MONTREAL—When CBC/Radio-Canada opens its new broadcast center Maison de Radio-Canada in Montreal in 2020, it will do so with the support of Grass Valley’s iTX integrated playout platform as part of its infrastructure. With the iTX system, which supports SMPTE ST 2110, the broadcast center’s production teams will be able to manage multiple formats and mix IP live inputs using back-to-back IP sources and file-based clips for more than 100 TV, radio and web channels.

The iTX platform provides IP/SDI format flexibility and scalability for future readiness, as well as an advanced end-to-end workflow. This open standards-based IP approach enables CBC to be fully format and resolution agnostic, while also being able to adapt its services the changing viewer demands.

In addition, the iTX comes with full disaster recovery between the broadcaster’s facilities in Toronto, which has its own iTX system, and Montreal. A second phase of this development will be an upgrade to the Toronto facility, expected to begin sometime in 2020.

CBC/Radio-Canada Executive Director Francois Vaillant says that utilizing the same technology between the two language services in Toronto and Montreal simplifies the broadcasters operation, training and maintenance process.

MONTREAL—Grass Valley this week announced an R&D initiative aimed at leveraging its research and development resources with what the company describes as a more agile, collective approach to enhance quality and capability across its entire product portfolio.

The initiative, called "Core Technology," began conceptually inside Grass Valley in 2016. It is based upon the lean engineering philosophy employed at companies like Amazon, Google, Netflix and Tesla, the company said.

Core Technology will allow Grass Valley to innovate faster and at scale by building once and integrating to many in areas such as video processing, IP connectivity, cloud technologies and software-defined solutions. The initiative will deliver the common cores, platforms, engines and interfaces that add value across Grass Valley’s entire product lineup, the company said.

Michael Cronk, Grass Valley vice president of Core Technology, is leading the team at the company implementing the initiative. “As an R&D powerhouse in the industry, we are committed to be the partner of choice by staying ahead of the curve and innovating not only the solutions we bring to market, but the way we actually create them,” said Cronk.

Visitors attending IBC2018 in Amsterdam will see the company’s first fruits of the Core Technology initiative in products like iTX, GV Flex and ICE.

See Grass Valley, a Belden Brand, at IBC Stand 7.A01