WBRE/WYOU of Wilkes-Barre, Pa., uses Telestream to transcode its media files.
OTTAWA The move from videotape to file-based video recording has resulted in unexpected chaos for TV stations both large and small. The reason? In addition to downloading network and syndicated video content files, TV stations must cope with whatever file formats their own camcorders and editing systems are using; plus an ever-growing range of compressed file formats being submitted by local advertisers and citizen news reporters. These incoming formats have to be rendered compatible with their file-based playout systems, in order for the videos to be broadcast on air.
This is where transcoding comes into play. Transcoders use a range of video codecs to translate video from one format into another that is compatible with a station's file-based playout system.
The challenge for transcoder equipment manufacturers is to keep up with the ever-increasing number of file-based video systems being released to a standards-averse marketplace. We are constantly having to refine our transcoders to deal with video codecs that are unfamiliar to us, said Paul Turner, vice president of enterprise product management at Telestream, a Nevada City, Calif.-based provider of transcoding technology. The other day, someone came to use seeking a transcoder for the Blink video file standard. We'd never heard of Blink before. It took some digging to discover that Blink is used by a very miniaturized video camera.
A BROADCASTER'S TALE
WBRE/WYOU, a twin station operation based in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., handles local news for NBC, CBS, and local Fox affiliate WOLF-TV, according to Heidi VanEssendelft-Roach, engineer for the stations. We use an Omneon file server for playout and storage, and all the file formats we receive have to be made compatible to this system in order to work. We're getting everything from MOV, MPG4 and MP4 to whatever someone might be using to make their own local commercials, or viewer-shot local news video.
Heidi VanEssendelft-Roach, WBRE/WYOU station engineer
WBRE/WYOU originally started transcoding using a system connected to its ftp site. However, they found that it couldn't handle all of the file formats coming into the stations. We had issues with letter-boxing and losing closed-captioning as well, said VanEssendelft-Roach. The stations recently turned to Telestream to help out.
With the Telestream system, you put the incoming video files into a hot' folder, where they are detected by the software and sent to a second folder for processing, said Turner. The finished transcode files are then sent to a third folder, where they can be transferred to the playout server.
Telestream does provide an auto-detect function, where its software figures out what file formats the incoming video files are in, and how best to transcode them. We have a feature that allows the broadcaster to define the video quality they are looking for, Turner said. If the specified codec doesn't deliver this, the system will automatically try transcoding the video using another codec that might.
WRBE/WYOU didn't buy this option, so its staff have to manually define what the incoming file folders are before the Telestream transcoding can redo them. We have to tell this analysis software what file format we are working with, and let if know if the file has surround sound, because it won't auto-detect it, said VanEssendelft-Roach. Still, the current system is a vast improvement over how we did things before; namely going to the Creative Services department and asking them to transcode the file in Adobeinto something the Omneon could use. The new software also allows us to blow up letter-boxed videos into full 16:9, which looks much better on air.
A GROUP OPERATOR'S PERSPECTIVE
KTVZ of Bend, Ore., uses the Elemental Server transcoder to handle all of its video ingests.
News-Press & Gazette Broadcasting is a family-owned media company with TV stations across the mid- and western United States. KTVZ (NBC/Fox/CW) of Bend, Ore., belongs to a 10-station group with a centralized master control, where the company uses an Elemental Server transcoder to handle all of its video ingests.
We started using transcoding five years ago, said Jim DeChant, the company's director of technical operations. Before we did, our video had become quite inconsistent to work with. The video files from the networks and syndicators would usually work with our playout system, but the ones we got from local advertisers on memory sticks typically didn't. That's how we get most of our local content these days: memory sticks!
Beyond resolving News-Press & Gazette Broadcasting's video file chaos, DeChant said that the Elemental transcoders have helped keep equipment costs down. These units come with their own GPUs [onboard processors for rendering video, like those found on plug-in computer video cards], he explained. Having these GPUs onboard meant that we didn't have to build a server farm to support transcoding. That reduces our capital costs, which we appreciate.
There's a moral to these tales, and it is that TV stations of all sizes need reliable, capable transcoders in-house to make the range of video files they receive ready for playout. In the days of videotape, the most you might have to deal with is VHS or Hi8, said Turner. Today, the variety of video file formats just keeps increasing and broadcasters have to be able to work with all of them!
Most recent headlines
06/10/2025
France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...
04/09/2025
Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...
30/08/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has adopted its FY 2025 Regulatory Fees Order that establishes the regulatory fee rates for the broadcast stati...
29/08/2025
Australian Red Cross and SBS launch training to help workplaces in the fight aga...
29/08/2025
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
29/08/2025
L3Harris Technologies has concentrated decades of expertise across the entire enterprise to develop affordable and reliable best-of-breed solutions to rapidly c...
29/08/2025
BURBANK, Calif. The CW Network and the Pac-12 Conference have announced a new media rights deal that will extend their broadcast partnership beginning with the ...
29/08/2025
NEW YORK Gracenote has released a new analysis of its global video dataset showing that the number of FAST channels grew nearly 14% from Q1 2025 and 76% since 2...
29/08/2025
SAN JOSE, Calif. Harmonic has announced a series of improvements to its live sports streaming solution that the company said will improve fan engagement, protec...
29/08/2025
NEW YORK and LOS ANGELES Fox Corp. and YouTube TV last night announced a renewal of the full portfolio of Fox networks, including Fox News Channel, Fox Business...
