Ikusi News October 2012

Interview with Geraldino Silva, Ikusi’s CommercialRepresentative in Portugal

““This marketwill alwaysdemand productswith advancedtechnology””

Geraldino Silva has developed his entire pro-fessional career, half of his life, at Ikusi. He first collaborated in 1983, and since the end of 2011, alongside another former colleague of Ikusi,

Agostinho Gomes, he has created the com-pany Digitalmux, which now operates as Ikusi’s branch for the Portuguese market and some African countries.

TELEVISION MAGAZINEOCTOBER 2012Nº 20

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Interview with Armando Portela, Director of Armando Portela Ltd.

Ikusi, I have a question

Collaborating with hotels in Portugal and in Sao Tomé and Príncipe

When distance is not a problem

Interview with Geraldino Silva, Ikusi’s Commercial Representative in Portugal

Ikusi launches new weband new name

Ikusi antennas and filters, the best protection against the LTE signal

Downstream and upstream LTE signals

Building closer ties with the sector’s organisations

Adam Sehnalek, from the Czech Republic, wins the Flashd antenna competition The video competition launched by Ikusi to pro-mote the Flashd antenna, the only antenna on the market with automatic fixing system, now has a winner. The Czech installer, Adam Sehnalek, one of Ikusi’s clients, whose video has earned him the new iPad, the prize awarded to the winner of the competition.

When choosing the winning video, the panel took into consideration its freshness and simplicity, the

visibility of the fixing system -the main distinguis-hing feature of the Flashd antenna-, the fast as-sembly, how it reflects the easy installation and the security it provides the installer and, of course, the video’s originality.

The winning video can be viewed, along with the rest of the entries, on the web www.concursoflas-hd.com and on www.youtube.com/concursoflas-hd.

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Discover our new products in http://www.youtube.com/IkusiTV

“Now we are entering the digital era,

it will be necessary to incorporate HDTV

products to our offer and use our extensive

experience in order to reach other markets

whilst maintaining proximity with the client. “

“One of Ikusi’s contributions to the Portuguese market could be to provide more information to distributors and technicians”

Armando Portela LTD was established in 2007 in Vila Nova de Gaia, promoted by its current di-rector, Armando Portela, who has more than 30 years of experience in the sector. In the first few years it focused its activity on individuals and collective antennas; nowadays, it has expan-ded to other areas such as access control, fire systems and networks, among other activities, which it carries out, particularly in northern and central areas of Portugal.

When and why did you start collaborating with Ikusi?

I started to work with Ikusi 25 years ago and when I set up my own company one of my prio-rities was to continue working with the same manufacture because I believe Ikusi’s products are high quality.

What do you rate highest in the relationship you have had over the years with Ikusi?

I would say the collaboration between the two companies, the respect from both sides, the proximity with its professionals and the quality and reliability of its products.

What Ikusi products do you use most at this time?

The material that sells the most is mast equip-ment, but I would particularly highlight the Clas-sA headends.

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Interview with Armando Portela, Director of Armando Portela Ltd.

As was the case in other countries, I imagine that the analogue switch-off must have re-presented a boost for the sector’s business. From now on how do you think the sector will be invigorated?

It was an intense period, in which the demand for equipment was huge, but it was very rewar-ding given the country’s economic situation. Now we are entering the digital era, it will be necessary to incorporate HDTV products to our offer and to use our extensive experience in the business areas we have already mentioned in order to reach other markets whilst maintaining proximity with the client.

The world of television is subject to con-tinuous technological changes. How are companies and their workers kept perma-nently up to date with new developments and what role does a company like Ikusi play in that permanent updating process?

It is true that we make an effort to remain up to date with new technologies in order to tac-kle the requests for information and offers from our clients. In this field, we believe that one of Ikusi’s contributions to the Portuguese market could be to provide more information to distri-butors and technicians in order to keep them up to date and, even more so, to ensure they are at the forefront of this technology.

Is the NBS broadband amplifier series ready for the Digital Dividend?

