TVBE January 2017 Digital by Future PLC

www.tvbeurope.com

Business, insight and intelligence for the media and entertainment industry

January 2017

THE LIKELY TALKING POINTS OF 2017 Also in this issue APRIL 22–27, 2017

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January 2017 www.tvbeurope.com

TVBEurope

Welcome EDITORIAL Content Director and Editor-in-Chief: James McKeown jmckeown@nbmedia.com

Drawing a line in the sandbox

Staff Writer: James Groves jgroves@nbmedia.com Group Managing Editor: Joanne Ruddock jruddock@nbmedia.com Contributors: Michael Burns, David Davies, George Jarrett, Philip Stevens, Catherine Wright Sales Manager: Peter McCarthy pmccarthy@nbmedia.com +44 207 354 6025 Account Manager: Richard Carr rcarr@nbmedia.com +44 207 354 6000

Whether looking over one’s shoulder, or towards the horizon, the industry’s R&D engine rooms are playing a signiﬁcant role

t’s always a somewhat pre-climactic experience preparing the January issue for

Digital Director: Diane Oliver

print; writing this, as I am, in early December.

Human Resources and Ofﬁce Manager: Lianne Davey

Usual form would see the editor employ the soft

Head of Production: Alistair Taylor

pretence of assuming present tense to welcome

Managing Director: Mark Burton

the readership to the nascent days of another

Designer: Kelly Sambridge kelly@excitingcreative.com

new year, as if the yuletide festivities, still some

US Sales: Michael Mitchell mjmitchell@broadcast-media.tv +1 (631) 673 0072

always felt it a slightly fraudulent practice, so this

weeks away, had already taken place. I’ve year my ‘resolution’ is to abstain from leading

Japan and Korea Sales: Sho Harihara sho@yukarimedia.com +81 6 4790 2222 Circulation Free subscriptions tvbe.subscriptions@c-cms.com Subscriptions Tel +44 1580 883848

you on. The tenuous link to this preamble is that ours is a cyclical industry whose annual milestones don’t sit at the turn of the calendar year; January will not herald the dawn of a new age – our more monumental shifts tend to emerge from the halls of our major trade shows, and before that, the sandboxes of various R&D departments. What the turn of the year does give us is the chance to draw breath;

TVBEurope is published 12 times a year by The Emerson Building, 4-8 Emerson street, London, SE1 9DU England +44 207 354 6002

draw a line in the sand on the year; and draw

the critical role their ‘innovation labs’ play in the

conclusions therefrom.

future of their businesses.

Many of the discussions us editorial types

NewBay is a member of the Periodical Publishers Association

This issue’s trendspotting feature sees industry

have with companies in this industry tend to

executives analyse the trends we will be talking

veer towards R&D; the departments tasked with

about through the coming year, and much of

being the engine room of innovation to keep

it is centred on the increase in technological

pace with the rate of change and demand, and

development, both by and for our industry.

hopefully somewhere along the line, to pioneer

R&D is an area of personal fascination, and

© NewBay 2017. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior permission of the copyright owners. TVBEurope is mailed to qualiﬁed persons residing on the European continent. Subscription is free.

new cutting edge solutions and technologies.

one that I believe lies at the heart of what has

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Many are quick to champion the percentage

made this industry tick along, and will make it

of their resource devoted to research and

accelerate into the future.

Printing by Pensord Press, Tram Road, Pontllanfraith, Blackwood NP12 2YA

development, others are less committal on exact

James McKeown

numbers, but all are uniﬁed in acknowledging

Editor-in-Chief

SECTION EDITORS

Philip Stevens Production and post editor

Neal Romanek Technology editor

George Jarrett Business editor

David Davies Audio editor

4 TVBEurope

www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

In this issue 14 Production and Post

18 Feature

30 Business

Philip Stevens hears from CTV Outside Broadcasts, TV Skyline and Euromedia for the outside broadcast outlook for 2017

TVBEurope gathers expert views ahead of another year of innovation, integration and collaboration

It’s a ‘global revolution’ in data analytics. George Jarrett hears two opposing perspectives on the matter

Technology

We unveil NewBay’s first international brand covering TV industry production and distribution technology: TV Tech Global, a toolkit for navigating the new global media ecosystem

Supplement: IP Live Time to embrace the IP challenge? Sony provides TVBEurope readers with a guide to the benefits of IP

Feature

Media Asset Capital director Jeremy Bancroft discusses the challenges, considerations and mistakes in selecting a broadcast MAM solution

34 TVBEverywhere Neal Romanek reports on TVBEurope’s latest industry roundtable, held in association with Quantum

IP Delivered. Making the Complex Simple SAM is at the forefront of developments in IP with products that work today in the SDI domain and allow expansion into the IP world without excessive risk or substantial upgrades. Our switchers, routers, infrastructure and playout systems are all available with IP interfaces supporting both uncompressed (SMPTE 2022-6 and VSF TR-03) and a range of compression formats, including VC-2. Familiar control interfaces provide hybrid SDI/IP operation. Discover more all-round innovation, visit: www.s-a-m.com

www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

6 TVBEurope

Opinion and Analysis

Broadcasting 3.0 By Andreas Jacobi, CEO and co-founder, Make.TV

onsumers are the new producers.

consumers require. This allows broadcasters to

engagement. If the new video landscape

remain trusted by their core (and largely older)

and its resultant success has proven anything,

audiences, while attracting the next generation

it is that solving for relevancy, engagement

of viewers who look for a more authentic or ﬁrst

and reach, directly correlates to revenue.

person type of programming.

For television broadcasters, who still have

With the advent of smartphones,

• Drive engagement through thoughtful

video-enabled mobile apps and

curation. With video technology evolving at

advertising business, this means not just new

web-connected video cameras, anyone can

an ever-accelerating pace, nearly anyone

online monetisation channels, but also the

be a broadcaster in the purest sense of the

can broadcast live video over social networks,

potential increase in ad CPMs resulting from

word. Add to this the massive reach of social

instantly reaching audiences worldwide. The

increased relevancy, engagement and reach.

media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube,

downside of this democratisation of content is

Periscope and Snapchat, and a new industry

that consumers are increasingly inundated with

Creating the new golden age

has emerged over the last half decade with

an overwhelming amount of content choices

Ideally, broadcasters want to be able to deliver

online video personalities reaching larger

from sources that lack the ‘brand equity’ that

engaging, contextually relevant content to

audiences than some broadcast TV stations,

broadcasters still enjoy. Broadcasters have the

their audiences across a multitude of devices,

generating six to seven-ﬁgure revenue streams

opportunity to be the DJs of their time.

networks and social platforms, thereby

from their unique brand of infotainment. This is all while TV station audiences and revenues have started to decline. With no end to this personally published content in sight, what does this mean for today’s professional broadcasters?

addressing consumers’ insatiable demand for

‘Finding success means embracing new philosophies of content sourcing, curation and distribution’

news, sports, and entertainment when and where they want it. In today’s world of ‘now’, the direct translation of this for broadcasters is ‘live’ and near-live. To be effective, solutions should

For an industry as steeped in tradition as television broadcasting, it’s understandably

respectable revenue streams from their

• Increase reach through non-traditional

be cloud-based, with no new hardware or

hard to navigate the turbulent new video

distribution channels. Video continues to be ‘at

software to install, enabling easy workﬂow

landscape. Finding success means embracing

the core’ of today’s mobile consumers, who

integration, supporting a business model to

new philosophies of content sourcing, curation

demand that content providers reach them

monetise the feeds during live broadcasts

and distribution; or as today’s lexicon would

whenever and wherever they are. Thus, it is

and on-demand viewing, so both contributors

have it: relevancy, engagement and reach.

incumbent on broadcasters to ﬁnd new ways

and broadcasters win.

Let’s take a closer look at each of these areas:

to deliver their new brand of content beyond

• Harness crowd-sourced content to remain relevant. Embracing non-traditional content

traditional TV channels and websites. Multi-platform devices, social networks

With today’s technology zeitgeist and cloud computing, broadcasters can now acquire, select, manage and playout content in real

sources, such as crowd-sourced mobile video,

and third-party publishing sites all offer new

time. Mobile, crowd-sourced and contributor-

enables broadcasters to cross-programme their

and unique ways to extend the reach of

based video represents a massive opportunity

traditional newsgathering, thereby providing a

their content, while demonstrating relevance

for broadcasters to better manage, curate and

uniqueness and relevance that today’s video

to evolving audiences and drive user

monetise new experiences.

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www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

TVBEurope

Opinion and Analysis

Virtualisation changes everything By James Gilbert, CEO, Pixel Power

here are no doubt many who are looking back on 2016 as a disastrous year, and who predict continuing pestilence and

tribulation. It is true that 2016 has had some very challenging moments, from the death of David Bowie to (dependent upon your political afﬁliations) Brexit and the US election. Maybe I am a glass half full sort of person, but I think this is actually a pretty good time to be around. Eighty years ago, the world was tumbling headlong into global war. Fifty years ago, Khrushchev planted his nuclear missiles on the USA’s doorstep. Even the worst predictions of the impacts of a Trump White House and a UK/EU divorce come nowhere near mass extinction. I think the same is true in our industry. Pundits keep trying to tell us we are in a state of chaos because of all the confusion around IP. But actually, there is no confusion. IP is IP. No

Consumers are largely insulated from this: if they

moved from a physical machine for each

arguments, no conﬂict: we are moving to an

want 4K UHD on their phones then they expect

application to a virtual machine for

all-IP world, in a more or less controlled

us to deliver it.

each application.

fashion. This is not new, the transition has been happening for a decade.

Yes, IP is a new technology to the traditional

It is virtualisation that is the real goal. Yes,

broadcaster. But vendors have come together

virtualisation enables the cloud, and no doubt

through the efforts of standards bodies like

some tasks will gradually migrate to the cloud,

each year, conﬁdent someone would come up

SMPTE and other organisations like AIMS. There is

although it is not necessarily the ultimate

with a new and completely incompatible video

general agreement that the VSF standard TR02

solution for everything nor is it right for everyone.

format? Then, when the industry decided to

will be pretty good and that SMPTE 2110 will

Virtualisation certainly is. Today, you can bolt a

move away from tape we had the same bafﬂing

likely bring everything and everyone together.

Cisco blade into the same rack as your existing

variety of optical and magnetic disk formats,

At IBC2016, there was a special zone in the

broadcast infrastructure and start running

solid state memory cards, and more.

exhibition with more than 30 different companies

processes on virtual machines. Perceptually it is

all demonstrating interoperability. There is no

not the quantum leap that moving everything

movements. Firstly, the industry moved to HD

bar on implementing IP systems; there are few

to the cloud would be, but it is a remarkable

because it was the right moment: broadcasters

limitations on choosing best-of-breed solutions.

transformation all the same.

had the capability of producing and delivering

The new thing about IP in broadcast is that it

Remember the days when we went to NAB

Today, we have two clear forward

The expression ‘paradigm shift’ risks becoming

it. Secondly, consumers were excited by the

is carrying video instead of using a dedicated

a cliché, but virtualisation – whether the

newly available ﬂat-panel television screens and

interface (SDI). The real game changer is that

processor farm is in your machine room, your

wanted good quality content to put on them.

software-deﬁned solutions can replace hardware

data centre, or at AWS – is a paradigm shift,

boxes with virtualisable software modules.

with epic potential to transform the way we

Those same drivers are applying today as we consider UHD in all its 4K, HDR, wide colour

IP plus software-deﬁned-solutions plus powerful

work. It is a more dramatic shift than anything our industry has seen.

gamut and even high frame rate glory. We have

commercial-off-the-shelf hardware enable

the ability to create, deliver and enjoy bigger,

workﬂows to combine processing from multiple

brighter, more engaging television pictures.

applications, probably from multiple vendors, to

a few more lines of resolution, and a few more

achieve a speciﬁc goal. Then it releases all the

audio channels. But from the BBC’s ﬁrst trial

processors used to accomplish that task, and

broadcasts in 1936 right up to today, we did

allocates them to the next job. Each individual

it with a box per function. The move to clever

it allows us to deliver to any platform at any

processor will probably be running different

applications virtualised on powerful COTS

time over any reasonably competent network.

software applications in the next task. We have

hardware is the paradigm shift.

But what of IP? It is not so purposeful, not perhaps so obviously an end-to-end gain. It is an end-to-end beneﬁt, though, because

We have added colour to the pictures, and

s ar in eb

Thought leadership meets lead generation Content creation, marketing, and delivery: TVBEurope offers the platform to educate our audience through your webinar. Our position in the industry will allow you to present Þ ÕÀ V Ìi Ì Û > ÌiÀ>VÌ Ü Ì > } L> >Õ` i Vi Ü i }i iÀ>Ì } µÕ> wi` i>`Ã 6JG DGPGƂVU QH C YGDKPCT KPENWFG • • • • • • •

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www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

10 TVBEurope

Opinion and Analysis

Television is failing viewers over climate change TV director and eco consultant Steve Smith offers the latest in a series of essays on sustainability for TVBEurope in association with the Bafta Albert Consortium

producer at any of the carbon literacy courses I’ve helped run. The need to change the language of global warming is urgent. Just as TV producers have a responsibility over how we show drinking or smoking on screen, we need to

016 is set to be yet another record-

societal shift needed to enable audiences to

consider how we can help normalise sustainable

breaking year, and I’m not talking

understand, participate in and inﬂuence the

living on screen.

about Team GB’s performance at

outcomes from climate change, which, left

We all need to think about where opportunities

the Rio Olympics. The world is warming at

unaddressed, will have a monumental impact

an alarming rate and this summer record-

on humanity. We need to normalise sustainable

breaking temperatures have scorched

living on screen, but we are doing too little

countries across the globe.

too slowly, failing the audiences we serve

On the ﬁrst anniversary of Storm Desmond, which caused the most extreme ﬂooding on record in the UK, many people are still not back

and missing out on opportunities to create exciting new content. Over the next decade, we are all set to

‘We have everything we need to wake up to a different kind of world where we could be both an Olympic medal and clean energy superpower’

in their homes, destroyed by this severe climate-

experience radical changes to society. To limit

related weather event. We are now living in

global warming to under two degrees above

a time of climate change – and it is climate

pre-industrial temperatures will create a mass

change and not Brexit that is arguably the

change for governments, businesses, religious

exist to insert subtle or explicit references, which

single largest and most pressing world issue

communities and civic society that will alter

may help drive behaviour to where it needs to

that humankind has ever faced. Yet in the

the world in ways previously only inﬂuenced

be. No producer would allow a contributor to be

TV industry, we appear to be failing our

by technology.

