Press Releases


CPC and Avid to Deliver HD Closed Captioning for Media Composer

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CPC, the industry leader in closed captioning and subtitling software solutions, today announced development of a complete software-only HD closed captioning solution for users of Avid Media Composer™. This software-only metadata workflow will save Avid users time and money by eliminating the need for a dedicated external hardware closed caption encoder which can cost $8,000 or more, simplifying workflows for handling video with closed captioning data. Closed captioning is required by the FCC for virtually all TV broadcasts in the United States, and by the CRTC for most TV broadcasts in Canada.

Improves Workflow and Lowers Closed Captioning Cost

This new workflow allows facilities to complete the entire closed captioning process in-house, saving tremendous amounts of time and money, and without giving up quality control to a third party. For an upcoming Media Composer release, Avid has developed a robust workflow for working with high definition video metadata, including closed caption data. CPC’s closed captioning software is a full caption preparation suite, which lets users create or import a script, format and synchronize the text, and finally creates an Avid-compatible metadata file containing CEA-708 and CEA-608 encoded data. This file is then brought into Avid Media Composer and placed on a metadata track, which preserves the metadata when outputting via Avid hardware interfaces.

File Size and Format No Longer an Issue

CPC’s software generates a small captions file which takes less than 5 Megabytes per hour of video. Whether editing in full uncompressed HD, DNxHD, or any other codec, this file that carries the encoded caption data can easily be archived locally or transferred over the internet to any Media Composer user.

e-Captioning for Fast Delivery

Furthermore, this workflow is compatible with CPC’s e-Captioning technology (http://www.cpcweb.com/e-captioning) which allows closed caption service companies to simply e-mail closed captioning files to Avid Media Composer users, without the need to physically mail master tapes back and forth, and without the generation loss that was typically incurred by older tape-based hardware encoding technology. e-Captioning also makes it possible to edit and convert previously closed captioned videos without losing the captions, and to re-use and re-purpose closed captions for all other video formats, such as the web, DVD and Blu-ray, and tapeless delivery for digital broadcast and Video-on-Demand.

About Avid

Avid creates the digital audio and video technology used to make the most listened to, most watched and most loved media in the world – from the most prestigious and award-winning feature films, music recordings, television shows, live concert tours and news broadcasts, to music and movies made at home. Some of Avid’s most influential and pioneering solutions include Media Composer, Pro Tools, Avid Unity, Interplay, Oxygen 8, Sibelius® and Pinnacle Studio™. For more information about Avid solutions and services, visit www.avid.com, del.icio.us, Flickr, Twitter and YouTube; connect with Avid on Facebook; or subscribe to Avid Industry Buzz.

CPC – The Closed Captioning Software Leader

HD closed captioning for Avid is the latest feature addition to CPC’s industry-leading line of Macintosh and Windows closed captioning and subtitling software. Since releasing the first simultaneous closed captioning/teleprompting software in 1986, and revolutionizing the closed captioning industry with e-Captioning in 2001, CPC has continuously innovated new closed captioning workflows to meet the industry’s needs. CPC also operates an award winning captioning and subtitling service. For more information, please visit http://www.cpcweb.com



For Immediate Release                             Phone: 301-738-8487
Contact: Giovanni Galvez             e-mail: ggalvez@cpcweb.com

CPC & Manzanita Deliver File-Based HD Closed Captioning
Saving Broadcasters Time and Money

ROCKVILLE, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CPC (Computer Prompting & Captioning Co.) and Manzanita Systems, Inc. have partnered to deliver a complete file-based closed captioning workflow that saves broadcasters time and money. Using CPC’s award-winning closed captioning software, content providers can now work directly with the CEA-708 data and additional VANC data necessary to meet HD broadcast requirements. CPC leverages Manzanita’s new transport stream multiplexer software (MP2TSME 6.0) to insert the HD VANC data into MPEG-2 and H.264 video files.

Now HD closed captioning VANC data can be inserted into MPEG-2 & H.264 files for broadcast & VOD delivery.

CPC’s MacCaption closed captioning software is the only closed captioning software that can work with CEA-708 VANC data natively to prepare closed captions. HD transport stream files must have both CEA-608 and CEA-708 closed captions according to FCC regulations. Previously, closed caption data had to be translated into CEA-708 format from a SCC file which only contains NTSC CEA-608 data. MacCaption software can now export the next-generation VANC data in a file format called MCC. The MCC file contains both HD captioning protocols and supports a variety of video frame rates, aspect ratios, and HD font styles. Manzanita, the industry-leader in offline multiplexing, recently released MP2TSME 6.0 that can insert MCC files into MPEG-2 and H.264 elementary stream files for VOD and broadcast applications.

Having the ability to work with HD closed caption data is one of the last hurdles that broadcasters must clear in order to fully migrate to a time and money saving tapeless HD delivery solution. With MacCaption, tape masters such as HDCAM containing VANC data can be digitized, down-converted, edited, time stretched, and compressed to VOD MPEG-2 and H.264 transport streams without losing any of the closed captioning data. Furthermore, MacCaption software can help post production facilities recalculate closed caption timecode alongside video for multiple delivery options.

e-Captioning Workflow for HD Broadcast

Up until now, the only way to add CEA-708 closed captions to HD video was to use expensive HD real-time hardware encoders, each costing about $10,000. CPC partnered with Manzanita and has developed an easy, cost-effective workflow called e-Captioning to reliably add CEA-708 VANC closed captions to HD transport stream files exclusively using software. This new e-Captioning workflow enables captioners, video editors, and IT engineers to work together with small HD closed caption files over the internet.

