C-SPAN, Golf Channel and Comcast SportsNet join Comcast Media Center’s Disaster Recovery Services

C-SPAN, Golf Channel and several of Comcast’s regional sports networks number among the
TV networks that have recently signed up for Comcast Media Center’s (CMC) suite
of Disaster Recovery services. In the case of a natural disaster or some
other event that disrupts the master control or transmission facilities of its
Disaster Recovery clients, the CMC would originate their broadcasts, including
scheduled advertising and promotions, until service at the primary facility can
be restored. In addition to addressing their risk management requirements, the
CMC’s Disaster Recovery service provides clients with a competitive advantage
over television networks that lack the capability to continue their operation
during a natural disaster or other form of service disruption.
The array
of Disaster Recovery services offered by the CMC encompasses ongoing encoding
and storage of the network’s programming, on-air graphics, and scheduled
advertisements that would be used for originating the network from the
CMC. These resources provide television networks with a ready-made
alternative for remaining on the air during scheduled activities, such as a
major technical upgrade or the relocation of their operations centers, as well
as serve to address their disaster recovery requirements.
“Communications networks rely on redundant
systems as the best way to address the need for continuity expected by their
customers and required by their business models,” stated Gary Traver Senior
Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for the
Comcast
Media
Center. “We provide that
type of ‘there when you need it’ capability for our Disaster Recovery customers
as a cost-effective alternative to building and maintaining their own redundant
operations.”
In
addition to video programming that it archives for its Disaster Recovery
customers, the CMC can incorporate live event feeds into the channels it is
originating. Its Content Distribution Operations center, or “CDOC,”
typically manages over 15,000 live events in HD or standard definition formats
each year. The CMC’s channel origination capabilities, which are used for
the ongoing delivery of over three-dozen HD and SD television networks, include
traffic; quality control and media management; and playback. Its satellite
and broadband operations facilities currently manage the transmission of over
400 full-time digital video and audio services.