What to know:

• Harvard's athletics department delivers over 325 live NCAA Division I sports productions and 500 edited videos a year.
• To ensure the highest quality storytelling and viewing experiences across traditional and social media platforms, Harvard's senior associate director of athletics for content and strategic communications, Imry Halevi, leveraged AJA gear for hybrid remote production needs spanning video capture, streaming, recording, and signal conversion. 
• The Harvard student crew produces most of the broadcasts, streams, and scoreboard media remotely for distribution to more channels using two centralized on-campus control rooms that power a distributed NDI workflow.

How AJA Gear Helps Transform Harvard Athletics' Storytelling

Collegiate sports production is advancing rapidly. Harvard's Ivy League athletics department delivers over 325 live NCAA Division I sports productions and 500 edited videos a year. To ensure reliable video capture, streaming, recording, and signal conversion, Harvard's senior associate director of athletics for content and strategic communications, Imry Halevi banks on AJA gear.

[Broadcast AV Takes Center Stage]

He not only leverages it to broadcast and stream games to fans, but also to create media that spotlights the personalities behind them, like the sailing team skipper working on vaccine lab research. “Creating compelling stories for audiences to watch across platforms while also preserving Harvard athletics’ rich history is our mission, which means we’re never standing still," he added. "When it comes to our workflow, people depend on us to do our job well, and we depend on equipment to get the job done, so the flexibility and reliability our AJA gear provide are paramount.”

Harvard athletics’ production pipeline has evolved significantly since Halevi joined the university 14 years ago. Back then, the crew traveled to each venue to produce the games, and scoreboard content was more limited. Today, Halevi and crew produce most of the broadcasts, streams, and scoreboard media remotely for distribution to more channels using two centralized on-campus control rooms that power a distributed NDI workflow.

“We’re creating long-form content for YouTube and ESPN+, and short-form videos for Instagram, Facebook and TikTok,” explained Halevi. “Our team is experimenting a lot with 9:16 and reshaping our scoreboard media based on fan input.”

With its remote infrastructure in place, the crew can easily produce four shows simultaneously. Halevi can manage a basketball game for ESPN and an in-arena video board show, while also facilitating soccer and field hockey productions. If his crew needs to produce more than four events, he can tap portable fly packs. For off-campus events, like rowing in New Jersey, skiing in Vermont, and sailing on the Charles River, Halevi sends the main feeds to the campus control rooms for production, with camera operators often the only ones to travel.

The NDI pipeline Halevi built enables the team to deliver high-quality 720p 59.94 streams and leverage their existing network without having to add more capacity. But even with NDI devices at the edge, SDI and fiber remain part of the workflow. To get NDI signals to SDI monitors and convert fiber to SDI, the crew uses AJA BRIDGE NDI 3G and FiDO Mini-Converters.

“If I’m producing a game and I have an SDI source I need to distribute via NDI, I just send it to the BRIDGE NDI 3G. The fact that I can preview everything in the UI with 16 windows has been helpful for our workflow,” he explained. “We also have a ton of AJA FiDO fiber converters in a rack, which are convenient for converting fiber to SDI on copper for use on our switchers.”

AJA U-TAP also supports remote production needs, enabling commentators to work from home on Zoom, which is useful for sports like rowing, where races start early in the morning. Halevi’s team just sets them up with Zoom on a computer and a U-TAP, so they can see and hear the production and know what they're calling. The device also supports social streaming needs, allowing them to get their produced live game stream to TikTok Studio software on Windows.

Twenty-six AJA HELO Plus devices power H.264 streaming and recording. Running all the time, they deliver one game feed to Harvard athletics’ international streaming site and another to its real-time clipping and tagging solution for the creation of social media highlight clips.

“Our HELOs run constantly without issue, and the audio meters in the interface and on the physical device are huge. Plus, we can easily monitor, start, and pause recording and streaming remotely from the UI, which is helpful for remote production,” he explained. “We also love the layout feature, which lets us view a recording of different in-venue video displays at the same time, so we can see an SDI stream on the center hung and an HDMI stream of the ribbon board, then use the feature to make them look nice and work well with each other. The HELO Plus essentially becomes a small but powerful switcher; it’s been a lifesaver."

Innovation remains a continued focus for Halevi, as he strives to make the department’s storytelling even more engaging for audiences while using his resources more wisely. “We’re continuously looking at how we can uplevel our content to shine the light on what makes Harvard so special, and leveraging reliable tools from manufacturers like AJA frees up more of our time to do that by reducing troubleshooting and headaches,” he concluded.

Chyron brings its cloud-based production platform to grassroots pickleball event in Kalamazoo, enabling multi-camera coverage, custom graphics, and remote commentary.

Friendly Pickle, a pickleball club in Kalamazoo, MI, recently produced a full live broadcast of its pickleball tournament with the help the cloud-native Chyron LIVE platform. The production featured a six-camera setup, a custom graphics package built in Chyron PRIME, and remote commentary, demonstrating Chyron LIVE’s ability to deliver broadcast-quality coverage for organizations well outside the traditional sports media landscape.

[Broadcast AV Takes Center Stage]

Daniel Higgins, project lead, Chyron, worked closely with Friendly Pickle general manager Kristy Visser and owner Ben Ipema to explore the potential for Chyron LIVE to deliver professional coverage of the event. After seeing Chyron LIVE in action, Ipema agreed to host a full live-streamed production during one of the club’s upcoming tournaments.

“We pride ourselves on giving our members a top-notch club experience, so when the Chyron team met with us about bringing professional-level broadcast production to one of our tournaments, it was an easy yes,” said Ben Ipema, owner of Friendly Pickle. “Our players and their families got to see themselves on a stream that looked and felt like something out of a major tournament, right here in Kalamazoo.”

On March 21, the team produced a full day of live coverage for Mini MLP March Madness, a team tournament played across two skill divisions. The broadcast was built around six camera inputs: three BirdDog PTZ cameras and two Panasonic camcorders, covering the main game view, close-up rally action, and a wide venue shot, all switched live via Chyron LIVE. A custom Chyron PRIME graphics package built specifically for the event included a pickleball scorebug, a breakboard for series scoring, lower thirds, and team-versus-team intro graphics, all controlled through a Master Control Panel configured with saved messaging for instant recall throughout the day-long event. The broadcast streamed live to YouTube in 1080p and incorporated remote commentary, adding a layer of production value typically reserved for much larger events.

“Chyron LIVE was built to bring broadcast-grade production within reach of any organization, no matter the size,” concluded Higgins. “We deployed a full multi-camera workflow, real-time graphics, and remote commentary with a small team that included Friendly Pickle’s own staff stepping in as camera operators. It’s exactly the kind of project that shows what LIVE can do outside of a traditional broadcast truck.”

Working on behalf of Harris County and the NFL's Houston Texans, and alongside technical consultants WJHW, LD Systems installed a new Fulcrum Acoustic bowl audio system at NRG Stadium, or Houston Stadium as it was called for the 2026 World Cup. Up to 72,220 fans per game gathered for soccer’s most awaited tournament, where Houston Stadium hosted seven matches with nine international teams across June and early July.

[8.5 MILLION Pixels Power World Cup Fan Festival]

LD Systems integrated the venue’s original audio requirements stadium-wide in 2002 and has provided its technical maintenance and production support for every major event since. The new system is based on a large-scale deployment of weather-resistant Fulcrum loudspeakers, ensuring reliable operation whether the stadium’s roof is open or closed. All loudspeaker enclosures are now able to withstand potential exposure to environmental challenges in what has become the largest World Cup in history.

The main bowl (situated on the venue’s ‘super truss’), concourses, and support spaces utilize a total of 1,194 Fulcrum loudspeakers comprising AHC443 high-output horn-loaded arrays, CS218LWR dual 18-inch weather-resistant subwoofers, and various other models including CX1226-MT200, CX1226, CX1595, CX826-MT120, FH1566 and FH1595. The overall system weight has been reduced by 40% compared to the previous rig.

The LD Systems team, including project manager Michael Keefe and project engineer Anthony DiDonato, had six months to remove the old system and install the full, site-wide upgrade, yet bowl system tuning was completed in just six hours over a single day.

“We added eight subwoofer arrays (four per side) to enhance low-frequency performance, and the sonic results have exceeded expectation; we’ve actually had to turn them down,” said LD Systems sales engineer, Kevin Broussard. “The system now delivers clearer highs, much better vocal intelligibility, and a powerful low-end that you can physically feel, and feedback on the venue’s new sound capabilities has shifted dramatically.”

System amplification is provided by Powersoft Unica amplifiers serving the main seating bowl and concourse systems, and Crown DCI amplifiers are dedicated to clubs, back-of-house, and ancillary spaces. LD Systems has also installed a new control system and network backbone across the building. The primary mixing platform is a Yamaha Rivage PM5, and wireless audio is supported by Shure Axient wireless microphones.

The audio infrastructure is managed through a Q-SYS platform featuring Core 5200 processors operating in a redundant configuration for mission-critical system reliability, and the Core 610 processors service the suite-level audio systems.

“One of the biggest improvements during this entire upgrade was adding dedicated audio to over 260 suites," Broussard concluded. "Previously, the suites relied on spill from the bowl or delayed TV audio, which could lag by up to four seconds. Now, every suite has its own speaker system, control panel, and multiple selectable sources: bowl audio, TV audio, radio, postgame feeds, and Bluetooth.”

Based in Reno, Nevada, SoSu.TV has built a niche in serving government agencies by helping them broadcast public meetings and improve community engagement. Ensuring citizens can engage in these meetings is vital for transparency and communication between government officials and the public. With little AV expertise, SoSu.TV faced several challenges in supporting remote clients; they were often manually patching together systems and configuring solutions from various manufacturers. Collaborating with Yamaha and integrating the brand’s ADECIA system has been essential to overcoming these challenges.

Before partnering with Yamaha, SoSu.TV primarily focused on streaming and broadcasting, leaving AV systems integration to third parties. The sudden shift to virtual meetings due to the pandemic, when in-person attendance was restricted, pushed them to get more involved in AV integration. This transition was essential because poor audio quality in virtual meetings, such as open microphones and background noise, would often disrupt communication between government officials and the public. “The meetings we service are treated with a level of care and excitement similar to the Super Bowl; it’s equally as important to the government as it is to the citizens,” Mark Hatjakes, co-founder at SoSu.TV noted.

As they expanded services to rural and smaller agencies, the need for a scalable, user-friendly AV system became apparent. Many of these government agencies lacked dedicated AV teams, relying instead on IT or communications personnel with limited technical knowledge. SoSu.TV needed an audio solution that was easy to install, configure, and manage remotely, allowing them to support agencies without having to send technicians on-site for every new meeting setup.

“Working with Yamaha is unique because, despite being a massive company with vast resources, they operate like a boutique startup,” Hatjakes said. “They actively listen to end users, even touring our facilities to see installations firsthand. Their openness and responsiveness to feedback mean you get the best of both worlds: the support and resources of a large company, combined with the personalized attention of a smaller one.”

Delivered as an all-in-one audio solution for high-quality audio capture and playback, ADECIA includes 12-inch wireless gooseneck microphones that are ideal for government meeting rooms, where clear, real-time audio is essential. Wireless setup allows clerks to easily position the microphones before each meeting, and the team at SoSu.TV created custom legends in the software so users would know exactly where to place each mic. The VLX array speakers are connected via a single POE Cat5 cable, simplifying installation. The Yamaha RM-CR Processor acts as the brain of the system, integrating audio processing and control. SoSu.TV developed a custom touch panel using Yamaha’s ProVisionaire software, allowing government staff to manage key functions, like muting mics and speakers after a certain time limit. This easy-to-use interface for clerks enables them to adjust microphone and speaker levels from an iPad.

[Yamaha Is Transforming Audio System Planning and Design for AV/IT Pros]

One of the most significant advantages of the Yamaha ADECIA system is its scalability and remote management capabilities. Because the system is easy to install, SoSu.TV can ship it to agencies where IT staff can handle setup with minimal support. Once installed, SoSu.TV can manage the system remotely, troubleshoot, and provide configuration and updates without needing to send personnel on-site. This reduces service requests and frees up SoSu.TV’s team so they can run more meetings and focus on other tasks. Additionally, the ADECIA system has allowed SoSu.TV to reduce its equipment footprint, moving from large, two-rack systems to compact, half-rack configurations.

By reducing the amount of hardware required; scaling down on-site visits; and offering an easy-to-use, remotely managed system, SoSu.TV can deliver more services without a proportional increase in resources. These cost savings are passed on to government clients, making it an attractive option for smaller agencies that may not have large AV budgets.

For government meetings that offer public participation, SoSu.TV’s Nindeo platform integrates easily with web conferencing solutions, allowing citizens to engage with local government, ask questions, and make comments.

By leveraging Yamaha’s advanced audio technology, SoSu.TV is successfully enhancing broadcast quality for their government clients. Government clients have reported higher satisfaction with the quality of their broadcasts, and citizens appreciate the improved audio clarity. This partnership not only improves the technical aspects of the broadcasts but also strengthens the trust and engagement between government agencies and their communities.

We’ve been living in the era of streaming for quite some time on the consumer side. And now it’s forging ahead in a big way in the commercial world, leading to a crossover between broadcast and Pro AV. What factors are at play boosting this trend?

[Viewpoint: Welcome to the AV Renaissance]

Part of it is the pandemic. It was difficult to interact with audiences in person during that time, so streaming content was a crucial solution. In fact, revenue for content production and streaming, in addition to conferencing and collaboration, never declined during the pandemic.

Quality or Quantity?

As an event producer ourselves, AVIXA had to implement streaming capabilities for InfoComm 2021, since many people couldn’t attend in person. AVIXA’s in-house content delivery team, led by Sam Minish, vice president of content delivery, put together a livestream content program and worked with a vendor to deliver a remote experience.

As the world started opening up more in 2022 and people were attending events in person, Sam’s team realized we needed to approach streaming differently. Our livestream was about making sure we were providing an experience that was reaching those who, perhaps through budget reasons or being newer to the industry, couldn’t attend the physical show. We focused on delivering content at the show that would resonate with that audience. The team also learned that ramping up the quality while dialing down the quantity was very effective for us.

During the pandemic, there was some tolerance for mediocre quality streaming. As long as you were delivering your message, then that was good enough. Now, with the advancements of streaming technology, there’s an expectation for better quality. When you have YouTubers producing top quality video content, people expect that out of workplace professionals.

[The Integration Guide to Streaming]

Adding to that, we’ve had a generation with video in their DNA filling the workforce for a while now that expects to be visually engaged. There’s also the aspect of real estate—with some companies not needing such a large footprint for employee office space due to hybrid and remote work, they’re opting to transition the space and add production capabilities to reach their audiences.

Forecast: More Content

According to AVIXA’s 2023 Industry Outlook and Trends Analysis (IOTA), content production and streaming revenue is forecast to grow from $39 billion in 2023 to $51.3 billion in 2028. In addition, our research of end user decision makers shows AV production rooms for broadcast among the top five spaces in which they are planning to make AV investments.

[SCN 1-on-1: AVIXA Industry Insights from InfoComm 2023]

What are the tools and skills needed to deliver these solutions to customers? The technologies powering content production and streaming are a convergence in AV, IT, and broadcast.

For decades, we’ve been talking about AV and IT blending together as more AV technologies are connected to the network. Media servers and storage act as the management and distribution engines, accounting for more than half of the total solution revenue in 2023, or nearly $19 billion. Capture technologies are next, in the form of cameras and other video production equipment, representing another $10 billion.

Integrators provide some value-added services such as installation and design. That skillset part is an important piece of the puzzle.

Crossover Considerations

Historically, AV and broadcast have interweaved through time. Many people started in broadcast and crossed over to AV or went back and forth. AV and broadcast professionals share skills in audio and video systems implementation, live events production, pre and post-production, filming/recording, and staging/rigging. AV differentiates through skills relating to effective integration of tech into space, while IT increasingly overlaps with both AV and broadcast as technology joins the network.

AVIXA is closely watching this trend of broadcast and AV convergence, and facilitating ways for AV professionals to learn more and make connections to deliver high-level solutions to the market. In June, AVIXA and IABM hosted the first UpStream conference in London to dive into this topic. We brought together broadcast technology suppliers, AV/IT solution providers, and enterprise buyers. The event featured discussions on virtual production, the pros and cons of different streaming platforms, NDI, and much more.

Virtual production was also top of mind at InfoComm 2023 in Orlando with The Unreal Ride, presented by Vū, Unilumin, and MRMC. Attendees experienced a blend of the physical and virtual worlds through a combination of virtual production technology, including advanced LED panels, a motion-controlled camera, camera tracking, and virtual environments.

