GRASS VALLEY, Calif.—AJA Video Systems has unveiled new conversion and IP video solutions ahead of IBC2025, Sept. 12-15, at the RAI Amsterdam Convention Center.

The new IP25-R Mini-Converter connects SMPTE ST 2110 networks with 4K SDI/HDMI infrastructures, and UDC-4K provides 12G-SDI/HDMI conversion, 4K/UltraHD/2K/HD scaling and frame synchronization.

The AJA Video BRIDGE LIVE 12G-4 brings multi-channel UltraHD support to the BRIDGE LIVE line of IP video devices, while a free Desktop Software v17.6 update unlocks powerful new improvements for AJA’s KONA IP25 SMPTE ST 2110 I/O card, the company said.

“From day one, AJA’s main goal has been to bring customers practical solutions to common pipeline challenges. This mission has become even more critical given the complexity of modern workflows, between the growth in adoption of IP and higher resolution, higher frame rate, HDR production technologies,” said AJA president Nick Rashby. “IP25-R, UDC-4K and BRIDGE LIVE 12G-4 enable professionals to keep pace with the latest industry evolutions while maximizing legacy equipment, by making it easy to integrate a wide array of signal types and equipment into their pipelines.”

The IP25-R allows hybrid baseband/IP facilities to de-encapsulate SMPTE ST 2110 video, audio, and ancillary data seamlessly with frame-accurate synchronization for output to baseband 12G-SDI and HDMI 2.0 devices.

The Mini-Converter addresses demand for the conversion of SMPTE ST 2110 signals to HDMI 2.0 for confidence monitoring, playout and routing. IP25-R includes dual 10/25GbE network ports, two HDMI 2.0 outputs and four 12G-SDI BNC outputs. It can deliver low latency video up to 4K DCI with advanced HDR metadata.

AJA’s new UDC-4K Mini-Converter provides broadcast, production and AV professionals with a flexible toolset for handling a broad range of signals and equipment in the field. It enables 12G-SDI/HDMI 2.0 conversion, 4K/UltraHD/2K/HD scaling, including frame rate conversion, and frame synchronization.

The new BRIDGE LIVE 12G-4 decreases per-channel video costs for multi-camera/source UltraHD IP video workflows. The high-density IP workflow solution supports a range of applications from synchronous, multi-channel video transport and contribution to backhaul, direct-to-audience streaming, remote production and distribution encoding. It offers a high-density IP workflow solution supporting a range of applications from synchronous, multi-channel video transport and contribution, to backhaul, direct-to-audience streaming, remote production and distribution encoding.

Desktop Software v17.6 expands the capabilities of the AJA KONA IP25. With the update, the IP video and audio PCIe I/O card supports Video+Key playout/TX per SMPTE ST 2110-20:2022 for combining program video with keyed graphics and titles. The upcoming release also adds KONA IP25 support for up to 4:4:4 12-bit 4K and selectable multiple ST 2110-30 audio streams per video modes for routing up to 16 channels.

See AJA Video Systems at IBC2025 Stand 7.B19

More information is available on the company’s website.

HACKENSACK, N.J.—LiveU has launched LiveU Nexus, a new cloud-native universal gateway for digital and IP-based workflows, enabling customers to create even more value from their LiveU EcoSystem setup. LiveU Nexus seamlessly moves IP-video content in and out of different platforms and environments, including SDI, SMPTE 2110 and NDI-based production systems, using existing and new workflows.

The company will demo LiveU Nexus at its stand (7.C19) during the 2025 IBC Show, Sept. 12-15 at the RAI Amsterdam.

Designed to simplify complex IP workflows—especially digital video capturing—LiveU Nexus acts as an efficient and reliable universal gateway for all IP-based feeds within the LiveU EcoSystem. It offers unlimited access to live feeds to and from any systems, letting users bring in, transform, route and output any stream in seconds.

Any types of feeds can be seamlessly connected from anywhere, to anywhere, including LiveU's own LRT (LiveU Reliable Transport), SRT, RTMP, HLS and more to on-premises and cloud-based infrastructure. Producers can pull in live content from Zoom, YouTube and other social media platforms with a simple URL or meeting link—no converters or workarounds required, according to the company.

"Broadcasters are under mounting pressure to integrate a growing number of IP and digital video sources,” said Matt Zajicek, VP Product for LiveU. “LiveU Nexus changes the game, accelerating their digital transformations and future-proofing their digital and IP-video workflows. By cutting technical barriers and costs, production teams can focus on creating great content faster and smarter—while maximizing existing investments. It's already been successfully tested by customers, and we're excited about the potential ahead."

Key features include:

• Protocol conversion – Transforming any IP format to LRT and other leading protocols, LiveU Nexus pushes any live stream into the LiveU EcoSystem or third-party solutions without any additional hardware or converter.
• Digital/social media capturing and routing – includes Zoom meetings, YouTube videos and Facebook Lives into broadcast workflows, and a web browser as an input inside.
• Elastic cloud scalability – built to grow with production demands in the cloud, as workflows evolve.

Resolutions, frame rates, aspect ratio, and codec differences are automatically normalized across the feeds, ensuring every signal is instantly compatible with the downstream tools. In addition, any IP stream can be sent into LiveU's IP cloud solutions, including LiveU Studio for cloud production, LiveU Ingest for recording, or LiveU Matrix for IP distribution, and integrated with an installed base of LiveU receivers, without the need for additional hardware or configurations.

Interoperability is at the heart of the LiveU EcoSystem, according to Zajicek

“By streamlining workflows and deepening integration across the platform, we’re making it easier than ever for storytellers to maximize the value of their video content," he added.

MONT-SAINT-GUIBERT, Belgium—Telestream has integrated intoPIX’s JPEG XS technology into Telestream’s PRISM waveform monitors, which Telestream says will enhance real-time monitoring for ST 2110-22 IP workflows, enabling broadcasters and production studios to transition smoothly from SDI to IP while maintaining pristine image quality and low latency.

The integration allows engineers to inspect and verify video signals with unprecedented precision, ensuring flawless video signal integrity in hybrid SDI/IP environments.

