DENVER—Imagine Communications has announced that France Télévisions is the first broadcaster to deploy SNP-XS, the latest addition to Imagine’s Selenio Network Processor (SNP) lineup. The French public national television broadcaster ordered 60 units of the recently launched SNP-XS several months before it was readily available.

“The SNP is an incredible Swiss Army knife that is enabling us to successfully transition to ST 2110,” said Yannick Olivier, cross-functional technical leader for ST 2110 infrastructure at France Télévisions. “With every technical challenge, SNP provides a solution, thanks to its many different applications and unique design that allows us to easily reconfigure with new functionality.

"This time, the newest hardware addition to the family is helping us address space and density challenges, allowing us to bring ST 2110 into our regional PCRs,” he added. “With SNP-XS, we’re delivering uncompressed ST 2110 to all of our France 3 regional stations, improving our remote production workflows, and achieving a real gain in quality and speed."

SNP-XS plays a central role in France Télévisions’ strategic initiative to interconnect all regional stations via two Paris‑area data centers using the ST 2110 IP standard to enable high-quality, low-latency media exchange across locations. The new deployment will also enable France Télévisions to exchange data with operations that have already migrated to 2110, such as its Paris headquarters.

The architecture is fully redundant using the 2022-7 protocol, ensuring resilience and reliability as the broadcaster continues to modernize its national media network. Implementation is now underway, with full media exchange targeted to be operational by the end of the year.

France Télévisions first selected Imagine’s SNP three years ago as a cornerstone of its progressive migration to ST 2110 IP, initially deploying SNP to support UHD coverage of the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Following the event, the broadcaster redeployed the devices to support the IP transition of the master control room at its Paris headquarters and implemented additional SNPs across its playout operations, studios, digital platform and two new OB trucks.

“Forward-thinking media companies like France Télévisions are making the move to ST 2110 IP because it gives them the freedom, flexibility, and long-term confidence they need in a fast-changing media landscape,” Imagine CEO Steve Reynolds said. “ST 2110 isn’t just another product cycle—it’s the platform for everything that comes next. With every new release, the SNP continues to pave the way for the future of broadcast infrastructure.”

SNP-XS offers all the capabilities of Imagine’s flagship SNP platform, Imagine said, including support for 12G SDI and SMPTE ST 2110, in a compact footprint perfect for environments where space is at a premium but performance can’t be compromised. It offers flexible I/O configurations and brings the complement of well-known SNP features on day one—including UHD and HDR conversions and fully synchronized 2110 adaptation. Delivering ultra-quiet operation and high-performance processing in a deploy-anywhere form factor, SNP-XS is an ideal solution for edge deployments, facility expansions, remote routing endpoints, mobile production, and any space-constrained environment. Imagine said.

ROME—Following a competitive public tender process, Rai (Radiotelevisione Italiana), the national public broadcasting company of Italy, has awarded Imagine Communications a three-year frame contract to support its transition from SDI to IP.

The agreement, which was done through local systems integrator Allyn Srl, positions Imagine’s Selenio Network Processor (SNP) as a core building block in Rai’s migration to SMPTE ST 2110 across its master control rooms (MCRs) and production control rooms (PCRs).

“Our move to IP is a long-term transformation, and we need a platform that will let us migrate at our own pace without disrupting operations,” said Stefano Marchetti, head of playout and network engineering at Rai. “Imagine’s SNP provides a practical foundation for how we want to build and manage our IP environments going forward — one that enables incremental deployment, operational continuity, and long-term scalability.”

As part of its modernization strategy, Rai is migrating key areas of its production and playout infrastructure from SDI to IP, carefully selecting technologies that enable a scalable and operationally sound transition. Under the frame contract, the SNPs will serve as gateway, conversion, multiviewing, and master control devices for newly deployed IP environments. Rai will also leverage the SNP with JPEG XS compression capability to support production-quality, low-latency connectivity between facilities, including links to outside broadcast vehicles.

SNP was selected for its ability to consolidate multiple critical functions into a single, highly flexible platform, helping streamline workflows in IP-based MCR environments. The unique SNP design enables it to be easily reconfigured with different personalities and upgraded in the field with new functionality. Its broad interoperability with third-party ST 2110 equipment was also a key factor in meeting Rai’s tender requirements.

At Rai, some SNPs will serve as IP gateways and some as low-latency, HDR-capable production multiviewers, which enable content from different video formats and HDR systems to be integrated into a consistent display environment. Other SNP devices will be configured with the Master Control Lite (MCL) personality, delivering branding, live graphics, and full master control functionality within the framework of the industry-proven platform. SNPs configured with JPEG XS compression will enable Rai to reduce the cost of video connectivity between facilities by using less bandwidth for signal transport.

“We are proud to support this multiyear project, which is a great example of how broadcasters are approaching IP migration in a thoughtful, incremental way,” said Mathias Eckert, senior vice president and general manager of EMEA and APAC for Imagine Communications. “SNP was designed specifically for this kind of transition, allowing customers to move from SDI to IP with confidence, interoperability, and clear operational benefits.”

The initial SNP orders will support deployments at two sites: the creation of an IP backbone for Rai’s Turin MCR and an IP infrastructure build-out at a facility in Rome. Over the duration of the three-year contract, multiple additional orders are anticipated as Rai expands its IP transition across a wider network of sites, ultimately spanning more than 25 locations nationwide.

LANCASTER, Pa.—Pocono Television Network (PTN) is operated by the Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau (PMVB), a private, nonprofit organization that serves to promote, educate and attract visitors to Pennsylvania’s Pocono Mountains. Launched in 2017, the channel showcases the region through original segments such as “Pocono Perspectives” and “Pocono Mountains Magazine,” weather updates, live webcams and features on local businesses and events.

