Minardi goes interactive with Feedback Italia

Wilux Minardi Cosworth will be breaking exciting new ground at this weekend's San Marino Grand Prix when the team's IT engineers switch on an advanced, satellite-based communications system for the first time. Supplied by Minardi's newest technical partner, Feedback Italia, the system is based on the company's easymeeting™ "virtual meeting" software combined with Eutelsat's D-SAT satellite network supplied by Skylogic Italia, a Eutelsat group subsidiary in Italy.

The integrated system being launched at this weekend's San Marino Grand Prix provides Minardi staff with the ability to instigate high-quality, two-way, audio-video communication, in real time, between the team's Faenza headquarters and the Minardi motorhome in the Formula One Paddock, or indeed, with any other geographical location relevant to the team's activities.

The system being supplied to Minardi is based on an integrated suite of software developed specifically for interactive video communication by Feedback Italia. In addition, IcarusNet, which specialises in the requirements of satellite-based, real-time, integrated telemetry and voice transfer over IP, has designed the specific network details for this application.

Until now, easymeeting™ has been used by medium to large companies requiring the capability to organise virtual meetings between different physical locations. This weekend at Imola, however, marks the first occasion the system has been deployed in the uncompromising arena of Formula One, where mobility, speed, flexibility and absolute reliability are non-negotiable, fundamental requirements for the introduction of any new technology.

"Feedback Italia has always firmly believed in the power of innovation," comments Feedback Italia Managing Director, Franco Fortis. "This is something that makes us feel we have a strong affinity with the Minardi team. Now, thanks to our long-standing commercial partnership with Skylogic, we are proud to be able to supply Minardi with an original, innovative and ground-breaking system, which is hopefully going to bode well for the whole world of Formula One."

"We are very proud to be partnering Minardi and Feedback for this exciting application", commented Arduino Patacchini, Skylogic Italia's CEO and Director of Eutelsat's Multimedia Department. "This partnership allows us to reaffirm the versatility, benefit and viability of satellite-based interactive telecommunications. We are delighted to be contributing to the set up of an integrated two-way corporate network for real-time data relay, videocommunication and remote conference applications. This network demonstrates the quality of our products and our ability to provide innovative communications solutions".

Minardi Team Principal, Paul Stoddart, says, "What a fantastic piece of equipment! The team is genuinely excited about the prospects offered by this interactive communications system and proud to be the first team in the F1 Paddock to make use of it. The possibilities it offers, in terms of both data transmission and video conferencing, are undoubtedly going to result in significant time savings for Minardi staff. We now look forward to raising our communications capabilities to a new level."

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