TVTEurope June 2015 Digital Edition

June 2015 I Issue 3 I Volume 33

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MAM for broadcasters Then & Now

Mobile Newsgathering

Buyers’ Guide

Transmitters and RF

Product Review

UHD broadcast cameras

CONTENTS WHAM! BAM! THANKS FOR NOTHING, MAM! Media Asset Management (MAM) is a hugely perplexing subject. And not just for simple journalists like me.

As it turns out, it is equally as confusing for many broadcasters too. From the technology chief choosing the best system to deploy, to the operator on the shop floor using it, just the acronym itself can be an issue.

Sadly, as I have discovered from recent discussions, this bewilderment is often not caused by the basic function of a MAM system itself. Most people understand that it allows a broadcaster to efficiently keep track of content. The reason MAM proves so problematic is that there are many, many developers and manufacturers promoting their products as providing MAM functionality when, if you look a bit closer, they only actually perform a very specific function.

This confusion is one of the reason’s TVTE has asked some of the industry’s leading MAM vendors to partake in a virtual pitch this month and answer questions about a hypothetical broadcaster scenario. From page 25 onwards you’ll find a host of opinions on what a MAM is, what it should do, how you sell its benefits to your staff (and your boss), and how best to successfully deploy a MAM system.

OK, this article alone won’t solve all the problems that are associated with asset management but it might help ease some of the confusion.

Will Strauss Editor

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BUYERS GUIDE

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When choosing wireless RF links it is important to consider frequencies, versatility and latency, and make sure you test the kit first.

MAKING WAVES French documentary filmmaker and cinematographer Tristan Clamorgan on the perils of shooting at sea and the difficulties of capturing good quality location sound.

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MAM FOR BROADCASTERS Seven MAM suppliers pitch against a hypothetical scenario, answering some of the key questions that broadcasters might ask.

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MOVING STORY The inside track on how Lion Eyes TV designed a bespoke camera rig inside a moving car for a new British comedy.

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THEN AND NOW How new connectivity options, production technologies and communications platforms have transformed mobile newsgathering.

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MAD FOR MADI Although full networking and IP continues to gain ground, NAB 2015 proved that there is still plenty of life left in some ‘heritage’ audio technologies too.

June 2015 TVTechnology

COMMENTARY

Pure and simple The link between German beer laws and TV industry file exchange formats may not be immediately obvious but, as Dalet’s Ben Davenport explains, once the connection is made, there are lessons to be learnt

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einheitsgebot: A clear and positive influence on the definition of European media file exchange and delivery formats.

It doesn’t take much research into either Reinheitsgebot or file specifications to realise that this statement is almost complete nonsense. When Reinheitsgebot, aka the “German Beer Purity Law,” was first endorsed by the duchy of Bavaria 499 years ago (23rd April 1516) it actually had nothing to do with the purity of beer and everything to do with the price of bread – banning the use of wheat in beer to ensure that there was no competition between brewers and bakers for limited supply.

Reinheitsgebot has come to represent a mark of quality in beer and something that German brewers are very proud of. But as the law spread across what is now modern Germany in the 16th century, it actually lead to the disappearance of many highly regarded regional specialities and variations.

By contrast, the definition of file formats for exchange and delivery in the media industry has everything to do with the purity, or quality, of media files – indeed the initiative that has lead to the publication of the ARD-ZDF MXF Profiles in the German-speaking community was lead by the group looking at quality control and management.

CHANGE OF MIND-SET This has represented a fairly significant change in mind-set in our approach to Quality Control (QC). Within reason, the file format should not really affect the ‘quality’ of the media (assuming sufficient bit-rate). However, to have a consistent file-QC process, you need to start with consistent files, and the simplest way to do this is to restrict the ‘ingredients’ in order to deliver a consistent ‘flavour’ of file. By restricting the variations, we considerably simplify QC processes, mitigate risk of both QC and workflow errors occurring downstream, and reduce the cost of implementation through decreased on-boarding requirements.

This point is critical, and for illustration, one need only refer to the results of the IRT’s MXF Plugfest that takes place each year. At the 2014 event, outputs and interoperability of 24 products from

TVTechnology June 2015

Many breweries still claim compliance with Reinheitsgebot, even though very very few beers actually do.

We have two issues in media that are equivalent

Ben Davenport

14 vendors, restricted to four common essence types and two wrapper types, were tested. Even with these restrictions, a total of 4,439 tests were conducted. Assuming each test takes an average of 60 seconds, that equates to very nearly two whole man-weeks of testing before we even consider workflow-breaking issues such as time-code support, frame accuracy, audio/video off-set, etc.

Constrained media file specifications equate to far fewer variations, simplifying the on-boarding process and enabling media organisations to easily facilitate thorough automated and human QC, while focusing on the quality of the media, not the interoperability of the file.

CLAIMS OF COMPLIANCE However, the file specifications themselves may not completely answer all our problems. Referring back to the German beer market, despite the regulation being lifted in 1988 following a ruling by the European Court of Justice, many breweries and beers still claim compliance with Reinheitsgebot, even though very very few beers actually do.

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We have two issues in media that are equivalent – future proofing and compliance.

When introduced, Reinheitsgebot specified three permitted ingredients – water, barley and hops. Unknowingly, however, brewers were adding another ingredient – either natural airborne yeast, or yeast cultivated from previous brews, a necessary addition for the fermentation process.

Without launching into a convoluted discussion about ‘unknown, unknowns’, from this we learn that we have to accept the extreme difficulties of scoping future requirements.

In 1993 Reinheitsgebot was replaced by the Provisional German Beer Law. This regulation allowed for ingredients such as yeast and wheat, without which the famous Witbier or wheat beer, one of the German beer industry’s biggest exports, would not exist. Globally, this has lead to much confusion over what Reinheitsgebot compliance means, especially with many wheat beers claiming adherence. In the media industry, the UK’s DPP launched a compliance programme run by the AMWA, but there are many more companies claiming compliance than appear on the official list.

While I suspect that many beers have been consumed in the writing of media file specifications, in reality it is unlikely that the story of the German beer purity law has had much impact – it may still have some lessons to teach us though.

Ben Davenport is director of marketing at Dalet.

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COMMENTARY

Stuck in the middle Many of the practices and views on the middleware market are ‘old hat’ and it is time for a new approach that focuses on services, argues Robert Rozycki

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iddleware has been a mainstay of the TV industry for a number of years. And, despite market stagnation throughout 2010 and 2011, in recent times it has seen strong growth due to the increase in deployments of digital and pay-TV offerings from cable, IPTV, satellite and broadcast providers, and the rise of hybrid offerings.

In February 2015, Frost & Sullivan estimated the pay-TV middleware market will exceed $2 billion by 2020. Within the report, it also stated that if middleware vendors want to succeed in the long term then they need to adopt more flexible models, look towards open source middleware and demonstrate agility that allows providers to compete with other services.

But how can service providers and operators reap the rewards of improved functionality to meet subscriber demands whilst keeping costs down? Many of the practices and views on the middleware market are ‘old hat’ and it is time for a new approach moving from a market focussed on products, to one that is about services.

Service providers should be looking at working with a partner that takes an agnostic view of the entire platform and proactively advises on how the software stack can be optimised, so that new functionality can be delivered quickly in order to reduce time to market.

It is possible, for example, to convert legacy set-top boxes (STBs) into hybrid STBs. Imagine you are an operator that wants to upgrade i40,000 legacy STBs, which are a number of years old, so you can provide greater interactive services, with an acceptable UI and user experience. With each STB costing an average of €30 per device, an upgrade of this scale would cost €1.2 million (£870,000).

AN OPEN APPROACH Each operator often has different requirements and ideas for what they are looking for from new services. This means the traditional approach of taking a pre-existing middleware product and shoehorning it into an operator’s environment is not the most productive use of resource or expenditure. Instead, operators should be looking for customised solutions and services that deliver on the UNDERSTANDING THE CHALLENGES KPI’s they have in place. Therefore, they The benefits of middleware have been should be looking for those vendors that heavily documented in the past: from the can build a client from the ground up, The traditional approach of taking ability to enable easier development of using open stack components based on a pre-existing middleware product complex applications through to enabling HTML5 and other open source technology and shoehorning it into an operator’s the applications to be transferred across to create a pre-integrated, optimised user environment is not the most productive multiple hardware and operating systems. experience.Ultimately, if TV operators use of resource or expenditure However, the middleware market want to develop an innovative product has faced a number of issues. In the first roadmap to differentiate their offerings from instance, it has struggled to adapt to new digital If an operator walked into any middleware vendor’s competitors then the industry needs to move away platforms and the incorporation of tools such as office today to discuss how they can upgrade and from the traditional component-based approach social media, and the proliferation of interactive provide a ‘next generation’ service, the chances and instead look at it in a service-based way. services of all kinds. are they would be told to purchase new hardware.

The days of ‘one-size-fits-all’ are long gone Combine that with the challenges posed Naturally, what comes hand-in-hand with that and there needs to be greater levels of flexibility by multiscreen devices such as smartphones particular solution is heavy expenditure and the and agility from the players in the market so that and tablet devices, maintaining an easy-to-use usual integration and management challenges operators and service providers can deliver truly user interface (UI) and the fact that many of associated with the ‘rip-and-replace’ methodology. innovative and interactive services that meet the operators and providers no longer wish What if they were given the option to extend subscriber requirements. their hardware platforms to be dictated to by the lifecycle of their legacy devices and significantly middleware vendors, means this is a market that save on that expenditure, whilst still introducing the Robert Rozycki is EMEA marketing manager at needs a fresh approach. latest all singing, all dancing digital services?

DCCC Labs.

TVTechnology June 2015

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SHARPSHOOTER

Making waves

Scotland-based French documentary filmmaker and cinematographer Tristan Clamorgan on the perils of shooting at sea, the joy of the creative process and the difficulties of capturing good quality location sound.

BY BARRIE SMITH

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y home is Brest in Brittany, France.

I grew up in a very small village that my parents moved to shortly after the 1968 social revolution.

The neighbourhood was mostly elderly famers, beautiful people. Brest was the closest town; most of it was wiped out by the Americans during WW2, when it was occupied by the Germans. It was rebuilt quickly with a lot of concrete, but it still has something very appealing and inspiring, perhaps due to its vast sea front.

TVTechnology June 2015

How and why did you move to Scotland?

To cut a long story short, for an experimental archaeological project, I sailed a mediaeval open boat from Scotland to Galicia and around the west coast of Ireland. During the trip, I met my wife on a small island called Luing. She was sailing on a replica medieval Scottish boat and we anchored in the same little bay. She joined my crew and sailed down with us to Brittany, where we married in the same year.

Eventually we moved back to the island on which we met. That’s where we live now with our two daughters.

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What are you working on at the moment?

I’m shooting a documentary about the last primary boarding school remaining in Ireland: a very old building, kids coming from all over the world, teachers I would have liked to have had. I’ve been working with the director Neasa Ni Chianain for about ten years. The production was commissioned by the Irish broadcaster RTE. Have you been busy?

Not really. I’m working in a very narrow stream in the global media sphere and there seems to

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Profile Name: Tristan Clamorgan Age: 44 Star sign: Libra Occupation: Freelance documentary filmmaker/cinematographer and photographer.

Favourite music: I listen to classical music when I’m alone: Schubert, Brahms, Monteverdi. At the moment I have Allegri’s Miserere playing. I listen to rock, rhythm and blues, some of the latest pop, even when sometimes it’s rubbish.

Favourite food: I enjoy various cuisines. As a cook, I’m not creative and stick to what I know, like basic French dishes.

What country would you most like to shoot in?

It is the experience and the relationship I establish with a place and the people that gives me joy and it can happen anywhere on the planet.

You have shot a lot of footage at sea. What are the challenges, both personally and gear-wise?

