A broadcast programme production chain using compressed media is now feasible. The problem of quality degradation from successive decodelencode operations is well documented. The ATLANTIC project aims to use compressed data-streams as the standard encoding throughout the post- production and distribution chain without compromising technical quality. This paper describes a system that demonstrates how cascading can be avoided in the post-production and editing environment and, where cascading is unavoidable, how codec coding decisions can be hidden in a decoded PCM bit-stream and reused to minimise quality loss.