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September 2013
CCSA CONNECT 2013 Mont-Tremblant Welcomes CCSA Conference, Annual General Meeting
Also In This Issue David Bowie Is...Delivered Wirelessly Moving the Physical to Digital Creates New Revenue Streams Getting Access to Latest Technologies at Lower Costs
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mediacaster broadband & content
contents ®
volume 8 number 3 www.mediacastermagazine.com
Lee Rickwood Editor lrickwood@mediacastermagazine.com James A. Cook Senior Publisher (416) 510-6871 jcook@mediacastermagazine.com Beverley Richards Creative Director Phyllis Wright Print Production Manager (416) 510 - 5101
12 CCSA Meets at Mont Tremblant
Gary White Production Manager (416) 510-6760 Lily Malicdem Customer Service (416) 442-5600 ext 3547 Anita Madden Circulation Manager (416) 442-5600 ext 3596 Alex Papanou Vice-President Bruce Creighton President
4 Bits and Bytes People, places and players making news in digital content creation, production and distribution
10 Moving the Physical to Digital Greeting cards turned into unique digital media clips for online delivery
EDITORIAL DEADLINE Five weeks before publication date mediacaster is published quarterly, serving Canada’s cable and related industries, by Business Information Group.
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Copyright © 2013 by Mediacaster® Magazine. All rights reserved. The contents of this magazine may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the permission of the Publisher.
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12 Canadian Cable Systems Alliance Connect 2013 16 High Tech Show Brings David Bowie to Toronto 18 Tools of the Trade New products and services for digital media content creation and distribution
21 Breaking Barriers – Getting Access to Latest Technologies at Lower Costs
By Doron Revivi September 2013
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bits bytes Time Spent with Digital Media to Surpass TV More people will spend more time with digital media than traditional TV this year. Mobile media consumption is a big part of that increase, and the increasing popularity of ‘TV everywhere’ services, dedicated online content, second screen devices and special companion applications. According to projections from the digital media research company eMarketer, about half the increased media time spent online will be mobile time, using a smartphone or tablet; the other half is spent using a desktop (or a laptop) PC. Mobile media use has gone way up in the past year or so, with eMarketer reporting that the average U.S. digital consumer spent about an hour and a half a day with media on portable devices last year: that figure is up by an hour or so this year. The average person will spend five hours and nine minutes online per day using digital media or non-voice mobile activities in 2013, eMarketer estimated, compared to four hours
and 31 minutes watching television. “Daily TV time will actually be down slightly this year, while digital media consumption will be up 15.8%,” the firm said. eMarketer’s estimates of time spent with media include all time spent with each platform, including when a user is multi-tasking or interacting with a second screen or companion app. Consumers who spend an hour watching TV while multi-tasking on tablet devices, for example, would be counted as spending an hour with TV and an additional hour on mobile. The increase in second screen multi-tasking helps to contribute to the increase in the overall time people spend with media each day, which eMarketer expects to rise from 11 hours and 39 minutes in 2012 to 11 hours and 52 minutes this year. Time spent with mobile has come to represent a little more than half of TV’s share of total media time, as well as more than half of digital media time as a whole
Rogers Live TV Streams Reach Atlantic Canada Second screen entertainment is, well, like sechighest in the country (65 per cent) for using a ond nature in Atlantic Canada. second screen like a tablet to allow them to In fact, 15 per cent of Newfoundlanders said watch more than one show at a time or use it in they routinely watch movies or TV while in the a room other than the main TV room. bathroom. In Newfoundland, the survey results were So it is not surprising that Rogers even more specific as to the location of much Communications has introduced Rogers of the viewing. Live TV for customers in New Brunswick and In addition, people in the region are also the Newfoundland. Available on Android and Apple most likely to have a family member watching tablets, the app lets customers stream live TV from anywhere in the home over Rogers Wi-Fi, turning places like the kitchen, laundry and other rooms into TV entertainment centres. “Rogers Live TV provides our customers with the ultimate flexibility and control over their TV viewing, with the As part of the Rogers NextBox experience, the Live TV tablet now acting as the official secapp streams content to any room in the home. ond screen in the home,” said David Purdy, senior vice-president, content, Rogers shows on a tablet in the very same room as Communications. “We are proud to be the first them, while they are watching shows on the carrier to offer this unique live streaming service main TV set, Rogers reported. to our customers in the region.” “Applications like Rogers Live TV are popular The app is available to Rogers digiwith parents because it allows the family to tal television customers in the Atlantic who spend time together in the same room, while also subscribe to Rogers Hi-Speed Internet. supporting the individual viewing needs of each Authenticated via the customer’s home Wi-Fi family member,” said Ken Marshall, regional service and MyRogers account, customers can president, Atlantic, Rogers Communications. now stream 20 select channels with more being “Parents can watch the live games on Sportsnet added regularly. at the same time their children are watching In a recent Rogers Innovation Report, surcartoons on Treehouse with the tablet, all in the vey results showed that Atlantic Canadians rank same room.” 4 www.mediacastermagazine.com
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CableLabs Adds International Membership Global cable industry consortium CableLabs is in the midst of a major expansion, adding 14 new global members. With its existing international membership, CableLabs providers now serve over one hundred million cable subscribers around the world. Canadian membership includes most cable companies in the country, from Access Communications to Westman Communications. Peter Bissonnette, President, Shaw Communications and Edward S. Rogers, Deputy Chairman, Rogers Communications, Inc., are on the CableLabs Board of Directors. The global expansion brings many benefits to cable companies, technology suppliers, and other stakeholders in the cable and technology markets, the association describes. CableLabs global alignment of technologies and strategies will allow technology suppliers to develop and bring to market solutions that scale across cable operators worldwide. “This expansion further demonstrates CableLabs’ dedication to innovation in the cable industry,” said Phil McKinney, president and chief executive officer of CableLabs. “Collaborating globally on technology standards and strategies will allow CableLabs to accelerate development of truly innovative technologies, bringing them to market faster, more cost effectively and at scale.” A central piece of the organization’s growth in Europe is the transition of the activities of Cable Europe Labs – the technology consortium for European cable operators – to CableLabs. With CableLabs now supporting the European market, all of CableLabs members will gain knowledge from deployed technologies and experiences through its new members. CableLabs adds nine new members in the European region joining Liberty Global. These include Com Hem (Sweden), Get (Norway), Kabel Deutschland (Germany), LIWEST (Austria), Ono (Spain), Tele Columbus (Germany), YouSee (Denmark), Ziggo (Netherlands), and ZON (Portugal). Cable Television Laboratories was founded in 1988 by members of the cable television industry.