The most challenging thing for me on long voyages is missing my family, knowing there are miles of open water between us. Sailing has always been one of my greatest pleasures in life. Fortunately I don’t get seasick and I tend to mix well in small groups.

This is good when you’re living with people in a small space on a difficult journey. Gear-wise, unless I have to film in extreme conditions with a complex and

very expensive set-up to look after, I don’t find it too difficult. One big challenge is directing and doing the sound because there is no room for more people on the expedition. It becomes the most important thing and sometimes drives me insane – although I still try to remain apparently calm. It’s always easy to switch on a camera and shoot; it’s not like that with sound, there are so many little things that can go wrong and will go wrong that it can be terribly stressful. At sea, things happen fast with no warning, usually when you’re off duty and sleeping.

What equipment do you use?

At the moment I’m using a Panasonic AG-AF100.

It’s nice and sharp, its 4:3 sensor is more forgiving than full frame, making it an interesting camera for hand held documentary. I mostly use a little Nokton f0.9/25mm lens, which is just great in low light. I use also my Nikon lenses and camera.

What gear do you own?

HDV Sony Z7 camera, NanoFlash recorder, Sound Devices MixPre-D field mixer, Sennheiser MKH 416 and a couple of other good mics, Zoom H4, tripod and Sachtler FSB6 fluid head, two Sennheiser EK100 receiver/transmitter wireless mic kits, Tram

It’s always easy to switch on a camera and shoot; it’s not like that with sound, there are so many little things that can go wrong and will go wrong that it can be terribly stressful

Tristan Clamorgan with a fisherman in Mourmansk, Russia

be less and less means given to those who want to make personal and ‘outside of the box’ films. My average has been one to three films a year, most of them selected to compete in international film festivals.

Not much work, not much money either, but great satisfaction and a wonderful creative process. I’ve also chosen to live away from the major cities and I’m paying the price. It’s all choices, character and opportunities. I’m not good at promoting myself and at networking.

Where have you shot?

Ireland, Great Britain, France, Spain, Taiwan, Japan, Nepal, Ethiopia, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Morocco, Russia, Norway, Sweden…

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June 2015 TVTechnology

SHARPSHOOTER and DPA radio mics. I also have a Nikon DSLR kit and lenses, Lastolite medium and large reflector/ diffuser, 300w Redhead kit, Diva-Lite Kino Flo and a small slider.

new environments. I find there’s a lot of room for personal expression, creativity and spontaneity.

Each day has new challenges, it’s constant learning but the process always comes to completion and that’s very rewarding.

What is on your equipment wish list?

I could do with a drone, a nice little crane, a long slider and a follow focus motor, maybe a stabiliser: but I haven’t found the right one yet.

What is the worst thing about your job?

I’ve only worked on meaningful stories and with ethical production companies, but sometimes I can’t avoid feeling bad watching people struggling or living in extreme poverty. As well, it’s hard to get consistent work in my speciality, which is observational documentary.

How much 16:9 do you shoot?

I shoot mostly 16:9. Sometimes its 4:3 when it’s required, but rarely.

What was your first ever shooting job?

It was a feature documentary about an island off the north west coast of Ireland. The director was confident that my skills as a photographer were what he needed. It was a great first experience and because I had no idea of the editing process I tried to capture everything going on in one handheld shot as smoothly and well framed as I could. It worked great.

Tristan Clamorgan on location in Nepal

What is your favourite recent project?

I chose to make a promo film for an NGO (nongovernmental organisation). It was the first time I had been in charge of producing and delivering a film. I find it very interesting to be entirely on my own.

Are you simpatico with the Scots?

It’s been a very interesting 12 months for Scotland.

Unfortunately, the fear campaign led by Westminster won the battle [to keep Scotland as part of the UK).

TVTechnology June 2015

There is no way the people in power will ever let Scotland go. I just wish people would listen more to their hearts and less to the news broadcasters.

What is the best thing about your job?

Whenever you start a new project, you head right into the heart of it, whether it’s about fishing in Bangladesh or innovating with new technologies.

You are always interacting with new milieu and

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What was your scariest assignment and why?

Perhaps it was when filming on a small iceberg off the coast of Siberia with no one behind to watch for the polar bear that would eventually show up.

Oh, and jumping into a small helicopter that took off in a storm and not attaching my belt with an unlocked door that opened wide above the sea.

That was three seconds of pure adrenaline — and I was shooting. I thought that I was going to die there and then. Apart from that, nothing really. I’ve got two little girls that need their Daddy.

Contact Phone: +44 (0) 1852 500 712 Address: Lunga, Craobh-Haven, Argyll, Scotland Email: tristan.clamorgan@gmail.com

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CASE STUDY

A moving story In order to capture the realism of a commute to work for a new British comedy series, Manchester’s Lion Eyes TV designed a bespoke camera rig to be used inside a moving car. The results were hilarious, as TVTE discovers

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eter Kay’s Car Share is a six-part BBC comedy show, produced by Goodnight Vienna, that takes place almost entirely inside a car with the two halves of each episode focussing on work colleagues as they travel to and from work.

British comedian Peter Kay, who is the director, co-writer, and star of the show, had a specific idea in mind for how the story of Car Share needed to be told.

He wanted it to revolve around a single car and to portray a realistic representation of the two characters’ journey. He wanted to shoot the car driving on the street for real (albeit pulled by a transit van) and he didn’t want anyone to be aware the shoot was happening. This, he felt, would create a natural environment for the actors to perform uninterrupted.

The director of photography, Jeremy Hewson, also set out some criteria for how the show should look and feel.

TVTechnology June 2015

He didn’t want Car Share to look like a hidden camera show and the car needed to be presented in a way that wasn’t claustrophobic. There are a number of small ‘action camera’ type options that could have been used but Hewson wanted the shallow depth of field that is associated with a TV drama.

SPECIFIC BRIEF With this very specific brief in mind, Manchester’s Lion Eyes TV was approached about creating a fixed camera rig for the show.

Lion Eyes TV is a full service video production company with credits that range from television commercials and online branded video content to broadcast production. Its job was to design the camera workflow that fitted with Kay’s ideas and worked in conjunction with the vision from Hewson.

To achieve it, Martin Riley, director at Lion Eyes TV, after extensive testing with Hewson, designed a unique camera rig and workflow specifically for

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the show with help from a number of parties. Grip expert John Rundle helped build custom mount parts for the camera rig and hire firm No Drama provided additional kit, space and custom wiring for the rig to be built and tested.

Core Post (the company in charge of post production on the show) confirmed the workflow was compliant with the high standard of a BBC drama.

The upshot of that work was the installation of a camera rig that was compact but could deliver a broadcast quality programme. It featured five Canon cameras – two EOS C300 PLs and three EOS C100s – from Lion Eyes TV’s Cine range.

The biggest challenge was setting up the main camera which needed to present a natural twoshot of the characters in the car. This was achieved thanks to a brainwave from Hewson who came up with the idea of shooting via a true mirror.

An EOS C100 was mounted down by the gearstick of the car, shooting up towards an

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angled mirror in the windscreen. This allowed the camera to shoot on a longer lens and provided the two shot Hewson was after, giving a natural depth of field and avoiding any wide-angle fisheye distortion.

The EOS C300 was the preferred camera for the crew – Hewson in particular was familiar and comfortable with it. A professional cine camera, the EOS C300 combines Canon’s video technology and lens heritage with the creativity of its EOS range.

Riley says: “We liked the look of the camera’s output, we liked its sensor and that’s why we wanted to use it.”

ROAD TO NOWHERE For the other one-shot or close-up cameras, Lion Eyes TV took the dashboard apart and built the EOS C100 cameras into it.

The next challenge was working out a way to control the cameras that were inside the car while it was in transit. Grip equipment and controllers were extended and aperture and focus functions on the lenses were operated wirelessly from the

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van pulling the car. This set-up allowed Hewson and his focus pulling team and technical operator Ben Langley to control the camera’s settings without needing to interrupt takes.

The EOS C100 was chosen because it allowed for easy installation and it was small enough that it didn’t impose on the actors in

Peter had a vision for what he wanted the show to say and how it should present itself.

That translated into what we were aiming to do creatively with the camera and ultimately into how the rig was built the car. Its compact design offered the producers the chance to tell their story but it was also flexible enough to fit within a specialist camera workflow.

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That flexibility in the Canon cameras also meant that Lion Eyes TV was able to capture feeds externally to recorders in the boot of the car. This again limited interruption to the actors in the car itself.

As the rig had to be fully mobile, the low power draw and the low fan noise in both cameras were also important factors for a shoot with such a specific camera set-up. The PL mount for lenses on the EOS C300 was key for Lion Eyes TV’s plans and the controllability of the Canon cameras meant that once the rig was designed its set-up was easy.

“The creative force behind what we wanted to achieve with the camera set-up was driven by Peter Kay himself,” says Riley. “He had a vision for what he wanted the show to say and how it should present itself. That translated into what we were aiming to do creatively with the camera and ultimately into how the rig was built.

“From my point of view the choice to use Canon was an obvious one,” he concluded.

“Really it was the only choice to achieve what we wanted to.”

June 2015 TVTechnology

FEATURE

Nick Martin, Sky News, reporting live from a boat during major floods in 2014

Mobile newsgathering Then and now

In ten short years, mobile newsgathering has been transformed thanks to a plethora of new connectivity options, production technologies and communications platforms, writes Ann-Marie Corvin

A

decade ago, newsgathering technology was on the cusp of a revolution. The BBC had broadcast its first video live from a mobile phone and Inmarsat launched its BGAN service.

While mobile technology was a few years away from becoming a reliable news gathering tool, for the first time the BGAN allowed reporters to go live from anywhere in the world, with an IP terminal the size of a laptop.

“That was quite something, though the quality wasn’t brilliant,” recalls newsroom technology consultant Guy Pelham, a former live editor for BBC News.

TVTechnology June 2015

Guy Pelham

For the big set pieces, however, SNG trucks (which cost in the region of £300,000 to £400,000), or the flyaway pack, were still king.

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In August 2005, when Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, the main challenge for news crews was to arrive on the scene when all communications were down and ensure rapid deployment of the kit.

The typical cargo was cumbersome – comprising of 20 or so boxes containing generators, satellite phones, uplinking equipment and production kit – cameras were ENG tape-based (SX, DVCam, DVCPro) with big, bulky edit packs.

Alla Salehian, chief executive of locations service provider Reteurs TIMA, who then headed AP’s facilities arm, recalls his decision to charter a plane to New Orleans. “For reliability, everything was satellite and the key was to be as close to first on the scene as possible,” he recalls.

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It’s now possible to shoot breaking stories in HD using DSLR cameras or an iPhone and transmit content live over cellular networks using 3G and 4G bonded cellular technologies.

COVETED SATELLITE SPACE Arriving first not only ensured exclusive news coverage, it also meant bagging much-coveted satellite space. Steve Bennedik, Sky News head of technology, adds that the scramble for satellite “often meant block booking if necessary just to stay up. There was constant pressure to do deals and keep costs down.”

Given these challenges, news crews were starting to experiment with more portable forms of technology. According to Bennedik, Sky sent two Norsat Newslink portables to cover Katrina. Newslink could be packaged into airline checkable cases, provided Ku-Band, and was capable of broadcast quality MPEG-2 video at up to 10Mbps.

Pelham adds that the BBC was also looking at technologies to make SNG more efficient. Selfpointing dishes such as SIS Live’s uPod system made SNG operations easier, cheaper, less labour intensive and could be used on smaller vans rather than big trucks.

And while smaller, lower-powered IP satellite dishes (often known as VSAT) still belonged to

A point-of-view shot of the kit used by Nick Martin

Nick Martin broadcasting via iPhone and Dejero app

the future, Pelham notes that they were successfully trialled by the BBC as early as 2007.