The PMVB created its own television network in order to drive content development with a focus on storytelling about the destination and the organization’s 600 members. As president and CEO of the PMVB, I also serve as the executive in charge of production for PTN, which, over the past eight years, has grown substantially in its broadcast, cable and streaming coverage to now reach more than 50 million households.

By 2022, we had exceeded the technical limitations of our third-party distributor and decided to expand our existing partnership with Take One Productions. Under the new arrangement, Take One’s team and PMVB’s in-house staff produce content for the network, while Take One oversees content aggregation, scheduling and playout across cable, OTT and digital platforms.

Broadcast-Grade Upgrade
Supporting continuous multi­platform distribution of PTN would require more than a basic file-based system that simply creates playlists from uploaded content. We needed a broadcast-grade solution that we wouldn’t outgrow, supporting the complete workflow—ingest, media asset management, playout, graphics and master control—while delivering the scalability and long-term reliability needed for a 24/7 network.

Just as important, the platform had to be cloud-based. With Take One’s studio in Lancaster and the PMVB located two hours north in Stroudsburg, relying on physical infrastructure wasn’t practical. The Versio integrated playout system from Imagine Communications, combined with the company’s cloud-native Aviator Automation, turned out to be the perfect solution.

Versio gives us the core playout engine and pulls the workflow together, but the bonus is in how seamlessly it works with Imagine’s Aviator Automation to create a unified, cloud-based operation.

Aviator Automation simplifies the programming process, offering remote login capabilities that enable programming from anywhere. In addition, the platform provides as-run logs to reference what has played, while its built-in Content Portal makes managing content simple. For additional visibility into PTN’s inventory, special fields were added to the metadata so content can be quickly identified by season and region.

Versio and Aviator Automation are incredibly easy to operate and have been exceptionally reliable—in more than two years of 24/7 broadcasting, there hasn’t been a single minute of downtime due to system failure. And when there have been any issues, the Imagine team is available within minutes, and the issue gets resolved on the spot.

Easy to Scale
The Versio platform’s cloud capabilities have enabled us to expand PTN’s cable footprint to nearly a dozen providers across Pennsylvania. At the same time, we’ve built a strong OTT presence through Vimeo’s enterprise platform—allowing the network’s live stream from Versio to be delivered to a wide array of consumer devices. Viewers can download the app to watch live programming or explore on-demand content from anywhere.

Last year, we added over-the-air broadcasting to the distribution mix. The channel is now live in six markets—with a seventh on the way—reaching audiences in Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, Lancaster and Philadelphia, as well as Wilmington, Del., and even areas near the New York State border.

With cable, OTT and OTA distribution, PTN has the potential to reach millions of households, not including international audiences streaming online. For a regional tourism network, that kind of reach is a big step forward. We’ve even discussed launching a second channel, and with Versio, that’s now a realistic option. What once took nine months can now be done in just a few weeks.

More information is available at https://imaginecommunications.com.

LANCASTER, Pa.—At Take One Productions, we’ve been producing professional video content from Lancaster since 1984. What started as a corporate video company has grown into something bigger, especially in our work creating long-form commercial spots for the Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau (PMVB), and in 2023, when we took over full broadcast operations for the Pocono Television Network (PTN).

PTN is a 24/7 television network available on streaming, over-the-air and cable. Designed to promote the Pocono Mountains region, PTN presents original segments like “Pocono Perspectives” and “Pocono Mountains Magazine,” local weather, live webcams and features on small businesses and regional events. Since its inception in 2017, the network has gained significant traction, quickly outgrowing the capabilities of its original distribution provider.

More Than Playout
To support this growth, we needed a platform built for demanding broadcast television operations. Our checklist included a playout system that managed ingest, media storage, graphics and master control, all while delivering scalability and rock-solid reliability. And because our studio is in Lancaster and PMVB is two hours north in Stroudsburg, it had to be cloud-based.

All these requirements led us to Imagine Communications’ Versio fully integrated on-prem and cloud playout system with the Versio Control configurable master control dashboard.

We reviewed a lot of playout systems and most felt bare-bones. But when we saw Versio in action, we immediately knew it was different—providing a fully integrated, cloud-capable playout system that could do everything we needed and more. We didn’t want a system we’d outgrow in a year; we wanted something we could build on, and Versio has proven to be exactly that.

Today, Versio is the engine behind PTN’s master control. We’re using the Versio Control dashboard to switch between live production, clip-based feedback and live weather from the Poconos area. In addition, the dashboard plays a critical role in our workflow. Before we go live, we check the interface to confirm that everything is properly synced and running as it should. That final verification step is essential—and Versio has become our go-to tool for ensuring broadcast continuity.

No Downtime
Not only has Versio been incredibly easy to operate, its reliability has been exceptional. In more than two years of continuous 24/7 broadcasting, we haven’t experienced a single minute of downtime due to a system failure—that’s virtually unheard of in this industry. On the rare occasions when we’ve had a question or issue, Imagine’s support has been outstanding. We open a ticket and within minutes, we’re on a live call with a team that resolves the issue right then and there.

With the Versio platform’s scalability and cloud capabilities, we’ve extended PTN’s reach far beyond what was possible just a few years ago. We’ve expanded from a handful of local cable systems to nearly a dozen across Pennsylvania. We stream live and on-demand content to major streaming platforms, and we’ve also added over-the-air broadcasting in six markets—with more on the way.

For a regional tourism network, that kind of reach is a major step forward. And as we look at future possibilities such as launching a second PTN channel, we know we have a platform that’s ready to grow with us.

More information is available at imaginecommunications.com.

As an industry, we’ve moved past the days of proving that the cloud works, with many broadcasters today using the cloud to originate channels. But now that the hype surrounding the cloud has worn off, the focus has shifted to operationalizing it. 