ﬁlmed in a car without wearing a seatbelt and

viewers on the issue. We’ve learnt how to

We can expect to see a complete

this normalising of on-screen wearing of seatbelts

make programmes about difﬁcult subjects,

transformation in the way we – and the

including Brexit, but climate change is like

audiences we serve – eat, travel, procure goods

death: no one wants to talk about it.

and services, use energy in our homes, dispose of

Bake Off the contestants scraped their failed

materials, and experience the impacts of climate

bakes into food compost bins rather than

change. We need to start adapting to these

black bin bags, a simple message normalising

changes now, yet we are still not reﬂecting these

sustainable behaviour for the millions who tune in

issues in the programmes we commission.

to the show each week. The facts about climate

‘Over the next decade we are all set to experience radical changes to society’

As a television director who is also passionate

has helped save lives. Wouldn’t it be great if on the new series of

change are terrifying yet despite the enormous

about sustainability, I’ve become an albert

challenges we face, I remain extremely optimistic

ambassador, helping to raise awareness of

because I know we’ve never had a better

sustainability in TV production and encouraging

opportunity to solve them.

the industry to become greener. Bafta’s Albert

Just like the focused, scientiﬁc and intellectual

to more sustainable ways of working, we in

Consortium exists to support the UK production

approach of Team GB when it comes to winning

the TV industry have two really important tasks

and broadcast industry’s transition to greater

Olympic medals, I believe we can also win the

at hand.

sustainability, working collaboratively to

climate change race. We have everything we

First, we have to become greener, more

accelerate the adoption of best practice.

need to wake up to a different kind of world

Unlike many industries that are transitioning

environmentally friendly and sustainable in

For the past year, I’ve been helping provide

where we could be both an Olympic medal

the way we make our programmes – with the

carbon literacy training to the industry. It’s a slow

superpower and a clean energy superpower;

enormous beneﬁts that brings. Second, and

process and I’m not always sure we are training

creating thousands of new sustainable jobs and

perhaps more importantly, the broadcast

the right people. It’s extremely depressing that

boosting our economy. As a programme maker I

industry has a unique role to play in the huge

I rarely see a commissioning editor or executive

ﬁnd this the most exciting opportunity of all.

HE E

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www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

14 TVBEurope

Production and Post

A view from the OB market Last year was a busy one for this sector, and 2017 is looking equally demanding. Philip Stevens asked for a number of views about the upcoming twelve months

CTV sees into the future By Hamish Greig, technical director, CTV Outside Broadcasts

TV continues to work tirelessly to plan for Hamish Greig

the technical future and secure the best methods of integrating the new trends in

technology for all UK broadcasters. As expected,

Evaluating another year of technology

remote production has started to become the

By Wolfgang Reeh, founder of TV Skyline

norm across productions and we, from our own experience, have used Lawo’s V-Link 4 and NTT’s MV5000’s series of IP products. These have

allowed OB audio, video and communications

aving spent over 35 years in the OB

to interface into the remote production workﬂow.

industry, I have seen a great many

UHD is also becoming more commonplace,

technological developments, some of

and we’re all gearing up for that by stocking 4K

them lasted, some did not; it is necessary for any

cameras and relevant mixers and convertors,

company owner to evaluate which technology

and looking at concurrent SDR and HDR workﬂow

is worthy of investment.

solutions. That said, HD will still be king for a

I believe that the capability of producing in

little while longer.

UHD will become more important over the next

If I had one major wish for 2017, it would be

year(s) as more and more such productions

that core IP video and audio formats would

give full connectivity for EVS workﬂows in a 4K/

arise. When HDR is added into the mix, the

be agreed by manufacturers. Let’s hope that

UHD environment, aligned with IP audio and

importance of UHD will grow. As a result,

AIMS and other groups can ﬁnalise a standard

video cutting which can cause signiﬁcant timing

service providers have to develop workﬂows

with which the industry can go forward. There

and metadata issues. This all means we need

for productions in HD combined with UHD/HDR

are a myriad of IP protocols and 4K transport

to be very careful in creating robust workﬂows

out of one OB Van.

solutions currently available; for example TRO3,

compared to the relative simplicity of previous

2022-6/7, NMI, Tico, and so on. That’s why we

years’ operations.

desperately need the standardisation to give us

Broadcasters have used the cloud for many

the interoperability between equipment needed

years now, but I can see that use changing to

to service broadcast’s future needs.

more proliferation of virtual resource utilisation,

Audio-over-IP has the same issues – Ravenna

which will once again provide a challenge

(AES67), Audinate’s Dante, or AVB Audio – and

for groups and broadcasters to have robust

without a deﬁning standard interoperability,

workﬂows and asset management strategies.

“With IP-technology, the broadcast market will experience the biggest change in its technical history”

On a more local level, it is still apparent that

Dealing with HDR means a complete rethink

the UK. Whilst we have seen a movement

the industry needs new IT and broadcast-literate

for engineers. It’s not simply more resolution

towards IP, we still rely heavily on MADI (AES

engineers to enter the industry. At CTV, we are

like in the past: it’s a new workﬂow, it’s a new

10) as the transport backbone for our audio

investing in our junior personnel’s future and

set of parameters to take care of and, at the

systems, primarily due to the robustness of MADI

are proudly now involved in an apprenticeship

same time, a good SDR signal is still important.

technology and its everyday usage in the

scheme taking on a candidate to progress

The HDR workﬂow and standards require new

broadcast industry. For OB companies, there is

through ‘High Level Engineering’. Apart from this,

experience and training for engineers.

still a huge reliance on non-remote production,

we have our in-house training programmes with

and I am sure there will be a reluctance to

our current juniors and are incredibly keen to

and will be requested more frequently in

heavily invest away from the ‘known’.

make OB engineering an exciting and appealing

2017 is remote production. We are seeing

career for the next generation of young men

an increasing demand for remote productions,

and women broadcast professionals.

particularly at big events.

investment will remain a major problem within

Another major challenge is network bandwidth constraints within equipment; for example, to

Another technology that is getting bigger

TVBEurope

January 2017 www.tvbeurope.com

Production and Post Wolfgang Reeh

Optimism for 2017 By Gaël Tanguy, CTO, Euromedia

ast year was good for us, led by major international sports events. We were in every worldwide acclaimed sport event. We

were in the Monaco F1 Grand Prix (ACM) and at Roland Garros (FFT) in May. In June, we stayed at Stade de France and Parc des Prince for Euro 2016. Then we went to Barcelona for the Top 14 Final (Canal+). In July, we broadcast the Tour de France (FTV), while in August and September we went to Rio. In RF transmission, we’ve covered a very large sporting event in France, plus events such as the Tour of Quebec and Montréal, the Tour of Abu

Gaël Tanguy

Dhabi and the Tour of Taihu Lake in China. However, remote productions depend on the

We are very optimistic about 2017, and that

In this capacity, Euro Media Group is the only

availability of stable ﬁbre connections and

conﬁdence stems from the fact that Euromedia

European provider member of AIMS. Overall,

their price and so, in my opinion, it is not always

is constantly working on broadening its technical

our goal is to provide high quality services to our

sensible to generate a production remotely just

innovations and know-how in order to assist its

customers with the best possible savings.

because it is technically possible.

clients in creating the television experience of

We are looking to increase our customer base

Another milestone in the technological

the future. With the technology changing so fast,

with live performing arts and entertainment, as

development is the invention of IP-based

we are always investing heavily in R&D because,

well as services for corporate clients. As part of

production equipment. This process started

after all, it’s the only way to remain competitive.

our plans for renewing our OB ﬂeet, we’ve built

some time ago, but will take much longer

Our ability to anticipate and to capture the

and launched a new nimble OB Van called

than originally anticipated. Working with SDI or

market trends reinforces our position of pioneer

‘Nomad’. Compact, practical, and easy to set

HD-SDI on a BNC cable was really quite simple

and leader, bringing together the greatest and

up, it is a new dimension in production services,

compared working with an IP-signal on an

very latest technologies.

utilising versatile equipment, proven, easy HD

RJ45 cable. With IP-technology, the broadcast

The number of broadcasts in the ﬁeld of sport is

technology with the very best quality. Operated

market will experience the biggest change in its

increasing very quickly. Some sports now beneﬁt

by a team of just two technicians, this unit can

technical history.

from very extensive TV exposure that was not

be used with nine Sony 4K 35mm cameras, but

previously available, a good example of which is

also with other types of HD and UHD cameras.

our equipment will become really complex, and

the enthusiasm for women’s sports. This dynamic

The concept is to employ a simple, powerful

there is a need for education and training for

makes for good days ahead for the OB market.

and multifunctional unit that allows us to be

For the ﬁrst time, a cable connection between

almost all broadcast engineers.

At present, we have no speciﬁc requests for IP

present at several music festivals, concerts,

production from our customers. However, we are

ballet dancing events, and in smaller sports

development in order to play a major role in

actively cooperating in the planning for future IP

events. We anticipate it will continue to travel

outside broadcasting.

standards that are not yet fully deﬁned.

the European roads in 2017.

Because of all of this, IP will need further

www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

16 TVBEurope

Production and Post

Complex connections from one truck Philip Stevens learns more about a new OB vehicle

again for this work, but decided that the

Another challenge involved the choice of

company offered the best solution to our unique

antenna to meet the high speciﬁcation for the

requirements,” states Wilson-Dunn.

BT truck. “We needed to ﬁnd an antenna that

Stephen Burgess, CTO at Megahertz, takes up

provided high gain and stability and be able to

the story, “Our challenge as a systems integrator

operate in harsh environmental conditions. We

ugust 2016 saw the launch of the UK’s ﬁrst

is always to remain mindful of the weight of the

opted for the 1.8M AVL antenna, which met all

outside broadcast (OB) truck capable of

equipment going into the vehicle. What’s more,

the operational criteria from wherever the vehicle

transmitting HD and UHD/4K via ﬁbre and

we must ensure that there is sufﬁcient space

would be operating,” states Burgess.

satellite simultaneously. Known as TES52, and built

and cooling facilities for all the equipment and

by Ely-based Megahertz for the TV OB arm of BT

thereafter to provide the wiring requirements to

Megahertz team opted for the Snell Vega 3G unit.

Media & Broadcast, the vehicle has already been

connect everything together.”

“All modern SNG vehicles need to be ﬂexible in

used up to three times a week in the coverage of Premier League football matches. “There is considerable interest in UHD, and during the past year we have provided services with existing vehicles to ﬁve different broadcasters

When it came to selecting a router, the

the signal being fed into and routed through the

“We live and die by the quality and reliability of the service we offer” Mark Wilson-Dunn, BT

in the UK,” explains Mark Wilson-Dunn, vice

system,” says Burgess. “The advantage of the Snell router proved to be invaluable. The ﬂexibility of having a nonsymmetrical router and being able to mix and match copper and ﬁbre I/Os allowed Megahertz

president at BT Media & Broadcast. “However,

to provide a very

this new truck is the ﬁrst vehicle to be designed for

He reports that all vehicles need to have a

one particular customer who had the requirement

reliable power source in order to perform

for three UHD ﬁbre vision feeds and one satellite

well, and continuously. “Megahertz chose the

add or remove

connection at the same time. Of course, having

Fischer Panda 12000NE PVMH 10.6 kW / 12.5

or change the

said that, it can be used for other applications,

kVA generator mounted inside a GRP – 4DS

too. Using BT’s own ﬁbre network, we can connect

super-silent capsule. The performance

to over 150 major sports venues across the UK.”

and reliability of the Fischer

In fact, the truck has already been used to

Panda combined with our

deliver a record number of visions from a single

experience in ﬁtting and

venue. During August, for example, it delivered

maintaining these units

two lots of 30+ visions for a Premier League match,

gave BT conﬁdence

which is double the number, on average, that

for this vital part of

were supported during the 2013/14 season.

the truck.”

customised solution and the ability to

I/O conﬁguration as the customer’s needs require.”

At each of those venues, the new truck will be located next to the outside broadcast production vehicle, accepting multiple feeds which are then compressed, multiplexed and fed to the broadcaster via the BT Tower in London.

Making choices TES52 is a step up from the TES51 UHD truck that Megahertz built in 2014. That truck was based on a Mercedes Sprinter framework, while the new vehicle is slightly larger and is built on a 7T Iveco Daily chassis. “We did a review of the market before selecting Megahertz

Built by Megahertz for the TV outside broadcast arm of BT Media & Broadcast, the TES52 vehicle has been busy since its launch

TVBEurope

January 2017 www.tvbeurope.com

Production and Post BT’s core MPLS (multi-protocol label switching) network. Its on-board, 192-port Snell router is capable of handling a mixture of 4K, 3gbps and HD baseband signals, as well as ASI transport streams. Other equipment onboard the vehicle includes a Peak PBU, Xicom HPAs, an ETL L-Band Router, a Marshall 4K Monitor and Bluebell Optical Splitters and converters.

