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Storage Grabs Video Limelight
Dispatches from NAB, where vendors have tapped one of the richest verticals of all
April 25, 2006
3 Min Read
Storage networking is a major focal point for broadcasters and video production crews, judging news emanating from the National Association of Broadcasters conference in Las Vegas this week.
Video production gear maker Avid Technology said today it will now support more of its competitors on its storage arrays. For instance, even though Avid has software that competes against the Final Cut series from Apple, it will allow customers to run that application on Avid systems. Avid also unveiled a slew of enhancements to its arrays, which range from the lower-end VideoRAID series (up to 2.5 Tbytes) to the enterprise-level ISIS (up to 192 Tbytes). (See AVID Intros Open Storage.)
Ciprico enhanced its MediaVault series of video and broadcast RAID arrays with more sophisticated RAID 6 support. The arrays also have 4-Gbit/s Fibre Channel connectivity and expanded capacity. (See Ciprico Unveils Enhancements.)
The oddly named G-Technology unveiled a new G-SPEED storage array with 4-Gbit/s Fibre Channel connectivity and RAID 6. The vendor aims the new system at users requiring storage for a range of video editing requirements. (See G-Tech Unveils Media Array.)
A slew of other announcements, some made last week, highlight the ongoing interest of mainstream storage firms in the multibillion-dollar digital video and broadcasting technology market. Among these are ADIC, Myricom, and Neterion. (See 10G Supply Exceeds Demand.) Also on display in Las Vegas is software from Atempo, a new media-savvy array from iQstor, and SATA II RAID controllers from component maker AMCC, which are being demonstrated in systems from Rorke Data and other storage suppliers. (See Atempo Protects Movies, IQstor Unveils Array, and AMCC Demos RAID Components.)
To be clear, storage vendors didn't just discover the video vertical. (See Lights, Camera... NAS!.) What's new here is that storage vendors have pumped up the volume to be heard above the din of the massive NAB meeting. And an especially promising area appears to be managing and storing digital content on the Internet.
Last Friday, for example, digital media software startup Venaca closed its first financing round, clinching an undisclosed sum to promote S3, a software for indexing, archiving, and managing digital content such as video, audio, and rich media Web pages across different platforms.
S3 applies metadata tags to the content, which it then monitors and archives. The startup has already clinched deals with some big-name customers, including Turner Entertainment, and New York City-based Lifetime Entertainment Services, where Burchill was formerly CEO."This market is really heating up," says Bob Markham, senior research analyst at Forrester Research, explaining that more and more broadcasters are looking to make shows and TV ads available via the Internet.
Markham feels that digital media technologies, which were once exclusive to the broadcast industry, are now starting to creep into the enterprise mainstream. "You have companies like Procter & Gamble and financial services firms that have to manage a whole amount of media," he explains, adding that specialist digital media systems could be ideal for storing and delivering enterprise marketing and advertising data.
Mary Jander, Site Editor, and James Rogers, Senior Editor, Byte and Switch
Organizations mentioned in this article:
Advanced Digital Information Corp. (Nasdaq: ADIC)
Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL)
Avid Technology Inc. (Nasdaq: AVID)
Ciprico Inc. (Nasdaq: CPCI)
Forrester Research Inc.
G-Technology Inc.
Myricom Inc.
Neterion Inc.
Venaca Inc.
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