04 NEWS+PEOPLE 9Now Transformation Heralds “New Era of Live Streaming TV”; PAT in Tech Partnership with NZ Symphony Orchestra; ACMA Releases Five-Year Spectrum Outlook 2022–27; Paramount+ Takes Off with Qantas; Finalists for 2022 Radio Awards; People on the Move.
10 CAMERAS & LIGHTING STAN’s ‘The Spy Who Never Dies’ Shot with Blackmagic; Pixotope Democratises Extended Reality; Cartoni Encoded Heads for VFX; RED DSMC3 with V-RAPTOR XL 8K VV; Orbiter LiOS2 Software Update from ARRI; Densitron Integration with BirdDog PTZs; ATOMOS Cloud Studio; and more.
16 SPORTSCASTING AsiaSat, ABU and Telstra Deliver Commonwealth Games; Racing Queensland Goes on Air with RT Software; Can Cloud-based Ingest Workflows Help Live Coverage Reach Net-Zero?; Sportradar Renews Aussie Cricket Streaming Deals; Ai-Media Partners with Grass Valley; Vislink Unveils 5G Production Solution; and more.
21 NEWS OPERATIONS Media Coverage of Queen Elizabeth’s Death; Detecting Fake News in Videos; Stringr Updates Remote Video Sourcing and Production Platform; nxtedition Puts Storytelling Front and Centre; Intinor Debuts New Direkt Link Compact.
26 POST-PRODUCTION ‘Phase 2’ for Animal Logic USD Package; AFTRS and ILM Partner on Training; Chaos Releases V-Ray 6 for Maya; Amazon and Avid Team Up for Editorial in AWS; AJA Unveils ColorBox; Autodesk Launches Maya Creative; Surface
Imperfections for Maxon Capsules; Flanders Scientific MediaLight Pro2; CuttingRoom Launches Cloud-native Pro Video Editor; Maxon One Enhanced.
31 MEDIA IN THE CLOUD MPEG Tackles Video Coding for Machine Vision Tasks; Elevating Digital Asset Tagging and Retrieval; Avid NEXIS F-Series Raises Bar on Media Storage; EditShare Joins AWS ISV Accelerate Program; AI-Based Localisation and Translation; Object Matrix Expands Partner Network; Qumulo Security Enhancements.
Unveils Addressable Targeting for Radio, and New Premium Traffic Network; ABC Radio Australia to Carry SBS Samoan Programming; RADIO NAURU Upgrades Studio with AEQ; AI Translation in Audio Post; Ashley Seward Motorsport Breaks Records with Comms from D2N; and more
42 CONTENT DELIVERY Paramount ANZ and KERV Interactive Launch Dynamic Video Advertising; RIST Membership Grows to Over 200 Companies; HbbTV Conformance Test Suite Version 2022-2; Ross Redefines the Ultrix Router; LYNX Technik Server Module; Hitomi MatchBox with Latency Option; KILOVIEW 12G-SDI to NDI Converter; Blackmagic DeckLink Mini Monitor HD and Mini Recorder HD; Vbrick VPaaS for Developers.
EVER SINCE CAPEX started playing second fiddle to OPEX, the consultancy sector across all industries has continued to blossom, and a central part of a big consultancy firm’s toolkit is market analysis. After all, it’s a stretch to come up with the answers if you don’t know what questions to ask in the first place.
Sticking to ‘just the facts’, Devoncroft Partners has, over the last 13 years, emerged as a premium, independent source of mediatech market intelligence. Through the ‘Big Broadcast Survey’, Joe Zaller, Josh Stinehour and the team have built a detailed picture of media technology trends as they stand today, and into the future.
As in previous years, the 2022 Big Broadcast Survey asked media technology professionals what they considered to be the most important trends affecting the future commercial success of their businesses. Far and away was IP networking & content delivery, followed some way back by multi-platform content delivery, 4K/UHD and remote production (REMI).
This was in stark contrast to those trends at bottom of mind - (ascending from last) blockchain, outsourced operations, reduction in carbon emissions, and next generation broadcasting (ATSC 3.0, DVB-T2, etc.).
While it could be argued that the full impact of blockchain on the media industry is yet to play out beyond Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs), and solutions to carbon emissions can involve multi-faceted partnerships, the position of outsourced operations and next generation broadcasting reflect not only the mature nature of these trends, but also the dominance of
streaming services. CAPEX started playing second fiddle to OPEX a long time ago now and most terrestrial TV broadcasters have already converted to DTT and are now trying to compete over IP with Netflix, Disney, Paramount+, etc.
According to Devoncroft’s Josh Stinehour, “More notable than ‘IP networking & content delivery’ ranking first for 2022 is the considerable margin recorded versus the second ranked trend of ‘multi-platform content delivery’ (the largest margin observed since 2017). This is noteworthy since ‘IP networking & content delivery’ was not simply ‘most important’ to a small set of respondents or ‘also important’ to a large set of respondents, it was all levels of important to all manner of Itrespondents.”isatrendthat cuts across a broad swathe of the media production and delivery chain.
“This is not particularly surprising given how fundamentally connectivity and networking are to the media value chain,” says Stinehour. “Ubiquitous, reliable, and cost-effective connectivity is reshaping the technology-side of the media industry. Technology disruption has led the business impact, and the observed value shift is the consequence. And yes, massive is an appropriate designation of the Forscale.”more, email info@devoncroft.com
Vale - Des SandbergI’d like to end this column on a personal note by paying tribute and thanks to my father, who passed away at the end of July. Desmond James Sandberg was a good man, a gentleman and a gentle man. He was the best of husbands, the best of fathers, the best of friends.
He always encouraged me, even if he didn’t fully understand what the hell it was that I was doing, and he kept every copy of C+T he could get his hands on - keeping them in better condition than we do here at the office.
We shall all miss him.
Rest in Peace, Dad. Keep safe, thanks for reading, and look after each other,
Phil Sandberg –+61(0)414671811papers@broadcastpapers.comEditor/Publisher 03:0002:0001:00
AUSTRALIA/NEW ZEALAND EDITION Submissions: 24-10-22 Bookings: 24-10-22 Artwork: 31-10-22 Submissions: 17-10-22 Bookings: 17-10-22 Artwork: 24-10-22
DESCRIBED BY NINE as “a new era of live streaming television”, the Australian media company’s digital platform, 9Now, is embarking on a “market-leading transformation” from the ground up that will reshape how 9Network viewers consume content, as well as offering advertisers groundbreaking opportunities.
In what Nine says is an Australian first for BVOD platforms, 9Now will put users in control of their viewing experience, offering a converged experience that combines the simplicity of broadcast television with the convenience and interactivity of digital.
The viewer-focused upgrade to 9Now will include an innovative new homepage that allows users to dive straight into the live content stream; a game-changing ‘start over’ option that takes viewers back to the start of any live program; personalised household profiles and a new discover page; the introduction of new 24/7 Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV (FAST) channels with exclusive additional content; and interactive advertising experience on connected TVs (CTV) – all offered live in Full HD.
9Now is a significant component of Nine’s Total TV audience, with live minutes growing by 63 percent calendar year to date.
Nine’s Chief Product Officer, Bec Haagsma, said: “Over the next 12 months, 9Now will completely reshape how television is consumed with a focus on a streaming-first product. With a dynamic homepage transformation, viewers
will enter 9Now with live content streaming in Full HD without having to click on a
“Ifshow.viewers miss the start of a program on linear, they can go to 9Now and hit ‘start over’ – a feature that allows audiences to control their free-to-air live streaming experience like never before.”
9Now’s start over feature allows viewers to take content being broadcast live on linear back to the beginning of the show, including ads.
Nine’s Director of Programming and 9Now, Hamish Turner, said: “With viewers migrating to IP consumption, 9Now will increasingly become the destination to consume the best in news, sport and entertainment. We’re ensuring the platform evolves to provide consumers – and advertisers – with the simplicity of broadcast television combined with the high tech and interactivity of digital streaming.”
In what is claimed as another Australian first, all 9Now’s Live Channels will stream in Full HD, 1080p at 50 frames per second with Dolby 5.1 surround sound and closed captions. All advertising will get the Full HD treatment also. With further investment in the live infrastructure and evolved offering of entertainment programming, 9Now will also contain stand-alone, exclusive FAST channels – specially curated to allow viewers to immerse
PROFESSIONAL AUDIO AND TELEVISION, recently announced a technical partnership with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra (NZSO), in the rebuild and fit out of the historic Wellington Town Hall.
One of the world’s oldest national symphony orchestras, the NZSO has charmed audiences with memorable concerts and recordings since 1946. In 2016, the NZSO was nominated for Best Orchestral Performance at the prestigious Grammy Awards and has recorded music for a number of film and game projects, including Wish Dragon, The Hobbit, The Lovely Bones, Krampus, Emperor, Escape Plan, Mortal Engines and Titanfall 2.
Professional Audio and Television has been selected as technology partner for this project. A 72-fader LAWO mc²96 audio production console sits at the heart of the install, complemented by a 16-fader LAWO mc²56 console, both consoles pool their DSP resources from two fully redundant, 1RU super compact LAWO UHD cores. LAWO A__stage boxes are feeding audio in and out of a redundant SMPTE 2110-30 AoIP network. The media network is clocked by a Meinberg microSyncRX, offering a high level of efficiency, versatility and impresses with its high port density. LAWO’s new cloud-native management platform for IP-based media infrastructure
HOME, is responsible for connecting, managing and securing all aspects of the live production environment. PAT have also supplied and fully integrated Merging Technologies HAPI interfaces into the LAWO environment via HOME, as well as into the 2110 network via Microsens Fibre bridges. This has boosted the IO capabilities and provides a seamless and unified interface for control room operators and to several AVID ProTools terminals throughout the facility. A LAWO PowerCore fitted with a Dante IO expansion card and StudioHub XLR breakout panels will feature as a central comms and talkback system. This is controlled by Densitron’s IDS Core software via Ember+. The Densitron core will also be used to orchestrate and control lighting, digital signage and video elements between each of the performance and educational spaces. The Densitron solution will be used to display performance space booking and status information outside many of the Townhall’s rooms and will keep conductors and music score readers on track with Beats and Bars information during performance Craigrecordings.Thorne, NZSO Senior Manager of Projects said, “When the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra started designing its new audio
themselves in their favourite program or genre.
The interactivity of 9Now also means new opportunities for advertisers. With an expanded rollout of sponsorship products, 2023 will see the introduction of interactive ‘shoppable’ ads on CTV – allowing viewers to interact with brands on the largest screen in the house and creating immersive buying experiences.
Targeting across 9Now will also be further enhanced. Household location targeting has been added to the platform, leveraging declared postcode data from signed-in authenticated viewers. These segments span capital cities and state-based regional and rural areas, with more granular targeting in Sydney and Melbourne sub-metro areas to be introduced over the coming weeks. A new partnership with Mastercard will also see targeting based on credit card transaction data becoming available across 9Now in the coming months.
Visit https://www.nine.com.au
recording studios, we wanted to work with not just any supplier, but a partner who would be right with us from inception through to operation. In PAT we got just that – a family of genuine, supportive, specialist designers and engineers who understand our business and collaborated with us to supply the right solutions for our specific needs. Our LAWO mc²96 and mc²56 Grand Production consoles are already the envy of many sound engineers, and once open for business NZSO Studios will rival the best in the world.”
Visit http://proaudiotv.co.nz
The LAWO mc²96 audio production console at the New Zealand Symphony Orchestras staging facility and Craig Thorne (NZSO) patching audio into a LAWO A__stage64.HyperDeck Shuttle HD is a recorder and player that’s designed to be used on the desktop! That means it’s more than a master recorder as it can also be used as a clip player. You get support for ProRes, DNx and H.264 files in NTSC, PAL, 720p and 1080p video formats. Plus SD cards, UHS-II cards and USB-C external disks can be used for recording and playing media.
Elegantly Designed Professional Broadcast Deck HyperDeck Shuttle HD is perfectly designed for the desktop. This means the front panel can be operated with a single hand! The design is the same depth and angle as ATEM Mini Extreme, so they match perfectly when used together! Scrolling media is fast as the machined metal search dial has a natural inertia, and the soft rubber surface feels nice to the touch.
Traditional Broadcast Deck Controls HyperDeck Shuttle includes a control panel that’s very fast to use. The buttons are similar to a traditional broadcast deck. Simply press the record button and you instantly start recording the video input to a file! It will record in the file format that has been set in the record menu. There are other buttons for playback, to cue to the start of the clip and to move to the next clip.
HyperDeck Shuttle supports recording to common SD cards and UHS-II cards so you don’t need expensive custom media. When using H.264, the files are so incredibly small you get very long recordings even on smaller low cost cards. This means you can record up to 157 hours of H.264 in 1080p59.94 on a 1 TB card. That’s over 6 days of recording in HD using a single 1 TB card!
If recording to other types of media is required, the USB-C expansion port lets you plug in an external flash disk for recording. USB-C flash disks have unlimited capacity because they can be physically larger than an SD card or SSD. Plus, it’s even possible to record to a disk you’ll use for editing, so you don’t need to waste time copying files before starting post production.
THE AUSTRALIAN MEDIA and Communications Authority (ACMA) has released its Five-year spectrum outlook 2022–27.
Informed by views of spectrum users, the FYSO provides an overview of technology, market and policy drivers likely to shape the demand of spectrum over the next five years. It also includes the ACMA’s work program for the next 12 months to help spectrum users plan for potential changes.
FYSO 2022–27 also includes a detailed annual work program, with activities and milestones for the 2022–23 financial year.
Top-line activities over the life of the FYSO include:
• Implementing planning outcomes to support bringing 5G spectrum to market.
• Monitoring demand for spectrum for non-geostationary satellite orbit constellations.
• Monitoring terahertz spectrum international developments and use cases.
• Updating spectrum licensing technical frameworks and RALIs for apparatus licences.
• Exploring new spectrum-sharing techniques.
• Monitoring terrestrial television broadcasting technology options
to support future planning work, while continuing radio industry transition to digital radio technologies.
• Commencing consideration of expiring spectrum licences.
• Supporting the development of Australian positions for the World receptionresponseswhichcomplexandreceiverincludestechnologies.futurerestackcouldandexploreconductingFYSO,broadcastingCommentingConferenceRadiocommunication2023(WRC-23).ontheprovisionofservicesinthelatesttheACMAstated,“WearetechnicalresearchtotelevisionchannelplanninglicensingapproachesthatbeusedwhendevelopingchannelplansfortelevisiontransmissionThisresearchexaminingtelevisiontechnicalperformanceviewerantennadeploymentsinreceptionenvironments,isalsoinformingourtocomplextelevisioninquiries.
“We continue with a significant program of radio planning and allocation activities, informed and prioritised by our radio broadcast planning priorities, outlined in the future delivery of radio report. These include converting from AM to FM and enhancing coverage of commercial, national and community services where
THE FINALISTS FOR THE 33RD Australian Commercial Radio Awards (the ACRAs) have been announced, with nominations for Engineering Excellence including:
• B105 Under The Sea Broadcast; John Gilpin, Branko Cosic , Alexander Orr, Bianca Mueller & Adrian Mauro, B105, Brisbane QLD, SCA
• ARN’s VPlayer; Bryan Amos, ARN, National AUS, ARN
• Woolworths Radio; Daniel Ennis, Brett Nossiter, Tracey Gillan & Bryan Amos, Woolworths Radio, Sydney NSW, Meanwhile,ARNBest
Achievement in Production nominees include:
• Sophie Jackson; 3WM, Horsham VIC, ACE Radio Broadcasters C
• Liam Sommerville; 2EC & Power FM, Bega Bay NSW, ARN C
• Chris Barks; Mixx FM/3CS, Colac VIC, ACE Radio Broadcasters C
• Dan King; K Rock 95.5, Geelong VIC, Grant Broadcasters P
• Adam Jansen; Hit 104.7 & Mix 106.3, Canberra ACT, ARN/SCA P
• Trent McCurdy; Forever Classic 531, 3GG, Warragul VIC, Capital Radio Network P
• Daniel Pearson; Nova Network, Sydney NSW, NOVA Entertainment M
• Jeff Nielson; WSFM, Sydney NSW, ARN M
• Ben Ryan; iHeartRadio, National AUS, ARN M
• Jonathan Skewes; KIIS 101.1, Melbourne VIC, ARN M
This year will be the first ACRAS live awards ceremony in three years, with the industry gathering to celebrate the best in the business at a gala red-carpet event at the ICC Darling Harbour in Sydney on Saturday, October 29. For more details, visit commercialradio.com.au/https://
spectrum is available, making digital radio channel plans (DRCP) for regional DAB+ where a commercial licensee or national broadcaster has committed to a rollout and supporting trials of new broadcasting technology.”
When it came to broadcast-related submissions in response to the draft of the FYSO, submissions •included:Thatthe
ACMA supports implementing Digital Radio Mondiale standards (DRM30 and DRM+) when converting from AM to FM.
• That ACMA supports small-scale DAB+ digital radio trials based in Sydney commencing in 2022–23.
• That the ACMA considers the spectrum needs of audio program-making and special events (PMSE) users when planning bands below 1 GHz, especially in the 470–698 MHz range.
• When ACMA proceeds to develop and consult on a variation to enable AM to FM conversion, that it also consults and publishes the relevant Digital Radio Channel Plan (DRCP) and declares a foundation licence. The submitter also suggested some specific DRCP consultation locations for 2022–23, and
additional planning priorities. Additionally, it urged the ACMA to re-convene the Digital Radio Planning Committee.
In its response, the ACMA said, “We note the significant growth in demand for audio PMSE use and continue to make planning decisions in view of this. Our current broadcast planning priorities support trials of new technologies, including DRM trials and small-scale DAB+ trials, and we maintain a watching brief on DRM “Ourtechnology.workprogram priorities
include making DRCPs for regional DAB+ where a commercial licensee or national broadcaster has committed to a rollout. We consider there would be little utility in making DRCPs in the absence of a commitment to digital radio rollout by individual broadcasters in particular licence areas.
“The future delivery of radio project included extensive consultations with industry on a broad range of radio planning matters. In the absence of any specific digital radio regulatory issues to discuss, we are not inclined to convene the Digital Radio Planning Committee or expand its remit at this time.”
Visit https://www.acma.gov.au/ publications/2022-09/plan/fiveyear-spectrum-outlook-2022-27
PARAMOUNT ANZ has launched an entertainment partnership with Australia airline Qantas. The partnership will see Qantas customers able to access premium content from TheParamount+.partnership will see content available via a dedicated Paramount+ category within Qantas’ In-Flight Entertainment platform, which include wired in-seat services, Qantas supplied devices and the Qantas Entertainment App where available to customers on domestic and international Qantas flights.
Qantas customers will get to stream a variety of Paramount+ content including exclusive series, movies and Paramount+ Originals. The service will also include content from children’s channel Nickelodeon, as well as Australian content such as Five Bedrooms, Spreadsheet and More Than This.
Liz Baldwin, SVP Head of
Streaming, Paramount ANZ, said: “Making this must-see content available to Qantas customers across the In-Flight Entertainment services with a dedicated Paramount+ category, is fabulous for travellers and further cements Paramount+ as a powerful player in streaming delivering an exceptional consumer entertainment experience.”
https://www.paramountanz.com.auVisit
JENNIE ZEIHER HAS ACCEPTED the role as President of Rising Sun Pictures. This new position will have her oversee the day-to-day operations of the business, including RSP locations in Adelaide and TonyBrisbane.Clark continues as Managing Director, consulting to both Jennie and The Fuse Group CEO, Sébastien Bergeron.
Zeiher has been with RSP for 15 years, with eight years in the role of Head of Business Development. “Jennie’s new role will allow me more time to focus on the bigger picture and help drive innovation, longterm strategic partnerships, and the Group’s growth objectives,” says MD Tony Clark.
“Jennie was the obvious choice to be RSP’s next leader. Her skills, knowledge, strong relationships and sheer passion for the organisation will ensure RSP’s continued success. Jennie has my full support and I know she will excel in this role.
“Our Group CEO, Sébastien Bergeron, echoes my sentiment. As a team, we look forward to building the next generation of visual effects studios alongside our sister brands, FuseFX, Folks and El Ranchito.”
Visit https://www.rsp.com.au/
SCREEN AUCKLAND HAS ANNOUNCED the appointment of Matthew Horrocks as Manager of Screen Auckland, New Zealand’s largest regional film office.
Horrocks was formerly the Head of Screen Investment and Strategic Projects at Screenwest in Australia for three years –overseeing Business Affairs, Indigenous, Diversity, Production Attraction and Talent Development. Most recently he was an Investment Advisor for New Zealand’s $50 million Premium Production Fund (Te Puna Kairangi).