Maintaining quality Wilson-Dunn continues, “We live and die by the quality and reliability of the service we offer, so we have, wherever the appropriate equipment is available, remained with those suppliers that have a proven track record with us.” He goes on to report that during IBC, BT tested an Ericsson HEVC encoder with this truck. “We used a demo unit and carried by ﬁbre

The truck can accept multiple feeds which are then compressed, multiplexed and fed via the BT Tower

and satellite a live rugby match to Amsterdam. This was the ﬁrst live demo of an HEVC-based

The TES52 monitors multiple signals via a 4K

Phabrix for test signal generation and checking.

link used in the delivery of 4K UHD TV. Using this

Miranda multiviewer on to a Sony 4K screen,

The truck supports up to 16 ﬁbre links in HD mode,

encoding/decoding technology removes the

with two 4K/UHD Marshall monitors for additional

or three 4K/UHD and four HD links, using the

requirement for complex AVC quadrant-based

qualitative signal monitoring, along with an HD

intelligent video networking platform (IVNP) and

UHDTV contribution.

www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

TVBEurope

Feature

Trendspotting for 2017 TVBEurope gathers the thoughts of executives from Ericsson, Ampere Analysis, Massive Interactive, and ContentWise ahead of another year of innovation, integration and collaboration

Better screens, better cloud, better VR

The media industry really started to embrace

greater levels of ﬂexibility, control and improved

cloud-based services in 2016 and we can

software release cycles.

expect to see more of the same in 2017. As our

technology evolution and at a faster pace than

of cloud architectures, the public providers

the year before. The challenge for us all now

are introducing new features that make them

is to leverage these developments to deliver

more attractive for our use cases. Lower cost

better business outcomes and better audience

and more ﬂexible GPU instances and the

experiences in a rapidly changing industry.

introduction of FPGA-backed instances in 2017 will provide much greater performance for demanding media operations. If they can get

By Steve Plunkett, CTO, broadcast and media services, Ericsson

the economics right, we can start to build very sophisticated and scalable services on top of these platforms.

his year saw a new generation of

Next-generation IP

immersive media technologies come

The transition to IP-based transport in studios

to market. Oculus Rift, HTC’s Vive and

and broadcast facilities has started to take

Microsoft’s HoloLens were ﬁrst out the gate,

shape, but the ﬁrst generation of protocols

but the mainstream audience is most likely to

such as SMPTE 2022:6 are an intermediary step.

experience good quality VR on Sony’s more

Encapsulating SDI over IP is useful as a ﬁrst step,

affordable PSVR platform, which struggled

but the industry is already working hard on a

to meet consumer demand at year end.

native IP implementation based on the work

Google has also launched its smartphone-

of the VSF, AMWA, SMPTE and others. We can

centric Daydream VR speciﬁcation in an

expect to see a great deal of focus on this area

attempt to bring entry level VR to a much wider

in 2017, with organisations such as AIMS bringing

demographic. If momentum is to be maintained

together vendors of all sizes with a common

in 2017, we need to see great content emerge.

vision to transform how we move high bitrate

Many are still sceptical of the format, and

media around professional environments in an

with memories of 3DTV’s demise still fresh, this

interoperable manner.

is understandable. But at CES, and then NAB, immersive media will draw the crowds.

‘This year seems likely to see more technology evolution and at a faster pace than 2016’

If anything, 2017 seems likely to see more

technology stack evolves to take advantage

Reﬂecting on 30 years of innovation By Guy Bisson, research director, Ampere Analysis

ne of the best ways to predict what will happen in the future, especially the near-term future, is to look back.

Not back a year, or ﬁve years, or even ten; but 20 or 30. Why? Because, like most things in life, trends in the media entertainment industry go in cycles.

Software-defined broadcasting

Of course, the players and the technology

Another major development in 2016 was the

change, but the strategies and the synergies

transition from hardware-provided products

re-surface again and again.

to software provided products. This provides

Take one of the key emerging trends that

much greater deployment ﬂexibility for those

looks set to continue throughout 2017: vertical

building and managing broadcast systems,

integration. It was big in the 1990s and with

but the evolution will continue in 2017. While

potential deals like Time Warner and AT&T

the current generation of software products

and mooted combinations like Disney and

are largely based on virtual machine (VM)

Netﬂix it will be big again in the late teens

UHD made solid progress in 2016 and as the

based implementations, the trends in software

of this century. Now, just as then, it’s about

price and quality of TVs improve, consumer

engineering are towards container-based

the alignment of content and distribution as

uptake will drive demand for more content. OTT

models and microservices-based architectures.

well as the combination of new with old. The

providers are in the lead here, with Netﬂix and

These are not minor changes, and require

distribution has changed. Reaching the OTT

Amazon releasing ﬂagship content in UHD. The

signiﬁcant refactoring of the underlying

home is now so key that old-world media

pressure is on the rest of the industry to respond.

software design but promise to return even

players want in.

TVBEurope

January 2017 www.tvbeurope.com

Feature On the other side of the fence, the

enters the industry – I’d say we’re looking at a

Those will likely all fall into place just around that

globalisation of OTT services like Netﬂix

2020-plus timescale for that – it will be a year in

time that something we haven’t even thought

mean the value of content, speciﬁcally

which some major structural re-alignments take

of yet surprises everyone and throws the industry

direct ownership of content, soars. That’s

place throughout the media value chain.

back into disarray.

why a combination between Netflix and a major content owner will be of interest to both parties. Perhaps even more interesting, though, is the potential for combination of Amazon and a major studio. Vertical on the face of it, the content plus retail aspect is a new, but interesting scenario. So do I think Netflix will be sold in 2017? No. I think there will be a lot of noise, but we will probably have to wait a year or two more for an actual deal. When it does happen, it will be between Netflix and a content owner rather than a distribution player because Netflix’s real value is in its global reach and customer base. Amazon, though? It could surprise us yet in 2017.

‘2017 will not be a year in which a brand new Netflix-style disruptive force enters the industry’ There are also other platforms that could find themselves the target of vertical integration strategies with old-world media, particularly the digital native majors not already snapped up. Snapchat anyone? Consolidation is also likely to continue in the channel space, particularly between free and pay-TV channel groups, this trend may well be accelerated by the geo-political changes in Europe and the US, the full force of which will begin to be felt in 2017. When it comes to content, 2017 will see an ongoing push away from the traditional premium drivers of top-league sport and blockbuster movies. Original, high production-value drama will continue to out-perform, despite noises from the US that there is a bloated drama production bubble about to burst. But other forms of content that satisfy those classic ‘niches of scale’ will continue to ascend. Indie moves, digital native entertainment formats that make the crossover to mainstream TV (another major trend for the year) and eSports will all be key. So while 2017 will not be a year in which a brand new Netflix-style disruptive force

www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

TVBEurope

Feature

A Massive step forward

acquisition and retention. Global super-niche and

programmers can give their audiences exactly

regional services are proliferating and searching

what they need, at all times, is now essential.

for their share. We will see an unchartered range

month to Sky may now be paying Netﬂix,

provide access for a day or one week, and other

Amazon, Animax, DAZN, Sony and NowTV £5

entirely original add-on consumer offers

each per month. The demand for this level of

presented alongside SVoD services.

customer choice and control is undeniable, but

Things are moving quickly, and whilst there is a

By Max Ramsay, CTO, Massive Interactive

Audiences that have traditionally paid £50 per

of short-term commitment pricing offers that

lot of hype around VR, AR and social, the reality is

what will ensure this trend continues? For content producers who own and operate

that the majority of executives, shareholders and

their own services, getting content and their

boards across the globe are looking for tangible

technology back under their own control is

and near-term ROI for the growing number of

crucial. Nobody can take the risk of not being

t’s another new and exciting year, one that is

services they support. Product owners are

able to guarantee that their most valuable

sure to be ﬁlled with substantial and dynamic

searching for ways to cut the number of

content is in a prominent place on a hero

change. As we consider what groundbreaking

commodity vendors they engage with and are

carousel or accessible at the right time of day.

tech is next, one thing that can’t be ignored is

concentrating on other quality tech that

that our customers are carefully assessing their

improves marketing, overall brand experience

chain, and specialist mid-sized vendors with

bottom lines and working to take costs out of

and streaming quality.

leading technology propositions are growing

commoditised components. The year ahead will

The major broadcasters, content owners and

Very large vendors are entering the OTT supply

quickly. Successful growth is being driven by

see them rationalising multiple properties into

operators of today need to deliver personalised

those who have invested in their proposition and

mature product-based platforms and choosing to

experiences to their customers. The ability to

are now delivering third and fourth-gen tech.

focus on improving engagement and experience

differentiate and make tactical real-time change

to reduce audience churn. The age of the land

is paramount. They must be able to adapt their

vendors are clearly emerging and 2017 is the

grab is over and uncompromising product-

propositions quickly and regularly in response to

year that our sector will grow up. Watch as

centered business thinking is here to stay.

the behaviour of their audiences. The ability to

product owners demand advanced UI tools for

modify the UI and scheduling according to time

engagement and sophisticated vendors respond

of day, and by demographic, so that content

with platforms to redeﬁne the future of OTT.

2017 is undoubtedly set to be the most important year to date for SVoD customer

The year of driverless UX By Pancrazio Auteri, CTO, ContentWise

ntil recently, managing the TV user experience has been sluggish, cumbersome and characterised by a

The leading video services and winning

deeper insight is required, drawing on data and

These systems are self-tuning, meaning that they

automation to manage growing complexity and

learn and adapt based on every interaction.

personalised interactions.

They are also in real time as they respond

As such, one of the key trends we expect to see moving into 2017 is further progress in TV UX

instantaneously to changes in user behaviour. Next, we expect to see a rise in smart ‘assisted’

automation. What has struck us over the past

curation. Purely manual content curation is no

few years is that operators, to ensure the

longer effective, and as such, editorial and

personalisation of UX touch points across multiple

marketing teams need to implement tools

screens, must strike a balance between the

capable of operating at scale: pervasive A/B

automation of the user interface and the

testing capabilities, high-level business rules,

amount of ‘assisted’ curation which unleash

automated and granular management of user

editorial innovation and experimentation.

entitlements, self-assembling content collections,

As machine learning techniques and artiﬁcial intelligence take further steps forward, we

smart consumer clustering, ﬂexible targeting, and much more.

‘one-size-ﬁts-some’ approach; an approach

predict that 2017 will chime in the era of the

which fails to meet the wide range of needs and

‘driverless UX’ – a vision of smart, autonomous

of managing and analysing terabytes of raw

preferences of most viewers. Over the past

and personalised interactions with the user. There

data – user actions, context information, content

couple of years, several TV operators have

are a few trends we expect to see even more of

metadata – every week or even every day.

started orchestrating an engaging TV user

that will bring the driverless UX to life.

As UX automation becomes more of a norm

experience (UX) with an ‘interactive dialogue’

First, the UI behaviour will increasingly be

Third, operators need architectures capable

for operators, machine learning algorithms,

between their services and their users as a

driven by a ‘central-brain’ that is able to select

trained by streams of user interaction data,

central driver of growth and continued success.

the relevant content and organise it on the go,

will increasingly enable business users to proﬁle

at machine speed. With the complexity of

viewers, segment audiences, predict behaviour

content choices started expanding, human-

managing more than a dozen of storefront

and feed back data into the user interface

based curation has helped make such offerings

screens and devices, it is apparent that

automation loop.

manageable. However, as these offerings

automatic UI management and personalised

expand even further, the limits of manual

discovery systems will be able to provide the only

driven by human ingenuity, adapting at

editorial curation become apparent and much

sustainable, long-term solution.

machine speed.

As the number of available channels and

Welcome to the new television experience,

www.tvbeurope.com

TVBEurope Supplements

January 2017

IP Live: time to embrace the challenge Ready Today, Open for Tomorrow A simple guide to what IP could bring to you today, and tomorrow. In association with

www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

ii TVBEurope

In association with

Supplement

Live IP: time to embrace the challenge For some broadcasters and media producers, the idea of moving to an IPbased live production environment is a scary prospect. But, argues Michael Harrit – marketing director, media solutions, Sony Professional Solutions Europe – there are so many positives with IP that now is the time to embrace that challenge

There is also the worry about the skills required to tackle production IP, the inherent security risks of everything being networked, the increased need for interoperability and the desire to ensure a smooth transition. We address these, and other concerns, over the next few pages.

ou don’t need me to tell you this but

An IP-based infrastructure built on open

the way we produce live broadcast

standards allows a broadcaster or content

me give you some further reassurances. The

For those of you that are still unsure, let

television is changing.

creator to deploy ﬂexible technology that can

problems we currently face when it comes to IP

On the one hand our much-loved SDI

adapt to future requirements. Once you have

will be reduced over time and it will inevitably

environments have just about reached their

installed your IP pipe you can, within reason,

become easier. The evolution of IT tells us that.

technical limits while, on the other, standard

pour anything you like down it: video, audio,

Similarly, we have seen other industries go

computer processors are now so powerful they

metadata, consumer data, anything. And unlike

through similar changes and successfully come

can perform almost all of the tasks that a live

SDI, an IP-based live production network

out on the other side.

production infrastructure requires.

does not have to be upgraded in order to

It means that the next time we, as an industry, look at a technology re-fresh for our OB trucks, studios or broadcast facilities it is unlikely that our

adapt to a new resolution or frame rate. IP is format agnostic. IP technology also enables audio and

Plus, there are lots of people ready to help, including Sony. We believe that IP is not something to be scared of but something that should be

shopping lists will include specialist SDI boxes and

video streams to become omnipresent in the

embraced. Once you’ve read the rest of this

cables. Instead it will be consumer off-the-shelf

production ecosystem. This means that where

supplement, we think you’ll agree.

(COTS) hardware and faster Ethernet networks.

connectivity was previously point-to-point, now

In short, live production is moving to IP, and that

everything can be multiplexed which

is what this supplement is focussed on. Not on

opens up the possibility for ﬂexible

selling Sony (although we will do a bit of that) but

workﬂows that can be changed and

on helping you make that move.

re-shaped in minutes.

