--
NewTek wants to change the way we connect cameras --
Tue, 09 May 2017 10:38
--
Networks have changed the world as much as - or maybe even more than - the printing press. The internet describes itself in a single word, and yet its easy to forget that its a giant network of connected computers and devices that allows communication across the world.
At a low level, its data consisting of ones and noughts, at a higher level, its an idea (right or wrong!), a sound, an image or even a poem. Virtually anything that can be thought can be sent across the internet.
At a local level, networks have also transformed video and film production. Larger facilities store their media on storage area networks and can share content amongst editors and finishers - speeding up the process and making it more economical.
But this revolution hasnt yet reached live production, where real-time, unidirectional SDI still rules.
You can see why: SDI is reliable, deterministic, frame accurate, uncompressed and based on simple cabling. But these very advantages work against it when it comes to flexibility. Its point-to point and doesnt carry multiple signals (apart from multiple audio channels embedded in a single SDI stream). It misses out on the almost - by comparison - miraculous flexibility of networks.
Now, its one thing to send an email over a network, but quite another to deliver high quality HD or 4K video over standard IT cabling, routers and other commodity infrastructure. But its starting to happen. In fact, several major players in the broadcast and live production industries are spending so much money and time on IP infrastructures that its obvious they see it as the future.
Of all these companies, NewTek, who know more than a bit about live production, has recently announced a new and seemingly very ambitious new network protocol. Does it matter? We think so, because its an open protocol that has - behind the scenes - already been adopted by a significant roster of industry names.
Network Device Interface, to be known as NDI (sounds a bit like SDI, doesnt it?) allows multiple video systems to communicate with one another over IP. The system can encode, transmit and receive many streams of high quality, low latency, frame-accurate video and audio in real time.
Notice that this ticks all SDIs boxes. This is clearly a serious system.
What we find encouraging about NDI is that, because its an open protocol, with freely available SDKs (the information and software that other manufacturers need to incorporate it in their products), there are no barriers to it being widely adopted.
Once a video signal is inside the network, it can be routed as easily as email. Every device has an equal status, and, wherever it is, it can act as a video source.
What makes this network protocol seem all the more credible is that NewTek has pioneered live video production on IT platforms. Their TriCaster range is widely used to make live TV programs across the world, and is the perfect device to recieve these these new network video sources. But all other particpating devices will be able to too.
How does it work in practise? Lets take a very simple example. Imagine a video camera with an SDI output. To get the cameras signal on the network, all it takes is an SDI interface card connected to a computer. A software NDI driver will take the video from the SDI input and put it on the network, where it can be seen by any NDI devices as a video source. It really is that simple, and that powerful. It means that any existing camera can become a network source.
Apparently NDI works well over standard GigE networks, meaning that many, if not most, Ethernet networks will work immediately with the new protocol.
SDI may be simple, but it is demanding as well. Although the cabling is cheap, the supporting systems have always been expensive. NDI, in contrast, is a bi directional protocol that can operate over a GigE LAN, with many streams on a single shared cable, including 16 channels of floating point digital audio. NDI supports 4K (and beyond) as well as tools for video acess rights, grouping, and bi-directional metadata.
Is NDI going to be supported?
It already is, by the following well known industry names: Brainstorm, CasparCG, CharacterWorks, ChyronHego, ClassX, Compix, EasyWorship, Gnural Net, Graphics Outfitters, LiveXpert, Media 5, PlayBox Technology, Teradek, Vizrt, Wasp3D and many more will be NDI-enabled on the day of launch. NewTek has also collaborated with AJA, DELTACAST and Matrox to enable their capture cards to act as NDI senders or receivers; support for Blackmagic Design cards will also be provided. Boland, JVC, LiveU, Microsoft Skype TX, NewsMaker, Panasonic, PESA and Wowza are also working on providing NDI-based solutions.
NewTek expects it to be the widest adopted IP standard on the market at launch in Q4.
We think this is going to transform live video production by simplifying the way that cameras are connected to switchers. Its going to lower cost and make more devices available as video sources.
And this is just the start.
Source: RedShark News
Related Articles
-- --
-- --
-- Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. comments powered by Disqus
Most recent headlines
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
02/12/2025
Case Study: How Mid-Atlantic Sports Network Moved to All-IP Distribution in 60 D...
02/12/2025
2025 Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame: Lee Corso, Coach, Commentator, FirebrandBy Ken Kerschbaumer
Tuesday, December 2, 2025 - 7:00 am
Print This Story | S...
02/12/2025
SVG All-Stars: Dan Nabors, Senior Director, Remote Engineering, TNT SportsThe veteran tech leader is helping guide Warner Bros. Discovery's at-home' re...
02/12/2025
National Lacrosse League Opens Season With New Cloud-Based Official Replay-Revie...
02/12/2025
Platinum White Paper: The Cinematic Look in Live Production - Bridging Aesthetic...
02/12/2025
SVG India Announces Advisory Board; JioStar's Prashant Khanna Named ChairmanBy Ken Kerschbaumer
Tuesday, December 2, 2025 - 11:15 am
Print This Story |...
02/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: New AI Production Tools Workshop' Features ESPN, F...
02/12/2025
Written and directed by Hailey Gates, Atropia won the U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival....
02/12/2025
The lightweight and highly portable CORVUS-RAVEN, recently demonstrated at the V...
02/12/2025
The lightweight, rugged Panther 2 tri-band VSAT delivers high-speed data communications for Internet, VPN connectivity and video transmission over commercial an...
02/12/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({...