As broadcasters and production teams transition to IP-based workflows, Telestream says JPEG XS provides the ideal solution for compressing high-quality video without compromising real-time performance or image fidelity. By integrating JPEG XS into PRISM, Telestream enables professionals to monitor and analyze ST 2110-22 streams seamlessly, ensuring efficient, low-latency, and visually lossless video transport across IP infrastructures.

• Ensuring Interoperability: PRISM’s real-time analysis of JPEG XS (ST 2110-22) streams ensures seamless compatibility across hybrid SDI/IP environments, making it easier for engineers to manage complex workflows.
• Ultra-Low Latency & High-Quality Compression: JPEG XS allows 10:1 to 20:1 compression with near-zero latency, providing a high-quality, bandwidth-efficient solution for IP video transport.
• Hybrid Workflow Flexibility: The MULTI Input feature of PRISM supporting simultaneous monitoring of up to four inputs of any mix of SDI, ST 2110-20, and ST 2110-22, and the GEN test signal generator feature empowered by JPEG XS technologygive broadcasters ultimate flexibility when working with mixed SDI and IP workflows.

“Integrating JPEG XS into Telestream PRISM elevates real-time IP monitoring, providing broadcasters and production teams with an essential tool for maintaining high-quality, low-latency IP workflows,” said Jean-Baptiste Lorent, Head of Media, Entertainment & ProAV Group at intoPIX.

“The integration of the intoPIX technology into PRISM allows our users to take advantage of this cutting-edge technology within their IP workflows while ensuring precise video signal analysis,” said Tsuyoshi Kitagawa, Senior Product Manager at Telestream.

Telestream will showcase the integration at its Booth W1501 in the West Hall of the LVCC during the 2025 NAB Show, April 6-9 in Las Vegas.

LAS VEGAS—Multimedia System designer and integrator Fuse Technical Group selected Matrox Video technology to drive SMPTE ST 2110 routing, orchestration, conversion and control inside the Sphere while U2 is performing the venue’s first show, Matrox said.

The producers of the show and event are using the technology to feed and manage SMPTE ST 2110 signals for the multi-date concert, which concludes March 2, it said.

The interior of Sphere displays video on a 160,000-square-foot, 16K wraparound LED canvas with 256 million rendered pixels—one of the world’s largest and highest resolution LED screens. 

For U2’s “U2: UV Achtung Baby Live” performance at Sphere, the band’s content development team called on Fuse to develop a video playback system capable of handling 16K resolution and augmenting and moving live input across 16K —all over IP, running on a complete SMPTE ST 2110 backbone, it said.

“It took five years to build the Sphere, but we had only five months from the initial contact to deliver a 100% reliable solution in time for the first show —using a standard and workflow we weren’t accustomed to. It was definitely no small feat to do something like that in such a compressed timeline,” said Ryan Middlemiss, Fuse Technical Group’s director of media servers.

Fuse relied upon the capability and performance of Matrox Video’s IP video products as well as its support and ST 2110 expertise. Matrox products enabling the ST 2110 workflow include: 

• Matrox ConvertIP for SMTPE ST 2110 conversion: Fuse deployed 23 Matrox ConvertIP DSS dual-channel SFP SDI-to-IP devices to convert high-resolution SDI from the media servers into SMPTE ST 2110 and deliver content to the IP video backbone for display on the LEDs. Fuse selected ConvertIP for its 12G SDI and 4K (DCI) support, its low latency, and its 25G speeds. Fuse subsequently requested 6G support, and Matrox Video added the capability to ConvertIP. 
• Matrox ConductIP for routing and orchestration: Fuse uses Matrox ConductIP to route and orchestrate SMPTE ST 2110 sources on its internal network.
• Matrox Extio 3 for remote operation and control: The production system uses 30 computers, with one programmer and two technicians in the control room handling all the video for the show. Fuse deployed Matrox Extio 3 IP KVM extenders so the operators can access multiple computers from one remote workstation with one keyboard, mouse and monitor. Users can move between Extio 3-equipped computers at once by dragging the mouse.

Matrox Video’s ST 2110 training and expertise helped Middlemiss and his team get up to speed quickly. The company’s responsiveness and engineering support helped to make the project a success, especially when last-minute changes arose, it said.

More information is available on the company’s website.

BOTHELL, Wash.—The Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS) has announced that three companies have joined the group. 

The new members are NovaStar, a leading global LED display solutions provider; CUX, a provider of audio, video, and environmental control solutions; and Appear, a global leader in high-capacity solutions for media processing and content delivery.

"We couldn't be more excited to name NovaStar, CUX, and Appear as the newest AIMS members," said Andrew Starks, board of directors' member and marketing working group chair for AIMS. "With NovaStar and CUX's deep-rooted experience in AV-over-IP for the Pro AV industry and Appear's specialized knowledge in broadcast IP media transport, all three companies will be instrumental in helping us propel IPMX adoption in these sectors and unlock new market possibilities."

NovaStar boasts a diverse range of products that encompasses everything from synchronized controls for LED displays to point-to-point calibration systems, AV-over-IP solutions, and cloud-based management services. The company's solutions have been adopted for a variety of live events — including concerts and the opening ceremony of the 2008 summer games in Beijing— digital advertising signage, and more. Operating from 37 locations across the globe and catering to both corporate and retail customers, NovaStar is dedicated to delivering pioneering technology, tailored solutions, intuitive products, and dedicated customer support, the company reported. 

"Our solutions are widely implemented across a variety of Pro AV environments, where the transition to video-over-IP as the dominating infrastructure is well under way," said Jason Xiao，director of product development of NovaStar. "With AIMS' IPMX poised to be at the center of that infrastructure, the timing is perfect for NovaStar to become part of the alliance. We're thrilled to contribute to a standard that will advance the whole industry through increased interoperability."

Based in China, CUX is dedicated to delivering products and systems — including AV-over-IP solutions — that prioritize ease of use and are tailored for a broad spectrum of audio and video applications in various markets. The company's commitment extends to supporting the system integration sector from the design stage through implementation, with a guiding principle of "Technology promotes harmony, innovation changes the future," the company said. 

"Through our work supporting system integrators, we've gained a deep understanding of the interoperability hurdles that have plagued the Pro AV industry," said Keven Pang, executive director of CUX. "We couldn't be more excited for the arrival of IPMX as a solution to these challenges and look forward to collaborating with AIMS and its members to champion its adoption."

