WWAY-TV picks Vizrt’s TV in a box solutions and virtual trackless studio
Bergen, Norway – January 27, 2014 - WWAY-TV, the local ABC station in Wilmington, North Carolina has chosen Vizrt, a leading provider of content production tools for the digital media industry, to develop a trackless virtual studio to enhance its live programming. WWAY-TV has replaced its hard set, ageing control room and standalone cameras with robotic cameras, Viz Virtual Studio and Vizrt’s TV in a box solution to provide complete graphics-led newscasts controlled by just one operator.
The new on-air look has already proved successful, helping WWAY-TV to attract new audiences and improve viewer ratings.
“The solution had to be cost-effective first, and secondly reliable,” said Billy Stratton, WWAY TV3 chief engineer. “We now have a system that’s easy to use and also totally flexible enough to allow us to present different looks for our shows in ways we never could before with a hard set.”
The installation at WWAY-TV includes two 3D graphics rendering and video playout platforms (Viz Engine), an easy to use GUI (Viz Trio) and highly flexible “trackless” virtual set software (Viz Virtual Studio) all supplied and implemented by Vizrt. The Viz Trio software is used in tandem with Viz Engine to play out all graphics and clips to air and as the automation dashboard.
The new studio includes four fixed Panasonic pan/tilt/zoom cameras and a green-screen backdrop upon which three basic “looks” are inserted into the main program output (for news, sports and weather). The Vizrt technology also allows live video to be inserted into virtual background monitors on set.
“WWAY is using Viz Trio as their switcher and automation system combined,” said David Jorba, executive vice president of operations at Vizrt Americas. “We’re providing broadcasters with the option to eliminate all of their legacy gear and replace it with a new way of thinking about how news production and broadcast is accomplished. It’s all done through a single interface, instead of several different pieces of equipment, saving a great deal of money. It results in an extremely easy workflow that can be created and edited throughout the production process right up to playout.”
WWAY’s system has been running so successfully that its sister station, WXXV-TV, (a Fox affiliate in Gulfport, Mississippi) has also installed a similar system to streamline its news production processes. The improved on-air look of both stations has already attracted viewer attention and improved ratings. Morris Network (the owner of the stations) is now looking to replicate the model at some of its other television stations located throughout the states of Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina and Tennessee.
About Vizrt
Vizrt provides real-time 3D graphics, sports analysis and asset management tools for the broadcast industry - interactive and virtual solutions, animations, maps, weather, video editing and compositing tools. Vizrt's products are used by the world's leading broadcasters, including: CNN, CBS, Fox, the BBC, BSkyB, Al Jazeera, ITN, ZDF, Star TV, Network 18, TV Today, CCTV, and NHK. Furthermore, many world-class production houses and corporate institutions such as the Stock Exchanges in New York and London use Vizrt systems.
Vizrt is a public company traded on the Oslo Main List: VIZ, ISIN: IL0010838154. For further information please refer to www.vizrt.com
Copyright © Vizrt. All rights reserved. This press release contains forward-looking statements with respect to the business, financial condition and results of operations of Vizrt and its affiliates. These statements are based on the current expectations or beliefs of Vizrt's management and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results or performance of the Company to differ materially from those contemplated in such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties relate to changes in technology and market requirements, the company’s concentration on one industry, decline in demand for the company’s products and those of its affiliates, inability to timely develop and introduce new technologies, products and applications, and loss of market share and pressure on pricing resulting from competition, which could cause the actual results or performance of the company to differ materially from those contemplated in such forward-looking statements. Vizrt undertakes no obligation to publicly release any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
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