Overview

In 1973, the company now known as Quantel developed the first practical analogue to digital converter for television applications. That innovation not only gave Quantel its name (QUANtised TELevision), it also started a process that has fundamentally changed the look of television, the way it is produced and delivered. Quantel’s contribution to the changes leading to the digital age is best traced through its products, which have extended to film and print as well as television.

1975 Quantel demonstrates the DFS 3000, the world’s first digital framestore synchroniser. TV coverage of the 1976 Montreal Olympic games is transformed with synchronised shots from an airship ‘blimp’ freely used and quarter-sized picture inserts mark the genesis of digital effects.

1977 The first portable digital standards converter, the DSC 4002 heralds high quality and easily available conversion.1978 DPE 5000 series, the first commercially successful digital effects machine, popularises digital video effects.
1980 The DLS 6000 series introduces digital still storage for on-air presentation.The new DFS 1751 framestore synchroniser is just one rack unit in height.


1981 The revolutionary Paintbox creates the market for video graphics – and, thanks to continuous development, continues as the industry standard.1982 Mirage introduces the TV page turn and is the first digital effects machine able to manipulate 3D images in 3D space.1986 Harry makes multilayering of live video a practical proposition and introduces nonlinear operation and random access to video clips.1989 V-Series, the second generation Paintbox, is faster, smaller and more powerful than its ‘classic’ predecessor.1990 The Picturebox stills store integrates the storage, presentation and management of stills. Harriet, the dynamic graphics workstation manipulates still graphics over live video.1992 Henry , the Effects Editor, offers simultaneous layering of multiple live video sources. Hal , the Video Design Suite, is the first custom-built, dedicated graphics production and compositing centre.1993 Dylan disk array technology provides fault-tolerant extended storage for non-compressed video with true random access to material. First applications are with Hal, Henry and the new Editbox which introduces online nonlinear editing. Domino ,digital opticals for movies, brings the flexibility of digital compositing and effects technology to the film industry. Its accuracy and speed open new horizons for movie making.1994 The Clipbox video server offers large-scale shared video storage for many users, each with true random access for input, editing and playout for news, sport, transmission and post-production.

1998 Inspiration the integrated news and sports production system offers the sought-after, fast-track end-to-end solution from lines-in to on-air. Stories edited at journalists’ desktops are immediately ready for transmission.1999 Moving Picturebox extends Picturebox stills facilities to both video clips and stills. This agile, server-based integrated system handles conventionally complex sequences for on-air presentation.

2000 iQ is an entirely new platform for media editing, compositing and serves as the centre-piece of modern post. It introduces Resolution Co-existence – working with all TV formats together, SD and HD, as well as with digital film. Its unique ultra-fast hardware and software architecture allows scalability and access for third-party developers. 2002 generationQ – a radical, all-encompassing, new concept that offers total scalability in both hardware and software across post production, graphics and broadcast for multiple resolution, team-working production environments. The post range includes the iQ media platform, the eQ mainstream SD/HD editor, the QEdit Pro PC-based SD/HD editor and QEffects software for the PC. Graphics includes the gQ high powered, multi-resolution platform, QPaintbox Pro for powerful SD graphics production and QPaintbox software for the PC. For broadcast, the totally scalable sQ Server combines broadcast and browse video within the same server, while a range of consistent, progressive software encompassing craft editing to journalist cut and view, runs on any level of hardware from a laptop to a high performance workstation.
2004 Resolution transparent HD/SD Server technology.

2005 Newsbox – a shrink-wrapped, affordable news production system for small broadcasters. Pablo – a dedicated colour grading and workflow solution for the Digital Intermediate market to allow real time interactive colour correction of films. Picturebox sQ – a brand new addition to the world-leading sQ server range that provides an integrated approach to the creation, playout and management of graphics.2006 Newsbox HD. A risk free route to all the benefits of integrated digital news production. Wins Television Broadcast Top Innovation Award of 2006.