Headquartered in Oslo, Appear specializes in premium live event contribution solutions that are utilized by an extensive list of rights holders and content providers, remote production products, and modular head-end platforms for IPTV and broadcast, with distribution options for cable, satellite, and terrestrial networks. Pushing the limits of media and entertainment innovation, Appear's primary focus is on delivering exceptional value to its global network of clients by elevating their content delivery to unprecedented levels of success, the company reported. 

"We've maintained a leading position in industry innovation through active partnerships with esteemed trade organizations and technology providers, with the goal of achieving seamless and secure media transport. We are thrilled to include AIMS among them," said Andy Rayner, chief technology officer of Appear. "As the boundaries between broadcast and Pro AV increasingly blur across various applications, we're eager to work with the organization to advance IPMX and bring interoperability to both domains."

More information about AIMS and its work is available at www.aimsalliance.org.

OSLO—Sony’s Nevion virtualized media production division announced today that its flagship media orchestration platform VideoIPath now supports federation, or the ability for multiple autonomous instances of VideoIPath to collaborate within and across locations. This unique development is a major breakthrough in distributed multi-site media production, as it allows production resources to be shared and used seamlessly, regardless of where they are located, and without compromising on orchestration performance, reliability and security, the company said.

With broadcasters, media and production companies increasingly seeking to increase the flexibility and cost-effectiveness of their live productions by moving to remote and distributed production, the need to share, control and connect studios, control rooms, people, on-premise and Cloud processing across multiple sites via LANs, WANs, 5G and GCCG (Ground-to-Cloud-Cloud-to-Ground) presents one of the biggest challenges in enabling this type of production.

Nevion VideoIPath is a powerful, scalable, secure and easy-to-use orchestration systems and now with federation support, individual VideoIPath systems—for example at each site—can now collaborate with other VideoIPath systems to share, control and connect resources across locations securely.

As each system is autonomous and in charge of its own resources, it continues to function and collaborate, even if problems occur in other parts of the federation. The federation capability also enables VideoIPath to reach new heights in scalability, to handle all the production resources and all the media streams involved.

While remote and distributed production are obvious applications for VideoIPath’s federation functionality, the capability can also be used to compartmentalize networks within facilities, for example between ingest, production and playout.

VideoIPath’s federation capabilities are also a great opportunity for telecom service providers. Federation allows them to provide a WAN orchestration that can operate seamlessly with broadcasters’ orchestration, to bring together the customers’ facilities.

Arne-Johan Martinsen, VideoIPath Product Manager at Nevion said: “Nevion and parent company Sony are committed to enabling content producers to share production resources wherever they are located. This new VideoIPath federation functionality is a key part of achieving this. By hiding the complexity of the underlying infrastructure from users, and providing scalability, reliability and security, VideoIPath allows content producers to focus on creativity, while increasing efficiency and effectiveness.”

Nevion will discuss these new developments at the Sony Stand (13.A10) at IBC 2022, Sept. 9-13 at the RAI Amsterdam.

NEW YORK CITY—Pronology has unveiled StreamFile Core Enterprise, a cross-platform, web-based software application for large teams that enables them to receive IP video protocols and encode them into editor-friendly formats, such as ProRes, DNx, XDCAM and H.264.

It integrates support for NewTek’s NDI and Haivision’s SRT protocols, thereby delivering added IP and streaming capabilities, the company said.

Offering support for an unlimited number of record channels based on hardware performance, StreamFile Core Enterprise is licensed based on the number of channels needed, it said.

The product assists facilities as they move toward remote production. It can be used on-prem and in the cloud, including on Amazon Web Services (AWS) and other cloud services, it said.

The technology underpinning of StreamFile Core Enterprise is the same as that used by the company’s mRes encoder. The solution makes it possible for facilities and studios transitioning to an IP-based platform to use their existing NLEs, graphics and digital infrastructures, the company said.

It bridges the gap between IP-based video technology and legacy baseband recording workflows, Pronology said.

“We are excited to offer an enterprise version of our StreamFile Core application as a platform,” says Jonathan Aroesty, president of Pronology. “With its AWS capabilities, large production teams can truly collaborate and optimize their remote production workflows.” 

The product supports several codecs, including the ability to record ProRes and DNx with both .mxf and .mov wrappers, enabling users working remotely to turn their NDI and SRT streams into edit-ready files for Avid Media Composer, Adobe Premiere and Final Cut Pro.

StreamFile Core Enterprise also provides a web-browser agnostic, cross-platform IP stream multiviewer. It is agnostic in terms of frame rate and resolution, the company said

All StreamFile Core Enterprise features are secured and managed through granular administrator-defined user credentials. Permission levels for operators, production supervisor and producer are supported.

More information is available on the company’s website.

MOSCOW—TV Center (TVC) here has adopted SMPTE ST 2110 IP video transport and production in a central control room and two studios based on video, networking and control systems from Lawo.

The studio, believed to be the first SMPTE ST 2110 studio project in the nation, is being implemented by Moscow system integrator DNK.

“We decided to transition to IP for our complete infrastructure in order to be ready for the future challenges of TV production and distribution,” said TVC CTO Alexey Brusnitskiy. “IP technology offers the highest level of flexibility and efficiency in workflows, and it provides [the] best possible reliability and security for our productions and our network.” 

Together, DNK, Lawo and TVC installed two VSM (Virtual Studio Manager) IP broadcast and workflow solutions as well as a V_matrix software-defined IP core routing, processing and multiviewer platform. For network supervision, DNK installed Lawo smartDASH system monitoring and real-time telemetry for broadcast networks and a smartSCOPE deep packet media inspection and network analyzer. A_digital64 units provide I/O connectivity. 

Lawo’s VSM enables IP-based control and workflow for OB, studio and master control room (MCR) applications in TV and radio. Device-agnostic VSM controls all major video/audio routers and mixers, intercoms, UMDs and multiviewers, glue and other third-party baseband and IP devices. 

SMART system monitoring and real-time telemetry software for broadcast networks provides network and data health transparency across all-IP, all-SDI and hybrid WAN/LAN infrastructures. For signal monitoring, the V__matrix based vm_dmv distributed IP multiviewer app provides high-quality functionality for 4K/3G/HD/SD. 

