Southern Cross Television Chooses Quantel for Move To Digital

Australian broadcaster Southern Cross Television has purchased two Quantel Newsbox HD systems to handle its complete news ingest, production and playout needs.
One system will be installed at Southern Cross Television's Launceston headquarters and the second at the broadcaster's Hobart site, which covers the south of the island.
Owned by the Macquarie Media Group, Southern Cross television is one of Australia's leading cross media companies, with regional broadcasting operations across the country. In addition to locally acquired and produced news content, the Tasmanian operation works in partnership with Australia's national commercial broadcasters to cover national and international news.
The two Newsbox HD systems were purchased to drive the transition from a tape-based news workflow to a fully digital, server-based model, while also accommodating integration of feeds from the national sources.
In selecting the Quantel solution, Southern Cross conducted extensive evaluations of all the available systems on the market with a particular emphasis on maximising ROI.
Grant Wilson, Director of News at Southern Cross, said: "The system choice needs to be right for us given we are making such a huge step from an 80's style operation to contemporary workflows. The system had to be robust and offer efficiencies as well as benefit our look and content. The Newsbox product is, in my view, the best solution available with an off-the-shelf answer to our present needs and a path forward into HD acquisition. I look forward to driving the Quantel gear very hard because I know I can take it!"
Jon Sharp, Quantel Regional Sales Manager, said: "The Newsbox solution is a perfect fit for Southern Cross, providing all the workflow and quality benefits of a fully integrated, digital news production system in a simple, easy to use package."
(KMcA/BMcC)