To many, the transition to IP cannot come

Then there is remote production.

soon enough. Broadcasters today are under

With less crew on site, centralised

increasing pressure to create more and better

resource sharing, optimised utilisation

quality content with the same (and sometimes

and reduced logistics costs, remote

less) money, facilities and staff. This demand

production offers up incredible

would be almost impossible to meet in our

possibilities. It even promises to be

legacy SDI world.

better for the environment.

For me, there is a clear business case for

Despite these obvious beneﬁts,

moving to IP and it comes down to cost

we understand that the move to

and ﬂexibility. Thanks to the gargantuan size of

IP can be pretty scary. Not

the IT industry and its constant R&D activity, COTS

necessarily because of the

hardware evolves quicker and is cheaper than

technology change but culturally.

specialist broadcast kit.

Within media and entertainment

At the same time, Local Area Network

we have traditionally opted for

bandwidth costs come down every year and

best-of-breed. But in the IP world,

already achieve speeds faster than we actually

our time-critical content is going to

need. Plus, with IP, it is possible to reduce the

stand or fall on a homogenous bank

amount of cabling required for live production.

of computing power. This will take

But cost is just one factor.

some getting used to.

Ready Today, Open for tomorrow Imagine what could be possible with IP.

www.pro.sony.eu/iplivetraining

www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

iv TVBEurope

In association with

Supplement

Live IP: dispelling the myths With so many differing opinions, the move to IP-based live production has become more complicated and political than it perhaps needs to be. To counteract this, here is Sony’s myth-busting guide

Similarly, we support the fast-growing IP Live Alliance, which already brings together more than 60 leading equipment vendors and technical partners in the live production

Myth: Every vendor says they offer open standards but, in reality, they do not

One of the big challenges of moving to IP-based

space. Sony has also created the IP Live

live production is the interoperability of different

Studio in our Digital Motion Picture

systems, products and solutions. This is why

Centre Europe (DMPCE) at Pinewood

We cannot answer for other vendors but we can

Sony has taken a completely open approach

Studios in the UK.

assure you that Sony’s solution is not proprietary.

and has joined the Advanced Media Workﬂow

We were the ﬁrst to market, yes, but that is not

Association’s Networked Media Incubator

interoperability real-life test bed for Live IP.

the same thing as being proprietary.

project and is following the AIMS (Alliance for IP

It features various partners from the IP Live

Media Solutions) roadmap. Joining AIMS allows

Alliance, including Cisco, Juniper, Imagine

end-to-end Live IP Production system that is

us to focus on, among other things, VSF TR-03

Communications, Tektronix and Leader, who

agnostic, ﬂexible and open to any standards.

and SMPTE 2022-6 while association with the

are integrating and polishing their solutions

With the help of reprogrammable logic chipsets

Networked Media Incubator project will enable

alongside Sony’s core components.

and software upgrades, it will easily accept

us to work closely with other industry leaders

new benchmarks or methods as soon they

to promote the adoption, standardisation,

layers of interoperability as recommended by the

are standardised.

development and reﬁnement of open protocols.

Joint Task force on Network Media (JTNM).

The truth is, Sony offers a proven and secure

This platform serves as an intensive

In addition, Sony’s solution covers all seven

At the same time, for those media companies with a business imperative to move to IP right now, we also have a ‘Ready Today’ solution.

The key planes of interoperability Compression

SMPTE RDD 34 (LLVC)

Identity

NMOS, NDCP

Device Control

NDCP, AMWA NMOS

to have a 4K-capable IP-based truck ready for

Connection Management

SIP, AMWA NMOS

summer sports events in Rio this year.

Discovery & Registration

NDCP, AMWA NMOS

Essence Encapsulation

SMPTE RDD 40, VSF TR-03, SMPTE 2110

Timing

IEEE 1588, PTP, SMPTE ST 2059

Flow Control

SDN, Netconf

Flow Switching

Destination Time Switch

This has the Network Media Interface (NMI) at its heart and makes use of COTS hardware. The NMI is the technology that enabled Brazil’s TV Globo

Myth: Sony’s solutions are not interoperable with those from other vendors

January 2017 www.tvbeurope.com

TVBEurope v

Supplement Myth: IP is not secure or robust enough for the demands of live production

Fundamentals for IP Live Production’ training

We know that in a live broadcast environment

knowledge of IP in the context of live production

that’s based on well-understood, carefully

and prepare attendees for working on an IP

rehearsed procedures and processes, there are no

project. This training is available to all and provides

second chances. Production teams need a rock-

a general overview of IP for live production. It is not

solid infrastructure in which they can be conﬁdent

speciﬁc to Sony solutions.

course. Combining online learning with hands-on coaching, the goal is simple: to provide a basic

that changes can be made instantly at the touch of a button. And any new methodology needs to be at least as robust, secure and reliable as the legacy system it replaces. Conﬂicting with that, an IP network is by

Myth: A hybrid approach won’t reap any beneﬁts. The move to IP is all or nothing Although a wholesale move to IP-based live

nature non-determinist, due to possible packet

production is possible, we also know that ripping

loss, packet congestions, buffer overﬂows or

out and replacing everything in one go is not

jittering phenomena.

practical or ﬁnancially viable. Many broadcasters

That is why, to ensure professional quality of service, Sony’s IP Live Production system complies

will want to continue to use SDI alongside IP, at least in the short term.

with advanced SMPTE standards 2022-5 and 2022-7. Similarly, to protect content and provide added assurance, Sony’s IP Live Production solution features trusted security protocols such as TLS or AES encryption.

Myth: Broadcast engineers don’t have the skills to manage an IPbased live production infrastructure In reality, most broadcast engineers would have all the capabilities required to manage an IP-based

“Having Sony as a strategic partner in this project gives us conﬁdence that it will be delivered successfully” Raymundo Barros, CTO of TV Globo, ﬁrst 4K IP Truck for the 2016 Brazil summer events

live broadcast, and would be far better qualiﬁed than a pure IT engineer. However, it is true to say that where the pointto-point world of SDI provided a certain peace of

With this in mind we’re enabling broadcasters

mind, the IP live production is more complicated.

to take a hybrid approach using our NXL-318FR

Sony can help in two ways.

chassis and our NXL-IP40F boards. This technology

The ﬁrst is through the Live System Manager

converts regular SDI A/V signals into IP signals and

(LSM), a software application that streamlines

vice versa. This means that broadcasters can

the set-up and operation of an IP-based live

have IP-based live production at the core, with

production workﬂow. Based on software-deﬁned

legacy SDI devices at the edge. These can then

network technologies, the LSM is capable of

be replaced with network IP devices over time,

managing device connectivity, performing

ensuring a smooth transition.

maintenance analysis and achieving virtual

We even offer a starter kit for IP live. This

cross-point switching. This means, for example, that

includes two IT routers, two SDI-IP gateways, the

an operator doesn’t need to manually declare

LSM software, two years technical support and

IP addresses for connected devices. Instead, a

access to our ‘Network fundamentals for IP Live

Dynamic Host Conﬁguration Protocol (DHCP)

Production’ professional training course.

server takes care of that. While the LSM overcomes a lot of potential IP

From end-to-end solutions and starter kits to

problems, broadcast engineers will still need to get

professional services and training, if you are

to grips with network technology fundamentals

considering moving your live production

that apply to live production including: network

infrastructure to IP, Sony can help.

protocol stack and message ﬂow; the structure

You can get in touch with us directly here

of packets and frames; network routing and

www.pro.sony.eu/imageipworkﬂow or sign

switching principles; virtual networks; and

up for our latest IP Live news to hear more

multi-point and multi-casting technology.

about our offers and solutions including free online

To that end, Sony Professional Europe, working

e-learnings. To ﬁnd out more about our training

with Juniper Networks, has designed the ‘Network

options visit: www.pro.sony.eu/iplivetraining

Why Sony? Still wondering which vendor is best positioned to help you move to live IP? Here are five great reasons to choose Sony so you can be Ready Today, Open for Tomorrow. 1. We offer flexible, interoperable solutions that are based on open standards Our large portfolio of IP-native high-end open production solutions is interoperable with a complete eco-system of systems within the IP Live Alliance. 2.We can make your life easier with the Live System Manager Simplify your migration to IP by letting the LSM do a lot of the hard work for you, from IP address setting to device configuration. 3. We deliver industry-wide, non-Sonyspecific training Our training courses do provide guidance on using Sony systems but they concentrate on IP live production in general, giving course attendees a full and honest insight into how to successfully put in place and manage IP-based workflows. 4.We have a long history of innovation We’ve been developing IP-based production technology for more than 15 years and we want to share that know-how with the industry to help it to successfully make the move to IP. 5.We’re here for the journey From initial consultancy and planning to technical implementation, operational support and training, Sony’s Professional Services division can help design and deliver a solution that complements your business goals and ensures a smooth migration to IP-based live production.

www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

vi TVBEurope

In association with

Supplement

TV in 2020: re-imagining live production with IP

Remote, immersive, and smart: thanks to the opportunities afforded by IP-based technology, live television production could look quite different in the year 2020, suggests Nicolas Moreau, IP Live marketing manager, Sony

aking predictions about the future is a tricky business. Even with my many years of media and entertainment industry

experience, knowing precisely what is around the corner is almost impossible. But one thing is for sure. With SDI being phased out in favour of IP-based networks, live production will never be the same again. And this transition is just the start. Connecting all of the production pieces together using IP is the ﬁrst step to achieving some new and potentially very cool things.

Remote production Remote production is one such idea, offering the ability to produce live broadcasts away from the actual event, by sending raw camera feeds, audio and equipment control over a telecoms network to a central studio facility. Various sports broadcasters have already successfully deployed remote production set-ups and more will follow but the

‘In 2016, in a world where we expect to be able to get instant information on all viewing devices at the touch of a button, on-screen data is increasingly crucial for engaging the viewer and is vital for the production team telling the story’

opportunities go far beyond simply reducing the number of staff and the amount of equipment needed on location. Assuming the appropriate level of connectivity is

breadth of the action. This could be translated

New and different types of content

to many different live events.

Extended IP-based networks, especially ﬁbre

present, remote production not only allows the

networks, have the potential to make it easier and

equipment operators at the event to work, as the

More data services

more affordable for niche and ad hoc events to be

name suggests, remotely from a central production

The extraction, manipulation, analysis and

covered live by broadcasters. This could widen the

gallery but it means that other members of the

distribution of data is now big business in

breadth of content that can be made available.

team could also be spread far and wide.

broadcasting but it is also crucial to the live

Again, this idea makes use of remote production

television experience. Imagine watching a live

capabilities but it relies heavily on the connectivity.

piped to wherever the production talent is in the

football or cricket match with no on-screen

With improved networks and a strong Point of

world. So, potentially, the camera team could be

information at all. No score, no clock, no match

Presence from the Internet Service Providers,

on the ground at an event in one continent, the

statistics. It would be like stepping back in time

however, we can expect to see the connectivity

graphics operator or sound mixer could be at his or

to the 1970s. In 2016, in a world where we expect to

costs decline, which will make much of this possible.

her station in another and the whole production

be able to get instant information on all viewing

could be switched from a central gallery in a third.

devices at the touch of a button, on-screen data is

Virtualisation and the cloud

increasingly crucial for engaging the viewer and is

We are already seeing an increase in the amount

vital for the production team telling the story.

of broadcast and production systems that are

Using IP networks, the raw signals could be

This in turn opens up further possibilities for other key production functions and roles to be arranged and located differently to how they are now.

Real-time IP networks give production teams the

being virtualised. Some are being deployed in the

Technically speaking it could be possible to

chance to access even more data and make it

cloud, others locally. Although the camera optics

dispatch people to the four corners of the globe

available to those viewers in real-time. Connected

will never be virtualised, once the pictures have

but still work in real time as if they were in the

to the cloud via IP, production teams could

been acquired and the signal has left the CCU,

same studio or OB truck.

theoretically pull statistics for every player that ever

everything else can be translated into software.

played the game or recall any metadata-logged

And if the functions of live production can be

election with lots of small bureaus connected to a

video clip from history to illustrate a point during

translated into software – and therefore can

large HQ in order to cover the length and

live commentary.

run on a regular PC and server – then they

I like to visualise it like the night of a political

January 2017 www.tvbeurope.com

TVBEurope vii

Supplement can be virtualised in the cloud or a data centre. Virtualisation could lead to the end of the master control room and the studio gallery as we know it. Or, perhaps more realistically, it could make them more ﬂexible places to work. The beauty of virtualisation is that it enables instantaneous function and revision changes so workﬂows can be switched quickly and easily. Of course, there are still bandwidth considerations and I am certain that the RAW output from the camera censor will never go directly to the cloud. The CCU output might, though, which offers up further possibilities. But it is probably fair to suggest that the physical performance of live production in 2020 will be transformed by the move to software and virtualisation.

Virtual reality production While the underlying technology that moves signals around a TV facility has changed dramatically over the years, the tools we use to manipulate the pictures and sound haven’t. We still use knobs and dials, switches and screens. What if the production environment itself could be virtualised? What if the live studio director, technical director or the vision mixer could control the production in a virtual world through a virtual headset? If the applications are virtual, then perhaps the user experience could be virtual too? This would be immersive, not for viewer but for the content producer. IP makes this possibile.