Lawo’s LVP LiveView multi-image processor enables the vm_dmv multiviewer to show both production (SDI/ST 2110/ST 2022-6) and transmission (MPEG-2/H.264/HEVC/OTT-ABR) formats on a single screen for OTT/playout. 

Lawo’s V__matrix software-defined IP platform uses multiple cores and a high-capacity COTS switch with redundant 10GbE/40GbE connectivity as a distributed IP routing/processing matrix for frame-accurate switching. C100 processing blades provide physical signal connectivity. 

“An important part of this first phase was to create an IP routing core which could take 40x40 feeds from the existing main SDI router and transfer them to the IP infrastructure using encamps/decamps via six Lawo C100 processing blades,” said DNK CTO Maxim Krivtsov. “These C100 blades are also dedicated for four-channel format conversion using vm_udx functionality.”

Virtual module apps with a VSM control layer allow remapping entire workflows in minutes. Virtual modules handle streaming, video processing and multiviewing. The V__matrix vm_udx app provides SD, HD and 4K format conversion with HDR capability.

The A__stage64, a part of the A__line Audio-to-IP interface family, provides WAN capable transport of analog and digital audio compatible with ST 2110-30/-31 and AES67/RAVENNA audio-over-IP standards.

The first phase of the project was finalized in August. Next up will be all TVC control rooms and studios for integration into the complete IP infrastructure, Lawo said.

TV Center, which is owned by the city of Moscow, airs programming highlighting various aspects of Moscow life. The programming is broadcast across the entirety of Russia.

More information is available at the company’s website.  

DOWNINGTON, Penn.—The robotic camera manufacturer, PTZOptics and its sister company HuddlecamHD have announced new offerings that will help users building fully networked video production workflows. 

As part of that effort, PTZOptics has released the PT-JOY-G4, a camera control joystick offering serial or network-based camera control and has rolled out NDI, Network Device Interface technology, to their SimplTrack2 and HuddleView cameras, which provide auto-tracking and auto-framing of subjects, respectively. 

NDI enables users to encode, transmit, and receive multiple streams of broadcast-quality, low latency, frame-accurate video and audio in real time. 

PT-JOY-G4 Joystick features outputs for RS-232, RS-485, RS-422, and Ethernet control signals and can connect to new equipment and legacy cameras from a wide range of brands, including PTZOptics, Sony, and others. The joystick offers the ability to switch between network and serial input protocols with the touch of a button, the company said, and is ideal for organizations in the midst of upgrading to IP-based video. 

“We really wanted this joystick to just work,” says Matt Davis, director of technology & information systems at PTZOptics. “No matter what cameras you’re using or what kind of control signals you’re sending, adding the PT-JOY-G4 into your production workflow makes your life instantly easier.” 

HuddleCamHD has also announced a move to NDI. A firmware update released on June 2 brings  NDI|HX capabilities to the SimplTrack2 and Huddleview cameras. Once the firmware is installed, the cameras will instantly be discoverable as NDI devices; users will need to obtain an NDI|HX license from Vizrt Group for each device for full functionality. 

Pre-licensed NDI SimplTrack2 and Huddleview cameras are slated to begin shipping in early 2022.

“Our enterprise customers have been clamoring for this,” says Davis, “And for good reason. Now, they’ll be able to manage hundreds of cameras—or send feeds to hundreds of endpoints—centrally and securely, using their existing local area network infrastructure."

The companies also noted they have expanded free training resources for NDI, which can be accessed here.

LONDON—One of the two Technical Emmys that SMPTE will pick up at the NAB Show later this year (in person or otherwise) was awarded for its work standardizing 2110.

Building on earlier work at the Video Services Forum (VSF), the first four parts of ST 2110 were published by SMPTE in late 2017, to provide for a standardized interconnect of media across an IP-based network. This has the additional benefit of providing a common backbone for the facility, instead of broadcasters having to worry about running the correct type of cable and signal to various locations. Engineering personnel can easily configure and control network switches and routers remotely, allowing them to work from wherever they are.

DUAL PURPOSE

One purpose of 2110 was to get the industry onto a single standard, according to John Mailhot, systems architect for IP convergence at Imagine Communications. He edited ST 2110 documents through publication. “We watched what happened in the audio industry where vendors worked in different directions creating a dozen audio over Ethernet systems all incompatible with each other.”

The premise of 2110 was to avoid similar fragmentation and to consign the proprietary nature of black box development—which had begun to hinder systems installation and business growth under SDI—to history.

Rival approaches to video over IP, notably Aspen (championed by Evertz) and Sony’s Networked Media Interface (“and the prospect of more,” says Mailhot), were eventually subsumed under the 2110 umbrella.

Also driving development was the desire to replace arcane point-to-point signal transport with an entirely new essence-based mechanism.

“Studios built with SDI were constrained by what cables were used,” says Bruce Devlin, vice president of standards for SMPTE and chief media scientist for Dalet Digital Media Systems. “Trying to change a facility’s purpose involved physical uplift and fixing of patch panels. In no way was this giving the versatility you needed to be a responsive studio business.

“The dream of 2110,” he adds, “was to put down cabling with enough bandwidth and then figure out what you were going to put on it and in what direction the streams were going to flow.”

A key part of the work was to mirror the rock-solid timing of SDI by incorporating precision timing protocols derived from IEEE 1588.

Devlin says, “We’ve gone from SDI—where timing, video, audio, some metadata and unidirectional routing were all locked together on one cable—to a general-purpose cable that has logically (rather than physically) separate flows for every flavor of video, audio and metadata. Each stream is separately routed and separately timed.

“The beauty of ST 2110 is that it allows this complexity,” Devlin adds. “It does everything from SD all the way up to 8K RGB 12-bit uncompressed to a solution demanding a 100GB link streaming video in one direction. In either case you are using the same protocols, the same switching, the same standard IT architectures.”

From that standpoint 2110 is about as successful as anything the TV industry has ever done, Mailhot says. “At the beginning [2110 compatible product] was built speculatively. Today, it is available because the market demands it.”

For just about any piece of kit you could need in a TV facility—multiviewers, cameras, replay systems—buyers have the option of one whose primary interface is ST 2110.