How Tapeless Workflow Saves Time and Money

With both MacCaption and Manzanita’s MP2TSME 6.0 software installed, the end user has the power to add CEA-708 VANC captions to HD MPEG-2 and H.264 video and create transport stream files. Using MacCaption, the user would edit and manipulate VANC data parameters and then export that data as an MCC file. The user would select either the CableLabs® VOD profile or a user-defined profile in the multiplexer. MP2TSME quickly and efficiently multiplexes the transport stream file several times faster than real-time.

Once the captioned transport stream is created, it is uploaded to the server of a TV broadcast facility or a service provider for VOD distribution. This e-Captioning solution paves the way for completely tapeless video workflow, and saves production facilities thousands of dollars in HD tape stock, equipment, and shipping costs.

Caption Creation Process

MacCaption is a full-featured authoring suite that creates closed captions from scratch using a transcript and video file. The captioning software also imports and edits many industry-standard file formats such as SCC, CAP, ULT, STL, CIN, etc. MacCaption can retrieve caption information directly from HD videotape, DVD video, QuickTime® files as well as decode existing captioned MPEG-2 HD video. MacCaption can also manipulate caption timecode to ensure proper sync and support for multiple video frame rates including 29.97 NTSC, 25 PAL, 23.976 HD, 59.94 HD, etc.

About CPC – The Closed Captioning Software Leader

The e-Captioning workflow solution that utilizes MacCaption and Manzanita’s MP2TSME 6.0, is the latest addition to CPC’s industry-leading line of closed captioning and subtitling software for Mac OS® X and Microsoft® Windows® operating systems. Since releasing the first simultaneous closed captioning/teleprompting software in 1986, CPC has been the captioning and subtitling industry leader. CPC also operates an award-winning captioning and subtitling service. For more information, please visit www.cpcweb.com/hdtv/mpeg.htm.

About Manzanita Systems, Inc.

Manzanita Systems is a leading provider of essential MPEG software solutions for digital television, VOD, and digital ad insertion. Renowned for adherence to standards, Manzanita’s transport stream analyzers and multiplexers are indispensable tools that enable service providers, broadcasters, post-production houses, and manufacturers of digital video technologies to produce better MPEG content, workflows, and solutions. Manzanita’s products are available as standalone applications and SDKs. Learn more about Manzanita’s proven solutions at http://www.manzanitasystems.com.



For Immediate Release                             Phone: 301-738-8487
Contact: Jason Livingston               e-mail:
jason@cpcweb.com

CPC Taps AJA KONA to Deliver Closed Captioning for Final Cut Pro 7

Rockville, MD, August 4, 2009: CPC’s MacCaption DTV and HD Enterprise software now works with the AJA KONA 3 and LHi cards to deliver HD closed captions in  Apple’s Final Cut Pro 7. This new workflow solution allows AJA users that edit with Final Cut Pro 7 to create HD closed captions using MacCaption. The purchase of an AJA KONA LHi card at $1490 (US) and CPC’s AJA-specific MacCaption DTV-A at $3995 (US) amounts to a significant cost-savings over a dedicated HD caption encoder, which can cost well over $8000.   

CPC and AJA worked as a team over the past several months to develop new closed captioning workflows for the latest Final Cut Pro version 7.0.  MacCaption adds caption preparation and encoding capabilities to Final Cut Pro 7 by generating caption files that Final Cut Pro can then use to add closed captioning to HD and SD videos.  Users can save thousands of dollars with this solution. 

How it Works
MacCaption lets users enter, position, and time stamp captions, then creates an encoded caption file. The AJA KONA cards then
channel the encoded caption data to the proper location in the HD video data.  

Simplifies Work-Flow
MacCaption saves users time and money by authoring captions in-house, avoiding the costs and delays of shipping master tapes to a captioning service company. 
MacCaption eliminates the generation loss of legacy tape-to-tape hardware encoders, because the captions are printed to tape directly from Final Cut Pro. MacCaption re-purposes captions for multiple tape formats, optical disc delivery, and the web. MacCaption does not require the complicated cable runs to tape machines, a closed caption encoder, a time code reader, etc. that are required by all other captioning software.   

For workflow details, please see: http://www.cpcweb.com/hdtv/aja.htm 

Closed Captioning – It’s the Law!
The FCC requires both EIA-708 and EIA-608 captions on all DTV broadcasts, whether they are SD or HD.  MacCaption can import existing caption files (or create new captions from scratch), and exports a true 708 caption track to ensure the video is compliant with all FCC regulations.  MacCaption is currently the world's only True EIA-708 caption encoder which supports all EIA-708 features. 

HD Captioning Supported on Multiple Hardware Platforms
CPC’s MacCaption software now supports HD closed captioning on the AJA KONA 3 and LHi devices using the latest drivers, as well as other I/O devices on the market.

CPC – The Closed Captioning Software Leader
HD captioning with AJA cards is the latest addition to CPC’s industry-leading line of Macintosh and Windows closed captioning and subtitling software. Since releasing the first simultaneous closed captioning/teleprompting software in 1986, CPC has been the captioning and subtitling industry leader. CPC also operates an award winning captioning and subtitling service.  For further information, please see our website www.cpcweb.com.

About AJA Video Systems, Inc.

Since 1993, AJA Video has been a leading manufacturer of high-quality and cost-effective digital video interface, conversion and Desktop solutions supporting the professional broadcast and post- production markets. With headquarters in Grass Valley, California, AJA maintains an extensive sales channel of dealers and systems integrators around the world. For further information, please see our website www.aja.com. 

