A MESSAGE FROM THE CEO
JUNE 2020
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 Roughly three months in, the reality that Covid-19 will be with us for a time has started to sink in. It's a tough situation that is making everyone in our business scramble to find new ways and approaches to weather the storm when ordering and selling goods, as well as planning AV integration projects. We are going through these challenges with you and moving forward with the belief that we'll be made stronger by the experience.
We are now seeing global markets slowly and cautiously coming back to life. During this forced 'downtime,' we have spoken with many of you who have used this opportunity to move projects forward in buildings without disrupting—or hazarding the disruption of—employees. For the majority remaining, we are finding they have used this period to plan for delayed, and in some cases, new projects.
The role of integrators has always been to help their customers solve problems. Regular interaction between the integrator and end-user takes on even more importance in the current environment. Not only do end-users need to know how and when they can proceed with their AV projects, but what a pandemic could mean to their current and future needs. For instance, we can assume many will want direction on how to bolster their ability to reach remote audiences during Covid-19, and even after for those who find value in being able to communicate remotely going forward.
As you all know, InfoComm, our biggest show of the year, has gone virtual and is reborn as InfoComm 2020 Connected. While a virtual show does not offer us the opportunity to meet with you face-to-face, it still represents an essential opportunity for us to huddle and make the moves and exchange ideas that will enhance our businesses. We hope to see each of you at our virtual booth, as well as at our online product demo.
Also, AVIXA had selected us to present a session entitled "How Today's Museums Engage Audiences with State-of-the-art AV" at InfoComm that is now being featured as a webinar on June 24. We'll be presenting this session in collaboration with Design & Production, a leading AV design, consulting and integration firm for the museum market, and Paul Morando, chief of exhibits at the new National Museum of the United States Army based in Fort Belvoir, Virginia just outside Washington, D.C.
Beyond that, the backslaps and the harrowing travel stories will have to wait until next year. Keep the faith—and take a long-view on where we are. Stay well, and I look forward to speaking with you soon.
Regards,
Bob Michaels
CEO, ZeeVee
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Set Your Calendars for our June Webinars
Our dual-track webinars continue this month; here is the schedule for June:
- June 18 – ZeeVee SIGNAL Session Episode 2 with a focus on AV over IP in Higher Education
- June 25 – ZeeVee Certified Solution Partner Training - AV over IP and RF Modulator Training providing 2.5 and 1.0 AVIXA CTS credits to all participants. Netgear will provide a network switch primer as well.
You can get the additional information and register for these webinars via this link.
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We're Presenting an AVIXA Webinar on Museums with Design & Production
Big news – the presentation we were to deliver at InfoComm has been transformed into an industry webinar that will take place on June 24 at 1 pm EDT.
How Today's Museums Engage Audiences with State-of-the-art AV pairs us with Design & Production (D&P), a leading AV design, consulting, and integration firm for the museum market, based in Lorton, Virginia. Our VP Marketing and North America Sales Joe Chordas will host a discussion with D&P's Senior Systems Engineer William Todd, and special guest Paul Morando, chief of exhibits at the National Museum of the United States Army.
The three will explore how museums, extended sources of education and entertainment for people of all ages, are updating their approach to engage younger, tech-savvier audiences via state-of-the-art AV. Best practices and key learnings from projects completed at high-profile institutions, including Basketball Hall of Fame, Tennessee State Museum, and National Museum of Law Enforcement, will be discussed.
Keep an eye out for an invitation to this event, or check in on our website in the coming weeks for more information and the registration link.
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ZeeVee Goes Online with InfoComm 2020 Connected!
 Like all of you, we will not be heading out to Vegas this month for InfoComm, but we are excited to participate virtually in InfoComm 2020 Connected.
At our online booth, which you can visit by registering for infocomm connected here https://www.infocommshow.org/event-info/content-program, we will feature:
- Our ZyPer4K Quad Encoder Card for Netgear M4300-96X. This new tech marvel enables the first Ethernet switch with integrated HDMI connectivity for video sources with the capacity to distribute uncompressed 4K/UHD and HDR content. We will also highlight enhancements to our ZyPer Management Platform, including video preview and security features.