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bits bytes DAX Cloud Media Takes a ‘Bite’ from Top Canadian Shows DAX Cloud ULC has booked Bitten, the 13-part werewolf series produced by Vancouver’s No Equal Entertainment and Hoodwink Entertainment, and Toronto’s Entertainment One (eOne) in association with Bell Media. The hour-long drama will air on Space in Canada in early 2014. “I use both the iPad app and the computer interface and find DAX to be an invaluable tool for our production,” said J.B. Sugar, Executive Producer, No Equal Entertainment. Bitten is among the first Canadian productions running through DAX Cloud since the company launched Canadian operations earlier this year; other shows include the History Channel’s 10-episode second season of Vikings. About to start up on the DAX platform are the second season of CBC’s Cracked, season 5 of Republic of Doyle and season 4 of the SYFY/Showcase show Lost Girl.
Data Analysis Helps Native Advertising Get Smarter Native advertising is on the rise as content marketers seek new ways to reach and engage with their audiences, but ROI measurement is a challenge. Native advertising is digital advertising where the ad message is presented by providing content to the user that matches both the form and the function of the user experience in which it is placed, such as search engine results, promoted stories on social media networks, and sponsor-funded content alongside editorial. Now, Toronto-based digital media marketing firm Polar and SimpleReach have partnered to drive better ROI for native ad campaigns. Their recently announced MediaVoice platform enables publishers to easily present, create, serve, and report native advertising experiences across their desktop and mobile sites. MediaVoice helps publishers build a scalable native advertising business. Included in MediaVoice is a Reporting dashboard providing analytics beyond impressions & clicks, including engagement data around time spent, actions and page views. The partners offer content creators unprecedented insight into social sharing, today’s driving force for content discovery and engagement. SimpleReach tracks every social action on every piece of published content, from Twitter and Facebook to Pinterest and Reddit, in real-time. Combined with on-site engagement data, SimpleReach is able to predict how much social traffic the content will receive, and to track the social engagement of all their native ad content in one dashboard. 6 www.mediacastermagazine.com
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Laura Vandervoort stars in the new vampire series, Bitten, produced in the cloud and set to air on Space. The company’s US headquarters is in Los Angeles, while DAX Cloud, serving Canada’s media industry and clientele shooting in Canada, operates from Toronto, where the office can also
provide access to Canadian tax credits for US clients shooting in Canada, and Canadian clients shooting worldwide.
CMF Develops New Content Funding Guidelines Content creators and producers, broadcasters and BDU operators, unions and guilds, funding agents and other television and interactive digital media industry participants can help develop new funding program guidelines. The Canada Media Fund (CMF) has embarked on a cross-country consultation tour, and it plans to meet with focus groups in 18 cities in all provinces and territories, as well as holding online consultations. Feedback received from industry participants will help CMF moving forward as current funding program guidelines come to an end and new guidelines are developed for 2014-2015 and beyond. “The consultation is an important opportunity to connect and have meaningful discussions with our stakeholders,” explained Valerie Creighton, President and CEO. “These open and frank conversations will help us to continue to meet the needs of the industry and to shape CMF policy. With our stakeholders’ input, we can learn from the CMF’s first three years of operation and embark on the planning stages of how best we can continue to
support content creation in Canada. ” During the focus groups, all CMF stakeholders will have an opportunity to discuss a number of issues, including: – the current policy architecture of the CMF programs with two distinct funding streams: convergent and experimental; – the genres and essential requirements that define eligibility for Canadian content; – and the current funding triggers and the relevance of introducing additional triggers. A preliminary tour schedule has been released, extending through early November. Following the focus group, working group and advisory committee meetings, the CMF will convene a meeting of the National Focus Group to report on the feedback received throughout the consultation process. This group is comprised of representatives from the broadcast distribution undertakings, broadcasters, producers, unions and guilds, private funds, provincial funding agencies and other industry associations from the television and interactive digital media sectors.
Astral Complaint against Videotron VoD Dismissed The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has dismissed a complaint filed by Astral (now Bell Media) alleging that Videotron’s illico Club Unlimited, launched in February, violates the regulatory framework and certain conditions of
Videotron’s video-on-demand licence. Illico Club Unlimited provides customers with unlimited access to French-language movies, television series, children’s programmes, documentaries, comedy shows and concerts.
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people, places and players making news in digital content creation, production and distribution Ericsson Extends Optik TV Services for TELUS Video processing for TELUS’ Optik TV IPTV serfor HD quality on an expansive vice is being handled by MPEG-4 AVC HD comselection of channels while staying pression solutions from Ericsson, with HD video ahead of the tremendous growth quality output and tools to follow the government as we build out and enhance our mandate for loudness controls. network infrastructure. Ericsson The Ericsson Video Processor has up to six has been a valued partner for hot swap drives in a 1RU form factor, with a range nearly 10 years providing soluof video processing options, including SD and tions for our IPTV services. We are HD, MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 AVC encoders and pleased to once again work with re-encoders, with compression efficiencies that Ericsson as we take our consumer typically allow operators to get more HDTV chanTV experiences to the next level.” nels into their transmission bandwidth. Providers TELUS Optik TV offers more can add new services incrementally, the company than 600 channels, 145 in HD; the reports, helping to avoid costly head end upgrades. company offers both IPTV and “Video is such an important part of the at-home satellite TV services. and on-the-go entertainment experience and today’s “TV is constantly evolving, consumers demand more and more content at and operators must stay ahead the highest possible quality,” said Ibrahim Gedeon, of the game in order to drive TELUS’ Chief Technology Officer. “We need technoltheir business forward,” said Ove Anebygd, Viceogies that allow us to exceed customer expectations President of1TV, Ericsson. SPEED_MediaCaster-Summer2013_FINAL_Layout 1 5/14/13 9:37and PMHead Page
TELUS and Ericsson cover both sides of the IPTV equation with video processing solutions and tablet based remote control software.
