When computers began replicating and replacing expensive electro-mechanical broadcast TV production and playback systems, the gravy train ended for some and started for others. Affordable digital TV production gear has slashed the ante for producers and is making mountains of television content with high technical integrity available for everyone.
The European Commission has launched a public debate on geo-blocking as part of its plans for establishing a Digital Single Market (DSM) but has excluded copyright-protected audio-visual content. This reflects growing confusion and debate within the EU over whether to include premium copyrighted content, especially live sports, within any potential directive over geoblocking that would be binding on member states.
The broadcast environment is evolving rapidly, driving broadcasters to look for innovative technologies that optimise the delivery of video content. Broadcasters today are handling an increasing number of feeds being delivered to a plethora of viewing devices. In addition, video content needs to be prepared in multiple formats to take into account regional preferences such as language or local advertising restrictions. To overcome these challenges, broadcasters require a playout strategy that is much more efficient and affordable than the traditional satellite- and fibre-based models.
Frontline uses innovative new satellite antenna to enable dual-band capability on the ViaSat network, allowing safe switching from Ka-band to Ku-band from inside the satellite vehicle.
Let’s face it, there are only a small handful of points in time where our entire industry shifts and pivots in fundamental ways that change it forever. I believe we are at the precipice of one of those rare industry-defining moments. An example of a similar moment in the past was the advent of file-based workflows. There were many people at the time who thought moving away from tape-based workflows was a mistake. Today, tape doesn’t exist at all.
Software was the big winner across the board at the recent IBC 2015 in Amsterdam. This was especially true for video encoding, highlighted by the two major acquisitions of Elemental Technologies by Amazon Web Services and Envivio by Ericsson within the space of a week.
Anyone who wandered through IBC hall 7 this year might be led to believe that everyone is peddling the same wares. As vendors we all have a sign somewhere on our stand saying we specialize in IP solutions for broadcasters. While Video-over-IP is a big buzzword in our industry, it’s important to realize that Video-over-IP has different meanings depending on whom you are talking to.
The UHD Forum spelt out its roadmap at the recent IBC 2015 broadcasting convention in Amsterdam and indicated how it will work with its sister body the UHD Alliance to shape the future of immersive television. There was an indication that the two groups would eventually converge into one after pursuing their parallel agendas separately for the time being. But there was also a whiff of tension even among UHD Forum members with some clear disagreements over the exact form of emerging profiles for UHD.
