Broadcast professionals, hoping to capitalise on what they acknowledge as an ongoing mass communications boom in the region, met in Dubai recently for a seminar organised by Procast FZ to study developments in their field and shop for equipment.

Displayed was a range of equipment and solutions, reflecting the Middle East's development as a mature market for broadcast equipment suppliers. They were showcased in anticipation of possible expansions and technology upgrades in TV and radio networks. The Middle East has witnessed a considerable increase in TV and radio stations across the Middle East, particularly Lebanon and Egypt. The gathering, together with the fact that some of the biggest broadcasting companies have set up their bases in Dubai Media City, indicated Dubai's prominent position as a media hub.

Attending the event and shopping for new broadcast hardware were experts from leading networks like LBC, NBC, Future TV, Orbit, ART, MBC, Dubai TV, Abu Dhabi TV, Emirates Media, Channel I of Egypt and TV stations from Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and several other countries.

Procast FZ is a turnkey solution provider for broadcast, communications and production industries. The seminar discussed video production servers, non-linear editing systems and DVB-T transmitters to highlight the products of two leading global broadcast equipment suppliers - Technosystem Digital Network, Italy, and EVS Broadcast Equipment, Belgium.

'The presence of a galaxy of broadcast professionals conveyed the message that the region is indeed on a high-growth track and the industry is hungry for top-of-the-range equipment,' said Procast director Charbel Younan.

Industry professionals got a chance to view some of the most advanced systems from Technosystem Digital Network, the 25-year-old company that has excelled in manufacturing systems and equipment for television and radio networks, including VHF and UHF transmitters, modulators, converters, repeaters and a wide spectrum of solid-state and tube amplifiers. In addition, Technosystem displayed digital broadcasting products such as digital audio broadcasting (DAB) and digital video broadcasting (DVB).

Technosystem, which began field trials in digital broadcasting four years ago, recently installed the world's first Digital Video Broadcasting Territory (DVBT) for Ray TV in Italy, and has since been encouraging other broadcasters to switch to the new systems.

EVS Broadcast Equipment, the company that revolutionised sports coverage by developing Live Slow Motion (LSM) replay, showcased its range of video servers and associated software, OB van products and mobile studios, offline editing for news production, mosaic display multiviewers,Internet streaming/Webcasting Digital Cinema Servers and MaXS, the four-channel production server.

'The Middle East is in the midst of a media explosion, in which television plays a dominant role,' said Younan. 'The emergence of Dubai as the broadcasting hub is appropriate because there is a huge Arabic-speaking population in the region that is hungry for locally produced content. It is small wonder then that new television channels are mushrooming across the region, creating an ever-growing demand for television hardware as well as software.'

Procast is the authorised distributor for Sony Broadcast Products and EVS Broadcast Equipment in the Middle East and Africa. It also represents Vistek, BDL, Autoscript, Vinten, Technosystem, Media Consult International, Egripment, Optex and ND Satcom for their broadcast products in the Middle East and Africa.