Content area
Full text
Live broadcasting is no longer as big a challenge as it was a few years ago. Digital satellite news gathering vans, the mainstay for so many years, are sharing the limelight with broadcast backpacks.
The Indian market for DSNG vans continued to show a decline. In 2011, the DSNG vans market was Rs. 61.65 crore as compared to Rs. 71 crore in 2010 and Rs. 74.87 crore in 2009. Broadcasters count non-availability of higher satellite bandwidth in Ku-band as the main reason for this dive. Outright purchase is making way for rented vans, major vendors being Essel Shyam and Indiasign. The market for rental vans stood at Rs. 34 crore, contributing 55 percent of the total DSNG market. The smaller, new channels prefer to lease when required. This may change with the new more stringent net worth criteria policy norms issued by Prasar Bharati, where new channels need to be of a certain higher minimum worth. (The net worth criteria for uplinking of non-news channels and current affairs channels has been revised from Rs. 1.5 crore to to Rs. 5 crore; for news and current affairs channels from Rs. 3 crore to Rs. 20 crore; and for teleports to Rs. 3 crore.)
Regional and international news channels were the key demand drivers for DSNG vans market this year. In the southern parts of India, demand was brisk as many new channels including Reporter TV, KTV, Kochu TV, and Zee Telugu were launched. The year 2010-11 was projected to have huge demand for HD transmission by news channels but was hampered due to non-availability of higher satellite bandwidth in Ku-band and associated operating costs.
DSNG is being configured and is utilizing efficient encoding and modulation including MPEG-4, and DVB-S2. This ensures enormous cost savings in the transmission of high-quality HD content. Today's improved modulation with DVB-S2 (Digital Video Broadcasting-Satellite-Second Generation) and advanced video compression (AVC), H.264/MPEG-4, more powerful processors, amplifiers, and satellites combined with technologies like GPS and automation are enabling manufacturers to shrink DSNG systems and offer more portability and ease of operation. RF packages mount on standard vehicle roofs without requiring body work and turn an SUV or minivan into a DSNG truck. Automation points antennae, configured video, and uplink transmission parameters provide...