###


  MacCaption + Matrox MXO2 Deliver HD Captions  

 

MacCaption + MXO2 Workflow 

MacCaption + Matrox MXO2 Deliver HD Captions
Rockville, MD, April 9, 2009: The wait for a HD-SDI closed captioning solution for non-linear editors and caption service companies is finally over.  Matrox and CPC have co-developed an innovative solution that allows the MacCaption HD software to encode and decode HD captions to and from HD decks using the Matrox MXO2.  

Improves Workflow and Lowers Captioning Cost
Matrox MXO2 and MacCaption users can now save both time and money by encoding HD captions directly on their video editing systems, without any additional hardware and with zero generation loss. It is no longer necessary to send HD master tapes to a separate deck-to-deck hardware caption encoding system.  Existing closed captions are preserved during capture and print to tape operations, and the captions can be edited or re-purposed for multiple tape formats, optical disk delivery, and the web.

E-Captioning for Fast Delivery
Caption service companies will also greatly benefit from this new workflow.  Similar to CPC’s patented “black movie” method for SD captions, MacCaption generates a Matrox 4VANC captions file that is small enough to send by e-mail.  Editors can then, without any captioning software or additional hardware, easily add this file to their timeline.  When the non-linear editing system prints to tape, the MXO2 patent-pending technology takes this encoded caption data and translates it to EIA-708 closed captions through its HD-SDI output. 

File Size and Format No Longer an Issue
Until now, encoding HD captions via software required up to 3 times the disk space of the original file.  However, the Matrox 4VANC file takes less than 5 Megabytes per hour.  Whether editing in full uncompressed HD, HDV, or any other codec, this file that carries the encoded captions can easily be archived locally or transferred over the internet to any MXO2 user. 

For more info on Matrox MXO2, please visit:

http://www.matrox.com/video/en/products/mxo2/
http://www.matrox.com/video/media/pdf/products/
mxo2/en_whats_new_MXO2_1_3_1.pdf


For Immediate Release                                                              Phone: 301-738 8487
Contact: Giovanni Galvez                                                    e-mail: ggalvez@cpcweb.com

                                                                                    For hi-resolution photo click here

HD Closed Captioning Software for the Omneon
(with Assemble Edit Feature)
http://www.cpcweb.com/newsletter/Nov2008/images/mainimage3.jpg

Rockville, MD, December 8, 2008: The wait for a tapeless captioning solution for HD is finally over.  CPC, the leader in closed captioning, has created a solution that will allow the MacCaption HD software to export a caption encoded DVCPro HD file for playback to the Omneon Server.

Improves Work-flow and Decreases Captioning Cost
 
If you are currently using the Omneon Server or have clients that have an Omneon Server, you can now improve your workflow by not having to export to tape. This saves both time and money.

How it works 
All Omneon Spectrum product lines ingest HD-SDI with closed captioning using the optional DVCPRO HD Media Port. These special DVCPRO HD Media Ports make a DVCPRO HD QuickTime file with closed captioning that can be edited with any non-linear editing system. 

Unique Assemble Edit Feature
The MacCaption HD software in turn preserves the original captions and re-encodes the edited captions using our advanced assemble caption feature. Assemble Caption lets you edit pre-captioned video in Final Cut Pro and then export an XML that contains the “edit decision list”.   This document is read by MacCaption-HD, which understands exactly how the captioned video was edited in order to produce a new caption file for the final video. 

This is an excellent solution for clients editing in HD format because they don’t have to worry about Final Cut Pro deleting their captions when they edit their video.  MacCaption-HD has the ability to retrieve the captions of the original captioned clip and store the data outside of Final Cut Pro until the editor is ready for it.

Once you have the final DVCPRO HD QuickTime with the new caption data, you simply play it back out of your Omneon DVCPRO HD media port via HD-SDI to your switcher for on-air broadcast.

CPC – The Closed Captioning Software Leader

HD captioning for the Omneon  is the latest addition to CPC’s industry leading line of Macintosh and Windows subtitling and closed captioning software.

 

Since CPC released the first simultaneous closed captioning/teleprompting software in 1986, it has been the subtitling and captioning industry leader. CPC also operates an award winning subtitling and captioning service. For more information, please visit www.cpcweb.com

 

 

###


Asian Language Captioning for HD

Closed Captioning in Asian Languages for DTV Broadcasting
to be Released at NAB 2008

Rockville, MD, March 19, 2008: CPC’s MacCaption (Mac) and CaptionMaker (Windows) closed captioning software are the first to caption DTV (digital TV) programs in Korean, Chinese and Japanese. This new capability greatly increases the audience for closed captioning by allowing Asian, non-English speakers to understand and enjoy English language broadcasts. It also opens up a new market for advertisers, who can now reach this huge audience.

Vast New Audience for English Language TV Programs

There are millions of Asian households in the US, many of which have one or more Korean, Chinese or Japanese speakers who do not understand English.  Up until now, this population did not have the ability to understand network programs with closed captions, because traditional closed caption encoders and decoders only handled English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, German and Italian. 

New Technology Makes Asian Language Captioning a Reality

Closed captioning requires two basic components: an encoder, to encode the captions onto the video signal prior to broadcast, and a decoder, to decode the captions onto the television in the viewer’s home or office.

CPC’s MacCaption and CaptionMaker software provides the encoding component, by adding these Asian language captions for DTV delivery. The software encoder costs much less than traditional caption encoding hardware, and allows the complete captioning process, including caption placement and timing, to be done on a computer.

Other companies have developed a set top DTV converter box that can decode Asian language closed captions. This set top box will be available to anyone for approximately $20, after a proposed U.S. government $40 rebate coupon.

