Tektronix, the video test, measurement, and monitoring solutions company, will partner with the Academy of Broadcasting Science (ABS) to establish a national digital broadcasting research and development laboratory for China‘s broadcast industry.
ABS is a part of the Chinese State Administration of Radio, Film, and TV (SARFT). According to an official release, the acceleration of TV digitisation, the maturation of video technology and the demands for China‘s television system to be upgraded has led the Chinese government to recognise the need to establish a digital TV testing lab that can accelerate the digitisation of the country‘s television industry.

Tektronix claims its award-winning solutions fulfill ABS‘ requirements to test and monitor a variety of signal formats. Tektronix‘ equipment will provide reliable evidence whether the country‘s consumers are receiving good digital video quality, whether the video is being broadcast in standard - or in high-definition.

The Institute of Standardization and Planning, a department within ABS, will use the new Tektronix WFM700M multi-format waveform monitors, MTG300 MPEG-2 generators, VM700T video measurement sets, MTS300 MPEG test systems, and TG2000 signal generation platforms in the lab. The equipment will be used to test specific characteristics of digital TV modulation and transmission, provide performance testing of digital TV decoders and set-top boxes, subjectively evaluate picture quality, and analyze the structure of the video signal.

Tektronix solutions will also be used in conformance testing, software evaluation, and will provide built-in system testing of digital TV products. The award-winning WFM700M is a measurement-quality multi-format waveform monitor that provides for the evaluation of the digital transport layer and digital analysis capabilities important in design, installation, and maintenance of 270MB and 1.485 GB component digital systems, says the release.

The TG2000 is a programmable, multi-format test signal generation platform that provides reference-quality test signals in both the analog and digital domain. It is used to generate standardised test signals for installation, timing and sync, maintenance, and design evaluation applications. The MTS300 MPEG test system, based on Emmy(R) award-winning technology, provides comprehensive analysis of MPEG-2 transport streams, while the MTG300 MPEG generator is a flexible, cost-effective source of MPEG-2 transport streams for design evaluation and conformance testing of compressed digital video products.

Established 44 years ago, ABS has completed many big projects such as the definition of black-and-white TV, color TV, frequency modulation broadcasting module and the building of preliminary broadcasting system in China.

Sun is getting into music mode with what it terms is the biggest statewide, inter-district singing competition in Tamil Nadu.
Held in association with New Age Entertainment, the contest will cover 29 districts of the state and Pondicherry. Over 100,000 singers are expected to take part in the auditions at an average of 3,000 per district.

New Age claims that the show‘s USP will be its mascot, Subudu, a well known music critic in Tamil Nadu. He will appear masked during the promotions to help enhance the brand equity of the programme starting from ground level in much the same way that Apple Singh promoted the 1999 Cricket World Cup on ESPN Star Sports. Plans are being finalised to rope in a press partner which will devote coverage to the event in terms of advertisements, contests and flyers.

The auditions will air on Sun TV‘s sister channel KTV on the prime band from Monday to Thursday. Three pre-finals conducted as mega events will take place in Madurai, Coimbatore and Pondicherry. Chennai will host the grand finale at the end of the 60th week.

Sun TV is also beefing up its programming with a family drama serial on the prime time band - Mughangal (Faces), a weekday series that premieres 24 June and airs between 10 and 10:30 pm. The show has been jointly produced with Sa Re Ga Ma, the Chennai based production house whose Soolam and Velan have already had a successful run on the channel. The serial, that marks the debut of Telugu film actress Ravali on the tube, revolves around a woman‘s battle to recover the family prestige back from a vengeful man. The story is the brainchild of novelist Sivashankari and has been directed by K Rangaraj of Kudumbam fame.

Feature films seem to getting the better of television software production houses.

The latest to bite the 70 mm bait is Creative Eye, which is producing its first ever feature film. To go on the floors in a couple of months, the flick will be a social film. While the concept has been in the pipeline for some time now, the details regarding the cast and crew are yet to be finalized, says Creative Eye executive director Wg Cdr D Dass.

The production house currently also has a 3D mythological feature film in the works, but is awaiting the required effects from overseas companies, he says. "Films are the natural corollary of TV serials," Dass explains the company‘s foray into the world of films. TV serials however will continue to remain Creative Eye‘s forte, with a slew of fresh shows scheduled to start on old faithful Doordarshan post October 2002. Also in the planning stage is ‘Super Kid‘, a 3D serial that will a first on Indian television. The show however is still in the ‘experimentation‘ stage, says Dass.

Creative Eye‘s library comprises of nearly 1,500 hours consisting of mythological serial, film based serials, socials, comedy, suspense thrillers and talk shows, valued by Price Waterhouse at Rs 340 million. The company also holds multiple telecast rights for three to five years of approximate 72 Hindi feature films, which can be re-cycled on all Doordarshan terrestrial channels .