This series of amplifiers is equipped with a plug-in bridge that allows you to switch the frequency range to be amplified, ma-king it ready for the Digital Dividend.

The S.M.A.R.T software on Ikusi’s field strength meters gives a licence error message and I can’t use it.

This software only works with a free licen-se that you must request by filling out a form on our official website.

What should I do if I have forgotten the IP address or the access password to the web tool of one of my streamers?

In order to recover the streamer’s default IP address or password you need to reset the module using the Hyperterminal software and a DB9 Null cable (crossed RS232).

What should I do if I only want to transmit the audio in a particular lan-guage at the transmodulator’s output?

In order to carry out this action you need to block the audio PIDs that are not requi-red in the service at the device’s output using the SPI-300 programming unit.

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The hotel sector is one of the sectors that can boost the business in Portugal with its need to offer its customers and users multi-ple channels with a high-quality image. The installer Armando Portela has participated in two projects for top-level hotel installations, in Portugal and on the island of Sao Tomé and Príncipe in the Gulf of Guinea.

At the Troia Resort in Setúbal, a headend with classA modulators has been installed which receives AV signals and converts them to RF. The whole packet from the OPTIMUS operator is received via fibre optics at the optical termi-nals (ONT) and the network switch outputs are connected to the operator’s STBoxes. These signals are delivered to the network after be-ing converted to RF with the MCP.

There are a total of 28 channels that offer a service to 3 hotels and to some communal areas. An installation which uses a 1-Km fibre-optic link with the FTD-420 optical transmitter and the FRD-400 optical receiver in order to take these channels to one of the hotels.

The company Sousa & Pacheco received the as-signment of developing an installation which en-sured the cable operator’s signal arrived along-side the CCTV signal. A standard project at first glance, but its difficulty lies in the size of the es-tate where the installation was performed. From the switching cabinet on the roadside to the main building there is a distance of 1.2 km. To which we have to add the large number of channels to be switched: 8 QAM carriers, 40 RF channels and 1 COFDM.

The project carried out by Sousa & Pacheco on this estate located in the municipal territory of Pa-redes has ensured the operator’s and the CCTV signals arrive, with digital quality, at all terminal points of the main home, guaranteeing all the quality parameters of the Portuguese ITED regu-lations and the perfect operation of the STBoxes with the operator’s Premium channels.

Installer: Armando Portela

Installer: Sousa & Pacheco, Lda. Ikusi’s official assistance in Portugal since 1999.

Collaborating with hotels in Portugal and in Sao Tomé and Príncipe

When distance is not a problem

The Troia Resort is a top-level tourist complex with a total of 500 connections.

Armando Portela also carries out its activity overseas, such as the project developed in Sao Tomé and Príncipe for two hotels in the Pestana chain, for the reception of Satellite TV on KU and C Bands, with Terrestrial television channels. The project required the installa-tion of a headend that provides a service to two hotels and a residential complex with 40 homes. The headend is located in one of the hotels, the entire distribution network of both hotels is coaxial, whilst the connection bet-ween the hotels and the housing development is made via optic fibre.

In order to install this solution many different Ikusi products have been used, such as the FTD-420 optical transmitter, the FSP-304 optical distribu-

tor, the HPA-120 amplifier, the ClassA BAS-700 base, the AV-COFDM MAC-HOME modulator and the FRD-400 optical receiver.

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“The difficulty lies in the size of the estate and in the large number of channels to be switched: 8 QAM carriers, 40 RF channels and 1 COFDM.”

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“This market will always demand products with advanced technology”Geraldino Silva has developed his entire pro-fessional career, half of his life, at Ikusi. He first collaborated in 1983, and since the end of 2011, alongside another former colleague of Ikusi, Agostinho Gomes, he has created the company Digitalmux, which now opera-tes as Ikusi’s branch for the Portuguese mar-ket and some African countries.

Portugal culminated its analogue switch-off process last April with the incorporation to digital television of the Lisbon area. What has the switch-off meant to Ikusi’s business?