When speaking with our customers, it’s become clear that many of them are hoping to leverage a hybrid mix of on-prem and cloud resources, where the cloud is used for specific short-term tasks, such as business continuity (recovery) or planned maintenance coverage. For example, in a hybrid arrangement, broadcasters would replicate their current playout channels to the cloud during on-prem maintenance, and then revert them back to on-prem once maintenance is complete. 

Others have an eye on increasing viewership and monetization by creating pop-up channels for major sporting events. In the case of the Olympics, for example, this would allow broadcasters to dedicate their limited full-time, on-prem channels to the most-watched events, while utilizing the cloud to pop up additional channels for online distribution of events that draw a more focused audience. 

Addressing Operational Challenges

While the pay-by-use model of the cloud brings some economic advantages to broadcasters, operating a hybrid mixed environment also has some challenges. For one, the types of content that drive viewers to pop up channels are sometimes those that have the most operational considerations, such as live news and sports. This dramatically increases workflow complexity and the need for coordination. 

And while replicating the playlist and content for a channel to the cloud is complicated enough, managing the peripheral tasks that ensure the channel functions correctly and efficiently — such as integrating it into the broadcaster’s routing system and ensuring proper uplink and downlink connections back to the plant — is far more complicated. Automating these complexities is key to implementing a hybrid environment where the cloud is used for specific tasks and leveraging its flexibility to support broader workflows. 

To use these hybrid/mixed environments effectively, broadcasters need a cohesive, automated system with a single, consistent user interface. At Imagine Communications, we call this “channel orchestration.” A channel orchestration solution is the operations layer that operators interact with to create pop-up and backup channels and manage the relationships of channels to migrate or mirror services — turning tasks that were previously manual engineering investments into quick repeatable operations actions.  

For example, without a channel orchestration solution, creating a redundant playout environment is a time-consuming and expensive process — building separate, static chains that are exact replicas of each other and configuring all the content and automation workflows. With an automated orchestration tool, the process of adding channels and creating redundancy relationships is much faster, more cost effective, and flexible enough to meet broadcasters’ evolving needs as they experiment with new content and new channels. With just a few clicks, operators can create a second channel and link it to the original; the channel becomes a backup that mirrors the original’s lists. And with a unified management interface for both cloud and on-prem sites, it no longer matters where those channels are. They can be housed in locations across the country from each other or hosted, providing robust backup solutions without the rigid configuration of traditional setups. 

The ability to quickly spin-up new channel playout engines and group them into channels on the fly transforms the process from a lengthy engineering task that takes months of planning into an operational task that takes minutes — allowing operators to make game-day decisions on how they want to utilize the cloud. Furthermore, this flexibility enables broadcasters to optimize their use of ground and cloud resources based on economic considerations rather than technical limitations, making their engineering infrastructure a solution to financial challenges rather than a cost driver. 

Looking Forward

Integrating channel orchestration with automation enables additional models that further enhance broadcaster’s capabilities, such as dynamic regional splits that come and go throughout the day. This integration allows broadcasters to operate a single master playlist during off-peak hours, while deploying multiple playlists during primetime to maximize ad revenue through regional splits. 

Managing these transitions involves channel orchestration activating the playout engines and handling the downstream switching and distribution logic, while automation manages the linking and synchronization of playlists. Broadcasters can scale resources according to advertising demand, using on-prem equipment as a base and bursting into cloud during peak times. This strategy ensures cost-effective use of cloud resources, driven by advertising revenue.  

In Conclusion

As broadcasters continue to navigate the complexities of hybrid on-prem and cloud environments, the integration of channel orchestration and automation capabilities will be critical. These technologies not only streamline operations and reduce costs, but also provide the agility needed to respond swiftly to changing circumstances and market demands. Embracing them will enable broadcasters to fully leverage the cloud's potential, driving operational efficiency and increasing revenues.

Missed any of our product news this week? Here is our new weekly wrap-up of new products, services and deployments we published in our newsletter between June 24 and June 28. The stories are listed from the newest on Friday June 28, day by day back to our stories from Monday June 24..

Nest Productions, MiB Partner On New Production Insurance Program

Nest Productions has partnered with film and TV insurance firm MiB, providing Nest partner indies with competitive insurance rates, enhanced coverage and production risk management and support, it said.

Globecast, Blacon Media To Collaborate On U.S. Election Coverage

Globecast and Blacon Media, a broadcast engineering, production and distribution firm, are partnering to provide live coverage of the 2024 U.S. election and related events.

Fubo Launches on Xfinity Flex, Xumo Stream Box and Xumo TV

Comcast and the vMVPD Fubo have announced that Xfinity Internet customers with a Flex or Xumo Stream Box have another option for a live TV service with the launch of Fubo, a sports-first live streaming service that brings together more than 400 sports, news and entertainment networks.

Dalet Completes AWS Foundational Technical Review for Dalet Pyramid Cloud-Native News 

Dalet has announced it has completed the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Foundational Technical Review (FTR) for Dalet Pyramid, the company's cloud-native news workflow solution.

T-Mobile Remains Top Ranked for 5G Speeds

New Q1 2024 data from Ookla shows that T-Mobile continues to provide the fastest 5G download speeds in the U.S., with a median 5G download speed of 287.14 Mbps as of March 2024, an increase of 29.64 Mbps in a single month.

Amagi Strengthens its European Presence with New Office in Poland

Amagi has opened a new office in the bustling center of Łódź, which will strengthen its European presence and allow it to tap into a wealth of young technology talent in Poland, the company reported.