Horrocks will oversee regional film office activities, manage stakeholders and champion Auckland’s screen sector. He reports into former Screen Auckland Manager, Jasmine Millet, who has been promoted into a new role as Head of Creative Industries, Tātaki Auckland Unlimited, that oversees Screen Auckland.
Millet says: “Matthew brings a wealth of experience and expertise to our Screen Auckland team. Matt has worked as a locations manager, produced short films, documentaries and feature films, and was Development Executive and Industry Training Executive for the New Zealand Film Commission.”
Horrocks says of the new role: “International production companies recognise that the combination of world-class cast, crew, locations and infrastructure that Tāmaki Makaurau offers, are amongst the best in the world. We have a can-do attitude and take pride in seeing our work screened around the globe. So I look forward to welcoming even more international productions to the Auckland region.”
Visit https://www.aucklandnz.com/film
STEVE KILSBY, one of the Australian industry’s best-known and respected operations specialists, has joined Videocraft and Digistor as Head of Technical Services.
Kilsby is known in the industry for being an experienced director of operations with a long and successful history of working in the broadcast media industry. He is skilled in operations management, project and program management, broadcast engineering, IP
technology and post production. In addition to being a strong operations professional Kilsby also has a Masters of Management in ITC, focused on Computer and IT Information Administration and Management, from Charles Sturt University.
Most recently Kilsby enjoyed considerable success with the NEP Group where he was promoted from technical project manager to operations director in a tenure spanning over
D2N – TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS has appointed Stuart McBurney as its new Product Support McBurneyEngineer.joinsD2N with excellent broadcast engineering experience having previously worked for many years at NOVA Entertainment as their Technology Engineer. In this role he was responsible for the building and maintenance of all front and back-end broadcast technologies from inside the studios to the radio transmission sites. McBurney’s day-to-day role at D2N is to support the D2N sales team and existing customers with the range of audio, video, and communications solutions the company delivers. Specifically, his role will focus on IP and digital related solutions including SMPTE 2110, AES3, AES67, Dante and MADI. McBurney’s role also includes service support,
in researching new technology products that support and complement all of D2N’s business and he will also liaise with manufacturers and partners to ensure firmware, feature sets and product knowledge are current and cutting edge. Stuart McBurney can be contacted at D2N on (02) 9837 6748 or stuart.mcburney@d2n.com.auat
FLYING BARK PRODUCTIONS has announced the appointment of Sarah Harper to Creative Director – 2D.
In her new role, Sarah will oversee 2D projects for both original and client service work in the Sydney studio and will help spearhead Flying Bark Productions’ further expansion into original content with a specific focus on anime-influenced traditional animation and Flying Bark’s recently announced After Bark Partbrand.of the Flying Bark Productions team since 2016, Sarah has been pivotal in the growth of the 2D team at Flying Bark, most recently with her work as Series Director, Co-Producer and Writer on LEGO: Monkie Kid – working with
the LEGO teams out of China, Los Angeles, and Denmark to bring the series to life.
Sarah joins fellow (100%StadermannDirectors,CreativeAlexsWolf,Maya
the Bee Movie) who is based in Sydney and Ian Graham (Glitch Techs, Legend of Korra) who heads up the company’s Los Angeles studio.
Visit https://www.flyingbark.com.au
ABC MANAGING DIRECTOR David Anderson has announced the appointment of Damian Cronan to the role of Chief Digital and Information Officer.
Damian joins the ABC with a wide range of skills and experience from a twenty -year career including Chief Technology Officer roles with media organisations including Nine MSN, Stan and Fairfax/Nine Group.
Most recently Damian was Chief Information and
Technology Officer at Fairfax/Nine Group where his responsibilities included group technology strategy and governance, product engineering, cyber security and the management of complex vendor and commercial relationships.
The ABC’s Acting Chief Digital and Information Officer, Rebecca Matthews, will continue in the role until Mr Cronan joins the ABC in October.
Visit https://about.abc.net.au/
six years. He also set up NEP’s Japan office and was responsible for NEP’s operations at major projects and events including a complete full ST-2110 broadcast from Yokohama and the Commonwealth Games. Steve Kilsby can be contacted on 0411 430 748 or at steve.kilsby@videocraft.com.au
AE LIVE, A LEADING GLOBAL provider of graphics and data solutions, has appointed Simar Ghangas
as Head of Commercial for APAC, in which he will be responsible for growing AE Live’s position in the Simarregion.brings over 10 years of experience in sales and business development management roles, specialising on the strategic growth of companies. His career started at Haymarket Media Group where he spent over three years in various sales roles, in both London and HeSingapore.joinsAE
Live from Stats Perform, where as VP for South East Asia, he was largely responsible for the growth of the business in the region, overseeing, developing and executing effective business strategies.
Alastair Robbins, Commercial Director at AE Live, said, “Simar’s experience in the sports data space, combined with his commercial expertise, makes him the perfect fit to lead AE Live’s business development in the region. We are also looking forward to utilising his skills to help shape the ongoing growth strategy for the AEbusiness.”Liveisa
global graphics supplier and technology partner with a special focus on the fields of remote or centralised production, augmented reality and virtual studios. In APAC, AE Live works with clients including Nine, Fox Sports, Seven, NRL, Optus Sport, Sky Racing, Ten, Swimming Australia, Star Sports India, Astro, Sky New Zealand, Spark Sport, Sony India, CCTV and Mediacorp.
Visit https://ae.live/
willMcBurneyDayresponses.andimplementationdesignprojectofprovidingdemonstrations,equipmentproofconcepts,andtendertoday,alsobeproactive
BLACKMAGIC DESIGN recently announced that the feature film and Australian streaming service STAN exclusive The Spy Who Never Dies was shot using two Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K Pro digital film cameras, with visual effects (VFX), editing and colour grading done on DaVinci Resolve Studio as part of a major shift in production operations by independent production house Rhythmic Films.
An action comedy, The Spy Who Never Dies follows the story of world class spy Brad, played by Paul O’Brien, who falls for a seemingly normal veterinarian named Veronica (Georgia Walters). Hijinks and action ensue as Brad tracks down Russians with stolen hypersonic missiles and battles a mysterious character called Trident who is bent on revenge, all while trying to build a ‘normal’ relationship outside the spy world. Despite being Rhythmic Films largest project, production for The Spy Who Never Dies was hamstrung by the COVID pandemic, forcing the Wollongong, New South Wales based production house to creatively rework its film operations to compensate for tough new close contact
rules. This included shooting the feature film in blocks due to COVID shutdowns, using the time in between to rebuild rigs to strip away unnecessary parts to ensure that limited on set time was used with maximum efficiency.
“When COVID hit, we started exploring solutions that could provide more flexibility and were compact and agile while still providing a cinematic look. After tons of research and tests, we decided to switch to Blackmagic Design and were very happy with the results. The dual native ISO sensor on the Pocket 6K Pro and the colour science were amazing, which meant we were able to keep the cinematic look we needed,” says Director and Director of Photographer Corey Pearson. With 700 VFX shots in The Spy Who Never Dies, ranging from full CGI shots to compositing shots that required lifting plates, Rhythmic Films pursued a complete overhaul of its editing studio centred on the workflow provided by DaVinci Resolve Studio and Blackmagic RAW Pearsoncodec.explains, “The Blackmagic RAW codec was a game changer for us. It refined our entire workflow for the better. We were shooting in
6K RAW, could ingest the data as Blackmagic RAW files directly in the hard drives with no proxies and were able to play back in real time using DaVinci Resolve Studio to offline edit.”
Having seen the increased efficiency and reduced cost of the new setup and workflow, Rhythmic Films believes it will be able to continue developing feature films for local streaming services like Nine Network owned STAN, which is always looking for more original and local content.
“We plan on using Blackmagic
Design cameras and the entire workflow over and over for our future films. It’s only a matter of time before other larger scale productions adopt setups to streamline the process,” says ThePearson.SpyWho
Never Dies is available exclusively on STAN for Australian audiences. Rhythmic Films is currently in negotiations to distribute the film globally by the end of the year.
Visit blackmagicdesign.com/auhttps://www.
ANTON/BAUER has expanded its DIONIC 26V series of cinema batteries. A range of B-Mount batteries, chargers and camera plates have been developed in cooperation with ARRI, for cinematographers, rental houses, and content creators using cameras such as the recently launched ARRI Alexa 35. Just like Anton/ Bauer’s existing 26V GoldMount Plus solution, the native 26V B-Mount Li-ion batteries offer up to 240 watt-hours of reliable, safe, and efficient Thepower.DIONIC
native 26V range now includes 98-watt-hour and 240-watt-hour batteries and quad chargers in B-Mount or Gold-Mount Plus options, plus a range of mounting plates for connecting to industry-leading cameras and LED lighting fixtures.
The DIONIC 26V B-Mount series has been designed to drive high-power cine cameras such as the ARRI Alexa 35. With their lighter weight and more compact form factor, the DIONIC 26V batteries offer greater mobility for high power camera operators than tethered power sources such as AC or block-style batteries. DIONIC 26V batteries can also be used as a hot-swappable backup power solution for gear running from large power sources, such as VCLX blockstyle batteries, eliminating the need to power down a camera to change the main power source.
The DIONIC 26V B-Mount Charger offers rapid charging for B-Mount 26V batteries –charging the 98Wh battery in around 1.5 hours and the 240Wh battery in around 3.5 hours – a sharp contrast to competing dual-voltage or ‘regulated’ 26V batteries that take up to three times longer to Likecharge.theother batteries in the Anton/Bauer DIONIC range, DIONIC 26V B-Mount batteries feature an ultra-highstrength polycarbonate blend construction. This protects the premium battery cells to ensure peak performance even in the most demanding conditions – including extreme heat, humidity, and cold.
https://www.antonbauer.comVisit
THE MATADOR DOLLY is a lightweight dolly on which both a seat and Egripment’s new Telescopic MiniJib can be attached. The dolly is steerable on both sides and has a high stability. The Matador can be mounted with pneumatic tires, studio wheels as well as skateboard wheels.
This dolly is very useful for recordings in studios but also at outside locations. Whether it is nice and even, or an off-road location, this setup is perfect for beautiful dolly shots without having to use rails.
But also if you vary between ground and track shots a lot this dolly is ideal. The wheels are fixed with one allen-screw allowing you to change the pneumatic wheels to track wheels within a few seconds. Having high quality bearings in the track wheels, the Matador Dolly takes no effort to get it in motion, even while seated two people and a large camera package mounted on top.
Visit https://egripment.com
Rhythmic Films CEO, and Director and Director of Photographer of The Spy Who Never Dies, Corey Pearson.
PIXOTOPE recently announced its XR Edition for extended reality productions. Developed in response to the growing trend of LED volume use in Virtual Production and the need for hardware optimisation, Pixotope’s XR Edition includes a range of tools to simplify set-up and operation by reducing the technical complexities and associated resource costs of XR workflows and environments.
“In the past, XR productions have been limited to select teams with highly specialised technical resources,” says Pixotope Chief Revenue Officer David Dowling. “With our XR Edition, Pixotope has developed an easyto-use solution that enables wider adoption with tools specifically designed to address pain points like colour matching, LED meshing and alignment, camera switching, hardware consolidation, and system resilience. As a result, XR is no longer limited to a small group of specialists, it’s a viable option for productions of all sizes.”
Key benefits and features in the XR Edition include:
• Streamlined, Simplified Set Up.
• Unique Colour Match Functionality for AR<->XR Workflows - This colour matching tool enables users to quickly and easily match the colours of in-camera visual effects (ICVFX) and those appearing through the LED volume for seamless AR/XR workflows and effects. This is particularly useful when augmented reality (AR) is used alongside XR for set extension or when adding virtual elements to a scene as colour reproduction is affected by both the camera and LED volume, making it difficult to accurately colour match.
• LED Mesh Import and Automatic Alignment - By combining procedural geometry creation tools and tracking technology, users will be provided with an automated method for converting CAD and geometry representations of LED volumes to virtual LED projection surfaces. These will be further refined using computer vision to ensure perfect registrations for XR and AR set extension, which will significantly reduce setup time.
• Reduced and Optimised Hardware Usage.
• Multi-Input Switching in Software for Changing Perspectives - When using more than one camera in an XR setup, the images on your LED volume and your AR rendering need to synchronously change perspective when switching between cameras in a single frame. With in-software switching, Pixotope ensures this operation is accurate and hassle-free without the need for additional hardware.
• Multi-Wall Support to Optimise Hardware Use - With multi-wall support, Pixotope can drive several LED walls from a single server/ workstation. This not only reduces the amount of hardware needed, and therefore cost, but also mitigates many common issues such as output synchronisation and sharing of assets over multiple machines.
• Health and Diagnostics Monitoring for Failover and System Resilience.
XR Edition will be available to new and existing Pixotope users from September 2022.
Visit https://www.pixotope.com
CARTONI CAMERA SUPPORTS recently announced that its professional fluid heads, including the Maxima, Master, and Magnum, will be encoded. By including the ability to track position, they will provide precise camera information for VFX, Virtual Production, and much more.
The e-Maxima, e-Master and e-Magnum encoded heads are the latest response Visual Effects needs. Strong and versatile, the e-series fluid head includes all the features of Cartoni’s premium heads for digital cinematography. In addition, the e-series features extremely high-resolution direct sensing encoders in both the pan and tilt axis. The encoders render absolute positioning without re-calibrating at start-up. The Cartoni e-series is compatible with most
RUSHWORKS recently announced the release of the PTX Model 3 PRO robotic pan/tilt head.
The PTX Model 3 PRO provides FXARRICinema,LumixCanoncameraslargeascinemaproductionURSACameraPocketCamera,line:entireBlackmagic’saccommodatesModelthelargethemanagemassAtanddozensIPcontrolledmanipulationbothstopItmostpayloadoperationwhisper-quietwithenoughcapacitytosupportcamerasandlenses.featuresnaturalstart/motionrampsforpresetsandjoystickandisusingVISCAoverforcompatibilitywithofcurrenthardwaresoftwarecontrollers.19.5kg,theunithastherequiredtoeasilylargepayloads,withtorquegeneratedbytwosteppermotorstodoheavylifting.ThePTX3PROeasilycameratheStudiotheCinemaandthefamilyofandcameras,wellasotherformfactorliketheCmodels,BoxRed,andSonyline.
According to RUSHWORKS founder Rush Beesley, “The PTX Model 3 PRO release will be followed closely by our next-gen BABYZOOMER, which also uses VISCA over IP commands to control zoom, iris or focus on a wide variety of manual zoom lenses. This combination will support naming, saving and recalling multiple presets for pan, tilt and zoom.”
https://www.rushworks.tvVisit
3D packages for real-time camera and scene movement in virtual sets and pre-visualisation. It is the ideal solution for sports 3D graphic insertions. Data is provided directly through dedicated connectors on the head or can be processed and gathered with other metadata through a VR box programmed on the major VFX industry protocols.
The addition of encoding ability complements the premium line of Maxima fluid heads. The e-Maxima fluid heads are designed for digital cinematography. In contrast, the e-Master and e-Magnum fluid heads are custom-built for broadcast and OB production needs.
Patented drag and balance systems provide a feel that has raised the industry standard of what is expected in a fluid head. User controls are located and designed for comfort and are reinforced by decades of muscle memory that allow operators to fine-tune head performance by feel quickly.
Visit https://www.cartoni.com
ATOMOS CLOUD STUDIO is live and the first three products in the new CONNECT range are now shipping. The recently announced ZATO CONNECT is the latest addition to the line-up with support for HDMI and USB UVC sources. It provides an accessible way to create a livestream or elevate webcam.
ATOMOS CONNECT is a network accessory specially designed to attach to the ATOMOS NINJA V and NINJA V+ production devices for monitoring and recording.
SHOGUN CONNECT is a new all-inone production device with all the connected technologies built in. All three devices support ATOMOS Cloud Studio and work with the new ATOMOS Stream service. With a forthcoming update, ATOMOS CONNECT and SHOGUN CONNECT will integrate seamlessly with Frame.io Camera to Cloud (C2C), to bring a wider range of professional digital cinema, mirrorless, and DSLR cameras to automatically share media for remote
ATOMOScollaboration.Cloud Studio is a powerful collection of new cloud-based video production services. Launching with ATOMOS Stream and shortly after ATOMOS Capture to Cloud, which will introduce C2C workflows. With support for SHOGUN CONNECT, ATOMOS CONNECT for NINJA V/V+, and ZATO CONNECT, anyone with a compatible camera or device will be able to make use of these tools to share media and collaborate in
ATOMOSreal-time.Stream
is an all-in-one solution that enables any ATOMOS network-enabled device to deliver a live stream. At launch ATOMOS Stream will include free support to deliver content directly to a single platform including Facebook Live, Twitch, YouTube, and more.
ATOMOS aims to release a premium ‘restreaming’ service, via ATOMOS Cloud Studio to support the delivery to multiple platforms simultaneously. ATOMOS Stream employs industry standard encryption to ensure that all data transfers are protected and streams are secure. Users can choose to work with high-end digital cinema cameras, mirrorless or DLSR cameras, or iOS devices. Frame.io Camera to Cloud
Since its launch in early 2021, C2C has been used by over one thousand productions to instantly get footage from the set to post-production teams. Files are transmitted to Frame.io using a standard internet connection.
Editorial teams using Frame.io NLE integrations will see new clips populate into their bins throughout the day. Customers no longer have to wait for long file transfers or hard drives to ship. With SDI or HDMI video captured by ATOMOS CONNECT and SHOGUN CONNECT, many, many more cameras are now compatible C2C and are able to support cloud workflows.
Once an ATOMOS CONNECT or SHOGUN CONNECT is paired with a Frame.io Project (via ATOMOS
or SHOGUN CONNECT devices, camera feeds are streamed to the Live Production system. Utilising an ultra-low-latency protocol, each stream can be controlled in realtime from a browser, iPad app, or any compatible control panel from anywhere in the world. Once logged into the system crew members can view, direct, produce, mix, and more from any location. The integrated live talkback technology keeps team members connected and allows for an
and DSLR cameras into fully integrated devices that support a range of advanced cloud-based workflows.
Featuring a 12G SDI interface to connect professional digital cinema cameras, ATOMOS AirGlu wireless timecode for seamlessly synchronising all cameras, multiple power options to accommodate a variety of on-set scenarios, plus Wi-Fi 6, network gigabit ethernet, and Bluetooth LE capabilities for flexible connections. The accessory itself has a slender profile that fits flush to the back of the 5-inch device and complements the compact, lightweight form factor of the NINJA SHOGUNV/V+.CONNECT builds on the ground-breaking ATOMOS SHOGUN line. Featuring the comprehensive monitoring tools and recording options of the SHOGUN, the SHOGUN CONNECT is the first fully integrated product, combining HDR monitoring and RAW recording, as well as advanced network and cloud workflows.
Cloud Studio), customers can engage seamlessly with the complete, end-to-end C2C experience. Every recording is immediately available to view in Frame.io, or for download into integrated video applications, including Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro, and DaVinci Resolve.
ATOMOS’ Live Production is a complete, cloud-based control room for live video and remote collaboration. With Live Production video creatives will be able to produce a live show, of the highest quality, at a fraction of the cost. The toolset includes a fully featured video switcher and sound mixer, with video effects, graphics, and Livetalkback.Production can work with any camera, from professional broadcast models, through DSLR and mirrorless, to the Apple iPhone and the system is able to provide timecode sync to all sources in the cloud and on every connected device. Using the new ZATO CONNECT, ATOMOS CONNECT,
iPhone to be hooked up to ensure team members can communicate directly and easily. Delivery destinations include a dedicated Apple TV app or iOS devices, to make sure everyone can view the production as it goes live.
ZATO CONNECT supports nearly all HDMI and USB UVC sources to livestream to Facebook Live, Twitch, YouTube, and other social sites, or can be used to create a webcam source for Microsoft Teams, Slack, Zoom, and other conferencing software. With support for Wi-Fi 5 and gigabit ethernet (via USB-C) to ensure maximum network compatibility, ZATO CONNECT will also convert HDMI sources to webcam signals and includes the ability to combine sources. AtomOS Lite also contains all the tools to record streams and overlay graphics.
When attached to the NINJA V/ V+, the ATOMOS CONNECT transforms professional cinema, mirrorless,
The enhanced 7-inch HDR screen is brighter (2000 nits) with a slimline bevel that makes it even more of a pleasure to use. The SHOGUN CONNECT features a comprehensive range of interfaces, including a loop through 12G SDI IN and OUT to support SDI RAW, ATOMOS SYNC timecode technology for seamless camera synchronisation, multiple power options to accommodate studio or location shoots, plus Wi-Fi 6, network gigabit ethernet, Bluetooth LE, and USB C for flexible all-round connections.