FAST FORWARD Ten years on and a plethora of connectivity options, production technologies, and platforms has transformed mobile newsgathering.

It’s now possible to shoot breaking stories in HD video using DSLR cameras or an iPhone and transmit

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content live over cellular networks using 3G and 4G bonded cellular technologies.

Apps from the likes of Dejero, LiveU, and TVU Networks can “bond” signals from major cellular carriers’ 3G and 4G networks to transmit live video in HD. Using Skype is also popular.

These devices act as a digital encoder, and once it connects to a video camera, it breaks the signal into a cellular frequency that is then sent back to a receiving facility at a news station.

With a quality piece of cellular bonding kit costing around £6,000 to £10,000 (€8,000 to €14,000), this set-up enables the roving reporter to shoot, report, produce and transmit entire footage live for a fraction of the cost of an SNG operation.

FLOODING IN The transformation is plain to see. In the UK, the 2014 floods saw Sky News reporter Joe Tidy shoot, edit, voice record and file reports using the Dejero

June 2015 TVTechnology

FEATURE Then and now 2005

2015

O The video journalist (VJ)

O The Mobile Journalist (MoJo)

O A Satellite News Gathering (SNG) truck or flyaway O A hybrid satellite/bonded van exploiting pack.

Ka Band technology and rack-mounted cellular kit O Inmarsat’s BGAN – 256kbps streaming

O Inmarsat’s BGAN HDR – 650kbps streaming

O Satellite delivery

O Still satellite – but also bonded cellular technologies such as Dejero, LiveU, TVU Skype running off Wi-Fi, 3G/4G/LTE-A, /IP satellite

O Cameras – ENG tape – SX, DVCam or DVCPro

O DSLR or smartphone

O Low power IP satellite dishes IP VSAT – self-pointing, battery powered

O Inmarsat’s Global Xpress system – delivering up to 4Mbps upload

Sky News reporter Joe Tidy using the Dejero iPhone app

App on iPhone – using a branch as a makeshift tripod. Since then, mobile journalism has become a common practice among many Sky reporters, who now have the ability to go live to air within 90 seconds.

The UK General Election is also a good example of what’s now possible. In 2005, Sky stationed OB vehicles around 50 key seats across the UK. In 2015, in addition to the traditional OBs, the pay-TV broadcaster covered more than 270 declarations live, using media students trained up to use Sony HDR PJ620 handycams attached to a mixture of LiveU bonded technology units.

According to Bennedik, the primary purpose of this coverage was to deliver as many declarations as possible live. The key ones were broadcast on TV and all the footage was streamed live onto a video wall in the Sky studio on election night.

Bonded cellular technology has improved hugely over the last five years too, largely thanks to 4G, which has made HD picture quality feasible.

As Pelham says: “4G has transformed what this kit can do. Units can achieve 10 to 12Mbps consistently and reliably – more in big urban locations. HD is achievable as a matter of routine.

TV bulletin editors who were very sniffy about this technology five years ago now use it all the time.”

HUNTING THE KILLERS Pelham cites the hunt for the Charlie Hebdo killers in France as the best example yet of an international story which played out through the nimble use of bonded cellular.

“This was a fast-moving story in multiple locations in a country with good 3/4G infrastructure,” he says. “Without this technology, the story simply would not have been covered as effectively.”

TVTechnology June 2015

However, when a story breaks in a region such as Nepal, where the technical infrastructure was poor even before the earthquake, traditional SNG kit is still the most reliable way to upload content for live TV reports. As Pelham says: “It may be big and heavy but it breaks down easily into flight cases, it fits onto a pick-up truck, and it works.”

Because many news broadcasters and sports channels now work at HD and higher, the demand for satellite has gone up rather than down according to news facilities providers such as Reuters TIMA.

4G has transformed what this kit can do. Units can achieve 10-12 Mbps consistently and reliably – more in big urban locations Guy Pelham “Ten years ago people were starting to predict the demise of satellite as IP delivery was going to be the way forward,” says Salehian. “They thought they could start ditching their leases but what we’ve seen happen is quite the reverse.

“We’ve noticed this because of the pricing, we have our own leases and it has taken us five years to find the capacity we need,” he adds.

HEDGING THEIR BETS Many media organsations are currently hedging their bets, experimenting with lightweight hybrid kit, which combines a mix of technologies that can be exploited in areas where IP is weak or non-existent.

The ability to combine cellular bonding kit with satellite, such as Inmarsat’s BGAN HDR – which has been rolled out worldwide over the last 18 months

16

and delivers 650kbps – can boost reliability in areas where infrastructure is poor.

Low power IP satellite dishes such as VSAT are starting to make an impact too in places like Nepal.

The dishes are smaller (usually less than 1 metre), often self-pointing and can be battery powered.

Others are deploying a Ka-Band flyaway in Kathmandu, using Inmarsat’s Global Xpress system (still rolling out worldwide), and delivering up to 4Mbps upload.

Sky is also using small satellites like TRISAT with an HD duel path for its Nepal reportage. “This gives us the opportunity to sell a path to another broadcaster and keep the costs down, and it’s also cheaper than using BGAN,” adds Bennedik.

A MORE MOBILE WORLD Although most experts acknowledge that the industry is moving towards a lighter, smaller, more mobile world, many are reluctant to predict the end of the SNG truck.

“It’s up to broadcasters to decide whether to dip their toe in the water or jump,” says Bennedik.

“In the meantime, hybrid fleets can take advantage of all technologies mobile has to offer with the reliability of satellite as a back up. For us, we still have to ensure that the kit is 100 per cent reliable.”

Pelham adds that the technology will have succeeded when the journalist on location doesn’t have to worry about where their connectivity is coming from.

“Their kit will automatically sense what is out there, whether it is Wi-Fi, 3G/4G/LTE-A/5G, satellite or terrestrial, and simply deliver it to their device,” he says. “That will give the reporter the upload connectivity to deliver their content quickly and easily, and the download capability to see what social media is saying, what their competition is doing and to use their own newsroom systems remotely.”

www.tvtechnologyeurope.com

MARKETPLACE – BUYERS GUIDE HD wireless camera system, using a Vislink L1700,

Broadcast RF provided the

for a Sony PMW-500 camcorder

wireless live feeds for the London Marathon

BY ADRIAN PENNINGTON

TV Tech: How to buy... radio links When choosing wireless RF links it is important to consider frequencies, versatility and latency. And make sure you test the kit first TVTechnology June 2015

18

PINPOINT THE APPLICATION Think about the environment you are going to be in, how long you will be using RF for and the reliability desired. “If you’re doing a marathon then your RF coverage from motorbikes at the front of the race will be critical for telling the story,” says Chris Brandrick, sales director at Broadcast RF. “Sometimes you are the only AV source. In that case, invest heavily in RF which includes using planes at high altitude (to negate low-lying bad weather) and multiple reception sites.

“However, there is a growing interest in lowercost, fun solutions where you might slap on a camera and RF unit to a BMX bike, for example, and see what you get back. The links are not essential to your coverage so you can afford to go with a GoPro and more of a budget links option.”

WHAT’S THE FREQUENCY (KENNETH)?

Some systems operate licence-free over the standard DVB-T 8Mhz radio channel or the 5.1 – 5.9 GHz band used for public Wi-Fi. These are versatile and typically work out cheaper. However, bandwidth can’t be guaranteed which is why you may prefer product operating in licensed frequencies.

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Photo credit: Andrew King Photography

UNTIE YOUR TALENT

How can you demonstrate your creativity if your equipment holds you back?

The new CW-F25 Wireless HD Video System from IDX frees you from the restrictions of cable and provides the flexibility you need to get the best shots back to base.

Dynamic Frequency Selection (DFS) automatically chooses the best available channel and Beam-forming technology maintains directional signal integrity. This unique combination means that no other wireless system using WiFi channels delivers greater

We want kit that can be used anywhere: bike, plane, helicopter, back of a camera. It’s got to be as versatile as possible.

Vislink, for example, claims efficiency gains can be made by deploying its own LMST (Link Modulation Scheme for Terrestrial) RF microwave links. Licenced frequency links are typically preferred in environments where you have control of the spectrum, such as in indoor sporting arenas.

reliability. And because it releases camera operators from more expensive systems using licensed channels or cables, it’s cost-effective too.

You also get return video, talkback, tally and camera control and an Ethernet bridge over the wireless link.

To find out more or arrange a demonstration go to www.idx-europe.co.uk/CW-F25

DO PLENTY OF TESTING AND RESEARCH It’s an obvious point really (but a sound one nonetheless) that you should, where possible, turn the expertise of companies with experience of operating in many scenarios to your advantage. “Every venue is different, so take the advice of companies like Broadcast RF and others who hire a range of kit, to understand what the issues are because, believe me, they are multiple and diverse,” says Brandrick. Test the kit before purchase ideally in the venue intended for use; even better side-by-side with a different model.

MAKE SURE THE KIT IS VERSATILE “We want kit that can be used anywhere: bike, plane, helicopter, back of a camera,” he says. “It’s got to be as versatile as possible. Watch out for kit that can only be used in point-to-point applications.”

Reliability and safety first POWER IS IMPORTANT The lower the power consumtion, the fewer the battery changes. “That’s pretty important on lengthy live coverage,” he says. “Cameras have generally

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June 2015 TVTechnology

MARKETPLACE – BUYERS GUIDE Chris Brandrick, sales director at Broadcast RF

NAB round-up: wireless “It’s physically impossible to achieve zero delay but latency with HD is down to around 20 milliseconds (using Vislink L1700). That is genlocked and permits RF at music concerts where lip sync can be an issue” got bulkier in the move from SD to HD, and battery performance generally depends on camera size.

Our golf radio cam systems can achieve an hour live roaming the whole course. Or it can last for half of a football match (incidentally it’s always prudent to change batteries at half time).

“At Broadcast RF we have to be the camera-op’s best friend. They don’t want to be lugging around a lump of metal for 90 minutes – so anything smaller with better power consumption that requires less battery changing is all good from their point of view.”

HEAT MATTERS The smaller you go generally the hotter the links unit gets. Smaller units will probably not have side panel controls so you trade size for being able to freely change the camera settings. “Consider whether you want to be able to change frequencies easily in a live scenario by pressing a button on the camera – rather than having to plug it into a laptop.”

LATENCY IS VITAL The way the signal breaks up – or doesn’t – is clearly vital. You don’t want freeze frames or slow wipes (refreshes) across the screen which makes it very difficult to stay on air. “It’s physically impossible to achieve zero delay, but latency with HD is down to around 20 milliseconds (using Vislink L1700). That is genlocked and permits RF at music concerts where lip sync can be an issue.”

TVTechnology June 2015

BOXX SYSTEMS Boxx TV unveiled Atom at NAB 2015, a zero delay microwave video transmission system for Video Assist. Operating within the 5GHz licence exempt spectrum, it offers SDI, HD-SDI and HDMI inputs and could be used with a Steadicam, for portable field monitoring, or for UAV video links. Performance can be monitored and adjusted in real time without manual pairing requirements or the need to connect to a PC.

Teradek Bolt: new colour correction feature added

VISLINK Vislink brought the UltraCoder H.265 encoder to NAB. An HEVC/H.265 video compression hardware device, it is specifically designed for dealing with 4K video. The rack-mounted unit lets users transmit at their current video quality using half the bandwidth, or double the video quality at the same bandwidth.

The company also showed the FocalPoint reverse camera control unit, which includes support for multiple camera and operator control panel combinations, and, in conjunction with GoPro, the HEROCast, a miniature transmitter that allows GoPro HERO3+Black and HERO4 cameras to broadcast live HD wirelessly.

115m/380ft depending on various conditions.

D-Tap power cables, AC adapters, SDI cables and a ¼-inch shoe mount adapter are included.