What’s in store next? ISE 2024 will host the Content Production, & Distribution Summit on Jan. 31 in Barcelona, so mark your calendar. Also be sure to check out the Content Production and Streaming channel on AVIXA Xchange for news and discussions on the topic.

Every so often a project comes along that not only allows a company to technically innovate and push boundaries but also work with a highly respected educational institution in one’s own backyard. The project, for the University of Connecticut’s (UConn) Athletic District, was honored by the Associated General Contractors of CT (AGC) 2022 Build Connecticut award for the large new construction category.  

Connecticut-based Metinteractive, which provides strategic solutions for architecture, communication, and technology, furnished AV and broadcast integration to UConn Athletic District Development (ADD). The ADD program solved the challenge of improving the outdoor sports venues while consolidating efforts onto a single campus high above Gampel Pavilion at UConn’s Storrs Campus in Mansfield.

“Metinteractive is committed to supporting our home teams,” said Jeff Mele, Metinteractive’s CEO. “Over the years my father and other family members have been big UConn fans so, for me, that very personal legacy made me want more than ever to deliver the best product we possibly could for ADD at UConn. We have a history of working successfully with the university, including on the award-winning Student Recreation Center. It makes us feel good to support UConn over and above our obligations.”

The project also dovetailed nicely with Metinteractive’s expertise in sports nationwide, he points out. “Metinteractive has a significant foothold in the college sports market across the country as well as with Major League stadiums and minor league arenas and stadiums. Thanks to our work with leading teams, particularly MLB scoring and stats, we can produce a workflow for these projects that most integrators are not be able to achieve.”

Under the partnership of contractors Daniel O’Connell’s Sons and McPhee Electric, UConn’s ADD improvements replaced outdated facilities with new stadiums for men and women’s Division I soccer, lacrosse, baseball and softball plus track and field. A new Performance Center, contiguous to the soccer stadium, was also added with a state-of-the-art broadcast control room, locker rooms, offices, training space, strength and conditioning equipment, conference rooms and support space.

The Broadcast Control Room

“Our challenges for this project were twofold: improving the in-venue fan experience and adding a broadcast control room for linear TV and streaming,” noted David Kaplan, assistant athletic director of Video & Production Services at UConn. “Metinteractive brought to the job experience and expertise in building out production rooms and venues and demonstrated a willingness to work with us across our specific needs.”

The Performance Center’s broadcast control room is believed to be unique in college athletics allowing UConn to simultaneously produce multiple shows. “Everything we talked about from design to inception came to fruition in the broadcast control room,” said Kaplan. “It works flawlessly.”

“Creating a user-friendly environment for a control room that technically complex was a challenge,” Mele said. “Workflow is rarely translated through construction documents and drawings; in fact, it’s often overlooked in putting projects together. But David understands how to build a quality experience and was instrumental in how we developed the workflow for this project; we pushed to make the changes necessary to satisfy the control room’s workflow needs.” The project’s AV consultant Jaffe Holden Acoustics, worked very closely with the integration team to marry the workflow needs of the owner into the project.

Enhancing the Fan Experience

Metinteractive’s project manager Kyle Passaro explained, “all the outdoor sports venues’ AV signals—the cameras, the live sound components in the stadia—and communications now connect via fiber to the control room where two events can be broadcast simultaneously. ESPN can pull in and use the control room for tournaments while local TV takes advantage of its capabilities and UConn streams events.”

The broadcast control room’s extraordinary capabilities even exceed expectations. UConn “actually produced two in-stadium events and two streams out of the control room at one time,” Kaplan added.

Even more expansive service will be available when field hockey, basketball from the Harry A. Gampel Pavilion, and ice hockey from a new arena tie into the broadcast control room extending coverage to those sports.

Metinteractive also filled AV needs throughout the 54,000-square-foot Performance Center, including video monitors and playback systems—with outdoor-rated TVs in the hydrotherapy room—and ceiling- and wall-mounted audio speakers for each room.

In the baseball and softball fields Metinteractive installed batter analysis systems in which multiple software-enabled cameras, mounted in specific locations, analyze the swings of players coming up to bat.

The new stadia feature custom-mounted EAW outdoor speaker systems for what Kaplan called “spectacular sound.” Most of the speakers are positioned on poles with some on the exterior of the Performance Center, which is contiguous to the soccer pitch.

In addition, “thanks to our work with Major League Baseball we were able to offer the venues a level of graphics automation, for scoring and stats, typically found only in Major League stadia,” Mele said.

Metinteractive also developed a custom camera trolley system for the stadia to enable broadcasters to capture dynamic camera shots that could not otherwise be achieved due to the physical constraints of space, windows, and walls.

Continuing the Mission

Although the first phase of the UConn project has been completed, more remains to be done. “We’re very excited about working with Metinteractive on our new hockey arena due to open later this year,” noted Kaplan. “Metinteractive will handle all its camera and audio needs and tie the facility into the broadcast control room.

“The Metinteractive team has shown a real affinity for UConn,” he added. “I can’t speak highly enough about the work they’ve done for us.”

Greg Downing served as Metinteractive’s engineer on the project and Jesse LaBranche was the lead technician.

All Mobile Video (AMV), one of the top providers of end-to-end audio/video and international distribution solutions, again managed the pool feed for New Year's Eve in Times Square, capturing audio and video of the crowd, its various stages, and the ball drop itself for the major broadcasters. The company worked closely with production directors from multiple networks, such as ABC and Univision, to capture key events, including Journey's performance for Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve. When AMV built out its new all IP, Dante enabled Eclipse truck this past year, the company relied on intercom solutions from Studio Technologies, manufacturer of high-quality audio, video and fiber-optic solutions.

[Studio Technologies Issues New Dante Intercom Kits]

AMV incorporated Studio Technologies Dante compatible beltpacks into its new Eclipse truck, including 25 Model 374A four-channel intercom beltpacks and eight Model 348 intercom stations. Both units allow users to establish reliable, flexible intercom connections with excellent audio quality in a wide range of production and live event applications. According to engineer-In-charge Ian Vysick, building a new IP-based truck meant AMV had to reinvent its entire workflow for the New Year's Eve production, as all the equipment had to function with Audio-over-Ethernet connections established across Times Square.

[Studio Technologies Issues New Dante-enabled Leader Clocks]

Vysick and the AMV team used the Eclipse truck as the basis for the production and then expanded on the intercom system to accommodate the scope and needs of the New Year's event. The enhanced comms system was based on an RTS ODIN digital intercom matrix with six Studio Technologies Model 362 Listen-Only beltpacks, an additional 18 Model 374A beltpacks, as well as the eight Model 348 Intercom Stations from the Eclipse truck. Each Studio Technologies beltpack was assigned to a specific location, with local interface boxes housing the wiring required for each of the three stages.

"A lot of planning goes into this type of event including how many different elements are going to be deployed at each location and how we'll manage them," said Vysick "We knew, based on our knowledge and experience in doing the New Year's event for many years, how many people would need intercoms. Since we already had Studio Technologies products in our new truck, it made sense to expand the system we already had in place and scale it for New Year's. The beauty of Studio Technologies' beltpacks is they're so easy to use. The beltpacks sounded great the entire night."

With Studio Technologies, the team could very quickly map out exactly where everyone was located and what channels were needed. Another major factor in gear selection for New Year's is reliability, as there are no second takes. According to Vysick, AMV had "absolutely no issues" with any of the Studio Technologies products.

Companies, educational institutions, and live event organizers around the world raced to revamp their content creation strategies during the pandemic and virtualize a range of activities from internal training and communications to delivering dynamic content to remote audiences. Close to the trend, live production company Broadcast Management Group (BMG) saw a sharp rise in customers looking to create in-house production studios, whether for internal distribution or for sharing live and on-demand content via a public website or social media streaming platform. Although BMG's client applications run the gamut from entertainment and sports productions to finance, hotels, fitness and beyond, AJA technology is part of nearly every design, including the company's latest install for multinational investment bank and services company UBS.

 [AJA Updates Mini-Converter Line With Free Mini-Config v2.26.3]

"We recommend technology that we know will be a stalwart in the field, which is part of why I love AJA gear so much; it's earned a reputation for being some of the most solid tech in broadcasting," said BMG SVP of Engineering and UBS project lead Megan Kirst. "Whenever possible, I like to use AJA routers, audio embedders/disembedders and Mini-Converters because I know they'll perform well for our customers. Having an embedder fail in the middle of a live production just isn't an option for our clients, and with AJA, that's never a worry, plus, AJA support is quick and stellar in the rare chance a client experiences any issues."

[ AJA Introduces New Gateway Appliance for NDI/SDI Conversion]

UBS approached BMG to envision a complete studio that would allow it to produce and deliver live content to team members located across the globe. Although a large majority of content is currently training-based, BMG designed the workflow to be flexible and support content delivery outside the organization should the need arise in the future.

The studio design includes four cameras, with feeds running through an AJA KUMO 6464 3G-SDI router and into decoders, then back through KUMO and into a video conferencing solution. Thirty AJA openGear OG-3G-AMAs and three AJA OG-X-FR openGear 2RU rackframes are also integrated, enabling audio embedding/disembedding as needed in the workflow. AJA Hi5 and HA5 Mini-Converters support conversion between HD-SDI and HDMI within the studio.

BMG is a leader in designing, building, and operating facilities around centralized technology and decentralized production teams. The UBS setup is designed to support remote production (REMI), so that the UBS team can control it from anywhere in the world. Typically, presenters use the studio to live stream presentations on currency, market trends, charts, and more. All the content is distributed to employees through UBS' internal IP network as a live H.265 stream and made available for on-demand viewing post-stream.

 [AJA Unveils Io X3 Thunderbolt 3 Video I/O Device]

In developing the installation parameters, BMG surveyed UBS on its goals and existing equipment arsenal, and then determined the timeline and urgency. Once all the details were fleshed out, Kirst and team built out an equipment list based on the budget. After receiving the greenlight from UBS to move ahead, the design phase kicked off, followed by the pre-build. BMG began the install as soon as the equipment arrived on site and then began training.

 [AJA Adds T-TAP Support for Autodesk Flame Family]

As technology continues to progress, Kirst expects projects to grow increasingly complex, with AJA gear remaining key for successful implementations. "Emerging technologies and trends like IP and AR/VR are moving so fast and introduce new challenges and opportunities for our team," Kirst said. "We're thankful that amidst all the unknowns that come with navigating new workflows, we can always count on our AJA gear to remain a steady workhorse for routing, conversion and audio embedding/disembedding."

In Booth C2128 at the 2022 NAB Show, Artel Video Systems will feature products that simplify broadcasters' shift to hybrid IP/SDI and all-IP operations. Visitors to the Artel booth will have the opportunity to see firsthand how new features and capabilities recently added to the company's award-winning SMART Multimedia Delivery Platform in openGear (SMART OG) bring even greater operational simplicity, flexibility, and scalability. Artel also will exhibit its DigiLink/InfinityLink SMART Multimedia Delivery Platform, Quarra IP PTP switches and FiberLink family of media transport products.

SMART openGear Platform

A software-defined, four-channel, auto-sense SD-SDI/HD-SDI/3G/4K-over-IP multifunction gateway, SMART OG is the first to bring the family of JPEG compression engines, including those specified in VSF TR-01, TR-07, and TR-08, onto the openGear platform. With SMART OG, users can deploy hardware once and easily change the gateway function via a software update. Winner of an NAB Show Product of the Year Award for 2021 in the Hardware Infrastructure category, Artel's SMART OG offers exceptional flexibility in a popular frame. The SMART OG is initially configured for a specific function, but it may be adapted thereafter for a growing array of functions, such as reformatting or encoding per JPEG2000, JPEG-XS, SMPTE ST 2110, SMPTE ST 2022-1/2/5/6/7, H.265, IEEE 1588, or other functions yet to be specified. The gateway provides four BNCs for SDI or ASI input/output and two 10GbE SFPs for trunking and aggregation.

[Artel’s FiberLink Ensures Reliable Audio and Data Transport for General Dynamics Electric Boat Shipyard]

SMART Multimedia Delivery Platform for DigiLink and InfinityLink

Artel's SMART Media Delivery Platform is a software-defined, four-channel, auto-sense 3G/HD/SD-SDI-over-IP multifunction gateway with integrated nonblocking Layer 2/3 switching and routing capabilities. The software-enabled solution features four video ports for transport of video, audio, and ancillary data and four GigE data ports bridged to one or two 10G interfaces. Designed to attach seamlessly to the IP network without the need for external network elements, the SMART platform supports SMPTE ST 2022-1, 2, 5, 6, and 7 (hitless switching); J2K compression; QoS; VLAN tagging; and traffic management.

Throughout the show, Artel will offer live demos highlighting the SMART (DigiLink/InfinityLink and openGear) platform's JPEG-XS support and flexibility. Attendees will see how different software images can be selected to enable different functionality on the installed hardware system as needed. One SMART implementation will be shown running J2K compressed video and another (the SMART OG) running JPEG-XS compressed video to allow the two video streams to be compared.

[Artel’s New Award-Winning SMART OG Brings Software-Defined Functionality to openGear Platform]

Quarra PTP Ethernet Switches--Now Even Quieter

Designed for audio/video broadcast, live performance environments such as opera houses, defense and security, finance, utilities, telecom, and enterprise IT applications in which accurate timing and control are required, Artel's Quarra family of PTP-aware managed IP switches offers the industry's most accurate IEEE 1588-compliant timing and synchronization. Quarra switches have been modified to support live performance environments. Quarra now features quieter fans as well as new software-based controls that vary fan speed based on temperature for less overall noise. The switches support SMPTE ST 2110 and ST 2059-2, permitting interoperable use of IP-based media equipment with conventional genlocked SDI equipment. The switches are RAVENNA AES67-approved and Dante- and QSC-tested.

[FiberLink Shines in Education Applications]

FiberLink Family of Media Transport Products

Supporting nearly every type of video, audio, and data signal, including the FiberLink ST 2110 gateway, Artel's FiberLink media transport products bring much-needed flexibility to broadcast or corporate studios, OB vans, point-of-view cameras, rental and staging, auditoriums, stadiums and theaters, transportation hubs, distance learning, and other pro A/V environments. Devices in the family boast SMPTE standards support to ensure interoperability and reliability in video, audio, and data transport. More information about the FiberLink family can be found at http://www.artel.com/media-transport-products/fiberlink.

Czech TV has put Riedel Communications' MediorNet MicroN UHD modules at the heart of a newly rebuilt OB van--the broadcaster's largest mobile unit--to replace a traditional router with a more compact, intelligent, and versatile distributed routing system. Installed by broadcast system integrator Smart Informatics in Czech TV's HD1 along with Riedel's Artist digital matrix intercom system, app-driven SmartPanel multifunctional user interfaces, and a Bolero wireless intercom system, the MicroN devices reduce space, cabling and equipment requirements both in the truck and on site as well as significantly improving the production environment.

[Riedel Bolero System Makes Sweet Music in Managing Concerts and Events at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall]

"We had already experienced the flexibility of MediorNet before we started this project as we use portable MediorNet systems for our special projects," said Michal Kratochvil, CTO of Czech TV. "One of the biggest challenges of this complex project was to finish everything within a tight deadline, with just five months of production break. For their marvelous work, we thank all parties involved."

"Thanks to the versatility of MicroN and excellent collaboration with the Riedel team, we were able to overhaul HD1's signal distribution system and introduce a host of new capabilities to the mobile unit," said Smart Infomatics managing director Tomas Vesely. "With this new distributed system design and the flexibility of Riedel's SmartPanel interfaces, Czech TV can adapt more quickly to any given production, and their production crew enjoys a much more spacious, clutter-free work area."

Along with two Riedel MicroN units deployed as stageboxes, four MicroN bases equipped with the Processing App to serve as up/down/crossconverters, and 20 MicroN UHD systems (six of which are equipped with the Multiviewer App), the updated Czech TV truck also features one Artist-1024 node; four SmartPanel RSP-1232HL, rack-mount multifunctional interfaces; 20 compact 1-RU SmartPanel RSP-1216HL interfaces; four SmartPanel DSP-2312 desktop panels, and a Bolero wireless intercom system supporting eight beltpacks. HD1 has already hit the road with its new Riedel gear, supporting production of a major horseracing event and the Czech edition of Dancing With the Stars.

