The Telos Alliance

The Telos Alliance is an American corporation manufacturing audio products primarily for broadcast stations. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, USA, the company is divided into six divisions:

  • Telos Systems manufactures talkshow systems, IP audio codecs and transceivers, as well as streaming audio encoders.
  • Omnia Audio makes audio processors for AM, FM, HD Radio, and Internet audio streaming applications.
  • Axia Audio builds mixing consoles and audio distribution systems based on Livewire IP networking,[1] an audio over Ethernet protocol.
  • Linear Acoustic, whose product line includes TV loudness controls, metering and monitoring devices, along with mixing and metadata tools.
  • 25-Seven Systems specializes in broadcast delays, time management and processing products.
  • Minnetonka Audio Software delivers software-based audio automation to media production infrastructures.
The Telos Alliance
TypePrivate
IndustryBroadcasting
Founded1985
FounderSteve Church
Headquarters
Cleveland, Ohio
,
United States
ProductsOn-air telephone systems, broadcast codecs, audio loggers, audio processors, mixing consoles, distribution systems, TV loudness monitoring and metering tools.
Websitewww.telosalliance.com

History and founder

The Telos Alliance began as Telos Systems, a part-time project founded in 1985 by radio station engineer and talk show host (WFBQ, WMMS) Steve Church.[2][3] Its first product was a telephone hybrid, the Telos 10, which was based on digital signal processing.

Church visited Fraunhofer in Germany in the late 1980s. There, he learned of MPEG-1 Audio Layer III audio coding. Telos became the first licensee in the United States of what is now known as MP3.[4] MP3 became part of the solution to long-distance remote broadcasts using Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN). This became the preferred alternative to leased lines available since the 1920s and satellite links available since the 1970s.

Audio over IP (AoIP) technology called Livewire made its debut in 2003 at the NAB Show in Las Vegas. The original Livewire-capable products included mixing consoles, analog, AES, mic and GPIO nodes. Other manufacturers began making their own AoIP broadcast equipment and there was a need for AoIP gear from different manufacturers to communicate with each other. Telos, along with other manufacturers, developed the AES67 standard for AoIP interoperability.

Church received many accolades for his work over the years. In 2010, the National Association of Broadcaster's (NAB) honored him with its Radio Engineering award.[5] He stepped down as CEO of Telos in January 2011, and died on September 28, 2012 after a three-year battle with brain cancer.[6]

In the following years, the company also expanded its product lines. Telos Systems continued to develop broadcast telephone systems, IP audio codecs & transceivers, and processing as well as encoding for streaming audio. Networked radio consoles, audio interfaces and routing control, networked intercom, and related software were created under the Axia Audio brand name. Audio processing, processing and encoding products for streaming audio, voice processing, analysis tools, and studio audio processing was developed under the Omnia Audio brand. The three companies were under the larger corporate umbrella known as Telos Systems.

Growth of the company continued with the acquisition of new partners. Linear Acoustic of Lancaster PA was acquired, along with its product line of TV loudness controls, metering and monitoring devices, along with mixing and metadata tools. The corporate name was changed to The Telos Alliance. Shortly thereafter, 25-Seven came on board. This Boston-based company specializes in broadcast delays, time management and processing products which result in more efficient and profitable radio operations. In September 2015, Minnetonka Audio Software joined the Telos Alliance through a merger of the companies. the Minnetonka, Minnesota-based company delivers a file-based software alternative to hardware program optimizers, providing audio automation to media production infrastructures.[7]

The TV Solutions Group was formed in September 2016, to focus on the expanding needs of the television broadcast market. The new division consists of both Linear Acoustic and Minnetonka Audio products, staff and brands. The group will provide solutions to aid broadcasters in the transition to the latest TV technology. The AES67 AoIP standard is a key strategic focus for the new group.[8]

References
  1. Steve Church and Skip Pizzi (2010). Audio over IP: Building Pro AoIP Systems with Livewire. Amsterdam, Boston, London, New York, San Francisco, Sydney: Elsevier/Focal Press. ISBN 978-0-240-81244-1.
  2. Olszewski, Mike (2003). Radio Daze: Stories From the Front in Cleveland's FM Air Wars. Kent, Ohio and London: The Kent State University Press. ISBN 0-87338-773-2.
  3. Gorman, John with Feran, Tom (2007) The Buzzard: Inside the Glory Days of WMMS and Cleveland Rock Radio. Cleveland, Ohio: Gray & Company. ISBN 978-1-886228-47-4.
  4. Witt, Stephen (2016).How Music Got Free: A Story of Obsession and Invention. ISBN 978-0143109341
  5. NAB honors Steve Church of Telos Systems, Radio World, 19 April 2010, retrieved 12 September 2016
  6. Paul McLane (2012-09-28), Steve Church Dies, Radio World, retrieved 12 September 2016
  7. "Linear Acoustic and Minnetonka Audio Unite" (Press release). September 11, 2015.
  8. "The Telos Alliance Forms TV Solutions Group" (Press release). September 6, 2016.
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