Clear Channel Satellite,announces the deployment of the first XtremeSat Media™ satellite broadcast distribution platform for TeleSouth Communications Inc. TeleSouth purchased the system to deliver 10 high-quality audio channels to its affiliates and company-owned radio stations from its uplink located in Jackson, Mississippi. TeleSouth has also entered into a multi-year agreement with Clear Channel Satellite to provide satellite capacity for the distribution of its programming, and with the new technology, they were able to significantly reduce their occupied satellite bandwidth and monthly recurring costs.
“Recent technology advancements have made it much less expensive to operate your own multi-channel satellite network,” remarks Mike Hagans, President, Clear Channel Satellite, referring to the XtremeSat Media™ platform exclusively distributed by CCS. “The new uplink and receiver platform allows syndication providers who have their own uplinks to replace their aging and inefficient receivers and head-end gear with a system that is much more bandwidth efficient. The new system has dramatically reduced monthly recurring costs, while providing advanced features like AAC audio, spot insertion, and an intelligent fallback feature that automatically uses an alternate carrier, streaming audio or receiver-stored content when needed.“
The XtremeSat Media™ system is the first of its kind to provide large network functionality at a small and medium sized network price point. The system will operate on C or Ku Band uplink systems and is capable of a single stereo audio channel or can be easily expanded to deliver up to 64 stereo channels in an MCPC configuration. The XtremeSat Media™ Media Content Receiver (MCR) comes with one or two stereo analog and AES/EBU outputs, balanced, high quality audio on XLR connectors. The unit features eight tightly audio-synchronized relays, expandable to 16, two AAC formats (and several MPEG choices), and the ability to seamlessly transition from SCPC (single channel) to MCPC (multiple channels) for expanding networks. The receiver also features Smart Fallback to alternate RF carriers or Shoutcast web stream, web interface for settings and status, outbound IP audio stream for monitoring and FTP upload of receiver status reports and event logs. The 200 series MCR is also capable of store and forward audio, copy-split and fall-back to receiver-stored content. This new state-of-the-art satellite receiver is manufactured in Germany by 2wcom in cooperation with CCS, and is available worldwide exclusively through Clear Channel Satellite. The receivers come standard with a two-year warranty. The USA Warranty Center is maintained by Clear Channel Satellite handling all repairs at its Denver, Colorado facility.
Bob Exum, Sales Engineer for Clear Channel Satellite said, “XtremeSat Media™ is the system we have been anticipating for years. The legacy SCPC audio systems that have been the mainstay for broadcast networks have served their time and the XtremeSat Media™ system is the logical replacement to take broadcast network distribution into the next generation.”
Houston McDavitt, Director of Engineering for TeleSouth Communications said, “When I began my current position, I inherited a 17 year old satellite distribution system. The hardware was out of production and there was little support for the system. When I started exploring the options to replace it, they were extremely limited. Either a huge, expensive platform or more old technology were the only choices. When Bob Exum of Clear Channel Satellite presented the XtremeSat Media™ solution, it looked like a perfect fit. From that point forward, the Clear Channel Satellite support staff and 2wcom have spent countless hours tailoring the system to fit our needs. I cannot say enough about their efforts to ensure the smooth integration and expertise in all things satellite.”