Webcast to go behind the scenes: Ericsson's new unit to broadcast Grammys over the Internet

Ericsson has no plans to be left out of the Internet revolution. That's the primary impetus behind the launch of its new Network Solutions Division, which aims to attack new business opportunities on the Internet, starting with webcasting this year's Grammy Awards.

"This will not be the same as a TV experience. It's a backstage experience that most people won't see, and you can see it for a week," said Karl Dahlin, director of business development for the division.

But the nascent technology still has much to do to win over new fans. For instance, critics were disappointed in the content, speed, quality and size of the graphics contained in an enhanced simulcast of the Super Bowl last month on WebTV. On the bright side, however, the new technology did manage to deliver instant, in-depth analysis of the game.

Ericsson is pinning its expansion hopes on such just-in-time sound, video and text offerings over the Internet as it broadcasts behind-the-scenes Grammy Awards interviews and information this week in conjunction with the awards' host and sponsor, the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences.

Webcasting is not new to the Grammys. This is the fourth year the ceremony will offer streaming audio and visual information and entertainment on the Web free of charge, and 3 million visitors are expected. What the newly formed Ericsson division will add to the mix is total systems integration of high-bandwidth multimedia content using technology provided by Silicon Graphics, Real Networks, ATM Link/AGIS, EUnet, Moonfire and Hewlett-Packard.

"This is an entirely new outreach for the division," said Dahlin, who also serves as project director for the Grammy Awards webcast. "For several years, we've been doing things in broadband multimedia, but now it's time for people to know what we do. We will be offering new information technology services to provide customers with sizzling-hot multimedia information."

It was a cellular phone that brought the giant to the attention of Chris Andrews, business development director for the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences. "Chris had used several cellular phones that he had received free as part of a service contract, but he wasn't happy with any of them. He bought an Ericsson phone and loved it, and the Express Group in Atlanta hooked us up with him," Dahlin said. "Our name got us in the door."

While he could not release details regarding Ericsson's financial contract with the Grammys, Dahlin discussed what was going to happen on the Web before, during and after the ceremony. "Westwood One normally does radio interviews, and we will take those audio signals through an encoder that uses a Real Network standard for audio and video Web browsing," Dahlin said. "We will encode the audio file with a number of qualities, depending on what kind of modem the consumer is using. Those using 20 kb/s and ISDN modems will experience better sound."

On the video side, Ericsson will incorporate feeds from several Web cameras, again using Real Network standards and offering several full-motion broadcast qualities. The Web site-www.grammy.com-also will contain text and still pictures.

Is Ericsson taking a big chance by moving away from its core competency? Jan-Anders Dalenstam, executive vice president and general manager of Ericsson's new division, doesn't think so. "Ericsson has tremendous expertise in designing networks with high levels of service for the telco operating environment," he said. "As the Internet's global audience increases and the demand for multimedia content expands, these types of networks will be increasingly in demand."

Susan Kalla, who follows Ericsson for Furman Selz LLC in New York, characterized Ericsson's move as brilliant. "The Web is where this company is heading. They did the same thing with General Electric 10 years ago, and now they are leading the wireless industry," she said. "They'll do the same thing in multimedia. All of their R&D is earmarked for protocol handling and video."

Ericsson's latest move will position it to compete with Cisco Systems for marketshare, Kalla said. "Europeans are five years ahead of everyone else in wireless, and they believe the next generation is video," she added. "They plan to go beyond the Internet and data transmission."

Ericsson's biggest competitor for a larger piece of the $200 billion telecom and multimedia market is Nokia, another company dedicating much of its R&D to video. "Nokia wants a stranglehold on this in wireless," Kalla said. "If Nokia and Ericsson don't change the rules of the game, Cisco will take their marketshare. This is a brilliant move in the long term."