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people, places and players making news in digital content creation, production and distribution Cogeco Appoints Cable President & CEO Cogeco Cable has appointed Louise St-Pierre to the position of President and Chief Executive Officer, and she will lead the company’s Canadian cable operations. St-Pierre joined Cogeco Cable in 1999 as Vice President and Chief Information Officer and held subsequent roles of increasing responsibility within Cogeco Cable’s senior management team. Over the course of her last four years as Senior Vice President, Residential Services at Cogeco Cable, she has demonstrated a proven ability in engaging teams to drive great customer service and solid results for shareholders. Prior to joining Cogeco Cable, St-Pierre managed and delivered consulting services at DMR in Quebec, New Brunswick and Alberta; prior assignments were with IBM. St-Pierre is a graduate in Finance and Marketing from McGill University. In her new role, she will be responsible for overseeing the operations of Cogeco Cable Canada, described as the second largest cable operator in Ontario and Quebec in terms of the number of Basic Cable service customers served. “In her more than fourteen years with the Company, Louise has achieved a great deal and proven herself as an excellent leader,” said Louis Audet, President & CEO of Cogeco Cable Inc. “The decision to entrust Louise with the responsibilities of managing our Canadian cable operations was a unanimous one, and in so doing, decision making is brought closer to the field of operations to better facilitate excellence in product innovation and customer service, and further enhance our financial performance. With the addition of new members to the Cogeco Cable family, following two acquisitions made in the past seven months, the time had come to adapt our corporate structure to our new reality. This nomination and the concomitant adjustment to our organizational structure will allow us to accelerate the growth opportunities within each of Cogeco Cable’s operating companies, better serve our customers and create new career opportunities for members of our team,” concluded Audet. 8 www.mediacastermagazine.com
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Canal Vie Goes Live with Atex Bell Media’s Canal Vie broadcast website in Montreal is now live on the Atex Content Management platform powered by Polopoly technology. Canal Vie is a French language specialty TV channel; along with its website, it focuses on lifestyle and entertainment programs such as talk shows, documentaries, reality TV series, films, home improvement, cooking, health, parenting, and relationships. Josiane Bédard, Canal Vie’s Content Manager said, “From a content editor perspective, we are very excited with this new CMS. All the new features available within our Polopoly implementation, allows us to easily and quickly showcase our content and thus gives us the firm belief that we are now empowered to stay one step ahead of any trends in content.” Canal Vie represents the latest website launch in the Atex partnership with Bell
Media. Atex develops content management, advertising management and audience platforms that enable companies to streamline operations and build multi-channel revenues. Atex is committed to developing and delivering software products that are increasingly engaging, collaborative, targeted, contextually relevant, and available on demand. “Over the last two years, we’ve delivered eight multiplatform experiences under the Atex CMS and this is so far the most enriched and flexible of all,” noted Sophie Théberge, Digital Media Production Director. “Our team in close collaboration with the Atex professional team has delivered a robust architecture, where content relies on a clean taxonomy without setting aside the value of a great and rich web design. With Canal Vie, the Atex Polopoly toolset has enabled us to clarify our design without restricting it.”
YANGAROO Appoints President, Advertising Division Secure digital media management company YANGAROO has named Sarah Foss as President of its Advertising Division. She’ll be responsible for the overall strategy and growth of this division, including strategic partnerships, product development, and staffing. Foss will be based in the Toronto-based company’s recentlyestablished New York City office, and will report directly to the CEO. Foss brings more than 20 years of sales and marketing experience across multiple sectors, including digital technology services, broadcast cable and network media, and advertising. Previous executive roles include EVP, Sales and Client Services, at Encompass Digital Media; CEO at VCI Solutions (acquired by Wide Orbit), which was a provider of specialized media sales and traffic software; and President, Question d’Image, for Harris Broadcast, the leader in global media asset management technologies and services. In addition, she has consulted with a number of media technology firms building strategic growth plans, business development pipelines, and product roadmaps that exceed market and client needs. “It is an honour to have been chosen to head
up this industry-leading technology company’s advertising operation,” said Foss. “The window of opportunity is open, and we are well-positioned to move quickly and offer a better, faster, and more efficient digital solution for this dynamic and growing industry.” Foss received her Master of Arts in management/telecommunications from Ohio University and her Bachelor of Arts degree from Pacific Lutheran University in communications. She currently serves as treasurer for the Alliance for Women in Media With YANGAROO Advertising, agencies and brands are able to quickly, securely, and cost-effectively deliver broadcast-quality HD and SD video as well as audio ads to more than 6,500 outlets in the U.S. and Canada on its web-based Digital Media Distribution System (DMDS) platform.
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Moving the Physical to Digital Greeting cards turned into unique digital media clips for online delivery
PercyVites’ President and founder Julie Steiner, pictured with 3D artist Adam Macdonald.
