In a contract said to be in excess of R350m, Sony South Africa (Pty) Ltd has been awarded the tender to supply the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) with four new fully high definition (HD) outside broadcast (OB) units.

Jess Goedhals, GM of Sony SA's Broadcast and Professional Division, notes that this is the biggest single purchase in the history of broadcasting in Africa. "We are excited and proud to have been chosen to supply Air Time, the SABC's OB division, with additional HD units to add to its existing fleet. Air Time was the first OB facilitator to go digital and upgrade to HD, so this deal will make SABC the largest supplier of HD OB units on the African continent."

Nic Bonthuys, Acting Chief Technical Officer of the SABC, adds: "Due to the huge amount of capital the deal involves, we had to carefully scrutinise all tenders for the best possible package that would meet our needs now and in the future. This historic investment in HD OB units is part of our overall digital roll out strategy. The 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa has helped us to fast track this process."

The first two units are due in May 2009, just before the Confederations Cup, with the remaining two arriving at the end of 2009. Bonthuys says: "The reason for this is twofold:we are in negotiations with Host Broadcast Services (HBS) to facilitate the Cup. Their requirements are HD, hence the need for additional OB units by May. Also, delivery of the other two units at a later stage helps us spread the cash flow over two years. The units are wired for 24 cameras, but initially will only be equipped with 18. In addition part of the package includes 10 Sony HD cameras with which to upgrade our Multi-Purpose Units (MPUs) to HD."

Read more in the October 2008 issue of Screen Africa