02/12/2025
NGID volunteers in the United States
NGID volunteers in Mexico
NGID volunteers in India
NGID volunteers in Spain
NGID volunteers in Australia
NGID voluntee...
02/12/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission's Media Bureau has issued a reminder that stations in DMAs 111 through 120 must implement its audio descrip...
02/12/2025
SAN DIEGO Sony Electronics today introduced the Alpha 7 V (ILCE-7M5), the fifth generation of its Alpha 7 full-frame mirrorless lineup, powered by the newly dev...
02/12/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has opened a docket for comments on Nexstar Media Group's proposed $6.2 billion acquisition of Tegna and se...
02/12/2025
WASHINGTON The National Association of Broadcasters has added a trio of media executives, Veronica Rodriguez, Matt Schnaars and Jeff Warshaw, to its board of di...
02/12/2025
MILAN, Italy Brightcove has released seven new features designed to expand global reach, improve audience engagement, enhance live-streaming quality and streaml...
02/12/2025
BCNEXXT, the developers of the advanced playout platform Vipe, today announced a new Service Provider Partner agreement with NPC Media, the Australian managed p...
02/12/2025
DPA Microphones today announces the immediate availability of its new N-Series Digital Wireless Microphone System for customers throughout the U.S. In addition ...
02/12/2025
Hiltron Communications reports a well attended and successful Space Tech Expo exhibition, held at the Messe Bremen from Tuesday November 18 through Thursday Nov...
02/12/2025
The beginning of September saw Riverfire by Australian Retirement Trust, in association with Channel 9 and Triple M, kick off the 2025 Brisbane Festival in spec...
02/12/2025
SGM Lighting is pleased to announce an exciting new partnership with ACT Entertainment, under which ACT will serve as the exclusive distributor for SGM's ne...
02/12/2025
Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced that Telia, the second largest telecom operator in Norway, is modernizing its broadband network with the company's i...
02/12/2025
European cloud data protection specialist Keepit is expanding its sales network in the DACH region and has gained TIM AG, one of the leading value-added distrib...
02/12/2025
Featured products at ISE 2026
This year s ISE 2026 theme "Push Beyond" reflects Calrec s direction of travel. The company is dedicated to supporting the AV an...
02/12/2025
Czech Television, the national public broadcaster, has deployed one of the largest LiveU live production projects in the region for live sports and news coverag...
02/12/2025
Test & measurement innovator, Leader Electronics, has announced the release of v8.2 software for its ZEN and ZEN-W Series, bringing advanced cinematic camera se...
02/12/2025
Global provider of video streaming software and services, Accedo, and OTT platform provider, Magine Pro, have signed a binding agreement to carve out and merge ...
02/12/2025
With proven success in broadcast, OTT, and content supply chains, K.S Avinash set to scale Skandha's service-first approach across APAC
Skandha Media Servi...
02/12/2025
AJA Video Systems has joined the RAVENNA community, a network of partners devoted to advancing the RAVENNA standard for distributing real-time audio over intern...
02/12/2025
HUNT VALLEY, Md. Sinclair and its wholly-owned subsidiary One Media Technologies have released a new report focused on how ATSC 3.0, the IP-based NextGen TV sta...
02/12/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission's Media Bureau has issued a reminder that stations in DMAs 111 through 120 must implement its audio descrip...
02/12/2025
WASHINGTON Members of the Advanced Television Systems Committee have elected four industry veterans to three-year terms on the organization's board of direc...
02/12/2025
A new survey from S&P Global Market Intelligence Kagan highlights how important social media is for younger consumers, with Gen Z spending 5.1 hours a day on so...
02/12/2025
Faculty Notes: Fall/Winter 2025 Recent accomplishments, releases, and events by Berklee faculty.
December 1, 2025
By
Editorial Staff
The cast of Kind of M...
02/12/2025
Ring In The Holidays With Our Biggest Sale Ever On Ivory II Pianos!From now until December 31st, you can save 50% or more on every Ivory II piano and collection...
02/12/2025
Back to All News
Made in America: How Stranger Things' Electrified the US Economy
Entertainment
02 December 2025
GlobalUnited States
Link copied to cl...
02/12/2025
Back to All News
Culinary Class Wars' Season 2 Trailer Teases New Rules, R...
02/12/2025
--
The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and the International Telecommunication Unio...
02/12/2025
Harmonic's cOS Platform Will Redefine Subscribers' Quality of Experience, Lowering Churn SAN JOSE, Calif. - Dec. 2, 2025 - Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today...
02/12/2025
At AWS re:Invent, NVIDIA and Amazon Web Services expanded their strategic collab...
02/12/2025
S an Nollaig
Hollywood blockbusters The Banshees of Inisherin, Barbie and Oppenheimer make their Irish TV debut
Tune into the classics such as Love Actual...
02/12/2025
Showcasing fresh Irish storytelling and emerging talent Storyland 2025 signals a fantastic time for Irish drama
RT and F s ireann/Screen Ireland are proud to...
01/12/2025
L3Harris and PentenAmio formalise their teaming agreement at MilCIS 2025, streng...
01/12/2025
Artemis II is NASA's first crewed flight test of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft. The crew, from left: Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Vic...
01/12/2025
IRVINE, Calif. Wooden Camera has introduced its new Accessory Collection for the Canon EOS C50. The new lineup includes a low-profile, gimbal-ready cage, expand...
01/12/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has released a tentative agenda for its Dec. 18 Open Commission Meeting that will include a vote on a report an...
01/12/2025
In most years, a graph of annual local TV ad spending is about as predictable as an electrocardiogram of a reasonably healthy patient in a doctor's office. ...
-- 
