“Best of Show Up Close” is a series about the nominees and winners for the annual Future Best of Show at NAB award program.

TVT spoke with Ralf Jacob, president of the Verizon Media Platform, about their BoS-nominated product Smartplay platform.

TV Technology:Tells us about Smartplay; what does it offer users?

Ralf Jacob: Verizon Media’s Smartplay delivers highly personalized sessions via manifest manipulation with capabilities for content server-side ad insertion, digital rights management, content targeting and time control. The result is the more TV-like experience that today’s viewers demand from OTT. Using Smartplay, service providers can deliver entirely customized content, adapted for each consumer’s interests, completely automatically and in real-time without any additional overhead in editing or playout resources.

TVT:Can you provide some examples of how users have been implementing it?

RJ: Yahoo created a streaming channel powered by the Verizon Media Platform that went live on Roku in less than a month and as part of this project, Smartplay server-side ad insertion was used to create personalized viewing experiences and increase monetization.

TVT:What about Smartplay separates it from similar offerings?

RJ: OTT providers are realizing that viewers will soon expect truly personalized services to be the norm from any service provider. Consumers will expect media platforms to offer them the content they are most interested in, tailored for the specific device they are using and backed by relevant, useful advertising. Service providers that are unable to offer this will miss the opportunity to drive deeper audience engagement and will lose out on significant advertising revenues.

Smartplay has a number of unique features that help broadcasters retain viewers and boost revenues:

• Server-side Ad Insertion
  Smartplay features dynamic ad insertion, which delivers TV-like quality on OTT services by providing viewers with highly personalized adverts. Smartplay’s server-side technology encodes content and ads into a unified stream, guaranteeing TV-like quality while eliminating latency associated with fetching ads during breaks. Its singular stream also avoids ad blockers, allowing broadcasters to reach more viewers and maximize monetization opportunities.

• Content Targeting
  Smartplay makes it easier for broadcasters to have complete control over content distribution. Verizon Media’s session servers instantaneously connect with every viewer that hits “play,” verifying them against infinite rule combinations, so broadcasters can be certain that content is approved for delivery to each person.

• Time Control
  Smartplay has the capability to deliver content at low latency, often 40% closer to real time. Low latency ensures that viewers feel more engaged during live events, which helps build brand loyalty. Smartplay also offers a host of time-based controls, such as catch-up TV services, time zone shifting and the ability to segment content within each session without changing your workflow or managing different use cases.

• Stream Routing
  An advanced strategy for worldwide streaming, Stream Routing diversifies delivery options—adding capacity when and broadcasters need it—to ensure their content is available in times of super-peak traffic. Whether streams are broadcast live or VOD, Stream Routing enables faster startup times and reduces rebuffering to provide the best and most consistent viewing experience possible.

TVT:What does it cost? When will it be/is it available?

RJ: Smartplay is available now as just one of the premium suite of features available on the Verizon Media Platform.

TVT:What else should consumers know about Smartplay, or the Verizon Media Platform in general?

RJ: Consumers should know that the Verizon Media Platform is helping broadcasters deliver high-quality experiences by simplifying video workflows that scale globally on the world’s largest, most connected network. As a result of broadcasters using our network, consumers will be able to enjoy hyper-personalized, TV-like experiences on their OTT services. 

EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been corrected to have the correct spelling of Ralf Jacob.

“Best of Show Up Close” is a series about nominees and winners in the annual Future Best of Show at NAB award program.

We spoke with Dr. Alexander Hackmann, product owner digital products with Rohde & Schwarz, about the Best of Show winner R&S PRISMON.cloud.

TVT:Cornelius Heinemann recently took over as R&S' new CEO, what are some things customers can expect with this new leadership?

Dr. Alexander Hackmann: The strategic orientation of Rohde & Schwarz Broadcast & Media is mainly based on two areas of core competence. With its unique expertise in broadcast equipment and high-efficiency power amplifiers, the company offers an industry-leading line of high-quality transmitter and amplifier products. Rohde & Schwarz also has comprehensive expertise in software-based signal processing, which it uses to develop market-leading solutions that are pioneering the transition to IT-based workflows in the media industry. Cornelius Heinemann will mainly further expand the business with the transition to digital products, like the shortly introduced R&S PRISMON.cloud Monitoring as a Service solution.

TVT:Tell us about the R&S PRISMON.cloud, what does it offer broadcasters?

AH: Constantly changing consumer behavior means broadcasters and OTT service providers have to adapt to new transmission paths. Permanent error monitoring and the resulting quality assurance, especially of audio and video data, are the key to high customer satisfaction. R&S PRISMON.cloud is a cloud-based A/V OTT monitoring solution that broadcasters and content providers can deploy quickly and without dedicated hardware. An intuitive analysis dashboard displays the latest quality of service (QoS) data to respond to errors in real time. A flexible and scalable pricing model allows users to reduce investment costs (CAPEX) by ordering their individual monitoring services based on current requirements.

