Ahead of NAB Show New York (Oct. 21–22), TV Tech surveyed a group of key exhibitors to find out which tech trends are on their radar and what key products they plan to highlight at the Javits Convention Center, including Alex Keighley, senior vice president of sales, Americas, at Grass Valley.
TV Tech: What do you expect will be the most significant technology trends this year at NAB Show New York?
Alex Keighley: I think we’ll continue to see the industry move toward hybrid production environments. Most customers are not starting from a blank sheet of paper. They have SDI, SMPTE ST 2110, modular infrastructure, software applications, cloud and edge resources, and they need those environments to work together.
Two important developments in this context are the Dynamic Media Facility (DMF) and open media exchange through MXL [the Media eXchange Layer]. The Dynamic Media Facility is already a reality for Grass Valley customers. AMPP enables this model today, combining distributed production, shared compute, software-defined media functions, orchestration and monitoring across cloud, on-premises and edge environments.
So, I expect openness and interoperability to remain important. Native MXL integration within AMPP makes high-performance media exchange part of the production architecture, helping connect systems and workflows. The broader challenge is how to bring these capabilities together while allowing customers to modernize at their own pace, without abandoning the infrastructure that still works for them.
TVT: What’s your key product announcement for the show, and what problem does it solve?
AK: A key highlight for us at NAB Show New York will be AVORA, which we launched at IBC in September. This will be the first opportunity to see it demonstrated in the United States, both in the Grass Valley booth and the Broadfield booth.
AVORA is a standalone, all-in-one live production solution for teams that need professional production capabilities without assembling a full production stack for every show. It combines switching, graphics, audio, remote guests, content, replay, recording, monitoring, playout and delivery in one system. Teams can prepare, save, duplicate and recall complete productions, with the flexibility to use either visual shot-based production or traditional program/preset operation. Built on the founding principles and technology of GV AMPP, AVORA operates as a standalone Grass Valley solution, not AMPP Lite.
Beyond AVORA, we’ll demonstrate how different parts of the Grass Valley portfolio work together across capture, production, content and playout.
On the camera side, we’ll be showing the LDX 180, which brings Super35 cinematic capture into live production, and the LDX 150, designed for high-speed UHD and HD production. Both sit within the same LDX 100 Series ecosystem.
Most customers are not starting from a blank sheet of paper. They have SDI, SMPTE ST 2110, modular infrastructure, software applications, cloud and edge resources, and they need those environments to work together.”
Alex Keighley, Grass Valley
We’ll also demonstrate Event Producer X with an AMPP-connected Korona panel, showing a production workflow for repeatable corporate events such as town halls and leadership communications.
Finally, we’ll connect Framelight X with Playout X to demonstrate the path from media management, editing, review and publishing through to channel delivery.
GV: How does this new solution stand out from what’s available on the market?
AK: I think what makes AVORA different is that it brings the main elements of live production together in one standalone system, without requiring teams to build a complete production setup from separate components for every show.
It covers everything from switching, graphics and audio to remote guests, replay, recording and playout. Teams can also prepare and save productions, then duplicate and recall them for future events, which is particularly useful for organizations producing regular shows with consistent requirements.
There is also flexibility in how teams work. AVORA supports both visual, shot-based production and traditional program/preset operation, so operators can choose the approach that suits them.
And although it operates as a standalone solution, AVORA is built on the technology and principles behind GV AMPP. It draws on Grass Valley’s experience in software-defined production, packaged in a system designed for teams that need an integrated, repeatable production environment.
GV: What makes NAB Show New York so essential for your business, and what brings you back each year?
AK: NAB Show New York gives us the opportunity to meet directly with customers, understand the challenges they are facing and discuss how they can get more from their existing infrastructure while adopting new technologies.
It is also a valuable opportunity to demonstrate how hardware, software and hybrid workflows can work together in practice, and to have conversations about what that means for different production environments.
Each year, the value is in those direct exchanges with customers and partners, understanding their priorities and exploring how our solutions can support the way they work today.
Visit Grass Valley at NAB Show New York in Booth 121.
