxury Cinemas in San Diego, where Christie Managed Services has implemented cost effective boothless projection systems, powered by low-maintenance Christie digital cinema projectors, the most powerful and most trusted name for exhibitors joining the digital revolution. Boothless systems eliminate the need for traditional projectionist booth space and require no human operator.
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Located in the Del Mar Highlands Town Center in Carmel Valley, Cinépolis Luxury Cinemas features two traditional auditoriums and six with boothless projection systems, seating up to 74 guests, 3D and surround sound technologies, reserved seating options, and high back reclining leather chairs for the ultimate in viewing comfort. Designed and installed by Christie Managed Services as part of a complete customized solution, the boothless systems free up space for an additional row of seating that would normally have been taken up by the projection booths. Christie provided an all-inclusive, turnkey solution for a special lift system that enables the Christie CP2220 DLP Cinema® projectors to be positioned out of the way during normal operation and lowered for maintenance. The Managed Services Team at Christie also installed the audio system, screens, processing equipments, lighting, drapes, library management systems, playback and projection systems, in addition to designing and deploying the boothless capability. Recently, an additional six auditoriums were installed with Christie boothless projection systems at the Cinépolis Luxury Cinemas La Costa location in Carlsbad.
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“While we are South America’s largest theater chain, this is our first entry into the U.S. market, and it was critical that every aspect of our patrons’ movie-viewing experience was as perfect as possible,” said Carlos Wellman, managing director of Cinépolis Luxury Cinemas. “We selected Christie because they bring more than 80 years in the exhibition industry, and perfectly understand the old-world traditions of the finest movie houses and the next generation of digital technology to meet the sophisticated demands of today’s moviegoers.”
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Matthew Heyman, a Cinépolis consultant on this project added, “Christie’s boothless lifts create the space for Cinépolis to transform its theaters into a unique movie-going experience. These boothless concepts, like the ones Christie designs and installs, are transforming the digital cinema environment.”
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“Exhibitors are looking for solutions that enable them to reduce construction costs, while offering the design flexibility to transform older facilities to the look and feel of the luxury cinema,” explained Sean James, vice president of Managed Services for Christie. “Our customers need the benefit of technology without the complexity of integration or the burden of support to accomplish their design and cost reduction goals. We designed and built boothless systems that provide the right environment for the projector and isolate the audience from the noise and heat the projector and server generate while allowing the projection booth to be removed.”
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Christie Managed Services provides end-to-end solutions for projection and audio in the cinema environment as well as digital signage solutions for theater lobbies. It also offers service packages that provide exhibitors with support that range from 24/7/365 remote monitoring and technical phone support to on-site preventative maintenance/emergency service and fast, local access to spare parts centrally coordinated from Christie’s Network Operations Center.
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Cinépolis patrons agree that the theater chain got everything right. They rave about the ultra-comfortable high-back recliners and ushers that serve food and alcohol right at their seats in the 21+ theaters. The recliners also have buttons to call for additional service, and special menus are offered to match the theme of the movie.
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CinemaCon attendees can view a video that includes the boothless concept at the Christie booth #2111, and speak with a representative of the Christie Managed Services team.

LVL Studios, a leading service design company providing technology that drives interactive television experiences, has launched Purple – a comprehensive solution for creating, managing, publishing and deploying content for multiscreen experiences. The Purple platform provides the technology backbone for broadcasters, studios, cable operators, telecommunication companies, content owners and device manufacturers that unleashes the power of social TV, second-screen apps, and interactive viewing experiences. Today’s content is inherently multipurpose, and unfolds against the backdrop of the rise of second screen. Purple makes it easy for rights holders and creators to package and extend both the value and reach of their content.

Purple provides a full slate of features that enable content to be extended in a number of ways. The process begins with ingest of the material ready for customization, using existing Purple templates or custom-designed models. A Content Management System (CMS) delineates what material is used, and then accurately applies updates and changes. Its publishing capabilities provide flexibility in selecting which devices or media infrastructures to deliver the assets. Then, Purple deploys this packaged content, optimized for each platform, to multiscreens. more

FotoKem’s nextLAB, a powerful end-to-end software solution for film and television productions using file-based workflows, played a pivotal role in the production of demonstration footage to support the development announcement of the Canon Cinema EOS C500 and the Cinema EOS C500 PL for use with EF-mount and PL-mount lenses respectively. Both upcoming cameras will be capable of originating 4K (4096 x 2160-pixel) resolution digital motion imagery with uncompressed RAW output for external recording. The Cinema EOS C500/C500 PL are upcoming additions to Canon’s Cinema EOS System, a transformational line of digital cameras and lenses that applies advanced Canon digital imaging technology to cameras designed for professional cinematographers. FotoKem provided complete production support for the Cinema EOS C500 demo film, Man & Beast, which premiered Sunday, April 15, at the 2012 NAB Show.

From the early beta stages, FotoKem collaborated and consulted with Canon Inc. on the design of the first end-to-end, 4K production-to-post file system. FotoKem built nextLAB’s high-resolution pipeline on the Academy Color Encoding Specifications (ACES) architecture, making the EOS C500 the first Canon camera to take files from production all the way through post in ACES. more

Digital Vision returns in a supporting role to the Paris-based Film Factory, a global post-production company, in the finishing of Relativity Media’s Mirror Mirror. The beautifully stylized retelling of the Snow White tale, featuring Julia Roberts as the Evil Queen, is a visual feast, pushing post production and visual effects fully to express the filmmaker’s colorful vision. The project, which was directed by Tarsem Singh and shot by Brendan Galvin on the Sony F35, was completed at the Montreal-based facilities of Film Factory. Lionel Kopp, Founder of Film Factory and one of the world’s leading colorists, worked closely with the project’s creative visionaries, assisted by the expertise within Digital Vision to execute a dynamic color pipeline.

Mirror Mirror was directed, shot and produced by the same creative team that delivered The Immortals to audiences last year, and the design of the production-through-final color workflow had been developed for that earlier project. Like its predecessor, Mirror Mirror had a number of complex visual elements to manage and with the experience gained on The Immortals, this guaranteed a fast turnaround. The Film Factory’s process is centered on the Nucoda Film Master, which marries a powerful on-set solution to the final color pass. The Film Master system, which included a SAN and Nucoda Fuse assist station, was installed on set in Montreal. From the set, Kopp did a grading pass of the Sony F35 dailies, which were then sent to the editing room with the color settings. In some cases, a further grading took place prior to dailies screening in the DI suite with director and crew. Designing this system meant that the dailies – from the set through screening and ultimately delivery – were kept in a closely matched, carefully monitored environment. As he did for The Immortals, Kopp graded every take from the first day of dailies through completion of the DI. more