Sweden’s TV4 rolls out new sport network with help of ATG Broadcast

ATG Broadcast has completed a second HD sports channel for Swedish broadcaster TV4. The contract was placed by Ericsson Broadcasting Services and centred on the expansion of an existing HD playout facility installed by ATG Broadcast in the first quarter of 2011.

“ATG Broadcast has worked efficiently and successfully with TV4 over many years,” comments Ericsson AB System Engineer and Chief Designer Pontus Wahlstedt. “Demand for high-definition services is increasing in Scandinavia, as elsewhere, in line with the growing popularity of large flat-panel domestic television receivers. This latest installation provides playout facilities for TV4’s SportXtra HD channel, which gives the network additional editorial capacity to focus on major events. The new channel was completed on schedule and went on-air in time to allow expanded coverage of the European Football Championship.”

“The SportXtra playout channel is fully equipped for 1080i operation and cabled to allow future expansion to 1080p,” says Senior Project Engineer Dave Whitaker. “Newly installed equipment includes Miranda up/downconverters for incoming lines, a Harmonic high-definition video server, Miranda Imagestore master-control switching, Cavena subtitling, Harris multi-rate routing, expanded Snell transmission matrices, Evertz multiviewer cards, and Axon glue.

The entire project was completed within a week of commencement.

“This is the latest in a long series of contracts TV4 and Ericcson have placed with us in recent years,” says ATG Broadcast Managing Director Graham Day. “It is a demonstration of our engineering team’s ability to design, install, and take to air efficient systems with minimal disturbance to the ongoing activity of broadcast-station staff.”