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This is what 4.6 m look like.

Were talking about the diameter of one of CBCs uplink antennas in the new Cologne Broadcasting Center.

production and international playout of live coverage of German Bundesliga soccer matches fully equipped for HDTV

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COMPANY REPORT

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The new Cologne Broadcasting Center in Germany

CBC has recently launched one the most modern broadcasting centers worldwide. It goes without saying that such a major project was not put into operation over night, but rather was a stepby-step process spanning several months. In mid-2010 the first production units were able to move to the new center, we learn from Achim Pauly, head of Communication & Marketing at CBC. Today, all companies and networks of German media enterprise RTL Deutschland operate from the new CBC, which is located in premises directly on the banks of the Rhine river. What formerly used to be exhibition halls has turned into a top-notch and one of the leading media and broadcasting centers in the world, even though youd be hard pressed to notice that right away, with historic facades meticulously preserved. Within the RTL media group CBC is in charge of production, post-production, technology, IT and content distribution. CBC

Cologne

Achim Pauly is the head of Communication & Marketing at CBC. Here

he is seen right at the heart of CBC, overlooking the inner courtyard of the former exhibition halls on the Rhine river.

Open IPTV Forum 650, Route des Lucioles F-06921 SOPHIA-ANTIPOLIS Cedex France

Tel: +33 4 92 94 43 83 Fax: +33 4 92 38 52 90 Email: contact@oipf.tv Website: www.oipf.tv

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 If you look

between the two huge antennas you are able to catch a glimpse of Cologne Cathedral, the citys unmistakable landmark sight. Media journalist Luo Shigang from Shenzhen (China) is up on the roof and puts the sheer size of the antennas into perspective.

was responsible for planning and implementing all structures and processes of the new broadcasting center in relation to production, broadcasting and IT, and now runs the operations. RTL media group is a leading media corporation whose portfolio consists of fully-owned free TV channels RTL Television, VOX and n-tv, as well as shareholdings in RTL II and SUPER RTL and pay TV channels RTL Crime, Passion and RTL Living. Mido Fayad heads the broadcasting department and has some in-depth information: Here in Cologne our broadcasting engineers and technicians look after the RTL, VOX and Super RTL networks for Germany, Austria and Switzerland, as well as the special interest channels RTL Crime, RTL Living and Passion. In addition, we distribute the n-tv news channel from here. Our second location in Munich/Grnwald takes care of RTL II for Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

CBC is also the broadcasting center of choice for a number of content providers outside the RTL media group, such as Channel 21, for example, whose program is also distributed via CBC. Not only is CBC in charge of the technical aspects of broadcasting and playout, but has turned into an full-service provider. According to Fayad, the new broadcasting center features four fullyfledged studios, a range of sets for TV productions, as well as in excess of 70 post-production units. We also produce German Bundesliga live coverage for distribution outside Germany. On behalf of Sportcast we offer complete match coverage and produce highlight segments in foreign languages. CBC is live on air on all 34 match days of the year and distributes Bundesliga broadcasts to more than 180 countries around the globe. Project manager Wilfried Klinke steps in to add that all technology used is fully HDTV compatible. RTL, VOX and RTL

All signals from RTL media

group are beamed to the satellites from this spot. These uplink antennas are located at CBC in Cologne right on the banks of the Rhine river.

II are offering their channels in HDTV at this point, says Klinke. Naturally, each network or channel decides independently whether or not to offer HDTV. We even have experience with 3D productions, Wilfried Klinke hastens to add, providing further proof of CBCs technical capabilities. Originally, CBC was an offspring of the technical department of the VOX channel, which in its early days was positioned as in infotainment channel within the RTL media group and thus was equipped with state-of-the-art production and broadcasting equipment right from the start. CBC employees Wilfried Klinke and Mido Fayad have been with the business from those early days. When the VOX technical department became CBC in 1994 they were two specialists among 50. These days CBC has a staff of 500, 40 of which are in charge of broadcasting, which at CBC is called distribution. A much larger share of employees is needed for contribution, which basically means content production. One of the high points at CBC is its electronic archive. All broadcasts of RTL media group channels are saved in file format, Mido Fayad explains while leading us to a high-security area of the building which houses the so-called Contentbank, a term CBC uses for its enormous file-based archiving system. 9 petabyte of storage capacity are required to hold more than 160,000 hours of content. Burnt onto CDs and stapled one on top of the other you would end up with a 16 km high pile of CDs; and thats without jewel cases! Looking at this impressive electronic archive a question that comes to mind is availability of stored content from

