If Interoperability Is Worth Doing, it Is Worth Doing Well

尖端创新的一个缺点是，它可能导致技术在孤岛中开发. 下一代解决方案和服务的开发需要大量的投资, 无论是在时间上还是在金钱上. So, 公司想要保护自己的知识产权并收回初始投资是很自然的. One way they do this is by tying new developments into restrictive frameworks. 然而, this can create a cycle of interoperability problems. This is something that we are currently seeing with IP transport protocols, and without agnostic infrastructure, IP delivery becomes less accessible for the industry as a whole.

前瞻性的可互操作解决方案带来了一组功能，这些功能的总和超过了它们各部分的总和. 它们使新客户能够适应不断变化的发展，并利用IP技术的新创新. 这意味着媒体公司和广播公司可以更好地应对客户的挑战, and work in an agile and flexible way. But there are important considerations and requirements to factor in.

一个处在十字路口的行业

有充分证据表明，新冠疫情极大地加速了广播行业对云技术的采用. 尽管在大流行期间至少在一些工作流程中使用了基于云的工作模型, 广播公司仍然不愿意偏离传统的流程和方法. Where there is an established culture of always doing things a certain way, 这需要信心的飞跃, 和时间, to change mindsets and do things differently.

还有一些关于什么是“广播级”IP的困惑需要解决. Broadcasters being asked whether or not they support SRT for instance, often leads to them looking at a datasheet of a piece of equipment they own. If it says it supports SRT then it is selected. But interoperability and standards matter, if a broadcaster is delivering an IP feed it’s not a just case of using any encoder. 同样，广播公司也不能简单地假设与另一端的解码器兼容. Broadcasters need to remember that the encode, transport type and decode components are entirely independent of each other. 例如，如果编码器可以发送紫溪提要，这并不意味着它可以创建有效的TS. If a decoder supports SRT it doesn’t mean it can process the audio being presented.

野兽的本性

Transporting content is a complex engineered process. 它是一系列活动部件，需要设计以确保活动部件都在做正确的事情. 将内容从A点传送到B点是一个挑战，因为这两个点不能保证使用同一种语言, 但这并非不可克服.

So, is it a question of just making sure encoders and decoders are interoperable? 不幸的是，事实并非如此——我们看到的情况是，供应商在营销工具时宣称与不同的协议兼容，但在这样做的过程中, there is no guarantee of standards and broadcast grade quality being met. Despite vendors marketing these tools, the difference in transport protocols continues to cause problems for broadcasters, and IP delivery is still not viewed as easily accessible by the industry. So where does the answer to this challenge lie?

Treat the cause, not the symptoms

媒体公司通常不希望被复杂的互操作性工程所困扰. 他们想知道的是，音频和视频是否完整，是否同步?

There are lots of protocols out there for transporting content over IP. 然而, they don’t always communicate well with each other. 供应商正在构建编码器和解码器，以结合某些传输协议，但在这样做, they are treating the symptoms rather than cause of the problem. By combining encoding/decoding and transport into one function, there is a risk of confusing the whole workflow.

在实践中, 假设一个与SRT兼容的编码器能够将内容发送到一个与SRT兼容的解码器, yes it can receive the content but, it may still not be able to actually process the unwrapped transport stream. Encoding and transport are 2 separate functions and should be treated as such. 这并不像确保编码器和解码器使用同一种语言那么简单.

There are many components to a video feed but two key factors to consider are:

1. The features and functions of the encoder/decoder. 它能处理CBR馈送吗? Can it process multiple audio channels, how many and which codecs? 它能处理SCTE触发器吗，它能以4:2:2 10比特编码吗，它能产生一个有效的TS吗?
2. 编码器的输出. 它只传输UDP/RTP，它可以发送紫溪或SRT或RIST或任何其他合适的协议吗.

我们需要一种不同的方法

另一个因素是，当涉及到IP交付时，商业广播和技术团队所采用的方法通常是完全分离的. 虽然技术团队正在看到IP交付的明显好处并适应其需求, 商业团队仍然不愿意接受改变，并且在向IP过渡时似乎陷入了困境. Using IP for transport is sometimes outside of a commercial comfort zone, despite significant financial benefits, 但这正是行业有责任明确技术工作流程的地方. If the same question is put to a technical team, 那么他们就会对知识产权交付更加开放，并有适当的措施来实现这一目标. There is an internal dichotomy in place.

Broadcasters need pre-determined methods of dealing with and handling content, 而不是在最后一刻对传输方式和目的地接收者接收IP内容的能力感到恐慌. The last-minute nature of some content is inevitable, such as rights negotiations for live sports broadcasting that runs down to the wire. 然而, 广播公司需要在其发送和接收IP的能力上投入更多，以便建立一个框架来一次又一次地启动基础设施. 商业广播和技术团队之间还需要一种更加联合的方式, so that knowledge and understanding is shared.

前进的道路

While roll out of new technology can sometimes be restricted, 值得庆幸的是, innovation doesn’t exist in a vacuum. 这在整个广播行业中IP传输的出现和逐渐采用中是显而易见的. Its development was very much a combination of ideas across the sector, with companies innovating and developing, based on the work of both partners and competitors. 同样的, 这个行业有潜力让知识产权变得触手可及，这样更多的媒体和广播公司就能从它带来的机遇中受益.

If interoperability is possible, which we know it is, then it is worth doing properly. Media companies don’t need to be tied into a restrictive framework, 有可能变得更有适应性和敏捷，这样他们就能更好地处理最后一分钟的复杂情况.

新的创新, 比如实时事件的按需转码——以一种格式接收提要，然后以任何格式发送出去, 决议, frame rate and specified IP protocol is needed – are game changers. 从技术角度来看，这比采购预先启用的与特定协议兼容的新设备更有意义. 它还将源提要与目的地解耦，从而允许在广播工作流中添加最后一分钟的内容，并在工作流中提供急需的灵活性, so IP is better able to meet the needs of broadcasters.

By investing in better ways to handle and manage content delivery by IP, 组织可以提供更大的兼容性，而不是将客户锁定在专有的和潜在的限制方法中. 在此期间, 那些拥有知识产权专业知识的人有责任确保互操作性是广播公司所做决策的核心. 然而, 广播公司也有责任为其工程团队投资IP标准培训, or make sure they are supporting engineers with more of a managed service approach. The technology already exists to deliver low-latency, 广播级的IP内容, and now the systems around that technology are evolving to take it to the next level.

[Editor's note: This is a contributed article from Cerberus科技. 流媒体 accepts vendor bylines based solely on their value to our readers.]