FOR-A and Aveco form strategic alliance
FOR-A and automation provider Aveco have entered a strategic alliance to provide video production, automation and asset management within one easy-to-use solution. FOR-A HVS Series production switchers, Insight video servers and ClassX graphics systems are now integrated with Aveco’s Astra Studio production automation and Gemini media management systems in a package targeting broadcasters – particularly mid-sized, small-market and public stations.
“We’ve been recommending FOR-A HVS Series switchers all over the world for years now,” said Jim O’Brien, Aveco president. “They’ve got incredible horsepower and performance at a price point no other vendor can match. We’re looking forward to adding ClassX graphics and Insight servers into our combined solution. FOR-A’s high-powered production capability and reputation for reliability together with our production and MAM makes for a very competitive and inclusive bundle for smaller and mid-market TV stations. Having this level of technical sophistication within an affordable and easy-to-use system is a game changer. We anticipate a very successful alliance with FOR-A.”
Astra Studio is a fully automated studio production system and the industry’s only multi-studio production automation design. Within Astra, a rundown can be moved from one studio to another with the push of a button. This includes all settings for the production switcher, graphics, virtual set/physical set, monitor walls, camera robotics, video roll-ins, audio, lighting, etc. Astra Studio is integrated with Astra MCR so both PCR and MCR automation are in the same system, eliminating ‘blips of black’ or upcuts between these two parts of broadcast operation. Both also work closely with Aveco’s Gemini MAM, a browser-based system that manages assets from acquisition through post for live production, playout and archiving. Astra Studio also integrates with the newsroom computer system via media object servers and plug-ins to streamline news production workflows.
Satoshi Kanemura, president, FOR-A Americas, said: “They’ve thought of every condition that may occur during a live newscast and included a solution. It’s an elegant technology that fits perfectly within our ecosystem. The combined capabilities of Aveco and FOR-A are unbeatable. Competitive products are far less customisable and much more complicated and expensive.”