PlayBox Neo Ltd reports a buoyant 2019 with strong demand for its Channel-in-a-Box and software-based TV channel branding and playout systems. Total unit deliveries reached and surpassed 18,500, supported by product demonstrations at NAB Las Vegas, Broadcast Asia, IBC, NAB New York and regional events in various countries.

"Our Channel-in-Box series, refined over 20 years, continues to sustain us as one of the strongest performing companies in the global playout solutions market," says PlayBox Neo CEO Pavlin Rahnev. "Success in the media playout sector stems from paying close attention to the industry's needs. The primary demand in the playout sector is for operational flexibility. PlayBox Neo Channel-in-a-Box can be configured from a wide range of software modules to match practically any workflow and any required level of backup security. With our SaaS-based Cloud2TV offering, we also offer great flexibility in the way channel managers can handle supplementary aspects such as intelligent archiving, event-specific channels and emergency recovery.

Mongolian broadcaster TV8 Television has expanded the PlayBox Neo playout system at its headquarters in the national capital, Ulaanbaatar. This latest project includes upgrading the existing system to latest-generation Neo-19 software.

"PlayBox Neo provides highly reliable solutions which our staff have used for many years and find very easy to work with," comments TV8 Technical Consultant, Buriad Ganbat. "Especially important is the ability to insert live content or newly-created interstitials between prescheduled programs when an important news story breaks while we are on air. The user interface provides the information needed for each step of the creative process and alerts the operator ahead of transmission if a significant element still requires attention. PlayBox Neo also gives us the ability to advance into UHD transmission if required at any time in the future."

"Our Neo-19 series software includes all the refinements needed to allow full integration with the operating procedure at TV8 Television," details Iulian Ionescu, Regional Sales Director, PlayBox Neo Asia Pacific. "Every step of the workflow from ingest, playlist preparation and graphics creation right through to transmission can be handled quickly and easily with any desired level of automation."

www.playboxneo.com

PlayBox Neo reports a well-supported and highly successful Broadcast Technology Event, held in Lagos, Nigeria, November 4th-6th. Organised by UK-based Medialogy, it attracted representatives from many of Nigeria's broadcast channels.

Rajamangala University of Technology (RMUT) in Thailand has chosen a Neo-19 series Channel-in-a-Box playout system as the heart of a new online TV channel. Operated by staff and students of the university's Mass Communication Technology faculty, the channel will form a basis for training in the techniques of broadcast television content production and distribution.

DVB, an industry consortium that develops open, interoperable technical specifications for the delivery of digital media and broadcast services, today announced the approval of its DVB-I specification by the DVB Steering Board in Geneva. It has been published as DVB BlueBook A177.

The DVB-I specification aims to ensure that linear television delivered over the internet is as user-friendly and robust as a traditional broadcast television experience. It offers the possibility for linear television services to be delivered to any device with a suitable internet connection and media player, including TV sets, smartphones, tablets and media streaming devices.

"In developing an internet-centric solution for linear television services, we are providing the industry with a crucial missing piece that raises internet-based delivery to the same level in the DVB ecosystem as RF-based content delivery," said DVB Chair Peter MacAvock. "With these building blocks, addressing the discovery of DVB-I services and the delivery of programme metadata, DVB offers broadcasters and operators an exciting new deployment option."

The DVB-I specification defines DVB-I Service Lists, a means for internet-connected devices to find curated sets of linear television services that may be delivered through broadband or broadcast mechanisms. It also defines the methods to retrieve electronic programme data for those services, which can be integrated into a single coherent offering that is accessed through a consistent user interface.

Three Media, media specialist and product provider of XEN:Pipeline, today announced the completion of an 18-month project in conjunction with Imperial College London. The goal of the project was to make media supply chain processing more affordable by identifying ways to reduce costs and maximise workflow, process and resource efficiencies.

The project, called Digital Media Data Analytics (DMDA), was initiated and led by Three Media in conjunction with an Imperial College London team headed by Performance Engineering expert Dr Anthony Field. The combined team applied its expert knowledge of data analytics and optimisation techniques to Three Media's XEN:Pipeline development programme.

