Evertz and Lumen Partner to Deliver Signal for Football Broadcasts

Evertz announces that it has partnered with Lumen Technologies to conduct a proof of concept that demonstrated contribution quality transport of a single-link UHD signal with ultra low-latency over a dedicated IP network during a high-profile sporting event.

The IP flow output from the JPEG XS encoder was compliant with the Video Services Forum (VSF) TR-07 recommendation for carriage of JPEG-XS video in MPEG-2 transport streams over IP. The SCORPION platform had already been in operation, providing contribution transport services for Lumen broadcast customers using 3G-SDI format video signals, and it was able to auto-sense and process the single-link UHD signal without any additional configuration.

“We are extremely happy with the results of the proof of concept with Evertz and the capabilities of the SCORPION Flexible Media Processing Platform solution. The high-quality, low-latency performance provided by the SCORPION Platform was exceptional, and it has enabled us to offer best-of-breed and industry-leading solutions to our sports broadcasting customers. We look forward to continued collaboration with Evertz, and we are excited about the possibilities this technology creates for the future of sports broadcasting,” says David Robison, principal architect at Lumen.

The single-link video input signal on the 12G-SDI interface featured full 2160p59.94 resolution. The JPEG XS compressed transport stream rate was around 1.8Gb/s, or about 8:1 compression ratio. The MIO-BLADE with the JPEG XS codec app utilized auto-sensing of the UHD signal with no required license or code change, providing an extremely flexible media network edge solution for Lumen.

Through Lumen Vyvx Broadcast Solutions, the company provides live events and on-demand video with end-to-end digital transmission. Lumen invested in the SCORPION platform to upgrade its Vyvx offering by enhancing its ability to support customers with multiple UHD and 1080p HDR video signals.

Evertz’ SCORPION is a flexible and versatile platform that can adapt to the needs of Lumen’s customers. It is a modular-based platform that combines format-agnostic processing, conversion, and routing functions with support for any type of network transport (including dark fiber and managed IP networks.) The SCORPION MIO-BLADE, an FPGA-based compute module, offers licensable apps for a broad range of media processing, conversion, and codecs (e.g. JPEG XS) which provide flexibility and agility at the network edge. This enables Lumen to seamlessly adapt to its customers’ requirements now and in the future.

“Our partnership with Lumen has been a great success, and we are proud to have provided our SCOPRION solution for this proof-of-concept demonstration. Broadcasters who observed the results of the test were impressed with the picture quality delivered from the Evertz SCORPION Flexible Media Processing Platform using JPEG XS codec. This partnership has enabled us to showcase our commitment to innovation and excellence in the world of sports broadcasting, and we look forward to continuing to work with Lumen to push the boundaries of what is possible,” says Andrew Osmond, business development director of media transport with Evertz.