VidOvation hires Broadcast Media Veterans

Irvine, California, 3/12/15  - VidOvation, a leading manufacturer of Video, Audio and Data Communications systems, and CER-TEC, a Broadcast Media manufacturer's representative firm, announce their partnership.

VidOvation has invested heavily in John Cerquone and Leigh Herman of CER-TEC to help introduce transmission methods over fiber optic, wireless, and Ethernet/IP technologies. The intention is to present VidOvation's distinctive offerings to the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic areas.

As trusted advisers in the broadcast industry, these industry veterans from New York, New York possess the ideal assets to spread the word of inventive video transmission products such as VidOvation's custom designed National Hockey League adopted GoalView 60 GHz Wireless goal verification system and their Stagebox IP Camera Back developed by the British Broadcast Corporation.

Executive VP of VidOvation, Jim Jachetta, points out that VidOvation systems are the mission critical infrastructure all broadcast clients need. Jim states, "In addition to our competitive video transmission systems, we provide the back-bending flexibility and support every client desperately needs in this market."

CER-TEC stresses relationships with quality-oriented manufacturers. They strive to carry remarkable product lines in the areas of Broadcast Video, Audio, Media Delivery, OTT solutions, Cloud products and Digital Asset Management. VidOvation's unique positioning as flexible problem solvers and video transmission experts guarantee a strong synergy with CER-TEC to help clients from beginning to end. "We ensure that each project gets done right by being involved from start to finish," says John Cerquone, CEO. "This means serving consumers and manufacturers before, during, and after the investment."

VidOvation will be at the NAB Show 2015 in Booth C1113. VidOvation  will be introducing new wireless, cellular and ethernet-based transport systems.  Additionally, Jim will be presenting during NAB's Broadcast Engineering Conference on "Achieving 10Gbps Wireless Data Rates for 4K Video with Unlicensed 60GHz Spectrum".

AfriLabs receives $23k grant from Indigo Trust

Indigo Trust has awarded a second grant of GBP15,000 (US$23,000) to AfriLabs, a network of 36 technology innovation hubs in 18 countries across Africa. Indigo Trust made its first grant to AfriLabs in 2013, and said it was delighted to continue supporting its work and that of other hubs across Africa.

“AfriLabs fulfils an important role by providing a degree of coordination and interaction between different hubs and we’re delighted to announce a second grant to continue this work. We’re delighted to be supporting this work, especially given our investment in and involvement with many of the hubs who stand to benefit from AfriLabs’ work,” Indigo Trust said.

Indigo Trust has already made grants to hubs including Co-Creation Hub, iLab, BongoHive, RLabs, iHub, JoziHub and Hypercube, and Disrupt Africa reported last month the EUR373,000 (US$432,000) Joint Hub Fund Programme it established along with the DOEN Foundation and Hivos Foundation had awarded its first four grants.

Cameroon’s ActivSpaces, Uganda’s HiveColab, Ghana’s iSpace and Tanzania’s KINU were all recipients of cash from the fund, which was established in June last year and is aimed at catalysing the continent’s technology startup ecosystem in order for it to contribute to significant social changes and create employment. 

IBM Expands Global Research Network Into South Africa

IBM has announced plans to expand IBM Research - Africa with a new laboratory in Johannesburg beginning April 2015. It will focus on advancing Big Data, cloud and mobile technologies to support South Africa's national priorities, drive skills development and foster innovation-based economic growth. As part of a 10-year investment program through the Department of Trade and Industry and working closely with the Department of Science and Technology, the new research facility will be based at the University of Witwatersrand (Wits).

"IBM considers two factors when deciding where to place research labs: access to world-class skills and talent and the ability to work on pressing business and societal challenges that can be best addressed through advanced information technology," said Dr. John E. Kelly III, Senior Vice President of IBM Solutions Portfolio and Research. "South Africa provides an exciting backdrop as we look to expand our research efforts in the region. Our Africa-based researchers are part of a global community of IBM scientists who are forging the future of our company and ensuring that we remain at the forefront of scientific discovery."

"South Africa is amongst the most technologically and scientifically advanced countries in the world," said Naledi Pandor, Minister of Science and Technology. "However, it is essential to increase research and development activities in order to foster innovation and support the further diversification of the economy. We welcome IBM Research to South Africa and offer our very best scientific talent to ensure its long-term success."

Fostering Innovation IBM's South Africa researchers will partner extensively with local universities, research institutions, innovation centers, start-ups and government agencies, thus bolstering South Africa's emerging innovation ecosystem and helping to develop next generation technology skills. The company has already struck up agreements with Wits University, the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) to collaborate on research programs and skills development.

"The development of a successful innovation ecosystem is crucial to the further development of the South African economy and the country's international competitiveness," said Professor Adam Habib, Vice Chancellor and Principal, Wits University. "IBM Research's decision to locate in Johannesburg will give a huge boost to a dynamic community of programmers, designers, developers, entrepreneurs and start-ups."

The new lab will be located in the Tshimologong Precinct in Braamfontein - an inner-city area which is today re-emerging as one of Johannesburg's most dynamic and vibrant districts.

The new South Africa research team will be led by Dr. Solomon Assefa, formerly a research scientist at IBM's flagship Thomas J. Watson Research Center in Yorktown Heights, New York. Dr. Assefa has co-authored over 50 scientific articles and has 45 patents. He was named one of the World's Top Young Innovators under 35 by MIT's Technology Review in 2011 and a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum. Last year he was named a Fellow of the Ethiopian Academy of Sciences.

Aligned with areas of strategic national importance and bolstering South Africa's leadership in science and technology, the lab's focus areas will include:

Digital Urban Renewal The lab's inner-city location will allow IBM's new researchers to form part of a 'living lab' that will explore the role of advanced digital technologies and Big Data analytics in urban renewal. Mobile technologies, global positioning systems, cameras and sensors are becoming ubiquitous in cities, thereby providing opportunities to re-imagine the delivery of services such as transportation, energy and security. IBM's researches and partner organizations will develop solutions using computational modeling, Internet of Things and cognitive systems to engage more effectively with citizens and help revitalize inner-city areas in South Africa and around the world.

Helping to Transform Healthcare IBM's South Africa-based researchers will explore new approaches using Big Data analytics and cognitive computing to increase the efficiency, scalability and effectiveness of healthcare in resource-constrained environments in South Africa and across the African continent. IBM Research is already engaged with the KwaZulu-Natal Research Institute for Tuberculosis and HIV (K-RITH) to research new treatment approaches to fight tuberculosis (TB). Using Big Data technologies in bacterial genetics and drug susceptibility tests, the work is increasing understanding of the genomic mechanisms that cause resistance to antibiotics.

Big Data for Big Science IBM's new researchers will also contribute to the Square Kilometer Array (SKA) radio telescope project which aims to answer fundamental questions about the origins of the universe. In one of the most ambitious science efforts ever launched, scientists from South Africa will work with those from ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy and IBM Research -- Zurich to collect and analyze unprecedented amounts of Big Data from deep space that contain information dating back to the Big Bang more than 13 billion years ago.