“Where 2110 excels is building large-scale facilities,” Mailhot adds. “Legacy projects were built around fixed sized matrices and almost no matter how big they were, six months you’d wish it was just a bit larger. In IP there are limits too but you can build an IP system with 2110 and evolve it over time to scale really extraordinary sizes.”

The Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS), an industry group focused on education and adoption of IP standards for media, also characterizes 2110 as a success and “a world removed from the market confusion of 2015,” according to AIMS Chairman Mike Cronk, who is also vice president for advanced technology at Grass Valley. “The number of systems deployed and the scope and breadth of companies deploying 2110 has increased.”

It’s not all been plain sailing.

“There was definitely a lack of education at the outset,” admits Devlin. “Today we’ve got quite a lot of education about the fundamentals of the technology but what is missing is the ‘junior Jedi’ level of apprentice training. With new technologies being introduced faster than educators can create courses, I don’t know where to send enthusiastic students to learn in-camera VFX or IP lighting control or ST 2110 operational needs. I can see the industry re-invigorating the apprentice type training in these cutting-edge technologies because it’s the only way to scale quickly.”

Feedback from early 2110 installs is that the standard could use some simplifying. Cronk says, “Large facilities might have a 3000 input x 10,000 output IP equivalent router and while the switches are a standard Cisco, Arista or Mellanox, if you have to manually type in IP addresses in an excel sheet, it quickly becomes tedious. For every video source you might have 16 separate audio and eight data streams so one active goal is to make a 2110 system more plug and play.”

COLLABORATIVE EFFORT

An under-reported success of 2110 is the collaboration that has had to take place among different organizations. Sharing the Emmy honor with SMPTE are VSF, European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and Advanced Media Workflow Association (AMWA). Together, they formed the Joint Taskforce on Network Media (JT-NM) to coordinate the effort. 

“These four organizations have made the 2110 ecosystem system successful,” commends Devlin. “The JT-NM meet every couple weeks to try to keep the super tanker moving forwards. The rudder movements have to be aligned early enough for the ship to turn.”

The VSF is at the heart of the group exploring transport and connectivity issues. Its TR-03 and TR-04 recommendations were the building blocks for transporting essences (individual signals) rather than the composite media.

AMWA took the lead on providing the core control and management software, which equates to straightforward interoperability between products from a wide range of manufacturers.

The EBU’s role is to keep its finger on the pulse of users. “It is collecting user requirements for the next things we should look at next,” says Devlin. “They are trying to figure out, if we’re to use 2110 as an ecosystem rather than simply as a better piece of string to connect a camera to a screen, then what do we have to do to make it better?”

EVOLUTION OF THE STANDARD

The underlying business model of broadcasters has been decimated by OTT. Finances for huge broadcast infrastructure projects, such as studio refurbs or new builds, has been curtailed. Add in Covid-era shuttering of near all live studio-based production—for which 2110 was principally designed—and its replacement by remote workflows, and ST 2110 faces something of an identity crisis.

“It is not really that 2110 is the wrong standard, it’s that the means of content consumption has started to change rapidly,” Devlin says. “The global pandemic accelerated this when live sports and stage events, all the stuff that 2110 is dedicated to, almost vanished overnight.

“The result is far less investment into live infrastructure overall and what investment there is is switched to remote live and remote scripted infrastructure. Investment in a lot of production is not hitting the 2110 nail on the head at the moment.”

The JT-NM thinks it has a role to play in adapting 2110 for content shuffling between facilities (or between OB and studio) and more broadly in live remote scenarios.

“We’re having to find ways to use the 2110 ecosystem to connect nano-second accurate studio environments with remote operations over the internet or in the cloud where hard and fast PTP accuracy may not exist,” Devlin explains.

An option for this is the Internet Protocol Media Experience (IPMX), a proposed set of standards and specs designed to address the ProAV industry’s need for protocols that ensure interoperability for AV over IP. IPMX is promoted by AIMS and AMWA and is based on 2110. A quarter of AIMS’ 100+ members have a foot in both broadcast and ProAV camps.

“It seems silly to have a hard wall between gold-plated 2110 excellence and the exuberance and creativity of the vast pool of those who can’t afford 2110 in the ProAV space,” Devlin says. “How do you bridge the two to make something that is better than both of those?”

He adds, “Covid has forced us to look at this area. It helps to get more creatives included into what might otherwise be an ivory tower of exclusivity.”

Mailhot points out that remote production actually involves equipment either virtualized in the cloud or physically racked in a room and that 2110 while the operating team controls the kit remotely; “2110 still does its job of being the data plane even as the mechanisms the operations team uses to make production decisions are remoted.”

He says there is increasing interest in compressed schemes in the context of 2110 with JPEG XS the frontrunner. Detailed specs for how JPEG XS can be mapped into a 2110-22 ecosystem as a mezzanine compression are all but complete at the VSF. Vendors like Imagine plan to add JPEG XS capability to product this year.

“2110 in its uncompressed native form is built around the notion that bandwidth is free and cheap on a campus but we are working to use JPEG XS to get to and from cloud,” Mailhot says.

FUTURE POTENTIAL

The pandemic may have stalled heavyweight infrastructure projects but demand for ST 2110 product solutions is expected to return.

“The reason is that people get hooked on 4K,” surmises Devlin. “We can shoot, store and process in 4K and content shot in it has a long tail. As soon as you try and shoot in 4K, particularly a live event, a lot of other tools start to struggle.”

He also points to the rise of game engines and virtual sets within mainstream production as the new benchmark for quality.

“To generate VFX in-camera on multi-camera shoots like ‘The Mandalorian,’ you will need high bandwidth to work with uncompressed 4K and 8K,” Devlin said. “With shows of this calibre every bit counts. For this reason, even scripted content producers will realize that the network infrastructure they need will be 2110.”

FOSTER CITY, Calif.—A Silicon Valley startup says it will launch a new platform that will “radically lower video bandwidth costs” next month. 

Edge Video says the first test results of its SWAN (Small-world Wide Area Networks) showed a 5x reduction in bandwidth costs, compared with costs of existing server-based architectures. The system enables a live video stream to be captured by the SWAN technology and rebroadcast to viewers where each of the viewers' devices leverage the unused upload capacity to restream fractional portions of the video stream to other viewers.

