by James Careless
Not so long ago, satellite news gathering (SNG) trucks were large, lumbering tractor trailers loaded with huge C-band dishes, single channel transmitters and multi-person crews. But times have changed, and even with the advent of high-definition television (HDTV) forcing news gatherers to carry more equipment, today's SNG trucks have become smaller, multi-channel capable and operable by a single person.
HD Taking Hold In North America and Europe
With the conversion to HDTV well underway in the United States, adding HDTV production equipment is starting to become a priority for SNG uplink operators.
Atlanta-based Crawford Communications recently completed upgrading its capability to provide standard-definition services and already has begun adding HDTV capability, says Paul Edwards, Crawford Communication's director of transportables. Pacsat International, headquartered in Sacramento, Calif., recently purchased four HD encoders and is modifying its 11 uplink trucks stationed across the country to handle HD signals, says Eddie Maalouf, Pacsat's head of radio frequency engineering.
For Crawford Communications, the biggest challenge is paying for its HDTV upgrades, which involves more than just buying the encoders, says Edwards. "The investment to do this properly is substantial," he says. "We could follow the example of some other truck operators and simply add HD encoders. However, if the trucks don't have [integrated received decoders] and test equipment onboard to monitor the HD uplink, we can't be sure that the signal is getting out properly."
While HDTV equipment costs are an issue for Pacsat as well, what concerns Maalouf more is keeping up with ever-increasing customer demands. "There was a time back in the analog days when broadcasters were content with a single channel uplink," he says. "Now they want multiple channels; all going up at the same time. As well, many just want to plug their camcorders into the side of our trucks to get back to their master controls. This means that our trucks have to have everything necessary onboard to make this possible."
At present, HDTV uplink requests are still a small part of each company's business. "I get between five to seven enquiries about HDTV uplinks a month," adds Maalouf. "Maybe one will come through as an actual shoot." Pacsat does more than 10 standard definition shoots per week, while HD orders are about one per week, Edwards says.
In Canada, where the transition to HDTV is lagging a few years behind the U.S. rollout, Toronto's TV2Go is building "what may be the first HDTV uplink truck in the country," says Adrian Hepes, TV2Go's technical director. "Besides equipping it with a dual C-/Ku-band antenna, this tractor-trailer will carry two more dishes; one for satellite broadband and the other to pick up DBS (direct broadcast satellite) signals. This will allow our customers to have Internet access wherever they go, voice over IP, telephony and the ability to monitor their live feeds over DBS."
Hepes expects to be doing HD sports shoots for CTV, Global TV and other Canadian networks. However, he will not know how busy TV2Go's HDTV truck will be until it hits the road later this year.
European content managers such as Globecast also are stepping into the HDTV arena. "We have one HDTV truck already working in Spain, two coming online in Paris and one in Italy," says Rich Wilde, Globecast's technical advisor for news and special events. All of these units are contracted to sports broadcasters.
Wilde expects 2006 to be a breakout year for HDTV in Europe, spearheaded by demand generated by soccer's World Cup, which begins in June in Germany. "Almost all the broadcasters we've been giving quotes to for that event are requesting prices for HD and SD uplinks," he adds. "They are waiting to see what technological advances will occur and what the costs will be a year from now when they have to commit themselves."
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