
AmberFin & ATG Broadcast Jointly Promote DPP-Focused Approach to File-based Workflows in UK 01 Mar 2013
At BVE (stand K31), AmberFin, a leading developer of file-based media ingest, transcoding and quality control solutions for content owners, broadcasters, sports organizations and post-production houses, has come together with broadcast systems integrator, ATG Broadcast, to jointly promote an approach to the adoption of digital file-based workflows that focuses on the Digital Production Partnership (DPP) initiative in the UK.
DPP is an initiative formed by the UK's public service broadcasters to help producers and broadcasters maximise the benefits of digital production. The partnership is funded by the BBC, ITV and Channel 4, with representation from Channel 5, Sky, S4C and the independent sector on its working groups. DPP draws on industry experts from the worlds of technology and broadcast production to help fulfil its remit. AmberFin has been a strong supporter of the DPP initiative because it promises Open Standards interoperability and this dovetails neatly with the company's strategic development goals.
At BVE, ATG Broadcast and AmberFin are sharing a platform where they will showcase the market's first DPP specific media ingest workstation and file transcoder. Designated iCR-100-DPP (transcoder), iCR-300-DPP (media ingest workstation) and iCR-500-DPP (media ingest, transcode, playback, metadata entry and QC review), these new products reflect AmberFin's aim of addressing the broadest range of media organizations with enterprise level solutions that are designed to meet their specific business needs. In the UK, these products are available through AmberFin's channel partner ATG Broadcast.
The iCR-300-DPP media ingest workstation and the iCR-100-DPP transcoder are both designed specifically to create high-quality MXF-wrapped AVC-Intra or D10 assets compliant with the AMWA AS-11 specification and DPP guidelines from tape or line sources. Available as a standalone workstations or scalable enterprise solutions, both systems reflect a design that is optimized for easy integration and operation with proven interoperability in multi-vendor environments. The workstations offer clearly defined, documented and extensible APIs. They benefit from AmberFin's Unified QC (UQC) approach, providing automated and manual quality control operation.
The iCR-500-DPP is the complete workstation for the creation and preparation of AMWA AS-11, DPP compliant assets. The iCR-500-DPP combines ingest, transcode and playback functionality with metadata entry and validation, QC review, mark-up and segmentation.
DPP is all about the business of broadcast
According to AmberFin and ATG Broadcast, DPP provides solid foundations for future business growth and, importantly, it provides a level playing field for all the companies working within that sector. DPP provides a sheltered environment or ecosystem in which companies can interact with each other: the other option offers no protection and individual companies can make ill-judged decisions that cost them dearly.
In a world of extremely diverse media utilisation, it is impossible to create a one shoe fits all' media format. The business requirements for archiving the production master of a new movie are different from the business requirements for exchanging a metadata rich proxy across a business network, comments Bruce Devlin, Chief Technology Officer at AmberFin. The best we can do is to have a hierarchy of standards that reduce the number of variants in an application. MXF is the toolbox standard. DPP is the shim (smallest specification) that defines how that application will be used in a given environment i.e. the UK Digital Production Partnership.
Devlin believes that the DPP in initiative could provide the bedrock on which broadcasters, production companies and facilities can build their file-based workflows. He sees a number of clear and strong advantages in this unified approach:
The essence of the problem is the lack of a common interchange format to enable these transactions. DPP is the first open public interchange format that is specifically designed to address this issue.
In a standardized DPP world, there would be a limited amount of pain and cost felt by everybody but this would be shared equally amongst the organizations involved and it would be a limited cost, which is incurred only once. After this point, our industry has a fantastic common interchange format to help encourage partnerships and build businesses.
In a world that has adopted DPP, media and metadata interoperability is not an issue since the format is built on a strong, detailed common interchange specification. In this homogeneous scenario the resources that would have been used in the interoperability engineering process can be used in more creative and productive ways, such as programme making.
In a modern workflow the typical number of file encoding stages between camera and screen is around 10. If you have a single interchange format within your workflow then the number of transcode operations can be dramatically reduced the end product will retain all its quality. The utilisation of DPP as a common interchange format simplifies the workflow and assures that quality levels are maintained throughout. Furthermore, a homogeneous codec environment enables effective QC irrespective of the number of process steps.
In a file-based workflow, the largest single source of cost saving is automation the creation of systems that are capable of making decisions based on metadata. In this environment, it is logical that the better the quality of the metadata, then the better automated decision-making systems that work from that data.
Every operator, working at every stage of the workflow benefits from superior quality metadata. The best q
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
22/04/2026
Solid State Logic is advancing its System T platform with a stronger focus on IP...
22/04/2026
From immersive audio to live streaming, Dolby Laboratories is focused on the fut...