ATOMOS has also developed a full implementation of the NDI|HX standard for ATOMOS CONNECT and SHOGUN CONNECT. NDI technology has been developed to make communication between devices on local network (LAN) easy to set up, provide refined encoding, and deliver frame accurate video. Initial support will be for NDI|HX encode (to act as an NDI source or transmission device) and with a software update later this year ATOMOS will introduce NDI|HX decode (to receive the NDI source signal for viewing and recording). This will enable customers to share the picture between multiple devices locally and select a specific device (or devices) to record the NDI encoded file.
Visit https://www.atomos.com
The ATOMOS CONNECT network accessory.RED DIGITAL CINEMA has announced the availability of the new V-RAPTOR XLTM 8K VV camera. The V-RAPTOR XL system expands on what the company says is the most advanced RED camera platform ever, leveraging the current flagship V-RAPTOR 8K VV + 6K S35 multi-format sensor inside of a large-scaleproduction ready XL camera body. The all-new unified XL body is designed to support high-end television and motion picture productions.
The V-RAPTOR XL features the same multiformat 8K sensor found inside the compact and modular V-RAPTOR body, allowing filmmakers to shoot 8K large format or 6K S35. Shooters have the ability to always capture at over 4K, even when paired with S35 lenses. The sensor boasts the highest recorded dynamic range and cleanest shadow performance of any RED camera. The V-RAPTOR sensor scan time is 2x faster than any previous RED camera and lets users capture up to 600fps at 2K.
The V-RAPTOR XL continues to feature RED’s proprietary REDCODE RAW codec, allowing cinematographers to capture 16-bit RAW, and leverage RED’s latest IPP2 workflow and colour management. As with the RED KOMODO 6K and standard V-RAPTOR system, V-RAPTOR XL will continue to use the updated and streamlined REDCODE RAW settings (HQ, MQ, and LQ) to enhance the user experience with simplified format choices optimised for various shooting scenarios and needs.
The new XL system features an internal electronic ND system of 2 to 7 stops with precision control of 1/3 or 1/4 stop increments. It has dual-power options with both 14V and 26V battery compatibility, an interchangeable lens mount, wireless timecode, genlock, and camera control for remote and virtual production readiness. The XL incorporates a fully robust and professionalintegratedI/Oarray with front-facing 3G-SDI, 2-Pin 12V and 3-Pin 24V auxiliary power outputs, and a GIG-E connector for camera control and PTP synchronisation. The unified XL system packs all of the above into a 7.5 x 6.5-inch body.
The standalone camera system is available in both V-Lock and Gold Mount options. A prebundled and ready-to-shoot Production Pack is also available, and includes:
• V-RAPTOR XL camera system.
• DSMC3 RED Touch 7.0-inch LCD Monitor with DSMC3 RMI Cable (18-inch) and Sunhood.
• REDVOLT XL-V (or XL-G) Batteries RED Compact Dual V-Lock or Gold Mount Charger.
WITH THE RELEASE of LiOS2 for the Orbiter LED luminaire, ARRI has introduced three new modes to establish new possibilities for crews to work and cooperate faster and Withsmarter.the
LiOS2 Sync Mode, light output can be triggered when and how the camera needs it. This LiOS2 automation is designed to free up the crew for real teamwork. Sync Mode allows the lighting parameters to be enabled or changed in sync with the camera frames. Even frame brightness or CCT range can be changed to accommodate new creative ideas.
Exact timing is key for capturing dynamic images and Cue Mode enables precise lighting control right on the spot. Every operator can set the key lighting parameter right on time and with precision. Besides variable timing and working options, the new Cue Mode even allows for fluid and easy light changes in different lighting modes. The transition can be selected from five different options, already known from SkyPanel.
The Optics Auto Adjust Mode offers 100 percent colour stability with any optic and any focus. Utilising the accessory recognition of Orbiter’s innovative QLM (Quick
Lighting Mount), the ARRI Spectra light engine is modified to maintain maximum colour stability no matter which configuration is used, including textiles such as Softboxes or Domes, a reflector in Open Face or lenses such as the new Orbiter Fresnel Lens. Also, with Orbiter’s new Fresnel Lens, LiOS2 ensures the colour rendition across its entire zoom range.
The new additional language package supports Japanese, Korean and Portuguese.
The values of the integrated colour sensor in Orbiter can now directly be selected from colour modes like CCT or HSI in LiOS2. The matching of ambient light is now easier, allowing for final manual adjustment if Networkneeded.and remote control are becoming essential on more and more productions. A new DMX Mode Spec V5 allows for more convenient network operation and additional features within the LiOS2 update. For example, the zoom range of the Orbiter Fresnel lens can be operated, allowing for Extended Color Control (ECC) to be directly available. In addition, all elements are also addressable via RDM.
Visit https://www.arri.com
• RED Pro CFexpress 2TB cards and card reader.
• V-RAPTOR XL Top Handle with extensions.
• V-RAPTOR XL Riser Plate.
• V-RAPTOR XL Top and Bottom 15mm LWS rod support brackets.
• DSMC3 RED 5-pin to Dual XLR adapter.
RED worked closely with industry-leading partners such as Angelbird, Core SWX, and Creative Solutions to produce the purpose-built accessories included in the Production Pack. Visit https://www.red.com
DENSITRON HAS ANNOUNCED a new integration with BirdDog that allows the company’s full range of cameras to be controlled easily via Densitron’s Intelligent Display System (IDS) platform. Available through the IDS software, the integration provides an easyto-use interface that allows camera operators to adjust primary settings such as position, location, and preset store and Therecall.new development underlines the increasing popularity of BirdDog, which manufactures a wide range of PTZ (pan-tiltzoom) cameras and converters. Supporting production in both HD and 4K, BirdDog has also embedded the NDI video-over-IP transport and codec technology into its full range, and this is reflected in the new integration that Densitron has achieved with ReubenBirdDog.Such, Global Business Director at Densitron IDS, comments: “One of the driving principles with IDS has always been that we work effectively with multiple third-party systems.
Increasingly, it had come to our attention that BirdDog cameras were being selected for projects in broadcast, houses of worship and other areas of pro-AV. We already supported a wide range of PTZ cameras from other manufacturers, so it was a logical move for us to provide the same kind of straightforward control interface for use with BirdDog
Theproducts.”result is an elegant user experience that echoes the BirdDog front-end in its choice of colours and overall design
andVisitscheme.https://www.densitron.comhttps://birddog.tv
THE ASIA-PACIFIC Broadcasting Union (ABU), in a collaboration with Telstra Broadcast Services (TBS), selected AsiaSat 5, AsiaSat’s prime occasional use (OU) platform, for live coverage of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games in the Asia-Pacific.
During the event coverage, the ABU Sports team on the ground managed the production of the live broadcast signals at the International Broadcast Centre (IBC) in Birmingham. TBS’s expert broadcast solutions team handled the turnaround and uplinking of the live transmission of four international HD feeds at Telstra’s teleport in Hong Kong to AsiaSat 5 for distribution to rights-holding broadcasters in the region.
Already established as a broadcast platform for live sports in Asia, AsiaSat 5 has a proven record in the delivery of international sports tournaments and events including the last Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast in 2018. With AsiaSat 5’s extensive C-band
coverage and penetration, Asian broadcasters can connect their audiences on multiple platforms with event and athlete highlights for each of the participating nations and territories to witness the triumphant moments of the Theathletes.22nd
edition of Commonwealth Games (28 July to 8 August) gathered more than 4500 athletes from across 72 nations and territories in Birmingham, United Kingdom. Over the 11 action-packed days, these athletes competed across 280 medal events covering 19 sports and para-sports including athletics, cycling, swimming, badminton, diving, basketball, table tennis, gymnastics and more. This year’s Games staged the largest ever programme of women’s and para-sports in its history.
Cai Yanjiang, Director ABU Sports, said: “This edition of the Commonwealth Games production and broadcast is a continued success after the Gold Coast and Glasgow, in terms of the quality
service to ABU broadcast members through the combined efforts of the ABU team and our long-term partners AsiaSat and TBS. The ABU team have again enjoyed consistent support from them, which is the key to another safe and smooth delivery of these inspiring games to the ABU broadcasters and audiences in various countries. We look forward to future events working with them again.”
Steven Dargham, Business Development Executive, Major Events at TBS said: ‘’Telstra has been delivering major events solutions and networks for the ABU and its members for many major sporting events including several iterations of the Commonwealth Games. Each major event varies in complexity and with our collaboration with AsiaSat we are able to provide seamless integrated solutions to address the unique and diverse requirements of the ABU members. The spirit of the games is captured in our partnership, and we hope to enable more successful
RACING QUEENSLAND has recently gone on air with RT Software’s Tactic Live for its innovative Trot Rods harness racing. RQ is now able to show a range of virtual graphics which are rendered live over its racing broadcasts to enhance the action for the fast growing
Theaudience.project
was put together by outside broadcast service provider Panasonic Studio Productions (PSP), who worked with Racing Queensland to deliver the solution.
As Tony Barletta, Company Director, explains, “Racing Queensland is a business that is constantly evolving and innovating. They have brought this new Trot Rods concept to the racing market and it’s been a huge success. Once the concept was proven to be commercially viable, Racing Queensland wanted to improve the levels of presentation to enhance the action for the audience. They were looking to add live timing, sponsorship graphics and distance markers, which all have to be keyed over live video in a range of lighting conditions, which can be challenging. One feature that has gone down really well is the previous best time marker. It’s a live line marker showing the previous best time that moves with the action as the riders approach the finish line. It makes it really clear how far off the pace the current racers are.
“We looked at all the big names in broadcast graphics, but there were a couple of stand
out reasons to go for RT Software. They had all their own software technology in house, whereas some other vendors depended on external providers. We really needed to keep things simple, so this was a big advantage for us. Plus they took a real partnership approach for the proof of concept phase and offered attractive financing.
“We knew RT software are leaders in their field, and they were able to show us previous similar projects that also gave us confidence we were making the right choice.”
Tony continues, “Our additional challenge was that the project was started when the Covid pandemic was preventing travel, but RT Software were great and carried on delivering the proof of concept for us completely remotely. This allowed our customer to see how it would work and have confidence in what they were investing in. It was quickly signed off and then the full working system was also installed
“We’reremotely.really pleased with the robustness of the system and how quickly we can set it up. We move the system between different venues, so
BusinessCommercial,President,SeniorInacome.’’incoverageproductionyearstoLui,ViceDevelopment and Strategy of AsiaSat, said: “It is our privilege to support the live telecast of the Commonwealth Games again this year, contributing to making a world of difference by celebrating the spirit of sportsmanship and bringing people of different culture together through world-class sports. We look forward to more collaboration with our partners ABU and TBS in other international events to https://www.asiasat.comtelstra-broadcast-servicesbusiness-enterprise/industries/https://www.telstra.com.au/https://www.abu.org.myVisitcome.”
we rely on it working first time. Recalibrating only takes a few minutes and then we’re good to Davidgo.”Brick,
Senior Racing Manager at Racing Queensland, said, “Innovation has been at the forefront of our broadcast coverage in recent years. This includes the introduction of driver cam; drone vision; telemetry; and race caller to driver interviews. With the TAB Trot Rods continuing to turn heads, we wanted to explore new ways to bring our product to television audiences including new on-screen graphics. In particular, the line-to-beat was well received and we look forward to continuing to enhance our broadcast product.”
Visit http://www.rtsw.co.uk/
AS AWARENESS ABOUT the effects of climate change grows, the environmental footprint of content production and distribution is an area of growing concern. It has become increasingly apparent that current modes of working need to change.
According to albert, a leading environmental organisation that enables production companies to track their carbon footprint, a TV programme typically produces tens of tonnes of carbon dioxide, and for a feature film, it runs into thousands. Live content such as sports, music and award events are of particular concern. Traditional live coverage involves a full team on-location, with equipment and people travelling around the world for each event. Unsurprisingly, the environmental costs of this way of working are considerable. It is certainly not
Eventssustainable.ofthe past few years have shown us that it is possible to do things differently. The use of cloud-based computing, including cloud-based ingest, has made it possible to produce live content without needing the same levels of people and equipment onlocation. So, with this in mind, can cloud-based ingest help the broadcast industry reach netzero? If so, can cloud-based ingest deliver the same broadcast quality as viewers have come to expect, or is there a trade-off to be had between reaching net zero and accepting substandard quality?
As we all know, broadcasting live content can be a notoriously complex process, with the scale and nature of an event affecting not just the workflow complexity, but also the carbon footprint. A major sporting event that involves heats or matches in different locations for example, such as UEFA European Football Championship or Formula 1 World Championship, brings a whole host of logistical complexities along with a heavy carbon footprint. Transporting a small army of trucks, crews of technicians, and a huge amount of video and audio hardware as is required for live production unsurprisingly creates a huge amount of emissions.
According to albert, in 2021, travel related emissions were
the biggest part of a production company’s carbon footprint. In addition, power consumption needed by hardware running onsite, usually 24/7, is substantial. Unless broadcasters have switched from diesel or petrol to other fuel sources such as to LPG, biodiesel or HVO fuel, emissions resulting from generators are also significant. albert reports that approximately 87% of fuel used in on-location generators is petrol and 10.5% is diesel so this also accounts for a significant proportion of a production’s carbon footprint.
By switching to cloud-based workflows, the number of people and equipment needed on-site is drastically reduced. It stands to reason that this in turn reduces production associated emissions. However, unfortunately, assessing the true carbon impact of doing one thing instead of something else is not straight forward. While it would seem obvious that cloud-based workflows can make a real difference to live coverage’s carbon footprint, there is a lack of data and carbon footprint tools available to really assess, and compare and contrast the carbon impact of different production
trial took place last year, when the IBC Sustainable Live Production Accelerator investigated the difference between carbon footprints of cloud and software based workflows against traditional broadcast production at a live English premier league football game. The project found that remote/cloud workflows allow for a potential fuel reduction on-site of over 50%. The trial also found that technical infrastructure required for the gallery production was reduced by up to 70%.
Media organisations need to be able to assess the carbon footprint of a particular activity or service in real time so that they can ensure that they make appropriate decisions, based on evidence rather than assumption. This is likely to be some way off so for the time being, decisions are often being made on the grounds of what seems intuitively better.
Aside from the obvious environmental costs of live
production, the financial costs of transporting people and equipment around the globe to deliver content from live events to viewers, are enormous. Despite the known environmental (and financial) costs, there is still a reluctance amongst media organisations to change their existing approach. There are multiple reasons behind this resistance to change. The broadcast industry has essentially been doing things the same way for a long time and it is a method that is known to work well. There is a sense of ‘if it isn’t broken, then it doesn’t need to be fixed’. Naturally, when something is iterated and perfected, it is easiest to stick with it rather than change to something new.
Although cloud-based workflows were trialled and tested to some degree during the global lockdowns, they were trialled during an unprecedented time. Viewers and rights holders alike were perhaps more understanding of broadcasting issues or problems. There was arguably less at stake if things went wrong. Now that life as we know it has more or less returned to normal, there is some reluctance across the industry to trigger change that causes more disruption and risks workflows breaking down. Some mistrust about the capabilities of cloud-based tools also add to the reluctance to adopt cloud workflows. Concerns about quality and reliability are common and are a big part of why broadcasters haven’t made the switch to the cloud. This is certainly true with ingest. When it comes to media production workflows, having an effective ingest process in place is critical. The way that content is ingested can have a huge impact on the quality of the production, and also on workflow efficiency and cost effectiveness. It’s critical that content be transferred to media servers in full, without any loss in quality, and that all required assets and metadata be captured and stored. There is a disbelief that cloud based ingest can do all of this and perform well enough to replace tried and trusted hardware-based ingest.
The pandemic has undoubtedly led to much more widespread
adoption of the cloud across the broadcast industry. The number of cloud-based broadcast solutions, including ingest tools, on the market has increased dramatically. This is unsurprising because as they say, necessity is the mother of invention. The cloud-based ingest tools available now can be as good as their hardware-based counterparts. Along with reducing the reliance on hardware, cloud based ingest can also reduce the overall complexity of capturing live content. In fact, with not much more than just cameras and an encoder on site, content can be recorded directly to the cloud. The next stages of the process such as editing can all be done from elsewhere. This reduces not only the amount of equipment needed on site, but also the number of technicians and expertise required on site.
By recording content direct to the cloud, the whole process becomes more efficient because editing and distribution can happen straight away. Potential delays associated with traditional broadcast workflows arising from uploading streams via a transfer service can be avoided.
Consumers expect high quality content, and missing even one key highlight, or distributing a poor quality stream is just not an option. With the right, professional grade tools in place, it is possible for cloud-based ingest to deliver the same quality as traditional broadcast ingest hardware.
Another benefit to be had from ingesting direct to the cloud is that backup is simplified because it can be automatically duplicated and stored up in a backup storage cloud. Automating this process removes the risk of backup failures.
In general, cloud-based workflows are known to be cost effective and flexible, and cloud ingest is no exception. Ingesting to the cloud
is cost effective because you are saving on hardware and reducing operating costs by only paying for what you need. In addition, operations can easily be scaled up and down as needs require so it is much easier for media businesses to work in an agile and responsive way.
The benefits to media companies of basing ingest in the cloud are clear to see. What is interesting, is that the benefits just mentioned would also appear to help to reduce the carbon footprint of live production. Less equipment and people needed on site means less emissions and less power usage.
Also worth a mention is that traditional broadcasting workflows rely on hardware, which has to be manufactured, and maintained until no longer functioning or when superseded by a newer model or better technology. At that point, most hardware will be consigned to landfill. If broadcast workflows are operated from the cloud, there is less need for physical hardware, so producing, and maintaining as much hardware is no longer needed. Less hardware also naturally results in less landfill.
The long road to sustainability Technology is undoubtedly going to have a big impact on improving the sustainability of capturing and broadcasting live coverage. However, sustainable solutions for media production will only succeed if they are technically effective, as well as cost effective.
This is exactly why cloud based ingest has such potential to make a difference. Not only does it benefit media companies by reducing operational complexity, removing bottlenecks in the process and simplifying backup, it also helps to reduce the carbon footprint of broadcasting live coverage. What’s more, ingesting to the cloud does not mean compromising on quality.
The successful partnership working at the IBC Sustainable Live Production Accelerator trial shows the eagerness across the industry to find ways to make live production more sustainable. The willingness is there, and the technology is improving.
While there is still a long way to go, it seems like the industry is making tentative steps in the right direction, and cloud based ingest definitely has a role to play in helping the industry reach net
SPORTRADAR HAS RENEWED partnership agreements with the top tier club cricket competitions in Tasmania, Queensland and Western Australia. Currently, Sportradar is partnered with every single state and territory cricket governing body in Australia. The extension of the Cricket Tasmania Premier League, KFC Queensland Premier Cricket and Western Australia Premier Cricket deals will see Sportradar remaining as the official streaming partner until mid-2025.
The alliance provides cricket associations with industry-leading digital solutions offered by Sportradar, including custom-themed match centres with live streams, highlights, live scores, fixtures, and statistics on one dedicated site.
The Australian 2021-2022 premier cricket season saw more than 3000 cricket streams and 1.36 million balls captured, with 145,000 automated highlights generated from over 3000 matches.
The dedicated sites hosted 230,000 users and registered four million views across the match centre, highlighting Sportradar’s contribution to boosting visibility of Australian cricket and engaging fans and participants.
The announcement of the renewals comes after a
collaboration with NT Cricket and its Cricket 365 initiative earlier this year by providing streaming solutions to support the program and bolster the Australian cricket community by keeping selectors’ eyes on emerging talent all year round.
Jarod Pickering, Head of Cricket, Sports Solutions, Sportradar, said: “Premier Cricket competitions are an important pillar connecting community cricket with elite cricket pathways. These partnerships have allowed us to build relationships and digital experiences to make visible emerging talent to more fans, boost engagement and create new sponsorship opportunities. We are committed to adding value to our partners and seeing grassroots cricket thrive in Australia.”
Nick Stuart, Head of Premier Cricket, Integrity & Projects, Queensland Cricket, said: “We are excited to continue our partnership with Sportradar and value their contribution to the local cricket community in Australia. Through our ongoing partnership, we have been able to utilise Sportradar’s advanced innovative technology to create an engaging viewing experience for local cricket fans.”
Visit https://www.sportradar.com
AI-MEDIA HAS ANNOUNCED a partnership with Grass Valley, provider of AMPP, the company’s agile, cloud-based production and distribution platform.
As a platform for virtual media production tools, Grass Valley’s AMPP allows media producers to create live content from anywhere and distribute it everywhere. The solution greatly simplifies the process of localising content for different regions and audiences.