TVT:What is it about PRISMON.cloud that separates it from similar offerings?

AH: There are several UPSs:

• Flexible up and downscaling of monitoring resources
• Subscription based sales model (three and 12 months) via webshop generates CAPEX savings
• OTT and SMPTE 2110 end-to-end monitoring
• Always up to date since this model allows our software engineering team to continuously develop R&S PRISMON.cloud and keep users up to date with regular updates—even on mobile phones and tablets.

TVT:What does it cost? Is it shipping?

AH: It starts from the Silver package with one sensor and Live view and live status, but no analytics for three months for €750. The most expensive package is the Gold.Sensor with one sensor for 12 months including live view, live status and analytics for €3,750. You can order it on our homepage directly. After payment process you can set up an account.

TVT:What else should we know about PRISMON.cloud or R&S in general?

AH: In live media delivery solutions, the consumer delivery path will inevitably include live production, management, distribution or contribution links. By combining virtual R&S PRISMON.cloud probes with physical R&S PRISMON on-premise probe, much improved all IP end-to-end QoS data can be made available. Consequently, errors such as video or audio degradation, switching errors or poor CDN performance can all be detected by combining both tools, giving our customers a higher level of transparency and control over their whole delivery chain.

Another focus at Rohde & Schwarz at the moment is 5G Broadcast. As a part of the Bavarian research project “5G TODAY,” Rohde & Schwarz is investigating large-scale TV broadcasts in the FeMBMS mode over a HPHT 5G Broadcast field trial near Munich. Using high power high tower (HPHT) transmitters will allow broadcasters to distribute video over 5G networks with all the advantages of classic broadcasting like high-quality levels as known from HDTV broadcasting, low-latency live content as well as enormous spectrum efficiency and wide coverage. In this way broadcasters can bring in their valuable assets for efficient distribution of high-quality video into the future 5G ecosystem. Also content providers can profit from 5G Broadcast, because it offers a better Quality of Service and higher Quality of Experience when it comes to their customers.

“Best of Show Up Close” is a series about nominees and winners in the annual Future Best of Show at NAB award program.

We spoke with Charles Chu, chief product officer with Brightcove, a Best of Show winner for the Brightcove Live platform.

TV Technology:How is the integration of Ooyala into Brightcove going after the acquisition earlier this year?

Charles Chu: The Brightcove team is hard at work integrating Ooyala’s OVP technology into the Brightcove platform to create one unified platform for all customers. At our recent event, PLAY, we were thrilled to meet and hear stories from customers that were previously of Ooyala. We have a migration plan in place and are working diligently with each customer to move them when the time fits their schedule. Brightcove was the leading OVP before, but adding in aspects of Ooyala’s OVP technology, we have solidified our position.

TVT:What is it about Brightcove Live that sets it apart from similar offerings?

CC: The award-winning Brightcove Live solution enables broadcasters, publishers, brands and enterprises to deliver and monetize live video at a low cost with the flexibility to scale with business needs. Brightcove Live is a broadcast-grade, cloud-based live-streaming solution with broad device reach and integrated monetization capabilities using server-side ad insertion (SSAI). Broadcasters, publishers and brands alike can originate live events using Brightcove’s globally-distributed architecture, and deliver a high-quality experience to viewers with minimal delay across multiple platforms and devices. What sets Brightcove apart from the rest is the launch of new features to meet the needs of our customers. This most recently includes:

• Secure Reliable Transport (SRT): Support for live stream ingest via the SRT protocol, enabling forward error correction and the robust low-latency delivery of live broadcasts over unpredictable and challenging network conditions.

• Transport Stream (TS) Input Interface: Allows broadcasters that are delivering live streams over the internet the flexibility to send a broadcast native MPEG2-TS stream to Brightcove Live without having to convert to digital RTMP format while eliminating the need for costly onsite encoders. By accepting MPEG2-TS, Brightcove Live can detect SCTE-35 ad markers, replacing the linear ads with digital ads across devices using SSAI.

• Real Time Media Protocol (RTMP) Output Interface: Allows users to expand audience reach by pushing streams to other RTMP entry points with the flexibility to turn them on and off during the event. This enables a simplified workflow with maximum stability and minimal risk to deliver live video to multiple locations.

• Live to Social: Brightcove Live events can now be streamed to Facebook simultaneously via the Brightcove Studio and will soon be available for YouTube. Live to Social enables users to grow and retain viewers by live streaming content to existing audiences in social communities.

