Challenge

RAI requested of Video Progetti an intercom solution able to cope with specific requirements. First of all the solution needs to be based on open standards (IP, AES67) and be able to sustain the complexity of the RAI production: on one hand capable to handle the various sizes of RAI productions, including major live events, and on the other hand, the selected solution needs to provide an integration mechanism between each sub-system so that the management of the Intercom solution could be centralized and seen as a single multi-studio environment.

The intercom terminals need to offer robust and reliable wireless operation.

Solution

Video Progetti has successfully proposed and deployed a full Clear-Com system based on Eclipse HX matrix and FreeSpeak II wireless system.

Each of 5 galleries (control rooms)has its own Eclipse matrix, but each Eclipse is then interconnected in a peer-to-peer fashion via IP using RAI’s standard IT network and forming a seamless integrated system together with a 6th matrix  called “POOL” in RAI terminology,  that manages all shared resources like wireless beltpacks and studio panels, indipendently from each gallery (Control Room). All these  functionalities are embedded into the Eclipse matrix, without the need for additional middleware or orchestration.

In this way wireless FreeSpeak system can be shared across all galleries and studios when required.

Moreover, the use of 1.9GHz frequency allows for a robust and interference-free radio system. Clear-Com-optimized DECT technology used for wireless communication between transceivers and belt-packs offers the required interference-free wireless operation.

The ease of use of the solution is further enhanced via three additional features:

• The HCI API allows for control from third party automations systems .. This makes system reconfiguration quick and easy.
• The Clear-Com solution comes with its own configuration software (EHX) which, using a client-server topology, allows for multi user access with level of permissions determined on a single user basis.
  EHX also reports to each user the full telemetry of the part of the system in use (such as RF signal statuses, battery levels and alerts) in order to achieve maximum reliability and confidence on the system.
• Dynam-EC software (a Windows application) further provides an additional operational management layer using a fully and easily customizable graphical interface with drag-and-drop functionality for maximum ease of use.

Challenge

EDI requested a reliable storage infrastructure through which more than six fiber channel clients could simultaneously access high quality media essences (uncompressed 4K) for colour grading (using Assimilate Scratch) and finishing (using Autodesk Smoke). Moreover, the new infrastructure had to be accurately integrated with customer existing SAN.

Solution

To satisfy customer requests Video Progetti delivered a turnkey solution, integrating the storage infrastructure with Autodesk and Assimilate workstations.

Our team installed and configured in the existing post production infrastructure the Elements ONE, a SAN/NAS hybrid storage with an internal transcoder and a powerful workflow engine, produced by Syslink. The storage with its180 TB raw space accessible using 16 Gbps interfaces represents a top-class solution for every post-production that needs to bring its workflow to the next level.

Challenge

Telecom Italia delivers thousands of high quality media contents to viewers through the TIM Vision OTT portal.

Telecom Italia operators normally prepare media assets using the company content preparation infrastructure, but due to a peak of work, linked to the launch of their new web site and catalogue, they needed a fast and reliable solution for transcoding thousands of film hours to HEVC/H.265.

Solution

Nowadays problems related to time and resource constraints can be handled using resources located in remote data centers, generally identified as “The Cloud”. Keeping this aspect in mind, once the challenge has been accepted and in total agreement with the customer, we decided to process all the necessary data in the AWS Cloud Infrastructure.

Peak of work and time constraints generally come with lack of staff who can handle the extra workload. So, Video Progetti, in addition to the cloud solution, provided also a qualified human resource team which organized the management and implementation of the entire project.

After a detailed media quality control, assets were qualified by our team and prepared for the ingestion. Media transfer from customer storage to AWS S3 Cloud Storage took place using a rugged Tera Byte HDD provided by AWS (i.e. AWS Snowball). Once in S3, media files were processed using Elemental Cloud. Transcoded essences came back to the customer on-premise storage using AWS Snowball again. The entire workflow was handled from Rome.

Challenge

To create from scratch the media content preparation and play-out infrastructure of the largest Italian independent television network operator is a challenge that every broadcast system integrator would like to successfully address.

Word class content owners demand reliable multi-platforms and cost-effective, localized media distribution from service providers.

