Founder of Leading Video Image Enhancement Company Also Remembered for His Leadership Abilities and Generosity of Spirit
MONTREAL, QUEBEC, July 11, 2006 — With sadness and deep regret, Algolith, Inc. announces the passing of Algolith President & CEO Christian Tremblay. A resident of Laval, Quebec, outside Montreal, Mr. Tremblay was also a principal founder of Algolith and highly regarded in the industry for his professional capabilities, his leadership and his generosity of spirit.
In addition to his achievements as an entrepreneur, Mr. Tremblay was widely admired for his apparent lack of ego. He always attributed the success of his companies to the collaborative work of many people, never only himself. He served as a mentor to many and helped to launch numerous careers. Most of all, he provided unwavering support to individuals, standing beside them in good time and bad.
Mr. Tremblay, 53, died instantly Thursday night, June 29, on Interstate 95 near their hiking destination, Baxter State Park in Maine. His wife, who was in the passenger seat, and two back-seat passengers were not injured.
“A leader, an entrepreneur and a mentor, Christian helped launch, guide and support numerous successful companies,” said Robert Young, Algolith Vice President, Sales & Marketing. “His deep knowledge and influence will be profoundly missed. As respected as he was in the industry, he will be remembered more for his humanity and egalitarianism, and for the countless opportunities he provided to people both in and outside the industry.
“Christian balanced an indomitable will to succeed with the needs of individuals,” continued Mr. Young. “Christian was the first to extend a helping hand to any who needed it, to support colleagues and employees in crisis, and to remain true no matter the implications, or what hardships might ensue. He was charismatic, unflappable and determined, a motivating force in whatever he attempted.”
Though grieving Mr. Tremblay’s loss, Algolith and its investors have rededicated themselves to achieving his vision by continuing to successfully serve its customers and develop the digital products the industry requires. “Christian was a visionary who understood the realities of our business, and how to achieve what was needed — he had all the hallmarks of a successful entrepreneur,” said Dominique Belanger, Principal of Multiple Capital, Inc., advisors to Lothian Partners 27 (sarl) SICAR, an affiliate of Coller Capital and an investor in Algolith. “Christian’s ability to define a vision that could be shared by everyone involved in the company was very impressive. He was a business partner, a mentor, and a model entrepreneur.”
Luc Lapoint, Portfolio Manager with Fondaction, an investor in Algolith, commented, “Christian was one of Quebec’s most talented high-tech entrepreneurs. Besides his charismatic leadership, it was impressive the way he was able to transform technical leadership into selling products, and guiding the efforts of R&D teams into business sweet spots. Working with him was demanding, fun and enriching.”
Mr. Tremblay devoted most of his career in the television and video industry to the development of sensible high-technology solutions. A strong advocate for the use of digital video technology, he was relentless in his pursuit of technological excellence and in the spread of information throughout the industry. His impressive ability to describe complex technical issues in simple terms and communicate with people at every level made him both an important source of knowledge and an inspiration to others.
Prior to Algolith, Mr. Tremblay co-founded Miranda Technologies, Inc. (MT:TO), and served as its CEO and Director from its inception in 1989 through 2002. Under his leadership, Miranda grew from a start-up into a world-class manufacturer of advanced digital broadcast equipment. From 1986 through 1988, Mr. Tremblay served as Product Development Manager at Central Dynamics Ltd. and was in charge of developing advanced digital encoding products. From 1978 to 1986, he served in several technical and management positions at the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. As Manager of the CBC’s Digital Technology Strategic Engineering Dept., he participated in the design and installation of the first digital post-production facility in Canada, among many other achievements.
Mr. Tremblay received a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electrical Engineering from Sherbrooke University, and conducted post-graduate studies in digital signal processing at the Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique (INRS) of the University of Quebec. He was a Fellow of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE), and a member of the Quebec order of Engineers.
He is survived by his wife Francine and sons Charles, Simon and Michel. Those wishing to extend their sympathies to the family may mail them to: _Family of Mr. Christian Tremblay, _c/o Algolith, _400 Isabey, Montreal, Qc., H4T 1V3.
About Algolith
Based in Montreal, Algolith is a leading image enhancement solutions company offering a broad range of products designed to meet the exacting needs of Digital TV consumers, Post-Production houses, Media Server Manufacturers, and IPTV and Digital Broadcasters. Spun off in 2003 by a broadcast infrastructure company that helps major broadcast networks transition from analog to digital transmission, Algolith develops products based on an exceptional Intellectual Property portfolio that significantly improves image quality in all formats.
For the Home Theater and Digital TV market, Algolith manufactures video processors and scalers — the Dragonfly, Mosquito, Mosquito HDMI and Flea — that dramatically heighten image quality using proprietary Algolith technology, including its 3D Dynamic and MPEG noise reduction, block artifact reduction, and de-interlacing and scaling technologies.
In the Post-Production sector, Algolith provides media content creators with sophisticated tools to restore image quality and convert between different video formats, for example, between film and video, or standard TV and HDTV. Its advanced PROVIDEO Solutions fulfill the demanding requirements of a wide variety of digital video applications, providing the finest scaling, de-interlacing, inverse telecine, and MPEG artifact reduction and noise reduction solutions.
Algolith remains dedicated to providing high quality services and innovative products that consistently far exceed its customers’ expectations. For further technical information, visit www.algolith.com.
