RTV Noord-Holland integrates Omneon Spectrum server system

RTV Noord-Holland, one of the 13 Dutch regional independent broadcast stations, has installed an Omneon Spectrum media server system into its all-digital facility just outside Amsterdam.
The station is using the Omneon system for ingest and continuous playout of programming to the province of North Holland, which has a population of two million.
"The major reason we shifted to the Omneon server system was that it provides an open architecture and modular design that will allow us to expand in just the areas we need," said Wiljan Pongers, head of TV facilities for RTV Noord-Holland. "We knew the Omneon system would operate smoothly with our existing Building4Media automation and Incite Editing systems, and we've found that it also offers greater reliability and stability than other server solutions."
An exceptionally cost-effective and flexible media server designed for the professional television industry, the Omneon Spectrum is built on an open architecture that allows it to support a broad variety of third-party applications for control and transmission, media management, archiving, and collaborative production. RTV Noord-Holland is using Pinnacle Systems' PDS 6000 switcher with the system, connected through Building4Media software to the Omneon system for live-assist and playout.
RTV Noord-Holland operators also use Building4Media software integrated with Incite editing tools to create and deliver content for broadcast transmission. The software manages machine control, router switching, input and output, and parameter settings for the encoding stations, enabling an efficient flow of content through the entire system.
The combination of the Omneon and Incite systems makes edited programs available for broadcasting as soon as editing is completed, and immediate export to the Omneon server system significantly reduces time to air. The Incite Media Manager M2 allows users to browse media on the Omneon Spectrum server and to arrange and export clip sequences to the server for playout.
The Omneon server installed at the RTV Noord-Holland facility features half a terabyte of storage and currently supports eight channels, which are used for full-time playout, ingest, and live assists in news production. The scalable, distributed architecture of the modular Omneon Spectrum server system offers facility engineers maximum flexibility in scaling system components and capacity in small or large increments as desired.
"The support that Omneon provided both in terms of installation and integration with other broadcast systems made for a straightforward transition to the new server system," added Pongers. "Because the Omneon system is modular, it also will be easy for us to update our installation in the future as new system capabilities are released or our needs change."
(GB)