IBC 2019 SportTechBuzz in Review: Halls 12-15 and Other News

By SVG Staff
Wednesday, September 18, 2019 - 10:35 am
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The SVG Europe and SVG Americas editorial teams were out in full force at last week’s IBC Show, covering the biggest sports-technology news and delivering daily SportTechBuzz at IBC roundups. Here is a look at the IBC 2019 SportTechBuzz from Halls 12-15 and other news.

In this post, check out IBC news from BT Media, Broadcast Solutions, Canon, Digital Video Sud, EEG Video, Grabyo, Haivision, Ikegami, Marshall Electronics, Mobile Viewpoint, NEP, Professional Show, Red Bee Media, Signiant, Sony, Synamedia, Tellyo, Telstra, Teradek, V-Nova, Wowza Media Systems, and Zixi.

BT (O.D02) demonstrated one of the highest-ever specification live sports broadcasts here at IBC with a broadcast of the English Premier League match between Liverpool and Newcastle United at a private, invitation-only event, which was also attended by BT Sport’s latest pundit, football legend Robin van Persie. Working with established partners, BT Sport and BT’s Media & Broadcast division delivered the broadcast in 4K HDR pictures and Dolby Atmos sound. The demonstration builds on BT Sport’s heritage in providing the ultimate viewing experience, following its debut of Dolby Atmos in 2016 and this season’s launch of one of the world’s first HDR services, BT Sport Ultimate. Partnering on BT’s live demonstration today were Dolby, which supported creation and playback of immersive stadium sound using Dolby Atmos audio, and Timeline TV and Telegenic, providing the match coverage and match cameras, respectively. Jamie Hindhaugh, COO, BT Sport, says, “BT Sport Ultimate gives you the ultimate viewing experience. We’re proud to lead the industry with world-class pictures and sound. We will continue to innovate in this area, and viewers can expect more to come around personalization and immersive audio. BT Sport has a rich history of leading the industry with broadcast innovation, whether it’s this season’s launch of one of the world’s first HDR channels, BT Sport Ultimate, or, our 2018 world-first 5G-enabled remote-production broadcast in London.”

Broadcast Solutions has taken two stands at IBC 2018, including the show’s largest outdoor display space. Focusing on systems integration, the outdoor stand (O.E02) is accompanied by an indoor stand (8.D74) where Broadcast Solutions is presenting its answer to today’s and future challenges in managing media infrastructures. Based on more than 20 years’ experience in system design Broadcast Solutions has developed hi, an intuitive and easy to use control layer for media appliances.

Canon (12.D60) is talking about a new wide-angle lens on its stand here in Amsterdam. The CJ15ex4.3B IASE broadcast zoom lens with 4K optical quality is new to IBC. Says Yuya Suzuki, manager, broadcast product management, EMEA, Imaging Technologies and Communications Group, “Normally, a zoom lens has a 12X ratio, but we’ve extended this lens to 15X ratio to increase the zoom capacity on the pitch side. This is now the widest-angle lens we do.” The company is also talking about last year’s big news for the sports-broadcasting market, the UHD DIGISUPER 122 UJ122x8.2B. “This is now well-accepted in the market for its zoom ratio and wide-angle lens,” Suzuki says. “It provides a more exciting, more emotional picture: if something happens in front of the goal keeper, you use this one to capture the emotion [of the players].”

Digital Video Sud (DVS), a Euro Media Group company, is on the Canon stand (12.D60) with the Superloupe 4K, which is available on the market now. The camera, which runs at up to 1,000 fps, was used this year at Roland Garros and the Tour de France. Previously, DVS provided the camera only for rental, but, following the closure of its market rival, iMovix, it is now offering the kit for sale. Says Guillaume Margon, head of R&D, Superloupe, “Before, we only did rental, but now that iMovix is gone, its old customers have been coming to us to ask if we’re going to sell the Superloupe 4K, so we decided to do it. We are at IBC talking to customers and distributors to see about selling it all over the world.”

In its first-ever appearance at the IBC Show, closed-captioning specialist EEG Video (14.B35) is making its presence felt with the launch of Lexi Local, which is the on-premises, off-the-cloud version of EEG’s Lexi automatic-captioning and subtitling service. There is also the debut of iCap Local, a companion product to EEG’s iCap cloud-based closed-captioning and subtitling delivery network. It enables deployment of iCap to a private, on-premises cloud, which is ideal for environments with tight internal security policies. VP, Sales, Eric McErlain says the company was motivated to cross the pond for IBC 2019 because of the global nature of the streaming-video business and the tremendous wealth of live video content that the company services.

