Geneva, 10 September 2008

  It's a moment that the world awaited with eager anticipation. Amidst all the controversy and fears that the scientists may blow us all to bits, the first beam in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN was successfully steered around 27 kilometres of the world's most powerful particle accelerator at 10h28 CET this morning.

  Today's milestone marks the culmination of over 20 years of patient dedication and £5billion. Clearly we have entered a new and exciting era. "It's a fantastic moment," said LHC project leader Lyn Evans, "we can now look forward to a new era of understanding about the origins and evolution of the universe."

  Of course, CERN decided to webcast the event, thereby not only providing transparency but also information to millions around the world. Pivotal events like these are best relayed live, not only to demonstrate the scale and importance of the project, but also to provide breaking-news and updates.

  Groovy Gecko Webcasting and Streaming Services have been providing ground-breaking global webcasts to the scientific community for almost a decade. Craig Moehl, MD at Groovy Gecko recalled "I particularly remember the live webcast we provided for the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (ESPRC) of the Beagle landings about 5 years ago. The excitement and anticipation in the room made for one of the most emotionally charged webcasts ever. Nothing portrays both the science and the emotion like a live webcast for all to share the moment. Today is no different and I will be watching and waiting to hear what the scientists will be able to reveal about our world."

  Eddie Robins, Technical Director at Groovy Gecko commented "the demand and numbers of concurrent live (and on-demand streams afterwards) for these global-wide live webcasts is always huge. We fulfil this demand by using our global Content Delivery Networks (CDN's) for media delivery and then load balancing that demand between these multiple CDN's. There is simply no better technical solution to ensure that the viewing experience of the first and the last person anywhere in the world is the same - technically perfect."

  Although the LHC is now operational and no doubt, the protons will be doing many more rounds, the data extracted may take another decade or two to unravel and interpret. Groovy Gecko extends their heartfelt congratulations to all involved in the project.