Users of Grass Valley’s AMPP can now add Ai-Media’s live automated Lexi captions to their content in real time with just a few clicks. Grass Valley customers can also add live multilingual captions via Ai-Media’s automated Lexi Translate solution.
As a Grass Valley Alliance member, Ai-Media’s virtual captioning encoder iCap Alta seamlessly integrates with Grass Valley’s AMPP to become part of its cloud architecture.
Ai-Media’s Chief Sales Officer, James Ward said, “We are a customer-led organisation and as we see broadcasters and content owners increasingly moving towards a cloud-native production environment, we want to ensure we are providing the convenience to seamlessly add our best-inclass live captioning solutions to their content.
“We are very excited to announce our partnership with Grass Valley and launch our live captioning solutions on the AMPP platform. This partnership will provide broadcasters and content owners with
market leading solutions for making their content accessible in any language. The combination of Ai-Media’s Lexi and iCap Alta products within Grass Valley’s AMPP creates an easy-to-use cloud-native platform where highly accurate, reliable and secure live captions can be added to any content.”
“As a global system, AMPP is often used for content localisation,” said Chris Merrill, Grass Valley’s Director of Strategic Marketing. “Adding AI Media’s Lexi captions solution simplifies our customer’s production processes by automating captions during the localisation process.”
Visit https://www.ai-media.tv
Hollyland has announced a new 4K wireless video transmission system, named the “MARS 4K-AU”. In its standard configuration, the Mars 4K consists of a transmitter and receiver pair featuring both HDMI (V1.4b) and 3G-SDI I/O, with 4K 3840 x 2160 HDMI output @ 24, 25 and 30p (input dependent). In addition to the standard “whole number” production frame rates, the SDI input of the Mars 4K transmitter can also handle up to 1080/60p in both Level A and Level B, Progressive Segmented Frame (Psf) rates up to 30P and decimal frame rates such as 23.98 & The29.97.transmitter is compatible with up to two receivers, 1 receiver + 2 mobile devices, or up to four mobile devices if dedicated receivers are not used. 150m+ LOS with an ultra-low latency of 0.06s is achievable thanks to Hollyland’s new dualcore codec chip.
The Mars 4K features a colour LCD with a user-friendly UI that enables quick configuration changes as well as easy-to-view status checks. The intuitive rocker-style button greatly improves the speed at which the user is able to make changes to any given setup. Automatic “smart” channel scanning and selection aims to provide the most stable, interference-free experience straight from powerEmbeddedon. audio is also passed
across the link system with 2ch audio for the 3G-SDI and 8 ch for HDMI. Both the
extended
run times from even a modest capacity NP-F style battery. A plug-pack mains to 12V dc adapter is also provided.
With an overall height of less than 120mm, the mounting options and placement of the Tx unit on a modern, compact camera rig should not cause any issues.
Hollyland has announced the new “MARS M1-AU”, a high-brightness wireless monitor integrating transmitter, receiver and monitor functions into a single, compact Featuringsolution.
a 5.5” touch-screen with professional colour
calibration, 1000 nit brightness and Rec. 709 colour gamut, the MARS M1 can transmit camera signals at a range of 150m+ LOS with a latency of 0.08s, effectively simplifying device deployment during shooting. Five selectable 3D LUT presets are available for selection. LUT import is also supported as well as a wide variety of auxiliary functions such as 4x Zoom, Exposure Assist, Colour Temperature Adjustments, Focus Assist and Video Waveform
M1 is able to switch between being a transmitter or a receiver via its touch-screen. One transmitter can operate with up to two receivers, 1 receiver and 2 mobile devices, or up to 4 mobile
devices. HDMI I/O with loop-thru capability as well as 3G-SDI input is provided as standard.
Smart RF Channel Scanning is also built-in with the results displayed on the monitor screen.
To facilitate the widest possible usage ability, multiple powering options are also available, including via industry standard NP-F batteries, external DC between 6 – 16V, and even from battery D-Tap outlets. In fact, a D-Tap cable is supplied as Itstandard.isalsocompatible with the MARS 300Pro-AU and MARS 400S Pro-AU systems as well as the new MARS 4K wireless transmission system.
Visit https://www.hollyland.com.au
VIACCESS-ORCA (VO), the provider of OTT and TV platforms, content protection, and advanced data solutions, and Harmonic, the provider of video delivery solutions, have announced that the two companies are joining forces to improve content protection for live sports streaming.
VO’s dynamic watermarking technology will be integrated with Harmonic’s market-leading VOS 360 cloud SaaS platform, offering content owners and providers a simple, scalable solution for quickly identifying piracy sources and stopping content restreaming.
“Sports piracy is a dangerous threat to the industry, costing billions of dollars in revenue loss every year,” said Mathieu Harel, Product Director of Watermarking at Viaccess-Orca. “By integrating our dynamic watermarking technology with Harmonic’s cloud platform, we are empowering sports content owners and content providers with a flexible business model, making it simpler and safer than ever to deliver
premium live sports content.”
Content owners will be able to utilise VO’s dynamic watermarking as a service on the Harmonic VOS360 SaaS platform for the entire duration of sports events. The server-side software can easily be used, on the fly, by new and existing customers.
“The ultimate way to protect live sports content is with a robust watermarking technology,” said Eric Gallier, Vice President, Video Customer Solutions at Harmonic. “We’re excited to bring Viaccess-Orca’s dynamic watermarking technology to our VOS360 SaaS platform. With this new integration, we’re offering an automated and scalable event-based Anti-Piracy solution to safeguard live sports content.”
VO’s dynamic watermarking detects content redistributed from broadcast, IPTV, and OTT networks. Using the state-of-the-art technology, operators can identify and remove the source of
restreaming within minutes, which is critical for live sports events. Blind identification on VO’s dynamic watermarking technology eliminates the need for metadata and enables content providers to automatically detect the chunk size of the original stream. Fully scalable, dynamic watermarking can scan millions of devices at once and instantly pinpoint those that are pirating content.
Harmonic’s VOS360 cloud platform simplifies the delivery and monetisation of live sports content at scale, ensuring low latency and pristine video quality up to UHD. Running on three major public clouds, the end-to-end SaaS platform provides unparalleled agility, resiliency, security, and scalability for a superior viewing experience. Based on a pay-per-use business model, the VOS360 platform enables operators to only pay for watermarking when needed.
Visit www.viaccess-orca.com and www.harmonicinc.com.
The MARS 4K-AU 4K wireless video transmission system
IN AUSTRALIA, as in Britain and the United States, professional mass media are part of the Establishment. This status even has its own name: the fourth estate. So at times like the death of Queen Elizabeth II, the pressure to conform to political and social expectations is intense.
Those expectations include treating such a story as being of overwhelming importance, and preferring to promote unity over divisiveness, respectfulness over criticism, the status quo over radical change, politesse over frankness, and sentimentality over Ithard-headedness.isatimewhenthe
fourth estate
puts aside its fundamental role of holding power to account so as not to risk being pilloried for betraying those expectations.
The end result is what we have seen in abundance since Queen Elizabeth II died on September 8 2022. If it looks like a reflection of Establishment interests, that’s because it is.
But it is also, to an immeasurable but unmistakable extent, a reflection of public expectations
Elizabeth was the only head of state any Australian not in their seventies has ever known.
The esteem in which she was held has been obvious for many years simply by virtue of the accepted political wisdom that the prospect of Australians voting for a republic
in her lifetime was nil.
It is only fair, then, that any critique of the coverage be set against the background of those realities.
The Australian media certainly treated this as a story of overwhelming importance.
On the Friday and Saturday immediately following the Queen’s death this was amply shown by rolling television coverage, commemorative lift-outs and wraparounds in the newspapers, followed by extensive coverage on inside pages.
There is a fixed routine to covering events like this – a trunk story summarising the main news points, reaction from political leaders, tributes, stories of ordinary people’s encounters with the queen, a potted history of her reign, reminiscences of her visits to Australia. It was all there.
So was the schmaltzy tone. From the Sydney Morning Herald: her “lasting love for the harbour city” and “We did but see her passing by However,[…]”.
there was also in the SMH and elsewhere clear-eyed analyses of the fragile state of the United Kingdom and the contrast between the two Elizabethan eras.
In the late 16th century, England was growing into a mighty military and commercial power; the reign of Elizabeth II was a period of long-run Adecline.striking
aspect of the television coverage was that on the Friday
night, Seven’s and Nine’s news bulletins heavily outrated the ABC’s. OzTAM TV ratings, from Australia’s five biggest cities, showed Seven News attracting 852,000 viewers, Nine News 736,000 and the ABC’s Queen Elizabeth II (1926-2022), only Even201,000.allowing for the fact the commercial bulletins usually outrate the ABC’s, on a story like this it might be expected that the national broadcaster would at least close the However,gap. over the weekend none of the networks’ news specials attracted many viewers. Seven’s coverage of the proclamation of Charles III attracted 279,000, its tribute to the Queen 136,000, and the ABC’s continuing coverage There206,000.isa lesson here. Public expectations about how stories of overwhelming importance are covered have clearly shifted. Rolling television coverage now loses impetus swiftly unless there is new material continuously replenishing it, as with the September 11 attacks on the US or bushfire emergencies. The same lesson probably applies to the print media also.
The steam had started to go out of the royal story by Saturday evening. The death of the Queen and the proclamation of the King had been Bydone.Sunday, the only development was the start of the journey
bringing the Queen’s body from Balmoral Castle to London.
Yet the ABC’s 7pm bulletin stuck with this for 24 minutes, nearly all of it rehashed from the previous day, and on Monday the newspapers were still giving over six or more forward news pages to Theit.coverage has just got more bizarre and banal by the day: clouds containing visions of the queen’s head or the queen on a horse; the new king losing his temper over a leaky fountain pen; a little girl who dresses up like the queen when she rides her horse; another little girl cuddling a Meanwhile,corgi.inUkraine there has been a decisive thrust by Ukrainian forces, which has pushed the Russians out of a substantial part of the Donbas region.
There comes a point at which editors and news directors need to recognise that expectations about the big story have been met. That point was reached by Saturday evening. Then was the time to cut back hard and wait for the funeral. The fact that thousands of dollars have been spent sending teams to London doesn’t justify clogging up the news with non-stories.
* Denis Muller is Senior Research Fellow, Centre for Advancing Journalism, The University of Melbourne. This article was originally published on The Conversation.
IN THROUGH HER EYES
Australian women correspondents tell their own stories from the frontline – covering the breaking news, the issues and the events that are changing the world. They tell of Russian tanks and Ukrainian mothers fleeing with their children, vicious Afghan warlords, anti-government rebels in Central Africa, terrorist attacks in the United States, and the chaos faced by ordinary people caught up in disasters and political upheaval.
While a woman strapping on a reporters’ flak jacket is now a common sight, there was a time when they were locked out of the big stories because of their gender. Unlike their male counterparts, they needed single-minded determination to score a plum assignment or win
Through Her Eyes is edited by Trevor Watson, Bureau Chief for the
a posting to a foreign bureau. Through Her Eyes tells of the exhilaration that comes with a big story but also the dangers, the risks, the struggle and the big issues women still face, from vicious media trolling to threats of sexual Throughviolence.HerEyes includes well-known women correspondents for major media organisations inside and outside Australia including the ABC, BBC, SBS, CNN, The Associated Press of America, UPI, Reuters, The Times of London, Al Jazeera, China Global Television Network, The Australian, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, and the Australian Financial Review.
Daily Mail, and staff correspondent for The Australian in Sydney and Papua New Guinea.
SOCIAL MEDIA REPRESENTS a major channel for the spreading of fake news and disinformation. This situation has been made worse with recent advances in photo and video editing and artificial intelligence tools, which make it easy to tamper with audiovisual files, for example with so-called deep fakes, which combine and superimpose images, audio and video clips to create montages that look like real footage. Researchers from the K-riptography and Information Security for Open Networks (KISON) and the Communication Networks and Social Change (CNSC) groups of the Internet Interdisciplinary Institute (IN3) at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) have launched a new project to develop innovative technology that, using artificial intelligence and data concealment techniques, should help users to automatically differentiate between original and adulterated multimedia content, thus contributing to minimising the reposting of fake news. DISSIMILAR is an international initiative headed by the UOC including researchers from the Warsaw University of Technology (Poland) and Okayama University (Japan).
“The project has two objectives: firstly, to provide content creators with tools to watermark their creations, thus making any modification easily detectable; and secondly, to offer social media users tools based on latestgeneration signal processing and machine learning methods to detect fake digital content,” explained Professor David Megías, KISON lead researcher and director of the IN3. Furthermore, DISSIMILAR aims to include “the cultural dimension and the viewpoint of the end user throughout the entire project”, from the designing of the tools to the study of usability in the different stages.
The danger of biases
Currently, there are basically two types of tools to detect fake news. Firstly, there are automatic ones based on machine learning, of which (currently) only a few prototypes are in existence. And, secondly, there are the fake news detection platforms featuring human involvement, as is the case with Facebook and Twitter, which require the participation of people to ascertain whether specific content is genuine or
fake. According to David Megías, this centralised solution could be affected by different biases and encourage censorship. “We believe that an objective assessment based on technological tools might be a better option, provided that users have the last word on deciding, on the basis of a pre-evaluation, whether they can trust certain content or not,” he
there is no single silver bullet that can detect fake news: rather, detection needs to be carried out with a combination of different tools.
“That’s why we’ve opted to explore the concealment of information (watermarks), digital content forensics analysis techniques (to a great extent based on signal processing) and, it goes without saying, machine learning”, he noted.
Digital watermarking comprises a series of techniques in the field of data concealment that embed imperceptible information in the original file to ‘easily and automatically’ verify a multimedia file.
“It can be used to indicate a content’s legitimacy by, for example, confirming that a video or photo has been distributed by an official news agency, and can also be used as an authentication mark, which would be deleted in the case of modification of the content, or to trace the origin of the data. In other words, it can tell if the source of the information (e.g. a Twitter account) is spreading fake content,” explained Megías.
The project will combine the development of watermarks with the application of digital content forensics analysis techniques. The goal is to leverage signal processing technology to detect the intrinsic distortions produced by the devices and programs used when creating or modifying any audiovisual file. These processes give rise to a range of alterations, such as sensor noise or optical distortion, which could be detected by means of machine learning models. “The idea is that the combination of all these tools improves outcomes when compared with the use of single solutions,” stated Megías.
One of the “Firstly,stages.intobrokencarriedstudiesuser-focuseddifferentthisnews.aroundcomponentsandperceptionsofitsapproachisofcharacteristicskeyDISSIMILARitsholisticandgatheringtheculturalfakeWithinmind,willbeout,downdifferentwe
want to find out usershowinteract with the news, what interests them, what media they consume, depending upon their interests, what they use as their basis to identify certain content as fake news and what they are prepared to do to check its truthfulness. If we can identify these things, it will make it easier for the technological tools we design to help prevent the propagation of fake news,” explained Megías.
These perceptions will be gauged in different places and cultural contexts, in user group studies in Catalonia, Poland and Japan, so as to incorporate their idiosyncrasies when designing the solutions.
“This is important because, for example, each country has
governments and/or public authorities with greater or lesser degrees of credibility. This has an impact on how news is followed and support for fake news: if I don’t believe in the word of the authorities, why should I pay any attention to the news coming from these sources? This could be seen during the COVID-19 crisis: in countries in which there was less trust in the public authorities, there was less respect for suggestions and rules on the handling of the pandemic and vaccination,” said Andrea Rosales, a CNSC researcher.
In stage two, users will participate in designing the tool to “ensure that the product will be well-received, easy to use and understandable”, said Andrea Rosales. “We’d like them to be involved with us throughout the entire process until the final prototype is produced, as this will help us to provide a better response to their needs and priorities and do what other solutions haven’t been able to,” added David Megías.
This user acceptance could in the future be a factor that leads social network platforms to include the solutions developed in this project. “If our experiments bear fruit, it would be great if they integrated these technologies. For the time being, we’d be happy with a working prototype and a proof of concept that could encourage social media platforms to include these technologies in the future,” concluded David Megías.
“Firstly, we want to find out how users interact with the news, what interests them, what media they theydependingconsume,upontheirinterests,whattheyuseastheirbasistoidentifycertaincontentasfakenewsandwhatarepreparedtodotocheckitstruthfulness.
NXTEDITION WILL SHOWCASE its production solution at IBC 2022. Visitors to the show will be able to experience the digital-first platform for themselves. nxtedition is built from the ground up, with storytelling at the heart of the production workflow, allowing even small teams to create and deliver highly compelling content fast, first and accurately.
By creating a densely feature-rich microservice ecosystem, nxtediton has consolidated sophisticated tools like planning, NRCS, ingest, MAM, graphics, streaming, studio automation and digital publishing removing engineering and putting storytelling rightfully at the centre. From sports shoulder broadcasting, building a news programme to posting on web and social or managing channel playout. Each member of the team has context aware access
to exactly the functionality they need within the single unified GUI, ensuring all their tasks are intuitive and primarily handled by simple drag and drop features. This ensures lightning speed as content comes in, is turned around and pushed out without losing time switching to other applications. The speed and productivity gains from this approach ensures nxtedition clients are always the first notification on a viewer’s
nxtedition apart is an internal system architecture built entirely of web technologies repurposed for broadcast, whilst using the switching, layering and realtime rendering power of CasparCG to guarantee unmatched image quality on COTS hardware or in public cloud. Users can log in from any location and access all the tools in nxtedition (both on-
SWEDEN’S DEVELOPER of products and solutions for highquality video over the internet, will unveil the Intinor Direkt link compact (mobile and backpack) alongside new features, such as AES67 support for its intercom solution, at IBC 2022. Visitors to this year’s show will also see Intinor’s market leading Bifrost and Direkt router series in action, with a range of new features now Theavailable.Direct link compact is
STRINGR HAS ANNOUNCED the latest version of its SaaS solution, the Stringr Remote Video Sourcing and Production platform. The endto-end platform connects media companies with instant access to custom video footage, remote production software and limitless video distribution options.
New features include:
• Engage – Stringr Engage simplifies how broadcasters can source video from their communities. Instead of searching for user generated
designed to meet the needs of single camera sports and news productions where a highly agile, small crew is of the essence. The system ensures a true point-topoint connection, eliminating the need for cloud subscriptions that adds cost and latency. Direct link compact supports 4-wire intercom for comms with the master control room (MCR), return video path and features two built-in modems, with the option for additional modems to be added as required.
prem or cloud) for extremely high availability and business continuity.
The fully virtualised architecture means that systems can be built to precisely match the individual workflow requirements, with the
appropriate level of resilience and a large reduction in complexity that microservices bring; nxtedition takes responsibility for the glue.
Visit https://nxtedition.com
Like the rest of the Direkt link range, this solution relies on Intinor’s proprietary Bifrost Reliable Transport (Bifrost) protocol, which incorporates a uniquely effective forward error correction, re-sending (ARQ), adaptive bitrate as well as network bonding to ensure maximum quality, stability, and reliability of the links. The result is more straightforward remote network management and monitoring in the field directly from the control
room. As with all its solutions, Direct link compact delivers the ultra-low latency (0.5 seconds) that is Intinor’s hallmark.
Intinor has also added full support for AES67 to its intercom solution, which will further simplify remote production and remote commentary workflows, ensuring greater levels of interoperability with customers’ existing systems.
Visit https://intinor.com
content on social media, asking for permissions and then waiting for the high-resolution original video to be shared, media companies can simply create an Engage request for any video content and share it publicly with their audience – onscreen with a QR code or on social with a link – so anyone can contribute video. Videos are instantly added as an asset to edit, share, or use for live broadcast.
• Remote Guest Interview: The Stringr platform now includes a
feature that makes it easy to get HD recorded and live interview content from remote guests and commentators. Send the link and guests can join instantly. Instead of looking like a standard video conference, the host and guests are all individual feeds to switch between for live broadcasts or edit together later for a dynamic looking interview.
• Remote Commenting – The Stringr platform includes video editing and production tools, but now also has remote,
frame-level video commenting to collaborate and get feedback in real-time from anyone on the team, no matter where they are located. Stringr integrates these comments with our cloud-based editing tools so there is no need to change between multiple applications and programs. All assets from the original raw video to the final produced piece are all located in one place, so no more searching for different
Visitversions.www.stringr.com
DEVELOPER Chaos has released V-Ray 6 for Maya, the latest version of its Academy Award/Emmywinning production renderer. V-Ray 6 for Maya expands its feature set with geometric tiling, procedural clouds, a new shader profiler and more.