That is correct, the final switch-off, in its last phase and on the transmitters with the greatest coverage, was carried out in April. As we could easily predict, there has been significant demand in various products, such as Flashd antennas and mast amplifiers. Due to the technical cha-racteristics of the DTT signal (MPEG4 and codec AAC) we have not been able to make the most of the business opportunities in the market of com-munal STBoxes and headends.

Of the devices that Ikusi has launched onto the market, which have had the greatest suc-cess in Portugal?

In all these years, and without a doubt, the Flashd antenna.

What are the particular characteristics of the Portuguese market and what is its current situation?

The Portuguese individual, terrestrial and sa-tellite market is very strong and competitive. The offer of free-to-view channels is very small (4 DTT channels), and with the arrival of cable operators and their strong investments, more than 80% of the most important cities has been cabled very quickly (coaxial cable and FTTH). There are a considerable number of communal ones but they have to compete with important companies and with the aggressive nature of these operators, which also broadcast their channel packets via Hispasat.

On the other hand, all the country’s economic activity is currently suffering due to the interven-tion of the global financial community, and the investment in new projects and in renovations is practically zero. And, therefore, the current acti-vity also depends on businesses that work with former Portuguese colonies (Angola, Mozambi-que, Cape Verde...)

What image does the Portuguese market have of Ikusi and its offer of products?

Ikusi has always had a good image and it has remained at a high level due to the effective qua-lity of its products and the care and respect we have placed in our commercial relations with all players in the market.

What type of devices do you think the Por-tuguese market will demand in the future?

Of all the questions this is undoubtedly the most difficult to answer. In any case, I think that this market will always demand products with ad-vanced technology, without forgetting compe-titive prices. With construction at a standstill, I believe it will be the hotel market that will gene-rate the most demand.



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“Ikusi has always had a good image andit has remained at a high level due to the effective quality of its products and the care and respect we have placed in our commercial relations with all playersin the market. “

We have launched a new websitewww.ikusi.tv

Ikusi Multimedia has just launched a specific website that has been created with the main objective of providing its clients with access to all the information about relevant services. A page designed to ensure users can quickly and simply access all the information about Ikusi’s catalogue of products, which now also contains options to simplify the search for product updates, as well as allowing support requests to be sent online.

In short, a page entirely focused on the busi-ness, which aspires to become a vehicle of communication with clients, on which Ikusi continues to work in order to gradually incor-porate new useful services.

The publication of the new web has coincid-ed with a change in Ikusi’s logo. Since 2010, Ikusi has been part of the Ormazabal busi-ness group which has now changed its name to Velatia. Therefore, Ikusi’s new logo now in-cludes the name Velatia at the bottom.

DIGITAL TERRESTRIAL RECEPTION WITH ANALOGUE OUTPUT

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The Digital Dividend sets the spectrums of fre-quencies for television and LTE with a minimum separation that can lead to problems in certain situations, mainly due to amplifier saturation in TV reception installations caused by high-power transmissions in LTE. At this time, this general problem is joined by a lack of definition of the framework in which this process will be developed, and, in any case, there will be no unique standard in Europe.

Ikusi’s solution contains the Flashd LTE an-tenna and a professional filter. The main characteristic of the Flashd LTE is that, while maintaining the gains of the recognized Flashd antenna, gets a strong LTE rejection without adding filters. The Flashd LTE is presented in two versions: One blocks LTE transmissions on channel 60, whilst the other does the same on channel 58. In both cases, as shown in the dia-grams, Ikusi’s antenna obtains a higher degree of LTE signal blocking than other proposals on the market, which guarantees the best protec-tion against the LTE signal.

Ikusi’s solution is completed with a profession-al filter, which breaks at channel 59 or 60, as required, comparable to the highest ranges on the market, except in its price.

This Ikusi solution is able to adapt to all situa-tions that generate the LTE signal emissions. In some cases will be sufficient using the Flashd LTE antenna, in others, the filter. And for the

most severe cases, the combination of the Flashd LTE antenna and filter ensures total pro-tection against the LTE signal.

