ExCeL London Installs Outside Broadcasting Facilities with BT

Sunday May 14, 2006

ExCeL London - April 2006 - After listening to feedback from a number of clients, ExCeL London has been working with BT to install Optical Fibre within the venue to allow live events to be transmitted (live or delayed) direct to the BT Tower. Four separate fibres have been installed which can be routed to the north or south lorryway. There is also additional capacity for extra fibres.

Commenting on the outside broadcasting facilities, Kevin Murphy, Deputy CEO & MD Exhibitions, ExCeL London: "This is fantastic news for our clients, as many of them use outside broadcast at their events. The new cables enable us to provide a high quality, flexible and reliable service, which will accommodate any variety of events and feeds. The extra capacity also means that we will be able to manage all the broadcast needs for the London 2012 Olympics events at our venue and any other future demands."

The new facilities mean that for clients wishing to organise live coverage from their events at ExCeL London, BT can arrange for one of their Outside Broadcast vehicles to be positioned at the venue and provide the interface between the production facility and BT's nationwide fibre network direct to the BT Tower. The signals are then passed from the BT Tower, via permanent fibre links, to the relevant studios for any necessary editing, production and onward distribution to viewers.

The BT service has already been used to broadcast the recent world championship boxing match at ExCeL London and is also lined up for the forthcoming BP AGM and Christ Embassy International Events.

Notes to Editors:

The TVOB services are:

  • Fully digital with dual stereo
  • High bit-rate digital transmission at 24 mbit/s or 140 mbit/s (satellite trucks usually have 8mbit/s or 15mbit/s available). For two-way transmission, the 140mbit/s eliminates time 'lag' often experienced when using satellites
  • Eliminates possibility of being intercepted or hijacked by pirates
  • BT can tailor its services to meet clients exact requirements - from a single-vision outside broadcast for a few hours, to a multiple vision lease running 24 hours a day for several months
  • BT can also provide ancillary services to run alongside the main transmission e.g temporary ISDN or telephone lines and additional audio facilities
  • For more information, please visit www.broadcast.bt.com

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