- New enhancements to our ZyPer Management Platform include a video preview function (that makes it easier to identify content before it is routed to any endpoint in the system), and a multiview text overlay function (that enables users to add varied descriptions, custom labels and branding simultaneously over onscreen video delivered to multiple monitors). Additional features include Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) and enhanced network and security capabilities.
- Many other SDVoE, AVoIP, RF and video streaming solutions that will meet and exceed the requirements of any AV distribution application
Also, we will offer a primer on our ZyPer4K Quad Encoder Card and ZyPer Management Platform during a New Tech Lightning Round from 11:00 am to 12:00 pm on June 18. You can find more information about the new tech lightning round by choosing June 18 on the following webpage: https://www.infocommshow.org/event-info/content-program.
Be sure to register for InfoComm at the same link (above).
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 Distributor Dustin Finland Oy and AV integrator Electro Waves Oy worked with Aalto University IT Specialist Lasse West and his team to enhance learning and work environments at Finland's highly regarded multidisciplinary technology, business and art, and design school. The team integrated our Zyper4K SDVoE encoders and decoders to move uncompressed 4K video via an HP HPE 5900 48SFP+ 10Gb fiber network switch to deliver uncompressed 4K video content with ultra-low latency enabling students and staff to share content and collaborate on projects in real-time easily.
Vice Media, a digital media and broadcasting company with  offices in 35 countries that produces 1,700 pieces of content daily, was looking to up its AV game within its Brooklyn and Los Angeles offices. In New York, the mandate to distribute content throughout its offices, including a video wall in the lobby with multiview capabilities, was satisfied by our ZyPer4K and ZyPerHD solutions. In Los Angeles, our ZyPerMX family of encoders streamed content to each employee's desktop.
 Commvault is a publicly-traded data protection and data management software company with more than 2,300 employees and an annual revenue in excess of $700 million. It needed a significant update to its AV system to facilitate the broadcast of CEO and executive town halls, as well as distribute IPTV content to its executive offices and stream video for digital signage endpoints and a video wall. To meet these needs, our ZyPerUHD solution and ZyPerMX4 were selected for the job.
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ZeeVee ZyPerMX2/MX4 and STBi3 Now Compatible with DTVGameControl
 This month, ZeeVee has teamed with DTVGameControl (DTVGC) to announce that our ZyPerMX2/MX4 encoders, as well as our STBi3 set-top box, are now compatible with the DTVGC platform. The combination of the STBi3 and DTVGC makes it easier than ever to deliver TV programming to multiple displays – on the fly – in bars, restaurants and other hospitality settings.
The DTVGameControl platform is a turn-key iPad application with an integrated guide, perfect for controlling DirecTV, Dish and significant cable company receivers. Its software includes video tiling, video walls, audio control features and more. One simple network cable delivers power, video and control from ZeeVee hardware and the DTVGC platform to the venue's displays.
DTVGC comes with user-friendly search options that provide users with quick access to all TV programming. In addition, easily recognizable "Game Day Tab" icons detail sporting events currently playing (when sports resume!). The Morning Sequence feature automatically turns on all TVs each morning to preset channels at the programmed time. In effect, DTVGameControl becomes an all-in-one remote control that is simple and easy to use because it's based on each venue's floor plan.
To learn more, contact your ZeeVee sales representative!
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Software-Defined Video over Ethernet (SDVoE) is now firmly established as the premier signal distribution technology available to the market with thousands of installations around the globe, addressing the most demanding AV applications.
ZeeVee is one of the earliest believers in this emerging technology, as evidenced by its standing as a founding member of the SDVoE Alliance in 2017. However, our history with the technology pre-dates the establishment of this group by several years. Our discussions with the founders of AptoVision, the company that developed SDVoE technology and was subsequently acquired by Semtech, were instrumental in pressing for the formation of an organization to promote the next generation AV distribution standard that would support uncompressed 4K imaging with near-zero latency.
In fact, ZeeVee was the first company to adopt and utilize the technology, and our initial installations were completed back in 2015. We were also the first and, to this date, one of the only companies to design and manufacture our range of SDVoE products. With over five years and millions of dollars of investment, it is evident that there is no other company on the planet with the depth of practical experience with SDVoE technology.