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new way to deliver digital content promises to open up new revenue streams for program owners, rightsholders and the content delivery ecosystem by mov-
ing content from the TV screen to the digital greeting card. A Toronto-based company has developed its new digital product line around the concept of personalized e-invitations, in which clips from licensed animated series are combined seamlessly with customized messages. Digital birthday party invitations can be personalized with specific party details like names and photos, all embedded in a video clip which can be e-mailed, web posted and downloaded. Percy3D is a video personalization platform that uses the latest 3D visual effects and digital media technologies to create PercyVites, a digital greeting card that replaces paper with immersive e-invitations for tech-savvy kids and their digital families. 10 www.mediacastermagazine.com
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Julie Steiner, president of Percy3D and developer of PercyVites, says her company now has relationships with the rights holders of several children’s content properties, including Arthur, Johnny Test and Caillou, and it’s using licensed clips with these well-recognized animated characters in its party invites and online communication tools. “We’ve come up with a new way to use and benefit from licensed characters in the video realm, and that’s effectively created a new licensing category,” added Steiner. “We’re alone in the space for now, and we intend to make it our own. It’s really exciting. There’s no end to where this can go.” Users are able to create unique personalized video invitations, thank you notes, and event compilations by adding their own text messages and personal photos into customized clips with recognizable cartoon characters. In-house staff work with selected clips from licensed media properties, and then they creatively integrate custom content into the clips, using top-of-the-line 3D animation software tools like Houdini, from Side
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distribution Effects, along with other customized and off the shelf software. Custom noting that the platform can be used in brand-building and marketing cammusic compositions and special sounds tracks are also created for the paigns as easily as birthday party scheduling. short sequences, often no more than 10 or 15 seconds. PercyVites can be played on smartphones, tablets, home computers, Using a suite of patent pending online tools the company has developed, and connected TVs. Percy3D lets users select characters and seqeunces for their digital invitations, working from any connected PC and Web browser. The interface lets users build e-mail distribution lists (but Percy handles all of the mail delivery with its own proprietary system), and they can also track the responses or replies to their e-vite. Percy3D is working with rights owners and content distributors like PBS and DHX Media, and it is opening discussions with a number of top international animation houses and kid’s content creators. The award-winning PBS television series Arthur, for example, stars an eight-year-old aardvark; the show is targeted at fourto eight-year-olds, and it tries to encourage them to actively participate in their surroundings; PercyVites offers an immersive digital experience where kids can see themselves ‘interacting’ with Arthur’s world. “Arthur has always been about the basics of reading and writing as well as encouraging positive social skills,” said show creator Marc Brown. “To have another medium, such as PercyVites, assist kids in embracing those same ideas in an interactive manner is an exciting concept. We look forward to providing parents with a way of getting their children involved in party planning activities, while learning as well.” Building a personalized e-invitation – or PercyVite – is In the long term, PercyVites’ Steiner sees her digital product range a straightforward process using online patent pending expanding to support other consumer and even business applications, tools developed by a Toronto digital media company.
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Connect 2013 Speakers Michael MacMillan In its early years, Atlantis was primarily a film and television production house, winning an Oscar in 1984 for its short film Boys and Girls and an Emmy in 1992 for Lost in the Barrens, amongst other awards. In 1993 Atlantis became a broadcaster with the launch of its first network, Life Network. In 1998 Atlantis acquired Alliance Communications in a reverse takeover and the company became Alliance Atlantis Communications. Under MacMillan’s continued leadership, as Chairman and CEO, the company operated 13 Canadian television networks including HGTV Canada, Showcase Television, History Television and Food Network. The company also distributed and produced movies and television programs including the hit series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. In 2007, he retired from Alliance Atlantis after selling the company to Canwest Communications and Goldman Sachs. In 2007, he co-founded Samara which is a think tank that works to strengthen political engagement in Canada through innovative research and educational programs. Its work focuses on three areas: political leadership, the participation of citizens in public life and public affairs journalism. He is the Chair of Samara. MacMillan is also a co-founder and co-owner of Closson Chase which is a vineyard and winery in Prince Edward Country, Ontario. It makes Chardonnay and Pinot Noir wines. In 2011, MacMillan co-founded and is CEO of Blue Ant Media, a new Canadian media company. Blue Ant has an ownership interest in seven Canadian specialty television channels, as well as digital media properties and magazines. MacMillan has volunteered with numerous community and industry organizations over many years, and is currently involved with Open Roof Films, Human Rights Watch, Trent University, Civix, and the Toronto East General Hospital, among other organizations.
Rex Murphy Rex Murphy was born and raised in St. John’s, where he graduated from Memorial University. In 1968, Murphy, a Rhodes Scholar, went to Oxford University (along with former U.S. president Bill Clinton). Back in Newfoundland, he was soon established as a quick-witted and accomplished writer, broadcaster and teacher. Murphy’s primary interest is in language and English literature, but he also has a strong link with politics. He is noted throughout Newfoundland for his biting comments on the political scene and his television tussles with prominent politicians, including premier Joey Smallwood, became required viewing for a huge audience. Murphy gained an insider’s view of the political scene when he worked as executive assistant to the leader of the Liberal Party of Newfoundland. To get an even closer taste of politics, Murphy ran twice for office in provincial elections and lost both times. He has worked extensively with CBC and from Newfoundland he has contributed many items on current affairs issues. For The National he has done a number of documentaries, including the highly acclaimed “Unpeopled Shores,” as well as interviews with immensely popular authors, the late Frank McCourt of Angela’s Ashes, among them. Once a week he offers commentary on The National’s Point of View, and is additionally the host of CBC Radio’s long-running Cross Country Checkup. He also writes Japes of Wrath, his Saturday column for The Globe and Mail. Murphy is also a commentator on Definitely Not the Opera, and has contributed to Morningside, Land and Sea, The Journal, Midday and Sunday Report. Murphy has won several national and provincial broadcasting awards. He divides his week between Toronto and Montreal, with frequent forays to St. John’s.
