Ethernet is stable and reliable enough for video transport.
For years, video service providers have had limited options for dealing with one of the more critical aspects of their video contribution workflows: how to set up reliable circuits for inter-city or remote-to-network connections. The traditional options have been dark fiber, SONET/SDH and satellite.
While these are all appropriate solutions for specific applications, all of these options also have limitations to the operator or content provider, either because of time-consuming circuit setups, the absence of bidirectional connectivity, prohibitively high costs or a combination of all three. Fortunately, the explosive growth of managed Ethernet networks and the demand for video transported via Internet Protocol has opened up a new, less-squeaky door.
Cost-effective, managed Ethernet networks, typically with gigabit capacity, are enabling IP transport – once considered an expensive, low-reliability, high-latency solution – to become the preferred method for regional and national transport. Because of the long list of benefits and the expected continuation of worldwide technological advancements, it is very likely that this will become the worldwide standard, as well, before long.
IP network backbones are now more robust than ever, having been scaled up to support the always-increasing bandwidth requirements. And, with the SMPTE 2022 standard for forward error correction (FEC) in place, cable operators and video service providers with inter-city and long-haul video connectivity requirements are now in a great position to take advantage of IP connectivity for reliable transport of critical contribution-quality video. This type of video over IP solution is ready today for any operator or service provider that requires a high level of video and audio quality and outstanding reliability. One of the key problems is that some might consider this a leap of faith.
Because the IP backbone has not traditionally been robust enough to support broadcast-quality video transport, operators were forced to seek other options. In order to execute long-haul transport of video for live events, such as sporting events (think connectivity between an arena and the control center), an operator previously had to use a temporary satellite uplink (expensive to set up, comparatively unreliable and bandwidth-restricted), dark fiber (distance limitations) or SONET (difficult to configure).
Because of the increasing availability of managed IP networks, which have been developed to support the enormous growth of Internet-enabled applications, and the new SMPTE standard, using IP for high-quality video transport is now an affordable and readily available option that saves time, money and potential hassles.
Why does SMPTE 2022 matter? For starters, it’s an established standard for dealing with encapsulated video assets transported over networks that have been traditionally data-centric. This is a vital component – especially for networks using contributed video assets for live broadcasts in which incomplete or just plain old bad-looking video is unacceptable. More importantly, though, it provides an instruction manual for all to use so that all video transported over IP can be handled in a uniform manner, resulting in a repeatable method that’s easy to deploy while also lowering costs.
From a technical standpoint, this is the first video over IP solution that provides a mechanism to guarantee reliability based on a standard set by SMPTE. Two SDI or dozens of ASI channels, in each direction, can be transported over a single Gig-E connection. SDI video is transported in its entirety, including all ancillary data, while ASI video streams are also supported.
The FEC and packet buffering enable the recovery of errored or delayed IP packets by including redundant information within the stream, and they provide both sender and receiver with valuable peace of mind. This level of reliability is not available using any other method of video transport at the cost level associated with IP transport.
Now, just to be clear, the high-quality, highly reliable contribution video transport under discussion is not taking place over the public Internet, like YouTube videos. There are many privately managed networks – mostly built to manage data transport, and managed by large operators (such as telcos) – that are now available for video over IP. By making use of these readily available networks and video over IP gateways, such as the DLC410 from Artel Video Systems, operators benefit from the low cost, reliability and easy configuration that the technology offers.
EASILY IDENTIFIABLE ADVANTAGES
Multicasting
IP transport enables a very simple method for providing one-to-many connectivity. With dark fiber or SONET connections, m u l t i -casting requires additional personnel and procedures for setup. In the world of video backhaul, oneto-many connections are often the rule, as opposed to the exception, especially when dealing with live programming. For example, live sporting event footage going to multiple news organizations is easily manageable using IP connections. Just as simply, the footage could be quickly sent to every major CDN provider, or even forwarded directly to an archive server.
In short, moving video assets over these well-managed networks is about as simple as moving files around a company’s file server network – provided the appropriate gateway and controls are in place.
Secure Transport
Backhaul over IP uses managed IP networks, as discussed. This provides a key benefit that can’t be overlooked, which is network security. Private networks, by definition, are built with security in mind. Nobody gets in unless invited. With content (both video and data) protection schemes built into the core of the network, the inherent risks associated with IP transport across the open Internet are mitigated.
Functionality/Configuration
Unlike dark fiber and SONET connectivity, IP is naturally bidirectional – a huge benefit for the transport of live video. With IP, both sides of the connection can see the live video and respond accordingly. Using traditional means, setting up a similar scenario would usually require multiple circuits (to and fro), which require multiple setups, tests, verifications, etc.
Technology Advancements
Today, everyone is using IP, whether for data, video or both. It’s omnipresent. There are millions of people working every day to figure out ways to make the IP backbone more efficient – to push more information through the proverbial “pipe.” As the technology for managing IP transport continues to evolve, those using IP for professional-grade video assets will benefit. For example, mezzanine compression is quickly becoming the standard for “virtually lossless” compression and is being applied widely for digital cinema and other applications. As it continues to grow in popularity, the use of this compression scheme will easily be accepted by existing IP topologies with little, if any, upgrading required. This is definitely not the case with the other transport options.
EASILY IDENTIFIABLE BENEFITS
When viewing this technology option through a real-world lens, the benefits are even more striking. Just 10 years ago, for example, the effort and personnel required to cover a live event, like a political debate, were cumbersome, to say the least. A feed would come from the originating site and be transported to the nearest long-haul transport facility via dark fiber. The footage would then be compressed and sent across the country (or wherever it was headed) via satellite, where it was then received, decoded and sent to the studio, again via dark fiber. This took careful planning and coordination between several organizations and lots of hands-on resources.
Using readily available video over IP resources, this same scenario plays out much differently.
Today, compressed video comes right out of the camera and can head directly into the IP backbone. Once the managed network is accessed, the assets head straight to their destination where they’re decoded and played out. It’s secure, there are much fewer potential fault points, it’s inexpensive and it can be managed remotely.
It’s important to note that IP video transport may not be for every scenario. There are still many operations that have committed years and made huge investments in their existing transport structures. The legacy technologies, like dark fiber, are tried and true and do provide advantages over IP in many applications.
However, it’s clear that video over IP transport will continue to grow. Why? Because good, safe, managed networks are coming into their own. Because standards exist to make it reliable. And, with massive growth of data traffic driving innovation, video over IP will only continue to grow and thrive as we move into the future.
E-Mail: sales@artel.com