COBHAM At NAB, Cobham showcased a hand-held tool for viewing and sharing HD video from airborne or terrestrially deployed transmitters including drones.

The NanoVue HD receiver and Solo 8 transmitter can be used on-site to test system set-ups and includes a high visibility day/night viewing screen, on-board recording and fast IP connectivity which also allows off-site users to configure, or call forward stored video, remotely.

TERADEK Teradek announced a new feature for its Bolt wireless video system that will allow real-time colour correction or artistic colour interpretation IDX using 3D Look Up Tables (LUTs). Available as a IDX has expanded its wireless HD line-up with free firmware upgrade, 3DC² allows users to the addition of the 1:1 CW-3 transmission system. export any standard or custom LUT An uncompressed, full HD, zero delay, 3G-SDI file types (dat, cube, 3dl, lut, m3d, transmitter, it can send audio and video up to mga) into Bolt systems. The colour corrected output is supported on all of the Bolt’s video outputs: HDMI, HEROCast HD-SDI, as well as uncompressed USB 3.0. Bolt is a zero delay (< 1ms) wireless video system that transmits uncompressed 1080p60, 4:2:2 video up to 2000ft over the unlicensed 5GHz band.

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www.tvtechnologyeurope.com

MARKETPLACE – BUYERS GUIDE Pål Rune Hansen, head of operations, VG

infrastructure. We needed a system that included operation with roof antennas on trucks, VSAT solutions and IP satellite links.

“We use Ka-Sat for the odd occasion where there’s no mobile network coverage, in a narrow valley perhaps; and also when they need an exceptional amount of bandwidth – say 10Mbitps uplink guaranteed. With cellular we achieve 3 to 8Mbitps.”

Live events can be open ended and will run for hours so you have to consider the active reporter in the field

How to buy...

ENG transmitters When choosing transmission equipment for newsgathering or other field applications it is important to consider weight, signal quality and flexibility – and the choice of camera really shouldn’t matter

BY ADRIAN PENNINGTON

D

on’t take a manufacturer’s word for it. Ask for a test drive of the product, trial them in a range of environments.

“We had several options and rigorously examined them against each other since cellular uplinks is our main newsgathering infrastructure,” says Pål Rune Hansen, head of operations at VG, a Norwegian tabloid-format newspaper and linear TV news channel of the same name. Video clips are also used for breaking news on the organisation’s website. “Also, ask the vendor what future plans it has for the technology. How will it work in the cloud?”

CONSIDER SIGNAL QUALITY “This is most important so test the product in different areas and with different delays. See if you can transmit a reasonable picture with less bandwidth. Quality of image is more important than the delay.”

TVTechnology June 2015

MAKE SURE YOUR CONNECTIVITY IS FLEXIBLE “3G and 4G cellular connectivity is pretty universal in Norway and in most markets where we operate, but you can’t rely on it for all scenarios,” says Hansen. “We operate two OB trucks and BGAN terminals for very remote and war torn areas such as places in Africa and Afghanistan, but wireless transmitters are our main newsgathering

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WEIGHT IS IMPORTANT “Live events can be open ended and will run for hours, so you have to consider the active reporter in the field,” he says. “They will be in and out of buildings, in basements, going up stairs and your coverage depends on links from a single backpack.

Make sure it’s as light as possible.”

THE CAMERA SHOULDN’T MATTER... ... provided it has SDI connection. VG has standardised on Panasonic P2 camcorders which now has an integration with the LiveU cloud management platform.

MAKE SURE YOU HAVE OPTIONS Can you scale your coverage? “We employ 60 people, 40 of whom are in production, and while not everyone is doing field work they are doing studio production or talk shows,” explains Hansen.

“We have ten backpacks and 100 permanent licences for reporters using iPhone or Android mobile apps or desktop applications. We also have ten ad-hoc licences for other employees and for the public which can be activated on a temporary basis in a minute or two. We’ve also developed reporting kits, including microphones, which means that journalists can go live wherever they are and bring the story to viewers as it happens.”

CENTRALISED CONTROL How are you going to manage your feeds in the field? Wireless systems like LiveU offer their own cloud-based management service for ingest in the field but you don’t have to work with a vendor’s cloud. Routing signals into servers rented from Google or Amazon or private servers can benefit operations. From there, feeds can be streamed direct to the web (e.g. YouTube) or to a central studio gallery for mixing into the main feed. VG staff bureau in Berlin, London and New York and has a central cloud-based control centre to manage incoming feeds and playout.

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Aviwest backpack

NAB round-up NAB was awash with antenna and transmission-related announcements including various innovations in mobile video distribution, centralised control, encoding and uplink AVIWEST AVIWEST showcased a new version of its DMNG Studio server that is capable of receiving incoming streams from DMNG video uplink systems and third-party products such as IP cameras. Supporting a variety of protocols including RTP, RTSP, TS over UDP, HLS, and RTMP, the Linux-based application works with multiple output formats and allows for point-to-point and point-to-multipoint video distribution. The company also gave a debut to a backpack for its DMNG PRO video uplink system.

Worn on the back or front, it allows in-the-field news crews, especially those using hand-held cameras, to carry DMNG PRO gear for live newsgathering.

LIVEU MultiPoint, LiveU’s internal and cross-organisational IP video distribution service, was on show for the first time at NAB. The cloud-based service works with LiveU’s management platform LiveU Central to allow broadcasters to share incoming live feeds simultaneously with several end-points over the internet from within the same interface. Also on show was the LU200, an ultra-small transmission device.

Weighing just over 500g (1lb), it is available in a pouch or camera-mount configuration, offering two built-in modems and integrated antennas in a bonded unit.

DEJERO Dejero announced the release of LIVE+ Multipoint, a professional video-over-IP distribution network.

The cloud-based offering is said to enable broadcasters and media organisations to send a broadcast quality live stream from a source location to several locations simultaneously, with known and controlled latency at each end point.

The company also launched LIVE+ EnGo, a compact camera-mounted or wearable transmitter for remote video acquisition. LIVE+ EnGo encodes H.264 video and transmits it over multiple IP networks. Swappable wireless modules can be attached to the device in order to customise it to the locally available wireless network infrastructure.

TVU NETWORKS The TVUPack TM8200 with Integrated MIMO Microwave MESH technology was on show at NAB. This innovation allows TVUPack to transmit live HD

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video simultaneously over cellular, Ethernet, Wi-Fi and MIMO Mesh networks for enhanced resiliency in areas with difficult bandwidth conditions. MultipleIn Multiple-Out antenna technology (MIMO) allows for a packet to be transmitted by more than one antenna into a channel. When the packet comes out of the channel, it is received on multiple antennas.

If multiple MIMO radios are positioned in strategic locations around the area from which the live video is to be transmitted, a microwave mesh network is created that allows the transmission signal to travel further and carry more information.

QUICKLINK Quicklink TX has been certified and approved for use over the Inmarsat network as part of Inmarsat’s Certified Applications (CAP) programme.

The 19-inch 1U rack mounted hardware device converts Skype calls into a professional quality video/audio signal when used over Inmarsat’s BGAN network. When combined with Inmarsat’s global network, video content can be created and distributed via Skype from anywhere in the world.

Quicklink also develops an iPhone app that can send full frame 25 or 30fps transmissions with IFB talkback, and the Merlin backpack. The latter allows a journalist to plug an SDI or Firewire camera directly into an encoder that can bond dynamically from six SIMS from different providers. Live streams can play out directly via SDI or be ingested into a broadcast matrix.

IMT Integrated Microwave Technologies (IMT) debuted its Nucomm Central Integrated Radome System x6 (CIRAS-x6) at NAB. The rugged COFDM (DVB-T compliant) sixway diversity receiver is integrated into a sixsegment antenna pod.

The vertical polarised antennas can handle up to 14dBi per panel gain and the device can be mounted on vehicles, towers, building tops or a tripod.

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MOBILE VIEWPOINT Holland’s Mobile Viewpoint launched a new streaming technology that uses bonded IP channels to send live video from any geographical location to the web. WebStreamur consists of applications for MacBook and both iPhone and Android mobile devices as well as three dedicated standalone transmitters. All options use the same adaptive encoding and bond 3G/4G and fixed IP channels. The technology is said to be able to deliver live streams directly to YouTube. Social media network Twitter is used for announcements and instant feedback. Mobile Viewpoint uses H.264 and H.265 codec implementations, combined with patented technology, to allow HD video to be transmitted over bonded IP connections.

STREAMBOX Streambox introduced a miniature encoder for drones. The Streambox Drone Encoder Pro can capture and stream HD-SDI or HDMI from camera equipped UAVs used for newsgathering, film and TV production and live events. It uses available mobile IP networks to send content to the Streambox Cloud where video can then be routed to playout or streamed over the web. The Drone Encoder Pro weighs 220g and has four hours-plus of operation from external or UAV battery.

Mobile Viewpoint

June 2015 TVTechnology

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THE BIG DEBATE

MAM for broadcasters

The hypothetical scenario

Despite its increasing importance to broadcasters, Media Asset Management (MAM) is widely misunderstood. To attempt to rectify this, TVTE asked seven MAM suppliers to discuss a hypothetical scenario and answer some of the key questions that buyers might ask

T

he definition of MAM has changed frequently, and continues to do so.

In your opinion, in 2015, what is a broadcast MAM system and what should it do?

KU – A broadcast MAM system is more than just an asset management solution. It provides the

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broadcaster with complete visibility of their media content, wherever it is located. It also connects every contributor in your business wherever they are, ensuring seamless, faster collaboration. A MAM system provides analytics and workflow orchestration, it simplifies day-to-day manual production tasks and connects media production

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I am a technical/engineering manager for a European broadcaster. We have linear channels plus VoD, catch-up and streamed channels that are available across multiple platforms. Content comes in to us in various forms including files but I still have some processes that use tape internally.

We have legacy systems for archive and we do some compliance, re-versioning and branding in-house. We have outsourced our playout.

THE TASK IN HAND Although we have a ‘homemade’ MAM, I am researching the possibility of buying a MAM system or platform that integrates with all my current systems. I want to track and catalogue media, obviously, but I would like to realise other benefits too if I can. My goal is to make our operation more productive and nimble and hopefully save some money in the long-term through the complete removal of tape and the introduction of increased automation and better BPM (business process management).

Technology moves fast so we must too. Help!

June 2015 TVTechnology

THE BIG DEBATE The contenders PA – Parham Azimi, chief executive, Cantemo KU – Kevin Usher, director of product and segment marketing, broadcast and media, Avid.

PR – Patrice Rosay, pre sales engineer, broadcast solutions architect, NETIA. KM – Karl Mehring, head of product architecture, TV Everywhere, Snell-Quantel EM – Esther Mesas, chief sales and marketing officer, Tedial TT – Tony Taylor, chief executive and chairman, TMD XA – Ximena Araneda, executive VP video workflows, Vizrt

solutions with external business systems, providing those contributors with the right tools for their role and access to all the content they need. It is probably fair to say that in today’s world, the word MAM no longer fully describes all the benefits that a broadcast MAM solution delivers.

PA – The definition of MAM should never change. The MAM system of 2015 should be like building with Lego. The core MAM system should always include a number of key features, including, for example, ingesting, indexing, transcoding, storage management, user/group management, archiving, and distributing. It should then be possible to add blocks to build onto that with modules and extensions that introduce new features or integration points, extending the

The word MAM no longer fully describes all the benefits that a broadcast MAM solution delivers - Kevin Usher core functionality for specific customer needs.

For broadcasters these additional ‘lego’ blocks typically consist of tape and camera ingest, newsroom and scheduling integrations, rights management, and playout.