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Photo by Lee Rickwood
DAVID BOWIE IS...COMING TO TORONTO WITH HIGH-TECH MEDIA SHOW AT THE AGO
Bowie is pictured in a 1974 performance at the then O’Keefe Centre in Toronto; his concerts are now being recreated for art galllery patrons using audio equipment and sound processing tools from Sennheiser. “Transmission... Transition.” So sang British pop star David Bowie on his Station to Station album; he was not singing about himself, but his lyrics apply to a technology-driven multimedia show about him, now on at the Art Gallery of Ontario. The exhibit spans two floors, in part to house a whack of interactive and audio technologies used in the show. The AGO is working with audio specialist Sennheiser, which installed its wireless guidePORT audio guide system and two giant immersive 3D sound simulations. David Bowie Is....made its debut at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum; the exhibition is now on tour and Toronto is its first North American stop. Spanning five decades and featuring more than 300 objects from his personal archives, the high-tech show presents Bowie’s creations and collaborations in fashion, sound, theatre, art and film. The show utilizes Sennheiser’s RF-enabled audio guides to automatically deliver music, narration and other soundtrack elements to gallery visitors; the system senses when a gallery-visitor approaches a specific object or screen in the show, described Robert Genereux, Business Director with Sennheiser’s Application Engineering Group. When patrons pass by so-called identifiers installed throughout the exhibit, the system transmits relevant location-based content which plays on the visitor’s headsets, he described. Some basic content is stored on the bodypack receivers, but all music and video sound gets transmitted in real-time to the visitor. The exhibition uses some 550 wearable bodypacks with stereo headphones, linked via a dozen or so twin cell transmitters, to deliver media content to individual gallery-goers. At the end of their technologically-guided tour, visitors take off their headsets to enjoy a simulated concert experience. As footage of Bowie’s live performances screens overhead, speciallyenhanced music is delivered on more than two dozen concealed loud16 www.mediacastermagazine.com
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speakers and sub-woofers, configured as a 9.1 surround sound system. The special concert sound, Genereux described, required some unique audio processing so that both original stereo and mono material could be played as a multi-channel reproduction, using an upmix algorithm developed by Sennheiser’s International Recording Applications Manager, Gregor Zielinsky, called Auro 3D. Zielinsky’s previously described the algorithm as being based on psychoacoustic effects and patent-pending processing that analyzes the stereo signal and available spatial information to create a fuller concert sound. Exhibit curators worked with the official David Bowie Archive and its archivist, Sandy Hirskowitz, to select
Sennheiser is deploying its guidePORT wireless audio transmission to deliver the soundtrack of David Bowie Is..., a new art gallery exhibit documenting the pop star’s five-decade career. objects for exhibition, including Bowie’s handwritten set lists, lyrics, diary entries, instruments and sketches. Concert costumes like the Ziggy Stardust bodysuits, along with Diamond Dog and Aladdin Sane tour set designs and accessories are exhibited, along with photographs by Helmut Newton, Brian Duffy and John Rowlands. Performance excerpts include Bowie on Top of the Pops and Saturday Night Live. David Bowie Is... opens September 25, 2013 at the Art Gallery of Ontario.
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Photo by Lee Rickwood
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tools of the trade POCKETPROBE FOR DIGITAL MEDIA MONITORING Bridge Technologies has launched PocketProbe for Android to complement the iOS version of its remote digital media monitoring and analysis app, enabling confidence validation and analysis of http adaptive bit-rate streams. With its second-generation OTT Engine, PocketProbe provides analysis of HLS, Smoothstream, RTMP and MPEG-DASH streams, with at-a-glance displays that present data in instantly-understandable form through graphic displays and multiple overlays. PocketProbe can be used by service engineers and operational staff to test real world behaviors with a wide range of operators. Accurate status of bit-rates used and profile changes is displayed in real time, giving instant understanding of provider delivery capability. Together with hardware probes used pre-cloud, the postcloud location of the PocketProbe enables excellent correlative understanding of CDN and provider abilities. Once the stream url is input, the app finds all related profiles and validates consistency with a display of the profile’s programmed and actual bps; a validation of chunk size against download time; alarms on manifest syntax, oversizing, sequence age disparity and non-updates of sequence for live streams; and a graphic display of real chunk behavior Like its iOS counterpart, PocketProbe for Android is available in two versions: the free application can validate five HLS streams in round-
SIMUL-RECORDING WITH V-STATION HD FIELD MULTI-TRACK PROJECT DVR
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robin mode, provide analysis and manifest consistency alarms, play back media in the various profile bit-rates, and graphically display the actual chunk download patterns and bit-rates. The full version also offers the ability to validate HDS, SmoothStream, RTMP and MPEG-DASH manifest files and store twenty-five streams with all profiles.
‘FREED’ SPORTS REPLAY SYSTEM FOR NBC FROM DALSA
FutureVideo Products’ new V-Station HD Field Multi-track Project DVR records four simultaneous tracks of full HD 1080p @ 60fps video in H.264 format with a 30Mbs video rate. Users operate V-Station HD Field via a 7” touch-screen color LCD panel (included). They can playback and review videos while new content is being recorded. V-Station HD Field’s fourtrack DVR unit’s dual hot-swappable 1TB Raid HDDs hold approximately 80 hours of 1920 x 1080p 60fps full HD video when four cameras are simultaneously being recorded. V-Station HD Field generates playlists, shot lists, and event logs that are easily transferrable to a V-Station HD Studio system for post processing. The Microsoft Excel-compatible shot list file contains all the production metadata— including each clip’s camera information, project recording settings, file name, and date/time— that’s useful when importing the content into a non-linear editing system. The project management system enables users to apply their own file nomenclature, the company describes, in order to accommodate a wide range of observation/analysis applications and for creative use by cinematographers and videographers. Multiple V-Station HD Field DVRs can be used to acquire content, which may then be easily transferred to a V-Station HD Studio system to quickly create and deliver multiple edited versions to an internet distribution site.” 18 www.mediacastermagazine.com
Digital media analysis and data stream validation with mobile apps from Bridge Technologies
Teledyne DALSA is partnering with Replay Falcon2 CMOS cameras; twelve cameras are Technologies to provide its latest generation positioned around each end’s red zone to cameras and frame grabbers for a new freeD provide highly detailed freeD replays. sports replay system for the National Football The Falcon2 camera’s 12 megapixel ‘4K’ League. resolution increases the image quality of the The freeD replay system was featured during NBC Sunday Night Football’s broadcast of the first Dallas Cowboys NFL home game versus the New York Giants on September 8th. freeD, developed by technology company Replay Technologies, records reality not as regular two dimensional video, but as a true three dimensional scene. This enables the production team, and in the near future the actual viewers, to freely roam around a captured scene where Dalsa’s 12 megapixel 4K cameras are used in no physical camera exists. NBC broadcasts of the NFL. Replay’s freeD system utilizes powerful cameras and sophisticated algorithms to freeD system, allowing it to capture more of create three dimensional photo-realistic real- the action with the ability to ‘go in closer’ while time scenes, comprised of three dimensional retaining HD quality. The Falcon2 camera was pixels that faithfully represent the fine details of selected for this system to deliver the speed the scene. This information is stored as a freeD and resolution required for this application. database that can produce (render) any desired Teledyne DALSA Xcelera frame grabbers, optiviewing angle from the detailed information. mized for the Falcon2 cameras, are installed in The freeD system at AT&T Stadium in the control room to capture the camera data Arlington incorporates 24 Teledyne DALSA and to interface with the freeD system.
