Barco overwhelms Eurovision spectators with LED visualization

Date Announced: 11 May 2007 Kortrijk, Belgium, 11 May 2007. Barco, leader in creative LED technology, is once again playing a key role in show visualization at this year’s 52nd Eurovision Song contest. With an impressive combination of the latest LED technology and digital projectors, the show is set to be bigger and more visually entertaining than ever before.This year’s contest is held in Helsinki, Finland, hosted by Finish broadcaster YLE. As viewers from around Europe tune in to watch 42 countries compete in the semi-final and final on 10 and 12 May respectively, they will see one of the most spectacular stage designs ever. Show designer Mikki Kunttu’s breathtaking visual design features more than 200 square meters of Barco’s brand new MiTRIX LED screen, 125sqm of ultra bright OLite 510 LED modules and three SLM R12+ digital projectors. Barco rental partner Massteknik (Sweden) is the general video supplier to the show. Fully integrated into the stage set is a gigantic curved screen “the cobra”. This not only towers 9.5 meters up and behind the stage but also stretches out in to the audience, creating an animated catwalk that makes the stage itself come alive with vibrant video and lighting effects. In addition to that, extending around almost the entire stage is a massive 30 meter wide by 6.5 meter high LED backdrop made up from more than 200 square meters of MiTRIX, Barco’s new transparent LED screen. The MiTRIX screen was chosen by the designers for its low weight and high transparency. This allows the Syncrolite xenon beam lights rigged behind the screen to shine right through it, giving incredible depth to the scenery. At certain times when the content on the MITRIX is turned off, the screen appears to be completely invisible, creating a completely different look of the set. The mix of high and low resolution screens also allows individual ‘video backdrops’ to be used for each song, giving each country and its performers a unique visual identity at the press of a button. As further testament to Barco’s wide range of solutions, there are three SLM R12+ digital projectors on the show. One is used as part of the integrated set design while the other two are used for giving the audience close ups of the stage action. Nico Vernieuwe, Vice President of Barco’s Media and Entertainment division stated, “Each year, the set designers of the Eurovision song contest raise the bar of visual creativity, and this year is no exception. The trend in the convergence of lighting video, lighting and stage design continues and we are delighted to be part of this exciting time in the evolution of visualization”. About Barco Barco, a global technology company, designs and develops visualization products for a variety of selected professional markets. Barco has its own facilities for Sales & Marketing, Customer Support, R&D and Manufacturing in Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. Barco (Euronext Brussels: BAR) is headquartered in Belgium and is active in more than 90 countries with about 3800 employees worldwide. Barco posted sales of euro 751 million in 2006.

Contact
JP Tanghe President Corporate Communication & Investors Relations, Barco nv Phone:+32 56 26 23 22 Fax:+32 56 26 22 62

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Web Site:www.barco.com