VRayEnmesh is a new system that repeats geometry across the surface of an object in the most memory-efficient way possible. With Enmesh, artists can start treating geometry like a texture, creating patterns like chainmail, car grills and fabrics that are ready for their close-up. Enmesh is so easy on the memory, users can add billions of polygons to a scene without Proceduralcompromise.Cloudshave been added to the V-Ray Sun and Sky system, removing the need to settle for a static HDR or a cloudless sky. Artists can now customise their scenes, taking full advantage of ray-traced lighting, ground shadows and volumetric effects as they animate.
V-Ray 6 for Maya also introduces a new profiler that tracks the calculation time of shaders and volumes in a scene. Artists can now locate all hot spots in their scene, helping them optimise pipelines for even faster rendering. By pairing V-Ray Profiler with Memory Tracking, V-Ray 6 for Maya users now have everything they need to tackle the monitoring and optimization of their projects.
Other features in V-Ray 6 for Maya
USDinclude:Improvements
– V-Ray 6 support the latest MayaUSD version and includes new enhancements for OpenVDB volumes and V-Ray material export, promoting an easy exchange with Solaris and USDpowered Performancepipelines.Improvements –
Updates include up to 30% faster rendering for Environment Fog, up to 2x faster rendering for the Translucent layer in the V-Ray Material and enhanced memory efficiency for scenes featuring thousands of instances.
film layer has been added to the V-Ray Material, making it easy to create iridescent materials like soap bubbles and oil spills.
Chaos Cloud Collaboration – For project reviews, V-Ray 6 for Maya adds push-button cloud collaboration, making it easy to share renders through Chaos Cloud via the V-Ray Frame Buffer (VFB). Clients/teams can now add comments and annotation, see panorama views and more — from anywhere in the world.
Background Cloud Submissions – Users now have uninterrupted access to Maya whenever they submit to Chaos Cloud Rendering, preserving their iterative cycle.
Decal Displacement – VRayDecal can now add displacement to any surface, bringing even more realism to cracked walls, rocks, embossed lettering and more.
More Accurate Reflections – With the new energy compensation updates, rough metals and surfaces will look even more
in IPR – The output of V-Ray’s Interactive Production Renderer (IPR) is identical to the production renderer, so teams can make better decisions in the
Buffer Upgrades – A panorama viewer, a Proportion Guides Layer for composition development and a Flip button have all been added to the VFB to help designers make better decisions as they assess their Newwork.Chaos
THE AUSTRALIAN Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS) and visual effects company Industrial Light and Magic (ILM) recently announced a partnership that will see new world-class training for students in the rapidly expanding screen speciality of visual effects.
AFTRS’ new Graduate Diploma in Visual Effects, commencing in February 2023, will bring together the vision, skills and expertise of ILM, and the educational expertise and creative excellence of TheAFTRS.Graduate Diploma in Visual Effects is a hands-on course designed to up-skill emerging practitioners, digital artists and budding technical directors to become job-ready visual effects artists in the Australian screen Thesector.course will prototype an
innovative model of integrated training that combines the best of on-the-job training with formal education: blending real-world learning driven by leading industry experts, with the critical thinking and adaptive creative skill sets vital to thrive in today’s digital world.
The Graduate Diploma in Visual Effects program is to be delivered full-time over two semesters and is structured around an immersive series of practical classes and workshops. Led by senior professionals in the industry from ILM and AFTRS’ subject matter experts, students will progress through a cycle of learning, experimentation,collaboration,feedback and mentoring to hone their technical, creative and story skills.
Visit aftrs.edu.auhttps://www.
FOLLOWING THE SUCCESS of last year’s release of ALab, with 4000 downloads to date, Animal Logic is sharing the next enhanced iteration of its open source
Lastproject.year’s release was a fully realised Universal Scene Description (USD) Scene that aimed to encourage further collaboration and exploration by the wider community.
and her offsider Hinge. The new release aims to foster further exploration and adoption of the open-source USD ecosystem while promoting the talent at Animal Logic. ALab has provided an accessible platform for artists and practitioners to develop their individual aesthetics and encourage collaboration across the wider 3D community.
Universal Scene Description (USD) is a framework for interchange of 3D computer graphics data, created by Pixar. As an early adopter, Animal Logic began transitioning its Sydney and Vancouver studios to an end-to-end USD based pipeline during production on Peter Rabbit in 2017 and completing with Peter Rabbit 2 in March of 2020.
In addition to releasing the USD files and textures from the production shot, Animal Logic has created a lit and rendered sequence, directed by Grant Freckelton, who also led the team that designed the ALab assets. The sequence highlights the asset suite’s complexity and quality while introducing the two new characters found in the scene.
Improved Dome Light – A new Finite Dome mode now allows users to control the physical size of their light, according to radius and height. This is especially helpful for rendering objects like cars with proper size and scale in relation to image-based lighting Thin-Film(IBL).
Cosmos Assets – In recent months, Chaos Cosmos has exploded across the VFX world for the way it fast tracks previz work. Over 1,500 assets have been added since V-Ray 5, including detailed vegetation, urban textures and photorealistic materials.
Materials – A new thin-
V-Ray GPU Improvements – Artists now have support for nearly all of the new V-Ray 6 features. A faster Light Cache and a new Device Selector that allows them to assign devices to tasks are available, as Visitwell.
https://www.chaos.com/
ALab ‘Phase 2’ provides a view of a full production scene with over 300 production quality assets, two animated characters with looping animation and baked procedural fur and fabric, all provided as a part of the first open-sourced USD shot context from a studio.
The wider community can now create their own magic with access to the expanded opensource digital production set, including cameras, lights, and two rigged CG characters, Goggles
The ALab data set is supplied as three separate downloads: the full production scene, high-quality textures, and baked procedural fur and fabric for the animated Thecharacters.Animal Logic ALab data set is one of the first digital assets adopted by the Academy Software Foundation’s Digital Production Example Library and is now available to access https://animallogic.com/alabvia
MAXON RECENTLY ANNOUNCED that all Maxon products are now included in its value-packed subscription: Cinema 4D, Redshift, Red Giant, Universe, Forger and now ZBrush, acquired in December of last year, are all included in Maxon One for the same price.
As part of an ongoing effort to bring Redshift to more users, Maxon is pleased to add CPU rendering to the production-proven engine known for incredible GPU performance. This allows users to make use of Redshift’s powerful materials and photorealistic rendering on any system. Users can more intuitively define surfaces and exchange material definitions thanks to a new Standard Material, which also includes improved photorealism from multiscatter energy conservation, D’Eon Lambert Sphere diffuse roughness model, thin film for iridescent materials and improved volumetric motion Maxon’sblur.3Dmodelling and animation solution Cinema 4D is incorporating some of the best technology from the Maxon family, with the addition of Redshift CPU, improved integration with Redshift, and procedural automatic retopology via ZRemesher. Cinema 4D S26 also introduces a fantastic lineup of new procedural and interactive modelling tools and an all-new cloth and rope simulation Redsystem.Giant’s
tools for editors and compositors expand to include Real Lens Flares for creating lens flares based on simulated optical models and ray traced light.
Magic Bullet Looks now includes new Halation and Diffusion tools. Trapcode Particular now supports layer maps. Universe adds four new
immediately download all product updates via Maxon App. Everyone is welcome to download a 14-day trial of the entire Maxon One offering from within Maxon App and experience for themselves all the great new features across the entire Maxon family of products.
RED GIANT
VFX Suite 3 introduces Real Lens Flares based on simulated optical models and ray traced light. This technology preview will evolve with the participation of our artistic Magiccommunity.Bullet
Suite 16 adds new Halation and Optical Diffusion tools for Looks, along with OpenColorIO Trapcodesupport.
Suite 18 now offers M1 support for all Trapcode tools, and layer maps support in Particular.
Universe: Universe 6 adds exciting new tools providing many new options to be creative and enhance an artist’s workflow. Sketchify adds sketch- and toon-like effects to footage, ChromaTown creates chromatic streaks and blurs for warpy looks and transitions, Box Bokeh provides square or diamond shaped lens bokeh effects, and Stretch Transition adds a stretchy crossfade between clips for a warp-like transition. Combined with over 70 new presets, Universe 6 helps artists to get impressive results quickly in a fun and intuitive way.
The latest version of Forger reveals the first stage in Maxon’s plan to provide powerful hard-surface modelling capabilities to 3D artists. Built with Cinema 4D’s polygonal foundation, Forger now offers a selection of polygonal primitives: planes, cubes, spheres, cylinders, torus, pyramids, capsules, oil tanks, etc. These primitives can be shaped and crafted into complex creations with Forger’s awardwinning set of sculpting tools using the powerful yet ingenious Apple
CUTTINGROOM HAS ANNOUNCED the release of its browser-based video editing and publishing tool, designed as the world’s first cloud-native solution for professional editors in the broadcast and AV industries.
On the back of both the significant changes to operational paradigms brought about by the pandemic and an increasingly heavy demand for off-site, remote and distributed production – facilitated in large part by the rise of IP-based broadcast – CuttingRoom seeks to meet the needs of video editors who need to work on collaborative projects in disparate locations, and yet still retain – and indeed improve upon – the reliability, operational speed and quality associated with traditional editing suites.
Using an intuitive user interface that incorporates all the expected elements of a source/ sequence/timeline editing package, CuttingRoom also allows for Adobe After Effects templates to be integrated, as well as facilitating closedcaption search and metadata management. Moreover, by virtue of an API-based, open architecture, CuttingRoom is capable of integration with major MAM systems; including Vimond, Mimir, Iconik and Wolftech.
In terms of technical specifications, CuttingRoom can ingest both live and recorded video, stills and audio in a range of formats, which can be published in a variety of bitrates, aspect ratios and containers. Rendering is
Visitteams.currentlycollaborativestronger,24/7reliabilitytimegeographicalcanofpracticaluniquethatsimultaneousIndeed,thedeliveredsimultaneously,renderingMostthanCuttingRoom–videoexperiencefoundersregardlessperformancequicklyconcurrently,undertakendeliveringoutputswithaconsistentthatismaintainedofload.CuttingRoom’s–whodrawfromtheirasthecreatorsofstreamingproviderVimondestimatethateditingwithcanbe25xfastertraditionalapproaches.crucially,botheditingandcanbeundertakenwithoutputstoanylocationacrossglobe.itisthiscapacityforcollaborativeworkrepresentsCuttingRoom’sproposition;withnolimitsonthenumbersimultaneoususerswhoworkonaproject,noboundariesorzonelimitations,withguaranteedbybuilt-inredundancy,thereisnofasterormoreintuitiveeditingtoolavailabletocreativewww.cuttingroom.com
AVID TECHNOLOGY and Amazon Studios have announced a three-year agreement to bring cloud-based editorial to Amazon Studios’ expanding slate of more than 300 original movies and series. Creative teams will get the same experience and performance as an onpremises editorial bay – including collaborative workflows with shared storage and end-to-end media management – without the complexity and time required to set up and tear down traditional Editorshardware.need to access massive sets of media files that have traditionally been stored in the same location as the editing team. In collaboration with Avid, Amazon Studios will untether their editorial process to allow creative work to happen from almost anywhere, and centralise the editorial and
content workflows in the cloud. This collaboration will bring Avid’s Emmy-winning Media Composer software tool and Avid NEXIS media storage solutions to editors and other content contributors wherever they are, supporting creative teams that are spread across the globe.
“Amazon Studios is prolific in its sheer output of original series and features that achieve the highest standard of creativity and quality,” said Jeff Rosica, Chief Executive Officer and President of Avid. “By building their creative workflows around a complete set of Avid tools and platforms in the cloud, Amazon Studios is kicking off a new era of productivity and collaboration for their creative teams and contributors. Avid is delighted that our open technologies are being chosen by more customers who are innovating how content is
produced in the cloud, on a global Thisscale.”collaboration is an important step forward for Amazon Studios’ vision of a globally “Weplatform.Avid’swhichstudio-in-the-cloudscalableplatform,willeventuallyincludeMediaCentralproductionareonajourneytoprovide a best-in-class creative platform for our productions,” explains Ben Stanbury, Worldwide Head of Technology for Amazon Studios. “Studio in the Cloud is our overarching vision for how we provide our creative teams with a cloud-based toolset that they can use wherever they are in the world. Avid is a central component of this vision, so we are thrilled to be starting this new partnership with them.”
By leveraging AWS and its global infrastructure, Amazon Studios will further centralise
production assets in the cloud, creating a smoother, more unified production workflow. Production and Post-Production teams will spend less time duplicating and transferring media to critical team members, allowing more time to be spent on high-value creative efforts. Productions will also enjoy the peace of mind that comes from having their content, including camera raw files, protected by automatic processes that distribute data across several AWS Regions.
Avid and Amazon Studios expect to have cloud-based, productionready solutions by fourth quarter Visit2022.www.avid.com
AS PART OF THE COMPANY’S continuing effort to add value to its subscription offerings, Maxon is pleased to announce the addition of 50+ 4K premium tiled textures to the Maxon Capsules collection, designed to bring photorealism to artists’ renderings by adding minor flaws to the surfaces of 3D objects. The greyscale maps feature a mix of scratches, dust specs, smudges, fingerprints, hairs, residue, isolated fingerprints, all scanned from real surfaces and meticulously tiled. The Surface Imperfections Volume 1 texture library was created by David Gruwier and has been licensed by Maxon for immediate royalty-free use by all Cinema 4D
and Maxon One subscribers. For years surface imperfections or grunge maps have been the secret sauce of top professionals. By subtly layering in surface imperfections like dust, scratches, fingerprints and smudges – artists can take their renders from good to great. Building textures like this takes expensive equipment, specialised techniques, and the time and patience to make them tileable. Maxon is thrilled to make this commercial library available free to all Cinema 4D users without the hassles of project-by-project Visitlicensing.www.maxon.net
THE MEDIALIGHT PRO2 Bias Lighting System was created for directors, editors and colourists who need the highest CRI and the most uniform spectral power distribution in a bias light for their professional displays.
The Pro2 uses a new class of ColorGrade MPro2 SMD (LED) chips, powered by blue-violet emitters that virtually eliminate LED emitter spike, with a colour rendering index (CRI) of 99 Ra, TLCI 99.7 Qa, and Spectral Similarity Index (SSI) of 88. The flicker-free dimmer operates at
30KHz (30,000Hz versus 220Hz for other MediaLight dimmers –sold separately so you can add them to your existing setup.
If you haven’t come across SSI before, it’s a comparison of a light source to a reference illuminant; in this case, the CIE standard illuminant D65. It compares the spectral power distribution (SPD) of the light source to the SPD curve for D65.
For the sake of comparison, the very accurate MediaLight Mk2, with CRI 98 Ra, has an SSI of 70.
Visit www.shopfsi.com
AJA HAS DEBUTED COLORBOX, a portable, high-performance device with inline algorithmic colour transforms and LUT processing capabilities delivering precise and accurate colour space conversions for live broadcast, live events, on-set production and post production. ColorBox enables a range of HDR and SDR conversions and allows DITs to easily load, modify, and save looks, and create reference images for dailies to ensure colour accuracy across all production stakeholders and creative ColorBoxvendors.arrivesas more productions are standardising on 4K/UltraHD HDR, with colour and LUT management proving essential to creating and achieving looks for live and scripted content. Designed to support a wide range of look management approaches on-set and in live production environments, ColorBox features 12G-SDI in/out and HDMI 2.0 out for up to 4K/UltraHD 60p 10-bit YCbCr 4:2:2 and 30p 12-bit RGB 4:4:4 signal support. ColorBox includes AJA Color Pipeline (ACP) Mode with a 33-point 3D LUT processor with tetrahedral LUT interpolation, four built-in user-configurable 1D LUTs, and two 3×3 user-configurable matrices. ColorBox users also benefit from a built-in RGB colour corrector and ProcAmp, extensive LUT, matrices and image libraries, powerful capture and recall capabilities, ancillary (ANC) metadata management, and more. All of this is easily controlled via an integrated web browser-based interface.
In total, ColorBox offers five Modes with one active at any given time.
• AJA Color Pipeline (ACP)
• Colorfront
•
• BBC HLG LUT (Optional license –watermarked preview)
• NBCU
HPA Award
winning Colorfront Engine, the new Colorfront Mode in AJA’s exciting new ColorBox offers state of the art conversions between SDR and HDR content,” explained William Feightner, CTO, Colorfront. “As opposed to traditional LUT based processing, the Colorfront Engine’s Human Perceptual Model algorithm assures flawless artefact free conversions. This ensures the preservation of creative intent.”
“ORION-CONVERT was developed out of the need to create bespoke colour-managed conversions for our clients at Cromorama. The ease of use and the simplicity of the user interface together with unprecedented highlight control help deliver the most challenging live broadcasting events and episodic file based content,” explained Pablo Garcia Soriano, Cromorama’s Founder and Head of Colour. “Now with the implementation of ORIONCONVERT in AJA’s new ColorBox we can finally use optimised floating point processing that provides greater precision than can be achieved using standard LUT ColorBoxsolutions.”packs
ultra lowlatency, high-density 4K/UltraHD processing into a portable device with a robust feature set of SDR/ HDR/WCG colour transforms for many applications. Extensive frame capturing features include pre-processed image capture or post-processed output capture for reference stills with overlaid metadata, such as video payload IDs, pipeline configuration, and customizable user text. These frame captures can be saved locally and exported to the configuration PC running the web browser-based
ColorBox user interface. A built-in USB OTG port lets users easily configure ColorBox wirelessly via a 3rd party USB WiFi adapter. 12G-SDI and HDMI 2.0 outputs provide up to 4K/UHD video for local monitoring, and an additional 12G-SDI loop through output is available for connecting the unaltered source to other
ColorBoxdevices. feature highlights
•include:Upto 4K/UltraHD 60p 10-bit YCbCr 4:2:2 and 30p 12-bit RGB 4:4:4 signal support.
• 12G-SDI in/out, with loop out.
• HDMI 2.0 output.
• 5 Modes available: AJA Color Pipeline, Colorfront, NBCU, BBC HLG, ORION-CONVERT.
• Extensive colour processing using AJA Color Pipeline: 1D LUTs, 3×3 Matrices, and 3D LUT nodes for image manipulation/ correction.
• Optional licences for varying image processing needs, including BBC HLG LUTs and ORION-CONVERT with optimised floating point processing provides greater precision that can be achieved by standard LUT boxes.
Visit colorboxhttps://www.aja.com/ Unveils ColorBox
• Light-weight portable form factor that easily fits on the desktop or up to 4 units in a 1RU rack.
• Intuitive and convenient web browser-based user interface with Video Preview for confidence monitoring.4K/ UltraHD Frame Store capture and recall of 16-bit .TIFF, .JPEG, or .PNG files.
• Powerful built-in test pattern generator for simple setup and signal path validation.
• Extensive DevelopmentAPI/SoftwareKit(SDK)for thirdparty control of every parameter.
• The ability to key information onto a processed output with Overlay for local use or capture with customizable user fields.
• Ultra-low latency to ensure sources remain within the timing window of the downstream switcher in live production workflows.
• HDMI 2.0 output for 4K/UltraHD HDR enables cost-efficient monitoring on consumer displays.
• USB OTG port and third-party WiFi adapter provides wireless access to the web UI when a wired Ethernet connection is not available.
• ANC management with a userdefined field that can be overlaid or embedded in frame store .tiff files.
AUTODESK SAYS THE M&E industry is craving increased flexibility and affordability across entertainment content creation with VFX and animation required for almost all content produced, whether it’s for a film, a game, or a Tocommercial.satisfythis craving, Autodesk has launched Maya Creative to make content creation more accessible by lowering the barrier to entry for artists at smaller facilities. This more affordable and flexible version of Maya is an option for anyone looking to scale capacity or access professional 3D tools.
VFX facilities, as an example, are being pressured to create high quality content, quickly, for streaming services working to delight their subscribers. Eight in 10 people used video on-
demand services in the last two years according to a recent Statista survey.
“Although they’re increasing, production budgets are not keeping pace with consumer demand, which puts pressure on companies to do more for less,” said Diana Colella, SVP, Media & Entertainment, Autodesk. “As larger facilities enlist freelance artists and boutique VFX houses to scale workload capacity, there is more demand for affordable industry-standard tools.
For studios to compete, creativity and efficiency are Mayaparamount.”Creativefeatures powerful modelling, animation, rigging, and rendering tools for film, television, and game development, including Maya’s full industry-standard creative toolset: high-end 3D modelling; UV, lookdev,
and texturing; motion graphics; animation deformation; camera sequencing; rendering and imaging; and data and scene assembly. Maya Creative also includes Arnold renderer to meet the demands of complex and photoreal VFX and animation workflows.
Maya Creative is available on both Windows and Mac, and artists can use it as it makes sense for their work through Flex, Autodesk’s pay-asyou-go option for daily product use. Autodesk’s goal was to introduce a cost-efficient option for freelancers, boutique facilities, or small business creative teams, who don’t need the same API access or extensibility required for larger production workflows.