"This is the most radical product to emerge in Edge Computing" said Joe Ward, CEO of Edge Video. "Video is by far the highest cost application per user on the internet. Here we are enabling a 5x reduction in network egress costs, resulting in a much higher video definition for viewers."

Edge says it's targeting a 10x reduction in bandwidth costs when it announces the next phase of Edge Video SWAN testing in July 2020, “where all cloud computing users at AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud and Oracle Cloud will be able to soon leverage the Edge Video SWAN technology to substantially reduce server bandwidth (egress) costs and increase video viewing definition as a result.”

More information is available at edgevideo.com.

TVU Networks, the global technology and innovation leader in live IP video solutions and TVN GROUP, one of Germany’s leading TV, Film and Outside Broadcast production company, today announce that they are working together to provide the German broadcast market with innovative, powerful and flexible IP video transport solutions.

“Our customers are facing growing demand for more news content across more platforms, so we need to help them with new and innovative ways of newsgathering. Deploying the advanced live IP video acquisition solutions from TVU, delivers the flexibility, mobility and reliability needed to tell stories from any location,” said Bernd Dypka, CIO TVN GROUP. “We worked closely with TVU Networks to ensure that our joint solutions enable broadcasters to get the heart of the news and action as it happens – whether in Germany or further afield.”

The first joint projects will see broadcasters deploy the TVU One mobile solutions to ensure that TVN customers can deliver the best possible live streaming video services, with unmatched quality and reliability regardless of location. The collaboration has been facilitated by TVU Networks’ long-term partner QVEST Media.

When discussing the project, Alexander Kritschker, Head of Professional Products, QVEST Media, said: “I’m looking forward to helping deploy the innovative joint TVN and TVU live video solutions so that the German broadcast market can more efficiently acquire, transport, share and re-use video to get on air first and enhance storytelling together with viewer engagement.”

David Jorba, EVP and Managing Director at TVU Europe added: “As the German market leader in broadcast facilities and newsgathering services, TVN Group has established a reputation for always being at the cutting edge. We are excited by the development of joint TVN and TVU solutions and look forward to ensuring that TVN continues to lead the way in providing innovative solutions that meet their customers requirement to tell stories better while increasing flexibility and efficiency.”

TVU Networks, the global technology and innovation leader in live IP solutions, today announced the company was awarded two 2018 Product Innovation Awards from Future Publishing. Publishers of TV Technology, Government Video, Radio World and Creative Planet/DV and VE magazines, the annual Future Publishing awards honor the year’s top product introductions in TV, professional video and broadcast/online radio technology.

The TVU MediaMind set of solutions for AI-based automated video content management was honored with a TV Technology Product Innovation Award; while TVU Producer for cloud-based multi-camera video production, was selected as a DV (Digital Video) Product Innovation Award winner.

“TV Technology and DV are well read and respected media outlets in the broadcast and video production industries,” said Paul Shen, CEO, TVU Networks. “We are delighted to have TVU MediaMind and TVU Producer selected for this prestigious honor. Both MediaMind and Producer have seen strong interest and adoption since their introductions. We wholeheartedly thank Future Publishing for this acknowledgement.”

Introduced in April at the NAB (National Association of Broadcasters) conference in Las Vegas, TVU MediaMind consists of TVU Contribution Automation, TVU AI Engine, TVU Real Time Search Engine, TVU Workflow Engine and TVU Producer. MediaMind simplifies and automates the processes involved in creating a single port to feed all social media, digital and broadcast channels. A cloud-based model, it incorporates AI, voice and object recognition to enable the indexing of video clips down to the exact frame and the ability to share those clips instantly.

A component of TVU, with the web-based TVU Producer, video content can be cost-effectively produced for different platforms or audience groups completely in the cloud. Non-professionals can easily manipulate graphics, scoring and text overlays during production, thanks to its WYSIWYG interface. TVU Producer can handle multi-camera production from virtually any location. It supports simultaneously output directly to major social media platforms and virtually any CDN platform. It also offers a multi-channel IP video switcher, instant replay and slow-motion replay.

TVU also received two 2018 DMW (Digital Media World) awards for IP-based delivery and cloud-based production for TVU MediaMind and TVU Producer. During the latter part of 2018, TVU was named a finalist in Streaming Media magazine’s “Streaming Media 50.” In April of last year, TVU was honored with a “Best of 2018” award from TV Technology for its ultra-compact, cost-effective TVU Nano for TVU Router. TVU Nano uses TVU Router as a network accelerator to deliver Internet anywhere.

Now in its sixth year, Future’s Product Innovation Award recognizes excellence in manufacturing of products to serve the TV/pro video and radio/online audio industries. Winners are selected by a panel of professional users and evaluation criteria include innovation of concept and design, creative use of technology, price value, and suitability

TVU Networks has over 2,500 customers in more than 85 countries. The TVU Networks family of IP transmission and live production solutions gives broadcasters and organizations a powerful and reliable workflow to distribute live video content to broadcast, online and mobile platforms. TVU has become a critical part of the operations of many major media companies. The TVU Networks suite of solutions has been used to acquire, transmit, produce, manage and distribute professional-quality live IP HD footage as an integral part of news, sports and major global events. For more information about TVU Networks solutions, please visit .

SAN ANTONIO—Sports fans are among the most demanding audiences in the world—of their team and of their content. No matter if it’s a nationally televised game on a mainstream network or a live stream on a niche sports channel, they expect production at a level that rivals their passion.

Of course, not every organization has the financial resources or media relationships of major league sports. However, the argument can be made that it’s even more critical for these emerging sports to present professional-quality content, especially if they intend to grow. Opportunities for sponsorship activity, regional network partnerships, and content monetization in the form of subscription models will elude them if they are unable to engage audiences effectively.

That said, where traditional broadcast equipment and methods remain cost-prohibitive for many involved at this level, the video industry’s shift toward IP-based production holds promise for the entire world of sport.

FUELING FORMULA D

A prime example of IP allowing an underground sport to continue making inroads with audiences and advertisers is Formula DRIFT, or “Formula D.” A high-intensity driving competition series where drivers operate modified cars and utilize a technique called drifting to expertly maneuver through turn-filled courses, Formula D has a loyal and growing fan base that spans the globe. What the sport does not have is a multimillion-dollar TV contract and the reach that comes along with it. So, production and distribution costs must be low enough that budget-conscious sponsors can invest comfortably, while the quality must be high enough to draw viewership that instills them with the confidence that their investment is worthwhile.

