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CTC Media Switches Broadcasting Format of Russian Channels to MPEG 4

October 30, 2012

 CTC Media, Inc. has announced a switch to broadcasting in the MPEG-4 format.

CTC Media has completed converting the TV signal of the CTC (feeds: 0, +2, +4, +7), Peretz (feeds: 0, +2, +7) and Domashny (feeds: 0, +2, +4, +7) channels to MPEG-4. The channels were previously broadcast using the MPEG-2 format.

Satellite fleet used for the uplink of the CTC Media’s television channels was also modified as part of the project. Capacity previously leased from Russian satellites was transferred to the new Intelsat 15 and Horizons 2 foreign satellites. As well as increasing the signal reception quality, the following failsafe mechanism is also now in place: the new satellites are in almost the same orbit, which means that if one of the satellites fails, receiving antennas will not require repositioning.

Sergey Petrov, Chief Broadcasting Officer of CTC Media: “CTC Media is continuing to follow its strategy as the leader in implementing new technologies. The switch to the new broadcasting format is the next stage after launching our modernized broadcasting playout facility in July last year and provides us with the technological capability to switch to digital broadcasting at anytime if necessary. We were able to complete this project in only four months. During this time, extensive work was carried out, requiring cooperation with our regional stations comprising 154 broadcasting facilities, and our partner network – 281 broadcasting facilities”.

Anton Gavrin, IT and TV Technology Department Director: “We continued broadcasting in both the old MPEG-2 and new MPEG-4 formats while the switch was made. During the project, broadcasting from the new satellites was started, landlines to signal amplification centers were laid and the compression equipment at the TV center was reconfigured. Receivers were supplied and configured at our regional stations and partner network, and our own regional network and partner networks were reconfigured. The new signal compression format will help us optimize expenditure on regional TV broadcasting thanks to the more efficient use of satellite capacity. Furthermore, we were also able to improve the reliability of the signal”.