6 6 BROADCASTASIA2017 SHOWDAILY 23 May 2017
Broadcast IP Inter-Op Lab making its entry
Right : One of the must-visit booths at this year ’ s show is the
Broadcast IP Inter-Op Lab at Level 6 , Suntec Singapore . It ’ s called an IP Inter-Op Lab as the aim is to test and showcase how IPenabled equipment from different manufacturers can work together to form an IP ecosystem .
Come to the lab at booth 6A3-01 to experience and learn what IP-enabled equipment are available in the market today and what ’ s to come tomorrow .
Leading the pack of ‘ Lab Rats ’ in putting the disparate pieces of equipment from the various manufacturers into a working IP inter-operable production system yesterday was Ideal Systems ’ Fintan Mc Kiernan ( extreme left ).
Receiving another piece of equipment , this time from Noor Hassan of Evertz , to incorporate into the IP workflow were Roger Loh and his colleague Sim Kia Yeow displaying the IP schematics .
Right : While others were busy working , APB ’ s Lynn Chee thought that the lab ’ s project co-ordinator Jotham Lim ’ s face needed some cleaning .
SERAPHIC makes BroadcastAsia debut , declares support for Asian operators
The digital TV transition is progressing “ very rapidly ” in emerging markets such as South-east Asia , where more and more traditional , multiple-system operators ( MSOs ) are facing challenges from overthe-top ( OTT ) service providers . Those who do not provide OTT services have met a lot of problems , such as the decrease of value-added revenue and loss of subscribers , among others .
However , it is not easy to build OTT services for MSOs . On the server side , it requires a “ considerable amount of investment ” to purchase hardware and software to deploy OTT services . Additionally , it normally needs higher budget to deploy OTT-capable set-top box ( STB ) terminals .
“ This will be even higher if millions of middle or high-end set-top boxes ( STBs ) are deployed ,” says Ye Wang , CEO of SERAPHIC , a digital TV browser and “ TV + Internet ” solutions provider . He adds : “ This is because traditional STB middle ware usually requires more power ful hardware configuration to support OTT features . However , traditional operators usually don ’ t have much funds to build their own OTT network infrastructures and lack experience to run OTT services .”
To address this issue , SERAPHIC is making a BroadcastAsia debut this year , and is highlighting the Sraf Lite Browser , a lightweight HTML5 TV browser , which is designed to “ bridge rich OTT content on budget STB devices at an afford able cost ”.
With Sraf Lite browser , operators can deploy content delivery networks ( CDNs ) services supported by the ecosystem partners of SERAPHIC , as well as introduce third-party OTT content , Wang reveals . The solution is highly optimised for low and mid-ranged STB and digital TV ( DTV ) products , with low consumption of DDR memory and limited footprint size
“ This makes Sraf Lite browser the best fit for the emerging market , especially in South-east Asia , where DTV and OTT services just began to boom ,” Wang says .
Dedicated to providing Internet-related software and Webbased solutions to TV / video-related terminal services , including smart TVs , STBs , OTT devices and game consoles , among others , SERAPHIC ’ s solutions have been deployed in more than 40 countries , including Italy , Germany , the UK , Brazil , Australia , India , Vietnam and the Philippines .
All operators in these countries have to adapt to how viewing habits are moving beyond the tradi tional TV screen , a point Wang acknowledges . “ Traditional operators need to embrace the Internet , leverage rich content and Web technologies in order to offer dynamically updated Internet services and personalised TV viewing experiences ,” he advises , citing the example of HbbTV ( Hybrid broadcast broadband TV ), now deployed on 43 million TVs in more than 25 countries globally .
For any operator who wants to attract more viewers , adopting hybrid technologies is a “ smart choice ”, Wang suggests , adding that operators should aggregate more OTT content from platforms such as YouTube , while they build their own OTT platforms by leveraging third-party middle ware companies .
As SERAPHIC continues to monitor the wave of change sweeping the industry , the company , in particular , is continuing to build strong connections with device manufacturers , operators , STB middleware solution providers , SoC vendors , content providers and industry associations to provide the market-proven valuable hybrid broadcast and broadband TV solutions .
“ SERAPHIC is devoted to becoming a trustworthy partner for all those operators who aim to remain competitive in the OTT
❝ SERAPHIC is devoted to becoming a trustworthy partner for all those operators who aim to remain
competitive in the OTT era .❞
— Ye Wang , CEO , SERAPHIC ( which is making its BroadcastAsia debut this year )
era ,” Wang concludes , as he invites visitors to booth 4D3-06 , where SERAPHIC is also showcasing its HbbTV 2 , Freeview Play , TV Portal Browser SDK , Open Browser and HTML5 TV Software solutions .