Fox News Channel will launch its Quick Response Vehicle Program during the NAB Show next week in Las Vegas. In partnership with LiveU and Accelerated Media Technologies, the program centers around a Nissan NV 3500, which Fox News said is “a one-stop shop for a photographer and crew covering and chasing down a breaking news story.”
The vehicle has enough cargo space for a full ENG photographer kit, said Fox News, and enough workspace for a correspondent and field producer to toil away as well. The NV 3500 is built on an entirely IP platform and equipped with bandwidth efficient HEVC bonded encoding from LiveU, said Fox News, with satellite technology to guarantee transmission from anywhere in the U.S.
Fox News plans to have the vehicle in multiple domestic bureaus this year, meaning “more in-depth breaking newsgathering and reporting across FNC and O&O stations,” it said.
Sharri Berg, chief operating officer, news & operations at Fox Television Stations and senior VP of news operations at Fox News, is overseeing the program. “Bonded cellular works great, but we knew we needed the reliability of satellite when the biggest breaking news hits,” she said. “We also listened to our field folks and built an IP-based vehicle with simple, auto-acquisition satellite technology that could be operated by one photographer, while also giving the rest of the team the workspace they require.”
The vehicle also features a roof camera for on-the-go streaming, LiveU Xtender for improved cellular throughput and Cobham satellite dish and Newtec satellite modem for satellite IP throughput up to 20 Mbps.