Grabyo (14.D22) is introducing its enhanced video editing platform, Grabyo Editor, a set of browser-based editing tools for creating and distributing short video clips, highlights and social video from live streams, VOD, and mobile sources. The new service combines the speed and flexibility of Grabyo’s cloud-based platform with simple, effective tools for video editors. Accessed using a web browser, Grabyo Editor reduces the time it takes to produce high-quality video content by enabling users to produce short clips and longer-form videos with multiple video inputs, graphics, imagery, and audio.

It’s a thrilling IBC Show for Haivision (14.G27), which, in addition to being up for an IBC 2019 Innovation Award for its work at the 2018 League of Legends World Championships, has rolled out its SRT Hub multivendor cloud workflow for broadcast. Built on Microsoft Azure, SRT Hub is a low-latency media-routing service that can connect edge devices and cloud-enabled systems anywhere. The company has also laid out its SRT Hub Partner Program, which integrates products from Avid, Cinegy, Haivision, LightFlow, Microsoft, Telestream, and Wowza Media Systems, which are all being shown here at the show.

Ikegami (12.A31) is highlighting a number of new developments related to 4K, including the UHL-43 compact box-style multipurpose digital camera, which is making its IBC debut. It has three 2/3-in. 8.3-megapixel CMOS sensors and, thanks to customization, can be outfitted on a crane, studio, or Steadicam operation. Also on exhibit, a new media-over-IP gateway for the CCU-430 slots directly into the UHK-430’s CCU and allows a single fibre cable to handle 4K video as well as audio, intercom, and video return feeds. And be sure to see the HQLM-3125X, a 31-in. 4K UHD master-grade monitor.

Marshall Electronics (12.D20) is exhibiting the CV503-WPBM weatherproof Full HD camera with 3.7mm lens. It’s a big hit at the show, according to Marketing Manager Jackson Root: “If you want a small miniature camera that has remote-control ability and is fully weatherproof and dustproof, it is a good choice. Sixteen of them were used at the Super Bowl, and it has 20% larger sensor with better color depth and sensitivity than the previous camera and more intuitive on-screen menus. We also reinforced the cable, so it is sturdier.” Also on display is the CV506, which has been a big hit at esports events, he adds.

Mobile Viewpoint (14.F24) has announced the European launch of two new products, NewsPilot and IQ Sports Producer, using AI to automate the low cost delivery of content from remote locations. NewsPilot and IQ Sports Producer enable smaller broadcasters and brand owners to reduce cost and complexity of live content production and delivery. Consistent with Mobile Viewpoint’s full solution portfolio, NewsPilot and IQ Sports Producer meet broadcasters’ requirements for fast, simple and cost efficient content contribution as they adapt their strategies to meet the rapid rise in online content consumption.

NEP’s (14.H02) latest innovation, the iOB, works within NEP Europe’s Centralised Production Platform and is being used for the ﬁrst time, at the RAI during IBC 2019. The iOB, developed by NEP The Netherlands’ technical team, is a complete and comfortable mobile PCR for directors (and editors) that can be placed at almost every conceivable event location where there is connectivity. With a ﬁbre-optic connection, the iOB is directly connected to one of NEP’s data centres, where all technology is centralized; all technology can be controlled from the iOB. It is a mobile production-control room with remote controls only for switching and other operating positions, the shading and audio being handled from one of NEP’s central control rooms.

NEP Connect (14.H02) is showcasing centralized and remote production. Says Managing Director David Meynell, “The importance of connectivity in the sports value chain is growing every year. It’s really about the value of connectivity enabling sports production. We are using our consolidated bandwidth from sports venues to enable either our NEP production arm or our Dutch colleagues with centralized facilities, and for some of our customers who have centralized galleries.” He adds, “We’re looking at our global connectivity footprint across the world as part of this huge media company we are now within.”

Professional Show (O.C03) is featuring unitELEVEN, a completely closed structure measuring 2.4 meters wide, 3.1 meters deep, and 2.5 meters high and comprising a 4K mobile unit ready to be deployed almost anywhere. At its core are an Evertz EQX16 router, four GV Korona video mixers with X-Frame, and four Lawo audio consoles providing four individual galleries. Replay-device options are Evertz DreamCatcher, EVS XT3/Via, or GV Dyno/Summit replay servers. Vizrt graphics and a Clearcom router are also included.

Signiant is demonstrating advancements across its entire product line at IBC 2018 on stand 14.B23. The company’s broadly-adopted SaaS platform, which combines Signiant’s patented network optimization technology with a feature-rich global control framework for the exchange of media, can be readily adapted to support emerging industry standards and practices. Here in Amsterdam, Signiant has introduced a new ‘IMF Aware’ interface and is demonstrating best practices for cloud ingest portals.

