Verizon Business Unveils Advanced Version of Its Digital Media Platform

Broadcast and Entertainment Companies Virtually Worldwide Can Now Use the Platform to More Efficiently Manage, Edit and Deliver Digital Media Content

April 24, 2006, LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Verizon Business today unveiled a new version of its flagship digital media platform to enable broadcast and entertainment companies virtually worldwide to more efficiently manage, edit and deliver digital media content.

The new version, part of Verizon Business’ ICF Media Platform family of software-based products and services, supports the National Television System Committee (NTSC) signal, the standard for North America, Central America and Japan. As a result, broadcast and entertainment companies in those regions can now use the platform.

Earlier versions of the ICF Media Platform support the Phase Alternate Line (PAL) broadcast standard commonly used in much of Western Europe, including the United Kingdom, Germany and Holland; several countries in South America and Africa; and the Middle East, Asia, Australia, New Zealand and other islands of the Pacific. North American users could deploy the media platform with the PAL version, but only with pre-recorded content that needed to be reformatted.

At the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) trade show here (South Hall, Booth SL2403), Verizon Business is demonstrating how the media platform integrates with existing production systems to streamline content distribution in virtually any format to any device, including EVDO-enabled products from Verizon Wireless.

In addition, Verizon Business plans to roll out in the third quarter of this year a version of the media platform that supports high definition TV (HDTV) signals. With this version, customers will be able to maintain high-definition quality as they store, edit and deliver content through virtually any distribution channel -- including Internet protocol TV (IPTV), personal video players and other portable wireless and mobile devices.

“The digital media marketplace is exploding, and Verizon Business is helping to transform how the broadcast and the entertainment industries do business,’’ said Ron McMurtrie, group president specialized services for Verizon Business. ”As telecommunications and entertainment converge, Verizon Business is helping customers – through our advanced platform and global IP network -- to control costs and simplify their operations by efficiently managing and distributing digital media content from virtually anywhere at anytime.’’

Previously, taking digital content from a "rough cut’’ through editing, finish-out and distribution involved a process that often included deploying a wide array of systems and formats, which could drive up the time and expense of production.

The ICF Media Platform is easy to use and implement and is designed for industry producers and directors, content aggregators, post-production personnel and independent film directors, as well as mobile/broadband and IPTV operators.

Customers can use the media platform for editing, consolidating and distributing content to a wide variety of formats and devices, including a desktop computer, IPTV, personal video player, a mobile phone or any EVDO-enabled wireless device. The platform is ideally suited for remote rough-editing, content logging, broadcast archiving and digital asset management and viewing "digital dailies’’ from the field.

Because customers have the flexibility to manage digital content pre-recorded or live using Web-enabled devices, the platform can help accelerate production cycles. Customers can use a software product installed at their premises, or a hosted edition that takes the advantage of the intelligence and security within Verizon Business’ global IP network and numerous data centers.

Industry experts expect demand in the worldwide content and retrieval services market to increase significantly. IDC’s "Worldwide Content Management and Retrieval Services 2006-2010 Forecast: Storing, Accessing, Organizing, and Delivering Unstructured Information Within the Enterprise’’ projects a five-year compound annual growth rate of 15.7 percent by 2010 [IDC #35076].

“Companies in content-rich industries continue the rapid transformation to digital assets. Assets that traditionally have remained in analog formats (music, photographs, images, video) are increasingly being created and stored as digital assets. Companies need to formulate strategies for digital asset management,’’ the March 2006 IDC report states. ”The need is strongest in industries that supply media and intellectual resources, such as media and entertainment, publishing, education and government.’’

Verizon Business’ Digital Media Technologies group is dedicated to developing and distributing turnkey digital media solutions for content creators, producers, media outlets and entertainment and video gaming organizations.

About Verizon Business

Verizon Business, a unit of Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ), is a leading provider of advanced communications and information technology (IT) solutions to large business and government customers worldwide. Combining unsurpassed global network reach with advanced technology and professional service capabilities, Verizon Business delivers innovative and seamless business solutions to customers around the world. For more information, visit www.verizonbusiness.com.

Contact Information

Stefanie Scott

Media contact

Verizon Communications

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