Broadcast Beat Magazine 2018 NAB Show Edition | Page 104
many IP-labeled products are
simply just SDI solutions with IP
bolt-ons that ultimately require
additional translation steps and
won’t stand the test of time.
It’s tough enough for those in
the industry to make sense of
it all. But imagine customers
who must wade through the
hype and marketing speak to
learn the technology enough
to understand the differences.
Claims to IP may not be com-
pletely accurate. There’s a lot of
noise and not much way to filter
out truth from exaggeration.
Hardware vs software
The question of whether hard-
ware-centric or software-based
IP workflows are right for a new
technology landscape shouldn’t
be a question. Faster connec-
tions made possible by IP are
extremely beneficial to content
producers. But the real benefit
from IP comes from virtualized
live production workflows.
True IP deployment comes from
running software-based func-
tions on COTS (commercial off
the shelf) routers that support
current and future standards.
Fundamentally, software-based
IP infrastructures leverage the
cloud for vital media processing
functions.
This kind of content production
allows elastic function deploy-
ment, enabling infrastructures
that can flex when and at the
pace required without the need
to pre-allocate resources in pro-
prietary hardware.
Evolving business realities
Today’s viewers are extreme-
ly well connected and content
is available on more screens
than ever before. Providers and
broadcasters must operate in
the same way, with infrastruc-
tures that are flexible and can
meet d emand peaks in ways
that are cost effective and scal-
able.
At the same time, other market
conditions add even more pres-
sure. In live sports, rights con-
tracts – essentially what can be
broadcast, when and for how
long – can dictate the kind of
infrastructures and workflows
that will be most advantageous.
These realities make it difficult
for any one vendor, especially
in these still-early days of IP,
to have all the answers. So, the
natural trend is for facilities pro-
viders to outsource and create
partnerships to create the best
end-to-end live IP solutions that
meet needs of content produc-
ers, rights holders and broad-
casters.
And traditional broadcast pro-
viders are getting some compe-
tition in what has always been
an insular industry. Cloud pro-
viders are stepping up to the
challenge, answering new ser-
vice demands for enterprises.
They’ve already made the step
to IP and beyond by deploying
network function virtualization
(NFV). While it’s not the video
business, it could be a relatively
easy leap to apply the technol-
ogy. It’s a simpler transition and
more natural extension for facil-
ity houses and cloud providers.
4K and beyond
There has been some talk within
the industry that IP isn’t ready
for 4K. This simply isn’t true.
104 • Broadcast Beat Magazine • www.broadcastbeat.com
As early as last summer end-
to-end native IP delivered the
low latency required for a 4K
remote sports production of
a high-profile soccer match at
UEFA EURO 2016.
For this production, a native IP
platform performed all func-
tions in real-time software with
the requisite ultra-low latency
and frame-accurate “clean”
switching, and SMPTE 2022-7
hitless protection using diversi-
fied signal paths for both the
program and preview feeds.
The team at the IBC in Paris had
access to all cameras at the sta-
dium in Bordeux some 500km
away using a remote multiview
feed in HD or 4K and a control
system. The 4K/VC-2 HQ mez-
zanine compression solution
provided visual lossless quality
at 4:1 compression rates.
For this application, media func-
tion virtualization (MFV), which
embraces the network function
virtualization of the telecom-
munications industry and soft-
ware defined networking (SDN)
of the data center world were
at the heart of the workflow.
This is just one successful test
of IP for 4K. The most challeng-
ing hurdle to more widespread
adoption is not the technol-
ogy but the mindsets that must
change.
The misconception around IP
and 4K might be due to the
fact that native 4K requires 12.5
gigabits per second. Generally
10 gigabit transport structures
are used so compression is
needed, which isn’t the most
elegant solution. But it’s very
achievable, and when you look
down the road, the picture is
even rosier. With 25 gigabit