Streambox Live Delivers Real-Time Video From the Slopes of Mount Everest

Jordan Romero, Youngest Person to Reach the Summit, Relies on Broadband Video Contribution Service to Keep News Media, Others Informed of Progress

Seattle(22 Jun 2010)

Streambox today announced that its Streambox Live broadband video contribution service provided a vital communications link for 13-year-old climber Jordan Romero's ascent of Mount Everest. Romero, the youngest person ever to attempt and reach the summit of the world's highest peak, used the service to send up-to-the-minute, high-quality video reports of his progress from various locations on the mountain - one of which was included in CNN's broadcast coverage of the expedition.

"We commend Jordan for such a monumental undertaking, and for relying on Streambox Live as a means of keeping family, friends, and the public updated on the expedition's progress," said Bob Hildeman, chairman and CEO of Streambox. "Jordan's summit of Everest is just the type of application for which Streambox Live was designed: a remote and physically demanding location lacking in network services, from which an organization needs a reliable and easy-to-use method of streaming live or file-based video." 

Streambox reseller Network Innovations, a turnkey provider of satellite communications solutions including equipment and airtime, supplied the Streambox Live solution to Romero's team. Armed only with a laptop running the free Streambox Live encoding software, a camcorder, and a lightweight Thrane Explorer-700 BGAN terminal for satellite uplinking, the climbers were able to record, encode, and uplink video to the cloud-based Streambox Live service, where it may be browsed, downloaded, and decoded for broadcast or other use by any Streambox Live subscriber. The CNN segment, which aired on April 22, featured more than six minutes of live video provided by Streambox Live, including an interview with Romero and his father, Paul Romero, from the expedition's base camp on the slopes of Everest.

"We are absolutely thrilled with the capabilities of Streambox Live, and we believe it offers huge potential not only for remote newsgathering by the media, but also for other organizations, such as Jordan's, that need an easy and cost-effective method of streaming live video from remote locations that can't be reached by satellite trucks," said Graham Sherman, director of marketing for Network Innovations. "Jordan and his team members are highly experienced mountaineers and adventurers, but they're not satellite engineers. Nonetheless, they were able to set up the equipment and get up and running in minutes for the CNN live shot, without any training. This speaks volumes to the Streambox Live software's ease of use." 

After a series of shorter climbs and descents on which the team continued to acclimate to the extreme altitude, the Jordan Romero expedition reached the Mount Everest summit on May 22. 

More information about Streambox ACT-L3 encoding solutions is available online at www.streambox.com.  

About Network Innovations
Network Innovations specializes in the service and distribution of satellite communications equipment, integration, and airtime, as well as unique oil-field and defense-related services. Since its founding in 1988, the company has experienced steady growth in customers and revenues by leveraging the latest technologies and tried-and-true tools - whether the client requires a simple handheld satellite phone to call home or a turnkey business infrastructure for several thousand people. As such, Network Innovations is recognized as a world leader in the delivery of sound, cost-effective satellite telecom solutions to its clients wherever their business may take them on the planet. For more information, visit www.networkinv.com.

About Streambox, Inc.
Streambox focuses on IP-based, end-to-end newsgathering and contribution services. It delivers SD and HD software and hardware for video compression, transmission, management, and playout. The Streambox Live Service supplements the Streambox Platform with free encoding software and server-based services for scalable newsgathering and contribution.

Streambox solutions are based on the industry-leading ACT-L3 codec, which provides unrivaled performance, reliability, and quality over low data rate IP networks for fast transmission and playout of video streams in HD and SD. The company's platform enables broadcasters, government agencies, enterprises, and other users to enhance content ownership, simplify operations, and increase operational efficiencies.