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tools of the trade ADVANCED TEST PATTERNS UP TO 4K SDI AND HDMI Archimedia Technology has released a set of advanced test patterns developed by video test and measurement company VideoQ specifically for mastering formats such as JPEG 2000. Designed for use with the Archimedia Reference Player, a software reference player for viewing, testing, and measuring master files on a standard HDMI HDTV, the Archimedia Reference Charts allow users to test, align, configure, troubleshoot, and stress any equipment with an SDI or HDMI input. Such devices include encoders; transmitters; video recorders; monitors; projectors; standards converters; editors; and ingest and capture devices. When combined with partner VideoQ’s VQMA-3 software analyzer and an Archimedia HD-SDI or 4K-SDI card, the Reference Player and Reference Charts offers a test environment that runs on a commodity Windows 7 or 8 PC. Using Archimedia’s Reference Charts and Reference Player, the company describes, technicians can carry a fully featured test environment on a laptop and connect to any HDMI monitor, projector, monitor wall, multiviewer, etc. The
system can also be installed in a rack-mount or desktop PC with Archimedia’s HD-SDI or 4K-SDI card and reach any equipment with an SDI input, or test an entire facility through its central router. Archimedia Reference Charts are 8, 10, and 12 bit static and dynamic test patterns in standard-definition, high-definition, 2K, and 4K resolutions — a variety that ensures the right test New reference charts for the testing, alignment, configuration and patterns are always at hand troubleshooting of SDI or HDMI input-equipped devices. for the most routine and the combination completes the quality control trianmost demanding applicagle of visual, measured, and automated testing. tions. The Reference Charts contain visible The charts are meant for any user with SDI audio-sync measurements, which are important and HDMI equipment, such as engineers, serwhen making fast adjustments to lip-sync and vice providers, and manufacturers in broadcast, video-delay settings. VideoQ’s VQMA-3 softnew media, and cinema and TV production. The ware analyzer also provides a precise report of complete set of Archimedia Reference Charts the artefacts introduced by a user’s equipment, can be downloaded. particularly encoders and video recorders. This
VIDEOFLOW VIDEO FLOWS OVER IP VideoFlow will launch new additions to its family of DVP SD and HD video transmission solutions for standard Internet connections. VideoFlow says its patent pending technology ensures no packet loss and nullified jitter in its Internet based transmission solutions, offered to broadcasters, teleports and CDN operators. The company’s DVP10 solution handles a single video channel while the DVP100 handles up to 20 streams and the company is adding solutions for even greater numbers of video streams enabling large and complex content gathering networks to be created while still keeping capital and operational in check. For example, a number of DVP10 Protectors can feed into one DVP100 Sentinel with similar one-to-many and many-toone arrangements possible. Video delivery over the internet for Content Delivery Networks, such as Netflix or YouTube, works by sending files. Live video broadcasts, conversely, are sent as a continuous bit stream, which the Internet was never designed to handle, resulting in artefacts caused by jitter, and packet loss. More than a couple of seconds of latency is unacceptable by customers expecting to enjoy the excitement of live events like sport as they happen. VideoFlow is the solution for the next evolution for Content Delivery Networks (CDN) by providing broadcasters a true Live Content Delivery Network (LCDN).
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tools of the trade LIVE HD TRANSMISSION FROM JVC HANDHELD JVC Professional has upgraded its GY-HM 650 handheld camera, adding live HD transmission capabilities through its unique dual codec design, as well as built-in FTP and Wi-Fi connectivity. Verizon 4G LTE modems plug directly into the GY-HM650 for quick access to Verizon’s high-speed network. The camera supports live video streaming of 1080i, 720p, and lower Webfriendly resolutions at various bit rates to adapt to network conditions. Connection status – including signal strength, connection type, and IP address – can be monitored from the camera’s viewfinder and 3.5-inch LCD touch screen. Metadata can be added by the camera operator or remotely over the network. The GY-HM650 records HD or SD footage in multiple file formats, including native XDCAM EX (.MP4), Final Cut Pro (.MOV), and AVCHD, as well as .MXF files that support rich descriptive metadata optimized for asset management. Version 2.0 adds a new 540p low bit recording mode at 3 Mbps. A new Web-based remote control interface allows a producer to operate basic camera functions – including record, focus, zoom, image setup, and metadata insertion – as well as view a live image from the GY-HM650 using a laptop, desktop, or iPad. Plus, in-camera clip trimming reduces file sizes for more efficient video file transfer. The camera also has a Pre Rec (retro cache)
feature that continuously records and stores up to 15 seconds of footage in cache memory to help prevent missed shots of breaking events. The camera records to non-proprietary SDHC or SDXC media cards, and produces full HD
The upgraded GY-HM650 allows live transmission or file transfers in the background as shooters continue to record footage in their normal workflow. files on one memory card while simultaneously creating smaller, Web-friendly files (1/4 HD) on a second card. Other features include JVC’s autofocus with face detection and an optical image stabilizer, as well as HD-SDI and HDMI outputs for easy monitoring of HD footage.