A big part of making such productions affordable for sponsors and other clients is knocking down crew and equipment costs, according to Jeff Harper, co-founder of Adrenaline Garage, the Colorado-based video production company responsible for live streaming Formula D events. “[With] NewTek NDI, we can do a two-day broadcast for one-tenth the cost of renting even an older 53-foot HD truck,” he said. “IP video production is the future. Any technology that gives you more power, while costing you less money... there’s just no way to stop that.”

REDUCING COSTS AND COMPLEXITY

To Harper’s point, not only do premium IP video production systems cost less than conventional, high-end SDI broadcast video infrastructure, the savings are multiplied by reducing the shipping and labor expenses incurred in travel and on-location production. Weighing seven or eight pounds per hundred-foot length, checking 1,000 feet of traditional coaxial cable on a commercial flight can cost about $200. When you consider the connectivity required for a multicamera production with audio, transporting cabling alone can mean spending tens of thousands of dollars over the course of a season-long event schedule. With IP, though, a single fiber-optic strand can accommodate multiple channels of video, audio, data, and communications, while also being lighter, and thus, less expensive, to ship. Less labor is also involved, because setup and teardown crews are handling a fraction of the cable runs. 

Of the most significant benefit to broadcasters of emerging sports, however, is the ability to transform their event location into a veritable sandbox with virtually unlimited creative possibilities for telling the story of their sport, the event at hand, and the participants involved.

Indeed, with IP-based workflows, they can leverage the existing Gigabit network infrastructure found in most modern venues to not only structure their coverage according to best practices, but also explore new ways to shape the viewer experience. Where equivalent freedom could potentially be attained with standard OB production vehicles, ENG cameras, and digital and analog cabling, it would come with significant planning, expense, and effort. Meanwhile, IP only requires that compatible systems, devices, and software be in proximity to the on-site network for inclusion into the production workflow. Adding a new camera angle for the field, court, track, or other competitive space, for example, can be done with ease of plugging into the closest network port or connecting to the local Wi-Fi.

[Read:Advanced Analytics Deliver Consistent Video Quality In The Cloud]

RAISING THE BAR, LOWERING THE BARRIER

With emerging sports generally having more room to experiment and innovate when it comes to workflow design and content creation, IP-based production also makes the most sense. Enabling a multitude of compatible technologies from high-end to completely free to interconnect using the same language, IP allows broadcasters to present the unique action, visuals, and graphical elements that embody their sport using a product mix that works for their budget. Ultimately, what IP represents is more than a shift in tools and technologies for the industry, but the continued democratization of live video production for a new content economy. From niche sports, to college athletic programs, to startup professional organizations, new producers and new live sports offerings are becoming part of the creative collective every day. And with this next-generation production model that they can make their own, easily and affordably, we should expect to see that growth not only continue, but accelerate.

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LOS ANGELES—The Video Services Forum said a “major industry interoperability demonstration” of uncompressed audio and video over an IP network will be conducted at the group’s upcoming technical conference, VidTrans 2017, at the Marina del Rey Marriott, Feb. 28 to March 2.

This year’s VidTrans will focus on flavors of IP networking and video technologies for video transport and production studio applications. It will feature a multivendor Interop demonstrations based on the work of the Joint Taskforce on Networked Media, with a particular focus on the draft SMPTE ST-2110 spec, parts 10, 20, 30 and 40, including video, audio, and ANC data.

The demonstration will feature a number of equipment manufacturers, test equipment manufacturers and additional networking technology suppliers. The exhibition hall and Interop demos will be open Tuesday and Wednesday, Feb. 28 & March 1, with an opening night reception on Tuesday.

For more information about the conference, visit www.videoservicesforum.org for updates.

MELVILLE, N.Y.—The 2016 PBS Technology Conference has added a session of IEEE’s “IP Video for Broadcast Engineers” to its schedule. The course is taught by Wes Simpson, a member of IEEE BTS, owner of Telecom Product Consulting and columnist (Video Networking) for TV Technology.

The “IP Video for Broadcast Engineers” is a one-day course that offers instruction on how IP video technologies impact the current and future plans for video networking and delivery. Simpson will provide a look at technologies used to transmit video signals over IP networks to viewers, for contribution and distribution, and within production facilities, as well as showing practical applications for the technologies and introducing terminology and industry standards.

Modules expected to be covered in the course include IP basics, IP video, consumer video delivery, IP contribution/distribution networks, private and in-studio IP video, and system-level considerations.

The 2016 PBC TechCon will take place April 16 in Las Vegas. The course will take place at the PBS Las Vegas Studio from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Class size is limited to 35. Online registration is available here, at a price of $200.

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Class will be in session at PBS headquarters in Crystal City, Va., as the IEE Broadcast Technology Society has announced it will hold its one-day “IP Video for Broadcast Engineers” course on March 3. Wes Simpson, owner of Telecom Product Consulting, will teach the class that focuses on the key technologies used to transmit video signals over IP networks to viewers, for contribution and distribution, and within production facilities.

The course plans to cover topics like IP basics, IP video, consumer video delivery, IP contribution/distribution networks, private and in-studio IP video, and system-level considerations.

“In this course, we will explain the underlying technologies and show practical applications for them,” said Simpson. “Students will become familiar with a range of terminology and industry standards and gain an understanding of how IP video technologies will impact their current and future plans for video networking and delivery.”

Online registration for “IP Video for Broadcast Engineers” is available for IEEE BTS members for $150; nonmembers can register for $175. Class size is limited to 60 people. For more information, click here.

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIF.—TVU Networks is getting in the huddle with the Carolina Panthers, as the live IP video technology provider will help capture and transmit video from post-game press conferences and interviews. To do so, the Panthers have deployed the TVUPack wireless uplink backpack during the weekly Game Day wrap-up show.

The TVUPack is a modular IP newsgathering product that enables broadcasters to capture and broadcast live HD video over multiple cellular, satellite, microwave, Wi-Fi, Wi-Max and BGAN connections. TVUPack features proprietary Inverse StatMux Plus technology designed to deliver HD quality picture with under one second latency.