ZeeVee's first-mover status in the founding of the SDVoE Alliance and support of SDVoE technology underscores the company's deep and industry-leading AV over IP experience in general. While many companies in the last few years have crowded the market with OEM products, ZeeVee remains at the head of the pack with its fourth generation of battle-tested ZyPer4K AVoIP products.
We remain the major booster of the SDVoE Alliance and the technology that drives our ZyPer4K AV signal distribution products. We not only talk the talk, but we also support the group through marketing and PR, as well as educational programs for integrators and end-users. We regularly contribute to the SDVoE Academy, which provides a dependable resource for designers, installers, sellers and managers of pro AV systems to become certified SDVoE Design Partners.
From its beginnings with a handful of forward-thinking companies, including Semtech, Aquantia, Christie Digital, NETGEAR, Sony and ZeeVee, the SDVoE Alliance has created a formidable universe of products from 51 member companies that can be mixed and matched to develop solutions to meet any application calling for the highest-performing, most flexible and cost-effective AV signal distribution solution.
We are proud to continue ushering in AVoIP, which is not the future but the "now," of AV signal distribution as more end-users are calling for solutions to accommodate today's ever more sophisticated needs.
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Sound & Communication
Bob Michaels Byline Story
May 2020 Issue
"As designers and manufacturers, we must take greater responsibility and step up our efforts to educate our channel partners; that way, those partners are appropriately equipped to serve end-users as the go-to resources they're meant to be. Distributors and integrators unprepared to provide solid counsel and accurate answers to their customers' questions—especially when those customers are knowledgeable and experienced IT professionals who are evaluating proposed AV-over-IP systems—will be bypassed and left out of the equation.
Although it might seem easy for those in the channel to go with the cookie-cutter AV-distribution solutions that they know, the global market is indicating that AV-over-IP signal distribution is no longer "the future." Instead, in terms of reliability, flexibility and cost-effectiveness, AV-over-IP is the now. For that reason, all channel partners have to be brought up to speed."
LINK TO FULL STORY
AV Magazine
Aalto University Case History
May 20, 2020
Aalto University IT Specialist Lasse West on why the ZeeVee  ZyPer4K SDVoE solution was chosen to deliver AV throughout its new business school building: "We chose ZeeVee and its ZyPer4K solution because they have by far the longest history in AV over IP, the most reference installations and are focused on the technology, which gives us great confidence as we expand this program going forward. We are definitely committed to SDVoE-based solutions that we believe will protect our investment now and for years to come."
LINK TO FULL STORY
InAVate Magazine
A Roundup of ZeeVee Products for Streaming
May 20, 2020
 ZeeVee outlined its video streaming line up as it noted the rapidly increasing demand for the technology. The company's streaming products include the H.264 Media Module (quad encoder blade) for the HDbridge 3000 encoder, ZyPerMX2 and ZyPerMX4 H.264 encoder appliances, STBi3 set top box and the ZyPerMX Player (EPG).
LINK TO THE FULL STORY
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Employee Spotlight – John Costa
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John Costa is ZeeVee's manager of south central and southwest U.S. sales. Since joining the company in September 2017, he has come to appreciate what he calls ZeeVee's "culture of equality." This is exemplified by the company's team-based environment. Everyone works towards a common goal of excellence and each team member's unique qualities are leveraged for the group.
The highlight of working at ZeeVee for John is seeing the excitement of both end-users and AV industry colleagues as he helps them leverage the power of AVoIP to catapult their objectives.
"New concepts and ideas are often accompanied by a natural fear and reluctance to change," he says. "Getting people over their trepidation so they can benefit from the superior AV distribution and potential enabled by networked AV is very rewarding."
The evolution of AV across networks has been the focus of his entire career and he sees the capabilities of the technology limited only to modern infrastructure and the imagination of end-users—which seems to grow exponentially from month to month. Among his musings on the future, he predicts that data-driven artificial intelligence will advance to automate many functions that now require human interaction as the Pro AV industry continues to evolve and cross over to native IT appliances.
John is happily married, a proud father of three, including an active-duty U.S. Marine. His household has a pet dog and rabbit – with the likelihood of more pets to come. He spends the large majority of his time with his family—and wouldn't have it any other way. When he can squeeze in some time alone, it usually involves the outdoors, a cup of black coffee and a fine cigar.
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