Cutting-Edge Links for 10 Town Halls

VBricks, an innovative new technology that turns cameras and microphones into computers, transformed 10 West Virginia sites into one big town meeting last September, enabling an unprecedented statewide discussion of the state’s future without coal.

Teaming up with The Herald-Dispatch, West Virginia Public Broadcasting (WVPB) installed the technology, which provided the benefits of satellite hook-ups at a fraction of the cost.

Not only did the technology enable town-hall attendees to see one another and respond to questions, all in real time. It also built the capacity for multi-way interactions, much like video conferencing, where all audience members could interact with panel experts and one another.

“We’ve redefined the word interactive,” said Bill Acker, WVPB general manager. “We can now connect with communities and people anywhere we choose, anytime we want, and at a price we can afford. It has proven the promise of broadcasting as a two-way medium.”

In size, VBricks are about 18 inches long, 3 inches wide and 20 inches deep. A camera and mike plug directly into the VBrick, which is then plugged into a fiber-optic telephone line. Instantly, the camera and mike become interactive.

“You have to install one VBrick at each site and it has to have its own partner back at our main studio,” Acker said. “We bought 12 of them, at a cost of just under $4,000 apiece. And, unlike satellites, we own them.”
A satellite hook-up costs about $10,000 for an uplink, Acker said, plus $400 an hour for set-up and program time. Satellite hook-ups also require trained personnel and the rental of downlinks.

Acker explained that VBricks must have a fiber network to hook into. Each box is an encoder that accepts audio and video signals and then compresses them into digital data. The data is delivered over an asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) to the desired destination. The result is high-quality, real-time video and audio.

The town-hall participants had a very interactive forum, seeing, hearing and responding to questions and questioning experts.

The broadcast, known as “The Legacy Project,” was carried statewide on both WVPB’s radio and television networks. The discussion followed a series of articles by Huntington’s Herald-Dispatch. A Web site invited feedback and provided links for further information.

“This is an unparalleled event that West Virginia Public Broadcasting offered as a statewide network of radio, television and Internet media,” said Rita Ray, WVPB executive director. “We are able to provide a forum in which people from many different perspectives and many different circumstances can exchange views about important issues affecting our state.”

West Virginia Public Broadcasting plans to produce three programs on West Virginia’s economic development each year.

On May 11, it will televise a one-hour summary of the West Virginia Forum on Technology and Innovation hosted in April by Sen. John D. Rockefeller (D-WV). The focus will be exploring ways to integrate new technology into existing industry.

On June 8, another town meeting will link five sites to examine successful economic development activities currently going on in West Virginia.

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(For additional information about VBricks, go to at www.vbrick.com.)