NewTek announces the release of TriCaster Upgrade 2.5, a software update for the TriCaster BROADCAST, TriCaster STUDIO, TriCaster PRO and TriCaster portable live production systems. This upgrade adds the ability to record all video in the broadcast industry MPEG-2 Studio Profile, capturing with full 4:2:2 color sampling, which is important when recording chromakey footage. In addition, enhancements to the real-time MPEG-2 encoding technology yield significant improvements in quality with a lower compression rate for broadcast-quality video recording.

This upgrade keeps TriCaster on the cutting edge of live streaming technologies and improves the user experience for both live and on-demand content with support for Adobe Flash Media Live Encoder 3. It also offers a greatly enhanced user experience with H.264 streaming format, simultaneous streams at multiple bit rates and improved streaming quality at reduced bit rates.

“This upgrade to the TriCaster family of products further solidifies NewTek's leadership position in the video production marketplace,” says Michael Kornet, chief marketing officer at NewTek. “Now it is even easier to reach worldwide audiences with well-produced live content at an unrivaled price point.”

NewTek TriCaster Upgrade 2.5 also offers a customized Flash streaming profile for easier Ustream connectivity.

“Ustream.tv shares NewTek’s belief that anyone with the desire to get content out to a wide audience should be able to pursue it without the traditional roadblocks of production costs and advanced technical experience,” says Brad Hunstable, founder and president, Ustream.tv. “We are confident that producers will see the many benefits of choosing Ustream.tv and NewTek for their streaming projects.”

TriCaster Upgrade 2.5 is available at register.newtek.com as a free download for TriCaster 2.0 users. This update, including all other 2.0 features, is available to TriCaster 1.0 users at shop.newtek.com, starting at $495.