HOT Telecommunications Reduces Errors, Plans For Future With OOONA QA Manager

Israeli telecom HOT has deployed OOONA’s QA Manager to transform management of its video-on-demand (VOD) catalog and automate quality assurance operation, enhance the accuracy of localization and deliver a better experience to customers.

Peacock to Use AI-Generated Al Michaels' Voice for Recaps of Olympic Games

AI generated content will be breaking new ground in major sports coverage at this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris with the NBCUniversal’s streaming service Peacock announcing that it will harness AI technology to present “Your Daily Olympic Recap on Peacock”.

EMG / Gravity Media Deploys Remote Video Workflow For Netball

EMG / Gravity Media has developed a remote video production workflow for coverage of Netball, a sport played by more than a half million worldwide with some similarities to basketball.

Drei TV Turns To ATEME For OTT Video Compression, Management

Drei TV has deployed video compression and management technology from ATEME to power the Austrian TV service provider’s over-the-top (OTT) streaming service, which consists of more than 60 channels, in time for coverage of a major European Football Tournament.

DAZN Group, Exports World Cup Foundation Strike Coverage Deal

The Esports World Cup Foundation has entered into a global partnership agreement with DAZN Group, which will provide its platform for the free broadcast of the inaugural Esports World Cup (EWC), July4-August 25.

Amagi Showcases New Streaming Technology on Vizio

Amagi has announced the successful deployment of Amagi's Zero Slate technology on Vizio's owned and operated WatchFree+ channels.

Dish Launches New TV Bundle with Free Netflix

Dish Network has announced that it has added Netflix to its Dish TV subscription offering at no additional cost for two years.

Meptik Releases Turnkey ‘Studio in a Box’ for Virtual Production

The Disguise company Meptik has unveiled its first turnkey virtual production studio solution, Meptik Studio Pro.

Akta Integrates Google Cloud Gemini AI Models

AI-powered video solutions specialist Akta has announced at StreamTV 2024 in Denver that its platform will now use Google Cloud’s Gemini artificial intelligence (AI) models.

Hyperlocal Streaming Service Zeam Expands Channel Roster

Zeam Media has announced the launch of a number of new channels including Always Funny TV, from the creators of America’s Funniest Home Video, Tegna's Locked on Sports and True Crime Network channels, and Hubbard Broadcasting’s roster of local stations across Minnesota, New Mexico, and upstate New York.

Avid Unveils Avid Huddle SaaS Content Review, Approvals Solution

Avid has launched Avid Huddle, an SaaS solution that gives post-production teams the ability to collaborate and accelerate content review and approvals.

Cineverse Taps XL8 to Enhance Captioning, Localization

Cineverse announced this week that it is using XL8’s AI-powered machine translation technology to enhance Cineverse’s Matchpoint content management and distribution platform for captioning and localization.

Bitcentral Unveils Fusion Gateway for AI-Powered Media Asset Management

Bitcentral has launched Fusion Gateway, a best-in-class cloud offering that the company says “bridges the gap between media asset management (MAM) and artificial intelligence (AI) tools,” enabling Bitcentral customers “to harness new opportunities for content discovery, automation, and increased efficiency and sets the table for more creativity.”

Accedo, Qualcomm and HBS Form XR Sports Alliance

Accedo is joining forces with Qualcomm Technologies and HBS, a specialist sports broadcast organization, to form a strategic alliance with the aim of bringing together market-leading stakeholders to bridge the sports and XR industry.

Wowza to Work with AWS and AMD for High-Efficiency Streaming

Wowza has announced that Wowza Streaming Engine, its highly flexible, on-prem video streaming solution, is now compatible with Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) VT1 instances from Amazon Web Services (AWS) and is available in AWS Marketplace.

KBTC Upgrades Studio Lighting with Brightline Soft Lights

The public TV station KBTC has redesigned and upgraded its lighting design with Brightline soft lights. A legacy Kliegl lighting/dimming system was repurposed, adding the ability to route non-dimming power to new solid-state soft lights from Brightline Lighting.

Imagine Upgrades Ad Management Platform xG Linear with New Features

Imagine Communications has unveiled new features and improvements to xG Linear, its ad management platform for MVPDs in North America.

Canada’s Global News Upgrades to Calrec’s Type R IP Consoles

Global News, a leading news network in Canada, has integrated Calrec's Type R consoles into its facilities in Calgary, Edmonton, and Vancouver.

Lionsgate Selects Amagi for FAST Playout and Delivery

Amagi has announced that Lionsgate has chosen Amagi to be its partner for FAST playout and deliveries globally. Lionsgate will use Amagi's cutting-edge cloud technology to scale Lionsgate's content delivery capabilities globally and enable the rapid launch of new channels, the companies reported.

Paul Bunyan Communications Chooses Witbe Monitoring Technology

U.S. rural all-fiber-optic network provider Paul Bunyan Communications has selected Witbe’s proactive monitoring technology to monitor channels remotely that run on its PBTV set-top boxes (STBs) and ensure customers across multiple states receive a high quality of experience (QoE).

Hiltron Reports Growing Demand for Ground Antenna Refurbishment

Demand is coming from high accuracy teleport antenna performance evaluation through to latest-generation motorized antenna mounts and control systems.

CommScope Updates E6000 Converged Edge Router

CommScope has launched Software Release 13 for the E6000 Converged Edge Router (CER). Software Release 13 allows operators a flexible path forward with existing or new units as they move toward 10G with the power of the E6000 CER­—the cable industry’s most widely-deployed CCAP—in rapidly-evolving cable networks.

Comcast Business, Elon Musk’s Starlink Ink Deal to Provide Connectivity to Businesses

Comcast Business has announced an agreement with Elon Musk’s Starlink, a major provider of Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite technology, to provide connectivity solutions to Comcast Business enterprise customers.