PR – In a sense, the selection of a MAM system is not unlike the purchase of a car. The buyer can choose from a host of makes and models, with each offering a different blend of functionality, performance, and interoperability at a different price point. No single car can meet the needs of every driver, and the same is true of MAM systems. Describing a MAM system by calling it a tool that associates metadata to media is too brief and simple a definition. The better approach in defining a MAM is to talk about what

TVTechnology June 2015

Karl Mehring, Snell: Highly sophisticated metrics and business reporting must be an inherent part of the system.

it can do, rather than what it is. NETIA defines a MAM solution according to how it will be used.

If the user’s task is to produce content, archive content, exchange content between sites, search and browse an asset library, or even log and analyse media, then the MAM used by the organisation must support those use cases. The MAM must have the features and functionality necessary to address the unique roles of individual users within the organisation, as well as the demands of their daily work.

KM – Distilling MAM down to the essentials, first off you need a rock solid catalogue system for your media assets which is highly scalable so it can grow with you, and has a powerful search tool to allow you to actually find those valuable assets quickly and easily. You need flexibility – multiple and user definable metadata schemas to accommodate different genres of media or multiple tenants. Then of course you also need to be able to repurpose your assets to meet all sorts of different requirements, ideally in a fully automated and again highly scalable and user

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Kevin Usher, Avid

definable way. So, workflow automation is a must but it does not quite stop there; the workflow automation needs to drive the most popular QC, transcode, archive, transfer systems and so on,

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The MAM should also be able to integrate a BPM system to automate the production process.

TT – Today’s MAM solution needs to: efficiently and effectively acquire, manage and deliver multiple formats of media content; provide a comprehensive and integrated business process management environment that puts the customer in control; provide a business analytics platform enabling management to understand the metrics of the organisation; provide a unified media services solution integrating multiple third-party technologies; and create a user experience that enhances the working day for everybody involved in the business of broadcast.

XA – The origins of MAM lie in the need to increase operational efficiency and handle data safely and easily. To become more efficient, it needs to be easier for stakeholders such as archivists, journalists and producers, to find and retrieve media. This means that they can dedicate more time to their creative work, rather than wasting time searching for assets, waiting for file transfers and transcodes. Since the early deployments, MAM systems have evolved to include proxy preview editing, integrations within the broadcaster ecosystems, workflow engines, media orchestration, auditing, reporting and many

The traditional approach of of ‘one MAM for all’ doesn’t work within today’s diverse media environment - Parham Azimi

Parham Azimi, Cantemo: The MAM system of 2015 should be like building with Lego.

Tony Taylor, TMD

but is also needs to accommodate the human touch as required, assigning tasks to operators where the human eye is required for sign-off or for escalation. Tasks such as manual QC as

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well as proxy/browse-based editing to allow you to deliver differently packaged media packages to different platforms such as VoD, catch-up or streamed channels. To allow for multiple delivery mechanisms, flexible interfaces to external systems are a must and should include file drop, XML, and web-based protocols such as RESTful APIs. Lastly, the system performance should be measurable, so highly sophisticated metrics and business reporting must be an inherent part of the system.

EM – A 2015 MAM system should provide the broadcaster with complete management of media content within their organisation, allowing every asset to be tracked across the entire facility. The MAM should be fully integrated with all systems and devices and should automate the exchange

more useful and relevant features. When we at Vizrt redesigned the latest generation of Viz One, our MAM system, we made sure to decouple what we consider the core feature of a MAM, and what we class as add-ons, including software that’s not directly handling the media. We looked at the core features and made sure we built the system to handle more assets, faster, smarter and with an event-based architecture. The system has to be simple to operate with minimal training required because it will have lots of users and it’s costly to train them. This core has several open APIs that enables us, partners, and customers to build integrated workflow engines.

of media and metadata between various thirdparty systems. The MAM is also responsible for the transformation of media and metadata files guaranteeing compatibility between different systems and devices. It should be able to manage any HSM software and different levels of storage such as LTO, cloud, object storage or ODA.

PA – The biggest challenge is not about finding a solution to solve your current problem, rather it is how to solve those future, as yet unknowns.

It is therefore important to find a system that is flexible and open enough to be adapted and extended in the future, to solve whatever need or challenge may arise in the months and years

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What is my biggest MAM challenge going to be?

June 2015 TVTechnology

THE BIG DEBATE

Ximena Araneda, Vizrt: Most large commercial MAM vendors are well established, and very familiar with problems

ahead. These could be new integration points, change of current workflows, change of user experience, and more. We have found that our customers find it very important to have an extensive and open API and SDK infrastructure, which also minimises the software vendor dependency for the end customers.

KU – Whatever your need for a broadcast MAM, it is essential that you understand what the problem is that you are trying to solve at the outset, so that you can measure the benefits to your business after the solution is implemented and is being used. Having done this, you can then begin to evaluate other areas of your business where a broadcast MAM solution may bring additional value.

PR – The greatest challenge lies in deploying the MAM successfully across the business and ensuring technical interoperability across different departments. Integrating a

TVTechnology June 2015

The biggest challenge of moving to a new MAM will be understanding the many processes within your organisation - Karl Mehring MAM into existing infrastructure is not simple. NETIA takes advantage of an SOA to simplify this process, and the company also provides support throughout the planning and implementation stages to ensure that the business, its departments, and its users maximise the benefits of a MAM tailored to their needs. And, as those needs change and evolve, it is important that the solution can adapt and that the supplier can aid the broadcaster in realising new capabilities and efficiencies.

KM – The biggest challenge of moving to a new MAM will be understanding the many processes

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within your organisation; they will almost certainly have evolved over many years in response to point needs and will no longer be optimised for your current needs. We can help you here.

Firstly choose a MAM vendor who understands media workflows and can provide a breakdown of your current processes as well as suggesting improvements which may provide efficiency gains.

Secondly, be sure to choose a system that can evolve with your needs and support the adoption of automated processes. Whilst it is possible to go ‘big bang’ it can often be better to identify problem areas and adopt the new MAM and workflow automation systems on those first. With a system which is both highly scalable and user definable it is then possible to add other less problematic areas and processes over time, and even further evolve your problem areas to gain even more efficiency in a measurable way.

EM – The broadcaster’s biggest challenge is to adapt its operation from a custom in-house system and procedures to a standard operational model. This could potentially be an initial barrier for the users and the operations team, but once they are trained they will improve their efficiency as a standard tool will provide more functionality than an in-house system.

TT – In my experience, by far the biggest challenge is that of change management. It’s not the technology that creates the challenges, it is people. Too often we have seen that an organisation has implemented a MAM solution without engaging its users and management in the process early enough. The ability to foster a climate of positive change reaps significant rewards for all concerned and should not be underestimated.

XA – Most large commercial MAM vendors are well established, and very familiar with the problem domain. They know what problems are likely to crop up and how to solve them, simply because they have seen them before, plus they have experience with system scalability, and awareness of the potential issues it can result in.

Plus, dedicated resources are available for research and development, handling new technologies as a built-in cost. MAM specialists also have plenty of customers who feedback on improvements and new requirements which are then often implemented into system updates and new products. By using a specialist, users are freed up from having to look after system maintenance, and develop their own upgrades.

How do I sell the benefits of a new MAM system to a) my staff and b) my boss/the board?

PA – A new MAM system allows for automation of otherwise manual and tedious workflows, meaning your staff can ‘do less and produce more’. The

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right system should also give you the flexibility to fully customise the user experience and interface for each group or user. It should enable you to use the company look and feel to introduce familiarity for users, making the user experience simple and natural. The future-proofness of the product is always key. The next generation MAM systems should ensure vendor independency for future needs and the flexibility of not being locked into a certain solution. This modular approach also means that you can start small, ensure that the system is in line with company strategies and goals, and natively grow the system over time according to needs and requirements, thus minimising the risk for future investments.

KU – A broadcast MAM solution allows media enterprises to become more efficient through a streamlined workflow. This in turn empowers staff to be more creative, enabling them to produce higher-quality programme content. Measuring the business value of a MAM solution requires a ‘before and after’ analysis, the upfront analysis provides the business owner with a detailed understanding of how and where in their business a MAM the solution will deliver cost savings and efficiency improvements whilst enabling them to deliver more channels and a higher quality output. The after analysis allows them to measure the value of the MAM solution to their business, and enables them to continually monitor and improve their operational and business efficiencies PR – The MAM can benefit the broadcaster in three key ways: by allowing it to increase the quality of production; reduce the time required to produce content; and reduce operational costs. Ideally, a MAM solution will offer all three of these benefits, and automation plays a central role in enabling each. By eliminating repetitive manual tasks, such as data input, automation can reduce not only the time required for production, but also the likelihood of error. Automation also allows the broadcaster to build in more quality control checkpoints, thereby freeing staff members from monitoring and other technical duties and giving them more time to focus on the creative elements that can help to differentiate content in a competitive marketplace. By reducing the overall time it takes to produce and distribute assets, workflow also increases the value of content. The broadcaster can not only provide more timely content more quickly but also distribute content via a broader array of channels, thereby monetising each asset more fully. Together, these capabilities yield a meaningful reduction in TCO that makes the MAM solution a good investment.

KM – Having a single, simple maintain system supported by a well trusted supplier should give great confidence to engineering staff. For operational staff, an attractive, easy-to-use and

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intuitive interface that just lets them get on with their job without worrying how to make the system work should be a breath of fresh air. For senior execs, you should explain the potential for efficiency gains by automation of disparate processes, better utilisation of equipment and human resource as well as metrics to back it up so they can actually see the system utilisation and plan for improvements and future new business opportunities by simply utilising existing capacity.

EM – Scalability: An in-house system does not scale and new integrations are expensive and sometimes impossible to include. Production efficiency: standard MAMs include dashboard and

The broadcaster should adapt and improve its operation to the new system capabilities instead of trying to adapt the system to its traditional workflow vision - Esther Mesas

reporting tools that improve operations gaining efficiency in every process. Cost efficiency: monitoring tools provide an overview of the system allowing bottlenecks and other inefficiencies in resources to be detected. By resolving these issues, operational costs can be reduced.

TT – One way of achieving buy-in from both staff and management is to implement a PoC (Proof of Concept). This was an approach taken

by RTÉ, the public broadcaster in Ireland. Once selected, we implemented a generic off-the-shelf solution to enable the users and management to understand the benefits of a full solution. This included the graphical BPM design tool, which meant that RTÉ staff could create and modify workflow processes without our involvement.

Obviously there is a cost to the PoC for professional services but the software was provided free of charge during the initial stages. Once the users and project team had verified and documented the benefits, the board was given a presentation of the solution. This resulted in a unanimous sign-off of the main system implementation.

Patrice Rosay, NETIA: Integrating a MAM into existing infrastructure is not simple.

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June 2015 TVTechnology

THE BIG DEBATE XA – Involving staff in the decision has two benefits: they will appreciate being involved in the selection: and they will learn about the potential benefits a MAM system can bring, and the positive impact it can have on how they get things done.

In general, people will be interested as long as the system is fast, responsive and does what they need it to do. Again this is where an easy-to-use MAM system that doesn’t require much training will be advantageous. In addition, a Google-like search facility is a must to make the system implementation as smooth as possible. As far as the board is concerned, it’s all about having a system that can be maintained long-term, that’s easy to integrate with, and is cost efficient.

Esther Mesas, Tedial: A broadcaster should adapt to the new system capabilities, not the other way around

TVTechnology June 2015

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What is the secret to a successful MAM implementation/installation?

PA – Having a modularised approach. The traditional approach of ‘one MAM for all’ is outdated and doesn’t work within today’s diverse media environment. It also leads to lengthy and costly projects that are, more often than not, a loss investment for customers. The modern approach, and the secret to success, is adopting

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TEDIAL: A thorough definition of the initial requirements is key to a successful MAM implementation

a modularised system that solves your core needs and has the ability to grow in line with your business needs and goals over time. This modularised approach also minimises any risk, as it requires a lot less up-front investment.