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the early days of RTL channels. We did have digital recordings, explains project manager Wilfried Klinke, but back then they were stored on video tapes. Those tapes had been archived in an area covering more than 2,000 square meters and using complex air-conditioning systems. In the course of several months we converted that data into files and fed them into our electronic archive. Achim Pauly adds that at CBC we have a totally tape-less workflow, with all processes being file-based. CBC has extended its tape-less workflow even beyond its own premises by setting up a network linking major German cities, London and New York for exchanging content contributions. This network is based on a fibre-optic backbone and can be used to hook up studios live on air via video-over-IP. For live coverage from places with no local studios CBC runs a fleet of SNG vehicles. Susanne Jumpelt, head of Broadcasting Sales & Marketing, has all the details: Our SNG vehicles are located in Berlin, Munich and Moscow, as well as two in Colgone. This strategic positioning allows quick access to almost all places in Germany and Europe. If you look up to the roof of the multistorey car park next to the CBC premises an impressive antenna farm soars high into the sky. Of a total of 37 antennas a whopping five feature diameters of 4.6 m and are all used for signal uplink. Mido Fayad, head of the broadcasting department, explains that four of these giants are in permanent use, with three antennas pointing to ASTRA 19.2E and one to EUTELSAT 9E. The fifth 4.6 m antenna serves as back-up. So what happens if a heavy downpour moves through Cologne and reliable signal uplink may be compromised due to the weather? Will all channels of RTL media group go blank for satellite viewers? No way, because the weather is under constant observation here at CBC and as soon as a thunderstorm approaches we immediately switch the uplink from Cologne to our outlet in Grnwald near Munich. Their antennas take over all uplink tasks within a matter of split seconds.
1. Project manager Wilfried Klinke in the antenna operating room. He reveals that hes been a loyal TELE-satellite reader from day one in 1981. 2. One of the workstations in the main switching room. This is where satellite antennas are controlled using CBCs in-house PilotSat software.

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 13 broadcast playouts in Cologne

and the Network Operation Center. 60 distribution channels are monitored and controlled in this NOC.
[Photo: CBC/Dirk Schwarz]

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1. Maicel Pancke is one of the broadcasting engineers in the NOC. 2. Susanne Jumpelt (centre) is the head of Broadcasting Sales & Marketing. Apart from Teleport services she offers CBCs SNG vehicles on the market, whose transmissions are then received and distributed via the main switching room.

Viewers will hardly notice anything other than possibly some interference for tenths of a second, during which satellite receivers need to re-sync. This way we are able to achieve extremely high reliability and 99.999% signal uplink to the satellite. The summer

months are particularly prone to frequent thunderstorms which result in numerous uplink shifts between Munich and Cologne. We have noticed in recent years that severe weather events are increasing, Mido Fayad notes. Yet, broadcasting reliability does not

stop there. Four diesel generators with an output of 2.5 MW each can take over power supply at CBC in case a power failure in the public grid occurs. Our emergency power supply is designed to provide enough energy to keep all technical installations up and running, emphasises Wilfried Klinke. And it can run endlessly, provided the tanks keep getting topped up with diesel fuel. Even though to date this contingency plan never had to be activated it just goes to show how diligently CBC makes sure nothing can stop the production and distribution of content. Only the latest technology is good enough for CBC everything runs without tape and this is an ideal base for exploiting alternative distribution channels (such as IPTV, video-on-demand or mobile applications) as well. Even 3D is not out of the question for CBC, since all technical components do not only support full HD but are also 3D compatible. The future has already arrived at CBC.
3. This is what the CBC Contentbank looks like. Behind a glass panel there are rows of stapled data carriers. Mido Fayad, head of the broadcasting department, and his colleagues look after this huge content archive. 4. Meet Jrgen Lieder: He manages the main switching room and what he loves most is to coordinate the global playout of German Bundesliga soccer matches. Here he can be seen preparing the broadcasts of the upcoming match day.

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