Smart OB trucks IP has started to penetrate the OB market with the first IP-based trucks going live this year. One of the benefits of IP is that it reduces the amount of cabling required, in turn reducing the footprint of the vehicle itself. Smaller, lighter trucks are definitely a benefit - as long as the production staff have the room they require, of course. This lines-up the possibility of developing smart OB trucks. Let’s say, for example, that a big event requires more horsepower than a single IP-based truck can offer. Instead of having to find a bigger truck, two smart trucks could be combined together. Thanks to IP connectivity, and using pre-set software functions that can be recalled at the click of a mouse, they could then dovetail and act as one, sharing resources. The opportunities are limited only by the imagination. Now, I will be the first to admit that some of these things I have mentioned here will not come to pass. I have no crystal ball. But the fact that I

‘IP may not be the solution to every broadcast problem but it certainly has the potential to provide more options when it comes to producing live TV’

There are so many more options in the brave new IP world. IP may not be the solution to every broadcast problem but it certainly has the potential to provide more options when it comes

can even make these suggestions shows you how

to producing live TV.

much more ﬂexible IP is than SDI.

Find out more www.pro.sony.eu/imageipworkﬂow

TVBEurope

January 2017 www.tvbeurope.com

Feature

The challenges of selecting a

broadcast MAM solution It is important to note that most broadcasters

analysis of the possible uses of a MAM system

who produce their own content have speciﬁc

and the involvement of too large a stakeholder

issues to solve with MAM. These issues are

group. This is a common mistake, made with

different to newspapers and web content

the best intentions of trying to achieve

publishers, for example. However, these issues

widespread user buy-in, but results in either

edia Asset Management (MAM) is a

are not speciﬁc to individual companies. As

a signiﬁcant delay in implementation, or

broad term that refers to many

Tom Wragg, former head of resources and

dissatisfaction from many of the user groups as

different sets of functions. The range of

operations at BBC News & Current Affairs once

they feel that their ‘requirements’ have been

these functions for any speciﬁc project depends

stated, “Broadcasters have always had the view

ignored. Either way, the project is not destined

upon a number of factors – especially the

that they are unique and can do it better than

for success.

scope of the project. In a typical broadcaster

anyone else. Both points are wrong”.

by Jeremy Bancroft, director, Media Asset Captial

environment, the scope of the project could include any or all of the following applications:

Broadcasters employ very similar processes. They acquire or produce content, they edit, check and enhance that content, they

z Supporting TX functions – TX MAM

store and publish information about that content,

z Archive and library management –

and then they transmit and distribute it. As a

Archive MAM z Supporting production operations – Production Asset Management (PAM) z Supporting news operations – News MAM

result, it is often extremely useful to look at what other organisations have done to tackle their MAM issues, to beneﬁt from their experience, and learn from their mistakes.

z Supporting graphics operations – Graphics MAM Each commercially available MAM system has strengths and weaknesses in one or more of

‘Broadcasters have always thought they are unique and can do it better than anyone else. Both points are wrong’ Tom Wragg, RBS Markets We have witnessed RFPs where the requirements are so generic that patently unsuitable solutions

MAM mistakes

meet the selection criteria. Often, this is because

Mistakes in the planning and deployment of a

the customer focuses on how the solution is

broadcast MAM system are very common, and

structured rather than the required functionality.

may be broken down into several types.

Generic systems from an IT background are often

these applications.

strong on architecture, integration and scalability but lack broadcast-speciﬁc functionality. Adding

applications across multiple types of media,

Poor specification (too prescriptive or generic, for example)

including video, audio, text and still images.

We have seen many cases of broadcasters

A phrase sometimes used is ‘Enterprise MAM’, whereby the system supports many of these

this functionality can be very costly.

In our experience, and despite vendors’

being too prescriptive within an RFP. This often

Poor business case (insufficient buy-in from c-level)

marketing statements to the contrary, there

leads to the rejection of all proposals, as they

It is often difﬁcult to create a ﬁrm ROI case for a

is no such thing as a truly ‘Enterprise MAM’

cannot possibly meet the stated ‘must have’

MAM implementation. Whereas a well-executed

solution, especially one that meets all the

requirements, leaving the customer with the

MAM solution can increase operational

needs of a broadcaster. This is why many

only options of either changing the speciﬁcation

efﬁciency and enable new distribution models

broadcasters manage media assets across

or building their own solution.

and revenues, the precise savings, either forecast

multiple systems.

Prescriptive RFPs are often a result of over-

or in retrospect, are often unclear.

www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

22 TVBEurope

Feature

Back office applications

An example of an Enterprise Service Bus in a broadcast environment

Monitoring and management dashboard Digital asset management

Resource management

Workflow

Business logic

Content processing

Enterprise service bus

Ingest

Transfer

Content

Quality analysis

Content repository

Transform

Broadcast on-demand, web, mobile

Media bus With competition for ﬁnances within

Making sure that project priorities are closely

spreadsheets and informal processes.

broadcasters, MAM projects are often delayed

aligned to the primary business drivers can help

This goes further than training. It starts with good

or shelved in favour of expenditure that can be

to determine the order in which new workﬂows

communication to ensure that all affected users

justiﬁed ﬁnancially. It is therefore good practice

are implemented.

understand the broader goals of the project, and

to create a ﬁnancial case, as well as deﬁning

the importance of their part within that project.

Resistance to change

It often relies upon ‘super-users’ who become

A former colleague, Dr Peter Thomas, once

champions for the MAM platform, and are the

good metric is to measure the average number

stated that “broadcast is good at absorbing new

‘go to’ people for users who have questions.

of person hours that are required to prepare

technology, though poor at new process.” He

These super users should be representative of

a ﬁxed duration of content for transmission

went on to say that “the same technology can

different groups of operational staff, and provide

and online distribution. This needs to look at all

be overwhelmingly successful in one broadcaster

a degree of leadership and inspiration for other

processes that could potentially be impacted

and be a disaster in another. Success critically

users. This does not mean that they need to be

by the implementation of a MAM system,

depends on business process re-engineering to

senior staff, but their attitudes are key.

including acquisitions/commissioning, marketing,

optimally leverage technology”.

technical and operational advantages. In order to create a ﬁnancial justiﬁcation, a

viewing by the acquisitions/commissioning teams, viewing by legal and editorial compliance, compliance editing, quality control, scheduling, online preparation, transcoding/encoding content movement, and general media management activities.

‘There is no such thing as a truly ‘Enterprise MAM’ solution, especially one that meets all theneeds of a broadcaster’

CONSIDERATIONS FOR A MAM PROJECT

Define the scope The ﬁrst point to address is the scope of the project. Whilst it is possible to specify a MAM solution that will touch nearly all media processes within a broadcaster, we would normally

It is not unusual to ﬁnd signiﬁcant repetition

recommend that the primary focus should be

in tasks, multiple processes duplicating effort, and assets or metadata being stored in multiple

Implementing new asset management is far more

to support preparation of content for transmission

repositories. As various departments in the

than just buying and integrating technology; it

and non-linear content distribution activities,

media enterprise have evolved organically

requires leadership, governance, integration,

both of which are generally human resource

with localised decision-making, it is not at all

cultural change and user adoption to make

intensive operations.

unusual for organisations to have multiple

it work. Sadly, changing the habits of key user

ingest processes, management systems,

groups tends to be an afterthought in many

Prioritise the requirements

transcoding systems, as well as point to

projects, and as a result, the success of a project

The second point to address is the priority

point integrations.

is undermined as users retain workarounds,

of functionality required from the project.

TVBEurope

January 2017 www.tvbeurope.com

Feature Functionality may be prioritised as ‘must have’,

might be desirable to deploy support for linear

Examples include Vidispine, Imagen, Blue Lucy

‘should have’ and ‘like to have’. The deﬁnition

TX operations, and later add capabilities that

Media and Cantemo. This approach provides

of must have functionality needs to be treated

would replace legacy management systems.

the ability to implement speciﬁc functionality

carefully, and should be restricted to

However, this approach introduces the risk

that may not be cost effective with a

functionality where its absence will seriously

of spending being curtailed once the initial

commercially available broadcast MAM solution.

jeopardise the success of the project, or will

objectives (especially those that produce the

The core functionality (for example, database,

impede the ability for the broadcaster to get

greatest operational efﬁciencies) of the project

search, results display and API suite) is generally

content to air, or on non-linear distribution

are satisﬁed.

made available to all customers as part of the

platforms. Too many ‘must haves’ will signiﬁcantly

overall platform cost.

restrict the broadcaster’s options when

What type of MAM platform?

evaluating commercially available platforms, or

The third point to address is to choose the

z Self-build. This option has been exercised

will render the development of the project overly

type of MAM platform. There are a number

by a number of broadcast companies in order

complex.

of options here:

to fully satisfy their presumed requirements. Although this approach does provide the

‘The hosting of the MAM platform used to be a straightforward proposition’

z A speciﬁc broadcast MAM solution, where

greatest ﬂexibility, it also usually comes with

the vendor provides the functionality, integration

the largest price tag.

and customisation required. Examples of such

Development costs and ongoing software

vendors are TMD, VizRT, Tedial, Dalet, VSN,

support cannot be amortised across multiple

Imagine, SAM and Avid.

installations, and are therefore shouldered by the broadcaster.

It is a perfectly valid approach to implement

z A development platform that provides the

functionality in stages, over time, with the ﬁrst

basic MAM capability and toolsets, but requires

rather than build a custom solution. They include

stage addressing the key requirements, and

the customer, or the customer’s chosen third-

maintenance, scaling, ongoing development

additional capabilities introduced once the

party developer/integrator to develop user

and losing the code; or the person that wrote the

core system is operational. For example, it

interfaces and workﬂow upon that platform.

code taking another job.

There are obvious practical reasons to buy

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www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

24 TVBEurope

Feature On premise versus cloud

to the MAM operator and stored in the

architectural pattern in computer software

The hosting of the MAM platform used to be

content metadata.

design in which application components

a straightforward proposition. There were

provide services to other components via

very few cloud platforms, and those that did

Integration

a well-deﬁned communications protocol,

exist provided little or no integration with the

It is rare for a broadcast MAM system to operate

typically over a network.

customers’ broadcast infrastructure. This, of

completely standalone, without integration

course, has changed, with a plethora of cloud-

to other management and technical systems.

based solutions now available.

Integration with other systems can be provided

There are advantages and disadvantages with

in a number of ways, including multiple point-

public cloud hosted solutions, and the cost model

to-point integrations whereby the MAM system

is often skewed towards opex rather than capex;

integrates with third-party APIs, or the third-party

this does not suit all organisations. The level of

systems each integrate with the MAM APIs. What

integration required with existing systems, and

is becoming more common however is the use of

whether remote access to the MAM is required

an Enterprise Service Bus (ESB).

can also be major factors in this decision.

An ESB is a software architecture model used

‘It is not unusual to ﬁnd signiﬁcant repetition in tasks’

A service is a function that is deﬁned, selfcontained, and does not depend on the context or state of other services.

for designing and implementing communication

A service could be a repeatable business activity

Workflow orchestration

between software applications in a service-

that has a speciﬁed outcome (for example,

Workﬂow orchestration (sometimes known as

oriented architecture.

perform auto QC on this clip, create browse

workﬂow automation or process management)

In general, an ESB can be thought of as a

copy of that clip, move another clip to archive).

is a capability of many, but not all MAM systems.

mechanism that manages access to applications

In a MAM solution, these services may be

The ability to programme automated workﬂows

and services to present a single, simple, and

components of the MAM system itself, or parts

that are dependent upon content metadata,

consistent interface to third-party systems.

of external systems.

the outcome of processes and operator input

Instead of developing multiple separate

can signiﬁcantly improve operational efﬁciency.

connections from the MAM system to each

providers and service consumers. The principles

However, not all workﬂow orchestration systems

third-party system that must be integrated, an

of service-orientation are independent of any

are created equal.

ESB provides a single point of integration for each

vendor, product or technology.

connected system. This means that it becomes

‘ESBs designed for broadcast are still quite immature’

Within any SOA environment, there are service

ESBs designed for broadcast are still quite

much easier to replace an individual component

immature. These are certainly worth investigating,

without worrying about affecting multiple

and their usefulness and value will increase as

different interconnections.

more adapters to commonly used broadcast

A service-oriented architecture (SOA) is an

equipment and systems become available.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR BROADCASTERS Some vendors offer the ability for their customers’ systems administrators to modify, create and programme workflows using standard scripting tools such as Windows PowerShell scripting language, UML and BPEL. Others provide visual workflow creation and editing tools that allow the systems administrators to model workflows graphically, often using flow chart type notation.

1. Identify the areas in which a new MAM system can improve operational efficiencies and add value to media workflows. This may include support for the following processes: • Content preparation workflows (viewing, QC, compliance, access services, etc.) • Linear transmission • Movement of content between different storage locations • Metadata storage, management and enrichment • Library and archive management • Non-linear formatting and distribution.

These systems have workﬂow engines that manage processes within the MAM environment. Processes could include ﬁle movements, metadata updates (dependent upon the outcome of previous processes or changes in connected external systems) and

2. Agree and prioritise the key requirements for the solution, and whether the system will be deployed in phases (often better than a ‘big bang’ approach). 3. Decide whether the system will need to incorporate other functionality at a later date (e.g. news or production archive, etc).

transcode operations. For MAM platforms that are integrated with external systems, this workﬂow automation can be extended to allow processes (auto QC, for example) to be executed by these external systems and the results returned

6. Visit other, similar broadcasters to study their MAM deployments. 7. Define and document all the workflows that will be deployed with the MAM system. 8. Create a short list of potential suppliers. 9. Create a short form Request For Information only once the above points have been addressed. 10. Identify the budget requirement for the MAM system, third-party software, hardware (if hosted on-premise), storage and professional services required to complete the project. 11. Create a business case and ensure high-level buy in, and identification of the deployment team is achieved prior to placing any contracts.

4. Choose which type of MAM solution (as defined above). 5. Identify the systems with which the MAM will require integration, what data needs to be exchanged and how. We recommend the use of an ESB.