TVU Networks is based in Mountain View, Calif.

Ross Video Acuity A3 production switcher control surface

ALEXANDRIA, VA.—Video production switchers have always been large and complicated, but they are now more capable and complicated than ever. Manufacturers have done wonderful things to make the human-switcher interface usable in today’s products, as that one device can create titles, roll in video, control cameras, provide studio automation and, yes… switch between sources.

One company building production switchers is Ross Video, which has grown in recent years to include related technology such as studio automation. To learn about the state-of-the-art in production switchers and how they fit into the modern studio, BE Extra spoke to Les O’Reilly.

Les is Ross Video’s technical marketing product manager for switchers and the company’s openTruck product. He has been in the broadcast industry for 13 years, and stays active in the production side of the business as a technical director for many sports productions.

BE Extra: With HDR, 4K, IP video and other technologies making industry headlines, what do you concentrate on as a manufacturer? What technology do you build into a switcher today and what do you leave for the future?

O’Reilly: With all technology, you need to make sure that you’re moving forward but at the pace that the industry is able to move with. We can’t get too far ahead of what the industry wants. 4K or UHD is being used in very limited applications and does not seem to be high on the list of the majority of our customers. However we do have some interest and requirements, and that is why we developed Quad-Link 1080p3G over SDI. As the manufacturers of cameras and replay machines (for live sports) begin to develop a single-cable solution, we should also be moving into that 12G single cable solution and continuing to offer as many processing resources as possible.

IP Video is another item that is a little stretched at this time as well. There are no actual cost savings in the IP domain, but rather a cost increase with the required infrastructure to go around it. If we just look at using SMPTE 2022-6 standard, which is essentially SDI-over-IP uncompressed, then you’re trading in one cable type for another but having to implement new interfaces. To process video like a production switcher does, you can’t do this in the packet domain. You need to bring all the video together so that you can process it. You’re also not going to see a switcher that is all IP-in and all IP-out, as too many devices are still in the SDI domain. Hybrid systems will be what we see developed over time, with some inputs in the IP domain and other in the SDI domain. The other issue is standards, as not all IP is the same. Some vendors have proprietary standards that require licenses and proprietary chips; this moves the industry away from a standard interconnect protocol that we have had with SDI and will cause increased cost.

Les O’Reilly

BE Extra: Speaking of IP video, what’s something desirable that you can do with an IP switcher that you can’t do (or is much harder to do) with SDI? How about the other way around: Is there something easily done with SDI that’s hard to do with IP?

O’Reilly: From a production switcher application, there really is nothing that an IP input can offer that is superior to an SDI input. An IP video input needs to be processed, so an SDI input is actually less expensive. With SDI, we avoid decoding the input stream and avoid having to re-encode the video into packets for an IP output. SMPTE 2022-6 is just SDI-over-IP, which does not gain us much.

One advantage about SDI is that you can plug it into a DA and get copies of it out, then put those into a router and production switcher at the same time. I am always going to want my cameras to be in the router and the switcher. One comment that a customer made to me was, “When did you hear about a hacker getting into your SDI infrastructure?” Funny comment but it is something to think about. SDI is secure and a cost-effective medium currently that is not able to be displaced as easily as some thought.

BE Extra: Switchers used to simply switch. Now, they can do graphics, titles, motion video feeds and even have camera controls. Obviously someone has to operate the switcher, so what is done to make such a product usable by a single operator? Can the user interface be made simpler still?

O’Reilly: These additional features allow the use of macros or custom controls to integrate all this together in repeatable events. They allow the operator to create complex scenes that can be recalled at the press of a single button. The user interface is actually already being advanced for some of these things. Products like OverDrive lead the Automated Production Control environment and give an APC overview and control. This allows a single operator to control this from a single UI that is run-down based.

We also introduced the ViewControl user interface that puts the video and controls onto a touchscreen and makes things more visual and easier to process for many users. However there will always be a need for the hard control surfaces. More than ever we hear the phrase, “I want more buttons,” and that is just because users want more dedicated functions on buttons to make fast-paced operation easier.

BE Extra: Everything connects to the Internet today. What is Ross Video doing to prevent unauthorized access to its components? Is that enough?

O’Reilly: Network security is handled well by the IT professionals that that our customers have. With the push for inter-connectivity and control, it is hard to make these systems communicate and be 100-percent secure. We focus on the devices that need access to the outside world to have multiple network ports. This way it is easy for the control network to be left on an island that is not connected to the Internet, while the second side of the device can have access to the outside world on a different network. This makes it very easy to get the internet data needed, while keeping that potentially exposed network separate from your control and systems network.

Ross Video Carbonite Black switcher

BE Extra: For the most part, switcher control panels have lots of buttons that do certain things. The buttons can be reprogrammed, but there are still lots of physical buttons. Is there any interest in a switcher that uses a large touchscreen controller that can be completely reconfigured for different operators and different operations? Is anyone using anything like this?

O’Reilly: We do offer a product called ViewControl with our Carbonite series—it is a giant configurable touchscreen. It allows operators to control the production and watch the video at the same time. With an easy-to-use interface and the ability to load a new show, this works really well. However this is not as powerful as using a physical control surface and does not lend well to “on-the-fly” changes to the production or the effects, and that is where the panel will always be needed.

A touchscreen panel replacement is also hard since you do not have physical buttons to have your fingers on while you’re looking up at the video screen. This is where TDs have the most control, as they can feel their way around the panel and know what they are pressing and the result.

BE Extra: What else should we know about switchers and their future?

O’Reilly: Switchers are used to process live video in real time with less than a line of delay. This is a demand that is required for live events and real-time productions. As the data rates scale up, so do the switchers and the processing. Features and workflow improvements however are software implementations. We are constantly working on new features and improvements, and usually off these to existing customers, thus allowing us to improve the product in the field. In many cases, the feature set and functionality can be “upgraded” with next release just by downloading the software.

Advancements in production switchers are driven heavily by users who send in requests for new features and workflows. These are the ones who push the product to its limit, then tell us, “If it could do X, then that would make it easier for me to do Y, which would make the production that much better.” So the future really is what the users of the products are able to come up with and ask for. We are able to take those requests and make features for future releases, enabling the switcher to have this workflow.