News Broadcasting
vid’linkMobile made Olympics coverage easy: Beehive
MUMBAI: Beehive Systems’ says that Star News, Zee News and Doordarshan have successfully used its laptop-based digital newsgathering system called vid’linkMoblie to help them cover 2004 Athens Olympics.
The laptop-based mobile newsgathering equipment, vid’linkMobile was being used by the news reporters to transfer video footage through the course of the event over non-conventional mediums like dial up internet connection, says an official communique.
The advanced codec used in vid’linkMobile compresses the video almost 70 per cent more efficiently than other compression standards making sure at the same time that the video quality remains intact. The biggest value addition, claims the release, is that the cost of transferring the video from remote locations using vid’linkMobile is almost 80 per cent less than traditional mediums like VSAT, and leased lines.
According to the release, Zee News was able to transmit the video footage over a 3G mobile phone.
Speaking about how Beehive’s vid’linkMobile has benefited the channel, Zee News CEO Laxmi Goel said, “vid’linkMobile has helped us reduce the cost of covering Olympics significantly which would have otherwise been considerably large given the scale of coverage for an event as big as the Olympics. One other advantage is, since the system is laptop-based, it gives our reporters the flexibility to move anytime, anywhere without having to travel with traditionally bulky equipment which firstly needs considerable preparation to set up and secondly limits mobility.”
While Star News’ director operations Vynsley Fernandes said, “Using vid’linkMobile to cover Olympics has made lot of business sense for Star News considering that this system has helped us cover one of the biggest events of the decade at a fraction of the cost normally incurred by traditional mode of video transfer. Goes without saying that the quality and ease of handling is a phenomenal advantage in itself.”
According to Beehive Systems’ vice-president, business development Ajay Pal Singh said, “It’s a matter of great pride for us that such high-profile channels like Zee News, Star News and Doordarshan have relied on Beehive’s newsgathering solution to cover an event as prestigious and important as the Olympics. The clients’ feedback on the system’s performance and the impact it has had on their business has been very positive so far and there is no reason why it should not go on to bring about tremendous cost benefits for the clients by the time the event is over.”
Prior to this, the release claims that Doordarshan had used vid’linkMobile to cover the Iraq war and was able to achieve unprecedented views of the battlefield, which in turn had help the pubcaster to give a fillip to its TRPs.
News Broadcasting
Rajesh Sundaram joins NDTV Profit as senior editor, assignment
The 32-year newsroom veteran has launched channels on three continents and covered everything from 9/11 to South African television
MUMBAI: NDTV Profit has bolstered its newsroom with a hire who has done rather more than most. Rajesh Sundaram, a journalist with over three decades of editorial, managerial and consultative experience across India and international markets, joins as senior editor, assignment, tasked with sharpening the network’s newsgathering and real-time response.
Sundaram’s career reads like a tour of Indian media’s most formative moments. He began at Businessworld in 1994, moved to Zee News as bureau chief across Mumbai and Chennai, then joined NDTV in 2002 as part of its political bureau during a particularly febrile period in Indian politics. A stint as India correspondent for Al Jazeera International followed, where he covered key geopolitical developments and got his first serious taste of the global newsroom.
What sets Sundaram apart, however, is his serial channel-launching habit. At NewsX, he helped get the operation off the ground. At Headlines Today, part of the India Today Group, he served as editor. At News Nation, he helped launch the Hindi news channel and its digital ecosystem. He then crossed continents to lead the launch of ANN7 in South Africa as editor-in-chief, overseeing both television and digital. Back in India, he launched Tamil news channels News7 Tamil and Cauvery News, and later served as principal consultant for the launch of Marathi channel Lokshahi. Most recently, he helped build and lead the Press Trust of India’s video service and content studio, before stints consulting for Business Today and The Himalayan Times.
Rahul Kanwal, chief executive and editor-in-chief of NDTV, left little doubt about what Sundaram is expected to deliver. “The assignment desk is where a newsroom’s intent becomes action,” he said. “Rajesh brings a rare combination of field experience and leadership in building news operations at scale.”
Sundaram has reported from across India and the world, covering elections, civil conflicts, the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and the 2008 US presidential election.
At NDTV Profit, he will lead the assignment desk, driving editorial coordination and real-time response across markets and breaking developments. For a business news network sharpening its focus on speed and multi-platform delivery, it has hired a man who has built newsrooms from scratch on three continents. The assignment desk is in good hands.