12. Identify and appoint motivated ‘super users’ from each affected department to become champions for the adoption of the solution.

to the DIGITAL – PRINT – EVENTS GAMING – MUSIC – AV – PRO AUDIO – CONSUMER ELECTRONICS VIDEO & BROADCAST – EDUCATION

www.newbaymedia.com LONDON – NEW YORK

www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

TVBEurope

In association with

Technology

TV Technology goes Global Neal Romanek, editor of TV Technology Europe, invites the industry to travel around the world with a sneak peek at the new TV Tech Global

TV Tech Global will be an entirely

The TV industry is no longer tied

digital product, jettisoning

by the traditional boundaries of

TV Technology Europe’s print

continents and territories. It’s a single

publications for a wider (and

ecosystem that crosses the globe.

greener) digital reach with limited

TV Tech Global is your toolkit for

n response to the global boom

bound by geographic locations.

print runs for the biggest trade

navigating the new global media

in media production and

TV Tech Global aims to be the top

shows. A global staff of editors and

ecosystem. We hope you enjoy the

distribution, TVBEurope’s sister

tech information source for media

journalists will supply stories from

following sampling of stories from TV

makers worldwide.

Africa, APAC, Europe, LATAM,

Tech Global and we look forward to

MENA and the US.

seeing you around the world!

publication TV Technology Europe has expanded its reach. The new TV Tech Global will be

Each bi-monthly issue of TV Tech

Global will feature a particular

NewBay’s ﬁrst truly international

geographic focus, accompanied

brand, covering TV industry

by an editorial presence at each

production and distribution

region’s major tradeshow. It will

technology across all seven

feature user case studies, product

continents (yes, even Antarctica).

reviews, expert opinion, buyers

‘TV Tech Global is your toolkit for navigating the new global media ecosystem’ As the video sector shifts to a

guides and news from around the

24/7 global market, with players

world and will cover the full scope

from opposite sides of the world

of content creation and distribution

competing one week and

– from a YouTuber operating out of

collaborating the next, the tools and

a ﬂat in Cairo to international, multi-

tech for media creation – and those

broadcaster collaborations at major

who use them – are also no longer

sports events.

2017 TV TECH GLOBAL EDITORIAL CALENDAR JANUARY/FEBRUARY z OTT and streaming z Production theme: The big screen z Region: Europe z Tradeshow: ISE z BVE preview MARCH/APRIL (print mag distributed at NAB) z Acquisition z Production theme: Enterprise video z Region: LATAM z Tradeshow: NAB & CABSAT MAY/JUNE z Storage z Production theme: News z Region: Asia-Pacific z Tradeshow: Broadcast Asia

JULY/AUGUST z Graphics and VFX z Production theme: Sports z Region: MENA z Tradeshow: Media Tech 360 review SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER (print mag distributed at IBC) z IP production z Production theme: Scripted TV z Region: Africa z Tradeshow: IBC NOVEMBER/DECEMBER z Post and grading z End of year wrap-up z Production theme: Advertising z Region: Australia z Tradeshow: IABM Conference

Indian broadcaster gets digital upgrade and TerraBlock storage

ndian Christian broadcaster

a workﬂow which sees a Facilis

Powervision has employed

TerraBlock 24/EX12 32TB storage

Wecom Global to consult and

system supporting a network of eight

assist with the channel’s transition to ﬁle-based workﬂows. Established in 2010, Powervision

Avid edit suites. The TerraBlock 24EX/12 offers a low cost of entry with 48TB, with

is a satellite TV channel with its

expandability to 96 or 192TB. Facilis

own studio complex and playout

says the 24EX/12 can handle 444 HD

station based in Tiruvalla in

and compressed 4K workﬂows.

southern India’s Kerala state. The

Wecom Global is headquartered

Powervision Channel is known for its

in Dubai – United Arab Emirates

Christian devotional programmes,

(UAE) where it markets, installs and

broadcast 24/7 in over 100 countries

supports a range of professional

throughout Asia, Australia, Europe

video/audio editing, digital media

and the US.

and broadcast equipment. The

Working closely with Powervision

company provides digital media,

TV’s in-house engineering team,

audiovisual consulting, design and

Wecom designed and integrated

installation services.

Save the Date IBC2017 Conference 14 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 18 September 2017 Exhibition 15 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 19 September 2017 RAI, Amsterdam

Where the entertainment, media and technology industry does business

IBC.org

www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

28 TVBEurope

In association with

Technology

A new 4K IP truck for China hinese content services

a plan to broadcast up to 50 live

platform 4K Garden has

performances. 4K Garden believes

commissioned Sony China

it might require up to eight IP-4K

Professional Solutions Group (CPSG)

OB trucks to produce

to build an IP 4K OB truck.

premium content.

4K Garden claims the truck will

CPSG’s Moriharu Ide

be the most advanced of its kind in

said he believes that

China. The truck will include eight

“the combination of

4K cameras, and Sony’s core 4K/

Sony’s strength in core

HDR/IP production equipment

4K/HDR and IP technology,

and solutions, the truck can also

along with 4K Garden’s

be upgraded to utilise up to 16

determination to create high-

cameras in the future. Sony gear

quality 4K content, will ensure

specs include:

that the cooperation between

z HDC-4300, 4K/HD system

the two is a fruitful one.

camera z XVS-7000, Multi-format production switcher z PWS-4400, 4K/HD

“Sony is happy to support 4K Garden’s efforts in promoting its 4K business in China, as well as to work with China’s OTT companies

Sony Professional Solutions Europe.

of Alibaba group in China.The

to expedite the growth of the 4K

“Our robust solutions are being used

agreement with Sony was signed

industry in the country.”

in China, Europe and throughout

at a ceremony on 24 August at the

“This announcement is another

the globe to enable broadcasters

Beijing International Radio, TV & Film

Next year, 4K Garden plans to

example that IP Live is reality,”

to embrace the transformational

Exhibition 2016 (BIRTV 2016), held

increase its production of live

said Norbert Parquet, strategic

beneﬁts of IP Live today.” 4K Garden

this year at the China International

content in 4K in the next year, with

marketing manager, live production,

is a content services platform

Exhibition Center in Beijing.

multi-port AV storage unit z Live System Manager Software

AIMS trade org expands to Japan A IMS is opneing a subgroup

including APAC. Japan made

Cronk and Miyazawa covered

which will focus on its

sense for the ﬁrst one of these

the goals of AIMS, its role in the

marketing activities in

regional speciﬁc sub-groups for two

standards adoption process,

Japan. The subgroup will be charied

reasons: We had a critical mass of

the AIMS roadmap, as well as IP

by Ted Miyazawa of Panasonic.The

AIMS members based in Japan (that

interoperability.

AIMS Japan subgroup will work to

could carry on the activities of the

spread awareness of AIMS messages

Japan sub-group. And in terms of

and customers that contribute to

in IP interoperability tailored to the

establishing worldwide adoption,

the IP transition effort, so naturally

Japanese market. The new group

Japan is critical as there is a large

AIMS wants to be as effective as

will work with the AIMS marketing

base of heavyweight broadcast

we can in communicating with

working group to ensure that their

equipment suppliers based in the

those important stakeholders,”

messages are aligned and will

country. That said, again, AIMS

said Cronk, “We recognise that our

determine the best ways to reach

is constantly evaluating similar

marketing will be more effective

the Japanese broadcast market.

approaches elsewhere.”

in Japan if it is conducted in the

“The goal of the Japan sub-group

The new Japan subgroup was

“Japan is home to key vendors

Japanese language and targeted

is to promote the AIMS Roadmap in

introduced at the Inter BEE 2016

at events and activities that draw

Japan, in Japanese” explains AIMS

trade show in Tokyo. Cronk and

Japanese broadcasters.

board chair Mike Cronk. “However,

Miyazawa participated in an

AIMS will be constantly evaluating

Inter BEE panel discussion on the

a common set of IP interoperability

subgroup is one step towards

if a similar approach can be taken

various proposed methods of live

standards and speciﬁcations.

ensuring that our message reaches

in other countries or geographies,

IP transmission.

The formation of a Japanese

a global audience.”

AIMS chairman, Mike Cronk, at this years IBC

“We have a strong message for

TVBEurope

January 2017 www.tvbeurope.com

In association with

Technology

Abu Dhabi’s LIVE adds Lawo processors to upgrade

bu Dhabi broadcast

format conversion, eight-channel

infrastructure while a GUI based

services company LIVE

colour correction, frame sync,

on HTML5 facilitates operation

has taken on board ﬁve of

separate video and audio delay,

and monitoring.

Hamad Abdelrazaq, LIVE

Lawo’s V-pro8 ‘toolbox’ broadcast

embedding and de-embedding

Hamad Abdelrazaq, head of

processors as part of an ongoing

with sample rate converters, test

broadcast engineering, LIVE, said:

modernisation of its facilities.

pattern generation, surround down

“We have to offer our clients the

mix stages, quad-split multiviewer

most ﬂexible and cost-efﬁcient

services for Abu Dhabi Media,

plus lots of additional helpers like

solutions. The V_pro8’s are the

which operates and manages 25

thumbnail previews, waveform

perfect tool for this, streamlining

brands across multiple platforms,

monitor, vector scope, peak

our workﬂows, and giving us

including broadcast, publishing

metering display. High-density

the ﬂexibility to work in different

and digital.

audio connections provide video-

production situations quickly

to-audio bridges within the studio

and reliably.”

LIVE provides outside broadcast

The company claims to have the largest ﬂeet of HD OB Vans in the MENA region, in addition to

company’s post facilities include

its considerably large inventory

20 Avid and FCP suites. LIVE

of SNG equipment and 3,000

presently uses several Lawo audio

square metres of studio space.

consoles and VSM control systems

The company’s MCR feed

in its OB Vans. The addition of the

recordings and playout services

V_pro8 units should provide greater

currently provide 24/7 broadcast

workﬂow ﬂexibility through the V_

for 14 channels, and ingest and

pro8’s ability to combine audio and

archive services include the

video management functions.

management of Abu Dhabi’s largest historical ﬁlm archive. The

V_pro8 features two-channel high-quality up/down/cross

THE FUTURE IS CONTENT-CENTRIC Let’s optimize multiplatform scheduling www.mediagenix.tv

www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

TVBEurope

Business

Data Analytics The only way to go George Jarrett talks to two players who see the Internet of Things (IoT) from the different perspectives of the man in the street and Telco inﬂuence

If IoT is implemented in a smart way,

“I am a strong believer that we can

it can bring security and comfort

use the gathered data to make the

to citizens. This is the domain I am

living conditions of citizens much

focusing on now.”

more safe and comfortable, and

IoT is a global revolution involving

not fall into the trap that George

hen the Jungle Book

In terms of the potential of IoT,

every single market, a bit like IT

character King Louie

broadcasting is a minnow industry,

and IP, but at core it is really about

sings, “Give me the

so to discuss the opportunities and

supporting human decision-making.

power of man’s red ﬂower,” he

issues we start with one of the most

reminds us that mankind has seen a

famous faces of IBC and his huge

people to make the right decisions

What standards might be required,

low number of huge advances and

ambitions for the man in the street.

concerning places where there is

and what body should set, them is a

‘man on the moon’ achievements.

It is Ericsson that provides a second

the lowest amount of pollution, the

message we all chime.

One of these just might be the

perspective, with suggestions that

lowest noise levels, etc. On the other

Internet of Things (IoT).

reﬂect on how content owners

hand, it will enable public services

much in terms of global standards,

might better exploit IoT.

organisations to be much more

as far as I know. Of course,

reactive and effective in supplying

communication is going to be

their services,” he says.

fundamental, and there are already

It is a global revolution sure to impact on every industry and

“In one aspect it will help

Orwell described in his book 1984.”

Strong regulation will be the key

“We do not currently have very

public service, and currently it

A global revolution

is a convolution of ambitions for

Michel De Wolf, founder and CEO

interconnectivity, with mind-blowing

of DWESAM Engineering, is the

tremendous number of eyes,

top of that you need protocols,”

levels of data analytics. On the

technical entrepreneur who took

including the interpretation of

says De Wolf.

downside, the tracking of freedom

his ideas for Live IP production to

what is captured by those eyes.

of movement demands some

VRT two and a half years ago. His

There will be a tremendous

in some countries, but none are

serious legal restraints around the

ideas for exploiting the potential of

amount of data from which to get

global. On the other hand, there is

area of data exploitation, and the

IoT however are nothing to do with

valuable information, and maybe

a huge need of standards for the

human right to disconnect.

broadcasting, but serve another

knowledge, so data analytics is the

data models. I strongly believe in

domain he is very passionate about.

only way to go there.”

open standards for the data as well.

In the areas dubbed ‘quality

“What it will create is a

of life’, computer-controlled cars will be one of the front lines of IoT movement as people come to balance the inherent risks with the tens of thousands of people who

a lot of standards out there. But on

“I have seen some of them

Again, you see a lot of initiatives by

“It should be possible to track any object and any anomaly in the street” Michel De Wolf, DWESAM Engineering

have died in road accidents, while

cities, which are already publishing a lot of their data publically. If we want to have global analytics and global tools, we need to go for standards.”

in control of their vehicle.

There are issues around IoT. It ”IoT is a very general name covering

Surely this environmental idea

tracks freedom of movement, and

health tracking, the smart city,

a whole lot of markets and industries:

involves algorithms that track people

80 per cent of marketing people

and cognitive analytics – were

the so-called verticals,” says De

from place to place (one Japanese

utilise customer information without

all hot subjects throughout 2016.

Wolf. “Today my interest is focusing

company is already famous for

any approval.