IBC Show to Focus on AI, Shifting M&E Business Models, Sports

In a press conference, IBC organizers previewed the upcoming 2024 IBC Show, taking place Sept 13-16 at the RAI Amsterdam, with a focus on how AI is impacting media and entertainment as well as an examination of how evolving business models are transforming the way media companies use technology to inform and entertain.

TORONTO—Imagine Communications is adding all-new capability and capacity to its Selenio Network Processor (SNP), with the introduction of the SNP-XL at IBC2023 from Sept. 15-18 at RAI Amsterdam on stand 2.A15. 

SNP-XL extends the SNP platform’s broad range of capabilities with a new double-density gateway personality and adds support for more SDI-intensive integration patterns, the company explained. 

SNP-XL supports all of the current SNP personalities, including UHD and HDR conversion, multiviewers, master control and JPEG XS; however, when the personalities are used in SNP-XL, customers see an increase in flexibility for SDI workflows, enabling SDI in+out, SDI in+out+IP out, and quad-link SDI-to-SDI processing for UHD use cases. In addition, an SNP-XL fully loaded with the new double-density gateway personality delivers twice the gateway capacity within the same unit footprint. 

“The ability to scale and adopt new formats has made IP an appealing design pattern, but everybody will transition at a pace that’s driven by their own economics,” said John Mailhot, CTO of Infrastructure, Imagine Communications. “SNP-XL recognizes the longevity and criticality of SDI even during the 2110/IP transition, offering a high-density synchronizing gateway that enables customers to migrate to IP at a pace that aligns with their overall system strategy.”

Delivering all the functionality of the industry-proven SNP platform, SNP-XL adds further flexibility by fully supporting HD, 3G, and 12G SDI in and out in all combinations, the company reported. 

This enables universal conversion at the front of a hybrid facility, sending the processed ingress signals out into the legacy SDI plant and simultaneously into the IP/2110 environment. When operating with the new double-density gateway personality, the SNP-XL can support 64 gateway channels of 1080p (32 in each direction) or 16 gateway channels of UHD (8 in each direction) — both directions fully synchronized and delivered within the same 100G network footprint.

With more than 2,500 units deployed in various applications around the world to date, the SNP has cemented its place as an indispensable part of modern broadcast architectures, the company said. 

Its unique design enables the SNP to be easily reconfigured with different personalities and upgraded in the field with new functionality. 

Imagine Communications will showcase SNP, along with all the latest advances across its transformational plan, make and monetize portfolio, on stand 2.A15 at IBC2023. 

For more information visit https://www.imaginecommunications.com. 

LAS VEGAS—Imagine Communications has announced a strategic partnership with Amagi, a major provider of cloud-based SaaS technology for broadcast and connected TV (CTV) that the two companies say will offer TV networks and broadcasters a better-managed path for cloud migration, hybrid operations and orchestration, improved monetization through advertising, and extensive reach into FAST and CTV platforms. 

“We want technology to be an enabler of change, not a gating factor for our customers who are under unprecedented pressure,” said Tom Cotney, CEO of Imagine Communications. “Speed, flexibility, predictable costs and the ability to gain greater returns on content rights are demands that we can address more effectively by partnering with Amagi.”

As part of the partnership, the companies will address the convergence of cloud-based needs with the demands of on-premises technologies as customers balance the benefits offered in both environments. Also on the agenda in this partnership is the improvement of yield from advertising opportunities for streaming services.

From a technology point of view, the collaboration brings together a suite of solutions. 

By integrating Amagi CLOUDPORT into Imagine’s Aviator suite and Imagine’s SureFire into Amagi’s THUNDERSTORM offering, the companies say they will be able to create an environment that can seamlessly move contribution, playout, and distribution workflows between Imagine on-premises solutions and Amagi cloud services to reach broadcast, FAST, and CTV audiences, while enhancing monetization. 

Amagi’s CLOUDPORT will now be available as Make within the Imagine Aviator suite, as part of the Plan/Make/Monetize framework first introduced in Aviator. 

Orchestration of streams, services, assets, and automation will be achieved through a new component of the Aviator suite called the Aviator Orchestrator, which will be integrated with the cloud-based services offered by Amagi, the companies reported. 

From a business evolution point of view, the strategic partnership will also enable advertising to be planned, sold, and executed across both linear and CTV audiences by leveraging Amagi THUNDERSTORM — a dynamic ad insertion platform — Imagine’s SureFire video ad server, and the Plan/Make/Monetize framework. This will fulfill the industry’s need for a solution for audience reaggregation and optimization across all viewers and inventory types. 

This is particularly critical for FAST publishers as their businesses grow larger and they require sophisticated advertising management platforms, the companies explained. 

“We are combining the strengths of both companies — Imagine Communications’ on-premises and hybrid broadcast solutions expertise and Amagi's leadership in cloud-native playout and content monetization,” said Baskar Subramanian, CEO and co-founder, Amagi. “This creates a converged solution enabling customers to migrate to a cloud-based SaaS platform while also making it easier for broadcasters and media companies to launch OTT services, FAST, and pop-up channels and further monetize content.”

Demonstrations of the integrated solutions will be highlighted during the 2023 NAB Show in Las Vegas at both the Amagi booth (W1401) and the Imagine Communications booth (W2775).  

More information about Amagi is available at www.amagi.com.  

More information about all Imagine’s products and solutions is available at www.imaginecommunications.com. 

DENVER—Imagine Communications has enhanced ADC playout automation with the ADC Flex remote-ready control solution that enables media companies to access and control their broadcast chain from anywhere, the company announced today.

ADC Flex enhances media workflows, makes operations more efficient and supports new operational models, including hub-and-spoke deployments and unified broadcast operations from a broadcast center, the company said.

