KENYA STATE BROADCASTER SHIFT TO HD BOOSTED WITH SH37M MULTICHOICE EQUIPMENT

Multichoice Kenya yesterday handed over video switchers, a high definition audio-visual recorder, routing matrix, playout servers and a Media Asset Management (MAM) Storage System among other TV studio items to state broadcaster, KBC as part of its transition to full end-to-end HD.

KBC Acting managing director, Samuel Maina said:

“In our quest to improve our picture and sound quality, KBC has in the recent past upgraded the video and audio formats to achieve an overall HD signal from content management to transmission. As part of the improvement process, KBC has been in partnership with Multichoice Kenya which has acquired modern broadcasting facilities to aid in the achievement of more efficient content and news management processes."

The equipment is worth Sh37m (US$320,000).

According to him, the donation will greatly enhance the following areas within KBC:

• Automation of processes workflows.
• Storage of content will be made easier through complete, networked, high-performance shared storage workflow servers.
• Assist in archiving the content in digital formats
• Automate newsroom operations by offering advanced collaborative planning, social media workflows, A.I. functionalities and state-of-the-art integration with studio automation systems.
• Training and skills transfer: KBC staff will be trained so as to get most of the systems and solution applied.

 

The newsroom management system is also expected to transform KBC’s newsroom by re-engineering the editorial processes and setting the pace for convergence.

Multichoice MD, Nancy Matimu, observed that MCK and KBC had a long-held 27-year relationship since the establishment of Multichoice Kenya in the country in 1995 as a joint-venture. Multichoice Holdings Africa owns 60%, while KBC holds the remaining 40% in MCK.

“As a business, we thank you for the partnership that we have both enjoyed over the past 27 years and MultiChoice Kenya fully appreciates and supports your public broadcasting service mandate in Kenya. We appreciate that our business has grown hand-in-hand with the Kenyan economy by forging long-term partnerships with the Kenyan Government, the national broadcaster of which you are and entrepreneurs” she said.