[STV Embraces Riedel MicroN as Core Router in Distributed AV Network]

"We're seeing immense interest in MicroN UHD as broadcasters, production companies, integrators, and others recognize the many benefits of implementing a distributed infrastructure for video routing rather than a conventional router," said Ismet Bozkurt, senior sales executive for Eastern Europe at Riedel Communications. "Integrators can more quickly and easily deploy a comprehensive routing system, and production teams realize improvements all across day-to-day operations."

Vizrt is appointing Sam Leadsom to its leadership team as commercial director of Global Sports as the company reinvigorates its sports offerings.

"The sports market continues to lead the way for transformation in storytelling, and Vizrt supports that with its impressive and innovative range of products," Leadsom said. "I am delighted to be joining Vizrt at this exciting time for our industry and am looking forward to helping the Vizrt Group bolster its position as the market leader in broadcast technology and continue to support our customers and partners' aspirations to deliver highly creative sports content."

[With Vizrt, BBC Sport Prepares a VR Experience for Beijing 2022 Audiences]

Leadsom has a vast background in sports production with IMG Media, Fox Sports and Sail GP where he has been responsible for large sports productions in many parts of the world; the Premier League, Sail GP, Bundesliga, US Masters and Moto GP are a few examples.

He also spent several years in Asia where he focused on rebranding channels and producing a wide range of award-winning and sustainable content. While in Asia, Sam was also responsible for overseeing FoxSports' production on multiple platforms in the region and was a member of the senior team that led the 2014 rebrand of the four sports channels.

[Vizrt Production Control Debuts for Flexible Live Production]

Before his time in Asia, Sam spent over two decades working in the U.K. across various sports with IMG Media as executive producer, head of Premier League Productions. He started the Premier League's 24/7 TV channel and oversaw the day-to-day running of all editorial output. In addition, Leadsom has worked with Sky, BBC, ITV, the European Tour, UEFA and HBS as a producer and director for athletics, tennis, football, cricket, snooker and darts. 

"We are constantly innovating and want to continue to strengthen our market position in sports," said Vizrt president Daniel Nergard. "We are doing this through several investments, with the appointment of Sam Leadsom being an initiative that I am particularly excited about. Sam has extensive experience in live sports production. He intuitively thinks like a sports storyteller and will be a vital component in our strategy to develop our sports output in close collaboration with our customers."

[Vizrt Enhances Studio Solution with Vizrt XR Set]

Vizrt is expected to expand and enhance its sports solutions throughout 2022, dubbed the "year of sports," with a solid product roadmap and clear go-to-market strategy with more announcements coming soon.

The Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS) is supporting the industry's shift to more inclusive language in standards and engineering documents. The alliance welcomes efforts by standards bodies and other organizations to ensure that the language used to craft such documents is free from stereotypes, subtle discrimination, and demeaning or exclusionary expressions.

AIMS is an industry consortium dedicated to an open-standards approach that moves broadcast and media companies quickly and profitably from legacy systems to a virtualized, IP-based environment. In supporting this migration to IP, AIMS builds on the efforts of leading standards bodies to provide a clear technology roadmap that addresses the broadcast and Pro AV markets' technical and business needs.

"We stand behind the work that SMPTE, the IEEE and other leaders are doing to ensure that the standards and recommendations guiding our industry are built on inclusive language," said AIMS Chief Financial Officer Andreas Hilmer. "Words have power, and it makes a difference when we employ more conscious, respectful use of language across not just standards documents, but communications of any kind. It's a small but nevertheless significant step in the right direction."

The What: JVC Professional Video is introducing its new 4K KY-PZ400NW/NB PTZ cameras, the newest addition to its Connected Cam line of cameras. The HD versions of the PTZs, the KY-PZ200NW/NB and the more economical HD KY-PZ200W/B, will begin shipping in November. Ideal for sports, concerts, and other live event broadcasts or productions, the cameras provide new creative streaming possibilities for an ever-evolving remote media landscape. 

The What Else: With integrated NDI|HX technology from the Vizrt Group, the KY-PZ400NW/NB and KY-PZ200NW/NB cameras now offer a high-quality, low-latency IP video transmission standard that is ideal for streaming in an ever-evolving media landscape. All three camera options provide optimal image quality and performance for remote production over the internet, and are equipped with SRT technology, H.265/H.264/MJPEG encoding and VITC (Vertical Interval Timecode) multi-camera synchronization. Each model is also available in black or white to best match the ambience of the venue/project.

All three cameras also include SRT, HTTP, RTSP, RTMP/RTMPS and standard protocols. With SRT open-source technology now becoming synonymous to JVC cameras, PTZ users are afforded a truly future-proofed solution with continual firmware updates. The advanced streaming capabilities of the incorporated SRT technology adds automatic repeat request (ARQ) and forward error correction (FEC) to prevent packet loss typically found on internet connections. It also offers stream encryption for content protection

The Bottom Line: For remote conferences and lectures, the KY-PZ200N and KY-PZ200 support UVC (USB Video Class), which enables the cameras to be used as webcams. Both models can be directly connected to a PC using a USB cable (sold separately), making them ideal for a range of educational and other digital applications.

TVU Networks, a provider of cloud and IP-based live video solutions, announced a partnership with Blackbird, developer of the Blackbird cloud-native video editing and publishing platform. The agreement between the companies adds access to Blackbird’s real-time editing tools into the TVU Producer cloud-based live production platform, opening the door to simplified camera-to-cloud-to-consumer workflows complete with cloud editing.

Blackbird provides frame-accurate editing with a fully-featured professional video editor for all skill levels. The browser-based platform supports up to 12 video and 36 audio tracks with real-time video and audio transitions, alpha channel overlays, color correction, and subtitles and closed captions. Blackbird also features direct publishing to social media platforms, as well as OTT, web and other digital platforms.

TVU Producer provides live multicamera video production in the cloud with no latency. Users may transmit live to TVU Producer from any camera using TVU’s range of live video transmitters, receive live feeds from TVU Grid and TVU RPS, or use the TVU Anywhere app to receive live video from mobile devices. Other features include distinctive transitions, graphics overlays, advanced audio mixing, closed captioning, and live audience interaction.

“Partnering with TVU provides an exciting opportunity for Blackbird users,” said Blackbird CEO Ian McDonough. “The ability to access live video from TVU Producer, TVU Grid, and other areas of the TVU cloud-based platform makes it easier and faster for editors to access content from multiple sources. Immediacy is an important element in today’s broadcast environment. Working within TVU means Blackbird editors can deliver polished packages faster than ever.”

Without leaving the TVU ecosystem, sports productions have immediate access to multiple ISO recordings, which makes it faster and easier to edit timely highlight reels that can be included in the production as well as shared on social media platforms, OTT, and the web. The same efficiencies can improve live production workflows for other events as well, from political debates to concerts, as editors do not have to wait for files to be uploaded before starting projects.

“TVU continues to partner with industry leaders to provide more functionality and creative freedom for our customers,” added Greg Doggett, director of sports and entertainment and strategic partnerships, TVU Networks. “The integration of Blackbird brings essential editing tools directly into the TVU ecosystem, which can save editors valuable time while producing packages during live events.”

NBC Olympics, a division of the NBC Sports Group, has selected RTS to provide broadcast intercom systems and support for its production of the Games of the XXXII Olympiad, which take place in Tokyo, Japan, July 23–Aug. 8.

[Riedel’s Intercom Systems Provide Communications Inside NBA Bubble]

“RTS has been NBC Olympics’ broadcast intercom partner of choice for over 25 years,” said Denis Castanet, director global product management, RTS. “We’re proud to continue playing a key role in their coverage of the Tokyo Olympics. We are equally honored to have supported the NBC Olympics production team on their transition from analog to IP, which has enabled all their local and global locations to act as a single virtual location, thanks to our unique RTS Trunking solutions. The installation for NBC Olympics’ coverage of the Tokyo Olympics will be full IP, comprising over 600 ports and leveraging two singular and superior RTS technologies: OMNEO high-quality audio for local communication and RVON for international comms.”

“We’re very excited to be utilizing ODIN, RTS’s newest intercom matrix solution, in Tokyo,” said John Pastore, director broadcast communications, NBC Sports Group. “RTS continues to innovate and adapt to meet the high technical demands of large-scale productions that are required for massive events such as the Olympic Games.”

WJHI provides coverage of Red Devils live performance events via a local cable channel (cable TV digital 184), on closed-circuit television around the campus, streaming on the IHSAA Champions Network (run by the state’s high school athletics association), and streaming through the school’s radio station on 98.5 FM.

Indiana’s Jeffersonville High School is in a league of its own when it comes to broadcast production for WJHI radio and TV, rivaling collegiate-level programs offered by universities around the United States. Over the last five years the school has worked up to its elite status, constructing a production studio from the ground up, building a new football stadium with a press box and broadcast booth, and acquiring a Sprinter van for OB productions.

The goal of these extensive upgrades is to provide students access to industry-standard technology in preparation for careers in broadcast post-graduation.

Design and implementation of the new facilities was overseen by Jeffersonville High School teacher and WJHI director Tim Dench, who specified Clear-Com in the planning stages. “I wanted students to interact with gear that’s considered top-notch in the real world, and Clear-Com is ubiquitous in broadcast and was a necessity to have in the new facility,” Dench said.

Clear-Com’s Encore Analog Partyline with IFB was included in this goal from the outset. This full-duplex platform allows people (on their independent user devices) on the same channel to carry out bi-directional, conversational-style communication. The system can scale over standard mic cable or over IP interfaces. 

The current program has 75 students who produce eight to nine live productions in a typical school week, rotating in groups of up to 15 team members per broadcast. They rotate across production roles as well to maximize their learning in each position, including running cameras, directing at the front bench, running graphics or replay, even announcing on-air. Nearly all of these roles require the use of Clear-Com equipment.

“Being able to use Clear-Com equipment every day just brings us to the next level and helps us in developing a skill set that will be valuable in college and beyond,” said Lily Fondrisi, a WJHI student. “Overall, my favorite part about being on the broadcast team is that I am building experience that will lead me to more opportunities in broadcast.”

Fondrisi has worked as a sportscaster, producer and director for WJHI, and she has used Clear-Com in all her roles, communicating from the main control room to the sports desk, camera operators, replay operators, graphics, and to communicate with talent.

Tech Specs

The main control room is a skybox that overlooks the 5,000-seat gymnasium and is next to the 1,000-seat auditorium, and it can connect to the football stadium across campus, the TV studio, the radio rooms, director’s table, and sports desk via the primary intercom system.

The system consists of a Clear-Com Encore Analog System complete with a four-channel SB-704 Main Station, RS-701 single-channel and RS-702 two-channel beltpacks, CC-300 headsets, and IF4W4 4-wire partyline interface with TR-50 IFB talent receivers and TS-1 talent earphones.

The SB-704 main station is rack-mounted and mobile, so it can be transported to the football stadium press box and broadcast booth or to the OB van for analog partyline communication as needed.

Pandemic Impact

When COVID restrictions around the nation threatened the return of in-person school and spectator sports, the WJHI program barely skipped a beat. Social distancing, frequent cleaning of equipment, and smart scheduling of students have helped keep WJHI moving during the pandemic.

“High school sports are a staple in Indiana and a pillar of our local community,” explained Tim Dench, “The Red Devils WJHI Radio and TV team has been the eyes and ears of every sporting event since July 2020, despite attendees being unable to support our athletics in-person.”

The training and experience garnered in the broadcast program at Jeffersonville High has already churned out an impressive list of alumni—students have found great success in sports broadcasting careers after being on staff at WJHI, some have even gone on to win national awards and regional Emmys.

“We don’t do ‘video’—we do television. That’s what helps us stand out. We do it right, we do it live, and that’s why the intercom is so, so critical,” concluded Dench.

Despite the immense progress that’s already been made, the partyline system is only phase one of Dench’s overall plan for comms—he is already working on the engineering to incorporate Clear-Com IP-based solutions in the near future for phase two.

Recent Clear-Com Installations

State Theatre New Jersey Upgrades to Clear-Com Digital Intercom Systems • To make sure each production team has an intercom system that is reliable and flexible, the theater recently upgraded to a Clear-Com HelixNet Digital Network Partyline Intercom System and a FreeSpeak II Digital Wireless Intercom System.

Clear-Com Solution Aids Work-from-Home Productions • Clear-Com’s Agent-IC mobile app is helping productions around the world operate from the homes of staff and on-screen talent due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Black News Channel Mobilizes with IP-Based Communications System • A flexible, IP-based comms system from Clear-Com at Black News Channel is designed to meet the comms challenges of today and tomorrow.

The What: TSL Products is updating its TallyMan Advanced Broadcast Control System, offering virtualized functionality to streamline and ease the pressures of live production. The latest additions to the system include the release of TSL’s new Redundancy Package, which adds protection from unforeseen events with auto-failover during operation and manual failover for system maintenance. The latest software also introduces users to virtual re-entries, allowing the customer to extend the investment of their routers.

[The Integration Guide to Streaming]

The What Else: The system update aligns with standard redundancy best practice, providing primary and backup TallyMan controllers, and offers synchronization across configurations with live updates across the primary and backup system controllers. A highlight is TSL’s virtual IP address capability, which creates a single point of communication for all TallyMan system and third-party devices. This approach drastically simplifies device management in case of auto-failover. The TallyMan Redundancy Panel (TMRP) provides real-time status indication and allows redundancy control tasks to be managed locally or remotely.

Virtual re-entries, which is available as part of TSL’s latest free software update for existing customers, allow broadcasters to change source definitions on the fly, share resources, delegate management and re-assign joystick control. The virtual re-entries feature is particularly beneficial for sports and OB productions as it streamlines the operation of switching signal routes during fast paced, high-stress productions.

The Bottom Line: The new redundancy package provides TallyMan customers with an additional layer of protection from unforeseen events. With a simple-to-operate control panel, this system update provides a seamless experience for broadcasters seeking reliable and consistent system operations as well as uninterrupted performance during times of maintenance.

It is estimated there were nearly half a billion viewers following on live-streaming platforms in 2020—up 11.7 percent from the previous year. While the pandemic might have piqued the overall awareness, interest in Esports has been on the rise for several years.

Pioneering  Esports on a collegiate level is the National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE)—the largest member association of varsity Esports programs at colleges and universities in the U.S. The organization comprises more than 5,000 student-athletes across 180 schools—69 of which have NCAA varsity Esports teams. Since its inception in 2016, the organization has given out $16 million in scholarships to existing and prospective young Esports athletes.

Higher education institutions have been building the necessary infrastructure for competition—from small-scale intramural club play to national Esports tournaments involving hundreds of individual teams and large, in-person audiences.

Creating the Ideal Esports Environment

"What do I need to make this happen?"

"How do I even start to build out an Esports facility?"

These are questions Jared Darensbourg, Panasonic’s senior sales manager, often hears when working with schools to outfit their campuses with contest-ready Esports infrastructure. He explained in its most basic form that Esports requires a gaming console setup, specialized seating, a large-format display, and a microphone so everyone in the room can experience the competition in real time.

But for schools that also have a sizable remote audience, the ability to livestream is crucial for success. Having multiple professional pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) cameras allows the user to capture content from the first-person gamer perspective, as well as from an audience perspective. “The audience member should be able to see everything that's going on throughout that event stream, from every angle,” Darensbourg said.

“Remote production completes the ecosystem—pushing out to Twitch, YouTube, Facebook, or wherever this is being captured,” Darensbourg said. “For a large-scale operation, we would use our new KAIROS switcher/mainframe/server, which is a new cutting-edge IT/IP platform that supports independent output channels [e.g., 20 3G outputs].”

Broadcasting to a loyal fan base is just one of many areas where the distinction between traditional college sports and Esports teams becomes blurred. “In traditional college sports, somebody is handling broadcast cameras for game day—the networking and switching,” Darensbourg explained. “These folks are now getting requested for Esports because for the full solution experience, you not only have the AV, but the back-end broadcast, as well as remote production. Getting out to the masses ultimately brings visibility to the college.”

Once the physical infrastructure is in place, extremely high bandwidth and network capability are required to stream on Twitch to account for the hundreds—or potentially hundreds of thousands—of people tuning in simultaneously. Broadcast resolution on Twitch is possible at 1080p, though streaming is more reliable at 720p.

Leveling Up the Display Experience

Whereas basketball arenas and football stadiums will likely opt for an LED display to communicate with attendees, for Esports venues, projection can be an equally immersive, yet cost-effective alternative—particularly for cash-strapped colleges and universities.

“Projection technology plays a crucial role in collegiate Esports,” Darensbourg said. “You can achieve extremely vibrant resolution and clarity. You can also get a much wider image size with just one projector, and the total cost of ownership over time is going to be significantly less. Nine times out of 10, higher education will go with projection over LED.”