XEN:Pipeline enables users not only to evaluate and optimise existing workflows and business processes in near real time, but also to model new and changing virtual revenue streams either as stand-alone or alongside the existing. It also provides opportunities to identify, model, and prove new and innovative services and chargeable functions. XEN:Pipeline is a highly configurable, scalable, storage agnostic and performant system that can operate across multiple company and supplier locations and departments, identifying and resolving often-hidden bottlenecks, pinch points and under-utilisation from existing workflows and processes.

Rajamangala University of Technology (RMUT) in Thailand has chosen a Neo-19 series Channel-in-a-Box playout system as the heart of a new online TV channel. Operated by staff and students of the university's Mass Communication Technology faculty, the channel will form a basis for training in the techniques of broadcast television content production and distribution.

"RMUT chose PlayBox Neo for its operational versatility, its proven robustness and as the clear brand of choice among broadcasters in the Asia Pacific region and around the world," comments Sathiti Silayaeng, Sales Engineer at O'Connor's (Thailand) Company Limited which coordinated the project. "We were able to specify a solution exactly meeting the Mass Communication Technology faculty's requirements by selecting relevant modules such as TitleBox Neo from the Neo19 range of software. Installed at the university's Thanyaburi campus, these are running on a PlayBox Neo high-definition server with an integral IP streaming output. It is a highly compact solution which interfaced easily with the faculty's archive server. Installation, configuration and staff training were all completed on schedule and to the MCT's full satisfaction."

Dalet, a leading provider of solutions and services for broadcasters and content professionals, today announced that the latest release of the Dalet AmberFin media processing platform is the first software-based transcoding asset management system to include Dolby Vision® technologies, a leading HDR technology for media professionals, studios and streaming service providers. In addition to Dolby Vision and a raft of new software-only features, Dalet AmberFin can also be enhanced with hardware acceleration tools such as the M820L HEVC encoder plugin card from SoC (System On a Chip) specialist Socionext.

Steve Higgins, Product Manager, Dalet AmberFin, states, “The latest release of the Dalet AmberFin media processing engine marks a new era for this renowned high-quality content processor. Whether you process on-premises, in the cloud or with a mix of both; the efficiency of the processor coupled with high throughput and exceptional audio-visual quality are key for delivering your content in a timely and cost-conscious fashion.”

Unique in its class, Dalet AmberFin media processing capabilities enable automated Dolby Vision mastering and distribution workflows that generate outputs from IMF, through broadcast, cable and satellite packages to OTT HLS and DASH bundles. The integrated BPMN-compliant workflow engine and API let administrators configure user interfaces, assign tasks for operators, and push through ad-hoc QC processes; creating workflows that are just right for their facility.

Exhibiting at IBC2019 (1.B71), DVB, an industry consortium that develops open interoperable technical specifications for the delivery of digital media and broadcast services, announced today that it will present the world's first demonstration of linear television services using the DVB-I solution, which relies on internet-based access and streaming mechanisms alongside classical broadcasting techniques.

PlayBox Neo has chosen IBC 2019 show in Amsterdam as the European launch venue for its Cloud2TV channel branding and playout software.

Software company EcoDigital will officially launch at IBC2019 (Hall 8, Stand B13) with its exhibition of the DIVA software suite, the world's leading and most trusted object management system for media. EcoDigital acquired the software suite from Oracle and will offer its clients and business partners the full DIVA offering, including DIVA Core, DIVA Connect, DIVA View, DIVA Link, and DIVA Analytics.

Veritone Digital Media Hub™
At IBC2019, Veritone will highlight Veritone Digital Media Hub™, focusing on two main use cases: access and delivery, and monetization. Digital Media Hub is an intuitive white-label portal fueled by Veritone aiWARE™, the world's first operating system for artificial intelligence. With Digital Media Hub, rights holders can offer secure, cloud-native global access to their content to key stakeholders — including news media and corporate partners — and monetize their content via e-commerce functionality.

LTN® Global, the global leader in broadcast-quality IP video transport solutions, has entered into an agreement to acquire Crystal, a provider of software that automates the monitoring, control, and metadata management of end-to-end broadcast and digital media operations. Together, LTN and Crystal will offer mission-critical ad insertion, digital watermarking, and other unique tools that will allow networks and digital platforms to monetize their content across a fully managed IP multicast network.