An intuitive, flexible solution, ADC Flex enables media companies to use existing infrastructure and minimize operational training to reduce total cost of ownership. It can be added to existing ADC deployments or used as the basis for new facilities and new channel launches, it said.

With ADC Flex, operators monitor and control channels, schedule content ingest and manage content from anywhere via internet access. With an HTML5 web user interface, ADC Flex is tailored to broadcasters’ specific operational needs. It offers an identical look and feel whether the operator is in the machine room, at a remote location or working from home. All that is needed to communicate is a secure data connection, the company said.

“Customers today want highly resilient playout control that is intuitive, fast, configurable and reliable,” said Andy Warman, senior VP playout at Imagine Communications. “ADC Flex provides that flexibility and agility, whether it is for an existing system or at a new ADC installation.”

“The user interface features a thoroughly modern look and feel that is easy to use and easy to customize," he continued. "It allows media companies to connect over their local network or over a secure internet connection ― without the need for any additional cumbersome hardware or interfaces.”

ADC automation can be tightly integrated with Imagine Communications’ Nexio video servers and Versio integrated playout platform and can provide an easy upgrade path as and when needed. ADC Flex leverages these capabilities and will adapt to changing technologies and workflow requirements, Imagine Communications said.

Screens can be customized to suit workflow requirements and user preferences. Permissions can be assigned to users and groups, and favorites can be assigned for commonly used layouts. Since ADC Flex is built using HTML5, ADC Flex can run on Windows, MacOS or Linux. Control panels and supervisory screens can also be created for tablets where mobility is required, it said.

More information is available on the company’s website. 

BALTIMORE—Sinclair Broadcast Group and Imagine Communications will collaborate on a next-gen ad management software platform aimed at giving broadcasters the tools needed to take advantage of new money-making models made possible by the next-generation ATSC 3.0 television standard, the station group and company said today.

Separately, the Advanced Television Systems Committee announced Jan. 9, that its membership has approved the last remaining individual standards making up the suite of ATSC 3.0 standards.

The development partnership with Imagine will ensure Sinclair and other broadcasters committed to ATSC 3.0 will be able to maximize the monetization opportunities of the new ATSC 3.0 IP-based delivery model by leveraging business systems that precisely target and geographically position advertising across available distribution channels and consumption models, said Sinclair CTO Del Parks. Under the agreement, the station group will help develop Imagine’s next-gen business process systems for traffic, ad sales and data analytics to enable unit- and impression-based buys, according to an Imagine press release.

Sinclair will oversee product development, drawing on its real-world insights on business and tech requirements. The goal is to develop a platform that will give all broadcasters the ability to address new advanced ad models. Sinclair will become a beta tester for both ATSC 1.0 and 3.0 ad platforms, the press release said.

ATSC 3.0 gives broadcasters access to an IP-based backchannel from viewers. That along with the enhancements envisioned for the new platform should enhance the competitive stance of local broadcasters and provide viewers with personalized, interactive content, it said. Imagine currently offers the xG modular, next-gen ad management platform.

More information is available on the Imagine Communications website.

For a comprehensive list of TV Technology’s ATSC 3.0 coverage, see our ATSC3 silo.

LAS VEGAS—Anyone walking into the Imagine Communications booth at this year’s NAB Show looking for a dedicated hardware device will have to look pretty hard.

Imagine CEO Charlie Vogt “The days of selling a black box to do a function really are beginning to go behind us,” said Charlie Vogt, Imagine’s chief executive officer. Rather than inventing a device for this and a device for that, “we really have to bring an end-to-end solution in order for us to be successful going forward.”

THIS YEAR’S THEMES
Listening to Vogt, viewing Imagine’s website and reading the signage at the company’s exhibit hall display, there’s three themes: “software-defined,” “IP-enabled” and “cloud-virtualized.”

Using standard IT hardware and network infrastructure, Imagine’s engineers have written software that enables the functions of the previously used black box hardware to be aped by IT hardware. To the end-using operators, the difference is transparent.

Vogt has been evangelizing this path since Imagine, along with GatesAir, were calved off from the former Harris Broadcast. “Two and a half years ago, I stood in front of people at IBC and then NAB, not because I was trying to be controversial, but to articulate where this industry was going ahead, for all the reasons that we watched it migrate,” he said. “In order for our traditional broadcasters and TV networks, and even the traditional service providers to be able to participate and keep up with the Googles, Yahoos, Netflixes and other companies that are leveraging the IP broadband infrastructure to further their business, they’ve got to make these type of changes. We’re certainly seeing all the things that we laid out two and a half years ago coming into a much clearer picture now.”

Executing this migration from standard broadcast infrastructure to IP infrastructures isn’t easy, said Vogt, “especially when it comes to playing out traditional linear-based programming from a virtualized environment. But we have demonstrated publicly that we have the ability to take traditional linear programming, virtualize it into the cloud environment and distribute it over the air. That’s tough stuff.”

In the past year, Imagine has been working with a number of companies on next-generation proof-of-concepts and over 100 field trials. One well-known client is Disney, which unveiled its plans to migrate traditional master control operations to IP and into a software-defined cloud-virtualized state at the 2015 NAB Show.

“A year later, we’ve got several of their traditional linear programs that are up and running on IP, that are virtualized and that are using all of our next-generation IP playout technology,” Vogt said. “We’re pretty excited about what’s occurred.” Disney is slated to give a progress report on its work with Imagine at this year’s show.

SEEKING ADVICE
When Imagine reorganized itself two years ago, it formed an Innovation Advisory Board with about 35 CEOs from the industry’s premier companies around the Americas. “We’re establishing the same innovation advisory board in Asia,” Vogt said. “This has been a very insightful steering committee, because not only do they help validate our roadmap, they’re also helping refine their own roadmap as it relates to the challenges they’re beginning to face, the competitive threats they’re starting to face, and how are they going to address it.”