 In addition to budget considerations, projection offers the advantage of versatility for smaller, multipurpose gaming spaces such as classrooms and computer labs.

Bringing the Live Audience Back

While the COVID-19 pandemic sidelined many in-person college sporting events, the downtime and empty rooms provided a unique opportunity for some colleges and universities to begin the design and building process for Esports facilities.

Darensbourg projects build-out will only increase as pandemic restrictions are lifted. “People want to get back into in-person tournaments, so we’re going to see a lot more new venues pop up—especially as more schools are figuring out how to integrate Esports technology and recruit students to participate,” he said.

Inspiring the Next Generation of Esports Stars

The skills students gain through participation in Esports, including mental fitness, reaction time, fine-motor skills, problem-solving, and teamwork, serve them in their academic pursuits and, ultimately, in their careers. In fact, a 2018 study of League of Legends gamers showed that 62 percent of their gaming community pursued a STEM undergraduate degree.

Through partnerships with secondary schools and community-based organizations, Panasonic demonstrates its commitment to STEM education by exposing students to Esports—with the ultimate goal of helping every student discover their passion and a pathway to higher education.

The What:  Legrand AV has launched a new broadcast and advanced systems console from LundHalsey for the North American market. The x-Type console is available with standard part numbers for faster lead times to quickly equip broadcast and mission critical systems.

The  What Else: The console can be used in several different vertical markets in addition to broadcast like advanced system control, sports and live venue, and esports.

[The Integration Guide to Esports]

The modular system comes in different sizes and includes removable desktop rack mounting units (turrets or pods), cable management and rack mounting below the worksurface, and comes in fixed or electric height adjustable. If customers change their mind, the system can retrofit electric height adjustability to fixed consoles.

The Bottom Line: The compact laminate worksurface top is a unique material that is scratch resistant, chemical proof, stain free, and antimicrobial. The panels and worksurface come with a 10-year warranty. x-Type is also designed to ISO 11064, the international ergonomic standard for control room design.

PPDS’ HD Philips Q-Line and X-Line video wall displays were recently selected as the centerpieces for major installations inside two of Switzerland’s busiest TV studios, bringing extensive new benefits to viewers, presenters, and guests alike during live broadcasts. 

The installation, which includes 27 HD displays across two separate studios, is part of a major upgrade for Swiss channel La Télé, a popular and fast-growing French-speaking network that broadcasts to the 8.57 million residents of Switzerland, as well as those watching online from around the world.

[NewTek Announces 3Play 3P2 Telestration System]

With a tight agenda and studio set requirements often varying greatly between programs—including presentations, multi-guest debates, and gameshows—potential delays or even a catastrophic failure is simply not an option in order to maintain the best possible experience and ensure viewers don’t switch off or go elsewhere. 

The video walls, which include 24 49-inch Philips X-Line Video walls paired with three 86-inch Q-Line displays, were selected to not only to provide improved visual performance to both viewers and studio guests, but also enable the versatility to securely create and recreate unique and innovative set-designs for each show as quickly and as efficiently as possible.

Securely connected to the station’s network, all screens can be managed automatically or manually via a custom control system to display news feeds, branded set scenery, gameshow questions, and other unique elements without the need of an extra person in the control room. 

La Télé turned to renowned TV production designer and architect Franck Fellemann and Informatique NEXAN SA, a leading local IT and solutions company specializing in providing a pool of dedicated business services, including cloud hosting and security.

National video wall integration specialist Martix Resolution SA was also called upon for the adjustments and calibration of the displays, ensuring optimum viewing performance.  “We’re delighted to have been able to support La Télé in this both exciting and challenging project, providing a truly transformational solution across its two busy TV studios,” said Davide Longo, sales manager Switzerland. “It’s another example of how far PPDS has come over a relatively short period, with our displays increasingly becoming the brand of choice for many of the world’s leading integration specialists and end users alike for projects like this that demand quality and reliability.” 

“Our Philips displays enabled us to have two truly versatile studios capable of instant visual transformations in the most efficient way possible,” said François Vittoz, IT director, La Télé.

The What: NewTek has announced the NewTek 3Play 3P2 video replay and telestration system for instant replays for sports productions. 

The What Else: The built-in playback zoom and tracking feature allows operators to select multiple points of interest and zoom in and out to capture an all-important play. The key-frameable feature allows you to scrub clips, pinpointing desired timecodes of crucial plays. 

[Vizrt Debuts Channel Branding Software]

This 10-channel replay solution offers eight external inputs and two outputs. Inputs can be any combination of NDI sources with four SDI connectors built directly into the chassis. The outputs can be independent or work together in a preview/program workflow including live animated, 3D-warped visual transitions delivered to both SDI and NDI destinations. 

Operators also benefit from sharable playlists, allowing NewTek TriCaster live production systems to work collaboratively. 3P2 and TriCaster operators can sync 3Play playlists over the network via NDI to create a unique collaborative experience for increased speed and flexibility in sports production workflows. 

“3Play 3P2’s operator-centric workflow breaks the play down to bring your audience deeper into the game in real time and in stunning 4K,” said Barbara Spicek, president of NewTek. “3Play 3P2’s built-in features bring access to those vital plays within a game to fans faster, from more angles for unmatched viewing experiences.”

The Bottom Line: New 3Play 3P2 features include increased inputs, sharable playlists, pan-and-scan areas of interest, built-in NewTek NDI Telestrator capabilities, clip publishing, and more, giving sports producers more capacity and opportunity to maximize the value and impact of live content as it plays out.

The What: Vizrt has announced Vizrt Channel Branding, designed to make complex channel branding graphics easier for customers faced with the growing need to promote more content across more channels. 

The What Else: Vizrt Channel Branding software allows users to import data from traffic and scheduling applications to automatically create playlists that reduce manual processes. Rapid, up-to-second sync with automation systems for data and trigger control, guarantees every single element is played out at exactly the right time. This can be changed down to the wire without fear of error. Accurate content delivery, dynamic data-driven graphics, automatic error checks all go to provide a smooth operator workflow, a great experience for the audience, and high levels of brand consistency across numerous simultaneous formats.

[How to Amp Up Your Visual Storytelling]

One operator can control multiple channels from a single interface, which can scale up and down to any number of channels without significantly changing the workflow. Vizrt’s graphics branding solution augments the technical capabilities of master control environments and the marketing capabilities of promotional departments to serve anything from single-channel facilities up to large network operations that manage multiple broadcast, web, and mobile channels.

“Vizrt Channel Branding acts as an extension to promotional and marketing departments of media organizations,” said Daniel Nergard, president of Vizrt. “It lets broadcasters protect and promote their most important asset—their identity—and enables them to hold onto audience engagement across channels and through promotional breaks and at the same time, powerfully reinforce their brand equity. When all this is possible for a single operator to manage and monitor for multiple channels, it becomes a true competitive differentiator for media producers.”

The Bottom Line: With Vizrt Channel Branding, media houses can make more efficient usage of their resources across multiple Vizrt graphics solutions. From real-time on-air news graphics through virtual sets and augmented reality to custom channel branding, assets and skills can be leveraged to create a final product for multiple outputs. This results in much more efficient use of design staff, time, and created content elements.

Broadcasters, marketing and promotions departments, and master control technical departments can all benefit from Vizrt Channel Branding software’s ability to adapt and scale up and down to meet rapidly changing production needs.

Vizrt Channel Branding is available exclusively via Flexible Access in annual or month-to-month payment plans.

The What: TVU Networks has announced the TVU Anywhere SDK, a free software development kit for the TVU Anywhere live IP video streaming app. 

[The Integration Guide to Streaming]

The What Else: With the new TVU Anywhere SDK, developers can add reliable, high-quality, low-latency live video transmission to an iOS or Android app, according to the company. The new kit is designed to make it easy for reporters, viewers, and fans to contribute live video for programming.

The TVU Anywhere SDK is meant for developers involved in app creation for broadcasters, news outlets, sports teams, or any other organization involved in live video production. It allows them to integrate TVU Anywhere into an existing app, which adds a robust live streaming element compatible with the TVU Networks ecosystem including TVU Receivers, TVU Grid, TVU Producer, and more.

[The Technology Manager's Guide to Videoconferencing and Streaming]

“Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, use of our TVU Anywhere app to share live video from at-home contributors and reporters has simply exploded,” explained Matt McEwen, vice president of product management, TVU Networks. “The use of remote production will only continue to grow, and live video is a key part of that workflow. Our new TVU Anywhere SDK provides developers with a simple and affordable way to help media companies, sports organizations, and other content creators to generate more content from more people faster, which leads to more viewer engagement.”

The Bottom Line: With TVU’s patented IS+ protocol, TVU Anywhere is designed to provide reliable, low-latency transmission for live coverage, even in extreme conditions. It automatically bonds a mobile device’s available cellular and WiFi connections to provide maximum bandwidth and connection redundancy.

 TVU Anywhere SDK, along with complete instructions, is available now for direct download at tvunetworks.com/tvu-developer/.

Winner of three gold medals in swimming at the 1984 Olympics, Rowdy Gaines has since made a name for himself as a major TV network swimming commentator and a coveted public speaker, two careers that changed dramatically in 2020 when COVID struck.

After nearly a year spent participating in virtual events and sports coverage through a basic laptop webcam, Gaines recently upgraded his gear to professional-grade ClearOne Aura cameras and a speakerphone that has completely changed his presentations and capabilities.

Related: The Technology Manager's Guide to Videoconferencing and Streaming

“Since the pandemic hit, I’ve done hundreds of video calls and speeches, including for major corporations or Olympic sponsors,” Gaines said. “It took a while to realize that the laptop camera and microphone I was using were pitiful, and the low-quality picture and sound detracted from the audience experience. Upgrading to ClearOne Aura with multiple cameras and a pro-level speakerphone has given my calls 4K video quality and perfect audio clarity, but the powerful features like auto framing may be an even bigger deal, long-term."

With a total of three cameras, Gaines can now offer broadcasters multiple angles while working from home, in addition to utilizing special features such as AI-based automatic framing on the UNITE 50 4K AF that moves and zooms the camera to best capture everyone in a room. All three cameras also offer remote-controlled pan, tilt, and zoom, with the UNITE 50 4K ePTZ offering video up to 4K and up to 3x digital zoom, and the UNITE 200 providing 1080p quality with a 12x optical zoom.

“I work about 25 sporting events a year, and as remote collaboration for broadcast continues to evolve, it’s almost magical to have equipment that I know puts my best face forward and presents an image that’s up to the quality of professional TV production,” Gaines said. “It’s definitely an investment for the future, and anyone who uses basic gear for videoconferencing, whether it’s for church presentations, work meetings or on TV, should be looking at upgrading their collaboration equipment with ClearOne.”

The core of Gaines’ new collaboration gear is the ClearOne Aura Versa 50 package, which combines a UNITE 50 ePTZ camera with a CHAT 150 speakerphone and a Versa USB Hub. The camera offers a 4K, 120-degree ultra-wide view lens with a 3x digital zoom, while the speakerphone delivers HDConference audio and plug-and-play simplicity with the Veras USB Hub. Adding the additional UNITE 50 4K AF and UNITE 200 PTZ cameras gives Gaines greater flexibility and presentation options that can help set him apart as a speaker and presenter in the future.

Cubic Media Production, a broadcast and production company based in Abu Dhabi, UAE, has anchored its newest production vehicle with a FOR-A HVS-490 digital video switcher. The truck has been booked for a variety of high-profile projects, from multi-camera production of professional football matches to last month’s coverage of the historic UAE Mars probe for Abu Dhabi TV.

Built last summer on a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van chassis, UNIT2 4K is a compact but efficient mobile unit that typically supports eight-camera HD or six-camera 4K productions. Feras Hamdan, managing partner and director of operations for Cubic Media Production, said the HVS-490 was perfect for the new truck, because it included features and options usually found in larger switchers. UNIT2 4K also uses all three of the switcher’s multi viewer outputs.

Related: FOR-A HVS-2000 Switcher Enables Large-Scale Streaming Production with a Small Crew

Beyond the HVS-490, UNIT2 4K also includes two FA-505 and three FA-9600 multi-channel signal processors, which are mainly used to convert external sources to 4K during productions. However, the processors can also be used to synchronize inputs, embed and de-embed audio, provide color correction, and down-convert footage from 4K to HD or HD to SD. Other installed FOR-A gear includes the MFR-3000 and MFR-3232 routing switchers.

This is not Cubic Production’s first FOR-A purchase; the company features FOR-A equipment in several of its mobile production units. “We trust their products for our live broadcasts as well as their support here in UAE,” Hamdan said. “The outstanding technical and operational support we receive before and after purchasing makes us confident about having FOR-A in most of our broadcast chains. It gives us a feeling that FOR-A is a team member, rather than a product.”

“You don’t get selected to produce live coverage of prime projects like the Mars probe unless your company is reliable and delivers high-quality work,” said Mohammed Abu Ziyadeh, FOR-A system engineering manager. “Cubic Production continues to put its trust in FOR-A products because they are dependable, affordable, and packed with features for HD and 4K workflows.”

With integrated frame synchronizers and multi-viewers, the HVS-490 reduces the amount of equipment required for live production. Event memory and macro functions make it easy to set up the switcher quickly for live performances, while support for multiple control panels enables several operators to work on separate tasks. MELite technology eliminates the need for multiple switchers in a multi-monitor staging scenario, and extends the switcher’s 2 M/Es to 6 M/E performance. When equipped with optional I/O expansion cards, the HVS-490 supports 40 inputs/18 outputs, 36 inputs/20 outputs, or 32 inputs/22 outputs, including two-channel HDMI outputs. Plus, FOR-A’s FLEXaKEY allows a traditional AUX bus to transform into a functional mix effects with cuts, mix, wipes, keys, and DVE including full preview.

Prior to 2020, The University of Miami redesigned its live sports production workflows to ensure all audio feeds were on the network with Audinate’s Dante. From field mics to mixers, and from basketball to soccer, the University made the choice to use Dante for all audio-over-IP capabilities.

“We don’t have a single XLR patch anywhere in our workflow,” said Anthony Lestochi, director of production services at the university. “Moving to Dante was clearly the better way to operate. It made building out our production really easy and effective. And, when COVID happened, Dante made it easy to quickly adapt.”

Related: The Technology Manager's Guide to Audio in the New Era of UC

Dante has proven its flexibility over the course of 2020. As productions needed to drastically alter their approach to adhere to COVID-19 safety guidelines, the ability to use Dante audio-over-IP as a connective fabric was a crucial enabler. 

“When we looked to bring production back, the first thing we did was knock walls down in our control room,” Lestochi said. “We totally rearranged the space and put up new physical barriers to allow for effective social distancing in the new control room. Because it was a Dante-backed system, we could run all of our new positions for equipment onto the network and know it would work quickly. It was a very easy change, and one that wouldn’t have been so quick if we were using traditional cabling.”

The control room continues to make use of the same broadcast technology in place prior to the change in physical layout. Two Yamaha CL5 mixing consoles and a Behringer X32 mixing console provide all mix capabilities for the many Dante signals on the network. 

Field and announcer microphones located on site are made Dante-native using Shure ANI4IN audio network interfaces. Multiple Studio Technologies 45DR Dante to 2-Channel Party-Line Intercom Interfaces—which are Dante native—are also used to allow two-way communication.

In total, Lestochi said there are roughly 60 Dante devices in use in the production—and on any given day, multiple productions can take place with around 100 Dante signals running seamlessly across the local network.

Of course, that’s just for the on-site capabilities. In the University of Miami’s broadcast buildout, Dante is also working from home.

Remote announcers have become increasingly common as a result of COVID-19 social distancing and travel recommendations. Lestochi said it’s a practice that many viewers likely don’t even realize is taking place. The Miami production team’s largest events are men’s and women’s basketball in the winter season—and to produce them, Dante is heading into the home. 

Glensound Inferno commentator’s boxes—which are Dante-native kits built specifically for live announcer commentary—are sent to an announcer’s home. The system then interfaces with an in-home Mac computer using Dante Virtual Soundcard and Unity Connect software—which facilitates sending a Dante signal at the highest possible quality over the public internet.

“That setup allows for bidirectional channels and two-way communication,” Lestochi said. “The talent can talk to each other as they watch the game, and the director and producer can also talk with the talent. Without that setup it would be nearly impossible for us to do this. It enables the talent to work the games from their home without much difference in the quality of the broadcast.”

