BroadcastAsia 2014: Imagine Communications Bringing Latest IP, Broadcast Infrastructure, Software-Defined Workflow Innovations

Imagine Communications, a market leader of media software and video infrastructure solutions serving the global broadcast, service provider and enterprise markets, today announced that it will showcase the latest innovations in its integrated, end-to-end solutions portfolio at the BroadcastAsia 2014 exhibition and conference taking place in Singapore this week.

Visitors to the Imagine Communications stand, number 5B3-03, will experience demonstrations of advanced solutions and learn more about the company’s service-oriented, IP-based, software-defined frameworks that fundamentally improve the way media organizations manage their workflows and monetise their content assets.

“Our company has made tremendous advances this year, from the transformation of Harris Broadcast into Imagine Communications to the unveiling of our bold new vision and technology innovations,” said Joe Khodeir, Senior Vice President for Asia at Imagine Communications. “We are uniquely positioned to lead our customers through the dramatic changes occurring in the media business, optimally addressing their needs today while providing a smooth transition path to a future defined by IP networks, software-defined workflows and virtualisation. BroadcastAsia is an ideal opportunity to showcase our innovations and discuss our vision with customers, partners and industry luminaries in this thriving region.”

Among the many solutions being demonstrated at the Imagine Communications stand will be a number of new products, updates and technologies making their Pacific Rim exhibition debut at BroadcastAsia 2014, including:

Signal Processing and Compression: The new Selenio X100 1RU processor offers a unique architecture future-proofed for IP and UltraHD that easily integrates into the signal workflow of any broadcast environment, while new modules for the Selenio MCP platform enable high-performance contribution encoding for live events with new JPEG2000 support and highly efficient satellite distribution via a dual-channel DVB-S/S2 demodulator.

Software-Defined Workflows: The Xenio workflow management foundation provides an agile software engine that enables broadcasters and service providers to design, deploy and manage customisable software-defined workflows that can be quickly scaled and adapted to capitalise on new service opportunities.

TV Everywhere: The SelenioNext adaptive bit rate (ABR) transcoder optimises space and power efficiency with up to 10 times the density of competing solutions, while SelenioFlex software-based media processing solutions, powered by Xenio, provide flexible live and file-based encoding and transcoding for applications ranging from production to multiscreen distribution.

These newest introductions will be shown alongside additional market-leading solutions including Nexio and Versio playout systems; Platinum routing systems; Landmark media software; the Selenio 6800+ signal processing platform; and InfoCaster digital signage.

UK’s CTV Selects Platinum IP3 Router From Imagine Communications for Mobile Production
Imagine Communications supplied a Platinum IP3 routing solution to leading European outside broadcast company CTV. In addition to routing, the Platinum IP3 will provide a broad range of signal processing and multiviewer functionality to meet a variety of CTV’s mobile production requirements, including coverage of the English cricket season.

“Designing a big outside broadcast truck is a huge challenge, because we are under constant pressure to add functionality while staying within the weight and size limits to take the truck on the road,” said Hamish Greig, Technical Director of CTV. “Because the Platinum router family does so much including frame synchronisation, mux and demux, and multiviewers, it saves considerable space and weight, as well as reduces operational complexity by eliminating the need for external frames and the associated cabling — all of which are real bonuses. Add to that the ability to integrate IP signal routing to help make it future-proof, and it becomes the only sensible choice for a new truck.”

The Platinum IP3 router processes and switches audio and video signals and provides multiviewer outputs for monitor wall applications, all in a single frame. The platform also provides many other functions, and in the new CTV truck, it handles critical signal processing functions such as audio multiplexing and de-multiplexing, and MADI-to-AES conversion. The Platinum IP3 also provides all signal synchronisation and distribution, while the large quantity of multiviewers in the production area of the truck is also powered by the router.

By incorporating all this additional functionality inside the routing platform, the truck’s designers can make the installation much more compact. Weight is reduced because of the significant reduction in inter-device cabling, and fewer spares are needed because of the simple, modular internal design of the Platinum IP3. At the same time, the architecture of the platform inherently provides redundancy of crosspoints and power supplies, helping to ensure very high availability.

“Providing much more than just switching, the Platinum IP3 was designed to be a complete signal management centre with a modular architecture that makes it both compact and highly reliable through redundancy,” said Kerry Wheeles, CTO, Networking Products for Imagine Communications. “It is ideal for 3 Gb/s 1080p video applications such as CTV’s outside broadcast productions, and it provides a solid, simple path into the converged future.”