Available as Encoding Only Software or as a Complete Captioning System on a CD

MacCaption and CaptionMaker are complete captioning systems on a CD. They let users position, timecode and encode both captions and subtitles on MPEG2 HD video. They are also available as encoder only versions, which are designed for users that need to do MPEG2HD caption encoding only.

CPC – The Caption Software Leader Since 1986

Since CPC released the first simultaneous closed captioning/teleprompting software in 1986, it has been the captioning industry leader. CPC also operates an award winning captioning service, and also develops subtitling and teleprompting software.

For more information, please visit www.cpcweb.com/hdtv


Flash CS3 Captioning


 (Click on the picture to see flash video with captions)

CPC Captioning Software for Flash
to be Released at NAB 2008

Rockville, MD, March 19, 2008: CPC’s industry leading MacCaption (Mac) and CaptionMaker (Windows) software can now create captioned Flash files for Webcasts efficiently, quickly and professionally.

The software can even read time coded captions from previously closed captioned videos, and automatically turn them into time coded Flash webcast captions.

CPC software supports Flash Google video and Flash CS3 captions, among others.

Automatically Convert Closed Captions To Flash Captions

Thousands of videos have closed captions, but only a small fraction of these closed captioned videos are in a format that allows Flash to display the captions. CPC has come up with a quick and easy way to turn those closed captions into Flash captions – automatically!

CPC software reads both the closed caption text and time code from a closed captioned video. The software then converts that file to a Flash file format. The user has the option to re-format the caption file, or simply send it out as subtitles without re-formatting.

Numerous Other Webcast Formats Supported

In addition to Flash, other supported formats include: Windows Media Player (SAMI), QT Text, QT Captions for iTunes/iPhone, SRT and Real Video.

Caption Placement, Timing and Import Control

The software gives creative control over left, center and right positioning; as well as size, color, bold, and italics.

It allows users to adjust timing of captions to compensate for commercial breaks and Zero-Based web content.

You can also convert timecode to match frame rate for online delivery 29.97 to 23.976.

The software can import captioned files from Cheetah Cap, .SCC, .ONL, Tab delimited and others.

CPC – The Caption Software Leader Since 1986

Since CPC released the first simultaneous closed captioning/teleprompting software in 1986, it has been the captioning industry leader. CPC also operates an award winning captioning service, and develops subtitling and teleprompting software.

For more information, please visit www.cpcweb.com/webcasts/webcast_samples.htm 


Blu-ray Subtitles

CPC Subtitling Software for Blu-Ray Discs
to be Released at NAB 2008

Rockville, MD, March 19, 2008: CPC’s industry leading MacCaption-HD (Mac) and CaptionMaker-HD (Windows) software can now create subtitle files for Blu-Ray Discs efficiently, quickly and professionally.

The software can even read time-coded captions from previously closed captioned videos, and automatically turn them into time-coded Blu-Ray subtitles. (Blu-Ray Discs do not support closed captions)

CPC software exports subtitle files for all Blu-Ray Disc authoring systems.

Automatically Convert Closed Captions To Blu-Ray Subtitles

Blu-Ray Discs can be subtitled, but they cannot be closed captioned. The logical reason for this is that because Blu-Ray subtitles can be turned on or off by the user, which traditionally was the prime advantage of closed captions over subtitles, there was no reason to add the closed captioning feature.

However, there are thousands of non Blu-Ray videos that have closed captions. CPC has come up with a quick and easy way to turn those thousands of non Blu-Ray videos into subtitled Blu-Ray Discs – automatically!

CPC software reads both the closed captioned text and time code from a closed captioned video. The software then converts that file to a .bdn file, which is required by Blu-Ray authoring systems. The user has the option to re-format the caption file, or simply send it out as subtitles without re-formatting.

Renowned Array Of Subtitling Tools – 22 Years In The Making

The key to the software’s power is its formidable set of positioning, formatting and timing tools. These powerful tools are so intuitive, that they have almost no learning curve.

They have been enhanced and refined since 1986, when CPC released its first subtitling software.

For example, with one mouse click, the unique “Push” feature pushes the last word of the first subtitle down to make it the first word of the second subtitle. Conversely, the “Pull” feature pulls the first word of the second subtitle up, making it the last word of the first subtitle – all with one mouse click.

No need to first highlight the word to move, and then place the cursor at the point you want to move it to, and then click again.

Versatility – Plus Many Other Features

The CPC software can output subtitle files from 480i all the way to 1080p. Title safe margins can be set up for both 4:3 and 16:9 projects. Numerous closed caption file formats can be imported including Cheetah Cap, SCC, ONL and Tab Delimited.

CPC – The Subtitle Software Leader

Blu-Ray subtitling is the latest addition to CPC’s industry leading line of Macintosh and Windows subtitling and closed captioning software.

Since CPC released the first simultaneous closed captioning/teleprompting software in 1986, it has been the subtitling and captioning industry leader. CPC also operates an award winning subtitling and captioning service. For more information, please visit www.cpcweb.com


Captioning for iPod and iPhone

Rockville, MD, October 29, 2007: Not only are Apple’s iPod and iPhone the most popular portable music devices in the world, now they can provide the consumer with true portable closed captioned video.
 
Many videos currently can be viewed on these devices. However few of them are captioned, because it is so time consuming to create a captioned video in the format these devices require.
 
CPC’s MacCaption software overcomes this problem by instantly embedding closed captions into any QuickTime movie format.
 
MacCaption’s instant caption embedding clears the way for thousands of videos to be made available in a captioned format for these portable devices.
 