The control room located on The University of Miami campus brings in the audio signal and provides mixing and audio-to-video embedding—using an Evertz Scorpion-4 Media Processing Platform—before sending the final product via a direct line to the university’s production partner.

Lestochi considered what it would require to make the same changes had the university not utilized Dante.

“It would definitely be a lot more expensive and require a lot more hardware and cabling,” he said. “And the management of the system, and some of the technical aspects to the audio signals, would be very, very tricky if we were doing this with copper. It would likely be far too complex to feasibly do.”

Lestochi said with Dante, not only were changes made rapidly and affordably, but the system allowed for considerations on how to best manage the increasingly remote nature of the work. For example: Lestochi said he can log in to a university system remotely from his house and quickly make a change on Dante Controller software to ensure the system is working effectively.

“It’s those little moments in the process where you realize how much you’ve gained with Dante,” he said. “All of it comes down to confidence. And we have a lot of that right now with our system.”

The team at Van Wagner Productions has been at the production helm of the NFL’s showcase weekend for more than three decades, running the in-game production and giving fans a memorable entertainment experience to complement the action on the field. The Super Bowl LV edition will be no different, although the global COVID-19 pandemic has obviously changed the nature of the event.

A reduced capacity of 24,000 fans will be watching the game inside the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, FL, and 7,500 of these will be vaccinated health workers who have been given free tickets by the NFL as a thank you for their work throughout the pandemic.

Raymond James Stadium is the home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, longtime Ross Video customers. The venue’s production team, BucsVision, has grown with the Ross Unified Venue Control Solution over the years and, together with Van Wagner and Ross, have added even more production horsepower for the championship game this weekend.

Tech Infrastructure

The venue’s control room features the flagship Acuity production switcher, as well as several XPression Studio engines, which will be used for insert graphics. 

On the LED control side, XPression Tessera will drive the main and corner displays, and the DashBoard control system will sync all elements of the production for attention-grabbing takeover elements.

In addition to the already powerful production system, PIERO Broadcast and PIERO Live have been added for replay analysis as well as virtual Down & Distance lines. The Voyager graphics rendering solution (powered by the Unreal engine from Epic Games) along with ACID cameras, Furio robotic camera heads, and the LUCID Studio control system are ready to deliver augmented reality (AR) graphics displaying scoring drives and other stats content for fans in attendance.

[ Digital Menu Boards Ready to Shine Bright at Super Bowl LV ]

The stadium will also be adding LED screens that will cover the first ten rows of seats around the stadium. The 360-degree seat cover displays will be fed by additional XPression Tessera engines that tie seamlessly into the existing system.

“Through these very tough times in the world, it is always nice to be able to rely on a partner who not only shares your vision to put on a world class event every year, but also shares the creativity, work ethic and passion for what we do and how we want to entertain this very special crowd this year,” said Bob Becker, Van Wagner’s executive vice president.

[ Stadium and Arena AV Experts Deliver Creative Solutions During the Pandemic ]

Ryan Kehn, creative director at Van Wagner, agreed. “Each year at this event we try to push the envelope and show the crowd something they’ve never seen before, and this year is no different. We know that we can trust the Ross team to help us execute our vision and provide a unique experience befitting of the biggest game on earth. The crowd may be smaller this year, but our show has only gotten bigger, and there isn’t another partner we’d rather work with to help bring it to life.”

Kevin Cottam, vice president of sports and live events at Ross, is delighted to be involved in this prestigious event. “It’s been a tough year for everyone in the sports and live events industry, and I hope this year’s game in Tampa can be a celebration of our resilience and the first tentative step toward some normality. We’re very proud and humbled to be working with Van Wagner Productions, who are the ‘go to’ production partners for some of the world’s most prestigious sporting events. Our relationship with them is first class and together with the BucsVision production staff, are going to give fans a show to remember during a difficult time we all want to forget!”

Ross Video • www.rossvideo.com

Van Wagner • www.vanwagner.com

Debuting in February 2020 during Black History Month, Black News Channel (BNC) operates out of its brand new headquarters in Tallahassee, FL. Almost immediately after bringing its new purpose-built facility online, the network had to shift to a remote production workflow as COVID restrictions sent people home. 

The flexible, IP-based comms system from Clear-Com, which had been installed in the facility by BeckTV, was able to flex to meet the comms challenges of today and tomorrow.

Watch the video below to learn more about the installation.

BNC is the nation’s only provider of 24/7 cable news programming created “by people of color for people of color.” One of the goals of the network is to recruit and train aspiring African American journalists and technicians, providing them with a platform and facility where they can learn and grow. Part of this includes incorporating the market’s latest technology that new employees may not have access to otherwise.

“I was lucky enough to have used Clear-Com throughout my career, but that is not the case for everyone," said Kenneth Thomas, director of OTT/IT operations for BNC. "The comms system was a priority from the facility’s inception, and I knew it would include Clear-Com.” 

BNC equipped its facility with Clear-Com’s Eclipse HX Digital Matrix with V-Series intercom panels throughout. Dante and MADI interface cards offered a variety of I/O to other audio, video, and routing equipment, and E-IPA IP interface cards enabled AES-67 for FreeSpeak II wireless. The E-IPA cards allow for flexibility by providing IVC IP connections for the Agent-IC Mobile Intercom App and LQ Series Interfaces hosting SIP telephony and remote site connection capabilities.

In the Fall of 2019 and Winter of 2020, BNC staff spent time with Clear-Com’s applications engineer Jonathan Sorensen to familiarize themselves with the system and to finalize custom integrations for their workflows. When it became time to rethink aspects of the system to accommodate remote workflows, BNC relied heavily on their prior training and close relationship with Clear-Com to make the changes.

“The flexibility of the IP-based system and the amazing support from Jonathan and the team at Clear-Com allowed us to seamlessly transition to remote production without a hiccup,” added BNC’s director of network operations, Jefferson Walker. “The system is simple, it’s reliable, and the support from Clear-Com is outstanding.”

As the educational access channel for the North Penn School District, North Penn Television (NPTV) brings timely information to residents in the Montgomery County suburbs of Philadelphia via its cable channel, website, and social media. When schools across Pennsylvania closed earlier this year during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, staff and students leveraged Tightrope Media Systems’ Cablecast Community Media platform and new Screenweave Live cloud-based service to continue broadcasting to their community.

[The Technology Manager's Guide to Transformative Classroom Solutions]

North Penn School District comprises 13 elementary schools, three middle schools, and one high school. Operated by high school students under the guidance of the district’s coordinator of communications media, Bob Gillmer, NPTV covers everything from Board of School Directors’ meetings to high school sports and concerts. In addition to its weekly “Mornings” news program, NPTV also broadcasts the monthly “North Penn Right Now” live to the community and to all of the district’s 13,000 students and staff in their classrooms or offices.

NPTV had already been using the Cablecast platform as its playout and automation system prior to the pandemic, with Gillmer praising its ease of use and rich feature set as ideal for the educational channel. “It has all the tools that you really need, particularly for a PEG channel, college, or school at our level,” he said. “It even has tools you may not realize you need yet, and then when you think ‘I wish I could do this,’ you find that it’s already there.”

Tightrope’s introduction of Screenweave Live in April proved timely and valuable for NPTV, enabling student broadcasters to continue reporting the news from their homes by bringing live Zoom web conferencing feeds into the Cablecast system. 

“Screenweave Live came along just at the right time for us,” explained Gillmer. “When we closed our schools, we took the next week to plan and sort of reset, and the next Friday we had a live broadcast out to our community via our cable channel using Screenweave Live. We continued doing a full live television show each Friday with our high school students in their homes, me managing it from my living room, and pushing it out on YouTube, Facebook, and our Comcast and Verizon channels. It also lets us bring our virtual school board meetings into our channel live, across all of our platforms.”

Gillmer also highlighted Cablecast’s existing remote access functionality as critical to NPTV’s continuity. “Being able to operate Cablecast remotely through a browser-based interface was already advantageous, as instead of needing to be in the TV studio, I could manage it even while sitting in a meeting across town,” he explained. “It was even more crucial during COVID, as I’m able to run everything from home. The remote upload feature similarly became more important, as I could easily add content to my playout server without needing to be on the same network.”

[The Technology Manager's Guide to Distance Learning and Streaming]

While the operational benefits of Cablecast and Screenweave Live have been compelling for the NPTV team, even more important is the positive impact they enabled NPTV to have on students during an emotionally challenging time. “One of the things we heard as feedback is that while students couldn’t be in the schools, the ‘normalcy’ of having a live morning show is something they really looked forward to,” said Gillmer. “The show still connected us, and we were still together in a way, sort of like we were still in school.”

NPTV has long trusted Cablecast to keep its channel running 24/7/365, and with the addition of Screenweave Live, the platform is helping them do so even under this year’s extreme circumstances. 

“Without them, our cable channel would have been dead on the vine,” Gillmer concluded. “Students are working collaboratively from home, and we’re pulling that all together to broadcast live to our community. Even as students start returning to the classroom, we’ll continue using Cablecast and Screenweave Live to broadcast across cable and online.”

Game Creek Video, a provider of advanced mobile television production facilities, has launched four new mobile units in the last year—with a fifth nearing completion—relying on Riedel Communications' ultra-dense IP gateway solutions for intertruck connectivity. Riedel's MediorNet FusioN standalone IP converters drive full SMPTE ST 2110-based signal processing in the five mobile production systems—all of which represent the state of the art in 4K/HDR production.

All five of the new Game Creek mobile facilities are 53-foot expandable systems and deploy an entire remote IP facility into a single truck, therefore eliminating the need for a secondary B unit for onsite support. Bravo and Columbia, the first two Game Creek Video mobile facilities to feature the Riedel IP infrastructure solutions, were launched in late 2019, with Gridiron A, Gridiron B, and Celtic following earlier this year.

Related: Riedel’s Intercom Systems Provide Communications Inside NBA Bubble

Bravo and Gridiron are dedicated to FOX Sports' NFL and college football coverage, while CBS Sports has reserved Columbia and Celtic for its NFL and college basketball broadcasts. Gotham, the truck currently in development, will enable MSG Networks' coverage of New York Rangers hockey and New York Knicks basketball games.

"With Bravo, we were taking a significant new direction in our facility design by trying to achieve full IP workflows within the footprint of a single mobile unit,” said Keith Martin, engineering project manager, Game Creek Video. “Naturally, that meant finding robust and effective solutions that could also run as cool as possible and meet the space constraints and weight restrictions of a 53-foot truck. Not only do the Riedel MediorNet devices check all of those boxes, but, as native IP and 2110 solutions, they allow us to maximize all of the benefits of IP operations including lower cost per path, reduced setup time, connectivity with our legacy assets, and overall simplicity of deployment.”

Deployed on board each truck are 16 high-density Riedel MediorNet FusioN 6 gateways and two 2-RU MediorNet MBR 18 chassis, which work in combination to create a pair of truck-to-truck interfaces, known as Game Creek Video's T2T, each enabling support of up to 32x32 optical video paths. This Riedel equipment effectively reduces up to 128 strands of fiber cable to only eight—greatly simplifying each production and reducing points of failure.

The MediorNet-based T2T interface also creates vendor-agnostic connectivity between the five new trucks and Game Creek Video's fleet of legacy, SDI baseband facilities, eliminating the need to convert SDI signals from electrical copper to optical fiber and then back again. Using a 25-gigabit Ethernet interface, the FusioN gateways can transport signals on the SMPTE ST 2110 network and then output them as CWDM-wavelength SDI directly to legacy equipment in a baseband truck.

"The ability to not only interconnect any of our 2110-based facilities with each other, but with any of our traditional baseband SDI mobile facilities, brings incredible flexibility to each production and allows us to maximize the investment in our entire fleet of vehicles," Martin said. "But the main reason we leaned heavily into Riedel for the T2T interface is the incredible versatility of the solution. In a single box, we have a complete solution for handling SDI, CWDM wavelength, and the other complexities of the deployment. Plus, the Riedel team was outstanding to work with, helping us conceptualize and then realize a new approach that replaced products we had been relying on for a very long time. Riedel is an important partner now."

With the recent vast increase in online and broadcast delivery of a near limitless array of information, entertainment, and social information, the AES Show Fall 2020 Convention’s Broadcast and Online Delivery Track will examine key technologies and applications while taking a look back at broadcast history and a look forward to the opportunities that lie ahead. 

Of utmost importance in professional broadcast applications is the embrace of current and emerging productivity-enhancing standards and developing a working knowledge of their inner workings for the best possible performance and interoperability within the global broadcast realm. The session “Practical Tips for Using Digital Audio in a 2110 Facility” will offer in-depth expertise on IP architecture and the SMPTE ST 2110 media networking protocol, of which the Audio Engineering Society’s AES3 and AES67 standards are key components, as well as related technologies and workflows. In this featured Broadcast and Online Delivery Track event, moderator Andy Butler (PBS) will host Wesley D. Simpson (Telecom Product Consulting), Robert Welch (Technical Solutions Lead, Arista Networks) and Peter Wharton (Principal Consultant, Happy Robotz, Inc.) to share their tips for media networking success and respond to your toughest questions in the follow-up Q&A.

Related: AES Helps “Socially Distancing” Members Worldwide Listen, Learn, and Connect

Track sessions of historical importance include “Pass the Mic,” which will celebrate this year’s 100th anniversary of radio broadcasting and its innovations with host John Holt, and “A Century of Radio: What You May Not Know About the History of Broadcasting,” in which presenters Donna Halper (Associate Professor of Communication & Media Studies at Lesley University, Cambridge MA) and Barry Mishkind (Editor/Publisher of the Broadcasters’ Desktop Resource) will share surprising facts about broadcast history and dispel some of the myths perpetuated throughout the industry.

Microphone hygiene and podcast production are timely topics to be closely examined in the presentations: “Stay Safe: Disinfecting Microphones in the time of Covid-19” with presenter David Prentice and “Podcasts: Telling Stories with Sound” with Rob Byers of American Public Media. Byers will host panelists from Revel: sound designer/composers Jim Briggs and Fernando Arruda, as well as podcast series reporter/producers Laura Starecheski and Ike Sriskandarajah. In addition, two compelling virtual tours will be conducted in the sessions “A Virtual Tour and Discussion: BBC Broadcasting House Studio” led by Jamie Laundon and “A Virtual Tour and Discussion: BBC Wales - Cardiff Central Square IP-based Broadcast Facility” with Adrian Wisbey.

“Even though we are celebrating the 100th anniversary of broadcasting, everything is new,” said AES Show Broadcast and Online Delivery Track chair David Bialik, now in his 36th year of capably curating the Convention’s perennially popular Broadcast Track and events. “The pandemic has added new parameters to getting broadcasts out. With all information out there on the ST-2110 media networking standard being adopted by broadcasters, I find it amazing that there’s so much for so many to learn. The AES Show 2020 Broadcast and Online Delivery Track will explore today’s critical issues, visit showcase facilities and recall the history of how we got to where we are through a deep and diverse list of sessions that promise to educate and fascinate.”

Free AES Show 2020 Showcase registration is open to all who register before October 1. Showcase registration will remain free for AES Members, while non-members can register for $25, or for free with a VIP promo code from one of the AES Show Partners. For everything AES Show 2020 has to offer, including the comprehensive Technical Program, All Access Registration starts at $149.

Rise, the membership group for gender diversity within the broadcast technology sector, has opened entries for its annual Rise Awards. 

Submissions and nominations are encouraged from across the global broadcast audience to showcase talent across the industry whether in a manufacturer, service provider, engineer, or broadcaster role. 

The awards are free to enter, and nominations will close on Mon., Sept. 21, 2020. The winners will be announced at an event in November.

Rise is seeking nominations across the following categories:

The Rise Awards are sponsored by Clear-Com, Editshare, OWNZONES, Ross Video, and Zixi.

• Engineer: This award recognizes a high achiever, problem solver, and team player who represents the very best of the broadcasting profession. Sponsored by OWNZONES.
• Product Innovation: This award will recognize the importance of revolution and invention for the Broadcasting sector today, and for the future fulfilling either a product development and or product management role, the outcome should be engaging and empowering to make a difference and create tangible benefits to the industry. Sponsored by Clear-Com.
• Woman of the Year: This special award is open to any inspiring and extraordinary woman across the sector, at any level, for making a significant difference in her field or to the industry. Sponsored by Zixi.
• Rising Star: This award will recognize those that can demonstrate exceptional and ongoing achievements that have made a significant contribution to their business (must have worked in the industry for less than four years). Sponsored by Editshare.
• Business: This award is open to any woman in the following roles: CEO, Managing Director, COO, Owner, and anyone whose role means that they are running a business in the broadcast industry (either manufacturer, broadcaster, or service provider).
• Sales: This award is open to any woman in a sales role in the broadcast industry working for either a manufacturer, service provider, broadcaster, media publisher, or tradeshow.
• Marketing: This award is open to any woman working in a marketing role in the industry either in-house, or for an agency/freelance, who has excelled in their role.
• Technical Operations" This award is for a technical operations team member who has gone above and beyond the requirements of their day-to-day role to make a difference. Sponsored by Ross Video.