KU – Understand at the start what business challenge you are trying to solve, whether this is visibility of assets or enhanced collaboration across sites. You also need to get your staff involved at the beginning as they are all key contributors to the successful implementation of the MAM. By involving them from the start they will see and appreciate the full benefits of implementing a MAM solution and they will adopt the MAM system with enthusiasm.

PR – Put the user at the centre of the MAM system. By testing the solution with those who will use it on a daily basis, the solution provider can make the entire project easier while improving its chances for success. By maintaining regular communication with users, the MAM supplier can ensure that, following the months spent on design and implementation, the resulting solution will meet any new functional or technical requirements.

KM – You need to understand what are must haves, should haves and nice to haves; make sure that this is clear in your requirement specification and score potential systems based on these. This will help you to choose the right

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The broadcast business is evolving, so operations, users and management along with the vendors must evolve with it - Tony Taylor system for your needs today. Make sure that as part of this process you identify your need for expansion or change to the system. This again should steer you towards making the right choice. Ensure that the vendor and system you choose have a proven track record and will be around for you around the clock and for some time to come; don’t be shy to seek references from existing customers. Now you have chosen the system. As part of the first stage you will have documented your system interface points and existing workflows and/or desired workflows, and now you need to work as closely as you can with your chosen vendor to make sure that these are optimised before taking the next step of installation. Wherever possible, break steps down and implement in turn and ensure that the new MAM system can coexist with legacy systems, just in case something got left behind because it was a little known or little used process.

EM – A thorough definition of the initial requirements is key. The broadcaster should adapt

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and improve its operation to the new system capabilities instead of trying to adapt the system to its traditional workflow vision.

TT – Collaboration and communication between all parties. The project must not be seen as just a vendor supplying a technology solution.

Flexibility is also key. One of the phrases that causes discussion is ‘because we have always done it that way’. The broadcast business is evolving, so operations, users and management along with the vendors must evolve with it. Make sure that the solution chosen allows you as a customer to make changes as your business and the industry changes. And don’t forget analytics. If you can’t produce the analysis of your operation then understanding what benefits it’s providing is only a guess.

XA – Keep it simple and really understand what is behind the need. Start with off-theshelf functionality with minimum required integrations and grow with time. It is also important to involve a group of super users that understand the workflows and current bottlenecks. Also, question the requirements.

We do this all the time to understand the real need of what we’re trying to solve. It is very common that when we read the requirements from a written RFP, these are not necessarily the best way to solve the actual main problem that has raised the requirements.

June 2015 TVTechnology

PRODUCT REVIEW

UHD cameras for every occasion The surge in 4K and Ultra HD capable broadcast quality cameras was one of the big stories of NAB 2015.

Here, David Fox provides an insight into some of the main protagonists

U

ltra HD (UHD) and beyond was the key trend among new cameras announced at NAB 2015, some at prices that you’d have expected to pay for HD only a year ago. There was even a choice of 3/4-inch UHD cameras for mainstream broadcast production, for those programmes, such as sport, where shallow depth of field isn’t such a good thing.

There were also new HD cameras, but even if you don’t need UHD, the higher-resolution cameras have other attractions, such as wider dynamic range – both the Blackmagic Ursa Mini and Canon EOS C300 Mark II offer 15 stops.

Indeed, the Ursa Mini was probably the most interesting new arrival, given its price – starting at £2,149 (€3,519) for the 4K EF-mount model – although if you want those 15 stops you’ll have to go for the 4.6K (4608x2592 pixel) sensor at £3,565 (€5,885) for the EF-mount model (there are also PL-mount versions of each).

The 4.6K sensor has a global shutter for shooting up to 30 frames per second (switchable to rolling shutter for up to 60p), and includes sensor refrigeration to maximise its dynamic range.

It is also available as an upgrade for the larger Ursa Super 35 digital film camera.

The compact, lightweight Mini isn’t upgradable, but should appeal to a wider range of users.

Having higher resolution than even DCI 4K (4096x2160) means that users can more easily stabilise images in post without losing resolution.

The camera also records up to 160fps in HD and includes a full copy of the DaVinci Resolve colour grading and editing software.

The cheaper 4K sensor has 12 stops of dynamic range and shoots at HD, UHD (3840x2160) and 4000x2160 resolutions (the latter in 12-bit lossless CinemaDNG Raw).

The Mini comes with a 5-inch fold out viewfinder, 12G-SDI output, and dual Raw and

TVTechnology June 2015

The Ursa Mini 4.6K EF could be a real contender for general production - assuming that it lives up to its specifications.

Apple ProRes recorders. There is also an optional shoulder kit (£289/€475) and an add-on 1920x1080 colour OLED viewfinder (£1,079/€1,759). However, it doesn’t have built-in ND filters, which is a nuisance.

C300 UP TO THE MARK High dynamic range is just one of the improvements on the Canon EOS C300 Mk II, a comprehensive upgrade for the most hired broadcast camera of the past few years.

Compared to the C300, the MkII has: a new Canon-designed Super 35mm CMOS sensor with

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twice the readout speed (for reduced rolling shutter effects); a more advanced imaging engine with dual DIGIC DV5 processors; new Canon Log2 that retains more highlight and shadow information (enabling that extra dynamic range), plus the useful Wide DR setting seen in the C100 MkII, which requires less work in post; improved auto focus; extended ND filters; dual CFast 2.0 card slots; and an increased ISO range of up to 102,400 for low light use.

It also has new XF-AVC recording codecs (similar to Sony’s XAVC), based on H.264 compression and MXF wrapping. There is 10-bit 4:2:2 XF-AVC intra for 4K/UHD at 410, 225, 220, or 110Mbps, while HD and 2K can be recorded in 10-bit 4:4:4 at 210Mbps, or 12-bit at 225Mbps.

There are also XF-AVC Long GoP (50Mbps) and Proxy (35 or 24Mbps) options for 2K/HD recording, but not the MPEG2 format used on the C300 and XF series. The main limitation is that the C300 Mk

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The Blackmagic Ursa Mini provides a lot of capability at a price that would be good for HD

II can not shoot at more than 30p in 4K/UHD, although it can go up to 100/120p in 2K/HD. Although the current C300 (recently dropped in price) was widely used for all sorts of production, the C300 MkII is probably best suited to drama in 4K/UHD, while Sony’s FS7 is more suited to reality-style programming – not only because of its higher frame rates (up to 60fps in 4K/UHD and 180fps in HD), but also its shouldermount form factor.

The Ursa Mini 4.6K EF is a third of the price of the £11,299 (€15,500) C300 MkII (and about half the cost of Sony’s FS7) and will be available in July, whereas the C300 MkII won’t ship until September.

As such, the Ursa Mini could be a real contender for general production, assuming that it lives up to its specifications.

Canon also announced a new lightweight UHD camera, the £1,600 (€2,200) XC10, that is

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Canon’s EOS C300 Mark II, pictured with the 24-105 f4L

The Sony HDC4300 integrates UHD into the

lens, is a comprehensive upgrade to one of broadcast’s

traditional HD workflow and offers optional 8x

most popular cameras

slow motion

Blackmagic Design’s Micro Studio Camera 4K can be rigged as a full studio camera (with monitor) or used as a tiny remote

suitable as a B-camera for larger productions.

It uses a new 1-inch CMOS sensor and Canon’s latest DIGIC DV5 processor, and can record UHD at 25/30p to a CFast 2.0 card at up to 305Mbps (XF-AVC) or 50/60p HD to an SD card at 50Mbps, 8-bit 4:2:2. It has a 10x optical f/2.8–f/5.6 zoom (with manual zoom and focus ring), and optical and electronic image stabilisation.

MICRO CINEMA AND STUDIO CAMERAS Blackmagic also announced what it claims to be ‘the world’s smallest digital film action camera’, the Blackmagic Micro Cinema Camera (as well as Micro Studio Camera 4K) for 4K and UHD. The £709 (€1,179) Micro Cinema Camera also boasts an ‘innovative remote control’ using an expansion port with PWM and S.Bus connections that provides access to many of the camera’s

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functions via widely-used wireless remote control systems, such as those for model aircraft. These are cheap and relatively simple to map on to various camera or lens settings (iris, focus, audio levels, start/stop recording, etc).

It has a Super 16mm-size sensor (12.48mm x 7.02mm) with 13 stops of dynamic range. Its builtin recorder saves lossless 12-bit log CinemaDNG Raw (520Mbps at 30p) and Apple ProRes (up to 220Mbps at 30p) files.

The £929 (€1,545) Micro Studio Camera 4K is not actually 4K but UHD (up to 25/30p) and HD (50/60p), and aimed at live production, although it also has the new expansion bus. It includes: built in colour correction; talkback; tally indicator; PTZ (pan, tilt, zoom) control; 6G-SDI input/output; HDMI output; and B4 lens control. When used for HD, the sensor’s extra resolution eliminates Bayer pattern colour loss, to give full bandwidth RGB HD

June 2015 TVTechnology

PRODUCT REVIEW colour and improved sub pixel anti-aliasing for finer detailed HD images.

Both Micro cameras are small enough to mount in cars, and can be controlled directly from buttons on the front of the camera. The bodies are not much larger than their Micro Four Thirds (MFT) lens mounts (and can use other lenses via adaptors).

REMOTE CAMERA HEAD Bradley Engineering also launched a tiny new remote-controlled 4K camera that uses a Super 35 4K CMOS sensor developed by JVC Kenwood subsidiary AltaSens (the sensor also used in JVC’s new GY-LS300). It has a MFT lens interface, adaptable for B4 and PL mounts.

The output is by fibre, directly from the camera, and the Bradley Base Station provides genlock input, a simple TTL level control protocol and a dual ST fibre connection up to 20km, including full control and genlock.

There is also a dedicated Pan/Tilt unit (U3_4K), as well as three options for remote camera panels with full CCU control, a fibre base station with SMPTE hybrid options or ST connectors, remote control via fibre, SMPTE adaptors, zoom servo lenses and lens servos.

To replicate this deeper depth of field, you’d think you’d need a three-chip 2/3-inch UHD camera, but not all the manufacturers agree The design is based on Bradley’s U3 camera head – a PTZ camera that can memorise 99 preset positions and controlled remotely, including pan, tilt, zoom, iris, focus, full paint and colour balancing, using Bradley’s Remote Control Panel.

ONE, THREE OR FOUR SENSORS? Having 2/3-inch sensors is important for sports production so that cameras can follow far off action using 100x B4-mount zoom lenses and still keep the play in focus, whereas the typical, larger sensor 4K camera leaves very little depth of field for focusing, especially when the lens is wide open, as it would be for action shot at night.

So, to replicate this deeper depth of field, you’d think you’d need a three-chip 2/3-inch UHD camera, but not all the manufacturers agree.

While both Sony’s new HDC-4300 Ultra HD system camera, and Grass Valley’s LDX 86 4K model use three 2/3-inch UHD image sensors, Hitachi’s SK-UHD4000, which went into use earlier in the year, has four sensors: one red, one blue and two green for extra sensitivity, but Panasonic’s new AK-UC3000

TVTechnology June 2015

NAB round-up: lighting ROTOLIGHT Rotolight used NAB to give a debut to its Neo on-camera LED lighting. Shortlisted in the ‘Acquisition and Production’ category at the IABM’s Game Changer Awards, and set to begin shipping later this month, Neo includes designer Fade mode for custom fade up/fade down production effects and True Aperture Dimming. The latter is said to accurately calculate the correct aperture (F-Stop) for a subject at a given distance.

Neo also includes CineSFX options for simulating Strobe, Lightning, Fire, Cycle, Throb and TV. A 10-piece ‘Add on Colour FX’ filter set that includes filters such as ‘Rust’, ‘Mist Blue’ and ‘Hollywood Frost’ is also available.

