PMX refers to the technology developed by Pelmorex

Pelmorex

Pelmorex Media Inc. is a Canadian broadcast group. The company operates the broadcasting licence for The Weather Network and its French sister station, MétéoMédia. The Weather Network and MétéoMédia are Canada’s only 24-hour national specialty television networks devoted to weather reporting...

 to generate local weather information on The Weather Network

The Weather Network

The Weather Network is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel that broadcasts weather-related news and information 24 hours a day....

. PMX consists of computers, typically installed at a cable headend, that takes data fed to it (the video feed of The Weather Network, forecast information, and triggers to run said forecasts) and packages it for broadcast. Unlike the Weather Star systems, it does not generate full graphical or video segments, rather the information is super-imposed over the main video feed.

History

PMX was developed by Pelmorex in 1995 as a standard localization system that would replace the Weather Star 4000 units and the text based Weather Star 3000s that were still used in smaller communities. The PMX technology quickly rolled out starting 1996, with all communities receiving the new units by the end of 1997. To this day, PMX generates local weather information to over 1200 communities across Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

.

PMX 3000

The PMX 3000 was a planned new-generation PMX system for use in larger communities that was eventually never introduced. The new units would be capable of displaying limited audio and video clips. It was intended to provide regional programming to areas that are unable to support the form of separate programming that Toronto and Montreal has.

"Super"PMX

In 2007, Pelmorex announced the development of a new generation PMX unit, internally known as "Super PMX", that would be capable of generating regional audio and video content, and increase the availability of more regional programming.
It was announced that the roll out of the new systems would begin by 2010.

Timeline

• 1996-1998: PMX units are gradually deployed at major cable head-ends locations across Canada. They were originally formatted as a replica of the previous WeatherSTAR units, only with a slightly different icon and font set. The earliest known date of a PMX unit working is March 28, 1996, from Timmins, ON.

• December 1997: Format changes occur with PMX system. Notable changes include, extended forecasts for the next 5 days, and national forecast maps immediately following the Local Forecast. The maps were discontinued one year later.

• April 1999: Topographical Satellite and Radar Maps are introduced, replacing the solid color maps previously used.

• August 2001: PMX receives minor graphical updates, including an updated font set and fade effects in various segments.

• Winter 2001: New icons are introduced to the PMX system. The 7-day outlook and the short-term precipitation forecast is also introduced.

• July 2002: The classic current weather conditions ticker is replaced with a bar containing both current conditions and forecasts at a glance.

Severe weather warnings (specifically during Severe Thunderstorm, or Tornado Warnings) are displayed as a red bar with text at the bottom of the screen. Other weather warnings remain as a full page with text during the Local Forecast.

• April 2004: The 14-day trend is introduced to the PMX system.

• August 2004: PMX improves its coverage, providing more localized weather forecasts for up to 1200 communities.

• April 2006: The hourly forecast is introduced, extending the Local Forecast by 15 seconds.

• December 2008: An extended precipitation forecast is added to the Local Forecast. The ending feature on segments still ahead is discontinued.

• November 2009: Animated Satellite/Radar maps are introduced to the Local Forecasts for the first time. Precipitation maps as well show types of precipitation (Rain, Ice, Snow)

• June 2010: The Weather Network expands its network as they have announced going HD, which also means replacing and adding new PMX units.

Products

PMX is primarily used on segments that involve local weather information, notably during regular Local forecasts. Over the years PMX has been used for local tagging with advertisements, usually with listings of local dealers, and with "weather-triggered" advertising.

PMX units at major satellite TV providers display forecasts for a list of major Canadian centres. However few smaller satellite providers in certain regions (e.g. SaskTel

SaskTel

Saskatchewan Telecommunications is a provincial Crown Corporation operating under the authority of the Saskatchewan Telecommunications Act. It is the only remaining Crown Corporation in the Canadian telecommunications industry....

) use customized PMX units that cover its geographical area. Conditions are shown for multiple cities at one time and box areas intended for different forecast products on normal PMX systems are repurposed: the 4x2 grid used for the 7-Day Outlook displays precipitation forecasts for the next 24 hours for 14 cities in Saskatchewan.

The technology has also been used for the MTS

Manitoba Telecom Services

Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. , or MTS , formerly Manitoba Telephone System, is the primary telecommunications carrier in the Canadian province of Manitoba and the fourth largest telecommunications provider in Canada with 7000 employees...

 TV Weather Channel in Manitoba

Manitoba

Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...

.

PMX would be used to display warnings and alerts with the proposed "All Channel Alert" system.