Sony has returned to IBC 2018 to present its latest solutions that help customers build their brands and audiences under the banner of ‘Go Make Tomorrow’. On stand 13.A10 Sony is showcasing its fully integrated, end-to-end services and technologies that empower media companies to create more amazing content and more engaged audiences, more profitably. “We are returning to IBC with firm drive and motivation to help [visitors] realize the commercial and creative potential of their content in the post-digital age,” said Stuart Almond, head of marketing, Sony Professional Solutions Europe.

Synamedia’s (14.C41) press conference discussed where the company has taken its portfolio since it signed the deal with Cisco enabling the video-services unit to spin-off from its parent company. Synamedia CEO Yves Padrines said the business has established three key priorities: “To help customers embrace the world of IP, to help customers secure their revenue streams, and to give them some revenue assurance … and help them generate revenue streams.” Many pay-TV operators, he noted, are still reliant on 1990s infrastructure to compete in the “new” pay-TV arena, so the company is working to help them utilize that technology: “The death of pay-TV is clearly premature, so long life to the new pay-TV.”

Sunset+Vine, a producer of global sports content, used the Tellyo (14.B15) platform for the recent Cricket World Cup and T20 Test matches and also to package highlights of ECB (Europe and Wales Cricket Board) Test matches, T20 games, and international matches. To produce these highlights, live streams are ingested into the Tellyo Pro platform, where the Sunset+Vine digital-production team deploy Tellyo’s Editor to provide instant clips for cricket fans globally. During the 2019 Test match, clips achieved more than 400 million impressions and more than 100 million views. The most popular Test match clip, on 21 August, yielded 11.3 million views and 164,000 engagements. The most popular overall T20 clip, on 13 August, yielded 15.3 million views with 80,000 engagements.

Remote production is a big theme for Telstra (14.F18), which is discussing both the long-distance capabilities of its Distributed Production Network (DPN) and the continued build-out of its Global Media Network (GMN). For the IAAF World Relays in May, working with host broadcaster ITN Productions, Telstra’s DPN media IP network transported 30 live HD camera signals from the Nissan Stadium in Yokohama to Tokyo and then onwards to the NEP Andrews Hub in Sydney. The signals traveled from Japan via diverse and hitless 10-GBps circuits using ultra-low-latency compression technology. The return trip totaled 16,000 km. At the same time, through its network of Alliance Partners, the GMN now reaches more than 2,500 endpoints, including more than 1,000 media and sports companies, 1,500 venues, and 10 teleports around the world. This service is delivered on a consumption-based model with global service assurance across the Alliance Partners and a global booking process for occasional users.

Developer of cutting-edge signal-transmission tools Teradek (12.E65) has another exciting trick up its sleeve in the battle to bring wireless video delivery with zero delay. Its Obit solution helps broadcast-level content creators transmit lossless 4K HDR video up to 2 km. Integrated tally and IFB help streamline the process to simplify the overall broadcast workflow. The company is also showcasing Prism, a 4K HEVC encoder/decoder solution.

Advanced-video-compression specialist V-Nova (14.A07) is showing P+, the third generation of its portfolio of video-distribution–enhancement technologies. The company is also featuring a project that it is working on to help enable a groundbreaking streaming service called MVMO, which is due to launch in Africa later this year. Working with the OTT tech vendor Simplestream, MVMO unites P+ with Simplestream’s streaming platform to deliver high-quality content to audiences throughout the underserved continent.

Wowza Media Systems (14.E08) is taking its popular Clearcaster streaming solution to the next level with the introduction of Clearcaster Pro. More than just an encoder, the Clearcaster Pro leverages the company’s powerful cloud infrastructure to ensure command and control of the encoder in real-time. The solution can push to major social-media destinations like YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter from inside a single user interface. Wowza is also collaborating with numerous partners at the show, working with its co-founder of the SRT Alliance, Haivision, to debut a Wowza Hublet for Haivision’s new SRT Hub platform. Wowza is also demonstrating the Wowza Streaming Cloud service with ultra-low latency at Microsoft’s stand in Hall 1.

Zixi (14.F11) is showcasing the latest ZEN Master, its cloud-based stream-management control plane, which allows broadcasters to view video as it moves through the supply chain. Besides adding 4K capabilities, ZEN Master also integrates with Google Cloud Platform, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and Microsoft Azure. Zixi also spoke with SVG about a pair of big wins with the Women’s Tennis Association. Earlier this year, the Los Angeles-based Tennis Channel carried a WTA event taking place in Connecticut, using Zixi to drive an at-home–production workflow. According to SVP, Marketing and Alliances, John Westcoat, Zixi connectivity also helped save a WTA event taking place in China when a typhoon struck the area, knocking out virtually all other transmission methods.

IBC 2019 SportTechBuzz in Review: Halls 12-15 and Other News

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