BBS LIGHTING Copenhagen’s BBS Lighting introduced the Pipeline Reporter Lighting Kit. Complete with remote phosphor LED fixtures, the combo provides modelled lighting with a high CRI for on-camera reporters working under various ambient lighting conditions. The footprint of each fixture is less than a computer mouse. A winner of TV Technology’s ‘Best of Show’, it was described by judges as a “perfect, flexible addition to your lighting equipment, at popular prices. Guaranteed to become a favourite.”

APUTURE Chinese manufacturer Aputure showed off its new Light Storm LED lights at NAB. The lights are considered to be well constructed for the price, use brick batteries and are inexpensive.

Aputure claims a CRI of 95+. The aluminium head is connected to a control/power unit by a cable with lemo connectors so users don’t have the weight up high on stands. The control/power unit has remote control, DMX control, dimmer, and Anton-Bauer brick battery connectors. Ted Sim, Aputure’s sales and marketing rep, who was demoing the lights, said that “the half panel is the equivalent of a 500-watt tungsten and the full panel is the equivalent of a 1K tungsten.”

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Rotolight NEO

KINO FLO At NAB Kino Flo introduced the Diva-Lite 415 Universal EFP softlight. Capable of displaying colour variable 3200K and 5500K True Match light, it has lamp dimming and switching, 360-degree control mounting, 60-degree focusing honeycomb louver barn doors and Kino Power Saver electronics.

LITEPANELS The Caliber 3-Light Kit, designed for webcasting, blogging and production, was one of the new innovations shown by Litepanels at NAB. The Caliber is a true Fresnel fixture with wide focus range that can be powered via AC or with AA batteries. Litepanels also showed an expanded ASTRA line of LED panels.

LOWEL LIGHT The Lowel PRO Power LED, designed for runand-gun location lighting, was amongst Lowel Light’s NAB display. The powerful output and wide focus range Fresnel lens allows lighting over long distances. It is available with a wide variety of mounting and light control accessories, as well as kit combinations. Lowel also featured its Prime Location LED BiColor, a rugged fixture with sturdy all metal construction, and an IP-65 weather rating. It touts a powerful, high CRI bicolor, daylight to tungsten colour output.

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camera has just one sensor, which, despite being larger, also claims to deliver 2/3-inch depth of field.

The latter takes conventional B4-mount lenses, but uses a low-loss expansion lens fitted where the prisms would be on a three-sensor camera, to keep the same depth of field as a 2/3inch camera. It can deliver a 3840x2160 image at up to 50/60p and boasts reasonably high sensitivity (f10/2000 lux), low noise (S/N 60dB), wide dynamic range (600 per cent or -6dB 36dB), and its MOS sensor uses a high-speed scan to reduce rolling shutter effects.

The HDC-4300 does 50/60p UHD and also offers up to 8x Super-Slow Motion in HD (at up to 479.52/400fps), while Grass Valley’s new LDX 86 Universe is a switchable UHD/6x HD three-sensor camera that can be used for UHD, HD or highspeed HD acquisition in conjunction with the new K2 Dyno Universe replay system. Its cheaper LDX 86 4K camera can be upgraded to the LDX Universe, while the new LDX 86 WorldCam HD camera is itself upgradable to 4K. With the HDC-4300 both the 4K and slowmotion capabilities are available on a paid-for licence (weekly, monthly or permanently).

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The LDX86 Universe is Grass Valley’s new range-topping UHD system camera, including 6x slow motion

It comes standard with 2x and 3x HD recording.

It also supports the widened colour space included in the ITU-R BT.2020 broadcast

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standard, and allows for HD cut outs of two full HD images from the UHD picture, including a selectable zoom and perspective mode.

June 2015 TVTechnology

NAB AUDIO REVIEW

Plenty of IP innovation… but some are still mad for MADI Although full-networking and IP continue to gain ground, NAB Show 2015 proved that there is still plenty of life left in some familar ‘heritage’ audio technologies too, as David Davies reveals

N

AB Show 2015 certainly brought forth its customary variety of video-related innovations, spanning everything from miniature drone-mounted cameras to the latest equipment for 4K and 8K production.

But whilst it may have been less rich in dramatic developments, Central Hall’s cluster of audio-forbroadcast vendors was certainly responsible for its share of innovative solutions.

Perhaps inevitably, a fair few of these revolved around allowing operators to make as painless a shift as possible from traditional, point-to-point connectivity, to IP-based operation. In this spirit, Lawo introduced the Lawo A__mic8, the first member of the company’s new A__family of audio-to-IP interfaces. This new product line, explains Lawo, is designed to provide easy and reliable options

Lawo MC2 56XT

Studer Vista X Blue

A fair few innovations revolved around allowing operators to make as painless a shift as possible from traditional, point-to-point connectiviwty to IP-based operation. for transporting analogue and digital audio signals via IP network environments.

Based on the Ravenna networking technology developed by ALC NetworX, all A__line devices are also compatible with the AES67 audio-over-IP interoperability standard and include the company’s new VisCon_Navigator, a software application for easy set-up of audio and video streams in IP networks without the necessity for ‘deep’ IP knowledge.

CONTINUED PRESENCE Underlining its continued presence at the cutting edge of console design, Lawo also unveiled the MC256XT desk which doubles the fader count capability of the existing MC256 whilst retaining the

TVTechnology June 2015

same footprint. The XT model can be configured to offer 48 to 144 faders arranged in a dual-fader layout, with further expansion achieved using 16 or 32 fader standalone extenders.

Ahead of NAB Show 2015, Digigram president and chief executive Philippe Delacroix observed

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that “the benefits of making this transition [to IP-based media transport and cloud-based applications] are enormous, and we’re continually refining our IP audio and IP video solutions to help broadcasters move forward in realising these benefits.”

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Accordingly, the company highlighted the addition of Ravenna/AES67 connectivity to its IQOYA range of audio-over-IP codecs, which now enable users to get audio programmes directly from an in-studio Ravenna network and subsequently encode and stream them over IP to transmitter sites via a WAN in compliance with EBU ACIP. Users likewise may decode EBU ACIP streams from a WAN to their in-studio Ravenna network.

Whilst the continued rise of Ravenna was also underlined by Digigram’s introduction of the LX-IP RAVENNA PCIe sound card, there was plenty of evidence too that one of connectivity’s most enduring stalwarts – MADI – isn’t going away anytime soon. To which end, Digigram announced an optical MADI interface option for the LX-IP RAVENNA PCIe sound card, whilst BroaMan previewed a new, MADIcompatible addition to its MUX22 series of video, audio and intercom modules.

As with all MUX22 devices, the new MUX22 MADI will support up to eight video channels with a selectable number of dual inputs and dual outputs; it is also equipped with RS485 or GPIO ports, and can provide fibre tunnels for any third-party products.

GOING DOWN THE DANTE ROUTE Recent integrator comments to this writer along the lines of “we’ve gone the Dante route” or “we’re doing a lot of Dante projects” indicate that – for many – the Audinate-developed media networking technology and networking per se are now synonymous with each other. NAB 2015 brought more confirmation of its already-declared support for the AES67 standard (via the release of the Dante Brooklyn II firmware update).

Meanwhile, Audinate also discussed its recent work with Avid to develop a Dante option card for Avid’s VENUE | S6L live sound system, whilst the addition of Dante support to NewTek’s TriCaster HD production and steaming product line indicated that Audinate is set fare for a growing presence in the broadcast market.

“The partnership between Audinate and NewTek to enable Dante in [video calling production system] TalkShow has been extremely well received by our customer base,” said Michael Kornet, executive vice-president of business development, NewTek. “As Dante has become the de facto standard for audio-over-IP, it was a natural evolution to extend Dante connectivity to our flagship product, TriCaster.”

Elsewhere on the showfloor, there was further evidence that immersive sound continues to gain ground both as concept and reality. Fairlight, for example, showcased its 3D object-orientated audio capability with the 3D Audio Workspace (3DAW), which allows users to deliver immersive sound in formats such as Auro-3D, Dolby Atmos

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TC Clarity X

Lawo A__mic8

and DTS MDA without having to replace existing 2D tools and workflows.

The Australian company also doffed its cap towards greater convergence between market segments with consoles that combine live and post capabilities. To which end, its range now features a 200-plus channel live processor for large-scale events, fly-in FX to enhance productions, and extensive customisation tools including optional lighting integration.

RELIABLE WORKHORSE Sturdy and reliable workhorses never go out of fashion in the hard-wearing world of pro-audio, and in this context Genelec introduced the latest in a long line of robust subwoofers.

Designed to complement the 8010, 8020 and M030 active monitors, the 7040A’s compact form-factor make it suitable for music creation and sound design applications, as well as audio and video production work in small rooms.

Harman’s Studer, meanwhile, put the emphasis on streamlining workflows and maximising efficiency with products including the Vista X and Vista V digital consoles, whose Infinity Core CPU-based processors provide high DSP channel counts for large-scale, high-resolution processing and mixing. Also on display was the OnAir 3000 networked radio system running the latest software offering AoIP. Another NAB stalwart, TC Electronic, sought to address an enduring problem – speech intelligibility

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Genelec 7040A

– with the new Clarity X. A multi-format monitor controller that works with any professional loudspeaker, Clarity X offers a palette of dedicated metering and calibration tools intended to help audio engineers make the right mixing decisions for an optimal balance, spectrum and increased intelligibility of their final productions.

A short while after the show concluded it emerged that TC Electronic parent TC Group is to be acquired by Uli Behringer’s MUSIC Group. This very much underlines the fact that a month is now a very short time in pro-audio.

Moreover, whilst NAB 2015 caught many vendors in apparently rude creative health, it is necessarily only a transitory snapshot of an industry where R&D and production cycles continue to accelerate.

June 2015 TVTechnology

NAB – BEST OF SHOW

NAB: Best of Show Awards During NAB 2015, TV Technology (US) chose the products, innovations and developments that it considered ‘Best of Show’. Here are the highlights of that list, including why the team of judges chose them ACCELERATED MEDIA TECHNOLOGIES Genesis TDD AN ENG Microwave System that offers bi-directional ENG microwave using TDD, as well as full time IFB, telephony, ASI and IP connectivity.

The judges said: “Patent pending, new way to transmit LTE (bi-directional data) on 2 GHz BAS channels… game changer new technology, making better use of spectrum. Can channel share.”

The judges said: “This is a very innovative concept, in that it is the world’s smallest fully functional studio camera.”

Also won for the URSA mini.

BRIDGE TECHNOLOGIES Gold TS Reference For monitoring digital services, it provides faulttracking and goes beyond testing for critical conditions as required by the ETR290 standard.

ADDER TECHNOLOGY AdderLink Infinity Manager A control suite that uses standard IP infrastructure to route any user station to any computer attached to the network and share multicast of video without diminishing video quality.

The judges said: “AdderLink Infinity Manager delivers a highly flexible and powerful digital matrix solution.”

CANON XC10 4K digital camcorder A compact, lightweight camera capable of both 4K/ full HD video and 12 Megapixel digital stills.

CHYRONHEGO VistaCam A new broadcast graphics technology offering a 180-degree in-studio video display.

The judges said: “It was specifically developed for action sports coverage sets, as it’s based on the company’ s TRACAB optical player tracking system for covering playing surfaces from multiple angles.

It also includes ChyronHego’s Lyric64 graphics creation and playout platform.”

Lauren Mouffok, Adder

AEQ CrossNET A digital intercom matrix that supports AoIP multichannel connectivity for broadcast-quality audio and is compatible with the AES67 standard.

The judges said: “A digital intercom matrix, supporting a high number (168 x 168) of ports, 128 of them via Dante. A really nice system.”