Convert Existing Captioned Videos to iPod/iPhone Format
MacCaption can retrieve captions with time code from previously closed captioned videos (which use traditional Line 21 captioning). These captions are then used to create a captioned QuickTime format movie for the iPod and iPhone with just a few clicks of your mouse.
 
MacCaption software can also caption a video from start to finish.
 
Quick and Easy Captioning of Previously Downloaded Video
MacCaption generates a tiny closed caption reference file that can be delivered to online audiences without them having to download the entire video again. The end user can simply download a small reference file and apply the captions to the video already present. Additionally, this new digital closed captioning workflow could allow online video delivery services to quickly and easily upgrade their video libraries for the hearing impaired.
 
Instant Caption Embedding vs. Time Consuming Compression
Without MacCaption, iPod/iPhone compatible video must be compressed first to a *.m4v or a similar compatible format so that it can be downloaded to the iPod Touch/iPhone via iTunes.  Once that is done, the captions can be applied using a compression software into the *.m4v video file (this could take a few minutes to a few hours depending on the length of the video).
 
MacCaption’s key innovation is that it requires no time consuming re-compression to add closed captions.
 
CPC – The Caption Software Leader Since 1986
CPC’s Mac closed captioning software series includes MacCaption-NLE, MacCaption-DV, and MacCaption-Lite.
 
Since CPC released the first simultaneous closed captioning/teleprompting software in 1986, it has been the captioning industry leader. CPC also operates an award winning captioning service, and develops subtitling and teleprompting software.

April 19, 2004

Contact:
Sid Hoffman
301-738-8487 
info@cpcweb.com
www.cpcweb.com

MacCaption with Subtitle Option - A Complete Subtitling System on a CD With Automatic Voice/Subtitle Synchronization 

Las Vegas, NV, April 19, 2004 CPC’s new MacCaption (with subtitle option) software subtitles a multitude of video formats, from videotape, to DVD’s, to video-on-demand - without the need for a hardware character generator. Customers will realize substantial cost savings, since they will not have to purchase a hardware character generator, which typically costs thousands of dollars. Features include multi-language capability, border around characters, translucent backgrounds, proportionally spaced fonts, kerning, and line spacing. 

MacCaption (with subtitle option) can also automatically break and accurately time subtitles at the click of button. This automates the labor-intensive job of having a subtitle editor listen to the audio, manually break the text into subtitles, and then synchronize the subtitles with the dialogue.

This exciting new software will be introduced at the opening day of the NAB (National Association of Broadcaster’s) Convention in Las Vegas, NV at CPC’s booth #C-10332.

To subtitle a video, you need to have a text file of the audio. Up until now, a subtitle editor would listen to the audio, and manually synchronize the subtitles with the audio using time code. This is a painstaking and time-consuming job. With this new technology, the subtitle editor simply connects to the internet and uploads the script and the corresponding audio file to a file server. Within minutes (depending on the size of the file), a time stamped script file will be displayed on the computer. After reviewing the CaptionSync™ file and making any last minute changes, the file is ready for to be combined with the video as utilizing CPC’s Mac based MacCaption (with subtitle option) software.

“Delivering automated subtitles will allow MacCaption (with subtitle option) users to be even more productive.” said Dr. Dilip Som, President of CPC. “Quality, speed, and cost effectiveness are very important to CPC customers, and CaptionSync delivers on all accounts.”

About CPC
Since 1985, CPC has been the industry leader in subtitling, captioning, & teleprompting software; and has operated an award winning subtitling and captioning service since 1989.

CPC can be contacted at sales@cpcweb.com or, at  800-977-6678 . 
  

###


April 19, 2004

Contact:
Sid Hoffman
 301-738-8487 
info@cpcweb.com
www.cpcweb.com

CPC Software’s Automatic Voice/Closed Caption Synchronization
Slashes Captioning Labor Cost & Turn-Around Time
  

Las Vegas, NV, April 19, 2004 CPC’s CaptionMaker® & MacCaption™ closed captioning software can now automatically break and accurately time closed captions at the click of button. This automates the labor-intensive job of having a captioner listen to the audio, manually break the text into captions, and then synchronize the captions with the dialogue. This exciting new feature was introduced at the opening day of the NAB (National Association of Broadcaster’s) Convention in Las Vegas, NV at booth #C-10332.

To caption a video, you need to have a text file of the audio. Up until now, a captioner would listen to the audio, and manually synchronize the captions with the audio using time code. This is a painstaking and time-consuming job. With CaptionSync™ automated captioning software from Automatic Sync Technologies, the captioner simply connects to the internet and uploads the script and the corresponding audio file to a file server. Within minutes, a time stamped script file will be displayed on the computer. After reviewing the CaptionSync™ file and making any last minute changes, the file is ready for to be combined with the video as captions or subtitles utilizing CPC’s Windows based CaptionMaker and Mac based MacCaption software.

By utilizing the CaptionSync™ process, CPC captioning software users are able to create a file that is more tightly synchronized than the traditional method, while dramatically increasing their productivity.

“Delivering automated caption results will allow CaptionMaker & MacCaption users to be even more productive.” said Dr. Dilip Som, President of CPC. “Quality, speed, and cost effectiveness are very important to CPC customers, and CaptionSync delivers on all accounts.”

"Automatic Sync Technologies is pleased to partner with CPC to offer automated captioning to users of CaptionMaker & MacCaption - we believe they will see tremendous productivity benefits from this new offering." said Dr. Kevin Erler, Founder of Automatic Sync Technologies.

About CPC
Since 1985, CPC has been the industry leader in captioning, subtitling & teleprompting software; and has operated an award winning caption and subtitle service since 1989.