Entrants can be nominated, or they can nominate themselves. All applications will require statements on the nominee and why they are relevant for the award. The judges, across the categories, are looking for the best demonstration of exceptional achievement, innovation, positive impact, and the ability to portray entry requirements. The Woman of The Year category will be voted for by the Rise Advisory Board members.

To nominate an outstanding female in broadcast, visit risewib.com/awards.

With spectators currently not allowed in the stands of major sporting events as they resume around the world, live streaming has become essential to keeping fans connected. This is especially true for cricket, which ranks as the second most popular sport worldwide. 

Earlier this summer, Cricket South Africa debuted a new Three-Team Cricket (3TC) format, with PT SportSuite—AWS (Amazon Web Services) partners and developers of a modular digital media ecosystem for sports organizations—bringing coverage of the historic event to remote audiences. Providing their technological expertise, three AJA HELO H.264 streamers/recorders, and other services, PT SportSuite delivered a live feed of the first-ever 3TC match to a fan microsite that its team developed for the event.

Related: The Technology Manager's Guide to Distance Learning and Streaming

Held at SuperSport Park in Centurion, South Africa on Nelson Mandela International Day (July 18, 2020), the event provided a launchpad for the new 3TC format, which includes three teams, playing two halves in one match. Drawing in a number of South African cricket heavyweights, the match attracted a broad audience, who were encouraged to donate to the Hardship Fund, an initiative to help those in the cricket community affected by the pandemic. 

To facilitate a live event stream, PT SportSuite connected two HELO units to an on-site OB truck via SDI and streamed footage over IP to the AWS-cloud based media processing and content distribution infrastructure. Given the production was mobile and lacking network infrastructure, the PT SportSuite team configured the HELOs for redundant inputs, assigning each to a different cellular broadband provider. A third HELO was positioned at the PT SportSuite Cape Town office for automatic failover in the case of an emergency.

“HELO was so easy to use and incredibly reliable,” said Clinton Bosch, PT SportSuite’s chief technology officer. “Our team hadn’t ever set up an encoder before but was able to get all three HELOs up and running quickly and without complication, and throughout the stream, the devices never skipped a beat. The UI is so straightforward, and we love how HELO also gives us the ability to set up, configure, and control each device and monitor the stream from a standard web browser if we want, which will be useful for projects moving forward.” 

Looking ahead, PT SportSuite expects the demand for similar applications in sports to grow in the coming years. “We’ve entered into a new era of sports consumption, in which fans—for the immediate future—can no longer be physically present during matches,” Bosch said. “To adapt, sports organizations are looking to find new ways to connect with fans and monetize content across various consumer viewing platforms from OTT to broadcast and digital. With tools like HELO, helping them deliver will be easier, more affordable, and less time consuming.”  

The What: NewTek has released the TriCaster 2 Elite, the company’s most powerful live video production system to date. TriCaster 2 Elite enables studios, broadcasters, large scale campuses, and enterprise facilities to harness nearly every major video calling application in use today, delivering them a myriad of creative options. To further amplify the flexibility and scalability, both future-proofed video over IP and more traditional SDI are supported by the platform. 

The What Else: TriCaster 2 Elite is designed for production in today’s multisource world with new core functionality. Nearly every web conferencing tool, including Skype, Microsoft Teams, Zoom Meetings, and GoToMeeting is supported, as well as all IP video sources including NDI, SRT, RTMP, RTP, HTTP, SRC, and smartphones. These, along with almost unlimited traditional SDI sources, can be accessed and used simultaneously, meaning show producers will be able to connect with in-studio guests and remote video callers without worrying about connectivity. 

Related: NewTek Launches New Global Channel Program 

At the heart of TriCaster 2 Elite is a high-speed 60x45 video crosspoint that includes 32 external inputs that automatically determine video format and resolutions up to 4Kp60. Each input includes proc amp tools, independent keying, and cropping for crisper video, as well as triggers for automation. No tradeoffs are required with eight configurable mix outputs in HD or two in 4Kp60, direct NDI outs of media players, multiple streaming encoders, continuous NDI conversion of all eight SDI inputs, and eight independently selectable recorders for immediate replay. 

When it comes to integration, the TriCaster control API and automation tools deliver creative video production and IP workflow solutions that are highly interoperable with existing equipment, such as control room systems, video walls, multiviewers, media platforms, and the like.

TriCaster 2 Elite affords eight mix/effects (M/Es) with four layers each to enable greater creativity, enhanced by integration with Adobe Creative Cloud tools. Reducing risk and effort, visual storytelling automation tools with simplified teleprompter-based scripting with Microsoft Word document files are included. Virtual and augmented reality scenes can be rendered in real time from Adobe Photoshop files while non-standard framerate and aspect ratios such as 9:16 make it easier to deliver engaging content to a plethora of modern media screens. Other features include frame sync on every input, animated GIF support in buffers, social media publishing, audio mixing and routing, including support for Dante and AES-67, among others.

“Serving the needs well of those who make visual storytelling a key part of their business is made possible by combining IP networking, software-defined solutions, and a focus on the customer experience,” said Dr. Andrew Cross, president of R&D for the Vizrt Group, parent company of NewTek. “TriCaster 2 Elite currently has no equal in terms of capability and value and I believe that it is the best product we have ever made. More than ever, businesses, governments, schools, houses of worship, and other organizations tell us they are adopting broadcast techniques to communicate their message to their world more effectively as they seek to stay relevant in a rapidly changing environment.”

The Bottom Line: The new flagship TriCaster 2 Elite provides video producers, visual storytellers, and system integrators with broadcast functionality and enhanced flexibility. The platform allows content creators to produce simultaneous mixes, deliver multiple 4K streams to different places at once, feed video walls and accommodate separate branding and language packages, record program and line cuts, and much more.

TriCaster 2 Elite is now available at $27,995 USMSRP.

Cloud-based video solution provider M2A Media’s new cloud-IP transport service, M2A CONNECT, has been adopted by global sports brand Formula 1 to acquire, process, and distribute the motorsport brand’s live content to global broadcasters and sports rights owners.

M2A CONNECT provides Formula 1 with an event-based cloud-IP transport service to manage secure entitlements of their live content. M2A Operations deliver the service using the M2A CONNECT console to monitor confidence feeds and the underlying Amazon Web Services (AWS) Elemental Media Services.

Related: What's Next for Streaming Video? 

Operating as an orchestration layer over AWS Elemental MediaConnect, AWS Elemental MediaLive, and AWS Elemental MediaPackage, M2A CONNECT offers Formula 1 a single web console and RESTful API. M2A CONNECT gives Formula 1 the capability to set up live sources, schedule events, add subscribers and entitlements, monitor live streams, create live event workflows and deliver tailored live video across multiple regions to diverse receivers.

Formula 1 has also engaged M2A Media’s 24/7 Operations service, alongside M2A CONNECT. Setting up and securing events, enabling last-minute changes and eyes-on-glass monitoring assure Formula 1 faultless end-to-end transmission and broadcast grade SLAs.

“The M2A Connect service is a step change in the evolution of Formula 1’s broadcast distribution model,” said Trevor Turner, head of media systems development at Formula 1. “M2A CONNECT will, in essence, allow F1 to service a greater number of broadcast partners in a more flexible and cost-effective way and will help us distribute a greater volume of live race content than ever before. The team at M2A understands the challenges we face as a global sports brand and has responded to these challenges with a next-generation media service that will help carry us into an IP-over-cloud-led future.”

Marina Kalkanis, CEO at M2A Media said: “We were delighted when Formula 1 came to us looking for a solution to their live video distribution challenges. Formula 1 recognizes that delivering their live video over IP in public cloud is the future, especially when targeting next generation platforms. M2A CONNECT, supported by M2A Operations’ 24/7 service and leveraging AWS Elemental Media Services, provides Formula 1 with a robust video over IP transport platform allowing them to adapt and flex as their distribution landscape evolves.”

“Formula 1 delivers the world’s most popular open wheel racing to more than 1.9 billion television and digital viewers,” said Mike Callahan, head of media solutions marketing at Amazon Web Services. “We are delighted that M2A CONNECT leverages AWS Elemental MediaConnect to add a quality-of-service layer over standard IP transport, enabling uninterrupted live video connections with built-in packet recovery and AES encryption to reliably and securely distribute Formula One’s premium live racing content to authorized distribution partners.”

The What: VITEC has announced its new MGW ChannelLink IP distribution gateway. Designed for broadcast, corporate, and government, the appliance acts as a central hub where IP channels from the field can be received and reliably retransmitted live over any IP network. It can receive a large number of input streams and translate them into a multicast or unicast MPEG Transport Stream over UDP (UDP TS) or an SRT-protected stream.

The What Else: As latency is key to any IP streaming application, MGW ChannelLink achieves the lowest processing time for IP-based channels. When used in conjunction with VITEC’s MGW Ace Encoder and Decoder in its ultra-low-latency HEVC profile, the gateway provides optimized end-to-end latency without compromising video quality. The solution enables remote production and contribution over the internet and avoids the use of expensive fiber or satellite transmission infrastructure, leading to reduced OPEX.

Related: The Technology Manager's Guide to Distance Learning and Streaming

MGW ChannelLink is fully interoperable with third-party encoders and decoders. In addition, the compression-standard-agnostic gateway is compatible with MPEG-2, H.264, and HEVC codecs, any resolution and frame rate (SD, HD, 4K, and more), and is engineered to evolve and support future transport protocols. Tailored to streamline IP video contribution, backhaul, and distribution, users benefit from the solution’s straightforward interface. They can manage all incoming channels from around the world and view information and statistics, such as quality of the network link and packet loss. The gateway also provides users with a centralized location for aggregating content and monitoring incoming streams. Designed to facilitate the setup for operators, a large number of channel sources (encoders) spread around the globe can be set to target a single IP address associated with the MGW ChannelLink. Additionally, the user-friendly interface is designed to simplify channel source-to-destination routing.

“More and more video feeds are sent live over various IP transmission links, making it complex for organizations to efficiently and reliably manage them,” said Richard Bernard, senior product manager, VITEC. “Our new MGW ChannelLink allows organizations to deliver IP content anywhere, anytime, with the ease of legacy baseband video matrices. It is designed to ensure support of more transport protocols in the future, allowing any organization to stay abreast of technology as it evolves.”

The Bottom Line: VITEC’s MGW ChannelLink is well suited for stream management, routing, rebroadcasting, or IPTV stream reflection over WAN or the internet. For broadcasters, it simplifies content delivery of live channels from news agencies as well as from sports or entertainment venues. Designed to meet stringent security criteria, it is also suited for secure government and military full-motion video applications.

The What: VITEC has announced its new MGW ChannelLink IP distribution gateway. Designed for broadcast, corporate, and government, the appliance acts as a central hub where IP channels from the field can be received and reliably retransmitted live over any IP network. It can receive a large number of input streams and translate them into a multicast or unicast MPEG Transport Stream over UDP (UDP TS) or an SRT-protected stream.

The What Else: As latency is key to any IP streaming application, MGW ChannelLink achieves the lowest processing time for IP-based channels. When used in conjunction with VITEC’s MGW Ace Encoder and Decoder in its ultra-low-latency HEVC profile, the gateway provides optimized end-to-end latency without compromising video quality. The solution enables remote production and contribution over the internet and avoids the use of expensive fiber or satellite transmission infrastructure, leading to reduced OPEX.

Related: The Technology Manager's Guide to Distance Learning and Streaming

MGW ChannelLink is fully interoperable with third-party encoders and decoders. In addition, the compression-standard-agnostic gateway is compatible with MPEG-2, H.264, and HEVC codecs, any resolution and frame rate (SD, HD, 4K, and more), and is engineered to evolve and support future transport protocols. Tailored to streamline IP video contribution, backhaul, and distribution, users benefit from the solution’s straightforward interface. They can manage all incoming channels from around the world and view information and statistics, such as quality of the network link and packet loss. The gateway also provides users with a centralized location for aggregating content and monitoring incoming streams. Designed to facilitate the setup for operators, a large number of channel sources (encoders) spread around the globe can be set to target a single IP address associated with the MGW ChannelLink. Additionally, the user-friendly interface is designed to simplify channel source-to-destination routing.

“More and more video feeds are sent live over various IP transmission links, making it complex for organizations to efficiently and reliably manage them,” said Richard Bernard, senior product manager, VITEC. “Our new MGW ChannelLink allows organizations to deliver IP content anywhere, anytime, with the ease of legacy baseband video matrices. It is designed to ensure support of more transport protocols in the future, allowing any organization to stay abreast of technology as it evolves.”

The Bottom Line: VITEC’s MGW ChannelLink is well suited for stream management, routing, rebroadcasting, or IPTV stream reflection over WAN or the internet. For broadcasters, it simplifies content delivery of live channels from news agencies as well as from sports or entertainment venues. Designed to meet stringent security criteria, it is also suited for secure government and military full-motion video applications.

The What: AJA Video Systems has released Ki Pro GO v2.0 firmware for its portable multi-channel H.264 recorder and player. The update introduces enhancements for improved H.264 recording quality and reliability, including recording support for up to 25Mbps, 10-bit and 4:2:2 color space, in addition to new expanded timecode capabilities with LTC, enhanced super out and front panel audio monitoring, in-system drive formatting, network file downloads, and gang recording support.

The What Else: Ki Pro GO v2.0 increases the maximum bitrate to 25Mbps for improved recording quality, well suited for live production scenarios with complex stage and concert lighting. The new firmware also provides 4:2:2 color space and 10-bit options for even richer imagery capture. Users can now choose from five recording settings including Low for talking heads, conference backups, security recording, and more; Med-Low; Medium for more complex content; Med-High; and High for fast moving, highly detailed content like sports. These expanded recording options are unique for any H.264 recorder, and answer the needs of AV professionals as requested by AJA Ki Pro GO customers.

Related: Technology Manager’s Guide to End-To-End Streaming Media 

New enhanced super out and front-panel audio monitoring also display the remaining media percentage and audio meters for all four video channels for improved user monitoring. Ki Pro GO v2.0 further expands timecode choices by offering a new option for LTC on one of the analog audio inputs, enabling the second analog audio input channel to function as a mono input. Additionally, the firmware introduces new in-system media formatting, eliminating the need for a separate PC. Network file downloading allows for more streamlined ease of use in critical live production environments, giving the user the option to move recorded files to a central server on the LAN. Gang support has also been added so that users can easily connect multiple Ki Pro GO devices together via easy to use Ethernet, and control the entire group of devices using one unit via Ki Pro GO’s rich web-based UI or front-panel button controls.

“In response to overwhelming support from our customers, we’ve upgraded Ki Pro GO with increased recording and timecode capabilities not available anywhere else in the market,” said Nick Rashby, president, AJA Video Systems. “We continue to build upon the foundation of our iconic Ki Pro family to develop new features ideal for H.264 capture and production scenarios, making Ki Pro GO more powerful than ever.”

The Bottom Line: Targeted at a range of broadcast, pro AV, and live event production environments where H.264 is the primary capture codec, Ki Pro GO offers up to four channels of simultaneous HD or SD recording from HDMI or SDI sources, direct to off-the-shelf USB drives.

Ki Pro GO v2.0 firmware is available now as a free download from the AJA website.

The What: Broadcast Pix is launching StreamingPix, a complete live production and streaming solution designed for easy setup and use, with powerful features for the creation of compelling professional content.

The What Else: StreamingPix features a RoboPix PTZ camera with integrated remote control; high-quality audio capture using a LAV microphone; SDI, HDMI, IP, and NDI inputs for the ability to input PowerPoint and social media; "ready-to-use" clips and graphics library; media-aware macros to make content visually interesting; one-to-many streaming to popular streaming services, such as Facebook Live, YouTube Live, Vimeo, and more; virtual meetings, including Zoom, Skype, Go to Meeting, and more; and control from a configurable software interface.

The Bottom Line: StreamingPix is suited for a wide range of applications including aquariums, zoos, churches, corporations, events, schools, universities, and all users who want to take streaming to the next level.

