Keeping an eye on video networks: Artel aims to make 'Please stand by' go away

Like it or not, television, Hollywood and Madison Avenue are reaching for bigger and more seamless special effects, whether earth-killing asteroids or talking Chihuahuas. Yet most video service providers still monitor their transmission networks in a rough-and-ready fashion that prompts action only when the ultimate disaster happens and the video signal is lost.

Artel Video Systems has come up with what founder and CEO Hal Charnley believes is a technology big enough for the future of broadcasting-a suite of Web-based network management products that will monitor transport systems in real time to reduce downtime and eliminate equipment failure. As Charnley points out, failure during a national event such as the Super Bowl means millions in lost ad revenue.

Artel's new VistaView suite is intended to sharpen that network focus by giving service providers immediate access to the entire equipment inventory of their video service networks. The software operates over Internet or private TCP/IP links and provides two basic interfaces: a topographical map of the entire network and a graphical representation of each element in it. On-line tools such as an alarm notification system and on-line help allow technicians to locate, diagnose and repair failures.

Keeping the video network up and running is only one payoff from the new suite. VistaView also enables broadcasters to switch service connections automatically to various video sources at multiple locations. By configuring the link to connect to different video sources at different times, users pay only for the network bandwidth they use.

Artel will make a fully integrated Web-based switch control available next year.

Such bridge technology is necessary in today's video market, according to Charnley. "The migration from analog to digital technology isn't going to happen all at once on Jan. 1, 2008," he said. "It must occur gradually and must be as cost-effective now as it will be then."

Broadcasters are under a lot of revenue pressure now, according to analyst Per Soderstrom with Gonella and Weiss, a video consulting firm. "They know digital is coming, and behind that HDTV, but they can't see their way clear to building a duplicate transmission system to get ready," he said.

"Any product that offers a graceful transition to the next-level technology-and incorporates reliable system monitoring, too-may finally get them to do what they've been putting off: getting ready for the next century."

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