HUDSON, Mass.—BitFire, a provider of software-defined live production and IP transmission, today announced the addition of cloud-based live master control capabilities to the BitFire Platform for live production and distribution. Built into BitFire’s Spark Production Environments, the new master control interface offers a familiar control room experience with professional-grade finishing tools—including captioning, as well as graphic / bug insertion, ad breaks, and SCTE—for live events of any scale. This advance makes full-scale master control more accessible to smaller operations while empowering larger media organizations to roll out high-volume live services, such as alternate broadcasts or streams tailored for different regions and languages, the company said.
“With these new capabilities, the BitFire Platform closes a critical gap in the transition to live production in the cloud,” said Jim Akimchuk, president and CEO at BitFire. “Whether producing one event or many simultaneously, production teams can now add a sophisticated layer of control and presentation — including live captioning, squeeze-back advertising, and playlist-driven break playout — without the cost or limitations of traditional master control rooms.”
BitFire’s live master control interface allows users to finish and master live shows without relying on downstream facilities. Accessible via an on-demand, cloud-based environment that allows for unlimited scalability, it brings professional orchestration and control to use cases in which traditional master control isn’t practical or economically viable, according to Bitfire.
From a single cloud-based interface, operators can insert closed captions using iCap-compatible workflows with EEG/AI-Media to meet established broadcast standards, as well as trigger SCTE-104/35 markers for downstream dynamic or server-side ad insertion. The system can automate break playout and playlist execution using standardized BXF files or manual triggers, execute advanced ad formats such as squeeze-back and picture-in-picture using Spark’s powerful switcher engine, and deliver finished, broadcast-quality transport streams with embedded captions, SCTE triggers, and metadata for either SDI or IP distribution.
By leveraging the BitFire Transmission Network from contribution to distribution, real-time, synchronized delivery of multiple versions of a broadcast becomes simple and scalable, whether delivering to one destination or hundreds, the company said. Because the BitFire Platform brings full-scale master control to the cloud, operators can configure redundant transmission with multiple paths into and out of the cloud, eliminating reliance on a single feed.
“With the addition of live master control to the BitFire Platform, we’re giving users even greater confidence that they can move forward with cloud-native workflows while maintaining quality, reliability, and control,” added Akimchuk. “Representing the first truly scalable, broadcast-quality master control solution in the cloud, this capability is already being used on national and international broadcasts of high-profile live sports, where it’s being leveraged to manage redundant feeds, HDR conversions, captioning, and SCTE ad triggers.”
More information about BitFire and its cloud-based live production and master control capabilities is available at www.bitfire.tv.