Beyond being on the technological leading edge, Vogt pointed out “there are all kinds of benefits that the industry gains once they move to an IP architecture, including the agility, flexibility and ability to turn up channels in days and hours, versus months and years. And there’s the longterm cost structure, the ability to add new content, incorporate lots of other technologies and applications in the total workflow. There are just a lot of benefits.” This also includes the ability to simplify the deployment of TV Everywhere and other multichannel services, and monetize them with advanced advertising solutions that deliver current, relevant and personalized ads to consumers.

That said, he noted that not all customers will be ready to cut over to Imagine’s solutions right away. “There’s no ‘flash cut,’ everybody’s going to migrate at a little different pace. Everybody’s got a little different Capex budget, there’s a different go-to-market strategy, the way they monetize the business is a little different.

“But when you think about the very large broadcast networks, and the very large television stations, we see them moving quicker and quicker to these architectures that we’ve been investing in for two and a half years.”

Imagine Communications is in Booth N2502.

DALLAS—In an effort to expand its xG Ad Insertion for Multiscreen (AIM) system, Imagine Communications has announced that it added Placement Opportunity Information Service (POIS), Ad Decision Router (ADR), and Ad Decision Service (ADS) software-based modules. These additions boost the ad insertion capabilities of Imagine’s advertising management systems, according to Imagine.

POIS works with the xG AIM manifest manipulator and third-party ad insertion systems to identify linear ad positions, alternate content events, slates and blackouts; it also provides attributes and constraints for placement opportunities. The module works with Imagine ADS and ADR to pre-fetch advertising placement opportunity information to spread the workload across large-scale operations.

The ADR modules manages ad decision request distribution across multiple ad decision services to support peak demand times and to place and distribute advertising. It also handles protocol translation and the routing of placement opportunity requests.

An ad-targeting tool, ADS creates opportunities for focusing ads at a national, regional or local level, as well as updating commercial messages to prevent them from becoming obsolete. The module supports individual or zone targeting for linear, on-demand or DVR. It can also make alternate content decisions for content blackouts or other program substitutions.

Imagine addresses multiplatform advertising with the CloudXtream Dynamic Ad Insertion platform, which is available now and can feature all the modules as a complete system, or individually. Imagine will show the systems at the upcoming NAB Show in Las Vegas.

HAMILTON, N.J.— The shift from baseband SDI to an IP model based on off-the-shelf servers is very complex, especially if you factor in other looming trends like 4K and private data cloud migration.

Nowhere is the pressure being felt more than in master control, which delivers the programs and commercials that generate the revenue. Integrated Channel Playout (ICP) and Channel-in-a-Box (CIAB) systems are taking over due to their unprecedented operational flexibility and cost-efficiency. Many of the latest ICP and CIAB systems offer both IP and SDI I/O connectivity to ease the transition.

Grass Valley’s iTX channel gridTWO TERMS, TWO DIFFERENCES
The terms ICP and CIAB are often used interchangeably, but there is a difference, according to Andy Warman, director of production and playout strategy and market development for Harmonic in San Jose, Calif., “CIAB is a self-contained ecosystem where all the functions to run and playout one or more channels are contained in one box,” he said. But, “when the workflow is more complex, and you need centralized management and monitoring, that’s where you’re going to use ICP systems. If the facility needs to handle many upstream processes, such as integration to an archive, recording via baseband and quality control as well as playout, this broader requirement goes beyond what can be accommodated in a CIAB.”

Harmonic’s product line includes both types of systems, including Polaris Play, which is targeted at CIAB; and Polaris Advance and Polaris Elite, which are designed for ICP systems. When paired with Harmonic’s Spectrum MediaDeck 7000 integrated media server, Polaris Play automates playout of up to four SD/HD channels, each with its own SD simulcast channel for a total of eight channels per 1RU. And when Spectrum servers are used with Polaris Advance and Elite, this solution spans ingest, archiving, playlist management, media prep, traffic integration and scheduled and live playout.

Another Harmonic product, Spectrum X, is an advanced media server that enables broadcasters to migrate from SDI to IP workflows for both CIAB and ICP systems, and includes graphic branding, DVE and live switching of HD/SD-SDI (3G) baseband and IP I/O sources.

“Many broadcasters are still using SDI workflows, but at some point they’ll be moving to IP, and Spectrum X bridges the gap because it supports SDI and IP connectivity in a single box,” Warman said. “This allows broadcasters to keep parts of their plant SDI, while other parts are IP. Then, as their workflow needs and budgets change, they can fully transition to IP when they’re ready.”

HYBRID WORLD
“This transition to ICP is happening because it’s more economical than running a physical transmission chain with different brand boxes that are complex to maintain and consume lots of space and power,” said Scott Rose, director of product marketing for iTX for Grass Valley. “It’s not like broadcasters will just flip a switch and now their stations are IP-only. They still need to stay on the air, running in mixed IP/SDI mode, with all the standards and functionality that make our business uniquely broadcast television.”

When broadcasters are ready to move to integrated playout, Rose said they should ask themselves: Does this solution enable frame-accurate switching in IP that’s as good as we’ve come to expect from a baseband router? The SMPTE 2022-6 standard, approved in 2013, enables high-bandwidth IP with deterministic switching and Grass Valley supports the standard throughout its iTX automated integrated playout product line.

“Just because our industry is moving to IP doesn’t mean we want to give up frame-accurate switching, broadcast quality video and graphics, closed captioning, loudness controls, and other standards viewers have come to expect,” Rose said. He added that reliability is also key, with Grass Valley iTX systems successfully playing out 17.5 million hours of broadcast television this year, including $8 million worth of commercials on Oscars night.

