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CSI Wireless' Vector Sensor Helped NBC News Transmit Especially Vivid TV Reports from War in Iraq
Vector heading system precisely aligned truck-mounted satellite dish to
achieve on-the-run video transmissions that featured unparalleled clarity
and immediacy for television viewers back home
CALGARY, Alberta - July 21, 2003 - (TSX:CSY): CSI Wireless Inc. is looking for more
technical challenges for the company's Vector Sensor GPS product, after the
innovative heading system helped NBC News broadcast images from the war in
Iraq that featured greater clarity and immediacy than what competing networks
achieved using more conventional methods.
The Vector Sensor was an integral part of a new mobile satellite
transmission system that Maritime Telecommunications Network (MTN), which
provides global communication systems to the maritime industry, developed
exclusively for NBC to transmit news footage from Iraq during the war last
March and April.
To send their war reports to television viewers back home, NBC and other
foreign news teams in Iraq relied on special video phones and/or dish-shaped
antennas that sent video signals up to satellites, which directed the signals
back to the news teams' home countries.
Video phones' narrow bandwidth resulted in relatively grainy television
images, while satellite dishes' much broader bandwidth resulted in much
clearer images. The dishes were mounted on trucks, rooftops or towers.
Traditionally, to transmit video to a satellite from a mobile truck, a
news team must bring its vehicle to a full stop, set up transmission
equipment, then wait for the satellite dish to achieve an accurate heading or
"fix" on the satellite. While the vehicle is stopped, the war continues. In
Iraq, where U.S. and British troops advanced across the desert at
unprecedented speeds, news teams that stopped to transmit their video footage
were constantly falling behind and then racing to catch up.
However the Vector Sensor, in conjunction with the rest of the video
transmission system developed by MTN, enabled an NBC satellite dish to achieve
extremely accurate headings - and to transmit crystal-clear video - while the
transmission truck was "on the run" or still moving.
"Other networks had to stop, set up their equipment and broadcast while
the news was moving away from them. NBC never had to play catch-up. They were
always close to the action," said Jake Kooser, an MTN technical services
specialist assigned to NBC's special mobile transmission system in Iraq
throughout the war. "We were glad to have a Vector Sensor on board. It really
did the job for us."
Stacy Brady, NBC's Vice President, Network News Operations, said: "We
were the only television network covering the war that was able to transmit
'live' from a moving vehicle, which was a coup for us. It enabled us to stay
with the action all the time. We're very pleased with how our mobile satellite
transmission system performed in Iraq, in very challenging conditions. We
congratulate CSI Wireless for its Vector system that made 'on the run'
transmissions possible."
"People all over the world were eager to have a very clear picture -
literally and figuratively - of the war in Iraq," said CSI Wireless President
and CEO Stephen Verhoeff. "NBC News went the extra mile to provide that very
clear picture, and we at CSI Wireless are pleased to know our Vector Sensor
played an important part in that."
About the Vector Sensor
The Vector Sensor uses a sophisticated moving-base-station Real-Time
Kinematic (RTK) technique to achieve heading accuracies of 0.15 degrees or
better. It combines two GPS receivers in a single enclosure, and two antennas
in two separate enclosures. By increasing the distance between the antennas,
users can increase the Vector Sensor's heading accuracy. The Sensor is
designed for the "machine control" market, including agriculture, heavy
construction equipment, mining equipment, cranes and other machinery or
industries for which very accurate headings are essential. CSI Wireless also
offers the Vector PRO for marine heading applications.
About Maritime Telecommunications Network
Maritime Telecommunications Network, Inc. (MTN), the leader in maritime
communications, provides broadband solutions for voice, data, Internet and
compressed video services to the mobile maritime industry using state-of-the-
art VSAT technology. MTN is focused on cost-effective, high-speed satellite
solutions while maintaining the highest standards of quality. MTN's Digital
Seas Internet product, the first Information Technology concession, provides
turnkey Internet Cafés to the cruise and offshore oil and gas industries. More
information is available at www.mtnsat.com.
About NBC
For more than 70 years, NBC News has been the primary source of global
news and information for generations of radio listeners, television viewers
and Internet users, providing immediate coverage and in-depth reporting of
major events. Operating around the clock, NBC News has bureaus in key cities
in the United States and overseas. NBC has become the dominant force in
television news, watched by more Americans than any other news organization.
NBC News provides more than 24 hours of weekly programming in the United
States, including the No. 1-rated broadcasts "NBC Nightly News with Tom
Brokaw," "Today" and "Meet the Press." In October 2000, NBC News and "Today"
made history by extending the two-hour franchise to three hours each morning.
The network also produces weekend editions of "Nightly News" and "Today."
"Dateline NBC" is the signature broadcast for NBC News in primetime two nights
a week. Also under the NBC News umbrella is MSNBC, the 24-hour cable news
channel and Internet service (www.msnbc.com), launched in 1996, and primetime
programs seen on CNBC, the nation's No. 1 financial news and information cable
network. NBC News' corps of talented and respected anchors and correspondents
continues to set standards of quality and integrity that have become the
hallmark of all NBC broadcasts. Imbued with a rich history, NBC News continues
its pioneering role in telecommunications and is poised to meet the challenges
of this century.
About CSI Wireless
With offices in Calgary, Silicon Valley, and Phoenix, CSI Wireless
(TSX:CSY) designs and manufactures innovative, cost-effective, wireless and
GPS products for mobile and fixed applications in the agriculture, marine,
automotive and other markets. Through the integration of GPS and wireless, CSI
has begun serving several emerging high-growth markets including Fleet
Management, Asset Tracking, Telematics and Stolen Vehicle Recovery
applications. The Company owns several patents and intellectual property
relating to wireless and GPS technologies. CSI Wireless has licensed its
cellular technology to GPS, cellular handset, and chipset manufacturers. The
Company's common shares trade on The Toronto Stock Exchange under the trading
symbol "CSY", with approximately 22 million outstanding. For online
information, go to www.csi-wireless.com.
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