Raycom Media Selects Harris Corporation for End-to-End Broadcast Solution at 37 Television Stations

LAS VEGAS, April 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Harris Corporation , an international communications and information technology company, announced that Raycom Media Inc., has purchased an end-to-end broadcast solution -- including video processing, branding, and encoding systems and equipment -- for 37 television stations nationwide. The broad suite of equipment and software solutions will support large, fast-growing segments of the media market for high-definition TV, Internet Protocol TV, video-on-demand, and interactive TV applications. The Raycom systems are expected to be delivered on a scheduled basis over about two years, with the first four stations scheduled to begin deployment this month.

"This is a true end-to-end solution that illustrates the synergies resulting from our strategic acquisitions of Leitch and Aastra Digital Video and the infusion of Harris technology, which is sold through a consolidated sales force and focused on a major customer," said Tim Thorsteinson, president of the Harris Broadcast Communications Division. "The Harris video compression solution allows broadcasters dealing with bandwidth scarcity to create and distribute content anytime, anywhere -- providing new viewer experiences that generate additional revenue streams. We will continue to broaden our capabilities to provide customers a true end-to-end solution."

Raycom purchased Harris(R) NetVX(TM) ATSC encoding, the IconLogo(R) branding system and NEO(R) modular video processing products. Raycom television stations will use the Harris(R) NetVX(TM) platform for ATSC encoding of one high-definition (HD) and two standard-definition (SD) signals multiplexed through their existing ATSC transmission facilities. In addition to NetVX(TM), Raycom stations will deploy the Harris(R) NEO(R) advanced modular processing platform as a key component of the video processing strategy. Also included in the project are the Neural Surround(TM) MultiMerge(TM) audio processor and a Triveni Digital GuideBuilder(TM)-Pro centralized PSIP system.

The project allows Raycom to realize the benefits of key NEO(R) capabilities, including industry-leading, 3D-adaptive composite video decoding that allows for excellent SDI video quality (DAS-3901) and motion-adaptive SD/HD video and aspect ratio conversion with firmware keying that enables smooth field upgrades (XHD-3902).

Bob Thurber, director of engineering for Raycom Media, said, "It was important for us to secure a reliable processing and encoding solution that would see us well past the transition. Choosing the right product was critical; however, another key factor in our decision to go with Harris was their superior customer service. It's important for us to be able to go to one place for all of our service needs."

About Raycom Media

Raycom, an employee-owned company, is one of the nation's largest broadcasters and currently owns and/or operates 42 television stations in 18 states. Raycom stations cover more than 10.6% of U.S. television households and employ 3500 individuals in full- and part-time positions. In addition to television stations, Raycom owns Raycom Sports (a marketing, production and events management and distribution company in Charlotte, N.C.); Raycom Post (a post production facility in Burbank, Calif.); Broadview Media (a post production/telecommunications company based in Montgomery, Ala.); and CableVantage (a cable advertising sales group based in Columbia, S.C.).

About Harris Corporation

Harris is an international communications and information technology company serving government and commercial markets in more than 150 countries. Headquartered in Melbourne, Florida, the company has annual revenue of about $4 billion and more than 14,000 employees -- including more than 6,000 engineers and scientists. Harris is dedicated to developing best-in-class assured communications(TM) products, systems, and services for global markets, including government communications, RF communications, broadcast communications, and wireless transmission network solutions. Additional information about Harris Corporation is available at http://www.harris.com/

GuideBuilder is a trademark of Triveni Digital Inc.

Neural Surround and MultiMerge are trademarks of Neural Audio Corporation.