The new service,
The new service, which will be headed by Pinewood executive director TV Steve Gunn, will offer high-speed global transfers of video and audio material as well as a broadband intranet and email service.
The service has been designed and will be run by Sohonet, the network set up in 1994 by a consortium of London post-production houses and now owned by UK communications specialist Neoscorp.
Studiolink, which is due to go live next month, will connect Pinewood and Shepperton to Soho but will also benefit from Sohonet's connections to Los Angeles, Amsterdam and Berlin, as well as linking in to the international private network set up by Neoscorp.
Gunn said: 'The Studiolink network is truly unique in that it is designed specifically for film and television studio production needs - to carry everything from email and broadband through to live television and digital cinema.' One of Gunn's aims is to use the system to deliver whole TV channels: 'The network has been designed with a broad specification to be futureproof. A lot of people are looking at broadcasting over IP networks and we are looking to do the same.'
Two tiers of service will be offered - an entry-level service with bandwidth of up to 512 kilobits per second and a professional version capable of 10 megabits per second. However, Gunn said that as there was a gigabit connection, the bandwidth could be 'bursted' where necessary. Subscribers will also have access to the Studiolink intranet service which will include media directories, news and information.
Gunn said he had chosen Sohonet to run the service because of its track record and the way it had worked closely with its clients to refine its network. Einstein has designed the on-screen look of the service and Gunn has also taken on a salesperson and former BBC Television and Channel 4 chief engineer Peter Marchant as consultant.
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