SAN JOSE, CA--(Marketwire - August 13, 2008) -
Related Information:
Press Release: http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/2008/prod_080608b.html
Highlights / Key Facts:
- Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) is providing Internet Protocol (IP) video network
infrastructure and video-encoding solutions to NBC during the network's
coverage of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, August 8-24, 2008.
- Cisco's IP video infrastructure is enabling NBC personnel in New York
and Los Angeles to edit video as it is captured in Beijing and deliver it
to three screens: TV, PC and smartphones.
- In one of the single most ambitious media projects in history, NBC will
present more than 3,600 hours of broadcast coverage during the 17-day
event.
- Viewers of NBC's coverage of the Beijing Olympic Games will be able to
use their PCs and laptops to access 2,200 hours of video that they can play
back on demand, as well as 3,000 hours of highlights, rewinds, encores and
scoring results. Individuals will also be able to watch video and view
results on their smartphones.
- Through the comprehensive Cisco IP video network infrastructure and
video-encoding solutions, NBC was able to address the following technical
challenges:
- Creating a high-bandwidth, high-performance connection between Beijing
and NBC studios in New York and Los Angeles to give shot selectors and
editors in the United States the ability to edit video as it is being
captured in Beijing.
- Providing the quality of service (QoS) required to assign priority to
real-time Olympic Games video footage over the trans-ocean network.
- Encoding and transmitting low-resolution (low-res) video from Olympic
venues for broadband viewing. Low-res video uses far less bandwidth, which
enables NBC to provide Internet coverage of more Olympic sports.
- Using a single, converged IP infrastructure for a wide spectrum of
services ranging from the video delivery to data-intensive logistics
applications.
Tags / Keywords:
Cisco, NBC, Beijing Games, NBC Broadcast, NBCOlympics.com, IP, video, IP
contribution network
Links / URLs:
Quotes:
- "With the Cisco network solution, we've achieved the Holy Grail of
digital video, which is the ability to perform shot selections on
low-resolution files and extract high-resolution material from those files
even as they are being recorded. That is a huge accomplishment," said Craig
Lau, vice president for Information Technology, NBC Olympics.
- "Cisco is a trusted partner, and in the demanding IT environment of the
Olympic Games, we depend on trusted relationships," Lau continued. "We have
absolute deadlines for when Olympics coverage begins and ends. Cisco
technologies help us exceed expectations and meet our timetables in an
unforgiving environment."
- "We are making broadcast history, executing the creation, management
and distribution of digital video in a way that's never been achieved
before," said Tony Bates, senior vice president and general manager, Cisco
Service Provider Group. "We are entering the visual-networking era where
video changes everything, especially the way people connect with the
Olympic Games."
- "The Olympics is all about the experience. The next best thing to being
in Beijing is to be able to see the event coverage," Bates continued. "This
year, not only are thousands of hours of Olympic coverage being transmitted
in real time, but Cisco's IP video network and encoding technologies are
also giving people the ability to access hundreds of event videos on demand
using their PCs, laptops and mobile devices for an unprecedented Olympic
experience anywhere, anyplace, anytime."
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Date/Time Stamp: August 13, 2008, 5 a.m. (PDT)
**Cisco is not an Olympic sponsor nor a partner of an Olympic organization,
including the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Beijing
Organizing Committee (BOCOG).
About NBC Olympics
NBC, "America's Olympic Network," owns the exclusive U.S. media rights to
the Olympic Games, television's most powerful property, through 2012, which
includes Beijing in 2008, Vancouver in 2010 and London in 2012. From August
8-24, 2008 NBC Universal will present an unprecedented 3,600 hours of
coverage, highlighted by NBC in primetime with live swimming, gymnastics
and beach volleyball. In August 2004, 203 million viewers watched s the
networks of NBC Universal -- NBC, MSNBC, CNBC, USA, Bravo, Telemundo, and
NBC's HD affiliates -- offered a then record 1,210 hours of Olympic
coverage from Athens. For additional information, go to NBCOlympics.com, a
year-round destination for fans of Olympic sports, featuring news, Beijing
previews, athlete features, expert blogs, photos, Olympic video from the
NBC archives and social tools enabling users to build communities around
their favorite sports, post comments and blogs.
About Cisco Systems
Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide leader in networking that transforms
how people connect, communicate and collaborate. Information about Cisco
can be found at http://www.cisco.com. For ongoing news, please go to
http://newsroom.cisco.com.
Contact Information: Contact Information:
Press Contact:
Sara Stutzenstein
Public Relations
Cisco
770-236-2181
stutzes@cisco.com