Panasonic's P2 Takes Another Step Into Worldwide News Production

Panasonic's P2 system has made another significant move into worldwide news production.
The Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR) will now produce its news and its contributions for the ARD political magazines with P2-Camcorders. The ARD-studio in Brussels is already using the first camcorders.
After extensive tests the technicians in charge of this department are enthusiastic about the tapeless recording system. Jürgen Fischer, the program-group leader for “studios aboard” said: “In Brussels we have realised a nonlinear workflow for current coverage and reporting with the P2-system which is completely tapeless and allows us to have direct access to our reordered material. Also mobile editing can be realised smoothly without additional equipment. If necessary the camera can be connected to the NLE via the USB 2.0.”
In fast turnaround news, immediacy is vital. With the P2 system additional equipment can be kept to a minimum. Every cameraman and editor is happy when he/she has no additional equipment to drag along. Normally there would have be a transfer unit available for the “transmission” of the video and audio. Data from the P2 Cards or the final edit can now be played to transmission from a mobile transmitter straight from a notebook.
In Brussels, ARD-correspondent Rolf-Dieter Krause is more than happy with the new workflow capabilities of P2. “It is fantastic to be able to view the recorded scenes at the location without having shuttle backwards and forwards through tapes. I can see immediately if I am satisfied with my take for the Tagesschau (8 O’clock News) and quickly dump unwanted material to prepare for the next shoot."
In comparison with competitors the P2-system is the only recording system that manages without any mechanical parts. You can choose to record with data rates of 25, 50 and 100 Mbps depending on camera type and requirements. This is equivalent to the proven recording formats DVCPRO, DVCPRO50 and DVCPRO- DVCPROHD from Panasonic. So P2 is fully compatible with existing tape based equipment and can replace this bit by bit without having to change recording formats.
Around the globe the WDR is in charge of six ARD-TV-studios. The WDR-correspondents in Moscow, Paris, Brussels, New York and Nairobi have a key role in the up to date TV-coverage for ARD. Additionally the WDR reports together with the Norddeutschen Rundfunk (NDR) from the studio in Washington. Together the six studios deliver 35% the foreign coverage for “Tagesschau” and “Tagesthemen” (Late News).
(DS)