CPC can be contacted at sales@cpcweb.com or, at  800-977-6678 . 

About Automatic Sync Technologies
Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Automatic Sync Technologies (AST) is a leading provider of automated captioning technology. AST uses leading-edge speech processing and pattern identification technology. AST can be contacted at www.automaticsync.com.

###

 

NEWS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 22, 2003 

Contact:
Sid Hoffman
301-738-8487
info@cpcweb.com
www.cpcweb.com

Photo with web address: A screen shot of MacCaption

MacCaption™ - The World’s Only Complete Captioning System on a CD
(No caption encoder hardware required)

Sept. 22, 2003, Rockville, MD While others were relaxing at the beach this summer, the CPC programming staff pulled multiple all-nighters to take their industry leading Mac based captioning software to the next level. 

The result is MacCaption, the world’s only captioning software that not only imports, formats and time stamps caption text, but also encodes the text as closed captions onto all video formats using software only. MacCaption is the world’s only closed captioning software that does not require a hardware encoder – which means you do not go down a generation when encoding captions.

Dr. Dilip K. Som, CPC’s Director of Research and Development stated: “MacCaption not only formats and synchronizes captions with the video, but also encodes the captions onto the video, so that you do not lose a generation in the encoding process. Going down a generation is an inherent problem with hardware encoders. Our clients also save money because they do not have to purchase a costly hardware closed caption encoder. Plus, the MacCaption software encoder is compatible with more video formats than almost any hardware encoder.” 

Over the summer CPC enhanced virtually all other capabilities of MacCaption by taking almost all features of its industry leading Windows-based CaptionMaker® software, and incorporating them into MacCaption. As one innovation led to another, they found that they could not only incorporate these features into MacCaption, but they could make the user interface to these features even easier than they imagined, because of the inherently user friendly interface of the Mac. MacCaption runs on the Mac OS X. 

The MacCaption icon-driven software is so intuitive that it lets even first time users caption videos within an hour of installing the software. Plus, experienced captioners will find that their efficiency soars due to the elegantly simple user interface. 

Software enhancements include:

  • Caption preparation time has been cut down by 33%.
  • Caption positioning and synchronization with dialogue has been vastly improved.
  • Drag and drop DV and MPEG closed caption encoding is better than ever.
  • The unique push – pull caption formatting feature that users of CPC’s Windows CaptionMaker software rave about has been incorporated into MacCaption.

Since 1986 CPC has been the leader in closed caption software development; and since 1989 CPC has operated an award winning captioning service.

###


February 04, 2003

Leapfrog Productions Releases CCaptionPro for Mac OS X

SAN RAFAEL, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 4, 2003--Leapfrog Productions announces the release of their next generation innovative closed-captioning software application, CCaptionPro for Mac OS X. CCaptionPro is a general purpose caption editing software program that adds closed and open captions to Digital Video, adds closed captions to DVD MPEG-2 video and generates subtitle files for DVD authoring packages such as DVD Studio Pro.

"We are excited about this product because it extends our existing closed captioning DV technology to include MPEG-2 for anyone editing video on a Mac running Mac OS X," says Jeff Schriebman, the creator of CCaptionPro. "CCaptionPro directly inserts closed captions into MPEG-2 video assets so that anyone using DVD Studio Pro can add closed captions to their DVDs. Also, the same closed captioning data can easily be used to generate DVD subtitles. With CCaptionPro, inserting open captions into a previously closed captioned video is a simple drag and drop operation."

"With technology that aids seeing, hearing and use of the keyboard and mouse, Mac OS X provides a great computer experience for everyone," said Ron Okamoto, Apple's vice president of Worldwide Developer Relations. "Leapfrog Productions' CCaptionPro is bringing an invaluable tool to users with special needs by making the full capabilities of closed captioning available to creators of QuickTime content."

CCaptionPro is sold as a stand-alone product and includes Leapfrog Productions' existing closed-captioning solution for generating closed captions for Avid and Media 100 video editing systems. A version of CCaptionPro that only permits adding captions to Digital Video, called CCaptionPro-DV, and is also available.

CCaptionPro for Mac OS X is available now from Leapfrog Productions and may also be purchased from selected professional video resellers throughout the United States. A list of CCaptionPro resellers is available from Leapfrog Productions' web site at www.ccaption.com. Free evaluation copies of the software are available for downloading from the web site.

# # #


APRIL 9, 2000

LEAPFROG PRODUCTIONS
RELEASES CCAPTION-DV FOR DIGITAL VIDEO
 

Las Vegas, NV, . . . Leapfrog Productions announces the release of their innovative closed-captioning and Interactive TV Link generating software application, CCaption-DV, for Digital Video. CCaption-DV is a 100% software solution for adding closed-captions and Interactive Television Links directly to Digital Video data files.

Jeff Schriebman, the creator of CCaption-DV, says this software allows anyone editing video with a laptop computer and FireWire to add closed-captions to video material.

"We are excited about this product because it truly brings affordable closed-captioning to the laptop." says Schriebman. "With CCaption-DV and a software application such as Final Cut Pro or Adobe Premiere anyone can easily add closed-captioning and Interactive Television Links to their video material. Once closed-caption data is added to a Digital Video data file, a digital video playback deck is used to display the closed-captions in the standard way on a television receiver."

CCaption-DV is sold as a stand-alone product and also comes bundled with Leapfrog Productions' existing closed-captioning solution, CCaption-NLE, which allows Avid, Media 100, Matrox and Pinnacle editing systems to directly produce closed-captions."

