Intelsat Delivers for World Cup Broadcasters; MPEG4 Compression a Favorite

The World Cup satellite dish farm is running in fine form according to Brian Duffey, Intelsat, director, special events, broadcast services, keeping customers happy, including the likes of broadcasters in World Cup hot beds like Brazil and Argentina, as well as broadcasters in Latin America and Japan.

The big change from the 2006 World Cup (and even the 2008 Beijing Olympics) is the reliance on MPEG4-based services as well as MPEG2

“Customers are comfortable with it now and we no longer have the latency issues,” says Duffey. NTT MPEG4 encoders have been the encoder of choice for Intelsat clients.

Intelsat has a cabin of equipment from various manufacturers near the satellite farm as it encodes and delivers content to the world via satellite uplinks and fiber connections into the Intelsat One network based in London. The Intelsat One network is a major hub for distribution elsewhere around the globe.

“We have about 3.5 tons of equipment, including NTT and Ericsson HD and SD encoders plus modulators, IRDs, spectrum analyzers, and more,” says Duffey.

Intelsat also has a presence in Cape Town, with an uplink with studio and live positions. That facility has serviced more than 150 non-rights holders.

“This has been a really positive experience and we’ve enjoyed it,” says Duffey of a staff of 13 that has rotated throughout the event.

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