PORTABLE VIDEO TRANSMISSION FROM IMT Integrated Microwave Technologies is showing a new Compact Portable RF video transmitter that delivers HD/SD output at up to eight watts in 2k DVB-T COFDM mode. The Nucomm CPTx-II, a compact, portable transmitter, is ideal for covering motorcycle and bicycle races, marathons, triathlons and other fast-paced, high-speed ENG/OB events using such smaller on-course vehicles as cars, motorcycles and even bicycles. The CPTx-II supports video/audio/data/telemetry with selectable modulation bandwidths of 6, 7, and 8MHz. In addition to the small size, the units has very low latency and low power consumption, It weighs about 3 kg and comes with a variety of bespoke mounts, including special mounts for motorcycles. The maneuverability of a motorcycle fitted with video transmission capability offers significant advantages when covering road races, as the camera can follow the action and get onto roads that might be too narrow for a car to navigate safely among the athletes. To demonstrate the transmitter’s capabilities, IMT will have a motorcycle from its partner, TV Globo, outfitted with a CPTx-II on display at the show. The video from the CPTx-II can be received on any MPEG-4-capable handheld receiver and receive site. As it uses advanced features of the H.264 codec, it is capable of a 30-percent bit20 www.mediacastermagazine.com
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IMT’s CPTx-II video transmitter can also handle AES encryption. rate reduction and video quality improvement compared to other encoders.
TELESTREAM TO LAUNCH POST PRODUCER Telestream will launch its new Post Producer post-production and delivery engine for automating repetitive production processes, running on the latest version of Vantage 6 software. The The Vantage platform brings transcoding, media capture, metadata processing, analysis, and content assembly into a unified system, the manufacturer describes. Based on user templates, Post Producer assembles a segment or spot, compositing video,
AXON PROVIDES MASTER CONTROL SynMC Axon Digital Design is showing a Synapse based modular Master Control System for 3G, HD and SD SDI signals. The SynMC system can provide up to four keying layers and 2D DVE’s. With the SynMC System Axon offers audio processing functions, including stereo to 5.1 Upmixing, Dolby decoders/ encoders, and sophisticated Metadata processing simply by inserting these cards in the system. SynMC can be controlled in multiple ways, like automation, hardware and software panels. Axon’s Synapse modular broadcast infrastructure system also houses a wide range of audio solutions from distribution, through loudness control to Dolby Digital Plus encoding/ decoding. Synapse has been able to process Dolby Digital (Plus) for many years. In fact Axon was encoding DD+ in hardware before Dolby did with the introduction of our DDP14 in 2006. Within Synapse it is possible for example to decoded Dolby E to PCM in a single module. This one card solution (DBD28) is perfectly fit for broadcasters who have this legal necessity. In addition to the extensive Dolby Decoding capabilities this card can add a voice activated (or triggered by GPI) Voice Over signal to any of the decoded streams or plain PCM streams that could enter the unit. Another Dolby module is the single board GPD10, designed for transcoding Dolby D to Dolby Digital Plus. The Tally and Mnemonic options provide a user to interface for signal processing and routing equipment using native protocols and/ or GPI units in order to operate various display and tally devices. The Generic Devices option allows for interfacing to a number of third party devices using their native control and/or monitoring protocols.
graphics, titles and captions or subtitles, and applying audio processing as required. Alternate versions are automatically created by simply substituting the necessary elements. Telestream extends its reach into the post-production market by also enabling direct ingest of DPX sequence files and acquisition formats such as RED RAW, by adding Dolby E encoding, and 24 to 25 frames per second audio conversion. The new Post Producer product and these new features will be available in Vantage 6. In addition, Vantage 6 will offer new analysis and QC capabilities and further integrations with third party products. Vantage is a video processing platform for a range of transcoding and file-based workflow automation products. It supports single-server installations for automated transcoding, to very large, multi-server media processing systems that automatically produce and assemble millions of finished media packages.
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tools of the trade PESA EXPANDS INTO DIGITAL MEDIA MARKET PESA is showcasing a number of new products for expanding digital media market needs, including 4K routing, 2K and HDMI signal distribution, and multisource H.264 encoding and IP distribution. Housed in a compact, 1 RU form factor, the multi-path H.264 IP distribution system PESA XSTREAM encodes up to five independent video sources (anything from 1080p video to computerbased content like PowerPoint slides) and eight audio sources concurrently from live or recorded video, with minimal sync or latency issues. When multiple sources are captured simultaneously, the streams remain associated and synchronized during the event. Then, with five individually addressable H.264 video and AAC audio streams, PESA XSTREAM allows operators to stream live content over IP while simultaneously monitoring live digital content via a quad-view display and/or full screen display.
AUTO CONTENT DETECTION FOR INTERACTIVE TV ADS Audible Magic is offering a suite of real-time services for the automated detection of television advertising content, viewing habits and activities, as well as interactive advertising content like promotions and special offers. The new service — part of the company’s new AdMagic suite — detects TV commercials and show promotions across a wide range of TV delivery systems, such as linear TV, OTT video streaming or video-on-demand (VoD) services. Similar to databases Audible Magic has compiled to ID music and TV/movie entertainment content, this new database, which now includes more than 25,000 current TV commercials and show promotions, will be integrated into various CE devices and applications necessary to deliver a true interactive TV experience. Audible Magic’s patented SmartID and CopySense automated content recognition (ACR) uses “digital fingerprint-based” technology to accurately identify content using audio signals. Identification is based on the perceptual characteristics of the audio itself which allows it to accurately identify content across file formats, codecs, bitrates, and compression techniques. This approach is highly accurate and requires no dependence on metadata, watermarks or file hashes. It is also immune to many typical transformations. Identification is possible with audio clips as short as 10 seconds. Identification rates are in excess of 99% with zero false positives. Transaction requests can achieve sub-second response time, enabling massive scaling, even with reference databases in excess of 1 million hours of content. The CopySense technology massively scales as demonstrated by the billions of content identification lookup transactions the company reports handling each year.
