A revolutionary new editing system for the film, video and multimedia industry is to be launched on the world market by Canberra-based high tech firm MediaWare Solutions (MWS). The Minister for Communications and the Arts, Senator Richard Alston, will launch the product today.
The Webflix software is designed to analyse, navigate and edit compressed video (MPEG) files. It will turn libraries of video footage into assets for marketing, entertainment and education.
The system is the latest development from MWS, an innovative start-up company recently budded from CSIRO.
"WebFlix is a cost-effective editing tool for people in the multimedia, Internet and advertising industries," MWS Director, David Keightley says.
"Our first release locates camera related events - such as where a cut or dissolve has occurred, thus helping people search quickly through hours of footage," Mr Keightley says.
The software is being marketed internationally with Sun Microsystems Australia Pty Ltd and Silicon Graphics Pty Ltd. Mr Keightley says that MWS has already received expressions of interest from overseas for the product and they have delivered beta software to customers in Canada, the USA and Germany.
"The digital-media market is in a period of rapid growth. With prices getting lower and lower, digitised video and digital MPEG video cameras will soon become accessible to home users as well as big film houses. This means that MPEG digital videos will be stored on home computers, connected to the Internet and, just like videos now, we will need to sort, edit and browse them," Mr Keightley says.
"We are very pleased to see that our technology is not only being recognised as world class, but that it will also generate a local industry and derive export revenue," Mr Keightley says.
MWS software is available on Windows platforms and leading Unix workstations. MWS hopes this will lead to them capturing a significant market share for audio/video tools both in the home and industry. The technology is Internet ready and will be compatible with existing and emerging industry format standards.
MWS was formed by three multimedia research staff from CSIRO. Dr Ron Sandland, Chief of CSIRO Mathematical and Information Sciences, says the organisation is very pleased to see its technology being commercialised and reaching the international market place. So far CSIRO has generated over 50 spinoff companies since the early 1980's with a collective annual turnover of about $170 million and employment of almost 900.
"Australia has a proud creative record in film, literature and other artistic endeavours and, increasingly, these are being created and delivered in the digital domain," Dr Sandland says. "Researching the tools needed to develop and deliver digital content is a high priority for CSIRO".
MWS will continue to maintain links with CSIRO under a licence agreement that includes provision for further research and development in technologies important to the company's development.
The launch will take place on Wednesday, September 24, 1997 from 12.15
pm at Sun Microsystems Pty Ltd, Level 2, 97 Northbourne Ave, Turner, ACT.
More information:
David Keightley, Managing Director, Mediaware Solutions, 02 6247
4438 or 0412 072 578
email: davidk@mediaware.com.au
Or
Dr Ron Sandland, CSIRO Mathematical and Information Sciences,
ph: 02 9325 3203