In Broadcast - April 2018 - 52

52

www.inbroadcast.com | Vol: 8 - Issue 4 | April 2018

InForm

Is There A Clear Path To An Ideal
IP Broadcast Environment?
By Alberto Cieri, Senior Director of Sales & Marketing,
Matrox Video Products Group...

T

here is no denying that
broadcasters worldwide have a
cost-driven desire to move from SDI to
IP. Broadcasters envision an IP video
infrastructure built - as an IT data
centre - on generic COTS hardware,
allowing for a smaller footprint where
systems can be repurposed.
Based on this desire, there is also a
hope that these systems will be able
to take advantage of the same NICs
used in general-purpose networking.
However, live uncompressed video
is not standard network traffic and
this is why Matrox believes in the
need for video-aware COTS SMPTE ST
2110 network cards for IP broadcast
workflows.
This belief has been met with
scepticism within the broadcast
community. Many have attempted to

prove that CPU-driven NICs offer a
stable solution for broadcast
video. These deployments fail
to live up to the expectations
of real broadcast demands. In HD
workflows, using a general-purpose
NIC forces the use of expensive
systems while compromising
I/O density, 24/7 reliability and
interoperability. As 4K becomes
a reality throughout broadcast
workflows, video-aware COTS ST 2110
network cards are mandatory to build
an IP video infrastructure.
SDI connectivity has built up
expectations such as deterministic
operations and interoperability. In
order to achieve the benefits of an IP
infrastructure, broadcasters must at
least be able to attain the same level
of performance provided by SDI.

Matrox's X.mio5

Because of this prerequisite, a videoaware COTS ST 2110 network card is
needed to complete the vision of an
IP environment. This card must not
only take video, audio and ANC data
and turn it into appropriate IP packets,
but also manage critical functions such
as transmission, hitless protection

IMT Vislink Is Featured
Presenter At NAB Show
x

G Technology's IMT Vislink business
has been selected to present at the
Broadcast Engineering and Information
Technology Conference (BEITC) at NAB.
The session, Bringing Studio Workflows
to the Field: Leveraging Licensed
Broadcast Spectrum Assets, will take
place on April 10 from 11 to 11:20am in
the North Hall Meeting Room (N255).
"While the Internet, IP technology
and bonded cellular networks have
radically and positively changed the
way ENG is performed, too often
broadcasters are connecting field
and studio via unsecured, at-will
broadband infrastructures they do not
have control over," said John Payne
IV, President of IMT USA. "In our
presentation, we will be discussing
the shift in video technology toward
acceptance, and now the adoption, of
IP-based links into ENG workflows. We
will also address the importance of
preserving the security of the licensed
BAS 2GHz frequency band while
maximising its efficiency."

Fig. 1: Vislink newsnet diagram

Payne said: "Our newsnet (see Fig.
1) solution is one of the exciting
approaches to meeting this challenge.
newsnet can help deliver higher
production values, lower operational
costs, workflow efficiency through
doing more with less, and channel
resiliency provided by using BASlicensed spectrum and the dynamic
allocation of bandwidth to the most
important transmissions. We have

started to implement newsnet within
select, prominent broadcast stations,
with very encouraging results."
Lowell Beckner, newsnet Product
Manager at IMT Vislink, said: "newsnet
was designed for broadcasters seeking
to maximise coverage while fully
leveraging studio assets to deliver
a more immersive experience for
their viewers. It takes advantage of
newsroom automation systems by

(SMPTE ST 2022-7), PTP management,
and instant registration and discovery.
The good news is that there are
solutions available in the market
today. Matrox's X.mio5 Q25 ST 2110
network card allows broadcasters to
achieve the reliability, quality and
interoperability that they need and
expect. With its 25GbE design, the
X.mio5 Q25 allows for today's HD
IP infrastructures to be built with
an easy path to multi-channel
4K workflows using the same
card.
The days of confusion
regarding how to move the
industry from SDI to IP are
ending and we are finally seeing
a clearer path towards the ideal IP
broadcast environment. The work of
the AIMS Alliance and SMPTE towards
establishing ST 2110 as the backbone
for IP has helped pave the way towards
real-world adoption. As large-scale
deployments begin and 4K becomes
widely adopted, Matrox's original
vision-of using video-aware COTS ST
2110 network cards in IP workflows - is
proving to be the best way forward.

tying a live shot into the rundown and
letting it dictate the priorities, enabling
high-speed file transfers and access to
the servers, intercom, prompters and
other features."
newsnet incorporates a high-speed
and reliable bi-directional IP network
that utilises the exclusive and highly
coveted 2GHz BAS-licensed spectrum,
thereby increasing the number of live
ENG transmissions and workflows that
can be performed from the field. The
newsnet system consists of one or
more mobile high-speed IP network
nodes that easily connects with a base
station, typically located at existing
ENG receive sites. Each mobile node
not only offers high-quality video
transmission capability, but also a
private and reliable ingress point
for other IP-centric edge devices -
allowing users to control their own
private high-speed IP licensed wireless
network and ensuring that their
content newsgathering workflows and
intellectual property are never at risk.
IMT Vislink will showcase a variety of
wireless camera transmitters, including the MicroLite 2 HD ultra-compact,
ultra-low latency wireless video transmitter, and the HCAM HEVC 4K UHD
Wireless Camera Transmitter.
http://www.inbroadcast.com http://www.matrox.com/video/en/home/ https://imt-solutions.com/
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of In Broadcast - April 2018
