Omneon, Inc. today announced that e.tv, South Africa’s only privately owned, free-to-air terrestrial television channel, has purchased two Omneon Spectrum™ media server systems, one to add capacity to the existing Spectrum server in e.tv’s 24-hour news production operation, and one to provide on-air ingest and playout.

“As a longtime Omneon customer, we elected to use Spectrum servers for our expanding operations because of their signature reliability and resilience in mission-critical environments,” said Dave Stewart, e.tv chief engineer. “Additionally, Omneon offers outstanding installation and technical support.”

At e.tv, the Spectrum playout server is under the direction of Harris automation while the Spectrum news production server interfaces with Apple® Final Cut Pro® for editing, and a Dalet newsroom computer system (NRCS). Adaptable to playout, production, and archive applications, the Spectrum system is the media industry's most scalable, reliable, and cost-effective video server and storage infrastructure. Spectrum servers incorporate an open and advanced architecture, providing a media facility with a readily scalable common server and storage infrastructure. Uniquely flexible and HD-ready, Spectrum servers offer a single file structure for both HD and SD content, potentially saving broadcasters the time, trouble, and complexity of setting up and maintaining individual storage for both SD and HD.

Launched in 1998, e.tv by 2001 had become the largest English-language station in South Africa and second-largest broadcaster in the country, a position it retains with current viewership at about 11.9 million. Its best-known programs include local series such as “Scandal,” “Rhythm City,” “The Showbiz Report,” and “Biggest Loser SA.” eNews, the broadcaster’s flagship news program, is the most viewed English-language news in South Africa.

“e.tv was a visionary when it adapted file-based workflows for news production with Final Cut Pro and Spectrum servers,” said Geoff Stedman, senior vice president of products and markets at Omneon. “Clearly it has proven to be a good choice, as the channel continues to expand its Spectrum system as its business grows.”

About Omneon
Omneon is a leading provider of flexible media server and active storage systems that optimize workflow productivity and on-air reliability for the production, distribution, and management of digital media. Omneon is a pioneer in the use of advanced IT technologies and open systems for broadcast applications, producing a modular and expandable video server architecture in the Omneon Spectrum. The company's MediaGrid active storage system delivers centralized content storage that is scalable in capacity, bandwidth, and media-processing power. The company has an extensive global presence with customers in 45 countries on six continents. Omneon is on the Web at www.Omneon.com.

About e.tv
South Africa’s only free-to-air privately owned terrestrial television channel, e.tv was launched in 1998. In South Africa, it is the largest English-language station and the second-largest broadcaster overall.

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