Visit maya-creative/overviewhttps://www.autodesk.com/products/
AT THE RECENT 139th MPEG meeting, MPEG Technical Requirements (WG 2) issued a Call for Evidence (CfE) for technologies and solutions enabling efficient feature coding for machine vision MPEG’stasks.
exploration work on Video Coding for Machines aims at compressing features for machine-performed tasks such as video object detection and event analysis. As neural networks increase in complexity, architectures such as collaborative intelligence, whereby a network is distributed across an edge device and the cloud, become advantageous. With the rise of newer network architectures being deployed amongst a heterogenous population of edge devices, such
architectures bring flexibility to systems implementers. Due to such architectures, there is a need to efficiently compress intermediate feature information for transport over wide area networks (WANs). As feature information differs substantially from conventional image or video data, coding technologies and solutions for machine usage could differ from conventional humanviewing-oriented applications to achieve optimised performance. With the rise of machine learning technologies and machine vision applications, the amount of video and images consumed by machines has rapidly grown.
Typical use cases include intelligent content management, etc., which incorporate machine
MOBIUS LABS, a developer of AI-powered metadata technology, has announced a technology partnership with Cloudinary, the media cloud platform that powers many of the world’s top brands, including Atlassian, Bleacher Report, Bombas, Grubhub, Hinge, NBC, Mediavine, Minted, Peloton and Petco. Through this integration, Cloudinary DAM users will be able to leverage the capabilities of Mobius AI search, discovery and metadata
AI-powered solutions enable ultra-fast image and video content analysis and creation of descriptive metadata. Through this new partnership, brands and content owners will have access to an intuitive set of features to help them search for, discover and analyse visual assets, and it will enable them to completely re-index their libraries without the need to return to original content. The combination of Cloudinary’s
end-to-end
vision tasks such as object detection, instance segmentation, and object tracking. Due to the large volume of video data, extracting and compressing the feature from a video is essential for efficient transmission and storage.
Feature compression technology solicited in this CfE can also be helpful in other regards, such as computational offloading and privacy protection.
Over the last three years, MPEG has investigated potential technologies for efficiently compressing feature data for machine vision tasks and established an evaluation mechanism that includes feature anchors, rate-distortion-based metrics, and evaluation pipelines.
Discussion of the submissions in response to the CfE will take place
at the 140th MPEG meeting in October 2022.
Also at the 139th MPEG meeting, the MPEG Joint Video Experts Team with ITU-T SG 16 (WG 5; JVET) issued a Committee Draft (CD) text for the third edition for the video part of the CodingIndependent Code Points (CICP) standard (ISO/IEC 23091-2, a.k.a. ITU-T H.273). This new edition will include two new YCgCo-R colour type identifiers enabling efficient luma-chroma representations with improved support of lossless conversion to and from RGB colour spaces without requiring support of different bit depths for luma and Visitchroma.https://www.mpeg.org/
DESIGNED FOR THOSE who need to search and browse their media catalogue quickly without adding data, Etere Web Lite lets users take their media wherever they go.
“We are delighted to be recognised as an added value partner that can offer something over and above what’s currently available on the market, particularly in the areas of AI tagging, search and retrieval,” said Appu Shaji, CEO and Chief Scientist at Mobius Labs. “We are excited to now be a part of the well-established Cloudinary ecosystem with their amazing reputation in the Programmable Media and DAM marketplace.”
Visit https://www.cloudinary.com and https://www.mobiuslabs.com/
Etere has launched a new web interface as an on-demand approach to content access, management, and multiplatform delivery. Etere Web Lite is a streamlined version of Etere Web that caters to management teams. Etere Web Lite brings faster access to information and a seamless content flow.
Etere Web Lite enables instant access to data such as asset title, year of production, genre, cast, story, and even media preview, from any web browser with a secured login. It empowers media professionals with a quick and easy overview of all assets in the media library from any smart device, including PC, tablets, and mobile phones.
Meanwhile, Etere Ecosystem implements security and business continuity policies that connect teams to resources seamlessly for a more efficient workflow. Its intuitive and feature-rich web toolkit brings an integrated and secure way of accessing, integrating, and automating workflows, whether onpremise, on the field, or from home. Collaboration between distributed teams is made easier than ever.
Visit https://www.etere.com/
Object recognition from Mobius Labs.XL8, A SILICON VALLEY tech company providing AI-powered machine translation technology optimised for media content, has unveiled its MediaCAT platform for seamless, AI-based media localisation. This powerful web-based platform adds asset management, editing, and automation capabilities to complement XL8’s existing content services.
MediaCAT can automatically extract lines from media content, match the timecode, and translate content to the desired language pair –or multiple language pairs simultaneously. The platform enables in-line post-editing and the addition of synthetic dubbing or voice-overs, allowing users to audition specific voices quickly with just a few clicks.
“Content owners and service providers are under increasing pressure to meet the exploding worldwide demand for media titles and deliver hyper-localised translated media to a growing number of platforms,” said Janice Pearson, SVP of Sales and Strategy at XL8. “They need tools that not only automate and streamline the process but also scale to work at the speed of their Addingbusiness.”thesenew
capabilities to XL8’s existing suite of Machine Translation Post-Edit (MTPE) services makes MediaCAT the most convenient and unified translation solution available for human translators. MediaCAT will allow users to edit timecode and set limits per segment
for a thesubtitletranslatedin-linewithintool.These
features significantly reduce tedious and repetitive tasks often associated with traditional translation workflows since XL8’s translation engine is specifically optimised for media willplatform,itsalsoAttranslation.contentIBC,XL8haspreviewedEventCATwhichcomplementXL8’s
existing live subtitling capabilities for live broadcasts and events and provide an on/offline interpretation platform supported by a global network of thousands of Theinterpreters.combination of MediaCAT and EventCAT allows linguists to streamline their workflows while unlocking the full power of Artificial Intelligence to support efficient and costeffective media and conversational localization. All products and services are designed to help localization professionals with the power of XL8’s human-like machine translation engine. XL8’s full array of media content services
OBJECT MATRIX has announced a series of new technical partnerships, including integrations with Hiscale, MASV, Pebble Beach Systems, and Drastic Technologies. The partnerships will enhance workflows and infrastructure for MatrixStore customers and demonstrate the company’s ongoing commitment to technical innovation.
Object Matrix provides media focused object storage solutions to organisations that need to manage video assets or rich media files. Its flagship solution, MatrixStore, enables organisations to benefit financially and operationally from modernising video archive workflows and providing instant access to all media assets from anywhere.
With built-in security, analytics, and intuitive interfaces, MatrixStore delivers operational efficiencies, full digital content governance, and multiple mediabased workflows.
Software development company Hiscale, has integrated its flexible transcoding solution, FLICS, with MatrixStore, providing users with a scalable transcoding solution that can manage instances across various platforms. As a result of the partnership, broadcast, media and entertainment companies can easily and quickly access transcoding and proxy workflows whilst benefiting from a secure media archiving solution.
Object Matrix has partnered with the large file transfer platform, MASV, to provide an
integrated file transfer storage solution for the broadcast and media industry. The combination of these technologies brings together size, speed, security, and stability, using Object Matrix’s file system interface, S3Connect, which enables the user to read and write data and metadata to MatrixStore object storage.
Pebble Beach Systems, a leader in broadcast playout automation, has integrated its automated, channel, IP, and virtualised playout technology with MatrixStore. This will provide users with the ability to deliver highly automated, integrated video for ingest, channel branding, and frame-accurate multi-channel playout. The partnership has created an accessible avenue for broadcast media companies, who need to schedule multi-channel broadcasting, with seamlessly efficient access to their archived media
Post-productionassets.andsports broadcasting solutions developer, Drastic Technologies, has partnered with Object Matrix to provide users with the ability to organise and streamline their postproduction and broadcast media. The integration enables users to access their content securely from anywhere, at any time, whilst ensuring that any access to assets is secure, efficient, and simple.
Visit https://object-matrix.com/
includes text and subtitle translations; auto subtitling based on speech recognition through ASR, auto-captioning, synchronisation; and synthesised dubbing and voice-overs. The company’s translation technology is distinguished from other competitive offerings through its use of Context Awareness models to translate colloquial phrases better. Context awareness allows the technology to truly “localise” content instead of simply translating it “word for word.” XL8’s translation engines can also incorporate specific language formalities by recognizing the relationships between words and Visitcharacters.https://xl8.ai
QUMULO, THE PROVIDER OF of solutions for enterprise file data management across hybrid cloud environments, has announced significantly enhanced security support for network file system protocol NFSv4.1. The company has also announced it has received an attestation of compliance with SOC 2 Type II.
Qumulo introduced Qumulo on Azure as a Service (QaaS) in July of 2021, so that multi-cloud organisations could store, manage, and curate their data with simplicity anywhere. To prove the security of its service across key criteria, Qumulo engaged A-Lign, an independent auditing firm, to review its service data controls. This attestation of compliance with SOC 2 Type II for QaaS provides customers peace of mind that the data entrusted to QaaS will be secured.
With the new enhancements to the NFSv4.1 protocol, there is additional support for authentication via Kerberos and file locking control. In NFSv3, users can impersonate any user with root access to their client machine. Kerberos solves this problem with cryptography techniques to securely authenticate users from a central identity provider, such as Microsoft Active Directory Domain Controllers or an opensource Kerberos Key Distribution Center (KDC).
The latest release includes improved lock handling for file access. When files are accessed by a client, they are locked to ensure that other clients cannot write data to the file, preventing potential corruption or version control issues.
NFSv3 had known problems with orphaned sessions leaving files locked, requiring administrators to run a process to release locks from time to time. NFSv4.1 provides superior lock control and time outs to release locked files after some interval of inactivity.
Visit https://www.qumulo.com
Ai-Media is the global leader in subtitle solutions for broadcast. Harness our long-standing industry expertise and technology to caption and subtitle your content, suitable for any budget or technical requirement.
We are the leader in captioning and subtitling for IP video, with cutting-edge virtual video, audio, and captioning workflows. All our solutions are interoperable — making for a smooth transition from SDI toIP solutions. And for those not ready to make the digital leap, we provide a comprehensive range of flexible hardware solutions.
Talk to us about the iCap Alta™ virtual encoder, the market leading caption encoder for IP video. Deployable on hardware, virtualised or public cloud, iCap Alta™ supports Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB) standards. It also supports SRT, which ensures low-latency, high-performance streaming across unpredictable networks like the public internet.to any SDI
AVID UNVEILEDHAS the next generation of its Avid NEXIS shared enginesofF-seriesthesolutionsstoragewithAvidNEXISfamilystorageand
Avid NEXIS | VFS (virtual file system). Available now, the Avid NEXIS F-series solutions allow media production teams of all sizes to work from anywhere by providing secure, remote access to media and metadata across online, nearline, cloud and archive storage. Avid NEXIS | VFS allows users to deploy Avid NEXIS storage on-premises, in the cloud, or as a SaaS solution, simplifying their ability to collaborate from anywhere, as well as to adapt and grow their business in today’s rapidly changing media production landscape.
With performance that can scale to more than 30 gigabytes per second, the new family of Avid NEXIS F-series storage engines gives media production organisations the power to accelerate the most complex media workflows. The speed and capacity of the Avid NEXIS F-series accommodates business growth, new projects and remote collaboration without disruption or down time. With its modular, costeffective design, the Avid NEXIS F-series is ideal for any size team, project and workflow.
This new generation of Avid NEXIS shared storage systems, which provides storage with no latency or delay for collaborative and real-time workflows, also includes the Avid NEXIS | PRO+ introduction for smaller collaborative teams. The Avid NEXIS | PRO+ delivers the proven reliability teams demand to optimise the entire lifecycle of
backup, repurposing and archive. Production teams can tackle these tasks without dropping a single frame – even when working with high-res media in the most demanding broadcast and post-production environments.
Serving as the brain of the Avid NEXIS F-series and Avid NEXIS | PRO+, the completely reimagined Avid NEXIS | VFS now virtualises storage into a single pool of shared resources. It accelerates collaborative media workflows by allowing teams of any size to quickly and securely access content from anywhere.
Avid NEXIS | VFS software also features builtin intelligence to automate administrative tasks and allow Avid NEXIS F-series storage to adapt to changing workloads without user intervention. From dynamically reallocating storage capacity and optimising bandwidth to delivering protection with automatic drive rebuild, it provides the agile environment and reliability required for 24×7 operations.
Avid NEXIS | VFS also powers easy collaboration and fast turnaround, no matter what video, audio, news, sports or graphics production tools are being used. Hundreds of users can simultaneously browse, find and share media and projects from anywhere – in the facility, on location, or at home – keeping their organisation’s entire content library and archive
EDITSHARE HAS ANNOUNCED it has joined the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Independent Software Vendor (ISV) Accelerate Program, a co-sell program for AWS Partners that provides software solutions that run on or integrate with AWS. The program helps AWS Partners drive new business by directly connecting participating ISVs with the AWS Sales Membersorganisation.oftheAWS
ISV
Accelerate program are held to the industry’s highest standards and must undergo a comprehensive architectural and security evaluation to gain acceptance into the program. Proof of customer excellence was also reviewed to validate the successes EditShare customers have achieved across industry verticals. EditShare
has an excellent track record in integrating cloud storage into practical solutions which are used by media organisations from national broadcasters to boutique post houses. In turn, this makes it a proven partner for the AWS Partner Network (APN) Customer Engagement Program.
“More and more media industry leaders are making the transition towards cloud and hybrid production workflows, because they support new ways of engaging with creative talents as well as providing the resilience and security of business continuity,” commented Said Bacho, chief revenue officer at EditShare. “The AWS ISV Accelerate Program gives us another route to provide our FLEX cloud storage and asset
“With remote collaboration now being the norm for most production and creative teams around the world, media organisations are looking to scale their infrastructures and take the next step on their cloud journeys without impacting performance or reliability,” said David Colantuoni, Vice President, Product Management for Video and Media Solutions at Avid. “Avid NEXIS lets organisations of all sizes do exactly that. From powering unmatched collaborative performance to bringing intelligence into media workflows and delivering unprecedented flexibility, Avid NEXIS enables remote operations like never before.”
The new Avid NEXIS F-series and Avid NEXIS | VFS are available today as a subscription offering via the recently announced Avid NEXIS | FLEX purchase plan. Avid NEXIS | FLEX subscriptions allow Avid NEXIS customers to gain the financial benefits of an OPEX business model while also simplifying their ability to migrate from a traditional, hardware-based storage deployment to the cloud or SaaS environment. As such, Avid NEXIS | FLEX customers gain lower cost of entry, business agility and exceptional investment protection. Avid NEXIS | FLEX also enables media teams to combine their other Avid subscription solutions such as Media Composer and MediaCentral, providing an all-in-one OPEX engagement with Avid.
Visit https://www.avid.com/products/avid-nexis
management applications to AWS
in the AWS ISV Accelerate program is more than just signing a form,” Bacho added. “A company is invited to join when it has demonstrated both the technical strength of the
solutions and their relevance in the ecosystem, through multiple sales and significant revenues. This is an important accolade for the EditShare platform, and we are proud to be a part of this program.”
Visit https://www.editshare.com
AUSTRALIAN MEDIA company Nine has launched addressable data targeting capability across its digital radio assets.
As part of accessing Nine’s broader 20 million signed in users, advertisers can target logged-in users across Nine’s radio stations, 2GB, 3AW, 4BC and 6PR. With Nine’s audio already delivering more than 10 million live streams each month, live digital streaming on connected devices is now fully addressable alongside Nine’s television assets.
Nine’s data capabilities will include demo, location, 9Tribes – the company’s segmentation product – and intent segments from data partners including Flybuys and Equifax.
Nine’s Chief Sales Officer, Michael Stephenson, said: “We have integrated the Nine Radio data into the broader Nine database of 20 million users, allowing us to understand the behaviours, interests and motivations of our digital audio listeners from their content consumption across Australia’s largest digital content ecosystem.
“Our first-party data is simply awe-inspiring and our technology is world class. 9Tribes has set the bar for segmentation, and through our addressable audio, we know that advertisers will have even more of an edge over their competitors.It’s targeted advertising with serious scale.”
In addition to the targeting capabilities, Nine says it will offer attribution reporting from its location data partner, Near. Advertisers will
be able to measure the effectiveness of their audio ads in driving listeners in-store.
Ashley Earnshaw, Director of Sales – Total Audio, said: “The future of radio is Total Audio, the combination of live radio, digital live stream and podcasts. Nine’s addressable solutions allows advertisers to harness the significant scale of our digital listening, with the refinement of deeper people based targeting, across those relevant segments for their
“Withbrands.morepersonalised and more targeted advertising, we have a unique opportunity to drive deeper effectiveness and data-led audio solutions for clients. At Nine, we continue to evolve and drive the power of people based marketing across our audio solutions.”
Nine is also to launch its own premium cross-platform traffic brand, NTN, delivering up-to-date and comprehensive traffic news and allowing advertisers access to a unique platform that can give brands the ability to own traffic updates across the company’s NTNproperties.willlaunch with live reports across Nine’s market-leading radio stations 2GB, 3AW, 4BC and 6PR, audio live streaming and digital platforms in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth.
With the traffic network also set to roll out in Nine’s television breakfast program TODAY in 2023, brands will be able to access a premium
product with high reach and frequency across audio, television and digital.
With Nine’s audio platforms delivering more than 10 million live streams a month, and Nine’s talk stations achieving their biggest ever audience with two million listeners a week, NTN will be a unique product for brands to drive short-term reach and communicate retail messages at scale.
“Our premium traffic network is a new cross platform alternative to traditional traffic products,” said Michael Stephenson, Nine’s Chief Sales Officer. “We are number one in radio and number one in streaming – we have serious cross platform scale. NTN is a premium cross platform product where brands can own traffic at scale across Australia’s leading radio network, audio live streaming, digital platforms and, ahead, on TODAY. Our premium traffic network should definitely be in every Total Audio media buy.”
Visit https://nineforbrands.com.au
AUSTRALIA’S TWO governmentowned broadcasters have launched a collaboration that will expand in-language news and information for audiences across the Pacific.
Under a new content-sharing agreement, SBS Radio content from the SBS Gagana Samoa program will be carried on Australia’s broadcaster,internationalABCRadio Australia.
Claire M. Gorman, ABC Head of International Services, described the ABC/SBS collaboration as an important commitment to Pacific
“Foraudiences.morethan 80 years, Radio Australia has been speaking with communities across the Pacific and our service has evolved to include online and digital platforms. This agreement with SBS will increase the availability of in-language content for the benefit of our Pacific audiences,” she Undersaid.the agreement, SBS Gagana Samoan will be heard in the Samoan capital Apia and across the Pacific region on ABC Radio Australia.
NAURU, LOCATED IN the Pacific Ocean’s Micronesia region is a single island country with a 23mm² area. Its population of 10,000 is the world´s secondsmallest after Vatican City.
Radio Nauru was founded in 1968 as the only government-
owned non-commercial radio station. It operates as the Nauru Broadcasting Service, launching its content via online and on 105.1MHz FM from its facilities in Yaren – main city of the island.
Radio Nauru offers a wide range of programmes, including
Produced by SBS Radio in Sydney, the SBS Gagana Samoan team creates content for radio and online, from an Australian perspective across a range of issues important to Samoan language speakers.
David Hua, SBS Director of Audio and Language Content, said the multilingual public broadcaster was pleased to be partnering with ABC Radio Australia to help expand the reach of its content into the Pacific.
“We already see interest in our digital stories from outside of
Australia and we are very pleased that content, such as SBS Samoan, will have an expanded reach across the Pacific under this “Thisarrangement.dealseesboth public broadcasters highlighting their various strengths and working together in a way which benefits overseas audiences with unique and trusted in-language content from an Australian perspective.”
Visit https://sbs.com.au and https://www.abc.net.au
traditional culture, news, classical music, as well as ancest local music. It also broadcasts some programmes from Radio Australia and Traditionally,BBC.
Radio Nauru has always worked with analogue equipment. But recently, the
technical management of the radio station has decided to upgrade one of its studios with digital technology and have chosen the AEQ CAPITOL IP console as the heart of the new Visitstudio.http://www.aeq.es
ASHLEY SEWARD MOTORSPORT is one of the most successful teams in motorsport. The team runs cars in multiple categories with its biggest focus being the Porsche Carrera Cup in Australia. The team is also known for its leading edge in terms of the technology it brings to motorsport. Earlier this year, when the team took delivery of its new Porsche 992 cars, for comms the team turned to long term technology partner D2N –Technology Solutions.
