Grass Valley has introduced a robust Business Continuity Initiative to help protect broadcasters, content owners and production companies, and give them enhanced operational support options and free access to selected services in response to the Covid-19 outbreak.

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Shouldering responsibility: Grass Valley Tim Shoulders speaking at IBC 2019

To support production operations, now faced with keeping teams of remotely located personnel well connected to their workflows and content, Grass Valley is offering 90-day free licences for GV Stratus, sQ with Go! and Edius customers, meaning select client licences and relevant core server software components will be available free of charge. Customers will be able to manage, create and deliver media to their audiences, using a tablet or computer, from home. This will allow customers to collaborate on content creation with access via the cloud, or directly to their employer’s VPN.

Standalone Edius customers will be able to get 90-day Edius licences, with Edius cloud testing for all Edius Workgroup customers, enabling them to greatly expand their number of active users.

The company is also suspending its billable technical support process globally for the next 90 days, so customers will not be charged for support, even if they do not have an entitlement. Existing customers will also be eligible for a 25% discount on any exchange parts and factory repairs.

Grass Valley is also setting up a series of webinars focused on skills training for its LiveTouch replay systems, switcher software releases and NMOS, and remote connectivity for technical support operations.

Tim Shoulders, president of Grass Valley, commented: “Our broadcast customers are facing considerable pressure to get breaking news to viewers and keep their operations running smoothly while following social distancing guidelines. Grass Valley is here to help with tools and support resources to ensure that no matter where their teams are working, they can keep viewers connected, informed and united.”

The company has already held its first GV Live event, last Friday (3 April) with a webinar: Enabling Business as Usual, When Business Isn’t Usual, looking at how to support remote workflows and improve viewer experience with a distributed, even home-bound, workforce.