StreamingPix leverages many of the same tried and tested acquisition, production, automation, and streaming tools as Broadcast Pix's professional products, but with easy-to-use control interfaces and a library of clips and graphics.

To read more InfoComm Connected stories, visit avnetwork.com/tag/infocomm.

As schools worldwide have temporarily closed campuses in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the demand for distance learning programming across media channels has exploded. In Korea, the local Educational Broadcasting System (EBS), responsible for delivering informative and educational content to the public, has quickly transformed into the new digital classroom, accelerating the output of its instructional programming video for K-12 students across the region. The organization is making its content accessible to local children daily from 9am-12pm on the EBS Learning YouTube Channel to give students the tools they need to remain engaged, inspired, and educated until public schooling resumes. Each live stream is powered by an AJA HELO H.264 streaming and recording device.

Related: The Technology Manager's Guide to Distance Learning and Streaming

Affiliated with the Korean Broadcasting System (KBS), EBS runs two terrestrial and four cable stations using four large studios and 16 e-learning studios. It’s used AJA HELOs to support YouTube streaming since 2019, so when the time came to upgrade its facility in early 2020, EBS’ positive experience with the unit prompted it to invest in additional HELOs. Having benefited from the device’s reliability and high-quality video, EBS expanded its HELO integration to ten of its e-learning studios to support live streaming to its website and YouTube. In each studio sits a SONY PMW-EX3 camera with a wireless micro mux connected to an AJA HELO, which is used to quickly and easily stream live camera feeds to YouTube.

“We’ve been using AJA HELO since 2019 and it’s been really helpful for our broadcasting with its excellent features and quality,” said Mr. Suk Joong Kim, head engineer, EBS. “As EBS is a public service broadcasting station, we have to be fully dedicated to produce high quality programs and we must always pay the utmost attention in selecting the device and equipment. This time, we could adopt HELO again for our facility renovation without any hesitation as HELO is the most reliable product for us. We installed 10 additional HELO units in our new e-learning studios. For the time being, EBS will strive to cover the deficiency of the school education system raised by the COVID-19, by collaborating with the main domestic portals and IPTVs. Henceforth, EBS will continue to dedicate itself to the development of public education and support lifelong education in Korea.” 

In order to keep parishioners connected while in quarantine, Mount Hope Church in Lansing, MI has been presenting its services via livestream to the community. To control the audio in these broadcasts, Dave Berry, the church’s media and tech associate, has been using the Waves eMotion LV1 Live Mixer and Waves plugins.

“We have two LV1 systems in use in our broadcast studio and the second in our road system,” Berry said. “Our first LV1 rig started out for our livestream, then we pulled it to use for FOH during a long weekend statewide youth conference and then back to broadcast. Its timing back to broadcast was rather strange, since that was when the COVID-19 quarantine in Michigan began, and the LV1 has been an incredible solution during this crazy time.” 

Related: Tech Managers Share Streaming Strategies 

“We decided that we needed a long-term, cost-effective solution that had crazy flexibility and ease of use, but with amazing sound. In addition, sound quality out of the box has to be number-one, and flexibility has to be second. We only used out-of-the-box plugins and ran a full-band production with IEMs, and it sounded amazing. The best part was that I felt so confident that the techs could run, patch, and troubleshoot any issues that I didn’t feel the need to stick around. The point is that there is a younger generation that is more comfortable with two screens than they are with any large-size console.

Another great thing about the LV1 is that for the most part it is plug-and-play. Obviously, it’s great for a large church, and I even see guys traveling the world and running large tours with this system. And, I would speak to the small churches and say if you’re looking for a tool that’s easy to set up, operate, and give you the ‘large console’ options, but with low cost, this is for you as well. This is also why we have chosen Waves for our ‘tech in a box’ setup for our future campuses. We need quick plug-and-play with amazing sound, but small in size.

“When it comes to networking and portability, the LV1 is super simple. Get a supported switch, plug in, and go! We do run a full Dante audio network, simply because this was in place prior to the LV1. We convert using a DiGiCo Orange Box to Waves SoundGrid and have never once had an issue. I have seen systems with very expensive switches and some, like ours, with a $100 switch, and guess what? They sound the same. Our Waves SoundGrid Extreme Server and Orange Box are actually in our control room about 300 feet from where we mix broadcast, without issue. Another big point for networking is the ability to remote into the system and control or troubleshoot with a mobile system. This is a key part of our ‘tech in a box’ solution for mobile campuses, and the ability to help a volunteer remotely and train them is priceless.”

On his must-have Waves plugins, Berry noted, “The Dugan Automixer is huge. We run a post-service recap simply using three mics (nothing huge), but I can, within seconds, turn on the Dugan plugin with these mics, turn them up, and feel confident they are at one level for broadcast. The F6 Floating-Band Dynamic EQ is a dream plugin. We use this on most channels to both expand and reduce where needed. We also use the F6 on our band group, side-chained to our vocal group, to ever-so-slightly notch out a path for vocals. We run the Abbey Road TG Mastering Chain on the master buss. By itself, it adds clarity, and we also use it to spread out and glue our final mix. The L2 Utramaximizer gives you the volume that you need and consistency in your mix. The CLA-76 Compressor / Limiter (Bluey) on vocals has become my favorite. I can’t always describe what it does to vocals, other than the obvious compression, but it just adds so much clarity and control. Lastly, the Waves Vitamin Sonic Enhancer has to make the list. We use this on keys to add a stereo spread on certain frequencies.

“I also have to give a shout-out to the Waves Tech Support network of people that are all invested in the LV1. Waves live phone support is first-class! I made an error installing updates the day before a service, and they had me up and running in no time. Also, the Waves Facebook groups have a wide range of people, from touring professionals to people like me, and they are always there to help and answer questions. In addition, Waves offers many online courses and other options such as meet-and-greets with tours; also worth mentioning is that MxU has a crazy number of videos that have a great way of breaking down audio (and lighting). So, the overall support is first-class. 

“Our plan is to roll out the eMotion LV1 into every one of our venues (Sanctuary, Youth, Children’s, Chapel, and Symposium) within our facility. We also have a goal to launch 100 campuses in the next five years, where most of them will require sound-support, and the eMotion LV1 will be part of a standard solution. My take on the LV1 is that you are only limited on sound quality based on your ability. Considering that most major touring acts and recording artists use Waves plugins on their records, it’s amazing to realize that you start with a raw system that allows you to build your sound using those very same tools. It’s like having an open toolbox with unlimited tools right in front of you. The Waves eMotion LV1 really is only limited to the operator’s ability.”

Webcomic and gaming company Penny Arcade is using a variety of Blackmagic Design products, including an ATEM Mini live production switcher, to power its live streaming workflow for several weekly online shows. The shows air live on Penny Arcade’s Twitch channel, “PennyArcade,” and are later uploaded to its YouTube channel, “pennyarcadeTV” (PATV), attracting tens of thousands of viewers.

What started as a thrice-weekly comic strip has since become one of the most popular and longest-running webcomics online, creating and distributing gaming content to millions of readers globally. Over the years, Penny Arcade has grown its business to include PAX, one of the largest gaming festivals in North America that also uses Blackmagic Design gear for live production; Child’s Play, the largest gaming charity in North America; and PATV, home to its video and media content, merchandise, podcasts, and more.

Related: NewTek Ships Latest TriCaster Mini 4K With Tools for Small Production Teams

In building out its video content, Penny Arcade wanted a more professional live streaming workflow and sleeker look for its productions. Producer Joshua Price and his team stepped in, transforming a meeting space into a production studio outfitted with a multitude of Blackmagic Design gear.

To power its live streaming workflows, Penny Arcade is using ATEM Mini and ATEM Television Studio Pro 4K switchers along with Micro Studio Camera 4K, URSA Broadcast, and URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2 cameras.

“When I originally received the ATEM Mini, I planned on using it as supplementary or as a travel switcher to help when needed,” Price said. “Once I started using it and learned how powerful it was, especially when leveraging its ATEM Control Software, ATEM Advanced Chroma Key, and picture-in-picture functionality, I immediately put it to work in our secondary studio in my office. We run two Micro Studio Camera 4Ks and two computers as the four inputs in a sort of mirror setup on either side of my desk with one camera serving as a face cam with a green screen behind it, and the other on the opposite side capturing a couch and television set up for gaming content. Because the ATEM Mini is so small and flexible, I still bring it with me wherever I go so that I have a switcher with me at all times.”

Initially, Penny Arcade selected the ATEM Television Studio Pro 4K to switch overhead Micro Studio Camera 4Ks in the primary studio, but quickly realized that it could also replace its main camera switcher.

“Now we’re using a second ATEM Television Studio Pro 4K with the URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2s and URSA Broadcasts, sometimes adding the Micro Studio Camera 4Ks to the mix if necessary,” Price said. “We try a lot of new things and bring in a variety of different board and tabletop games and other projects that require custom solutions to showcase them in the best possible way. Having the two switchers with full hands on control of the camera settings gives us that flexibility.

“For us, the URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2 and URSA Broadcast cameras’ ease of use is incomparable. We can bounce from camera to camera for interactive multi camera live streams, and because their build is basically the same, we can easily swap between cameras without needing to adjust, and the images work together seamlessly. In addition, the URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2’s large sensor allows us to get in closer and have a wider field of view in our small studio where space is premium without having to move to an ultrawide lens and deal with the inherent distortion of the image.”

Four Micro Studio Camera 4Ks are mounted in the primary studio’s ceiling, capturing overhead shots of board games, dice trays, and other top-down action. A fifth Micro Studio Camera 4K is on a monopod that can be moved around to shoot as necessary, and a few others are set up throughout to studio to capture shots from different angles.

Rounding out its camera gear is a Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K that Penny Arcade uses to shoot advertisements, anything impromptu, and even behind-the-scenes shots. “The Pocket Cinema Camera 4K is a workhorse,” Price said. “Even though it’s small, it’s extremely powerful and the images it captures are stunning. I even take it with me when I travel to events like PAX to shoot anything quick and dirty.”

Additionally, Penny Arcade is using HyperDeck Studio Mini recorders, DeckLink 8K Pro, and DeckLink Quad HDMI Recorder capture and playback cards and a Teranex Mini SDI Distribution 12G converter. Two DeckLink 8K Pros allow Penny Arcade to bring full 4K signals into a streaming computer for easy image manipulation in the streaming software and to make corrections to framing or for digital zooms without any loss of quality. Three HyperDeck Studio Minis are used for backup recording from the main cameras when shooting multi camera content and as splitters to feed direct outs into the computer.

“Using a full Blackmagic Design workflow has really simplified our work,” Price said. “When you look at our streams, you can tell from the image quality and how smoothly they run. We are excited to continue using Blackmagic Design for future Penny Arcade projects.”

Lawo, a German audio, video, network, and control company, and Bogota, Colombia-based Caracol TV recently devised a solution enabling the company's engineers to monitor and meter critical audio signals from home.

Remote production has been a core piece of Lawo’s IP solutions for years thanks to involvement worldwide with TV and streaming productions of major sports or cultural events around the world. Now, remote FAT (Factory Acceptance Testing), training, and equipment demonstrations are a part of the portfolio as well.

Related: FOR-A HVS-2000 Switcher Enables Large-Scale Streaming Production with a Small Crew

Caracol recently purchased a 48-fader mc²56 mixing console with DALLIS frame for its News Studio, another mc²56 for their new OB van, and a mc²36 console for its Studio 10 facility. 

Caracol safety protocols during COVID-19 require that the company’s engineers be able to work remotely, so they contacted Lawo for a solution. On April 30, Lawo engineer Daniel Egea demonstrated remote monitoring solutions for Caracol engineers via two possible monitoring methods: one employing Lawo AoIP Stream Monitor software, and a second using RƎLAY VPB software. Both solutions use RAVENNA/AES67 connectivity to monitor the mc² consoles.

Since the demonstration of both setups met Caracol’s requirements, both software packages will be configured for long-term tests, and eventually will be a permanent part of their studio installation.

“The question for us was, how can the engineers both listen to and meter the audio signals while not on site?” Egea said.

The solution was an infrastructure that allowed the mc² console core to supply its audio signals to a facility computer. “Audio signals were supplied to the streaming network via the RAVENNA card in the core and collected from the network on a PC using AoIP Stream Monitor or RƎLAY VPB software. By accessing this computer via Teamviewer or Remote Desktop through a second NIC, Caracol engineers can now conveniently monitor the most important signals from home. This setup offers a very flexible monitoring situation and has intuitive GUIs to quickly create a suitable monitoring overview.”

Lawo's solutions can not only broadcast world championships and other games remotely but are also well suited for customer-oriented services, according to Jesús Lozano, CEO of Lawo solutions partner Videoelec.

“The corona pandemic has certainly pushed the advancement of remote infrastructures, but Lawo has placed much importance on developing products and solutions for remote purposes for years,” Lozano said. “Now we can use them not only for production but also, under adverse circumstances like the pandemic, for keeping project timetables and delivery schedules, and for enabling customers to remain on air or in production.” 

Custom Media Solutions, a live event video production company based in Cumming, GA, has provided streaming coverage of The Orange Conference, an annual event in Atlanta for Christian family ministry teams, for years. With its backstage experience, the company created an online presence for people who could not attend. When the COVID-19 pandemic forced Orange Conference 2020 to convert from a live, arena-sized event to a three-day streaming program that began on April 29, CMS relied on its HVS-2000 video switcher from FOR-A Corporation of America to deliver a high-end production to a much larger online audience.

“We automated as much as possible using the features from the switcher,” said Marc Shroyer, president of CMS. “We had a couple of still stores with user flags and a lot of lower-thirds from the ProPresenter presentation system. We used DVEs for picture-in-picture looks that we could display on the multi-view at all times, so we could decide when to use them on the fly.”

Related: NewTek Ships Latest TriCaster Mini 4K With Tools for Small Production Teams

Most of the content was prerecorded, but live hosts connected the short segments together. Orange converted its local retail store, which was temporarily closed, into three studio sets. Client cameras were used as studio cameras for the two main sets, and robotic cameras were positioned above the two sets to provide wide transition shots and a birds-eye view for the production crew. The third set, located upstairs and equipped with CMS’s Hitachi production cameras, hosted two live keynote presentations.

Due to social distancing requirements, CMS had to produce the event using less than half of its usual crew in its production trailer. The coverage required 16 inputs, 10 keyers, 11 DVEs, and at least four AUX buses. “The FOR-A was great, it always performs for us,” Shroyer said.

One challenge the production faced was integrating a Zoom-based game show into the live program. During the game, the video switcher received two separate computer feeds, so the TD had the option of taking the Zoom gallery display of the four players or the full-screen speaker display. The host interacted with all four players through a monitor on the set (populated by one of the HVS-2000 AUX buses), which showed the Zoom gallery display as a picture-in-picture inside the game graphics and allowed the players to the see the game board. To avoid audio feedback, a USB interface sent the mix/minus from the digital mixer to the participants.

The ProPresenter system was used for playback of the recorded content, and two keys were used to show the timers from the ProPresenter’s second display on the confidence monitors. A backup system rolled the videos on a slight time delay. Each of the two main sets had a confidence monitor, which received feeds from the HVS-2000’s AUX bus.

Using the HVS-2000’s internal GPI system called user flags, the AUX bus feeding the confidence monitor would switch automatically to the second display from the backup system when necessary, so the hosts and crew always knew when the recorded content would end. The user flag would also make it switch it back to the primary stage display graphics when any other source was selected.

There were two streaming feeds: the main feed provided all programming to the Orange website, while a second feed only shared the two-hour main session to Facebook Live on April 29. At one point, the production had to cut the Thursday night feed to Facebook Live because of potential music copyright issues.

In anticipation of the interruption, Shroyer created a GPI interface between the HVS-2000 and a Clear-Com intercom system to allow switcher commands to be fired from communication panels at several stations in the production truck. From his location in engineering, Shroyer switched the AUX feed with transition to a graphic (without sound) and keyed a countdown timer from the ProPresenter system using the HVS-2000’s key over AUX function to let the Facebook Live audience know when programming would resume.

“Production companies appreciate the flexibility of the HVS-2000, which went from backstage to center stage for Orange Conference 2020,” said Adam Daniul, FOR-A director of Midwest and South regional sales. “We are proud to partner with Custom Media Solutions and provide the live production equipment to help them deliver high-quality coverage for such a prominent event.”

The What: TVU Networks’ flagship TVU One cellular mobile transmitter is now shipping with an integrated 5G modem. 