Team owner, Ashley Seward explained, “I’ve known D2N MD, Jason Owen, for many years through the motorsport industry where D2N are known without question as the leader in comms solutions. Ashley Seward Motorsport runs in a couple of categories in national motorsport where radios and headsets play a huge part and are extremely important in a race team in order to communicate with your driver.” Owen was instrumental in developing and implementing the original deal with Hytera to sponsor the Porsche Carrera Cup in Australia. This deal involved supplying each team with a radio package for the category with D2N providing after sales, service and Oversupport.timealmost every Porsche team found their way to D2N for their comms solutions and Seward says he knows why.
He commented, “Quality is top of
the list in terms of requirements and D2N have always provided this. The clarity in the quality of the comms that are used is very important, literally as important as the cars’ performance. No comms means no race wins, or certainly a very big disadvantage you have to overcome. Without doubt, reliability and quality are the top two priorities and these are the areas D2N excel in.”
D2N also builds and supplies custom wiring looms for the Porsche category. These are ready-made to length with Porsche specific connectors on, so they are plug and play.
Owen added, “We have also developed our own range of noise cancelling headsets giving the customer a layered product choice from an entry level option right up to a Formula 1-style professional product. One thing D2N recognised years ago was how poorly the RF side of things was being done in motorsport. Low quality antenna cables, poor mounting and lots of incorrect antennas led to terrible comms. Over the years we have made correcting this a real focus and now the teams enjoy easy gains by using the right kit.”
As Seward mentioned, the team took delivery of new Porsche 992 race cars earlier this year and calling on D2N to provide the latest in comms solutions was a significant and important move. Seward explained, “The Porsche
TO TAKE ADVANTAGE of the production boom created by streaming giants such as Netflix, Amazon, and Disney, and a subsequent demand for localised media content, Kiwa Digital, NZ-based developer of VoiceQ audio post-production software has announced a collaboration with US-based XL8, developer of AI-powered machine translation technology optimised for media content.
XL8’s machine translation technology creates opportunities to focus labour on more productive and creative tasks, instead of tedious and repetitive activities that are better suited for automation and AI-powered workflows. Efficiencies gained from less post-editing results in faster delivery times, increased throughput, higher profitability, and reduced costs, thus allowing clients to take on more work while staying competitive with their Torates.increase
accuracy, XL8’s technology applies ‘context awareness’, which enhances the
992 race cars are very important to our team and we knew that only D2N could help us achieve the best outcome for their comms. I know I can call Jason at any time, 24/7 and he and D2N will support us without question. No-one else even comes close in terms of customer service and having a real understanding of the motorsport operating Ashleyenvironment.”Seward Motorsport uses D2N comms solutions from car to pit and pit to car. At some tracks, such as Bathurst, Adelaide, Gold Coast, Townsville and Newcastle a repeater solution is required to give the track coverage required.
In these cases, D2N also supplies the repeater packages to a number of teams on short term Owenhire.
said, “We also provide guidance on how to program their radios with the aim of getting the best quality audio possible. Another critical element is the helmet kit. If you start with poor quality audio at the car, then it’s an uphill battle all the way to try and improve it. D2N offers two ranges of helmet kits and due to their success, we sell hundreds of them every year across the Visitglobe.”https://www.d2n.com.au
immersive experience for audiences while watching live or pre-recorded streaming or broadcast content.
VoiceQ’s dubbing technology makes it easy for translators, adapters, creative directors, sound engineers, and project teams to work together simultaneously, reflecting the industry’s new ways of working. Efficiencies gained from faster, higher quality adaptation and recording improve workflow, delivery times, higher profitability, and reduced costs. VoiceQ’s efficiency is based on the ability to adapt up to 80 script lines per hour, edit and amend scripts in real-time on the fly and record up to 40 lines or 80 cues per hour. VoiceQ’s quality is based on the ability to visually compare the script adaptation with the media file, providing a precise ‘word level’ guide for creative and technical talent.
VoiceQ clients can access XL8 by simply entering an API key associated with their XL8 Skroll account. Multiple languages can be
captured in one session, translating directly from Skroll into VoiceQ via API connection. Users can simply right click on a line(s) and select translate, and the service will send/ receive from XL8 Skroll.
“Dubbing test case data is compelling,” says Steven Renata, Managing Director of Kiwa Digital. “We’ve witnessed scripts over 16,500 words machine translated by XL8 from English to French in less than thirteen minutes with +90 percent accuracy. Supported by professional human quality assurance the total translation process is less than a day compared to 12-15 days with professional human translation. Adaption of the translated script within VoiceQ reveals a further 10 percent-20 percent improvement in time and quality. These collective efficiencies are transformational for the Visitsector.”https://www.xl8.ai https://www.kiwadigital.comand
NUGEN AUDIO will showcase its latest broadcast and film-focused plug-ins to IBC 2022 attendees at Stand 7.P11. Included among these is a preview of the new Halo Vision software, which is a customisable, real-time visual analysis suite designed for 3D, surround and immersive audio workflows. The company is also presenting the latest updates to its SigMod plug-in, which provides users with greater flexibility within the signal architecture, as well as Paragon, its 3D-compatible convolution reverb.
Operating in up to 7.1.2 channels for the AAX, VST3 and AU formats, Halo Vision features a variety of modules that provide audio professionals with a clearer understanding of every sound aspect. Among the available tools are a Correlation Matrix, Correlation Web and Spectrum, as well as expanded versions of NUGEN’s Frequency Haze and Location Haze functions, and a True Peak meter for each channel. These modules all support mix engineers in their decision-making and troubleshooting process, allowing them to pinpoint problem areas that might be missed using ears alone. Halo Vision can be customised, rearranged and resized to suit any specific workflow, making it perfect for a broad
spectrum of immersive sound projects, from music to film.
NUGEN focused on creativity with the new version of its SigMod plug-in, which now includes mono and split-mono modes. There is also a new ‘Split’ module that allows users to switch between stereo and split-mono formats, providing them with greater flexibility within the signal architecture. NUGEN’s SigMod software provides custom, simple signal architecture with 13 single-process modules to enhance plug-in and DAW functionality. It offers creative ways to work by allowing users to easily insert, swap and move modules to fit to the correction, conversion and tweaking of audio. Included among the available modules are Split, Mid/Side, Protect, Tap, Crossover, Insert, Mute/Solo, Trim, Switch, DC Off-Set, Mono, Phase, and Delay.
With purity of sound at the forefront of this plug-in, Paragon operates in up to 7.1.2 channels of audio, making it perfect for broadcast audio applications, as well as for producing reverb in mono and stereo formats.
Using state-of-the-art technology, Paragon features spectral analysis and precise EQ of Impulse Responses (IR), which are analysed, decomposed and re-synthesised to create new
STUDER AUDIO WILL FEATURE prominently on the Evertz stand at IBC 2022 where the company will highlight exciting additions and upgrades to this famous product range. Studer has been an iconic audio brand for more than 70 years, with the Vista digital mixing consoles found in the control rooms of the world’s most prestigious and modern broadcast facilities. Over the past few months, Evertz has focused on integrating the legendary Studer technology into its own live production workflows. Studer Vista digital consoles and Infinity Core audio mixing and processing are now part of Evertz Software Defined Video Networking (SDVN) solutions, which are leading the industry’s transition to IP. These developments making an enormous difference to customers as they can now access complete solutions for IP-based video and audio production.
On stand 1.F76 in Hall 1, Evertz will introduce the Vista 1 Carbon, a 22 fader, all in one, compact console that is the latest addition to the well-established Studer Vista console range. Designed for live events, broadcasts, remote and Outside Broadcast (OB) productions, Vista consoles are both flexible and powerful, boasting a Digital Signal Processing engine that offers over 1,000 channels and busses, and more than 6,000 physical I/O. By utilising the same application software across the entire range, Studer gives customers an easy transition from one console to another, whether they are working on the new Vista 1 Carbon or the 72 fader, fully redundant flagship Vista X. In addition to the Vista 1 Carbon, Evertz will also be showing the new Studer Infinity-ST server core, which features a new CoreLink card
audio interface that provides both IP based ST2110-30 and Studer proprietary A-link native connectivity. With more than 6000 inputs and outputs, the Infinity ST1100’s cutting edge CPU technology also boasts 1100 simultaneous DSP channels and busses to mix, while the Infinity ST550 provides a cost effective alternative for those not needing the high level horsepower. The Infinity-ST series maintains Studer’s sample-locked 100 percent redundancy option giving today’s high pressure, high stakes productions the protection it demands.
Completing the Evertz Studer line up for IBC is the Micro Series – a high end digital audio
authentic spaces. This ensures a small digital footprint for the IR library and makes it possible to configure limitless combinations of spaces with just a few adjustments to the settings. Further, it features individually configurable crosstalk; unique technology for re-synthesis of authentic IRs, HPF and LPF; and switchable LFE. New presets and an improved browser, with ‘search’, ‘tagging’ and ‘favourite’ functions were recently added specifically for exterior scenes, which are found in nearly every movie or TV production.
Visit https://nugenaudio.com
mixing system in a compact, cost effective package that give users everything they need in one Comprisedbox. of the core unit, a graphical user interface and an optional fader control surface, the Micro Series is ideal for radio and TV broadcast, production studios, ENG/DSNG and more. Its convenient HTML5-based user interface means that the Studer Micro can be fully controlled from the web browser on virtually any tablet or computer.
Visit https://evertz.com
RADIO BROADCASTERS looking to improve their monetisation and fill unsold ad inventory in their digital offerings have a powerful new ally with programmatic ad services from pioneering streaming and podcast solutions experts StreamGuys. Particularly ideal for mid-market and smaller stations with limited in-house advertising sales resources, StreamGuys’ independent, programmatic services leverage multiple demand-side platforms (DSPs) and provide customers with combined scale to maximise their revenues and profits while delivering high value to advertisers.
“For years, many stations have been offering streaming and podcasting at a loss simply to make their content accessible on all of the platforms their audiences wanted,” said Tyler Huggins, director of advertising, StreamGuys.
“Many large-market stations and enterprise groups have successfully turned their digital offerings into profit sources, but the complexity and infrastructure requirements of the advertising landscape left smaller broadcasters struggling with digital monetisation. Our programmatic ad services help mid-market and even small-market stations increase their revenues and generate profits from their online streams and Broadcasterspodcasts.”cantakeadvantage of StreamGuys’ programmatic ad services with minimal effort. StreamGuys utilises serverside ad insertion (SSAI) and a waterfall method to target available inventory in real time and
connect any unfilled impressions to StreamGuys’ ad marketplace.
“Clients don’t need to change anything they’re doing on a day-to-day basis. They continue to sell as much inventory as they can through their existing methods, and anything they can’t fulfil goes to StreamGuys automatically for us to try to fulfil through the marketplace.” explained Huggins. “Our programmatic services look through all the different ad networks we support to match top positions and toppaying advertisers to optimally fulfil open positions. Clients don’t need to approve individual ads, talk to the advertisers, or schedule and craft their own creatives. They essentially just tell us they want to get more revenue from the inventory they’re not filling, and we take care of the rest.”
Unlike services that are aligned with or favour specific ad networks, StreamGuys’ programmatic advertising offering is independent and leverages relationships with multiple demand side platforms. With dozens of ad groups concurrently bidding on the same priority level, StreamGuys can help clients maximise revenue for their campaigns and fulfil more requests than would be possible working with a single ad group. By grouping together and categorising the inventory for multiple client stations, StreamGuys can also make more attractive offers to advertisers than individual
stations would be able to achieve on their own. StreamGuys’ programmatic advertising offering also continues the company’s renowned ‘white glove’ customer service philosophy. “Rather than connecting clients to a programmatic network and stepping away, we work closely with them on an ongoing basis to optimise their advertising performance to maximise fill rate and CPM. We also help match clients with advertisers whose spots align with the client’s content guidelines, which is particularly important for public, religious, and family-oriented broadcasters. Our programmatic services are yet another way that StreamGuys is growing to be a single source for all of our clients’ streaming and podcasting needs, from delivery through to monetisation.”
Visit https://www.streamguys.com
GERMAN STUDIO SPECIALIST Neumann.Berlin expands its line of reference-class studio monitors with the KH 150. The bi-amplified, DSP-controlled loudspeaker features the same high-resolution tweeter as all Neumann studio monitors and a newly developed 6.5-inch woofer with ultra-low distortion and high SPL capability. Despite its rather compact format, the KH 150 surprises with outstanding clarity, even at high volume, and extended low-end. The KH 150 has an exceptionally flat frequency response from 39Hz to 21kHz (±3dB) and is recommended for all applications from broadcast to music production. Including styles that require a powerful, deep low-end and/or elevated listening levels such as urban music, EDM, and film scoring.
Digital electronics also allows the KH 150 to be calibrated via Neumann’s MA 1 Automatic
Monitor Alignment (sold separately). “The KH 150 follows the same philosophy as all Neumann studio monitors: highest linearity, lowest distortion, no colouration, and perfect adaptability to any acoustic environment”, states Neumann’s CEO Ralf Oehl. “In our pursuit of sonic perfection, we not only optimise every parameter of the loudspeaker itself, we also include the greatest variable: the listening environment. The KH 150’s DSP engine perfectly integrates with Neumann’s game-changing MA 1 Automatic Monitor Alignment for best possible sound in any room.”
In addition, the KH 150 is extremely energy efficient. Neumann engineers took great care to develop a patent pending amplifier technology which combines superior audio performance with the energy efficiency of Class D. Although the KH 150’s amplifiers deliver up
to 145W to the 6.5-inch woofer and 100W to the 1-inch tweeter, they only consume 17 W at idle. Auto-standby reduces power consumption to 0.3 W when the KH 150 has not been used for a while, but can be deactivated. The KH 150 offers analogue and digital inputs (S/PDIF). It will also be available in an AES67 variant with redundant AES67
audio network ports that are fully compliant with broadcast standards such as ST 2110, ST 2022-7 redundancy, and RAVENNA. At the same time, the KH 150 AES67 is compatible with DANTE-generated AES67 network
Thestreams.KH150 and KH 150 AES67 will be available in September 2022.
Visit https://en-au.neumann.com
AETA AUDIO SYSTEMS is proud to announce the release of Scoop6 double IP mono codec, the latest product in a lineup of recent innovations from the audio and IP codec Scoop6specialists.followsinthe footsteps of the Scoop5s rackmount audio codec. The new unit is, however, more compact and allows users to combine many codecs into just one 19-inch rack unit, even squeezing into crowded MCRs as well as facilitating remote broadcast in OB vans, for Likeexample.Scoop5s, Scoop6 supports multiple network interfaces such as two Ethernet ports as well as 4G and 5G connections, so it’s also adaptable for all types of broadcast applications. Just half the size of a 19-inch
rack unit, the Scoop6 codec offers redundant power supply for safety as well as any kind of audio I/Os with AES67 (Dante or Ravenna) as analog or AES3.
“Just like we’ve upgraded Scoopy+S into Scoopy Flex, we have now modernised Scoop5s with Scoop6. Our job is to offer top-quality technology that lets users benefit from the most advanced features and versatility on the market may it be in remote connections or in the studio,” said Yann Vonarburg, General Manager of AETA Audio Systems.
Scoop6 will be available in October 2022.
Visit https://www.aeta-audio.com
WITH BROADCAST, post production, recording studios and live sound rapidly transitioning to IP Audio, the need for confidence monitoring and diagnostic solutions have increased accordingly in recent years. Nixer Pro Audio specialises in developing, designing and manufacturing high quality and cost-effective AoIP tools that address this growing demand. The RL256, which offers confidence monitoring for high channel count, as well as a clear and intuitive touch display, is ideal for rapid source selection during demanding live events and broadcast transmissions.
Originally, the RL units were designed for use within large multichannel broadcast Master Control Rooms, and with the addition of RL256 an operator can now access up to 256 channels from a single monitoring position, making it ideal for not only Master Control Rooms, but also AoIP-equipped Outside Broadcast trucks.
With four base models in the RL Series, RL256 is the latest and largest addition to the range. It offers connection for 256 AoIP channels, but with the important
note that each of the four Ethernet ports, each carrying 64 channels, can be tailored to offer 1-4 Dante ports or 1-4 Ravenna ports in any combination.
On the Dante side, RL256 supports Dante Controller, Dante Domain Manager, AES67 and SMPTE 2110. And Ravenna models are compatible with AES67, SMPTE 2110 and NMOS. Further, regardless of AoIP format, every port comes with a secondary redundancy connection, as well as dual power supplies to ensure reliable RLoperation.Seriescomes with built-in full-range speakers, but it is also possible to monitor the channels via the Headphones output, as well as AES or balanced line signal on XLR connectors. And on the input side, separate mic and AES inputs are located on the rear panel.
Finally, units that are purchased with 1,2 or 3 ports populated can be upgraded to the full RL256 specification if future needs for even more AoIP channels arise.
Visit www.nixerproaudio.com
Not all wireless is created equal. Audio professionals can encounter challenges using traditional RF technology, but with Evolution Wireless Digital, fundamental limitations of wireless systems are resolved using new technology that is nothing short of groundbreaking. With the EW-DX line, there will be even more professional features for nearly any budget or application.
Discover why EW-DX is the future of wireless. Visit sennheiser.com/ew-dx to learn more about the latest members in the Evolution Wireless Digital series.
The Evolution Wireless Digital Series
PARAMOUNT AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND (ANZ) and KERV Interactive have announced a new partnership harnessing patented technology to deliver dynamic, interactive video ad functionality on Connected TVs.
The companies have collaborated to launch a global-first ad product providing unparalleled optimisation for brands and net-new pathways for audiences to connect, engage and shop.
The dynamic video ad product enables multiple SKU QR codes to be dynamically inserted during ad playback allowing any number of products to be showcased based on customisable inputs as well as iteration based on performance.
Product-related elements can also be shifted dynamically depending on audience location, time, show, deals and even product availability mitigating potential supply-chain issues.
Shani Kugenthiran, Director, Digital Advertising Strategy and Product, Paramount ANZ, said:
“We’re thrilled to partner with KERV Interactive and be first to market in the world with a product that empowers brands to leverage and maximise all advertising variables and make their TVCs work smarter to deliver results.
“We’re enabling our advertisers to establish and maintain relevance by applying real-time circumstances and feedback to their ads that in turn give customers a targeted, unique and positive brand experience that will translate into sales.
“It’s exciting to work with a company where we have such a connection and affinity with shared values, culture and business ambition to be global leaders in CTV advertising.”
Marika Roque, Chief Operating Officer of KERV Interactive, said: “Paramount ANZ is the ideal
THE RELIABLE INTERNET Stream Transport (RIST) Forum has announced that it now has 210 members. A growing number of products that support the RIST transport protocol are now available and many of these were showcased at the recent IBC show, including:mmux,aspin off of SipRadius, demonstrated its RIST-enabled products on the FOR.A booth. Its product line features the new RIST error correction protocol standard and adds one-to-many and manyto-one routing options.
Ateme demonstrated BISS-CA cloud distribution from its encoder to several gateways. RIST is present in Ateme contribution and distribution products, such as its full software solutions Titan Encoder, Decoder, and Gateway and its and Kyrion Encoder and
CobaltDecoder.Digital featured its latest compression product line, the 9992-ENC and 9992-DEC series, which support RIST Simple Profile and Main Profile implementations and also highlighted the SafeLink Gateway that provides protection for live video and audio data over unsecured networks for legacy devices. SafeLink, previously offered as a hardware solution on the Company’s OG-PC openGear card, is now being launched as a software-only form factor and includes support for UDP, RTP, FEC, and RIST Main Profile, with encryption and authentication.
Netinsight showcased its latest innovations in IP & Cloud and also presented in other booths with its solutions. It utilised RIST Main Profile in its demonstration with multiple feeds from several regions
across its Nimbra Edge.
partner for us to pilot our new technology Down Under and together take the world by storm.
“Our fully-dynamic, patented technology is at the nexus of brand and user experience giving advertisers near real-time optimisation that combines the precision of Artificial Intelligence with the power of audience engagement, product and sales insights to maximise ROI.”
Visit https://www.paramountanz.com.au
Open Broadcast Systems demonstrated its range of encoders and decoders that all include support for RIST. It also showcased extremely low latency video over a 5G private network.
Sencore launched the allnew Centra Gateway which represents an end-to-end, holistic orchestration platform that will allow broadcasters to manage their RIST media flows from a centralised, intuitive interface which can either be located in the cloud or on-premise.
Sienna’s ND Processing Engine which adds RTP over RIST modules for reliable low latency 16 channel audio links over the internet and the cloud, was demonstrated on the Amazon Web Services stand. Zixi demonstrated its Software
The HbbTV Association, a global initiative dedicated to providing open standards for the delivery of advanced interactive TV services through broadcast and broadband networks for connected TV sets and set-top boxes, has announced the release of a new version of the HbbTV Conformance Test Suite.
