February 2018 - IP, The Art of Delivering Live Events

Intelligence for the media & entertainment industry

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FEBRUARY 2018

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SUPPLEMENT

IP: The glue that will keep us together With standards and protocols being agreed and solutions being devised, IP for live production is moving from a niche into the mainstream, says Stuart Almond, head of marketing and communications

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sing IP for live production is a hot topic right now. Everyone is talking about it, not least because of the potential benefits that it could bring, including increased flexibility and scalability.

So, I am going to make a bold prediction. Six years from now, IP for live production will no longer be a hot topic. IP for live production will no longer be talked about. Instead, it will have become the accepted norm.

It’s the way the live production industry is going.

We are now witnessing a massive migration. Every big project, every new studio, every new truck, every application is making use of IP, or has IP at its core.

Most of the latest solutions from Sony are IP-based, too, from the news production systems like HIVE to our cloud-based services like XDCam air and our new cloud-based switcher.

Importantly, the industry is also agreeing on technical standardisation. As recently as December, SMPTE ratified three strands of the ST 2110 standard.

Things are starting to get real.

Of course, simply having one standard is not enough.

ST 2110 is not going to solve every problem. You need to combine it with other protocols, like AMWA’s IS-04, an NMOS discovery and registration specification that provides a way for network-connected devices to find each other.

But as these protocols and standards become established, we will start to see IP becoming available as a full package for live production, simplifying the processes and making it more reliable and futureproof.

Sony is deeply involved in – and supportive of – these standards and protocols. What we bring to the table is our experience of live production. It could be IP, it could be wireless, it could be cloud-based.

We have been there and done it. That is what this supplement is about. Creating the big live events in the new IP world. But remember this: IP itself is not a destination. It is an enabler. It is the glue that binds all of the solutions together. And it is a trend that is definitely going to stick. n

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Get trained on IP Live Production Now To ease the transition to IP Live Production, Sony is collaborating with Juniper Networks’s experts to deliver training programs that help Broadcasters and Live production companies to get up-to-speed with IP fundamentals quickly.

By making sure the right theoretical and practical skills are in place, it’s now possible to experience the ground-breaking benefits of IP for live production.

Find out more on www.pro.sony.eu/ip

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SUPPLEMENT

GOING LIVE: HOW SONY IS TAKING IP LIVE AROUND THE WORLD As live broadcasting moves towards an increasingly IP-centric future, here are six examples of future-proofed Sony partners from around the world that are already reaping the benefits of IP in a live production environment

BBC STUDIOWORKS A flexible open standards approach London-based BBC Studioworks is a wholly owned commercial subsidiary of the BBC. A supplier of studio and post-production facilities, it prides itself on offering the very latest technology to its production clients. When re-furbishing its Television Centre studio facility in 2017, it chose an IP Live Production System from Sony as well as 22 Sony studio cameras, including eight HDC-4300s, plus three XVS switchers and more than 200 Sony monitors. The new studios are now UHD capable, with an upgrade path to HDR, and based on IP. “We’re confident that the technology we’ve chosen will help make Television Centre the best place to make television in the UK,” says Meryl McLaren, Commercial Manager, BBC Studioworks.

TV GLOBO

TPC

An IP infrastructure with the confidence of SDI

Seamless integration into existing workflows

Ahead of a huge summer of sport in 2016, Brazilian commercial broadcaster TV Globo commissioned a new UHD-capable OB truck that was IP-based but with an SDI signal layer. Making use of COTS switches, it features Sony MVS-8000X switchers and Sony HDC4300 cameras. On board for super slo motion are three Sony HDC4800 cameras and a Sony PWS-4500 replay and ingest server.

When TPC (Technology and Production Centre) Switzerland wanted to build an IP-based Ultra High Definition (UHD) OB truck it turned to its trusted technology partner Sony for cameras and switchers. The technical services provider purchased 21 HDC- 4300 cameras and two high-end 4K IP video switchers, the XVS-8000 and the XVS-6000. The resulting OB unit is UHD and HDR capable and is completely IP-based, operating using uncompressed SMPTE ST2110.

“Sony’s vision of 4K over IP live production technology is very much in line with ours,” says Raymundo Barros, chief technology officer at TV Globo.

“Our goal is always to provide our customers with the latest technology standards, like 4K and HDR productions over IP, to enable them to produce the best possible broadcasts now and in the future.” says Andreas Lattmann, chief technical officer at TPC.

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SUPPLEMENT CCTV Reliability in even the most challenging live environments An IP-based UHD OB van built by CCTV in 2017 for covering sport and entertainment events has Sony equipment at its core with all major components coming from Sony’s IP Live systems and products range. Making use of COTS switches, the acquisition and signal routing is handled by Sony HDC-4300 and HDC-4800 camera chains with networking over IP performed reliably by a Sony XVS-7000 switcher. Sony’s IP Live System Manager (LSM) simplifies management and monitoring of all IP networked devices.

TELERECORD

SKY PERFECT JSAT

A versatile and future-proof working environment

Significant flexibility and scalability, with a trusted partner

Florence’s Telerecord is an OB facilities provider that specialises in live sport and music. As part of a re-fresh of its mobile units, it bought Sony HDC-4300 cameras to be used as an integral part of a complete IP-ready interconnected system.