The sub-plots include the usual

on the IoT as applied for smart cities.

measuring pulse and breathing

misnomer of ‘regulation gets in the

Again, a smart city is a very general

patterns via Wi-Fi)?

way of innovation’, the balance of

name covering a lot of topics:

improving the quality of life against

smart homes, smart buildings, smart

any object and any anomaly in the

from their selection habits, so is

issues around intrusion, the eventual

transportation, and smart stadiums.

street. But it is mandatory as well to

there a disconnection in terms of

potential of automation and no

But there is one very interesting topic

de-personalise the data, otherwise

trust? It must surely be important

button pushing, and viable cyber

that handles the public environment

we will get into tremendous privacy

to establish a very clear contract

security systems.

and what happens in the street.

issues,” says De Wolf.

regarding data exploitation?

The beneﬁts of IoT – improved

“It should be possible to track

Fewer than ten per cent of consumers actually know what happens to data derived

TVBEurope

January 2017 www.tvbeurope.com

Business “Just as we need standards, we

“Telco companies already invest a

need strong regulation,” says De

lot in machine learning and AI as

Wolf. “Most cities do have privacy

part of TV services and are already

protection laws, but I do not think

utilising this into recommendation

they are fully adopted. A lot of grey

engines,” he says. “This offers

areas and questions do exist, so

enormous value for IoT, as again,

I think there is a huge task for the

Telcos can apply this knowledge

lawmakers, and they had better start

and data solutions to create a

soon.”

viable IoT offering for existing and

Is it important to separate out

prospective customers.”

the IoT for industry applications,

On the issues of standards and

and IoT for consumer and health

cyber security, Tomer says, “Ericsson

applications: there certainly seems to

believes that the best approach

be overlapping? “Yes, and in the domain I am

Michel De Wolf, right, receiving one of two TVBAwards for the VRT Sandbox LiveIP Project

concentrating on, there is a need to

for IoT is to use existing standards. A standard web API for example, already exists. The best solution is if

create more opportunities for IoT

people simply open up their API (like

from the consumer IoT. There will be

Telcos have advantages for introducing IoT

developers and companies that

Amazon Echo did) to share from

come overlaps, but I can imagine

Ital Tomer, head of cloud DRV

provide home services,” says Tomer.

one IoT company to another.

that making all the accrued data

at Ericsson, set the scene for

“An example would be a personal

publicly available could bring the

how service providers can gain

monitoring tool, such as Fitbit, that

telecommunication in TV and IPTV

opposite to security to the cities,”

penetration with IoT.

can integrate with the user’s TV

services, using the same quality of

service, and as soon as they fall

security ensures mature IoT product

smart home solutions as a separate

asleep, will dim the light and start

from day one,” he adds. “Ericsson

technology, the idea being that

entity, and we can help unify this.

recording the programme on the TV

enables service providers to unify the

the more users latch on to IoT the

Ericsson is encouraging telcos to

and shut down the set. Combining

backend infrastructure for both TV

better? What are the implications

rethink strategies and deploy

the existing strengths of telcos and

services and smart home offerings,

for cyber security?

holistic quintuple-play systems

combining this with the expertise

while delivering a consistent user

“In my case, it is the duty of the

that incorporate internet, TV,

of developers and companies that

interface and experience across all

public services. The consumption of

phone, smart phone and IoT

provide smart home appliances can

screens and services. We also help

the data and knowledge should be

capabilities,” he says.

create powerful user experiences.”

service providers to lower total cost

separate IoT for the public services

warns De Wolf. Is it viable to democratise the

made as democratic as possible,”

“Telcos have previously siloed

“These companies already have

On the matter of data analytics,

“Most security issues are solved for

of ownership and gain a future-

says De Wolf. “As with any other

many advantages for introducing

Tomer is with De Wolf. “We see data

proof platform for TV and IoT/smart

technology, the better it can serve

IoT, when compared to standalone

analytics as a major part of IoT.”

home services.”

the security and well-being of

IoT companies trying to disrupt

humans, the poorer it is for criminals.

the marketplace.

“We see data analytics as a major part of IoT.” Ital Tomer, Ericsson “Any design of these systems must

“They have subscriber management

have security in mind through the

systems, security systems, video

whole design process. It is not right to

encryptions, video storage, video

think that someone can add security

delivery (which could be used for IoT

in at a later stage,” he added. “But

security cameras), scheduler and

I am sure the technology is that far

other components as part of their

advanced today that it is possible

video solutions,” he adds. “These are

to design a highly secure and smart

all the backend systems for IoT to

city system.”

exist today, as the backend systems

There are blind alleyways full of

for smart TV services.”

gimmickry with IoT, like toothbrushes

What is the Ericsson view of

ﬂushing toilets. “I think in the domain

IoT in the home? “It is allowing

I am describing, it will not happen

telcos to open up existing systems

as easily as it way in any consumer

via API and TV services to more

environment,” says De Wolf.

home applications. This in turn will

COMPLEX RIGHTS RULE THE CONTENT LIFECYCLE Let’s not leave money on the table www.mediagenix.tv

www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

32 TVBEurope

Audio

Sound notions about 2017 The past 12 months have witnessed a remarkable amount of activity around next-generation audio technologies and audio-over-IP, but what does 2017 have in store for broadcast audio? David Davies spoke to some leading manufacturers to ﬁnd out

he question of how 2016 will

the prospective new owner

transformation. The ﬁrst of

audio – designed to enhance

be remembered is likely to

has also emphasised continuity

these is audio-over-IP (AoIP),

the overall experience of sound.

keep analysts and academics

for the professional audio side

which continues its slow march

This is very much the talk of the

of the business.

through install applications to live

broadcast industry at present, with

entertainment and, in particular,

broadcasters and manufacturers

busy for a very long time indeed. The level of political and

Not least because of the

international tumult was arguably

ongoing shift towards integrated

broadcast. Audinate’s Dante

working to optimise NGA at the

without parallel since the Berlin Wall

solutions across markets, continued

remains the ﬂag-bearer for

production and consumer levels.

came down, while the distressing

consolidation – either through

migration to IP, whilst the AES67

It might be argued that wider

cluster of ‘departures’ by major

merger or acquisition – seems a

standard is offering some general

awareness – and understanding –

names in the musical and creative

fairly safe bet for 2017.

market reassurance by providing

of NGA is still at a fairly formative

industries conﬁrmed that a huge generational shift is now underway. Developments in the broadcast audio community were equally plentiful, but thankfully of a more positive nature by and large. On a business level, the late-in-the-

stage, but this is almost certain

‘2017 will be an exciting year for consumers and broadcasters with spectacular content created and delivered to more devices in the home and on the go’ Rob France, Dolby

year announcement that Harman

to change dramatically over the next 12 months as trials and demos become more commonplace. So, if the aforementioned offers a few clues as to what the next year might bring, what are the views

Industries is to be acquired by

of the manufacturers themselves?

Samsung in a deal set to conclude

But what of the technologies

a certain level of interoperability

TVBEurope spoke to a quartet of

mid-2017 was surely the most

that underpin this sector, which is

between AoIP solutions.

leading vendors and concluded

signiﬁcant. Coverage about the

arguably at its most dynamic and

deal has focused on the addition of

creative since the early 1990s?

signiﬁcant automotive electronics interests to the Samsung stable, but

In truth, there are two primary strands to the current audio

The second is next-generation

as a result that – uncertain/

audio (NGA), the catch-all term for

terrifying global political possibilities

a variety of technologies – such as

notwithstanding – there is much to

object-based audio and immersive

be excited about in 2017.

CALREC

Harman Professional Solutions

Dave Letson, vice president of sales

Katy Templeman-Holmes, director, solutions and marketing

“AoIP technology is changing the broadcast industry in a revolutionary way, and will continue to transform how audio, video and control data is encoded, transported and managed. The impact on the design of broadcast equipment is profound, and manufacturers will continue to work more closely together throughout 2017 and beyond. “As the distinctions between audio, video and data transports disappear, and baseband cabling migrates to an IT infrastructure, ambitions will continue to extend beyond replicating traditional workﬂows. Remote production does just that and provides a way to guarantee high broadcast standards with signiﬁcantly reduced costs at a multitude of remote events. “Broadcasters are already taking advantage of this technology to gain geographical freedom. With RP1 Calrec is giving a number of customers a competitive advantage so they can introduce remote production to their portfolio. “Remote production has arrived and will continue to evolve throughout 2017.”

“2017 will likely be another year of consideration and planning as media companies look at their workﬂow and resource options with regard to IP and 4K deployment. Both are potentially huge undertakings, but manufacturers such as Harman are working alongside them to help navigate the different approaches to adoption and integration. We are working with our clients and partners to provide both direct and staggered strategies toward an IP infrastructure, namely introducing DIOS into their workﬂow. In addition we also provide a series of upgrade and transition paths with existing installations for those with future plans to switch to IP but who are investing in HD technologies currently.”

TVBEurope

January 2017 www.tvbeurope.com

Audio Telos Alliance John Schur, president, TV Solutions Group

Audio round-up

Romania’s Pro TV upgrades with Calrec’s Artemis Beam here was some notable

Based in Bucharest, the Pro TV

broadcast audio install news,

operation relies on numerous

too, with Romania’s Pro TV

previous-gen Calrec consoles. The

upgrading its extensive Calrec

340-channel Artemis Beam replaces

quality sound output of Calrec

infrastructure with a new Artemis

a ten-year-old Calrec Sigma

audio desks,” said Octavian Diac,

Beam audio console.

console used in the main studio,

studios coordinator, Pro TV. “The new

which is now reassigned for auxiliary

Artemis Beam audio consoles are

studio applications.

allowing us to achieve new levels

One of Romania’s most popular private TV channels, Pro TV reaches

“Real-time processing for TV, OTT and mobile are converging to similar workﬂows, which are starting to trend to off-premise processing in the cloud. With ATSC 3.0 on the horizon, rich metadata will drive new experiences for consumers, which in turn will create new marketing opportunities for content providers. We will also continue to further our AoIP initiatives across the TV Solutions Group of Telos Alliance, working in close concert with our radio brands to bring new and exciting products to market.”

Dolby Rob France, senior product marketing manager

approximately 99 per cent of

“For years now, Calrec has

of routing and processing capacity

the country’s viewing population

been one of our trusted partners.

for the locally produced shows

with a variety of news and

We know we can count on the

that represent almost half of our

entertainment programming.

reliability, ease of use, and high-

programming line-up.”

Cedar announces Network interoperability at AES ‘major revision’ U of Trinity nderlining the increasing

adoption of AES67 – displayed

popularity of AES67, the

individual booth details for 11

AoIP interoperability

exhibiting member companies,

standard had a signiﬁcant

as well as highlighting AES67

presence at the 141st AES

interoperability demonstrations

here has been a ﬂurry of notable

Convention in Los Angeles. On

by Archwave, DirectOut,

product launches as the year

its booth the Media Networking

Merging Technologies and

draws to a close, not least from

Alliance – which promotes the

Focusrite.

Cedar Audio. Described as a ‘major revision’ when compared to the original system, the Cedar Trinity 2 audio surveillance system provides a raft of enhancements over its predecessor – many implemented as a consequence of requests from customers in the ﬁelds of law enforcement, security and counter-terrorism.

“2017 will be an exciting year for consumers and broadcasters with spectacular content created and delivered to more devices in the home and on the go. Next generation live audio takes centre stage with Dolby Atmos sound for Premier League matches offered to BT Sport subscribers. Consumers will generally be able to enjoy immersive Dolby Atmos sound on new lifestyle products at home and on mobile devices. We will see a growing number of TVs featuring Dolby Vision. Service providers worldwide will offer more Dolby Vision content, often in combination with Dolby Atmos, offering their customers more choice [as well as] stunning visual and audio entertainment experiences.”

Most obvious of these is a huge expansion of the recording, listening and speech enhancement structure. In the original version, only eight audio streams could be ‘live’ at any given time and a maximum of only two

VOD IS THE NEW LINEAR Let’s unify the workflow

could be viewed. In Cedar Trinity 2, the project is now a wrapper for as many audio assets as may be required, and up to 24 channels of audio – for example, probes in hotel or domestic rooms, microphones in interview rooms, live streams from automobiles, and so on – can be live at any given time.

www.mediagenix.tv

34 TVBEurope

www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

TVBEverywhere

The Quantum theory of storage TVBEurope hosted a roundtable in partnership with Quantum on the future of storage for broadcasters. What became apparent was that storage problems are rarely technological: they’re almost always cultural. Neal Romanek reports

From left to right: Christo Conidaris; Daragh Bass; Jeremy Bancroft; Niall Duffy; Lawrence Windley; and Rod Fairweather

n November, TVBEurope hosted its latest

about your storage needs without a clear

or cameras or networks. We’ve found that the

industry roundtable at London’s Soho Hotel.

understanding of your workﬂow.

adoption rates for new technologies is usually

Held in association with Quantum, the

higher in the media and entertainment than in

afternoon’s theme was storage for the

Pushing it to the limit

broadcast industry: what are broadcasters’

Every one of the roundtable participants cited

current storage needs, what storage solutions

the problem – so ubiquitous it’s a cliché – of

will new media technologies require, issues of

ballooning ﬁle sizes and absurd shooting ratios

data protection and, last but not least, the

pushing storage capacity to its limits. It’s a truism

impact of cloud technologies.

of modern life that no matter how much storage

Participants in the conversation were BT Sport

you have, you will always ﬁll it.

other industries.”

“One thing that’s interesting about the media and entertainment industry is it really pushes technology to its limits” Christo Conidaris, Quantum

innovation producer Daragh Bass; Sony head

Quantum’s Conidaris noted that the media

of IT and workﬂow solutions Niall Duffy; Viacom

industry has a unique propensity for gobbling up

senior director of broadcast and production

storage. Quantum supplies storage products for a

technology Rod Fairweather; BBC Sport head of

range of sectors, from biotech to government to

His statement surprised the group, who seemed

post production Lawrence Windley; Quantum’s

fossil fuel companies.

to feel that their organisations were very

regional sales director, Christo Conidaris; with moderation by Jeremy Bancroft of MAC. What quickly became clear in the free-ranging discussion was that you can’t make decisions

He explained, “One thing that’s interesting

conservative in adopting new technologies;

about the media and entertainment industry

slightly proving Conidaris’s point. No matter how

is you guys really push technology to its limits,

much tech you have, in the TV industry, it’s never

whatever you’re doing, whether it’s storage

quite enough.