The new version, developed by the HbbTV Testing Group, is called v2022-2; it is the second major release of the Test Suite in 2022. The release contains a total of 3000
test cases, including a mixture of tests that have been approved for the first time, and tests that were updated after feedback from users of the Test Suite.
Prior to this release, the HbbTV Testing Group held a testing event at the beginning of July 2022 to gather the evidence required for the test approval. Twelve companies participated in the event, representing manufacturers, test material providers, and “Thereviewers.constant adjustment to
market requirements and addition of further features is key to the strong industry acceptance of the HbbTV specifications among broadcasters, platform operators and hardware manufacturers as the standard for improving the TV experience and enabling new monetisation opportunities such as Targeted Advertising,” said Vincent Grivet, Chair of the HbbTV Association. “The release of the new HbbTV Conformance Test Suite version ensures that existing and new features quickly and
Defined Video Platform (SDVP) supporting RIST.
For the ATSC markets, DTV Innovations has demonstrated ATSC 3.0 STLTP over RIST since the Nextgen conference. It has implemented STLTP over RIST as part of its ATSC 3.0 TV in a box solution (Medusa CSS) as well as in its stand-alone OX-1 and OX-R. Technically, it can carry arbitrary payload in RIST using just the main profile. It has released the OX-R that can support 48 distinct inputs and more than 500 Mbps of total
QVidiumBW. Technologies, Inc. announced that it includes RIST in all of its products at no additional Visitcharge.https://www.rist.tv/
smoothly reach HbbTV-compliant TV sets and set-top boxes.”
The HbbTV Conformance Test Suite is an important tool for device manufacturers to verify compliance of their products with the most current HbbTV specifications and their features.
The Test Suite is available through one of the registered HbbTV test centres and, as a convenience, to HbbTV members for use in their own facilities.
Visit https://www.hbbtv.org
BLACKMAGIC DESIGN HAS ANNOUNCED DeckLink Mini Monitor HD and DeckLink Mini Recorder HD, new models of PCIe capture and playback solutions featuring 3G SDI and HDMI connections. These updated models of the popular DeckLink Mini cards support video formats up to 1080p60 and 2Kp60 DCI, and are designed to work with advanced colour spaces such Rec. 2020 for deep colour and higher dynamic range. The new DeckLink Mini HD models are also lower DeckLinkcost.
Mini Monitor HD and DeckLink Mini Recorder HD are available now from Blackmagic Design resellers worldwide for AU$205 DeckLinkeach.Mini Recorder HD and DeckLink Mini Monitor HD feature advanced high quality video technology that supports uncompressed and compressed capture and playback at the highest 10 bit SD and HD quality. Both models support broadcast quality 10 bit YUV and 12 bit RGB 4:4:4 for pixel perfect capture and playback so customers get breathtaking image quality and detail. Replacing the previous 1.5G SDI models, the update to 3G SDI has allowed more features to be added such as support for video formats up to 1080p60 and 2Kp60 DCI, wider colour spaces including Rec. 2020, as well as support for RGB video formats.
The new DeckLink Mini HD models are low profile 1 lane Gen 2 PCI Express cards that fit easily into
either desktop or rack mount server style computers with the included full height and low profile PCIe shields. They can capture from decks, cameras and live video sources, and output to monitors, projectors, media servers and more. This is perfect for editing, compositing, graphics production and unlimited broadcast and post production situations where the highest quality video and true versatility are DeckLinkdemanded.MiniRecorder HD lets
customers capture broadcast quality video from 3G SDI and HDMI sources with any PCIe computer. Customers can capture from virtually any SD or HD source including HDCAM, D5, SDCAM, Digital Betacam and more. DeckLink Mini Recorder HD also works with popular video streaming software such as OBS so customers can capture from cameras or live productions switchers and integrate the video directly into live broadcasts.
DeckLink Mini Monitor HD provides broadcast 3G SDI and HDMI video playback from PCIe computers. It is perfect for playing back directly to TVs, video projectors and even live production switchers up to 1080p60. Playback images are a perfect pixel for pixel clone of the file so customers get breathtaking image quality and detail, perfect for critical monitoring. DeckLink Mini Monitor HD even supports the latest HDR formats, so it’s perfect for when customers need professional but affordable colour
VBRICK, THE CLOUD-NATIVE enterprise video solutions provider, is embracing the developer community with the introduction of VPaaS for Developers, a new developer-focused subscription tier that provides full access to Vbrick’s enterprise Video Platform as a Service (VPaaS) capabilities. Previously available only to Vbrick’s enterprise video platform (EVP) customers, VPaaS for Developers is a smaller-scale developercentric licence for Vbrick’s fully extensible video platform. The Vbrick platform provides a robust suite of APIs and SDKs that enables developers to embed powerful video capabilities, including live webcasts, on-demand streaming,
transcription, translation, eCDN distribution, content management, and analytics, into their existing applications and workflows.
“Vbrick customers and partners have successfully utilised our VPaaS capabilities to enhance their internal and external applications with high-quality, secure, and reliable video at scale,” said Shailesh Lohiya, Chief Technology Officer, Vbrick. “By creating a developer-focused VPaaS offering, we are providing the wider development community with access to our technology and encouraging developers to innovate and experiment with building video into their applications to transform their workflows, all while testing
accurate monitoring. Their lower cost means customers can choose to add recording or playback when needed. A good example is when monitoring using NLE software the DeckLink Mini Monitor HD would be the perfect choice. Customers who need simple capture can choose the DeckLink Mini Recorder HD.
“DeckLink Mini Recorder HD and DeckLink Mini Monitor HD are perfect for a wide range workflows as they deliver broadcast quality at a very low cost,” said Grant Petty, CEO, Blackmagic Design. “We are excited to be able to add support for formats up to 1080p60 and 2K DCI to these new cards, as well as including support for advanced colour spaces and HDR. They fit in almost any computer, even low profile server class computers which means that every editing station can monitor or capture in stunning broadcast quality at a very low DeckLinkcost!”MiniMonitor HD and DeckLink Mini Recorder HD
•Features:Twomodels, DeckLink Mini Recorder HD for capture and DeckLink Mini Monitor HD for playback.
• Low profile 1 lane Gen 2 PCI Express cards.
• Includes PCIe shields for both regular and low profile slots.
• Built in 3G-SDI and HDMI connections on each model.
• Supports all common SD/HD video formats up to 1080p60.
• Supports DCI formats up to 2Kp60 via SDI.
• Uncompressed and compressed 10-bit 4:2:2 YUV or RGB quality.
• Supports DaVinci Resolve and all other video software.
• Developer SDK available to download free.
Visit blackmagicdesign.comhttps://www.
the functionality in a production environment before deploying.”
Vbrick VPaaS for Developers allows development teams to implement video quickly using turnkey solutions that eliminate the need to manage complex infrastructure and code. Built-in, rich business logic provides access control and the ability to build on existing roles, while Vbrick’s global distribution ensures efficient delivery of highquality video streams around the world, and the ability to scale to hundreds of thousands of users with the industry’s highest security
“Withstandards.access to Vbrick’s full suite of APIs and video SDK resources, developers have the flexibility to
truly customise their applications and products with video, leveraging the individual aspects and components of our EVP to best meet their organisation’s needs,” said VbrickLohiya.VPaaS for Developers is supported by a team of expert engineers and professional services groups that provide support throughout the enterprise video journey. Subscribers have access to a comprehensive developer hub with how-to tutorials, videos, and reference materials. To learn more or to request a demo, head to vbrick.
Visitcom/vpaas.https://vbrick.com
ROSS VIDEO HAS LAUNCHED a new version of its Ultrix Router –the 12G-ready Ultrix FR12 routing, multiviewer and signal processing platform for studios, OB vans and flypacks. As a softwaredefined platform, users can take advantage of cost, space, and power efficiencies with flexibility and agility.
Key features include: Software defined Pay as You Go –Easily add new features through additional software licenses. No additional hardware required.
12G ready – Ultrix natively supports 12G throughout the entire chassis. This means it’s ready for UHD production when you are, without replacing any hardware or losing Transportcapacity.
agnostic – Ultrix supports SDI, fibre and IP signal I/O. Use all of one or mix and match as you need. Focus on workflow, not on transport. Hyperconverged design – The Ultrix platform is production in a box. Video/audio routing, multiviewers, audio processing, frame synchronisers, clean/ quiet switching, UHD gearboxing, production switchers, audio mixers and more all unified in one single chassis.
Cost savings – Due to its size, base feature set and software capabilities, owners save significant money on upfront capital costs. Additionally, the advanced architecture provides significant ROI in terms of power, cooling, shipping, and space
Ascosts.Director of Product Management for Hyperconverged Solutions at Ross Video, Todd Riggs, explains, “When we launched Ultrix we had 1RU and 2RU frame sizes. A couple of years later we brought the 5RU frame to market. Today, with the launch of the FR12, our award-winning
platform makes a huge leap forward, one that will rock the world for a wide range of featuresThemarkets.”FR12alsoasmart door
that’s an LCD display designed to help users with monitoring the troubleshooting,system, configuring, and control via a highresolution, hasmultiviewers.upquietsyncs,upTDMwithtoThetouchscreenfull-sizepanel.FR12boastsup288x288SDIportsa6144x6144audiofabric,to288frame288cleanswitchesandto48x100PIPItalsouptoeightSDPE
blades that can be configured as a single 8ME Ross Acuity switcher, eight independent Ross Carbonites or even a 4ME Acuity and four independent Carbonites.
Riggs continues, “In the past, a traditional system could use around 500 rack units. Now with the FR12, you’re looking at only 14 rack units for the equivalent solution. That’s over 500 less rack units and freed up space for your business to grow. Less hardware also means less power consumption, so while a typical system could consume 52,300 Watts, the FR12 equivalent system would only consume 2400 Watts. Less hardware also means far less cabling – hundreds instead of thousands – and significantly less weight as the FR12 tips the scales around 100 lbs or 45kg as opposed to a traditional system’s massive 6284 lbs or 2850kg!”
In addition, as the FR12 features an integrated production switcher, allowing users to build entire
LYNX TECHNIK, provider of modular signal processing interfaces, has announced a new Server Module for its yellobrik products. The SVR 1000 server module is a companion product to the company’s Rack Controller; model RCT 1012, which is designed to ease the process of controlling, configuring, and updating the yellobrik line of throw-down bricks.
With the new SRV 1000 yellobrik server module and the yellobrik rack controller, users can
control all yellobriks that are located at different sites from a central location. This enhanced functionality provides facilities with a streamlined interface to control yellobriks centrally, reduces technical onboarding, reduces support time, and ensures centralised yellobrik monitoring, reporting, and other status indicators – for small and large yellobrik systems alike.
The SRV 1000 operates as a central control module for yellobrik
infrastructures with flexibility, performance, and integration.
Other features include:
Rich multiviewer capabilities – Up to 48 Independent multiviewer heads in a single 12RU chassis. Each head supports up to 100 pips. Completely independent and individually controllable providing superior flexibility.
Powerful audio processing and routing fabric – Up to 6k x 6k audio routing and processing fabric comes standard with Ultrix. Up to 6k x 6k embedded, and 2k x 2k discrete audio (through use of the AUX ports) supported. Route, process and configure down to a mono channel, regardless of I/O. Add the optional UltrimixMXR license to the fabric and a virtual, fully routable audio mixer is enabled bringing unique, one of a kind, audio flexibility and capability to the Ultrix chassis. Robust hardware – The multiple patents awarded hardware design is based on attention to little
details. From the sophisticated thermal management, locking card guides and edge connections, advanced internal smart fabric and more, the Ultrix 12G Router has been designed to perform in the harshest environments.
Single frame or distributed architectures – Ultrix can be configured as a single frame solution or as part of a multi-frame distributed architecture.
I/O Cards – Ultrix platforms are built with a modular input and output matrix to easily swap in unique I/O cards that build upon the Ultrix feature set. All these cards are compatible with each other on a single chassis and allow you to customise your Ultrix Connectivity Platform to serve as a 12G-capable router, multiviewer and signal processing platform, a hybrid-IP switcher or a signalprocessing hub.
Visit https://www.rossvideo.com/
installations and applications and is scalable in nature, supporting a single rack to hundreds of racks deployed across many facilities. The control topology is all accessed through the complimentary LYNX Technik software, LynxCentraal application. A single SRV 1000 server module can extend the control of up to 256 Rack Controller yellobriks which in turn can each connect to up to 12 yellobrik
Themodules.SRV1000 is designed to
be used with the yellobrik Rack Controller and yellobrik Rack Frame and provides ethernet LAN connectivity to a yellobrik system for enhanced control (remote or local) from several computers (MAC or PC) or third-party applications. It provides remote control, status monitoring and event error reporting for all yellobrik modules in a https://www.lynx-technik.comVisitsystem.
HITOMI BROADCAST’S MATCHBOX now measures the delay between an event happening in real life and seeing it in picture – latency. Taken either from the front of multiple cameras or at various points through the broadcast chain, readings are displayed in real time with milli-second accuracy. MatchBox Latency further strengthens Hitomi’s applications for remote and virtual productions.
Typically, live broadcast workflows add delay which can vary each time. Different paths need to be synchronised for a seamless viewer experience. For example, in golf coverage graphics that show the trajectory of the ball can take up to a second to generate. If this latency is overcompensated for, you see the flight of the ball before the golfer hits it. The same principle applies when cutting between cameras with different delays, including drones, wired, shoulder-held etc.
Latency can creep up if left unmeasured. The causes of extra latency can frequently be accidental. For example, inherited settings from the last event or pieces of equipment in the chain not actually required.
Live interviews between studio presenters and a remote correspondent require low latency links for a true two-way interactive conversation – audiences dislike
long pauses waiting for replies. MatchBox Latency can measure the speed of links in order to ascertain if faster ones are
Determiningnecessary. offsets theoretically can take up a lot of engineering time; with MatchBox it takes just a matter of seconds. Hitomi’s system is fast, easy to use and MatchBoxsyncandofsimplifyingaccurate,thetaskmeasuringlatencydeliveringalip-readingaswell.isatwo-part
solution. A timed test pattern is launched as the source with a bespoke analyser receiving and decoding it at the destination resulting in the timing measurement. This method can be thought of as a multi-meter for signal timing with a probe at each end of the section of Theinterest.testpattern can originate from either MatchBox Generator or using an iOS device held in front of the camera running our free Hitomi Glass app. A licence is required to decode the latency signal but not to send it. Existing users can simply upgrade their Generator software for free to create the timed signal. This added functionality is invaluable in
KILOVIEW, A PROVIDER OF IP-based video transmission solutions, is pleased to launch worldwide its new 12G-SDI bidirectional converter N50.
Following the successful launch of the N60 converter in April this year, the KILOVIEW N50 is another step ahead in the company’s mission of creating a growing ecosystem of powerful IP-based video transmission solutions. While the N60 focuses on converting HDMI to NDI and NDI to HDMI, the N50 will be able to convert 12G-SDI to NDI and NDI to 12G-SDI, and will also support the direct transmission of USB to NDI signals by integrating both NDI and NDI|HX into one converter.
With greater performance, this allencompassing solution is intended to streamline and simplify processes in any professional
IP-based video transmission environment, including broadcast, news gathering, sports, concerts, medical imaging, and live events. Same as with the N60, the N50 offers unmatched colour depth and transmission efficiency at an incredible price, by supporting 12gG-SDI and both main NDI protocols, as well as delivering both high quality or low latency under the most demanding professional broadcast and AV
Commonconditions.features of the N60 and N50 include:
• NDI and NDI|HX: Both protocols supported with encoding and decoding functionality combined all in one small form factor
• Better colour performance: Up
multi-venue events across several geographic locations, where multiple broadcasters must work Hitomi’stogether.Broadcast Director, Russell Johnson, said, “The customers I have visited using latency have found it to be a game changer. Their workflow is now to check that the latency is what they were expecting first then follow it by measuring lip-sync. This is because if video latency is longer than expected then the lip-sync will be out. Audio arriving early is most disconcerting to viewers as in real life we rarely hear things before we see them.
“The need for “low latency” is much talked about, but rarely quantified,” Johnson continued.
“With MatchBox it can be. As the system is already deployed worldwide with major name broadcasters, widespread adoption of this new technology can be rapid.”
This product is designed to help broadcasters prepare for live transmissions as well as virtual studios and other applications where timing needs to be known, not guessed. It can form part of a remote production toolset helping broadcasters move to more eco-friendly workflows whilst still retaining quality.
https://www.hitomi-broadcast.tvVisit
to YCbCr 4:2:2 colour space and 10 bits colour depth.
• High quality and low latency: 4K video millisecondinputtransmissionbi-directionalwithHDMI/12G-SDIandoutputwheneverycounts.
• Built-in IPS LCD screen: Quick, smart, and clear presentation of all vital parameters for intuitive live direction.
• Scroll wheel: Customise user settings and/or switch and control all video sources with ultimate ease.
• Bring HD USB video into NDI: For customers using USB HD camera sources, the N60 and N50 simply connect to the USB video and transmit it to a NDI source, opening up even more possibilities in NDI production environments.
“Both N60 and N50 offer broadcasters a solution to the difficult and time-consuming process of figuring out which encoder or decoder in the chain accepts an NDI or an NDI|HX stream. Since the N60/N50 may output both NDI and NDI|HX, there is no need to set different NDI formats anymore,” commented Judy Zuo, KILOVIEW’s VP and Head of Sales and Marketing.
“With professional quality of image and low latency performance, the N50/N60 could boost the application of NDI in industries such as professional broadcasting, medical, education, Visitetc.”
https://www.kiloview.com
AVIA - Indonesia in View
Thursday 6, October, 2022
Hotel Mulia Senayan Jakarta, october-2022/indonesia-in-view-6-https://avia.org/all_events/Indonesia
ENTECH Roadshow - Sydney Monday 10 October, 2022 Chatswood com/Chatswood,ConcourseSydneyhttps://www.entech-roadshow.
Spiideo - GO FROM BROADCAST
TO AUTOCAST
October 11 2022, 5 P.M CET Onlinehttps://www.spiideo.com/go-from-broadcast-to-autocast/
ENTECH Roadshow - Melbourne Wednesday 12 October, 2022 Melbourne Conference & Exhibition Centre com/https://www.entech-roadshow.(MCEC)
Broadcast India Show 13–15 October 2022
Jio World Convention Centre Mumbai, comhttps://www.broadcastindia-show.India
ENTECH Roadshow - Brisbane Monday 17 October, 2022 RICC at RNAcom/https://www.entech-roadshow.Showgrounds
APSCC Satellite Conference & Exhibition 18-20 October, 2022 K Seoul,HotelKoreahttps://apsccsat.com
NAB Show New York
October 18-21
Jacob Javits Center Manhattan, https://nabshow.com/ny2022/USA
AES New York 2022 Convention October 20-21
Jacob Javits Center Manhattan, https://aesshow.com/USA
SMPTE 2022 Media Technology Summit 24-27 October, 2022
Loews Hollywood Hotel Hollywood, California, summit2022https://summit.smpte.org/USA
CBAA Conference 2022 Community Broadcasting Association of Australia 27-29 October, 2022
Cairns, QLD, com/cbaa-2021/https://icmsmeetings.eventsair.Australia
Australian Commercial Radio Awards
Saturday 29 InternationalOctoberConvention Centre Sydney, http://acras.com.au/Australia
Asia Video Summit Monday 31 October - Thursday 3 vocoNovemberOrchard https://asiavideosummit.com/Singapore
SATIS 9-10 November 2022 La GreaterPlaine-Saint-DenisParisFrancehttps://satis-expo.com
RadComms 2022 15-16 November, 2022 Grand radcommsMelbourneHyatthttps://www.acma.gov.au/
SportsPro OTT Summit
29th November - 1st December 2022Meliá Madrid,CastillaSpainhttps://eu.sportspro-ott.com/
The IABM’s BaM Live London
Thursday 1st December, 9am-6pm Park Plaza Victoria Hotel, Pimlico, London, london-2022https://theiabm.org/bam-live-UK
SIGGRAPH Asia 2022 6–9 December, 2022 Daegu,EXCO South https://sa2022.siggraph.org/enKorea
CES 2023 January 6-9, 2023
Las Vegas Convention Center Las Vegas, https://www.ces.tech/USA
ABU Digital Broadcasting Symposium 2023
March 6-9, 2023 Kuala dbs2023MalaysiaLumpurhttps://www.abu.org.my/eventer/
DAM Los Angeles 2023 March 23-24, 2023
Loews Hollywood Hotel Los Angeles, events/dam-la-2023henrystewartconferences.com/https://www.USA
NAB Show 2023 April 15-19, 2023
Las Vegas Convention Center Las Vegas, https://nabshow.com/2023/USA
