Pebble Beach Systems Enables Cloud Playout for DMC with Orca Virtualised IP Channel Solution

Weybridge, UK and Broomfield, CO., USA, February 23rd, 2017 - Pebble Beach Systems, a leading automation, content management and integrated channel specialist, has been instrumental in helping The Digital Media Centre (DMC) become one of the first television network operations centres in the world to successfully embrace virtualised playout from the cloud.

A leading European media gateway, DMC provides a full range of media services from media preparation to storage and delivery for a wide range of clients in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The company originates 100 linear streams and provisions around 50,000 VOD assets to MVPDs (multichannel video programming distributors) per year and in a typical day, DMC delivers 5000 hours of media. Today DMC is successfully playing out 10 channels from Fox, Scripps, AMC, A+E, and others all via a virtualised private cloud based on Pebbles Orca virtualized IP solution from DMC's location in Amsterdam.

With such a large operation, careful consideration was necessary to migrate and expand the capabilities of the facility. DMC's original vision was to build an agile system that could bring channels to market faster than ever before. The DMC team wanted to get rid of their SDI infrastructure entirely and focus instead on IP-based solutions that could run on COTS (Commercial off-the-shelf) IT hardware that DMC would source and maintain.

We were able to demonstrate that Pebble Beach Systems Orca had the maturity to meet our needs, said Jean-Louis Lods, director of business development at DMC. Pebble's ability to work closely to further refine and tweak the development of Orca based on our requirements sealed the deal.

After a thorough vetting of solutions offered from five separate vendors, Pebble Beach Systems was awarded the contract for its Orca integrated channel devices controlled by Marina automation. Orca represents a software-only, virtualised implementation of Pebble's Dolphin channel-in-box integrated device capable of running in private or public clouds, with IP inputs and outputs. Orca provides equivalent functionality in a pure software environment to discrete hardware video servers, graphics, audio processing, and subtitling systems.

The main benefit for DMC was in the reduced time to deliver a new channel. Traditionally we would have a 12 to 14 week lead time to deliver a new channel including procuring all the SDI glue, the playout system and CiAB and compression, said Lods. With virtualised playout we can launch a channel in 10 minutes. This means clients can deliver pop-up channels, for example to test the market for a period of time.

Orcas flexibility, portability, and ease of maintenance has enabled DMC to react more quickly to their clients needs, while reducing overall costs. An additional 24 channels are in the process of being migrated to virtualised playout now, with all remaining channels slated for migration during the reminder of 2017.

About Pebble Beach Systems

Pebble Beach Systems is a world leader in automation, channel in a box, integrated and virtualised playout technology, with scalable products designed for highly efficient multichannel transmission as well as complex news and sports television. Installed in more than 70 countries and with proven systems ranging from single up to over 150 channels in operation, Pebble Beach Systems offers open, flexible systems, which encompass ingest and playout automation, and complex file-based workflows. The company trades in the US as Pebble Broadcast Systems.

Web: http://www.pebble.tv

About DMC

Digital Media Centre (DMC) is the leading European media gateway, network operations and management centre, delivering software defined, cloud broadcast solutions. DMC provides accurate media preparation and management for on-demand, linear television and multi-platform IP/OTT.

DMC currently transmits over 100 linear streams across continental Europe, the UK, Middle East, Asia and South Africa, manages over 60,000 active on-demand titles and delivers over 5,000 hours of content each day.

Clients include Fox Networks Group, A+E Networks, Liberty Global, BBC Worldwide, Sony Pictures Entertainment, AMC Networks and others.

For more information please visit www.digitalmediacentre.com

DMC is a division of AMC Networks International, the global division of AMC Networks. For more information, visit: www.amcnetworks.com/amcni.

LINK:	http://www.theiabm.org/news/member-news/blogart4528...
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