Capt Kodak/Flickr
Film and television have come a long way from the old black-and-white, standard-definition (SD), analog broadcasts to the superior high-definition (HD), digital color broadcasts we almost take for granted today.
What once were manual processes are now automated, with many in the industry adopting content distribution networks to send gigabytes of files digitally instead of full reels via courier. This enables production efficiencies and collaboration, workflow acceleration, cost reductions, multi-platform distribution and – most important to the bottom line – a quicker time-to-market for content.
However, yesterday’s legacy networks weren’t built for this type of bandwidth-heavy data transfer. And today’s HD and high-resolution video is putting even more strain on available network capacity.
With files only bound to get bigger as we head into the 4K era and with 3D almost a prerequisite now for any blockbuster film, it’s clear these legacy networks built to support limited SD video will not be able to cope with the increased demand. So, network architectures must evolve to efficiently and effectively support the transfer of next generation video formats. Specifically, the network must be both scalable to meet the significant bandwidth demands as well as programmable to deliver the exact service performance required. This transformation will involve the consolidation of multiple, discreet and single-use legacy networks into high-capacity, secure and low-latency packet-optical infrastructures.
Here are a few reasons why the network is moving in this direction.
Future-Proofing to Meet New Standards
Both HD and 4K Ultra HD are now industry standards. In large part, networking technology has enabled us to get to this point, even facilitating live demonstrations of the seamless transport of 4K imagery across the Pacific Ocean. But don’t confuse “industry standards” with the idea of mass adoption, as legacy SD networks are still the norm rather than the exception.
Yet the industry is already preparing to move a step further, with HD-3G and 8K gaining traction among producers. So, if we think legacy networks have been slow now before 4K has really taken hold, just wait. The next bout of bandwidth-hungry formats will devour even more capacity and demand even greater flexibility to support higher pixel density, color depth and frames-per-second.
Catering to this expected demand, and the next generation after that, networks must be tremendously scalable, support multiple formats and deliver an on-demand experience. A packet-optical network can provide for these attributes in a future-proof, format-agnostic and scalable platform, with the added bonus of software-defined networking (SDN) technologies to turn capacity into capability for the performance- and bandwidth-on-demand required to make it all work.
Transporting Uncompressed, High-Definition Video
It’s easier to maintain picture quality when you can keep it in its raw form, whether that’s high-or-standard definition, and keeping it that way for as long as possible. Packet-optical networks have the capacity to transport HD and other high-end video and film in its native form, and can do so far quicker than a legacy network. With coherent optical transmission, distance is not an issue as, so data transfers from an external venue (sports ground, for instance) to the studio are quick and relatively painless.
Supporting Today’s Storage and Archive Methods
The old days of the physical film library are long gone since automated content archiving replication technologies came along. Still, legacy networks make retrieving those old pieces of footage a chore, especially when multiple files are sourced. A packet-optical network enables the swift transfer of images and video to a library off site and allows them to be retrieved easily as required.
Preparing for the Unexpected Outage
Disaster recovery is becoming more important, and having a plan for media and entertainment companies invariably requires the need to maintain constant access to in-production and archived content. A packet-optical network opens up greater options and resolutions when faced with a disaster like an unexpected network interruption or power outage as meshed optical connections can readily include a connection between a mirrored broadcast site.
The network needs to keep up with the radical changes in digital formats and standards across the media and entertainment industry. The evolution is occurring at an alarming rate, particularly when compared to how long it took us to move from black-and-white to color, from analog to digital, and from SD to HD. While we once enjoyed a sense of predictability in film and television production – we had analog signals from the dawn of TV up until just a few years ago when the NTSC systems were abandoned – we no longer have that luxury.
We need to jump ahead of the curve and future-proof our networks to continue making film innovations a reality for the mass market.
Steve Alexander is Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of Ciena.
No comments:
Post a Comment