Avid Technology, Inc. today announced that Atlanta-based Crawford Communications, a leading electronic media services provider, has expanded its television network services with the installation of 10 Avid® DekoCast™ graphics systems. Fully integrated with Crawford's ENCOMPASS tapeless production and playout service, Avid DekoCast automates the delivery of station branding and customized content for local viewing audiences, streamlining the creation and display of real-time graphics for headlines and breaking news. The DekoCast systems enable Crawford's broadcast customers to work remotely to build, manage, and deliver graphics content to their networks across Latin America using Crawford's existing network distribution infrastructure.

"Avid DekoCast has played a key enabling role in Crawford's ENCOMPASS system, which we believe is the most sophisticated client-driven origination platform available," said Bill Elsholz, chief engineer for Crawford. "By using the DekoCast system we have given our clients the flexibility to develop a production and delivery workflow that is completely customized to their particular needs. One of the keys to the system's success is that DekoCast is very easy to control; our clients can build their playlists, complete with graphics triggers, and send them to us for fully automatic and flawless playout."

DekoCast graphics virtually eliminate the technical complexity that Crawford's U.S.-based customers face in meeting branding requirements for their networks located in Latin America. Customers looking to insert simple, static logos can easily update playlists by supplying new images and adding DekoCast triggers. However, more than half of Crawford's clients have opted for developing more sophisticated graphics templates. As a result, many remote stations have installed a DekoCast system within their own facility to develop graphics in-house before uploading the files as a complete package to the ENCOMPASS system for transmission.

"In the past, sophisticated operations of this kind had to be run entirely within Crawford's facility," said Elsholz. "The system we have deployed using DekoCast allows clients anywhere from California to Argentina to work with us remotely. Graphics, bugs, logos, lower-thirds; 2-D, voice-overs; squeeze-backs and static images - these are the things that our clients use to separate themselves from their competition. We knew that we needed a very solid system to meet our clients' complex technical needs and DekoCast has proven to be a winner. It is easy for clients to communicate with Crawford's assets in Atlanta and they can change things as needed with little or no technical support at our end. Our clients are beginning to look ahead to high definition delivery and DekoCast ensures that we can keep their workflow intact."

Crawford now boasts a total of 23 DekoCast systems that are online and fully operational, delivering content to networks throughout Latin America.

By Avid