CLEAR-COM Agent-IC

AJT SYSTEMS

A mobile app that enables Eclipse-HX Matrix users to gain access from an iPhone or iPad over 3G, 4G or WiFi/IP networks, providing an intercom panel to connect studio and OB staffers.

The judges said: “This is not the first product to turn an iPad type device into an intercom panel, but it does it without a separate server.”

LiveBook GFX A portable scorebug system that features separate preview and programme windows, full animation HD templates, a stats interface, a go-to-break graphic, Clock-DVE and a customisable generic scorebug for multiple sports.

ARVATO SYSTEMS VPMS (Video Production Management System) A media asset management system designed for all aspects of digital media management in broadcasting and other industries.

Len Musmeci, Canon

InterPlay and iNEWS for easy access to scripts, rundowns with associated video assets, and archived content. It also facilitates collaboration across divisional and geographic boundaries.”

EDITSHARE

BLACKMAGIC DESIGN Blackmagic Micro Studio Camera A tiny Ultra HD camera designed for live production that includes built-in colour correction and microphones and is fully controllable from a switcher.

EditShare XStream EFS A distributed scale-out file system developed for media intensive workflows to support large-scale workgroups requiring high-bandwidth, high-volume media ingest, transcoding, online collaborative editing and multiplatform distribution.

AVID

Interplay | MAM 5 A media asset management system that allows access to content across multiple tiers of storage.

The judges said: “The platform is open, extensible and highly customisable; it integrates with Avid

TVTechnology June 2015

DECIMATOR DESIGN DMON-16S A 1-to-16 channel multiviewer with SDI and HDMI outputs for 3G/HD/SD and custom layouts.

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ELEMENTAL TECHNOLOGIES Elemental Unified Linear TV Delivery A software-defined video solution that allows broadcasters to implement linear broadcast and multiscreen OTT services within a unified head-end that supports advanced system management and end-to-end redundancy.

ENCO SYSTEMS HotShot 2 An instant audio playback package that allows users to access assets anywhere via a searchable database and supports all audio files and types.

ERICSSON Video Storage and Processing Platform This innovation integrates and virtualises the storage and processing capabilities of COTS servers into a unified, software-based cloud infrastructure.

The judges said: “Allows for seamless augmentation and replacement of legacy TV services with new cloud-based services.”

EVERTZ DreamCatcher Advanced Replay System and Production Suite An IP-based replay system with rapid editing capabilities combined with enhanced production workflow.

The judges said: “Though the DreamCatcher is two years old, it has seen tremendous advances over the past year. For instance, it can be scaled much larger to allow a team of operators to work with many channels of materials.”

Also won for the EXE28-VSR and its 7881IRD. FLORICAL SYSTEMS Acquisition and distribution platform Allows broadcasters to acquire, QC and catalogue assets with complete metadata from a centralised location and distribute air-ready media.

Mitzi Dominguez, HME/Clear-Com

This is not the first product to turn an iPad type device into an intercom panel, but it does it without a separate server GRASS VALLEY GV Convergent SDN A control system that manages facility routing, maintaining familiar control interfaces as well as introducing new GUIs for configuration, management and control for the migration from SDI to IP infrastructures.

The judges said: “Makes sure all IP signals are checked throughout a broadcast facility.”

Also won for its LDX 4K/6X HD Switchable Camera and K2 Dyno Universe Replay System.

Rakesh Patel, Evertz

INTERRA SYSTEMS Baton and Baton+ Multiplatform, automated content verification systems for file-based SD, HD and mixed workflows. Baton+ adds workflow QC capabilities and data analysis.

The judges said: “Very impressed with the depth of the products’ functionality.”

IZOTROPE RX Loudness Control Designed for audio/video postproduction and broadcast workflows to comply with global loudness standards.

The judges said: “Really easy to use - it seems to essentially be a two-button-push process - and also generates a log as a .CSV file. Offers compliance with all current global loudness standards… ideal for audio novices.”

HARMONIC FLUENDO LongoMatch A cross-platform app that allows users to perform real-time analysis on video feeds of sport games.

The judges said: “This is a software package that allows sports teams to dissect and analyze their performance using recording, tagging and drawing features. Specialised use for sports training, but sophisticated and valuable to its target customers.”

Spectrum X Advance Media Server This combines file, baseband and transport stream ingest with comprehensive integrated channel playout capabilities for production and playout applications.

The judges said: “Simple broadcast playout server based on proven technology and can be upgraded to UHD.” IMAGINE COMMUNICATIONS

FUJIFILM/FUJINON

4K Ultra HD Premiere Series Lenses The UA80X9 field lens and the UA22x8 zoom lenses will be available by August of 2015.

The judges said: “They developed a whole family of 4K lenses. That is quite an accomplishment.”

www.tvtechnologyeurope.com

LandmarkOSI 8.0 A cloud-based system that offers sales, customer relationship management, traffic, billing and data analytics to broadcasters, networks and content distributors for managing TV station inventory and increase revenue.

39

MATROX

Monarch HDX A dual-channel H.264 encoder for broadcasters and webcasters that offers 3G-SDI and HDMI inputs with frame-synchronization.

NEWTEK TalkShow VS-100 A video calling production system that enhances Skype calls’ video and audio for use by television studios and live event producers.

OOYALA

IQ A video analytics product that provides a complete view of video usage and profitability.

June 2015 TVTechnology

NAB – BEST OF SHOW SMALLHD Sidefinder EVF A fully featured HD viewfinder with a flip-out 1080p display that combines the advantages of a field monitor and an electronic viewfinder.

The judges said: “A really clever fold-out LCD monitor that is affixed to an add-on optical viewfinder. Practical and handy.”

SONY HDC-4300 A 4K/HD Live camera system that uses high magnification wide zoom range lenses while maintaining the depth-of-field needed for sports broadcasting. It also uses three 2/3-inch 4K image sensors.

The judges said: “The holy grail for broadcasters; well-executed, of course.”

TEKTRONIX WFM 8300 A waveform monitor that provides flexible options and field-installable upgrade kits to monitor diverse video types, including Quad/Dual/Single link 3G/HD/ SD SDI and Composite Analogue Video.

Muriel Moscardini and David Mascioni, Fluendo

The Holy Grail for broadcasters; well-executed, of course.

TELEMETRICS TG4M The latest in a line of TeleGlide Camera Track Systems, it comes equipped with a newly designed, streamlined trolley and track that minimises space requirements and supports straight and curved tracks. The system is also Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality ready.

PESA Blade System An encoding and decoding system for streaming video, housed in a 2RU chassis that holds up to ten cards and is controlled through PESA’s Cattrax for integrating IP-based video into baseband environments.

PHABRIX Qx A ‘complete solution’ for testing new UHDTV formats that offers video and audio support with 12G physical layer analysis to test UHD TV1 and UHD TV2 infrastructures.

QUANTEL AND SNELL

Media Biometrics An intelligent-monitoring-by-exception technology, allowing playout centers to automatically know they are sending the correct content across every channel.

The judges said: “This is an interesting system that uses a watermarking-like technology and allows users to inspect content at virtually any point in the playout/transmission chain.”

QUANTUM

Q-Cloud Archive Fully integrated into StorNext 5 for on-demand access to cloud storage with no additional hardware or software required.

www.tvtechnologyeurope.com

Thom Calabro, Fujifilm

SCHEDUALL Portal An online platform for selling transmission feeds, managing transmission sales and automatically integrating online bookings into the ScheduALL financial management system, as well as providing real-time access to inventory.

SENNHEISER AVX A wireless microphone system for video recording with a self-configuring digital transmission system that automatically finds an interference-free channel to operate on and optimises audio levels to match the sound source and camera input sensitivity.

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Scott Gentry, NewTek

June 2015 TVTechnology

NAB – BEST OF SHOW TVU NETWORKS TVU Pack TM8200 A small, lightweight mobile wireless 3G/4G/LTE uplink device with the ability to capture and transmit live HD video from on location, all in a backpack.

Wohler

VISLINK UltraCoder A 1RU half rack H.265 encoder capable of encoding 4K, HD & SD video with up to 50 percent bit rate reduction compared to H.264.Vislnik’s U.S. offices are in Billerica, Mass., and Orange, Calif.

V-NOVA Perseus An encoder that offers compression, picture quality and processing speed improvement while reducing power consumption.

The Leatherman of mixed audio analysis tools. No broadcast tech should be without one

Wes Philips and Dale Backus, SmallHD

TELESTREAM VOD Producer DAI Automates the assembly of CableLabs VOD content and provisions it for Dynamic Ad Insertion with fresh, relevant advertising for VOD assets in cable networks.

THE TELOS ALLIANCE

Linear Acoustic MT2000 A handheld, portable, diagnostic tool that can

VOLICON Observer OTT An over-the-top A/V service monitoring technology that allows broadcasters to capture content delivered over IP networks to smartphones, tablets and computers and then verify integrity of the feed.

monitor and generate Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby E and PCM bitstreams.

The judges said: “The Leatherman of muxed audio analysis tools. Compact and eminently portable, capable of analysing pretty much any embedded audio format, it supports a multiplicity of metering options and also houses a pair of speakers and headphone out.

No broadcast tech should be without one.”

WHEATSTONE IP-64 A large-format digital mixing console designed for large, multi-channel productions and fully compatible with the WheatNet-IP audio network.

Also won for the Gibraltar IP Mix Engine IP network interface.

TRIVENI DIGITAL StreamScope RM-40 A DTV transport stream monitoring system that allows operators to monitor closed-caption information for multiple TV services in order to comply with the FCC regulations that govern the broadcast of TV programmes in the US. The judges said: “A great way to troubleshoot closed caption issues.”

WOHLER TECHNOLOGIES iAM-MVAM Confidence Monitor Decodes and displays MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 signals via Ethernet IP or BNC ASI inputs while enabling users to browse PAT, PMT, EIT and NIT data tables for each selected stream. The MPEG series monitors also include dual 3G/HD/SD-SDI inputs and audio monitoring with on-screen level monitors.

CONTACTS EDITORIAL +44 (0) 20 7354 6002

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EDITORIAL

PRODUCTION

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EXECUTIVE EDITOR James McKeown jmckeown@nbmedia.com

SALES MANAGER Ben Ewles bewles@nbmedia.com

EDITOR Will Strauss wstrauss@nbmedia.com

SALES EXECUTIVE Nicola Pett npett@nbmedia.com

HEAD OF DESIGN Jat Garcha jgarcha@nbmedia.com

CONTRIBUTORS David Fox, Adrian Pennington, Barrie Smith, Ann-Marie Corvin, David Davies.

U.S. MIDWEST, NEW ENGLAND & CANADA Vytas Urbonas vurbonas@nbmedia.com

EDITORIAL PRODUCTION MANAGER Dawn Boultwood dboultwood@nbmedia.com

NEWBAY MEDIA LLC CORPORATE

U.S. WEST Pete Sembler psembler@nbmedia.com

PRODUCTION EXECUTIVE Jason Dowie jdowie@nbmedia.com

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Paul Mastronardi

U.S. SOUTHEAST AND MID-ATLANTIC, US CLASSIFIEDS & PRODUCT SHOWCASE Michele Inderrieden minderrieden@nbmedia.com

PRESIDENT AND CEO Steve Palm

CONTROLLER Jack Liedke GROUP CIRCULATION DIRECTOR Denise Robbins

HONG KONG, CHINA, ASIA/PACIFIC Wengong Wang wwg@imaschina.com

VICE PRESIDENT OF WEB DEVELOPMENT Joe Ferrick

ITALY Raffaella Calabrese rcalabrese@broadcast.it

PUBLISHER Steve Connolly sconnolly@nbmedia.com

LATIN AMERICA Susana Saibene susana.saibene@gmail.com

TVTechnology June 2015

PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Davis White

42

TV Technology Europe ISSN 2053-6674 (Print) ISSN 2053-6682 (Online) is published four times annually

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