Steve SmithOPERATIONAL FLEXIBILITY
“Outside the walls of the TV station, our world is already IP, and what we’ve done is allowed it to come all the way into our facilities and cloud environments,” said Steve Smith, chief technology officer for Cloud technology at Imagine Communications, in Frisco, Texas. “ICP systems, such as our Versio system, enable purely IP, software-based master control.”

Versio can virtualize the entire workflow from contribution to distribution, including master control tasks like video playout, graphics and branding, live caption insertion, switching, routing and digital signal processing. And a higher layer of automation called orchestration can manage Versio along with all the other virtualized systems across the IP workflow. Disney/ABC Television Group, which announced a deal with Imagine at the 2015 NAB Show to move to an all IP infrastructure, is among the many broadcast organizations that have adopted Versio.

“ICP makes master control more resilient while shrinking the physical footprint needed to support playout,” Smith added. “Lower cost, generic IT systems can provide any business function needed depending upon the software applied to them.” Smith calls this operational flexibility— including readily changing the business functions supported and scaling the entire platform up or down— “virtualization.”

ORCHESTRATING CHANGE
Pebble Beach Systems has virtualized the entire air chain into their Orca CIAB, which is a fully IP-enabled device that offers the feature set of its SDI counterpart, Dolphin. According to Eric Openshaw general manager for North America for the Denver-based company, Orca, which was launched at the IBC Show in September, is designed for large-scale deployments where customers with enterprise virtualized server platforms can host playout services on their own infrastructure, often along with other virtual machines they may run.

“Virtualization and our dedicated deployment tools make it possible to ramp up a new broadcast channel in just minutes, without the significant capital outlay and technical barriers associated with installing specialized boxes and cabling,” he said. “This gives broadcasters an increased level of agility because they can quickly set up a new channel, or even a temporary channel, just to see if it appeals to viewers since they wouldn’t have to expand their physical infrastructure to do so.”

Pebble Beach Systems launched its Orca CiaB system at the 2015 IBC Show. Virtualization coupled with an IT infrastructure makes it more practical to move some or all of master control to a private cloud, he adds.

Orca is driven by another Pebble Beach Systems product, Marina, which serves as the orchestration layer. While the CIAB largely handles air chain functions, “the orchestration layer automates a broader range of upstream tasks, such as managing files, assets and metadata, as well as the CIAB itself,” Openshaw said.

For SDI facilities, the company offers the Dolphin CIAB, which includes an SDI video card and optional IP inputs and outputs. Scripps Networks Interactive has purchased Marina and 31 Dolphin CIAB systems for its Knoxville, Tenn. BOC, plus 11 for off-site disaster recovery.

THE NEED FOR STANDARDS
By around 2020, we should see an end-to-end IP infrastructure in broadcast, according to Karl Mehring, director of playout and delivery for Snell Advanced Media in the U.K. “Until then, we’ll have islands of SDI due to interoperability issues and non-standardization.”

Mehring said that the broadcast industry is unique in its need for a continuous stream of data and “five nines” of reliability—a tall order in today’s IP domain. “As long as we drive the various standards in the right way, become very IP savvy, and build sufficient redundancy around playout, master control will be as reliable in IP as SDI,” he said.

Two standards—SMPTE 2022-6 for sending uncompressed SDI over IP and SMPTE 2022-2 for compressed video—have begun to address the challenges in the short term. “The remaining interoperability issues will be resolved by newly ratified standards,” Mehring said, “but until then, we’ll need to accept a hybrid world.” SAM offers ICE CIAB systems with SDI and IP functionality as well as ICE SDC, a software only playout solution.

THE MODULAR ROUTE
Miami-based Primestream’s Fork Suite of applications consists of modules, with automated functionality that spans the gamut from broadcast acquisition to playout and OTT delivery. These modules include Fork Playout, Fork Live Assist and Fork MAM, among other broadcast management tools.

“Our focus is on making manufacturer-agnostic software, allowing customers to choose best-in-class components and configurations that are right for their unique workflows,” said Chief Operating Officer David Schleifer. “Our product is designed to serve as the glue in the midst of key production and playout processes.”

FORK software can be implemented as an adjunct to existing third-party equipment, such as playout servers, storage systems and even integrated playout systems. Or it can serve as a full-featured, automated, integrated playout solution that supports industry protocols and leverages generic, IT servers and video cards for flexibility and cost-efficiency.

CIAB FOR LPTV
One market segment that’s traditionally been priced out of technological advances, like CIAB, is low-power TV and Class A stations. Dallas-based RUSHWORKS stepped up to remedy the situation, and make CIAB affordable to these stations with its A-LIST broadcast automation CIAB, which supports up to four SD and HD I/O channels per chassis.

“We saw an opportunity to serve LPTV stations, as well as Class A and full-power stations, by developing a full-featured CIAB that enables these price-conscious customers to adopt new technology at a price point that better allows them to make a return on investment,” said company President Rush Beesley. Along with A-LIST’s powerful yet simple interface, the price point makes it equally attractive for government, educational and independent channels.

A-LIST lets broadcasters distribute signals to a broad range of platforms simultaneously, including traditional TV, Internet sites, OTT services like Roku, and cable head-ends. HD and SD formats are supported along with a mix of popular file formats, such as MPEG-2, H.264, MXF, MOV and AVI.

“Our architecture performs SD/HD up/down conversion in real time during playout,” Beesley said. “Because we support multiple formats, users can drop all their content into the automated playlist without the additional process and expense of using file-conversion software to prep the files for playback.”

Multichannel HD A-LIST systems are installed in master control facilities at Christian Broadcasting Network and KTNC-TV/San Francisco, an NRJ station.