Monitor keeps watch over Austrian video links

Edited by the Electronicstalk editorial team Oct 8, 2004

Austrian broadcaster ORF has selected the Pixelmetrix DVStation monitoring platform to continuously monitor the quality of its video links.

Austrian broadcaster ORF has selected the Pixelmetrix DVStation monitoring platform to continuously monitor the quality of its video links.

DVStations and DVStation-Remotes are used at each node to verify the correct functioning in a real-time, all-the-time manner.

The same platform also allow in depth troubleshooting if anything goes wrong.

ORF decided on the DVStation platforms because of their completeness of features including content validation, PCR jitter analysis and extensive measurement logs which allows historical data to be retrieved for more in-depth analysis.

"Simultaneous multi-user access to all monitoring devices is a key benefit in the ORF application".

"If there seems to be a problem with the incoming video stream, each locally responsible engineer can easily check from his desk, whether the same problem exists on the other side of the transmission chain".

"This allows for fast and efficient error isolation", says Reto Brader, Pixelmetrix General Manager, EMEA.

The ORF network uses a high-speed fibre-optic backbone network built on ATM which carries video, audio, telephony and computer data.

Distributed throughout the network the Pixelmetrix DVStation continuously monitors MPEG-2 video and transmission quality.

"With the DVStation product portfolio Pixelmetrix and ETAS (Pixelmetrix distributor in Austria) have been able to offer a complete quality surveillance and troubleshooting solution to ORF while meeting their tight budget".

"Not just have we delivered the products, also Pixelmetrix has trained over 40 engineers on effectively using the DVStation products".

"This training has been facilitated in Vienna, while all the engineers were doing the training on their own DVStation in their region using the remote login facility of the DVStation", says Walter Winzel, Sales Manager, ETAS Vienna "We are very happy with the Pixelmetrix solution, and we have already decided to extend this system by using the Pixelmetrix DVS-Remote COFDM measuring and monitoring tools for our first DVB-T transmitter stations that will go into service for a test period from Q2 2004 to the end of this year", says Alexander Hetfleisch, Project Manager with ORF.