TVT:What does it cost? Is it available?

CC: Brightcove works with a wide range of customers, our pricing is dependent on the scale of the event and support needed. Brightcove Live is always always evolving to incorporate the latest features and functionality our customers need. The recent enhancements are live and being deployed to customers of all sizes and segments around the world, with the latest features going live in Q1 of 2019.

TVT:What else should we know about Brightcove Live or Brightcove in general?

CC: Brightcove works with customers in more than 70 countries representing many different market segments including global media companies, regional broadcasters, publishers, brands and enterprises. Anticipating our customer's needs is key, and that is why Brightcove has a robust product roadmap related to our live offering and features, and functionality will continue to become available over the coming months. We continue to improve upon our award-winning solution to provide our customers with features that meet and exceed their needs. 

“Best of Show Up Close” is a series about nominees and winners in the annual Future Best of Show at NAB award program.

We spoke with Rich Pierceall, vice president if LED operations at Cineo Lighting, which was a Best of Show winner with its LightBlade Edge lighting system.

TV TECHNOLOGY:Tell us about the LightBlade Edge lighting system, what does it offer broadcasters?

RICH PIERCEALL: The LightBlade Edge system is a high-output linear soft light system that offers all of the benefits of Cineo’s larger fixtures, The Edge Blades are available in two lengths, 2-feet and 4-feet, both with 80 watts of output power. Modular mounting systems support multiple Edge Blades to be ganged into larger fixtures.The big advantage to broadcasters is that extremely high-quality, high-output light sources can now be configured to fit in a variety of confined spaces, particularly low-ceiling environments such as newsrooms and office/bureaus. We have also seen the LightBlade Edge used in ring-of-fire applications, and circular configurations used to light swing stages.

TVT:What is it about LightBlade Edge that sets it apart from similar offerings?

RP: The LightBlade Edge products have a higher lumen density than any other linear production lighting fixture: up to 8,000 lumens per Blade. They deliver Cineo's high-CRI variable white light spectrum and include a REC.2020 saturated color engine, with both local and DMX/RDM control.

TVT:Has the LightBlade Edge been used by any major productions as of yet?

RP: Yes. Several broadcast installations have specified the LightBlade Edge system, including the new Comcast broadcast facility in Philadelphia. LightBlade Edge units have been used on many feature and episodic productions for NBCUniversal, as well as streaming services and other networks.

TVT:What does it cost? Is it shipping?

RP: The LightBlade Edge series starts at $995 USD list. The flexibility of configuration allows it to be configured in a wide range of sizes and prices.

TVT:What else should we know about LightBlade Edge or Cineo in general?

RP: Over six years ago, Cineo Lighting was started by a small team of lighting professionals, focused on changing the way LED technology could be effectively applied to production lighting. NBCUniversal acquired Cineo Lighting in June of this year. The Cineo brand, its products and staff are all remaining intact, and in fact we are now able to accelerate our efforts to provide even more tools and techniques to help production professional tell their stories.

“Best of Show Up Close” is a series about nominees and winners in the annual Future Best of Show at NAB award program.

We spoke with Bryan Gordon of Flanders Scientific, which was a Best of Show winner with its XM311K monitor.

TV Technology:Tell us about XM311K, what does it offer broadcasters?

Bryan Gordon: The XM311K is a 31-inch 10-bit professional reference monitor designed for color critical monitoring of 4K, UHD and HD signals. It features robust 3D LUT based calibration support and HDR capabilities making it suitable for a wide range of applications.

With a 12Gbps SDI I/O that supports 12G, 6G and Quad 3G SDI in, out and loop-through connections, the XM311K is ready for any professional workflow. The monitor showcases many useful features, such as 4K compatible waveform and vectorscope, two de-interlacing options, HD-to-UHD upscaling, direct compatibility with on-set color applications and a variety of markers.

The XM311K utilizes a Light Modulating Cell Layer LCD that boasts a fullscreen peak luminance of 1,000cd/m2 support for both PQ and HLG EOTFs, multiple color gamut selections and a contrast ratio of 1,000,000:1.

TVT:Tell us about the new firmware updates for XM monitors and what advantages that will bring?

BG: The newest firmware update (1.1.61) for XM series monitors includes the highly anticipated LUM Coloring adjustable exposure check feature. This false color capability generates an artificial luminance map of the incoming source that can be particularly useful in identifying the overexposed or underexposed areas of any given shot. An onscreen scale helps indicate which artificial color corresponds with what luminance, and includes four knob-adjustable points from 0-100% that allow you to establish specific target areas to be shown in false color or grayscale.

TVT:What is it about XM311K that sets it apart from similar offerings?