TVBEurope

January 2017 www.tvbeurope.com

TVBEverywhere But unlike other industries, the ﬁnal product at

“When broadcasters talked about being ‘agile’

Housekeeping

the end of millions of TV euros spent is a set of

as a method, they rushed into things,” noted

“It’s always been an issue ever since the ﬁrst

ﬁles on a drive. And with data itself the ﬁnal fruit

Duffy. “What we’ve realised is that the sheer joy

videotape was created: nobody’s good at

of everyone’s hard labour, it’s no surprise that

of being able to start small and focused has now

housekeeping,” said Viacom’s Fairweather.

broadcasters want to hang on to as much of it as

resulted in: ‘Oops, actually we didn’t structure

“Nobody ever gets thanked for chucking

possible for as long as possible.

it properly’. And we’ve let it expand to a point

something out. But you can get ﬁred for chucking

where it’s not what we really wanted, because

something out that shouldn’t have been chucked

Costs of storage are coming down (although Sony’s Duffy suggested the “Brexit effect” is

we didn’t think about what we wanted. It’s like

out. Whoever threw out the original Doctor Who s

reversing that in the UK, with storage prices rising

building a house without a foundation, because

was viliﬁed for life. Until we change that culture,

since the June vote), but Viacom’s Fairweather

we wanted to start quickly on the ground ﬂoor.

no one’s going to risk their jobs by unnecessarily

pointed out that the endless hunger for storage negates any economic benefits: “The cost goes down on storage, but the amount we’re producing goes up, so we never get the benefit of this stuff getting cheaper.” Technology allows for greater speed of deployment and amplified leveraging of an

deleting things.”

“The cost drops on storage, but the amount we’re producing rises, so we never get the beneﬁt of this getting cheaper” Niall Duffy, Sony

One reason for the vagueness around storage is that it’s not often clear who is paying the bill. The roundtable observed that if long-term storage was charged to a production rather than being absorbed by the broadcaster, you would see ballooning shooting ratios drop dramatically, and thrifty shooting would be the order of the

organisation’s skills, allowing fast deployment of new companies and new projects, but the agility

“We’re a very immature industry in many

day. If a production isn’t paying for storage, their

conferred by technology has sometimes led to

respects. Our problem with archive and library is

mindset is that the storage is free.

an abandoning of methodology. The dream that

that we don’t know what we’re going to do with

technology will solve what are essentially issues of

it, because we’ve done none of the analytics, we

back all 3,000 hours of content he’s shot,” noted

planning and thinking inevitably boomerangs to

don’t know how much it costs, and we’re terriﬁed

Duffy. “But when you analyse it, the long-term

create a host of difﬁculties later.

of losing something.”

cost of that is £25,000.”

“A producer may insister that he wants to bring

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www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

TVBEurope

TVBEverywhere “But If you charge that back to an actual

entire production ethos. “It’s amazing how much

from scratch when it started in 2013. “We decided

production, they’ll be very quick to say: ‘Oh,

we’ve talked about workﬂow, even though we

we needed rules from day one. And they were

no. We don’t need that any more,’” quipped BT

started with talking about storage and library and

rigid. We had really strict deletion rules for all

Sport’s Daragh Bass.

archives. It very quickly goes into a conversation

the different types of content. It was a ‘keep’

about workﬂow and decisions.”

decision, rather than a ‘delete’ decision.”

“And if you do decide to keep all that, there’s the cost of the time it takes to look at the material and decide what has value,” added Viacom’s Fairweather. “That adds hugely to the costs of a production.” BBC’s Windley believes that production teams haven’t really absorbed the reality of everything digital storage implies. “As an industry, the production side of the

Fairweather said that the needs of Viacom,

“Whoever threw out the original Doctor Who s was viliﬁed. Until we change that culture, no one’s going to risk their jobs by unnecessarily deleting things” Rod Fairweather, Viacom

which oversees a wide variety of stations, and the producers that support them, must navigate a complex path in content storage. “It depends on what type of editing you’re doing, what scale, what timeframe. Our workgroup sizes are all very different. A cloud environment may be more appropriate for

industry hasn’t caught up with the long tail that

storage if you’re working in a collaborative

these things have. You’ve done your online edit

environment, but there is no one correct storage

and conform and had your cappuccino in Soho,

“We still haven’t really thought through the kind

solution. And that’s one of the reasons making

and you think it’s done then. And in the days

of workﬂows that we need,” said Duffy. “We’re

decisions about storage is so difﬁcult. There is

when you would then go home with a box of

still in a world where we inevitably come back

not one answer. We have promo producers

tapes, that was it. But now, that digital content

to technology choices. That’s the way the

sometimes working individually. Some of our

sitting on servers somewhere still needs to be

industry thinks, with the creatives often leaving it

workgroups in small regional stations may not

catalogued and looked through. With us, there

up to the engineer to come up with a solution.

have a lot of technical support. Or we may be

are time pressures. The production teams go on

And the engineer gets quite excited by the

working with a big Soho company. Our solutions

to the next project and no one has the time to sit

technology rather than the process. But I do think

are much more complex than how big, how fast.”

with an archivist for four or ﬁve days.“

we are ﬁnally beginning to see that change, with

“We still haven’t really thought through the kind of workﬂows that we need” Niall Duffy, Sony

companies like SDVI who are talking about

Resistance to MAM

supply chain management.

Even given the obvious need to organise

“When you’ve got a clear view of what your

workﬂows and storage, content owners are often

supply chain is and how you want to manage it

willing to make short cuts on tech that doesn’t

– which every other industry outside ours does – it

have an obvious relationship with what ends

doesn’t become an issue of technology choices.

up on screen. With everyone with an internet

Instead it’s: “What do I need?”

connection becoming a potential broadcaster,

Moderator Bancroft added that in many cases,

BT Sport’s Bass is looking for alternatives to

there are a million headaches in the making for

those teams not only aren’t available to sit with

on-premises storage. He sees an opportunity in

all those who attempt mass storage and archive

an archivist, but they’ve entirely disbanded,

rights holders taking responsibility for the storage

without a proper asset management system or

having been brought together solely for a single

of all assets related to project with broadcasters

workﬂow in place.

production: “And you can’t ﬁnd that knowledge

taking over only at the playout stage: “There

and skill (of an archivist) anymore. If it isn’t

are more opportunities where the rights holder is

cost of operations is tiny compared to the cost

captured at the time of production, it’s

also the distributor and you don’t store anything

of rights. So we still have this model of even if it

probably lost forever.

locally. You pull it down as you need it and they

seems expensive, it’s not when compared to

manage everything on your behalf. You have

rights. But compared to other industries, the things

It’s the workﬂow, stupid

access to it now, but in a week’s time, say, your

we do are extraordinarily expensive. So if you

Windley conﬁrmed that beyond the deceptively

access runs out.”

look at a publisher – and there are so many

simple issue of “where to keep your stuff” lies the foundation of a broadcaster’s workﬂow – its

At the end of the day, for the TV industry,

Bass said BT Sport had the advantage of

of them trying to get into video – they don’t

building being able to build storage workﬂows

really know who to speak to, so they’ll go to

January 2017 www.tvbeurope.com

TVBEurope

TVBEverywhere

a broadcast systems integrator and they will

saying ‘We have to have this!’ They’re not saying

meaningless. Less and less is media stored in a

literally fall off their chair: ‘How much?! Asset

‘We have to have a MAM’.”

real place in any practically meaningful way,

management’s not free?’”

with conversations around storage becoming

Quantum storage

increasingly esoteric, until media storage begins

for those things,” added Bass. “They may be

Fifty years ago, most media storage consisted of

to look like an arcane philosophical discipline.

buying 12 cameras and a lot of high-end gear

cans of ﬁlm and reels of tape in boxes on shelves

and ambition, but when it comes to buying an

with paper tape labels. If you wanted something,

asset management system the question is: ‘What

someone had to physically retrieve it. Now,

will I see on-screen for that?’ Well, nothing. But

media can be stored almost anywhere. Often,

it will manage all your content. ‘Can we not do

as in the case of cloud storage, it’s stored in no

that in Google Drive?’”

one place in particular – a bit like the electron

“Sometimes it’s very difﬁcult to ﬁnd the money

But Duffy said that some big broadcasters

“Our solutions are much more complex than how big, how fast” Rod Fairweather, Viacom

only deciding on a location once you want to

were no less stingy: “To be fair, I’ve seen so many

access it. How appropriate that it was Quantum

What the Quantum roundtable made clear is

broadcasters cave in on that too, rather than

hosting a roundtable on a subject which has

that the way forward for media companies is not:

spending the money to do a MAM properly,

the inﬁnite scalability and inﬁnite variability that

where do I keep my stuff?, but: for what purpose

because they can’t see an ROI on MAM. And it’s

mirror something as hard to pin down as particle

am I keeping my stuff? How do I best evolve my

not that they can see an ROI on storage either,

physics. We are entering a phase in which the

workﬂows and my mindset to secure that purpose

but they’ve got production screaming at them

‘where’ of storage is becoming increasingly

into the future?

www.tvbeurope.com January 2017

38 TVBEurope

Data Centre

Content discovery

How hard can it be? ever more important. In order to better cater

hop when there are a range of discovery

for the evolving consumer discovery needs,

tools on the market today? Simple: because

it’s now starting to become necessary for

occasionally we are able to stumble randomly

content owners to not just show ‘what’s new’

on an interesting piece of content we ﬁnd to

but try to interpret the mood viewers are in,

be rewarding. The key, however, is to ensure

he emergence of new TV and media

and the types of entertainment they might

discovery tools within VoD services can deliver

services as well as video enabled devices

want at any given moment.

that same moment of serendipitous delight as

By Kris Hardiman, head of product marketing, media, Ericsson

means that today’s generation of TV

Yet, while the TV and media industry is making

can be found in scheduled linear TV today.

viewers are consuming more content than ever

strides in this area, there is still clearly work to be

before. The latest Ericsson ConsumerLab TV &

done. Content discovery is an area that has to

The future of content discovery

Media Report shows that since 2012, the average

be cracked; our research found that 44 per cent

The creation of effective, personalised discovery

consumer has increased their viewing on mobile

of linear TV viewers in the US can’t ﬁnd anything

is a key pillar in the delivery of a compelling

devices by four hours a week, while their ﬁxed

to watch on a daily basis. Meanwhile, only 34 per

TV experience, not least because it is a highly

screen viewing has declined by 2.5 hours a

cent of VoD viewers in the US say the same thing.

inﬂuential factor in the consumer’s perception

week. However, this means that today they

In contrast, US consumers spent 45 per cent more

of what makes a valuable service.

are spending an additional 1.5 hours a week

time choosing what to watch on VoD services

Personalisation is the driver of the content we

watching TV and video than they did four years

compared with linear TV.

consume on a daily basis and inﬂuences the way

ago. The report also revealed that while we are

we browse video across the web, social networks

spending more time watching content, we are

and multiple screens.

also taking longer ﬁnding that content. The report found that the average person across all the studied markets will spend 1.1

‘Viewers are spending an additional 1.5 hours a week watching TV and video’

Consumers want a combination of the shared social experience of traditional broadcast TV services, alongside the option of media à la

years of their life swapping channels and

carte: the ability to create their own world of

navigating the TV guide; and in several

compelling, personalised content. Additionally, the opinions of our friends and family members

markets, it is even higher, such as Germany (1.2 years), Italy (1.3 years), Spain, South Korea (1.4

Paradoxically, 63 per cent of consumers claim

are still regarded as one of the most valuable

years), and India (1.7 years).

they are very satisﬁed with content discovery

content discovery mechanisms. We should not

when it comes to their VoD service, while only 51

underestimate the value of traditional ‘word of

above 80 in several countries and growing

per cent say the same for linear TV. This suggests

mouth’ promotion.

almost everywhere – for example, in Sweden, life

that although VoD discovery is more time

expectancy for women is expected to increase

consuming than linear TV, consumers rate it as

process and make more accurate, relevant

from 84 years today to 89 years by 2060, and

a less frustrating pastime, as it implicitly promises

recommendations that resonate and delight.

for men it is expected to reach almost 87 by

the opportunity to ﬁnd something they want to

The danger of overwhelming the consumer with

the same time – it’s a fairly sobering thought

watch, when they want to watch it. They are

a plethora of irrelevant content presents its own

that TV viewers around the world will be using a

also willing to invest time scrolling through VoD

risk; personalisation is required to ensure extensive

big chunk of their entire lifetimes looking for the

libraries because of the ﬂexible pricing and short

content libraries offer genuine choice and

perfect piece of TV content.

cancellation periods (often within a month);

hopefully, moments of serendipity.

Given that the average life expectancy is

there is a desire to maximise the potential of the

The content discovery paradox

service they have paid for.

As viewers already have the opportunity to

There is a major opportunity to simplify the

Content discovery remains a challenge, but greater personalisation is needed – not just to speed up ﬁnding what to watch, but to also

decide what time, location and screen they

A world of serendipity?

create an enhanced experience for viewers.

watch TV and video on, it’s hardly surprising

Often, consumers do not have a clear picture

This personalised experience alone could be

that they are also becoming more proactive

of what they want to watch, and thus express a

a big market differentiator in the future,

in the content decision making process.

need and interest in being able to be positively

helping to create loyal customers who can

We are moving into an era where the need for

surprised with a piece of content. For instance,

turn to their TV providers as a trusted source

programmatic recommendation of content is

why do consumers have the urge to channel

on what to watch next.

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