So original contents must be adapted to the requirements of the specific region of distribution and resolution, size, codec, graphics and several other aspects of the delivered media must be adjusted according to each selected distribution platform (e.g. OTT or DTT)

A modern content preparation facility has to be able to satisfy all these requirements and to deliver the generated media over multiple platforms. Moreover, every aspect of the entire processing chain must be monitored and the different operational areas have to be interconnected by a solid and efficient IP network.

In order to satisfy its major customer requests, Persidera play out infrastructure needed to be designed and implemented in a short time using only cutting edge technologies.

Solution

Following all these challenging customer requests, we built a content preparation and play out infrastructure through which Persidera team can address all the most demanding content owners’ needs.

The facility is in Rome and receives media essences from all over the world. Once content is ingested the entire productivity chain is handled using the powerful Mantrics Workflow Manager. The orchestrator software was internally developed by Video Progetti and sold to several first-class customers. After contents are ingested, catalogued and processed, they are delivered over DTT and OTT platforms.

Installation and testing of the entire infrastructure was handled by Video Progetti system team. Moreover, our qualified technical support department and our product specialists trained and provided operational support to the Persidera operators during the first months of work.

Challenge

Teleippica needed to modernise its entire broadcast infrastructure to be able to receive, process, record and play back contemporary events and to deliver to viewers live contents received from 44 racetracks spread all over Italy. Moreover, they needed to refurbish the facilities where newscasts, TV shows and radio broadcasts are produced. The new infrastructure had to guarantee five nines availability and so needed the most modern, resilient and redundant broadcast equipment.

All these changes had to be effected while the five channels were on-air, live productions were taking place and in short, the entire legacy infrastructure was running. This aspect represented an extremely challenging activity from project management, implementation, testing and commissioning points of view. Video Progetti system team had to accurately plan each phase of the project and implement it in the fastest and most efficient way so that daily operations were not compromised.

The Ultima TV editor strongly believes in the economics behind high quality local news and decided to create a top-class broadcast infrastructure able to deliver high quality media contents through DTT and Internet.

Video Progetti, after analysing this customer’s needs, accepted the challenge with enthusiasm and provided an efficient and cost effective broadcast quality system able to satisfy all the high demanding customer requests.

Solution

To satisfy our customer’s requests Video Progetti system team designed a main infrastructure assembled in Porcari and a disaster recovery (DR) facility developed in Rome. These two broadcast centres guarantee the high resiliency which was requested for broadcasting thousands of live events safely each year.

In Porcari we built seven production control rooms (PCRs), two TV studios and the entire networking and monitoring infrastructure.

Rome represents the DR from where all the signals received in the Porcari facility can be handled and most of the main operations repeated. Both in Rome and Porcari a teleport is present and the broadcasting of the five channels can be handled from either facility. All the incoming signals are recorded and handled through the entire productivity chain using the powerful Mantrics Workflow Manager, a software developed by Video Progetti, leveraging our solid and wide spread knowledge of entire media content preparation processes.

The implementation phase was based on extensive project management and planning activities. The team pre-cabled the entire new facility during the daylight hours and installed it during the nights. In this way regular broadcast operations could go ahead without hindrance and the new infrastructure was up and running within the planned time frame. After installation, our qualified technical department tested the entire infrastructure. Moreover, Video Progetti product specialists trained and provided daily operational support to Teleippica operators during the first months of production.

Challenge

Since analogue switch-off the Italian local television market has been under strong pressure which has led to the bankruptcy of several broadcasters and over-stressed the rest of them. The transition to digital TV never brought the expected benefits and today the market is even affected by new viewer’s behaviours (e.g. TV everywhere, Catch-up TV) and by new distribution methods (OTT).

Investing in the creation of a completely new local television during these hard times is a revolutionary act that requires a perfect balance between costs and technologies.

The Ultima TV editor strongly believes in the economics behind high quality local news and decided to create a top-class broadcast infrastructure able to deliver high quality media contents through DTT and Internet.

Video Progetti, after analysing this customer’s needs, accepted the challenge with enthusiasm and provided an efficient and cost effective broadcast quality system able to satisfy all the high demanding customer requests.

Solution

In order to build a brand new top-class and cost-effective broadcast infrastructure, Video Progetti SI team created an optimized HD TV station able to function even in the most stressful situations. We successfully delivered the system by leveraging our specific knowledge of the overall workflows and activities implemented in every TV station, our proven experience in building broadcast systems and our long-term stable and profitable relationship with first class partners.

