WLS.TV, the ABC O&O in Chicago, has purchased four Canon Digi Super XJ25x high-definition lenses.(Brief Article)

Broadcasting & Cable, January, 2000

WLS.TV, the ABC O&O in Chicago, has purchased four Canon Digi Super XJ25x high-definition lenses as part of its conversion to an all-digital facility. The station will use them in standard-definition mode with Sony 900 Series studio cameras to shoot its newscasts. The same lenses can be used for any future HDTV production.

The Digi Super XJ25x includes Canon's Crossover technology, which overcomes the effect of a switchable NTSC camera's viewing angle being decreased by 20% when it goes from 16:9 to 4:3. "We went with the XJ25 because they work very well for SDTV and HDTV," says Kal Hassan, WLS-TV director of engineering. "With their superior optics and Crossover system, it was the affordable way to protect for the future as we transition to HD."