PANELLISTS
20
August 2017
Ross Video welcomes new VP for marketing
Ross Video has appointed Jennifer Markey ( pictured ) as the company ’ s vice-president for marketing . In her new role , Markey will assume leadership of Ross Video ’ s global marketing team and initiatives including public relations , demand generation , events and channel partner marketing . Markey ’ s appointment comes as Ross Video is experiencing “ exponential growth ” in revenues and customers , and is seeking to further bolster the company ’ s footprint in key geographies , including Asia-Pacific .
Net Insight ties up with Ericsson on media contribution
Net Insight has partnered Ericsson to offer broadcasters a range of end-to-end video processing solutions based on their media contribution products and services . Under this partnership , Ericsson ’ s AVC / H . 264 and HEVC / H . 265 solutions will be fully managed under Net Insight ’ s Nimbra Vision management system and through ScheduALL for end-to-end orchestration , workflow automation , and customer selfprovisioning . Net Insight will also begin to offer AVC / H . 264 and HEVC / H . 265 capabilities to its Nimbra portfolio , the company announced .
Next Month @ Management Content Security Solutions
PANELLISTS
Fintan Mc Kiernan
CEO Ideal Systems South-east Asia
Patrick So
Regional Manager Asia Pacific Magna Systems & Engineering
Craig Johnson
Managing Director - Media Nielsen
Can IP routing set the course for change ?
In facing the need to address multiple media sources and formats , IP routing presents media operators a pathway to potentially future-proof their workflows . The challenge , however , is to ensure that IP networks are able to provide the same level of reliability as SDI operations . Josephine Tan finds out more .
F rom space-constrained outside broadcast ( OB ) trucks to complex multi-channel operations , routers are at the heart of every installation in every broadcast operation . They are tasked to process multiple formats of incoming audio and video signals , routing these signals accordingly to its assigned destination .
For NVP , an Italian broadcast production company , it required its new 4K / Ultra HD ( UHD ) OB truck to support production services that encompass SD , HD , 4K / UHD , standard dynamic range ( SDR ) and high dynamic range ( HDR ) content simultaneously . To enable multi-format switching , NVP has installed the Kahuna switcher from Snell Advanced Media ( SAM ) alongside the Sirius 840 router .
The delivery of multiple formats generally needs to be achieved without adding operators and increasing costs , says Alan Smith , product manager , routers , SAM .
Besides the key factor of managing all formats , Smith tells APB that minimising set-up time is also another important aspect , as there should be “ minimum need to reconfigure systems based on the signal format ”. He adds : “ Routers that can
❝ IP production infrastructure gives media operators the opportunity to standardise production infrastructure from end-to-end , which saves money on supporting multiple platforms and formats , and allows them to take advantage of mass marketpriced IT infrastructure .❞
— Jason Kalai Thankarajoo , Business Development Manager ,
Cisco Service Provider
With a need to support multi-format switching , Italian broadcast production company NVP has installed SAM ’ s Kahuna switcher and Sirius 840 router in its new 4K / UHD OB truck .
auto-sense and adjust to match the signal format greatly reduce set-up times .”
The Sirius 840 is a member of SAM ’ s Sirius 800 family of routers . The Sirius 800 features built-in advanced hybrid processing ( AHP ) that integrates functions such as audio processing , frame synchronisation , switching , video and audio delay , as well as audio sample rate conversion . AHP also includes input embedding , and allows each input and output to be processed and controlled independently .
“ Our new OB van ranks among the most technologically advanced production units in Europe , and is recognised primarily for its technical and operational efficiency ,” says Nataliano Pintabona , founder , owner and general manager at NVP . “ We use it for the most challenging productions all over Europe , as the new truck enables us to produce SD , HD , 4K / UHD , SDR and HDR videos , as well as leverage the latest technologies such as IP .”
Supporting a hybrid approach to the IP transition , SAM ’ s Sirius 800 routers are equipped with I / O options including SDI , AES , MADI , 12G-SDI 4K / UHD , and support for both 40GbE and 50GbE SMPTE
2110 IP interfaces .
While both IP and SDI routing in live productions are valid approaches , Smith points out that the choice depends on several factors — including the size of the router , the level of processing required , and the choice of other parts of the system infrastructure . Smith explains : “ For small and medium-sized productions , SDI becomes more cost-effective , as the cost of SDI interfaces is significantly lower than the 40GbE interfaces needed for IP , although for very large systems , the cost of IP switch counters this . Increased bandwidth utilisation of 4K / UHD also favours SDI .”
In addition , 12G-SDI enables current HD / 3G system designs to be adapted to manage 4K / UHD . This , according to Smith , allows existing operational and maintenance practices to be used — a point to consider as the availability of skilled IP engineering in broadcasting is still a limiting factor in the adoption of IP .
He continues : “ Prior to the introduction of 12G-SDI , there was a clear preference for IP transport rather than quad-link 3G-SDI for 4K / UHD production . The move towards remote productions , where the link between the venue and the production centre is often IP-based , would tend to favour IP .”
Ideally , Smith suggests that a system can take advantage of the benefits of both SDI and IP where appropriate . “ Equipment with a mix of both interfaces allows the best choice for the designer and end-user ,” he concludes .
Currently , the majority of live and studio productions are operating on SDI routers , which are based on legacy architecture . And most of the deployment of IP broadcast systems , which are using SDI routers , are designed to route video signals from multiple-input sources to one or more display devices such as monitors , projectors and TV sets . Following the emergence of 4K / UHD and 8K technologies , a “ complete change ” of existing SDI router is required to support larger traffic throughput , suggests Jason Kalai Thankarajoo , business development manager at Cisco Service Provider .
He explains : “ The emergence of IP ,