Johannes G. Rietschel

Companies at the NAB Show this year face more than just making that sale or finalizing a deal — they are dealing with tough economic conditions impacting their own companies along with their customers.

Vendors are dealing with the economy by looking at solutions in-house, as well as producing ideas on how to help customers. And while not everyone is being hit hard by the downturn, companies are acknowledging the situation and trying to help those who are impacted.

Sean Moran, national sales manager at Hitachi Kokusai Electric America Ltd. said they have seen sales slow up because customers are in a "holding pattern." However, the company is seeing steady sales from their core customers, as well as a demand in HDTV cameras.

The company also has been decreasing inventory, and offering steeper discounts when necessary to spur sales, he said.

BUDGET REALITIES

Alec Shapiro, senior vice president, sales and marketing, broadcast and production systems at Sony Electronics said in a recent interview the company has definitely seen the effects of the current economy, especially the impact on local TV stations.

"Capital budgets are being frozen at both the network and station levels and many customers are adopting a 'good enough' mentality; buying what they can afford, not necessarily what they'd like to purchase," he said.

Joop Janssen

But while business has slowed in places, Shapiro said Sony is equally optimistic about how much it continues to sell. He said high-quality productions are still in demand, and the HD migration continues to progress not only in broadcast, but in education, houses of worship, the government and sports.

MaxT Systems, a developer of server-based media applications and storage solutions based in Montreal, is seeing the economy take a toll on its customers.

"The current economic situation has caused our prospective customers to reduce both capital and current expenditures and to delay purchases of anything that is not essential in the short-term operation of the business," said Giovanni Tagliamonti CEO of MaxT Systems. "The climate of uncertainty has certainly slowed the pace of investment, primarily because managers do not know what direction to bet on. In response, we too tightened our belts and focused our energies on delivering products and services that take significant costs out of the post-production and broadcast processes."

Sponsored Link

Tagliamonti said its newest product, MAXedit, a multi-user editing solution released in December has garnered a lot of attention primarily because it reduces the cost of the editing process while allowing worldwide editing collaboration.

Barix AG, an audio over IP company, is currently investing in the Exstreamer 1000 products and software. Johannes G. Rietschel, CEO and founder of Barix said the investment will provide a low-cost, reliable audio streaming device, but this time with high-definition features and an AES/EBU interface that complements its lower cost solutions.

Rietschel said Barix has only been marginally affected by the current economic situation because growth has slowed a bit in some of its markets outside of broadcast.

Alec Shapiro

ON THE HORIZON

Despite the economic conditions, not all companies are feeling the pinch. 360 Systems, a company that offers high-definition video servers along with audio Instant Replay boxes used in radio and TV stations, said recently that not everyone is in trouble.

Robert Easton, president of 360 Systems said in a recent interview that they have hired more field sales people.

"Clearly, everyone is not in trouble — that's just a news story," Easton said.

Easton isn't alone. Vitec Group is also fairing well. However, Joop Janssen, chief executive, Vitec Group, Broadcast Systems Division warns companies in good financial standing to not rest on their laurels.

"Fortunately the Vitec Group has experienced significant growth in the last few years, giving us a solid foundation from which to weather the economic storm we are experiencing today," Janssen said. "But if anybody thinks that a company can ride a recession by living off its savings, and then pick up where they left off when conditions improve, they would be wrong. Customers simply won't tolerate complacency or arrogance, so maintaining investment in innovation is vital."

Janssen said its R&D programs have already produced a constant stream of products that improve creativity, efficiency and return on investment, while reducing the environmental impact including its new Litepanels 1x1 Bi-Color LED. Litepanels is just one brand of the Broadcast Systems division.

Janssen also said the downturn has highlighted the importance of close customer relationships, something Advanced Broadcast Solutions is focused on as well.

"We are fortunate that our business is thriving at a time like this. Some of our clients have been hit hard by the economic situation, and we make it our responsibility to create cost-effective solutions to meet their needs," said Mark Siegel, president, Advanced Broadcast Solutions. "We also strive to help broadcasters maximize their investments by considering strategies that use existing video assets as potential revenue streams. Plus, we encourage the migration to file-based workflows that improves production and post-production efficiencies while opening the door to Web and mobile TV revenue opportunities."

"That's a good business solution for today's tough economy," Siegel said.