The What Else: TVU has partnered with major commercial network carriers including South Korea-based KT Corp and modem module manufacturers such as Canada-based Sierra Wireless in identifying 5G modems for its TVU One HEVC/H.265 1080p HDR and 4K HDR models. In addition, the TVU One operating with 5G modems was fully stress tested under various use conditions in locations such as China and Korea during development.

Related: JVC Professional to Debut HEVC Encoder for Connected Cam Series at NAB 2020

“We are fortunate to be working with the very best partners in developing embedded 5G modems for our TVU One to bring to the industry,” said Matt McEwen, VP of product management, TVU Networks. “From the very beginning, our transmitters were engineered to support 5G, and we’re excited to be able to offer full cellular broadcast transmission capabilities on 5G networks with our flagship TVU One today. Despite the challenging circumstances we are all facing, our focus continues to be on supporting our customers and the larger community with business continuity initiatives and our announcement today is an example of that commitment.”

“Sierra Wireless is proud to support another generation of TVU One portable IP video transmitters, enabling TVU to deliver secure, reliable connectivity at the highest possible mobile broadband speeds for the broadcasting industry,” said Larry Zibrik, vice president 5G and embedded broadband, Sierra Wireless. “Sierra Wireless’ 5G EM919x embedded modules are powering the next-generation of high-bandwidth, low-latency applications, and it’s great to see TVU bring its latest device to market.”

The Bottom Line: TVU One 1080p HDR and 4K HDR are TVU’s sixth-generation mobile IP video transmitters. With the introduction of embedded 5G in the TVU transmitter line, remote production now enters a whole new phase with a TVU One solution that delivers HEVC/H.265 efficient video compression, TVU Inverse StatMux Plus (IS+) algorithm for improved transmission reliability, true 60 FPS frame rate, 10-bit HDR support, and the ability to send at 70Mbps over a 5G cellular infrastructure. TVU One also transmits simultaneously over multiple aggregated connections, including cellular 3G/4G/LTE/5G, microwave, satellite, BGAN, Wi-Fi, and Ethernet.

Clear-Com’s Agent-IC mobile app is helping productions around the world operate from the homes of staff and on-screen talent due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The app for iOS and Android turns smartphones, tablets, and wearable devices into fully featured intercom panels with connectivity over Wi-Fi, 3G, 4G, and LTE networks.

“Clear-Com has always had a broad offering of products and solutions for various workflows and working conditions,” said Bob Boster, president, Clear-Com. “While it would be fair to say we never imagined our current scenario, Agent-IC is providing a simple yet highly effective solution to help production teams working from home all over the world stay connected.”

Related: NewTek Ships Latest TriCaster Mini 4K With Tools for Small Production Teams

Since its launch in 2015, Agent-IC has been used as a communication solution between facility-based staff and production teams on location for field reporting, live event production, remote coordination, and other critical tasks. Local and remote LQ devices can access up to 48 Agent-IC users, where LQ acts as a server for the app. With a Clear-Com’s Eclipse mainframe in the studio, many more Agent-IC users can access the production intercom remotely—the number of users able to access the main intercom can vary depending on the quantity of IP ports on the E-IPA cards.

Broadcast stations of varying sizes throughout the world, including Verizon Media, Philadelphia’s WFMZ/WDPN-TV and Germany’s Home Shopping Europe (HSE24), are now looking to Agent-IC to meet their production needs from home, and in the last two weeks alone, more than 30 customers have added the app to their networks, according to Clear-Com.

For Verizon Media, the adaptive connectivity of its Eclipse frame has allowed production teams to take advantage of their Agent-IC mobile clients, granting full remote access to connect comms to their base intercom system without having anyone in the studio.

“Agent IC has been the communications glue that has allowed Yahoo Finance and Verizon Media to run fully remote productions during the current COVID-19 situation in New York City—a lifesaver,” said Dan Brantigan, Verizon Media’s head of audio.

HSE24 is using Agent-IC as a full-fledged intercom system and for in-ear monitoring, connecting live experts to the bidirectional intercom lines from the main studio to the other external locations. They have been integrating additional Agent-IC licenses into their existing Eclipse intercom system on a need-basis, which has proven to be a cost-effective and easy-to-deploy solution.

“Due to the current situation we had to move some of our live productions to remote offices,” said Norbert Wilinski, broadcast engineer for HSE24. “Thanks to the seamless integration of Clear-Com’s Agent-IC app, remote staff were able to continue producing live content, maintaining our usual workflow and guaranteeing real-time command.”

Jeff Kuhns at WFMZ/WDPN-TV also recognized the practicality and convenience of Agent-IC in today’s circumstances. “With our company requiring our news producers to work from home, Agent-IC has been a vital key to our success and our staff is amazed with the flexibility it has given them. Having a full intercom panel on their mobile device allows them to interact with our production team, news anchors, ENG crews and reporters in real time, from their home office. It’s a vital tool for today’s work environment.”

Multiple options for connectivity help staff in choosing the best option for their geographic location and time of day, depending on local broadband speeds. 3G, 4G, LTE and Wi-Fi network operation allows for load balancing of interaction with the studio—without necessarily using the same network resources as the editing tools—and can help secure communications without endangering the higher bandwidth required for program content such as video and graphics.

“It is important to note that while these home adaptations of intercom systems are crucial in today’s work-from-home landscape, Agent-IC is not likely to replace conventional workflows once this crisis subsides,” Boster clarified. “Not everyone has the space to accommodate the remote production of a sporting event, for example, that can take up to 10 hours, and there are latency issues to address while on Wi-Fi that could be a concern for program content. But for this situation, it is a great interim solution,” he said.

The What: NewTek is shipping the latest version of the TriCaster Mini 4K. New enhancements to the compact, live multicamera video production system include features like Live Story Creator and LivePanel, designed to make the production of network-quality shows easier for lone producers or small teams.

The What Else: Live Story Creator allows an individual to run an entire production from a Microsoft Word document. A script built in Microsoft Word includes triggers actions when loaded into the TriCaster Mini 4K, allowing the storyteller to concentrate solely on delivery of the message rather than on technical setup and production.

Related: NewTek Ships Accessible UHD PTZ Camera

LivePanel introduces customizable, browser-based remote control of the TriCaster Mini 4K from anywhere on the same local area network, letting anyone including the presenter control live switching, compositing, mix/effects, media playback, audio, automation, and more, from devices including tablets, smartphones, and laptops. Configurable macros are now also supported, allowing routine but complex tasks and sequences to be executed at the push of a button.

Two channels of Skype input allow simultaneous guest contributors to participate from their studios, laptops, or phones across the globe, all presented with broadcast graphics for titles, double box effects, and more. TriCaster Mini 4K will also ship with two recently announced Spark Plus IO 4K p60 encode/decode converters, enabling IP-based, NDI-first workflows using existing inputs and outputs.

“NewTek’s mission has always been to make it possible for a single person or a small team to deliver a show that looks like real television. There has never been a time when this has been more relevant,” said Dr. Andrew Cross, president of R&D for the Vizrt Group. “The new TriCaster Mini 4K allows anyone from CEOs to ministers to teachers to create amazing shows and get them online from virtually anywhere.”

The Bottom Line: The enhanced TriCaster Mini 4K is designed to provide easy setup with extensive live production capabilities including broadcast-quality, fully customizable virtual sets to turn any living room, garage, or basement into a professional studio reflecting the identity or brand of any business, house of worship, school, or agency. Broadcast graphics, media playback, one-touch automated control, multi-channel remote Skype video calling, integrated replay, social media integration, and more are all delivered at up to full UHD p60 resolution.

TriCaster Mini 4K is now available at $7,995 USMSRP.

Producing a television show in one day is fairly routine, but when the technical teams are made up of 10- and 11-year-old schoolchildren whose only prior TV experience is deciding what to watch, it gets a bit more challenging. 

That’s what the Rise organization— an advocacy group promoting gender diversity, education, and awareness of STEM topics—recently experienced when they hosted the latest in an ongoing series of unique TV production workshops, but the results were more rewarding than any ratings win or commercial success.

The organization's Rise Up series of workshops are designed to give students hands-on experience with broadcast technologies while working alongside industry professionals; Rise worked with Clear-Com and broadcast industry sponsors BT Sport and ITV on its most recent events.

Each workshop follows a similar format: produce a quiz show-style program in one day, using middle-school students as the technical and creative staff. For John Sparrow, EMEA senior systems consultant at Clear-Com, the March workshop was his second experience supporting the Rise Up program with a communications system provided by Clear-Com, and he found the process both fascinating and gratifying. 

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“The students were silent at the beginning of the day, filing in orderly and taking their seats,” he said. “Then, a buzz of chatter and excitement led to utter chaos that evolved into real teamwork. They all got through it and by the end of the day their shared sense of achievement was amazing to see.”

The day began with an introduction to the basics of television production, presented by Rise Up team leader Andy Beale of BT Sport who covered TV video and audio transmission including pixels and color, show direction, camera operations, graphics, audio, lighting, visual effects, and communications. Next, the students were divided into groups led by a volunteer from the industry and they were told to find the equipment and cable it together. 

The morning session was dedicated to building a studio and setting up the quiz show’s production workflow. After a lunch break, the teams focused on rehearsals, script revisions, commercial breaks and every other element of a TV production, with the students rotating so everyone would have a turn at learning a new role.

“It's quite intense, but also a lot of fun,” Sparrow said. “We take them through the whole process step by step. It’s less about actually producing TV content and more about helping the students learn, giving them confidence, providing a hands-on experience with engineering, and exposing them to a potential career path they might not have otherwise considered.”

Rise plans to continue the workshop series at schools throughout the U.K., and then expand the program to other countries. New groups of industry professionals will be continually trained as team leaders, furthering the original Rise goal of mentoring and fostering relationships between industry professionals and students that can last throughout a career or lifetime—with the mentees one day becoming mentors to others.

In addition to Clear-Com, BT Sport and ITV, other companies providing their technology and expertise for the Rise Up workshops include Sky, Telegenic OB, dB Broadcast, Timeline TV, and Blackmagic, as well as many freelance volunteers. 

The What: In an effort to support the industry’s evolving digital broadcast and production workflows, Marshall Electronics has introduced four new IP cameras: the CV730-BK Camera, the CV630-IP PTZ Camera, the CV420-30X-IP Camera, and the CV355-30X-IP Camera. These new offerings give Marshall Electronics customers the ability to easily integrate versatile HD and UHD video into any IP-based workflow.

The What Else: These new cameras provide a wide variety of resolution options—the CV730-BK PTZ Camera provides up to UHD (3840x2160) video resolutions at 60fps through IP, HDMI, and 12GSDI simultaneous outputs; the CV630-IP PTZ Camera offers UHD (3840x2160) resolution up to 30fps through IP and HDMI outputs, and 1920x1080p (HD) outputs at 60fps through 3GSDI; the CV420-30X-IP Zoom Camera provides up to UHD (3840x2160p) resolution at 60fps through simultaneous HDMI and IP streams; and the CV355-30X-IP delivers up to HD (1920x1080p) resolution at 60fps through 3G/HD-SDI, IP, and HDMI. All four models offer 30X optical zoom range, allowing users to capture fine detail in every shot, even from longer distances.

“As IP-based workflows start to replace SDI, these new IP cameras are an exciting addition to the Marshall camera family,” said Tod Musgrave, director of cameras at Marshall Electronics. “Marshall Electronics continues to present new products to the marketplace that meet changing workflow requirements. Our new IP cameras also now provide a range of resolutions from 4K, UHD, and HD, offering an IP camera model that fits every specific project need with multiple simultaneous outputs.”

The Bottom Line:  All four cameras are equipped with a next-generation 8.5-megapixel (MP) image sensor. Power can be supplied over Ethernet (PoE) or powered separately with a 12V power supply providing flexible and easy solutions for integrators. Remote control and adjustment can be delivered using the same PoE input, or dedicated RS-232 (Cat5/6) using published Visca over IP commands. 

Additionally, a 3.5mm audio input on the rear panel enables stereo audio embedding via AAC/G.711 encoding over IP with 44.1/48K sampling frequency on all models.

Texas A&M Athletics' 12th Man Productions, which handles the television production needs for Aggies sports—including content for 12thMan.com, TV shows, videoboard presentations, and ESPN’s SEC Network productions—recently moved into a new facility at the south end zone at redeveloped Kyle Field. 

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The new facility was created with a nearly $12 million investment in the electronics infrastructure to serve Texas A&M athletics, and features four HD control rooms, an ESPN bureau cam studio, a main studio set area, a radio broadcast room, and six post-production edit rooms. 12th Man Productions—which employs 18 full-time staff members and up to 90 Texas A&M undergraduate students—produces 110 events a year, and the facility's multiple control rooms allow the staff to produce side-by-side productions for the SEC Network from different venues as well as support in-venue shows at the same time.

With the Kyle Field renovation, the team began moving toward an IP infrastructure for their audio network. In total, the new infrastructure has 48 fiber optic runs that tie the control center to the school's seven main sports venues. Over the last few years, they have been working to control all venues from the centralized area.

"When we started the renovation, we had to choose our audio network platform, and it was obvious that Dante fit our immediate needs and was also supported by the industry enough to cover our future plans," said Zack Bacon, chief broadcast engineer for Texas A&M, who oversees all technical support for the 12th Man Productions facility. "We definitely have an extensive Dante deployment, and we're trying to grow it as much as possible. It's a great technology, and we can vouch for its flexibility and how using the IP infrastructure allows us to do a lot of things we wouldn't otherwise be able to do."

Bacon explained that as a centralized facility, audio from all facilities is transported to the production control rooms via Dante, and nearly all audio for broadcast is on a Dante network as well. The team produces everything essentially through Dante with Yamaha consoles. The audio signals are mixed, married to the video, and then either used within the venue or broadcast out. The team also has a direct fiber connection to ESPN, allowing them to share audio and video content directly.

"We have four control rooms, so we're able to do two sports at a time," Bacon said. “That means two big-screen shows and two ESPN broadcasts simultaneously, so things can get pretty hectic—and we're relying on Dante more and more so we can be as efficient and responsive as possible."

Recently, the team upgraded their Studio Tech 214 announcer consoles to be Dante native, improving audio quality and signal flexibility. The team has also integrated this type of Dante connectivity into their intercom system and are able to directly patch the announcer consoles into the intercom system as well as the audio mixer. Now, when they need to feed audio in and out of the intercom, they can do it straight through the Dante network and into whatever source or destination desired.

"There are multiple ways we could get it into Dante and to the PA mixer, but we run it through our console and do direct out, then we set up the shared audio group within Domain Manager," Bacon said. "Then we just do the patching in the Dante Controller, and as long as we have the network infrastructure set up, everything just works."

The PA systems are distributed audio DSP networks that are all interconnected by Dante because of the large distances covered. The Dante network delivers the signal to a network of Harman London BLU DSPs, and from there to the individual amplifiers.

"With Dante Domain Manager in the football stadium, we've already seen the benefits integrating the PA and being able to send multiple sources to the PA mixing console, as opposed to previously, we would only be able to send two," Bacon said. "We're currently working with and sending about six audio signals, but we can obviously send a lot more. This has been a very convenient and efficient way for us to improve our workflow to make sure we're getting audio to the PA and the football stadium so that the show can go smoothly, and everybody can hear it cleanly."

Dante Domain Manager is network management software that enables user authentication, role-based security, and audit capabilities for Dante networks while allowing expansion of Dante systems over any network infrastructure. Dante Domain Manager organizes a network into zones called "domains" that each have individual access requirements, making it clear who can access any area of the system. All activity is logged, tagged, and date-stamped so problems can be quickly identified and solved.

With Dante Domain Manager, Bacon and the 12th Man Productions team is able to route their audio signals across subnets to cover the multiple venues and the production areas. Donte Domain Manager enables the team to create management groups and to segment areas, venues, subnets, and production rooms as needed. The team is now able to create some very granular control and security parameters across the network.

"Our student workers do many functions for us—everything from operating cameras to post-production—and we have about 20 student engineers as well who are out in the field making sure everything is working and are actually connecting everything and mixing the shows," Bacon said. "Our student engineers are trained on Dante Domain Manager, and they now do the routing and patching for the various productions, and we don't want operators mistakenly going into Dante Controller and re-routing anything that might impact other simultaneous events."

Dante Domain Manager coordinates multiple subnets, allowing Dante audio to be used across networks of nearly any complexity or size. Dante Domain Manager enables audio to be plugged into any Ethernet jack, anywhere on campus, and route the audio data to where it needs to go. Users of Dante-enabled devices do not have to perform any special configuration; Dante Domain Manager completely automates this task.