As consumer viewing habits shift to digital media, delivered on demand, anytime, anywhere, and on any platform, media and broadcast organizations are facing a challenging road ahead. Taking advantage of new technology and digital platforms while keeping costs in check will be key to driving growth and profit.
While it won’t solve every issue media and broadcast organizations are facing, the move from traditional SDI to IP to produce and distribute content can support media and broadcast organisations in becoming more agile in a world where staying ahead of the competition is key. And, with the latest improvements in the technology, the lower costs of deployment and the range of benefits a move to IP can deliver, now has never been a better time to consider making the transition.
But before embarking on such a transformative move, it’s worth evaluating what a migration to IP will mean for your organization. There’s an extensive number of elements to take into account, such as quality, workflows, standardization and security, to name just a few. We’ve collated the fundamental areas to consider into four main categories; interoperability, performance, security and skills.
Interoperability
The lack of standards for IP-based operations has been a point of concern for many making the transition. Video production networks have unique latency, timing and synchronization requirements that network engineers need to be confident will be met. Make sure that the technology and vendors you invest in are active in developing key standards, including the soon to be final SMPTE ST 2110 and AMWA NMOS IS-04 Discovery and Registration API, and adopting them in their current or upcoming technology. By working with a manufacturer that is actively contributing to future standards and promoting open standards for all, you can ensure the longevity of your technology.
Performance
Not all IP Equipment is created equal. When selecting IP technology, it’s critical that the devices selected meet the explicit performance requirements of live broadcasting, not just generic needs. Ensure your IP-based system is agile and robust enough to cope with your requirements.
Security
Consider other options alongside traditional firewalls such as wider network security that identifies, blocks and contains threats. In today’s environment, it’s vital that your systems can stop any potential threat as fast as possible and deal with them in order to prevent any loss of uptime.
Skills
Traditional broadcast engineers or production executives may require training and knowledge sharing to fully understand and maximise the benefits that IP offers. Getting your team trained up in the fundamentals of how to manage an IP network early will help them support you in designing the architecture you need and in managing and maintaining it when it’s live.
IP-based infrastructure delivers the same robustness of SDI with the added benefits of being more cost effective and providing you greater flexibility and agility as you design and implement workflows going forward. But a successful move to IP requires proper planning, implementation, and support from your entire organization and vendors.
Published with permission from forums.juniper.net/t5/Blogs/ct-p/blogs