CCaption-DV for the Macintosh is available now from Leapfrog Productions and may be purchased from selected professional video resellers throughout the United States A list of CCaption resellers is available from Leapfrog Productions’ web site at www.ccaption.com. A PC version of CCaption-DV will be available shortly. Free evaluation copies of the software will be available for downloading from the web site. The software has a suggested retail price of $395.00. CCaption-DV is bundled with the CCaption-NLE software for the MSRP of $745.00.

# # #


DECEMBER 8, 1999

LEAPFROG PRODUCTIONS
RELEASES CCAPTION FOR WINDOWS

San Rafael, CA, . . . Leapfrog Productions has announced the release of their innovative closed-captioning and Interactive TV Link generating software application, CCaption, for the Windows / NT operating system. CCaption works in conjunction with existing non-linear editing system hardware to produce closed-captions and ITV Link video programming directly from non-linear editing systems.

Jeff Schriebman, the creator of CCaption, says this latest version of the software brings the ease and convenience of directly creating video material containing closed-captions to the Windows / NT environment.

"We are very excited about this product because it complements our Macintosh software application and brings closed-captioning to the entire desktop video production community," says Schriebman. "With CCaption Windows/NT, video editors using Avid Meridien, Media 100 Finish, Matrox DigiSuite and Pinnacle Systems TARGA hardware can now produce their own closed-captions and Interactive TV Links from their video editing system."

Unlike other closed-captioning techniques, CCaption requires no additional hardware or software to physically produce closed-captioned video. 30 second TV spots and Public Service Announcements can be close-captioned in less than 30 minutes.

CCaption Windows/NT is available now from Leapfrog Productions and may be purchased from selected professional video resellers throughout the United States. A list of CCaption resellers is available from Leapfrog Productions’ web site at www.ccaption.com. Free evaluation copies of the software are also available for downloading from the web site. The software has a suggested retail price of $745.00.

# # #


SEPTEMBER 21, 1998

THE FIRST SOFTWARE-ONLY CLOSED-CAPTIONING FOR
NON LINEAR EDITING SYSTEMS
 

San Rafael, CA, . . . Leapfrog Productions has announced the release of their innovative closed-caption software application, CCaption, that works in conjunction with existing non-linear editing system hardware to close-caption video programming. For the first time, non-linear editors can close-caption video directly from a non-linear editing system.

With Leapfrog Productions’ CCaption, a video production facility can generate closed-captioned video without the use of special closed-caption encoding hardware. This 100% software solution gives video professionals using non-linear video editing systems the ability to insert closed-caption information directly into their video productions. Unlike other closed-captioning techniques, CCaption requires no additional hardware or software to physically produce closed-captioned video.

Jeff Schriebman, the creator of CCaption, says the program allows video editors to produce closed-caption programming as easily as they edit the rest of their work.

"We are very excited about this product because it truly brings closed-captioning to the desktop," says Schriebman. "This software allows for in-house control of closed-captioning and adds value to the services a video production shop can provide for their clientele. We expect TV broadcasters, video production facilities, and boutique video production houses to benefit from this capability."

To use CCaption, the non-linear editing hardware must digitize the last line of the video signal’s vertical blanking interval. Systems that support this capability include the Avid Media Composer and Avid Xpress with ABVB hardware. The CCaption software runs on a Macintosh computer. A PC version will be available soon.

CCaption is available now from Leapfrog Productions and may be purchased from selected professional video resellers throughout the United States. A list of CCaption resellers is available from Leapfrog Productions’ web site at www.ccaption.com. Free evaluation copies of the software are also available for downloading from the web site.

# # #


July 24, 2003 

Contact:
Sid Hoffman
301-738-8487
info@cpcweb.com
www.cpcweb.com

Computer Prompting & Captioning Co. (CPC)
Acquires the CCaption Technology from Leapfrog Productions
 

Rockville, MD-- July 24, 2003—CPC announces the acquisition of the CCaption and CCaptionPro closed captioning software technology from Leapfrog Productions. The technology includes CCaption for Windows and Macintosh, as well as CCaptionPro, Leapfrog Production’s latest closed captioning software application for Macintosh OS X. 

CCaption allows users of Avid and Media 100 editing systems to directly add closed captions to their video material and CCaptionPro is a general purpose caption editing software program that adds closed and open captions to Digital Video, adds closed captions to DVD MPEG-2 video and generates subtitle files for DVD authoring packages such as DVD Studio Pro. 

“We are excited about adding CCaption to our existing software product line” said Dr. Dilip Som, the President of CPC. “CCaption and CCaptionPro allow users to directly add closed captions to video material without the need for special purpose hardware encoders, and expand our captioning software offerings to include the Macintosh line of computers.” 

CCaption and CCaptionPro compliment CPC’s existing software applications, the PC based CaptionMaker® family of software that easily allows users to add subtitles and close captions to video material for both post-production and realtime captioning. 

Since 1985, CPC has been the leader in closed captioning, subtitling and teleprompting software development. CPC also operates a closed captioning and subtitling service.   

###


May 2003

For Immediate Release                                        Phone: (800) 977-6678

Contact: Sidney Hoffman                                     E-mail: shoffman@cpcweb.com

Emir of Qatar’s Speech 
Open Captioned Live By CPC
 

Washington, D.C. May 9, 2003 –CPC provided live, English language open captioning of last night’s highly anticipated Arabic language speech of His Highness, The Emir of the State of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani.

 

The Ambassador of the State of Qatar in Washington, and the U.S. Ambassador to Qatar were in attendance, as was Richard Hass, the Director of Policy and Planning at the State Department.  The speech took place at the elegant Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C.

