Leading Arabic satellite television channel migrates to Avstar Newsroom Computer System (NRCS)

MADISON, WI (February 22, 2000) - Avstar Systems LLC, the worldwide market leader in newsroom computing systems, welcomes Middle East Broadcasting (MBC), the leading free-to-air Arabic satellite television channel, into the Avstar family. MBC migrated from Basys to the Arabic version of Avstar Newsroom Computer System (NRCS) version 1.2 running under Arabic Windows. The new system has been installed on nearly 100 journalists' workstations at the station's London-based headquarters and is now fully operational.

Among the reasons for MBC's choice of NRCS was the respected Avstar name and its proven solutions. Chief engineer John Turner commented, "We decided to opt for a solution from Avstar Systems for two main reasons. First, Avstar has established a strong reputation as a provider of high-quality newsroom computer systems and secondly, the migration path from Basys to the Arabic language version of Avstar is proven."

The MBC internal IT department carried out the installation of the Avstar NRCS in late 1999. Additionally, the Avstar UK office provided the newsroom team with complete training on the new system. Currently, MBC is transmitting two daily news programs, which are broadcasted entirely in the Arabic language. It also broadcasts five short news bulletins throughout the day. The station's main audience resides in the Middle East, with concentrations centered in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States.

"It's very exciting to see Arabic broadcasters utilizing our latest technology," said Avstar director of Worldwide Marketing, Jim Adams, referring to the series of recently signed contracts in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar. "The Middle East Broadcasting's investment in the Avstar solution is the result of our dedicated commitment to the International markets at the same level as the U.S. broadcast markets."

Avstar Systems

Avstar Systems LLC is dedicated to supporting the world community of radio and television journalists through technological innovation and to ensuring the continued independence of the news media by developing tools that are content-independent. Headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin with additional offices worldwide, Avstar's products are installed in the world's broadcast facilities and serve over 80,000 journalists. For more information, see the Avstar web site at http:// www.avstarnews.com