Since April 2017, the multi-channel TV services provider SKY Perfect JSAT has used a Sony 4K broadcast IP routing system as part of its UHD broadcasts. The set-up uses IP to output and monitor 4K broadcast video and includes a Sony HDRC-4000 HDR production converter unit, setting the company on a path towards 4K HDR production. Sony’s IP technology, including its IP Live System Manager, provides SKY Perfect JSAT with the flexibility to add more video lines and easily change its transmission formats, allowing for the quick configuration of highly extensible transmission and monitoring.

“Sony solutions will be used on our mobile units to ensure superior quality and greater flexibility in the control room, which is involved in live event productions,” says Telerecord chief executive Fabio Bertini. “The investment marks the start of a journey towards an IP LIVE infrastructure that allows us to optimise the wiring of the mobile units and ensures greater flexibility in the configuration of the devices inside it.”

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IP: THE FUTURE IS NOW IP is the present and future of live production, so it’s vital that broadcasters and facilities providers start implementing their plans now, argues Nicolas Moreau, live production solution marketing manager. And Sony is well positioned to help them do exactly that

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ony is well known for making a big investment in product development. We are famous for spending huge amounts of time, effort and money on researching, devising and perfecting tools and solutions that help creative companies to make great content.

What is less well known is the investment that we make in developing workflows, especially for live production. As producers, broadcasters and OB facilities providers push for more content, more output and more deliverables, Sony is right there

beside them, in the car parks and in the compounds, in all weathers, making sure that everything goes to plan.

It’s a successful partnership for all concerned. It allows us to ensure that the technology works perfectly for the production team and, at the same time, we learn and share many lessons and gain huge amounts of experience.

As a consequence, we truly understand the importance of reliability and flexibility.

We know that facility providers need to be sure that the devices they supply to production are, firstly, going

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SUPPLEMENT to work and then, importantly, deliver a high-quality output. They also want a return on their investment, and some longevity from it. These have become the cornerstones of what we do.

We’ve proven it beyond doubt in recent times. Go back to the early 2000s and Sony was at the forefront of the introduction of HD. Working with all the relevant parties, we saw our camera chain become the de facto standard for HD. Then, as consumer demand changed, we worked very hard with a number of broadcasters to work out how to increase the quality again and move them to 1080 50p HD. We did this not only in the labs and in the factories, but on the ground too. In the car parks. In the compounds. In the rain.

SHAPING LIVE PRODUCTION TOGETHER With UHD, we were again right there at the start.

In 2013 we worked on the FIFA Confederations Cup but we had been testing long before that. The upshot of that work was the eight matches at the 2014 FIFA World Cup that were captured in UHD, supported

by Sony.

We’ve also worked on Champions League finals with UEFA and on the Ryder Cup too. Having proved the point about UHD, we are now moving on to HDR. In the middle of this adventure we introduced the HDC-4300 camera chain. It was developed based on a recognised demand from the market. We asked the people on the ground what they wanted. They wanted a camera chain that worked with broadcast lenses and seamlessly integrated with existing live production workflows, while also offering the increased resolution and supported BT.2020/S-Log3 for HDR. So we built it. And it’s been massively successful. So much so that it will be the default camera chain for the next big event in 2018. Following on from a successful deployment this summer at the FIFA Confederations Cup in Russia, the Sony Sports Innovations team has been selected to provide venue production services to host broadcast services at the FIFA World Cup. We will be delivering both the HD and 4K HDR services at all 64 matches.

Another World Cup offering will be PlayStation VR Live. This is for the generation of viewer that doesn’t watch TV. A service that allows them, through the power of the PlayStation console and network, to choose their viewing angle and replays, to explore the stadium around them and to interact with friends via social media. All while also viewing the main broadcast feed. It has taken a lot of effort, but through PlayStation VR Live we have learned that it is possible

to take live production straight to the consumer from the venue, utilising the power of the cloud.

If you’re wondering what all this has to do with IP, let me explain.

IP is the future of live production. Of that there is no doubt. It is also the present. The HDC-4300 is already IP-capable, for example, and so are many other parts of Sony’s portfolio.

IP also enables REMI. There are no doubts that broadcast operators and production companies are now seeking better ways to produce more quality contents with less resources. Streamlining the production workflows by optimising the equipment usage is now possible. REMI, or Remote Integration, enables users to put production tools in a remote data centre. Live events can be covered and immediately when the show is over another one can start from another location. These unique sharing capabilities lead to major production business model changes and new ways of working. We are now paving the way to such modern production applications.

Once the ongoing IP standardisation process takes hold across the wider industry, it will become the de facto for live. It is only a matter of time.

PICTURED ABOVE: Nicolas Moreau

THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS I believe that Sony’s expertise in live workflow development and our experience on the ground, including the learning we have gained across HD, UHD, HDR and VR, is going to be vital to future success with IP. We are already supporting and working hand-inhand with the relevant bodies on open IP standards and protocols, not to mention best practice guidelines.

When you combine this with our experience of being on the ground, in the car park, in the rain, we are ideally placed to help broadcasters, producers and facilities providers make the move to IP. And we can help them to do it in a practical and pain-free way.

That is why we already offer a four-day collaborative training course that brings together our knowledge of live production with Juniper Network’s networking expertise. The hands-on sessions at the Sony Digital Motion Picture Centre Europe in Pinewood Studios provide all the information required to design and build a complete IP live chain from end-to-end.

IP is happening and it is happening now. The time to react is also now. And because we are embracing open and flexible IP standards - and we understand the requirements of live production – Sony can help broadcasters, producers and facilities providers on every step of their IP journey. n

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