22/04/2026
Shallow depth-of-field cameras have taken the industry by storm. Its debut a han...
22/04/2026
Riedel Communications (Booth C4908) announced that Eastern Kentucky University (...
22/04/2026
The NAB Show is in full swing, and the SVG and SVG Europe editorial teams are chasing down the hottest stories from all over the Las Vegas Convention Center. He...
22/04/2026
Blackmagic Design has announced the URSA Cine 12K LF 100G, a new model in the URSA Cine family adding 100G Ethernet for SMPTE 2110 live production output up to ...
22/04/2026
Celebrating its 40th anniversary, NEP is leaning into hybrid production with the...
22/04/2026
NEP VP, Platform Dan Murphy sits down at the 2026 NAB Show to unpack what NEP P...
22/04/2026
Spotify and the New York Liberty are teaming up to give music and basketball fan...
22/04/2026
New 20-minute documentary explores iconic design The Focusrite Room in Mesa, Arizona, where John Aquilino hosts the Studio Console 005.
In 2025, Focusrite co...
22/04/2026
Offers compact wireless solution for pedalboards
Taiwanese audio brand Cloudvocal have announced the availability of a new pedalboard-friendly wireless syst...
22/04/2026
Latest hybrid sampling/synthesis instrument arrives
Arturia's Augmented series offerings rely on a mixture of sampling and synthesis, allowing users to ...
22/04/2026
Combines three distinct analogue EQ emulations
The latest addition to Acustica Audio's ever-expanding collection of analogue-emulation plug-ins combines...
22/04/2026
Final instalment in vintage-inspired instrument series
Analog Empire: Bass & Lead marks the final instalment in Melda Production's vintage hardware-insp...
22/04/2026
Fuzz pedal joins all-analogue Series A line
Given that Strymons reputation was built on unapologetically digital pedals, it was a little surprising to see t...
22/04/2026
SBS names shortlisted brands for 2026 SBS Media Sustainability Challenge
22 April, 2026
Media releases
National broadcaster also releases its second annual...
22/04/2026
Why Low Band Electronic Warfare Matters...
22/04/2026
The nation unites around football team's World Cup dream
Warsaw, Poland, 20.04.26: Nielsen, a global leader in audience measurement, data, and media intell...
22/04/2026
Warsaw, Poland, 22.04.26: Nielsen, a global leader in audience measurement, data...
22/04/2026
New market intelligence offering gives businesses a clearer view of local consum...
22/04/2026
Glookast Unveils New UX, YouTube and Social Media Connectors, Premiere Panel, Ci...
22/04/2026
Lightcraft Technology to Preview Spark Story at NAB 2026 with Interactive Previs...
22/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/04/2026
22 Apr 2026
VEON's Banglalink to Bring Starlink Mobile to Customers in Bangladesh Bangladesh becomes the third market where VEON and Starlink Mobile partne...
22/04/2026
U have unveiled exclusive first-look images for their six-part police thriller Hit Point, starring Nick Blood (Day of the Jackal) and BAFTA nominee Saffron Hock...
22/04/2026
What can I watch on UKTV and stream on U this week?
This week on UKTV and the free streaming service U, viewers can watch a range of new and returning programm...
22/04/2026
Wednesday 22 April 2026
Sky announces fifth year of WNT Fund with 30,000 bursa...
22/04/2026
Back to All News
This Earth Day, Discover the Sustainable Productions Behind Our Films and Series
Emma Stewart, Ph.D.
Netflix Sustainability Officer
Enterta...
22/04/2026
The move from Retail Media to Commerce Media is about broadening the scope of th...
22/04/2026
April 22 2026, 07:00 (PDT) Dolby and BMW Bring Dolby Atmos to the BMW 7 Series,...
22/04/2026
RT Documentary On One 7-part series breaks US market for first time
RT Programme Sales has announced its first deal with a US distribution partner for its 7-...
22/04/2026
NVIDIA and Google Cloud have collaborated for more than a decade, co engineering a full stack AI platform that spans every technology layer - from performance o...
21/04/2026
Cloud-based production isnt going anywhere, and BitFire is doubling down by prov...
21/04/2026
The topic of artificial intelligence has a stranglehold on the sports-video-prod...
21/04/2026
5G is still a hot topic in live event production, and this workflow continues to...
21/04/2026
At the 2026 NAB Show, Ed McGivern, GM and President of Appear US, discusses the ...
21/04/2026
Studio Network Solutions (SNS) has announced an on-premise AI suite designed for...
21/04/2026
Suite Studios has integrated its file-streaming technology into the newly announced Frame.io Drive, a desktop application from Adobe company Frame.io. The colla...
21/04/2026
Net Insight has integrated InSync Technology's FrameFormer into the Nimbra E...