ESPN’s West Coast facility, L.A. Live, will be based around Sony high-definition television technology, including three Sony MVS-8000G production switchers and 10 HDC-1500 studio cameras. Located in downtown Los Angeles, the four-million square foot complex will have two studios and is expected to be completed in 2009. It will give ESPN a much-needed presence on the West Coast, allowing West Coast fans to have their own original, live content.

To kick off NAB 2008, Omneon announced that NBC has chosen multiple Omneon elements to anchor the network’s coverage of the 2008 Olympic Games from Beijing, China. In addition to the company’s already established MediaDeck media servers and MediaGrid active storage systems (v. 2.1 is new for NAB), Omneon has unrolled ProCast CDN, a transport engine that will create an efficient around-the-world workflow just in time for the Games.

Autodesk, a provider of 2D and 3D solutions for the media and entertainment industry introduced at NAB, expanded tools to their Inferno, Flame, and Flint visual effects software. The Inferno, Flame & Flint 2009 versions will be released on the show floor with expanded 3D capabilities, enhancements in workflow, and support of multiple formats including P2 and QuickTime.

Telestream's Episode 5.0 encoding software, introduced at NAB, expands format support to a greater number of specific digital media workflows for Apple professionals with newly incorporated support for Final Cut Server, RED camera, Cineon and DPX formats.

Sony’s MVS series of multi-format production switchers are getting a 1080p/60 overhaul thanks to version 7.20 software. The MVS-8000G and MVE-8000A models will support full 1080/60P and 1080/50P production with dual-link input/output, dual M/E link and dual DME CH link capability (with an optional software license)

Yes, the growing audience for HD programming is a bonanza for Snell & Wilcox, a company perhaps best known for image processing products. But at NAB 2008, the company’s focus is wider - on growth and diversification of offerings to meet the demand for the new HD infrastructure, content conversion, live production and content repurposing for multiplatform delivery.

Quantel is showcasing new ways for broadcasters to optimize workflow in the emerging IP connected, IT-based broadcast infrastructure. New products and upgrades for broadcasters include the Quattro upgrades for Enterprise sQ and Newsbox HD including DINO (“Distance Is No Object”), collaboration tools that link operators across the globe. Also, new “Essence” drivers are intended to ease interoperability and efficiency. On the post side, highlights include Stereoscopic 3D postproduction technology and Neo, a new control interface for Pablo color correction.

Panasonic is unveiling a gamut of new cameras, switchers and other cutting-edge technology solutions at NAB 2008, but for sports fans, the AJHPX 2700 camera is the top of the line. The 2700 utilizes P2 technology in a vericam format to create a camera uniquely crafted to answer the questions poised by sports production.

Chyron has broken a new boundary in online graphics creation by partnering its new AXIS online graphics system with the Associated Press. Chyron announced at NAB that the new collaboration will incorporate current news, entertainment and sports content directly from the AP into the AXIS system, offering producers the ability to immediately utilize AP content in their graphics templates. Chyron acquired AXIS Graphics in January 2008 and has since fully integrated Online’s feature set with its graphics portfolio for use in both online and television applications.

To anchor its store of news released at NAB, Thomson announced several international partnerships that help bring the company from broadcasting to broader-casting. China Central Television has purchased 15 Infinity DMC 1000 HD digital media camcorders, which will be used by the Beijing department in the 1080i/50 HD or 720P formats as part of this summer’s coverage of the Olympic Games.

Sony’s new high-definition viewfinder is designed to provide a lower-cost of entry into HD for production professionals needing an affordable, versatile eye-piece that delivers high levels of color accuracy and reproduction