The University of Brighton has added to the city's reputation as a centre for new media excellence by unveiling a state-of-the-art digital television (DTV) studio.

The studio in the university's Lewes Road campus will be used to support a series of continuous professional development courses designed for new media specialists.

It is being used for the first intake of the MSc in Digital Television Management and Production, which the university claims is the UK's first masters degree in interactive television, developed in collaboration with Brighton-based Victoria Real.

The studio has been backed by the university's technology partner, Hewlett-Packard, which supplied more than £100,000-worth of computers and equipment.

The DTV design studio contains 25 PCs running specialised development software.

There is an interactive TV laboratory and a room arranged to resemble a domestic lounge, with sofas and a TV.

The occupants can be observed through a two-way mirror and recorded by remotely-operated CCTV cameras so their interaction with the DTV content can be evaluated.

The four courses range from one to three days and cover the DTV marketplace and technologies, managing digital media projects and evaluating the use of digital television. They have been designed to develop the skills of those who want to keep up-to-date with DTV developments.

Judi Tomlinson, head of production at Brighton-based media company AVT, was one of the first students on the three-day project management in digital media course.

She said: "For me, it was a bit of a refresher course because I've been at AVT for 11 years and we've been involved in new media for about eight years.

"But there's no doubt it would be useful for anyone in the industry. At the very least, it's a good opportunity to make sure you're moving in the right direction."

University project manager Julie O'Sullivan said: "We did a lot of market research and found local companies were having to go to London for training and there was a distinct lack of training, especially about DTV technologies."

Until the end of August, the CPD courses at the university are being offered at a 50 per cent discount, thanks to funding from the South-East of England Development Agency's learning and skills fund.

The MSc degree has proved popular. Programme leader Richard Griffiths said it was attracting interest from as far afield as China.

He said: "We have been getting calls from all over the place. The television market is opening up a lot in Asia and British digital television is leading the world in many ways.

"This is a very practical course about a new industry that is developing as we speak.

"The students are doing really well. The new media sector in Brighton is very strong and this course is certainly adding to that."

Jon Yon, of Victoria Real, said: "Many people don't realise how much experience we have.

"The courses help to educate three main groups: the people who develop applications, the people who commission programmes and the broadcaster themselves."

The last group was the most difficult to reach but the situation was improving all the time.

www.brighton.ac.uk
www.victoriareal.com
www.hp.com
www.avtgroup.com
www.seeda.co.uk