The TV station is composed of a master control room (MCR), a production control room (PCR), a studio theatre, a newscast studio, a newsroom which accommodates up to eleven journalists and four craft post production stations.

All the different areas are connected using a compact and flexible multiformat broadcast router and high quality products produced by top class manufacturers are integrated in each environment (e.g. Snell Advanced Media, Grass Valley, Clear-Com, Livestream, Sencore, TV Logic, etc).

In only two months of highly intensive work Video Progetti built, tested and delivered the entire TV facility. Subsequently we trained the entire production team and assisted in operations during the first days of production.

Challenge

Today, emerging technologies, multiple video formats (HD, UHD, SDR, HDR) and budget constraints are the three main aspects that a System Integrator (SI) has to keep in mind in order to deliver solid, functional and cost-effective OB vans. Following the proliferation of numerous video formats, media content rights owners require several video distribution formats of the same event, which can be produced for multiple customers and delivered over several platforms to different regions. For instance a football match could be produced in HD-SDR, HD-HDR and UHD-HDR and delivered by two broadcasters over satellite, DTT and OTT.

In such a complex market, producing multiple high quality contents in a cost effective way, allows OB production services to satisfy multiple customers and optimize OPEX and CAPEX investments.

Solution

In order to satisfy the market requests described above, NVP asked for an OB van with two completely separate production control rooms (PCRs), capable of producing SD, HD, UHD, SDR and HDR video and capable of leveraging the latest technologies such as IP.

At Video Progetti we welcomed the challenge of designing, integrating and building the OB van requested by the NVP technical team.

In the first stage of the project the Video Progetti system team and NVP technical department had several meetings in order to define the main requirements of the van.

As a result of these meetings Video Progetti solution architects designed a system which integrated all the latest technologies and best-suited our customer’s needs. Once project timing had been defined by the project manager and had been approved by the customer, in only six months Video Progetti technical department built the 14-metre OB van. Once the OB van was delivered, Video Progetti qualified trainers gave operational support to the customer during initial productions.

Challenge

On Air Milano’s premises include a mid-sized studio, previously used primarily for advertising productions, that required some renovations to make it competitive in an increasingly crowded and demanding market. For this reason, On Air Milano sought to create more opportunities to boost the studio, differentiate it from the competition, and explore additional activities as part of its Production division. In his role as Producer, Niki Petrucci was aware of the potential of LED Volumes and Virtual Production, so he approached Video Progetti to evaluate the possibility of setting up a full in-house Virtual Production set.

For a company of On Air Milano’s size, this represented a significant investment. Therefore, their request didn’t entail only the creation of a Virtual Production set, but it also included special assistance in financing the project and offer a solid partnership for all post-sales activities, including the full training and re-skilling of the internal team.

Solution

Given the complexity of the project and the scale of the investment, it was mutually decided to go through a Proof-of-Concept (POC) stage by renting a LED Volume, a media server (Disguise), and a camera tracking system. Video Progetti supported On Air Milano also with the initial training of the staff.

This phase extended well beyond a mere technical test. With the POC setup, On Air Milano successfully produced “ZERO,” a TV program for RAI, which aired on RAI2, one of the state broadcaster’s primary channels.

With the POC demonstrating that the solution was “ready for prime-time” and capable of opening new business opportunities for On Air Milano, it was decided to proceed with the full implementation of a Virtual Production Studio.

The solution deployed at On Air Milano by Video Progetti is a typical In-Camera VFX Virtual Production setup that includes:

• 12m x 3.5m backdrop LED wall. This is a Unilumin Upad IV with 2,6mm pixel pitch.
• 6m x 3m ceiling LED wall. This is a Unilumin Upad III with 5mm pixel pitch.
• Brompton SX40 Tessera processors SX40
• Disguise Media Server (1 x VX2)
• Disguise Render Engine (2 x RX2)
• Stype camera tracking system for 2 cameras

Interestingly, On Air Milano decided to finance and self-produce a short film, “23”, before putting the Virtual Production studio into full operation. This allowed them to experiment all nuances of VP without the typical hassles of a “real” production and demonstrate the possibilities of Virtual Production to prospective clients. “23” has been selected at some major festivals in recent months.