Eurovision Inks Deal with International Datacasting Corporation

International Datacasting Corporation announced details of a contract with Eurovision, operated by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). The agreement was one of the three Centient contracts announced by IDC on July 4, 2012.

To better serve affiliates within its European News Exchange, Eurovision has selected the IDC Centient Media Aware CDN Platform to migrate its existing linear content playout system to an encrypted, file-based content distribution platform. The file based Centient platform will ensure fast, secure, and reliable exchange of news content between 50 major broadcasters throughout Europe. Each broadcast location will be equipped with IDC’s SuperFlex Pro Data receivers.

Currently, broadcasters send breaking news content via satellite or fibre to the main Eurovision facility in Geneva. The content is delivered to the Eurovision news network via linear satellite feeds, which are recorded manually by the receive site broadcasters. Switching to the file-based Centient(TM) delivery system will help automate the delivery and reception process for Eurovision and its affiliates. The platform’s advanced application layer, Forward Error Correction (FEC), will improve the speed and reliability of content delivery.

IDC’s comprehensive Centient Media Aware Content Delivery Network (CDN) Platform enables files and streams to be delivered reliably by satellite or terrestrial links to a network of remote sites. Centient supports both a transparent Core Layer, where files and streams are treated simply as data, and an advanced Media Aware Layer which enables the platform to interpret, manage and process files and streams as media content.

“IDC is very proud to work with Eurovision,” stated Frederick Godard, IDC President and CEO. “Our Centient Media Aware functionality will enhance the speed and quality of news distribution across their expanding European market.”