October 2004
ORION / ResearchChannel workshop brings players to the table
A half-day workshop with Seattle-based ResearchChannel in Toronto earlier this month promises to have a lasting impact as several of Canada’s leading media and education institutions came together to share ideas, and explore how best to collaborate in the new and emerging media of high-speed broadband networks.
Ranging from TVOntario, to Bibliocentre to the National Film Board, several universities and other organizations accepted ORION’s invitation to explore opportunities for greater collaboration, especially over ORION’s shared, collaborative network infrastructure.
What also helped bring them together was the opportunity to spend time with Amy Philipson, Executive Director, ResearchChannel and University of Washington Assistant Vice Provost, Streaming Media Video and TV Technologies, who travelled from her home base in Seattle to join the workshop.
Hosted at the University of Toronto’s Knowledge Media Design Institute, the workshop had immediate, positive results, says ORION President/CEO Phil Baker. The organizations got to know each other a little better and they started to make connections on future collaborations, discovering areas of mutual interest, and prospects for future partnerships.
Although the ResearchChannel has developed a successful partnership program, with the participation of advanced education institutions in several countries, the participation of Canadian or Ontario institutions is limited.
Through the workshop, ORION aimed to identify interest in developing similar Ontario or Canadian content carried by the ResearchChannel, perhaps over ORION and other R&E networks.
Workshop participants wanted to learn more about the ResearchChannel’s library of video-on-demand resources.
ResearchChannel viewers or surfers access information ranging from astronomy, computer science and engineering, and medicine, to politics, early childhood development, including live lecturers from leading academic institutions from through the US and abroad.
The workshop participants zeroed in on issues that might be a barrier to greater involvement, such as broadcasting rights and intellectual property issues. Also discussed was the reluctance among academics and lecturers, prevalent here and in the U.S. in having lectures or content openly available to the entire research or education community or general public.
The workshop participants also discussed potential collaboration between the ResearchChannel in test-bed research in advanced learning technologies and distribution of high quality multi-media, such as the transmission of High Definition video over IP, and other areas of research.
Also participating in the workshop were the Rogers Communications Centre - Ryerson University; TVOntario; Ontario Bibliocentre; the NFB’s Toronto Mediateque; Sheridan College, York University’s ABEL Program and Borden Street, a leading digital media production/consulting company.
The group agreed to meet again to explore concrete ideas for collaborations and projects.
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