Barco brings its LED technology in a video wall configuration to the new Al Arabiya set

This news channel 24 Dubai hours (United Arab Emirates) has transformed its new set with 140 m² of Led modules, with Infinipix processing, whose images are managed from three E2 systems.

In March 2020, Al Arabiya, Arabic-language news channel that broadcasts from the emirate of Dubai throughout the day surprised its audience with a new and elegant studio, starring three curved video walls from the Belgian firm Barco.

The set design and installation project, of 140 m², has been made by Intertech, Boat partner, with an open space configuration that integrates several sets in the editorial office itself, and whose visual system is made up of 594 Led modules, con 1,5 mm de pixel pitch.

The Led video walls have Infinipix image processing and three E2 management systems are responsible for feeding impressive images and graphics to the screens..

As Fadi Radi explains, creative director at Al Arabiya, “in our new studio the graphics are the protagonists. A video wall can be seen in virtually any studio camera shot next to the presenter. Certainly, in times when people have become accustomed to hyperrealistic images, video wall image quality will make or break the show. That's why we only wanted the best of the best.".

To achieve this optimal image quality on the studio screen, several challenges had to be overcome.. One was the space equipment, with thirteen robotic cameras that dynamically travel between curved video walls, two concave and one convex.

Making sure the colors of the video wall looked good on the screen and in any camera position was a challenge, remember Radi: “we wanted consistent colors, High contrast and saturated for our graphics throughout the studio design, so we needed them to be presented in the best possible resolution”.

An additional challenge to this requirement was that “our studio allows daylight to enter, so we needed colors that were equally impressive both at night and during the day. Barco has certainly made this possible”, this manager emphasizes.

Image processing

The technology powering all this color excellence is Barco's Infinipix image processing platform., which has been integrated with video playback Vizrt, ensuring colors are realistic and vivid in all camera positions, even under the sharpest angles.

Besides, with Barco's E2 display management platform, Al Arabiya's production team can develop an almost unlimited number of content templates to cater to your programming 24/7, as well as changing the environment of the studio and adapting its graphic compositions to the requirements of that moment..

“Barco technology offers us many creative options,” says Radi.. A technique we like to use is the virtual window; a moving camera with graphics that move in the same direction as the camera, based on optical tracking. Thanks to Barco image processing, All of this can be done with perfect resolution and without signs of jitter or glitches.”.

Another advantage is that the LED modules that configure the Barco video walls can be kept frontally., so it saves space in the back