Zixi, Grass Valley, Uplynk and Broadview Software have jointly published a white paper setting out a model for moving broadcast distribution from satellite to IP and the cloud.

Based on a real-world deployment for a broadcaster with a global footprint, The IP convergence framework for distribution sets out a practical, repeatable model for the transition, demonstrating how cloud master control, IP transport, orchestration and streaming work together. The release comes ahead of the US FCC’s upper C-band auction to reclaim 100-180 MHz of spectrum used by broadcasters to deliver content across the United States.

The framework combines four core layers, with each delivered by one of the partners in a unified operating model. Grass Valley provides broadcast operations and playout, with master control and playout running in the cloud. Broadcast-grade delivery of live video over IP is enabled by Zixi, with redundancy built into every path. BroadView Software ensures orchestration and delivery with control of the full workflow via BroadView Nexus, while Uplynk distributes to streaming, FAST and affiliate endpoints from the same chain.

Each of the layers can be independently swapped or scaled, allowing users to adopt in stages rather than a single rebuild. TAG and Zixi Zen Master ensure the same visibility across the chain provided by a traditional master control room.

The model follows the entire workflow, from ingest to cloud master control and distribution, said the partners. Moving master control to the cloud enables teams to retain precision and control while gaining IP flexibility.

Three outcomes are identified: flexibility from swappable layers and the ability to change without infrastructure redesign; reliability from continuous monitoring and redundant workflows; and efficiency through lower storage and transport costs with reduced dependency on fixed hardware.

Eric Black, CEO/CTO, Uplynk, commented, “The C-band transition is forcing a real question for broadcasters – what replaces satellite without sacrificing the reliability they’re used to. We built this framework to answer that question, and we proved it first by moving a broadcaster’s entire satellite operation onto IP and the cloud in production. That combination of broadcast-grade reliability and cloud flexibility is what the industry needs right now, and we’re excited to share how we got there.”

NEW YORK—Previewing this year’s Streaming Summit, the NAB Show New York web page describes streaming as “the new business currency.” This year’s lineup, which offers executive interviews, technical presentations and case studies, is full of “real-world practical advice, tips and tricks for those with both business and technical challenges in packaging, monetizing and distributing online video,” said Conference Chairman Dan Rayburn, a principal analyst at Frost & Sullivan.

This year’s Streaming Summit is sponsored Ad-ID, Agora.io, AWS Elemental, Brightcove, Google, Haivision, Limelight Networks and Roku.

The Streaming Summit is scheduled for Oct. 17–18, beginning at 9 a.m. Wednesday with a Fireside Chat featuring NBC Sports Group/Playmaker Media Senior Vice President & CTO Eric Black in conversation with Rayburn about “Delivering the Biggest Audiences for the Biggest Events.” This half-hour chat is the first of 10 on the schedule. It will be followed immediately by Hulu Vice President, Head of Advertising Platforms Jeremy Helfand who will offer attendees “A Fresh Take on Advertising in the Living Room — Reaching Audiences in OTT.” In the afternoon, Google and TotalPlay get in on the action with “Bringing Addressability to Every Screen, Including Linear Television.”

Another interesting chat will be held Thursday morning, featuring Comcast Cable Executive Director of Technology and Product Chris Reynolds discussing how the telecom is “Building an Aggregator of Aggregators.” Other Thursday chats will highlight players who are known for disrupting the media space; namely, reps from Playstation Vue and Facebook (“Video and the Future of Immersive Experiences”).

Aside from most of the Fireside Chats, the rest of the conference will be broken down into three concurrent tracks. However, Rayburn explained, “We have business, technology and content topics throughout all of them. We don’t group content together based on a subject as it allows more options for attendees to move amongst all the tracks, while getting a more diverse program, content wise.”

The schedule also features time devoted to topics that are trending and timeless for media creators. 

“We’ll have technical sessions on codecs, bundling of content, protocols, distribution of video, blockchain, server side ad insertion and a host of topic around monetization of content direct to consumer, advertising strategies, cross-screen video ad campaigns and key insights into consumer data,” Rayburn said.

Examples of these technical sessions include: “Best Practices For Live Webcasting Production,” “Using OTT Consumer Data to Determine What, How and Why Viewers Want to Watch,” “Best Practices for Deploying Server Side Ad Insertion,” “Optimizing Streaming Performance and Video Workflows With SRT” and “Comparing Five Blockchain Startups And Their Potential Role In OTT.”

TARGET AUDIENCE

Rayburn noted that the Streaming Summit will cover “everything in the streaming media ecosystem, both technical and monetization subjects,” so he expects show visitors with a variety of job functions.

“We’ll have attendees focusing on content strategies; media operations and technology; solutions architects; those in charge of OTT video strategy; encoding engineers; and those managing video advertising solutions.”

That range is also reflected in the backgrounds of the speakers, who work in broadcast, media, publishing, social media and other industries that are involved in packaging, monetizing and distributing online video.

Those interested in attending must select the Streaming Summit Package ($795) during registration.

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