- In March 2018, SMPTE will offer "Understanding SMPTE ST 2110: Live Production of Professional Media Over Managed IP Networks," an educational program focused on SMPTE ST 2110. Led by SMPTE fellow Thomas Bause Mason, this SMPTE Virtual Classroom course will provide attendees with the knowledge they need to help their companies make the most of SMPTE ST 2110, an enabler of fully internet protocol (IP)-based operations.
- "Every day it becomes increasingly important that engineers and technologists understand how IP can be implemented in their professional media-creation facilities to ensure interoperability between all ST 2110-compliant equipment," said SMPTE president Matthew Goldman, senior vice president of technology, TV, and media at Ericsson. "SMPTE ST 2110 documents provide broadcasters, producers, and professional media technology suppliers with the tools that are essential to working in the IP realm, and SMPTE's new virtual course will describe how best to use those tools."
- The first documents in the SMPTE ST 2110 standards suite have been published (see the original announcement here www.wallstcom.com/SMPTE/171208SMPTE.docx) and they are now available in the SMPTE digital library at library.smpte.org. The new standards are essential to working with media over IP networks in real time, and they are fundamental to the industry's migration to all-IP operations. The impact of SMPTE ST 2110 goes beyond just replacing serial digital interface (SDI) with IP; the standards suite provides media professionals with the flexibility to develop and implement a whole new set of applications that leverage information technology (IT) protocols and infrastructure. Media organizations and technology suppliers have embraced SMPTE ST 2110, and products that support the standards suite are already on the market.
- "SMPTE volunteers have accomplished a great deal in publishing the first SMPTE ST 2110 standards, and this is a perfect time for the Society's experts to educate the broader industry about how to take full advantage of the standards suite," said SMPTE education vice president Richard Welsh, who is also the CEO of Sundog Media Toolkit. "The new 'Understanding SMPTE ST 2110' course offers participants the details they need, from the organization that published the standards. It's an excellent opportunity for those who wish to get ahead of the curve in adopting IP-based media technologies and workflows."
- SMPTE ST 2110 specifies the carriage, synchronization, and description of separate elementary essence streams over managed professional IP networks in real time for live production, playout, and other professional media applications. Making it possible to separately route and break away the essence streams—audio, video, and ancillary data—SMPTE ST 2110 simplifies, for example, the addition of captions, subtitles, and teletext, as well as tasks such as the processing of multiple audio languages and types. SMPTE ST 2110 standards are video-format agnostic and support ultra high definition (UHD), high dynamic range (HDR), and other new and emerging formats.
- Leading this new SMPTE Virtual Course is Bause Mason, whose extensive engineering experience includes the development of patented media technologies and in-depth involvement in standards creation while serving in roles with West German Television (WDR), Cologne Broadcasting Center (CBC), Ascent Media, and NBCUniversal in Los Angeles, and is currently the owner and managing director of Open Media Consulting. While at NBCUniversal, he was the company's lead on the Video Services Forum (VSF) TR03/TR04 and SMPTE ST 2110 standardization effort. Mason also has chaired the North American Broadcasters Association (NABA) Media over IP (MoIP) Subcommittee; organized the MoIP Workshop, presented by the Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS), NABA, SMPTE, and VSF, that promoted the use of SMPTE ST 2110; and chaired the SMPTE Studio Group on Flow Management in Professional Media Networks.
- Mason will guide participants in exploring SMPTE ST 2110 and its tremendous potential. He will delve into elements including video, audio, and data encapsulation; identification and synchronization; and traffic shaping.
- The course assumes a basic understanding of IP and associated terminology. The SMPTE Virtual Courses "Introduction to Networks," "Routing and Switching Essentials," and the "Essentials of IP Media Transport for Broadcasters: Moving Real-Time Video and Audio over Packet Networks" are not required to register for "Understanding SMPTE ST 2110." However, these courses enable a deeper understanding of IP, internetworking, and many essential concepts that are referenced in the ST 2110 suite of standards and are recommended prior to enrolling in "Understanding ST 2110."
- SMPTE Virtual Classroom courses are offered online and available to participants around the world. During these "blended learning" courses, participants engage in independent study and weekly, one-hour, instructor-led coaching sessions that assist them in understanding more complex topics and activities. These live coaching sessions are recorded for on-demand viewing by those unable to attend, and instructors also provide timely responses to participant questions posed through the course's online discussion forum. Each virtual course offering has a specific start date, specific stop date, and weekly learning goals. Successful completion of these courses is determined by participants' completion of course activities and by graded assessments.
- Registration, details, and the full schedule of SMPTE Virtual Classroom courses for 2018, including SMPTE's "Introduction to Networks," "Routing and Switching Essentials," "Essentials of IP Media Transport for Broadcasters," and the new "Understanding SMPTE ST 2110: Live Production of Professional Media Over Managed IP Networks," are available at www.smpte.org/courses.
SMPTE Launches Virtual Course on Professional Media Over Managed IP Networks