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Four new easyPORT compact switching throw-down boxes support HDMI signal distribution. The EASY-2HX4B distributes or switches two HDMI inputs to four independent SDI video sources, while the companion EASY-4BX2H converts and switches up to four SDI video input feeds to two different HDMI video displays. Offered with coaxial 75 Ohm connections, the EASY-2HX4B and EASY-4BX2H can be extended up to 80m away using typical RG-6/U coax. The EASY-2HX4F and EASY-4FX2H fibre versions offer standard LC-type SFP pluggable modules, with support for distances up to 600m over multi-mode or 10km over single-mode fibre. A new series of Vidblox 2K DVI dual link extenders provide an ideal long distance, multipath solution for distributing ultra high-resolution graphics in production studios and command and control environments. Each Vidblox 2K
PESA Support for HDMI Transmission, Signal Routing transmitter (TX) and receiver (RX) pair supports coax, fiber, or both copper/fibre connectivity, used to distribute multiple 2K video signals simultaneously in a point-to-point configuration or distributed using PESA’s 3G-SDI serial digital routing equipment. Video resolutions up to 2560x1600@60Hz are supported via a DVI-D dual link connector, with analog stereo embedded in the video transport.
MIRANDA ACCELERATES MULTI-PLATFORM SUBTITLE DELIVERY Miranda Technologies reports its new Softel Swift Create V8 caption and subtitle creation workstation includes more than 20 new functions required to create, repurpose and manage subtitle files for multiplatform use. With Swift Create V8, captions and subtitles for content delivered to devices such as smartphones and tablets can match the quality of their traditional broadcast channel equivalents. The new software is particularly adept at dealing with the minor captioning changes required to accompany video content delivered to a variety of platforms. Swift Create V8’s “Swift Smart File Handling Engine” supports a huge range of captioning and subtitling file formats and includes extended support for ingesting and captioning unconverted video. This “caption without conversion” capability means that users no longer have to create low resolution proxy files to insert and process the required text. Swift Create V8’s highly intelligent “Smart
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Text” import tool saves review and editing time by using natural language processing to retain original sentence structures. Caption and subtitle repurposing for multiplatform devices is also accelerated through integral EDL file support, which automatically generates reversioned captions from edited video by only addressing areas where edits were made. A user-definable “Profanity Guard” tool identifies and provides automatic substitutes for questionable terms, speeding through userprovided lists to ensure inappropriate words are either replaced or permanently deleted. And, in keeping with its name, Swift Create V8 includes a rapid review mode that fast forwards through video portions that do not have captions or subtitles assigned to them, significantly reducing the time required to review or QC the imported files. Automatic alignment checks performed by Swift Create V8 ensure that all captioning parameters will meet pre-defined criteria during the QC process.
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Breaking Barriers
Breaking Barriers – Getting Access to Latest Technologies at Lower Costs By Doron Revivi
F
or smaller or start-up broadcasters, mediacasters and content delivery companies, setting up and establishing a TV channel is an expensive operation with many factors that have to be taken into consideration. One of the biggest challenges facing these companies is how they are going to financially afford the infrastructure and equipment needed so that they can effectively compete with many of the larger and more established players. There is a growing trend among smaller broadcasters and content providers to make use of cloud-based managed services and offerings from specialist providers. The cloud, an overarching term used for services that are managed by a third party provider over the Internet, is effectively lowering the financial entry barriers to smaller and start-up broadcast and content providers as well as levelling the playing field in terms of giving smaller players access to leading edge technology that would previously have been available only to large multinationals. Another key factor that providers are increasingly considering in selecting those partners - both smaller ones as well branch offices of larger operations - is the requirement for a one-stop-shop that can provide them with all the services, ranging from content pick-up, manipulation, transcoding, storage to playout and distribution from a single provider. Content Critical; Lower CAPEX Costs, Too Of course, a key priority when launching a new TV service is ensuring it has interesting, newsworthy and high quality content. But it’s not just about having the content but how you are going to manage it and distribute it to your target audience. To begin with, there will be a checklist of all the infrastructure and software required to allow you to effectively compete with the more established players. This can seem like a daunting, and more 22 www.mediacastermagazine.com
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importantly, expensive list of equipment that, more often than not, you may not utilise to full capacity at least initially. This is where specialist providers of endto-end media delivery services can come into play and add real value to start-up channels, by removing many of the financial and management headaches they are faced with. The saturation of cloud solutions - made available via a ‘payas-you-use’ basis - now offers an appealing alternative. By accessing solutions and services via the cloud, content providers have a viable alternative to buying and maintaining costly inhouse infrastructure allowing them full accessibility their content and applications whenever and wherever they need them. Big broadcasters, with their vast resources and bigger budgets, are better able to purchase and maintain costly in-house solutions such as Traffic Management and Media Asset Management systems. However, smaller broadcasters still want access to these higher grade technologies, but without the associated issues of cost, complexity and risk. Today, smaller broadcasters can access the latest technologies without having to finance and pay for them in the traditional way. Growing with the Broadcaster One of the biggest benefits that many broadcasters are recognizing today is the potential scalability that a third party managed provider can offer. Many of the smaller and start-up broadcasters and channels will not require the full functionality of all of the broadcast equipment from the outset. Therefore by working with a cloud provider you only have to pay for what you need and you don’t need to worry about managing the service as this is all included within the offering. Take for example a Traffic Management system. This type of system is a highly expensive piece of equipment, used for
the effective management of multiple channels, yet many broadcasters don’t need the full level of functionality and options that are provided within the system. This is why global content providers are now turning to companies such as SatLink to provide and manage these systems for them. Additional services can easily be added to their current contracts with the providers, such as the distribution of content via fibre, satellite or over IP, to every corner of the globe. As the broadcasters’ requirements grow, services such as wider distribution to new regions, transcoding of content for mobile devices, archiving content or the localisation of content, and using greater functionality on Media Asset Management (MAM) solutions, can all be done via the same provider effectively and efficiently. As more and more content providers and rights holders are looking to expand distribution of targeted content to unique audiences across the globe, the rise of the cloud model has further fuelled the image of the world getting smaller and smaller due to the lifting of geographical boundaries. Now, more than ever before, they can have the best of all worlds by using high grade technology without having to invest in the infrastructure themselves or maintain it all with a ‘one-stop-shop’ provider. m
Doron Revivi is COO of SatLink Communications, a Global Content Distribution service provider for television, radio and data channels.
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