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Installation at Germany´s ZDF Television
Installation at Germany's ZDF Television: switching made easy with Black Box

KVM- Extender for new news studio

Hallbergmoos, July 01, 2009 - Switches from IT and telecommunications equipment supplier Black Box will be used for the new N1 and N2 news studios of Germany's ZDF Television Network. The studios, set up by Studio Hamburg MCI, are located in a building on the ZDF Broadcast Center site that has been specially built to house the corresponding control, equipment and auxiliary rooms as well.

Here, up to 22 TV broadcasts are produced daily, including all "heute" newscasts. The KVM matrix provided by Black Box comprises devices of the ServSwitch DTX series and is one of the biggest IP-based KVM installations in Europe. With this system, 169 servers and 70 user workstations can be controlled independently of each other to ensure maximum flexibility.

The KVM switching ability of the ServSwitch DTX HD KVM extender in use allows the spatial separation of the audio/video cutting stations from the corresponding media servers. Numerous computers in a standard IP network can thus be controlled regardless of distance,the transmission of the high-resolution video signals (1920 x 1200) is in real time.
Furthermore, USB support ensures that peripherals required, such as jogwheel or spacemouse, can be integrated without problems. Altogether, the installation at the ZDF consists of two DTX Controllers, 44 Single-Head Transmitters, 74 Dual-Head Receivers and 131 Dual-Head Transmitters.

"With our KVM extenders for the studio sector, work can be organized considerably more efficient and flexible", Axel Bürger, Managing Director of Black Box Deutschland GmbH, explains. Graphic designers, for example, have access to a pool of high-performance computers which they share. That way resources are used most efficiently, saving expenses on software licences, hardware and energy.
The same goes for sound studios, as well as audio and video cutting stations. "Especially during live broadcasts you must be able to completely rely on the devices in use. The joint project with our partner Studio Hamburg MCI at the ZDF shows that our products meet the highest requirements with regard to failure safety, user friendliness and flexibility."


About Black Box
Black Box (NASDAQ: BBOX) is one of the world's largest technical services company with focus on design, installation and maintenance of network infrastructure systems. From data communication and telecommunication services to on-site network installation, the company supports more than 175,000 clients in 141 countries with 192 regional offices.

With "Free Tech Support" for free and competent technical advice on the phone, free test scenarios, as well as installation and maintenance services, Black Box offers an exceptional service program. The Black Box main catalogue is well-known in the industry and comprises an extensive product portfolio on more than 700 pages. It provides details of approx. 10,000 IT products such as network components, as well as solutions for infrastructures and applications.

The headquarters of Black Box Corporation is in Pittsburgh, USA. Worldwide, the company has approximately 5000 employees, 65 of which in Germany. Black Box Deutschland GmbH has been active on the German market since 1984. Its regular customers include small and medium-sized businesses, as well as big enterprises of various branches, such as services, industry, telecommunications, health care and public administration, and the banking and insurance sector.


Press Contact:
Black Box Deutschland GmbH
Axel Bürger, Tel +49 811 5541 322
Fax +49 811 5541 499
E-Mail axel.buerger@black-box.de
Web: www.black-box.de

PR Agency:
Weissenbach PR
Bastian Schink, Tel. +49 89 5506 7775
Fax +49 89 5506 7790
E-Mail: black-box@weissenbach-pr.de
Web: www.weissenbach-pr.de