 

Speaking in Arabic – Captioning in English
As the Emir spoke in Arabic, the CPC-600 CaptionMaker® system was used to simultaneously output open captions in English of what the Emir said. These captions were projected onto giant screens in the auditorium, so that attendees could both see the image of the Emir, and English language captions of the speech he was giving in Arabic.

 

How the Captioning was Accomplished
The mechanics of the captioning were elegantly simple. An English language translation of the Emir’s speech, was imported into the CPC-600 CaptionMaker® software.

Then, as the Emir spoke, a captioner who understood both Arabic and English, simply followed the text in English. The captioner pressed the Plus key on the computer keyboard to output each line of English text as captions as the Emir spoke that line of text aloud in Arabic. The only requirement of the captioner was that he understood both Arabic and English.

 

The English language text was output from the captioner’s notebook computer into an open caption character generator. The character generator combined the text with video from a video camera that was taking the Emir’s picture. The output of the character generator was then projected onto giant screens, which showed the live video of the Emir, with the English language captions.

 

The English language captioning was essential, since most of the audience did not understand Arabic.  

###


June 1997

HONG KONG HANDOVER TO CHINA
OPEN CAPTIONED BY CPC

On June 30, 1997, beginning at 6:00 a.m. Eastern time, CPC provided real-time, English language open captioning of the local China Central Television and World Television Network Chinese language broadcast of the historic Hong Kong handover to China. Hong Kong Handover

The broadcast originated in both Hong Kong and Beijing, and was shown in the United States on Cable TV's International Channel. The English language open captioning allowed non-Chinese speaking viewers in the U.S. to experience the turnover from a Chinese perspective.

ENGLISH LANGUAGE CAPTIONS OF LOCAL CHINESE LANGUAGE COVERAGE

The Los Angeles studio of the International Channel received live satellite feeds of the local broadcast from both Hong Kong and Beijing. Simultaneous translation into English was done in the International Channel's Los Angeles studio. The voice translation was sent, via telephone, to the real-time captioner located in Portland Oregon. The real-time caption data was then be sent, via modem on a second phone line, to a captioning encoder at the Los Angeles studio of the International Channel. The encoder combined the captions and the live video for broadcast out to viewers as open captions.

OPEN CAPTIONS AVAILABLE TO ALL VIEWERS

English language open captions was provided to all viewers of the broadcast, regardless of whether they had a closed caption decoder or not. In fact, open captions are simply closed captions which are viewable without a decoder. (Closed captions require a decoder to be seen, and are targeted to a hearing impaired audience).

EIGHT HOURS OF OPEN CAPTIONED COVERAGE AVAILABLE TO 7.5 MILLION SUBSCRIBERS

The handover was broadcast on June 30, 1997 from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Eastern time (6 a.m. Eastern time is 6 p.m. in Hong Kong). The International Channel has 7.5 million subscriber households across the U.S. and Latin America.


September 1995

 Russian Presidential Election
Captioned With CPC Software

CPC provided the software to open caption the Russian news program Vremya News, which broadcast first-hand coverage of the Russian presidential run-off election. Vremya News was available nationwide in the United States on the International Channel.

 

Russian President-Boris

The CPC captioning software was used by the International Channel to provide English language open captions, so that non-Russian speaking viewers in the U.S. had the opportunity to follow and comprehend Vremya News. This provided Americans with a first-hand perspective of the Russian electoral process.

This innovative use of captioning allowed viewers to understand a broadcast that would not be comprehensible if not for captions. Traditionally, captioning is aimed at hearing impaired viewers, and captions are in the same language as the program’s dialogue.

The broadcast was open captioned meaning that all viewers were able to see the English language captions. This is in contrast to closed captions, which require a decoder in order to be seen.


August 1995

CPC Captions Historic Taiwanese Election

CPC provided realtime captioning for Taiwan's first ever open democratic election. The International Channel broadcast the election live from Taiwan to the United States.

As the International Channel received the broadcast satellite in Los Angeles, it was then rebroadcast over a satellite to Alexandria, Virginia, where a translator relayed the English translation over a phone line to a steno-captioner in Oregon. The steno-captioner transcribed the English translation into live captions and transmitted them via a modem to the International Channel's studio in L.A.


 

July 1995

CPC Subtitles Dedication of Korean War Memorial

Washington, D.C. July 27, 1995: The Korean War Memorial was dedicated this afternoon, and Computer Prompting & Captioning Co. (CPC) was there, providing simultaneous English subtitles of Korean President Kim's speech as he spoke in Korean. This allowed the largely English speaking audience of 100,000 to understand the speech as President Kim spoke.

CPC also subtitled other segments of the dedication ceremony, which was presided over by U.S. PRESIDENT BILL CLINTON. The subtitles were displayed on a number of giant Jumbotron screens, enabling the huge audience to see the subtitles and follow the speech.

CPC is a major provider of live and post-production captioning and subtitling services, and has been producing captioning, subtitling and teleprompting software since 1985.

In February, 1995 CPC expanded into new offices in Rockville, Maryland to accommodate the growing volume of business. The new space has greatly increased CPC's closed captioning and subtitling capabilities, and houses an expanded software research and development department.



February 1995

CPC Provides Teleprompting System
for French President

When President Bill Clinton visited France recently, President Jacques Chirac of France was amazed at how easy giving a speech could be. So when President Chirac visited the U.S. in the beginning of February, President Clinton presented Chirac with a teleprompting system provided by CPC. The CPC-1000 SmartPrompter II can prompt in French, one of the 20 languages available. 
 - The Washington Post (February 1995) 

 



Quick Links