7 February 2011
Thomson Video Networks announced that Bahrain-based satellite service provider Noorsat is powering its rapid growth with an extensive and flexible Thomson headend technology solution. Over the past two years Thomson has worked with Noorsat to scale its operation up to a current 63 channels delivered over six transponders.
During the two-year project timeline, and as Noorsat’s requirements grew, Thomson’s extensible architecture has allowed the satellite operator to maintain security of service while growing the infrastructure during continuous on-air operation.
The Thomson Video Networks installation for Noorsat comprises a range of encoders including the ViBE EM1000, connected to NetProcessor 9030 Multiplexers and the Thomson XMS management system. This highly flexible infrastructure delivers extremely efficient bandwidth and gives Noorsat complete freedom to customize its services in response to demand.
“The ability of Thomson Video Networks to implement our requirements progressively without disrupting on-air service has been crucial to the success of the project,” said Marwan Al Tal, vice president sales and marketing for Noorsat. “During the development phase of the project, Thomson ha s consistently delivered leading-edge technology to support Noorsat’s continual growth. The architecture we have created with Thomson’s products means we are able to adapt quickly, and customize our services to rapidly-changing demand from our customers.”
Noorsat was established in 2004 and is the first privately owned satellite service provider to the Middle East and North African region. Operating a fleet of five satellites and transmitting more than 200 television and radio channels, the company aims to provide solutions for both large and small broadcasters at competitive prices, through optimized space segment capacity and state-of-the-art facilities.
“This has been, and continues to be, a very satisfying project as we work closely with Noorsat through a rapid evolution in services and technical infrastructure,” said Christophe Delahousse, president of Thomson Video Networks. “In a short space of time, Noorsat has built an outstanding service across the Arab world and its neighboring countries.”
The ViBE SD MPEG-2/MPEG-4 AVC encoder provides benchmark performance for SD encoding in satellite and terrestrial broadcast applications, high-end IPTV operations, and content aggregation. Combining compression efficiency features and the latest pre processing techniques, the ViBE SD MPEG-2/MPEG-4 AVC encoder can be configured as single-channel or multi-channel units, to offer the reduced footprint and lower power consumption per channel. Each channel can be independently configured for MPEG-2 or MPEG-4 encoding, extending the possibilities for hybrid applications. Both encoders employ the Dolby Digital and AAC audio compression formats and support up to eight stereo pairs of audio.