BG: The XM311K features industry leading tetrahedral LUT interpolation, qualifies as a Dolby Vision mastering monitor and is suitable for practically any 4K, UHD or HD monitoring requirement in both HDR and SDR. The XM311K uses a groundbreaking new LCD technology that introduces an independently controllable layer of light modulating cells between the backlight and traditional display cell. This allows for greatly expanded individual pixel level control of light intensity resulting in several key benefits compared to traditional LCDs including truer black levels, much higher contrast ratios, no halation / flare artifacts and no loading behavior. Compared to OLED technology LMCL has the distinct benefit of avoiding burn-in as well as being able to maintain consistent peak luminance regardless of overall scene brightness.

TVT:What does it cost? Is it shipping?

BG: FSI is pleased to announce that the XM311K HDR Mastering monitor has a new lower list price of $35,000 and is available to purchase now.

TVT:What else should we know about XM311K or Flanders Scientific in general?

BG: Flanders Scientific is an Alpharetta, Georgia-based company offering high quality professional equipment to the broadcast and post-production industries. In addition to our Atlanta area headquarters, FSI also operates a sales and service center in Lier, Belgium, providing direct service to customers throughout Europe.

“Best of Show Up Close” is a series about nominees and winners in the annual Future Best of Show at NAB award program.

We spoke with Jonathan Novick of Alteros, which was a Best of Show winner with its GTX-FX8 direct-to-fiber system.

TVT:Alteros wrote an article earlier this year on TVT about the impact on loss of spectrum for wireless mics, can you highlight the major parts of this issue?

JONATHAN NOVICK: Most wireless mics have traditionally operated in the UHF TV band in the white spaces between local TV channels. The FCC has auctioned off a third of that spectrum to roll out to cellular and broadband service providers. TV stations are being repacked into the remaining UHF and VHF spectrum leaving little to no white spaces for the operation of wireless mics. The repacking process is scheduled to be completed in July 2020. We are not even half-way through the process yet and broadcasters are already experiencing significant interference problems with their existing wireless gear. Sporting and similar events with high wireless channel counts are particularly impacted.

TVT:The GTX series is the flagships for Alteros, what does this technology offer broadcasters?

JN: The GTX series provides up to 24 wireless mics that will work just about anywhere, with no changes in performance as the UHF spectrum becomes increasingly compromised. It avoids the spectrum crunch by operating at 6.5 GHz, well outside of the TV and ISM bands. Its UWB technology employs low-power RF pulses instead of continuous carriers so there are no intermod problems as channel count increases. The net result is lower operational costs as there is no need for RF coordination and specialty hardware (filters, antennas, combiners, distribution hardware and low-loss coax) each time the UHF environment changes. In fact, it even lets broadcasters keep their existing UHF wireless operational a little longer by clearing out 24 channels from the UHF band.

The GTX Series is simple to set-up, easy to operate and always provides the highest level of performance without compromising latency, channel count or audio quality. It is basically the only set-and-forget wireless mic solution available to broadcasters today.

TVT:What is it about the GTX-FX8 that sets it apart from similar offerings in its product class?

JN: The coverage area of the GTX series is defined by the placement of the GTX32 transceivers. Up to 64 transceivers can be used at once to define both large areas and separate zones with high levels of reliability resulting from our mesh coverage and maximum diversity MIMO technology. The transceivers utilize Cat5 wiring, which typically is limited to 1000-foot runs to the master control unit. The GTX-FX8 extends that distance by 10,000-feet by using fiber instead of Cat5. Unlike traditional RF-over-fiber solutions that employ analog conversions onto and off of the fiber (even with digital mic signals), the GTX-FX8 keeps the signal in the digital domain. This eliminates many potential signal degradation issues, reduces interference potential and reduces latency.

TVT:What does it cost? Is it shipping?

JN: The GTX-FX8 is shipping now and sells for $3,200.

TVT:What else should we know about the GTX-FX8 or Alteros?

JN: Each GTX3224F Master Control Unit has ports for up to six GTX-FX8 fiber breakout boxes. Each GTX-FX8 in turn can connect to eight GTX32 transceivers via Cat5. This enables one to mount 48 transceivers up to 2 miles from the control unit with no signal degradation.

Alteros is a relatively new name but the company has deep roots. Alteros is wholly owned by Audio-Technica and its founders ran AT’s R&D and engineering team. We have many years of experience working with both fully digital wireless and the higher frequency ranges. An early version of UWB technology first appeared in AT’s SpectraPulse wireless conference room systems almost 10 years ago. The GTX series was developed in conjunction with broadcasters to extend and improve the technology, refining it for the flexible high-performance needed for the most demanding applications.