[RTC List] StreamGuys, Inc. Provides Streaming Support to KPBS-FM During Wildfire Emergency

[Jonathan Speaker]

a  little late in terms of news cycle- but Humboldt played a part in the so
cal wildfires- 


 


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

Press Contact:

Brian Galante

Pipeline Communications

(215) 659-8111

briang at pipecomm.com

 

StreamGuys, Inc. Provides Streaming Support to KPBS-FM during Wildfire
Emergency

 

Robust streaming platform accommodates increased website traffic for KPBS
Internet radio stream after wildfires knock transmitter off the air

 

ARCATA, CALIFORNIA, February 5, 2008 - KPBS-FM, an NPR member station
serving the San Diego region, was knocked off the air on October 23, 2007
when the Southern California wildfires destroyed power lines that fed its
transmitter on Mount St. Miguel.  The station, which had provided its
listeners with wall-to-wall terrestrial and Internet radio coverage
throughout the emergency, scrambled to increase its streaming capacity to
accommodate concerned listeners in San Diego and beyond.  With assistance
from the Integrated Media Association (IMA), a nonprofit organization
focused on Internet policy, practices and service for public broadcasting,
KPBS contacted StreamGuys, Inc. of Northern California to provide a robust
streaming platform to handle the increased website traffic.

 

"I called the station early that morning when I turned on my radio and
realized that we were knocked off the air," said Deanna Mackey, Associate
General Manager at KPBS.  "We had to act fast because being silent during an
emergency was not acceptable.  We anticipated more traffic to our website
stream since our listeners couldn't hear us on the radio for evacuation
alerts and updates on the fires.  We normally handle our stream on our
servers, but were concerned about overflow traffic."

 

Mackey reached out to industry colleagues at IMA for assistance in
bolstering KPBS' stream capacity. StreamGuys immediately responded to
provide additional streaming support to KPBS during the emergency.  The
StreamGuys team, led by Sales Engineer Andy C. Jones, configured a new
stream for KPBS across multiple servers capable of supporting upward of
5,000 listeners, using the existing KPBS stream for source.  StreamGuys
e-mailed a new stream address to the station, which was quickly placed on
the website and accommodating KPBS listeners within minutes.

 

"StreamGuys provided support to us at a very generous rate," said Mackey.
"When traffic overloaded our streamer capacity, the overflow went through
the re-direct that StreamGuys engineers customized for KPBS.  The overflow
solution was kept in place for a few weeks after the fire, even as the
urgency of the situation lessened."

 

Mackey noted that a cooperative effort between KPBS and local alternative
rock station FM 94.9 (KBZT-FM) allowed the station to continue 24-hour
broadcast coverage during the fire.  FM 94.9 cooperated by allowing the KPBS
to continue news broadcasts on their frequency to keep San Diegans informed
of fire news and information.

 

"The significance of radio as a news and information source truly comes into
focus during emergency situations like the Southern California wildfires,"
said Jonathan Speaker, COO of StreamGuys, Inc.  "For KPBS, the importance of
having a radio outlet to inform listeners was amplified since its
over-the-air English and Spanish-language television stations were also
knocked off the air, and it hit close to home as most of our employees had
family or friends that were affected.  We were pleased to work with Mark
Fuerst, Executive Director of the Integrated Media Association, and the KPBS
team to increase their streaming capacity while the station worked toward
restoring its over-the-air signal."  

 

About StreamGuys, Inc.

In business since 2000, StreamGuys, Inc. offers a variety of streaming media
solutions and tools enabling superior quality delivery and monetization of
digital media. Through devout dedication to improving the customer
experience, StreamGuys has enjoyed continued success across all sectors of
Internet broadcasting. Headquartered in Northern California, they currently
serve a base of over 500 clients worldwide, including such companies as
Cisco, CIA, NBC Universal, NASA, New Balance and broadcasters such as WNYC,
KQED and Chicago Public Radio. Visit www.streamguys.com for more information
on their products and services.

# # # 

StreamGuys, Inc - info at streamguys.com - www.streamguys.com - 707.667.9479

P.O. Box 828 Arcata, California 95518 - fax 707.516.0009

 

 

 

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