In short, Ikusi has developed a complete solu-tion that is simple and competitive and, at the same time, the most effective on the market due to its capacity to protect TV signalreception against LTE transmissions.

“Ikusi has developed a complete solution that is simple and competitive and,at the same time, the most effective on the market due to its capacity toprotect TV signal reception againstLTE transmissions.”

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Ikusi Antennas and Filters, the best protection against the LTE signal

Downstream and upstream LTE signals: both cause interferenceDemand for broadband Internet on mobile has not stopped growing in recent years and there is every indication that it will continue to do so in the near future. Users want increasingly faster and more efficient mobile access to the Net. A desire that has culminated in the creation of LTE (Long Term Evolution). Defined for some as an evolution of the 3GPP UMTS (3G) standard, for others as a new concept of dynamic architec-ture (4G). However, what is clear is that LTE will be a key factor for the deployment of mobile in-ternet for two main reasons:

• Userswantadataconnectionthatdown loads and uploads at a faster speed

• Manufacturersandoperatorswantaless complex standard that reduces costs

But, as a new radio-electric signal, how does it affect existing TV signals? Does it only affect transmissions from repeater stations or the sig-nals that our mobiles, telephones and tablets will generate as well?

Let’s analyse the frequencies. LTE uses fre-quencies belonging to the sub-band from 791 to 862 MHz:

- 791MHz to 821MHz: Downstream

- 832MHz to 862MHz: Upstream

The small separation between the band re-served for TV and the LTE band (just 1MHz), as well as the transmitting power it uses (up to 67 dBm of PIRE) make downstream the signal with the most interference of the two. This signal must be blocked, using antennas and filters, be-fore any amplifier in the trunk installation. And it will protect the installation from interference that can filter through the capturing system.

However, the damage that can be caused by the signal transmitted by LTE (4G) mobiles is not negligible. As this signal (upstream) is much less powerful than the previous one, it has the disadvantage of being close to the input points: Televisions, outlets, cables in bad condition…

For that reason, we will have to guarantee the correct installation of the passive elements and the use of user filters connected to receivers (TV, STB…) to prevent the entry of interference in the distribution network via these elements.

Therefore, when dealing with LTE, we require full protection. A Full-protection LTE solution (by Ikusi).

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Ikusi collaborates closely with organisations and institutions that arrange and safeguard the interests of the industrial and professional tele-communications sector.

With this desire for ordered progress, Ikusi is an active member of AMETIC (Spanish Multi-sectoral Association of Electronics, Communi-cation and Information Technologies, Telecom-munications and Digital Contents Companies) and member of reference in FENITEL (Spanish Federation of Telecommunications Installer and Integrator Companies), as well as other territo-rial associations in Spain.

At governmental level, Ikusi maintains a cons-tant exchange of impressions with SETSI (Spa-nish State Secretariat of Telecommunications and for the Information Society) which makes it possible to discover in advance the prospects for legislation and technological adoption pre-sented in our country. This knowledge allows

Ikusi to develop and propose, to the Ministry of Industry’s technical teams, products and tech-nologies for the correct development and suc-cess of the technological processes that affect the market.

An example of this is the transition process from analogue to DTT, which concluded as a redoun-ding success, among other reasons, due to the close collaboration with the State Administra-tion or, soon, that of the future Digital Dividend, in which Ikusi has already proposed effective solutions to the problems entailed in the new radio-electric scenario.

Ikusi will continue to have consideration and sympathy for these institutions, in which the professionals are essential players in the viabi-lity of our sector and allow us to have a legal framework at professional level that benefits companies and citizens.

Building closer ties withthe sector’s organisations



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“Ikusi is an active memberof AMETIC and a memberof reference in FENITELand it maintains a constantexchange of impressionswith SETSI “

“When dealing with LTE, we require full protection”

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FLASHD LTE

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Ikusi News October 2012