IP-based Production and Broadcasting Network

What Is IP-based Production and Broadcasting Network?

The IP-based production and broadcasting network utilizes a technical architecture that relies on information and communication technology (ICT) and IP. This transformation allows for the integration of traditional and new media, enabling information interaction and multi-screen display, thus overcoming the limitations of traditional media. Furthermore, new technologies such as virtualization, cloudification, and AI can be fully leveraged to share resources, improve collaboration, draw on internet experiences, and achieve technological advancements.

What Is Production and Broadcasting Network?

"Production and broadcasting" encompasses the creation and airing of radio and television content. This process involves five main stages: acquisition, editing, broadcasting, storage, and transmission. Here's a breakdown of each step:

• Ingesting involves conducting interviews and gathering materials, serving as a method for obtaining TV program content. These materials can be produced by the TV station itself or acquired from another station. They can also include recordings made by news reporters during interviews.

• Editing includes several tasks based on gathered materials, such as image editing, audio mixing, and final video review. It's a vital aspect of television content production. In image editing, additional images can be inserted to captivate viewers. Audio mixing involves recording voiceovers, adding background music, and combining them into a single track. Video review entails adding subtitles and special effects as required, and verifying the correctness and satisfaction of the images.

• Broadcasting involves transmitting TV content through various media, including live broadcasts, rebroadcasts, and catch-up TV. Live broadcasting entails displaying images concurrently with an event. Rebroadcasting involves airing programs from another TV station. Catch-up TV allows viewers to watch recorded content after the event. Live broadcasting requires simultaneous production and airing, which puts significant demands on TV stations' capabilities.

• Storage involves the backup and storage of broadcast TV content in the local media asset management system, which can be online, nearline, or offline. Online storage is used for TV content that will be broadcast soon, while nearline storage is for content not scheduled for immediate broadcast. Offline storage, on tapes or CD-ROMs, is reserved for content that will not be broadcast in the near future.

• Transmission involves the distribution of TV content. Some content is transmitted from a ground station to a satellite, then relayed to another ground station, and finally sent to a local TV station for rebroadcasting. Other content is sent to carriers and broadcast via IPTV. Additionally, content can be distributed to the broadcasting and television cable network for transmission through cable TV.

In simple terms, TV content production and broadcasting is a complex system project that encompasses multiple subsystems in the production, general control, and playout domains. While each subsystem is managed independently, they are interconnected and reliant on one another, forming an end-to-end (E2E) production and broadcasting network.

Why do we need the IP-based Production and Broadcasting Network ?

1. The broadcasting and TV industry is increasingly adopting ultra-high-definition (UHD) and integrated media. The demand for UHD content is steadily increasing. However, despite the availability of UHD networks and terminals, there is an insufficient supply of UHD content. Currently, videos account for 60% of the total network traffic and have become the primary means for users to access information. There has been a shift in user consumption habits, with over 80% of users willing to pay extra for a better viewing experience. Moreover, more than 90% of users have bandwidth higher than 100 Mbit/s, over 50% of shipments are for 4K set-top boxes (STBs), and more than 60% of 4K TVs have a screen size larger than 50 inches. As traditional media audiences and advertising revenue decline rapidly, there is a significant growth in mobile internet usage, leading to an increase in media advertising revenue. Traditional media is compelled to shift its focus towards mobile terminals, and there is an urgent need to integrate traditional media with internet-based new media in terms of content production modes and tools.

2. Ultra-high-definition (UHD) videos and media convergence are expected to drive the development of new production and broadcasting technologies. Traditional SDI-based production and broadcasting have become the biggest bottleneck in content production and operation. The main issues include substantial cable consumption and difficult maintenance, small capacity and difficult expansion, as well as closed technology and low efficiency.

• Substantial cable consumption and challenging maintenance: Conventional production and broadcasting solutions rely on SDI copper cables for unidirectional signal transmission. These cables, being thick and heavy, not only complicate the detection of line faults but also pose challenges in installing and relocating them around a TV station. Consequently, the use of SDI copper cables significantly escalates the complexities of deployment and operations and maintenance (O&M).

• Limited capacity and challenging scalability: An SDI copper cable typically offers a bandwidth of 3 Gbit/s, with a maximum of 24 Gbit/s. This falls short compared to optical fibers, not only in terms of transmission rate but also in transmission distance. The demand for bandwidth is particularly high for 8K content, requiring up to 48 Gbit/s for a single channel. Since content is paramount in videos, uncompressed signals play a critical role in TV content. Compression compromises the effect and value of post-production significantly.

• Closed technology and limited efficiency: The development of SDI technology standards is slow and lacks the active openness seen in IP technology standards. Key capabilities, including standards for media stream encapsulation, IP system control, and clock synchronization, are progressively maturing. Moreover, SDI technology is unable to adapt to emerging technologies such as virtualization, cloudification, and AI. As a result, these technologies cannot be leveraged to enhance the efficiency of production and broadcasting.

In summary, the industry has unanimously agreed to substitute SDI copper cables with optical fibers and to transition from the SDI-based technical architecture to the ICT-based IP architecture.