29/08/2025
Budapest, Hungary, August 2025 - The integration of Microsoft Teams Rooms (MTR) with Lightware's Taurus universal matrix switchers delivers a new level of f...
29/08/2025
Frequency, the engine behind many of the world's best-known streaming television channels, today announced it will launch Studio Live, a next-generation uni...
29/08/2025
In an era when AI and cyber resilience are essential, Scality will mark the 10th anniversary of Scality Day on October 16, 2025 in Paris. This flagship global e...
29/08/2025
Disguise's In-House Creative and Technical Teams Pre-Visualised, Programmed and Delivered Content for the Experience, All Powered by EX 3+
Technology solu...
29/08/2025
Disguise will be demonstrating the latest workflows for TV, film and live events on a number of partner booths at the show
Disguise, the industry-leading tech...
29/08/2025
STOCKHOLM, Sweden Accedo will showcase Accedo Compose, its AI agent-powered modular orchestration layer that assists streaming providers in transitioning client...
29/08/2025
LOS ANGELES Cineverse has announced that it is working with Xperi to bring four of its streaming channels to automobiles for the first time as part of the DTS A...
29/08/2025
DALLAS & ATLANTA Gray Media has announced an agreement with the sports streaming service Victory+ to simulcast 17 Dallas Stars NHL games in 15 television market...
29/08/2025
NEW YORK AND CULVER CITY Comcast NBCUniversal and Amazon have announced new and extended distribution agreements that will expand the content available on their...
29/08/2025
FOOTHILL RANCH, Calif. RED Digital Cinema will feature its Cine-Broadcast Module supporting live broadcast workflows during IBC2025, Sept. 12-15, at the RAI Ams...
29/08/2025
29 Aug 2025
Kyivstar Rings Opening Bell at Nasdaq Marking Landmark Listing and ...
29/08/2025
More than half of all NFL games live on Sky for the first timeFriday 29 August 2025
Sky Sports has announced a new three-year deal with the NFL, extending its ...
29/08/2025
Back to All News
RIV4LRIES: The Trailer of the New Series With Samuele Carrino ...
29/08/2025
Get ready for an inspiring and emotional insight into the world of competitive Irish dancing with My Story: Tomi Champion of the World airing on RT 2 this monda...
29/08/2025
RT has today announced that David McCullagh is to be the new presenter of RT Radio 1's flagship Today programme, which airs every weekday at 10am, replaci...
28/08/2025
By Kristin Feeley, Director, Documentary Film & Artist Programs
If you want to tell untold stories, if you want to give voice to the voiceless, you've got ...
28/08/2025
Directed by Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert, Sundance Institute-supported Amer...
28/08/2025
Corridos have been a cornerstone of M sica Mexicana for generations, telling stories rooted in everyday life. Now, a new chapter is taking shape: motivational c...
28/08/2025
Los corridos han sido un pilar de la M sica Mexicana durante generaciones, contando historias enraizadas en la vida cotidiana. Ahora, un nuevo cap tulo est tom...
28/08/2025
Earlier this month, we promised our Verano Forever party would bring the heat, a...
28/08/2025
L3Harris will provide the Polish F-16V fleet with the Viper Shield electronic warfare system as part of an upgrade program....
28/08/2025
Bilbao, August 26, 2025 - AgileTV, an international television and video technol...
28/08/2025
Ken Wilkinson is an Emmy Awards nominated New York audio engineer who specialises in production sound mixing for film, commercial, episodic and documentary work...
28/08/2025
NEW YORK FuboTV today announced that it will launch Fubo Sports, a skinny bundle that focuses on sports with a subscription price of $56 monthly....
28/08/2025
NEVADA City, Calif. At IBC2025, Sept. 12-15 at the RAI Amsterdam, Telestream will debut its new Global Ingest strategy, introducing a next-generation ingest arc...
28/08/2025
Dr. Rhoda Bernard Releases Groundbreaking Debut Book on Accessible Arts Educatio...
28/08/2025
TAG Video Systems, the leader in software-based IP end-to-end workflow monitoring, deep probing, and real-time visualization, has named Oliver Gappa as Sales Di...
28/08/2025
AI-based voice enhancement will be among a series of innovations making their IBC 2025 debut on the DHD stand B46 in Hall 8 at the RAI Amsterdam Convention Cent...
28/08/2025
Telef nica Servicios Audiovisuales (TSA), the leading system integrator and service provider in the media sector in Spain, with the support of Appear, the globa...
28/08/2025
To fully immerse sailing fans in the world's biggest offshore yacht race, production company, Optical Media turned to LiveU's On-site Production solutio...
28/08/2025
Working with Calrec on its most recent overhaul, radio and television broadcaster, WNED has migrated to a fully IP infrastructure with multiple Type R consoles,...
28/08/2025
Cleeng, the Subscriber Retention Management (SRM ) inventor, has unveiled Cleeng Pro, the first-ever direct-to-consumer (D2C) subscription management platform t...
28/08/2025
Zixi, the industry leader in live broadcast-quality video over IP, today announced that French media distribution platform OKAST has selected Zixi to enable rel...
28/08/2025
Solution offers a streamlined, speaker-free architecture to optimize integration with premium external loudspeakers and advanced loudness metering
Nixer Pro Au...
28/08/2025
Cinegy, the premier provider of software-defined television technology, has announced a strategic partnership with Vision One Touch Film Production Services L.L...
28/08/2025
Telestream, a global leader in media workflow technologies, will debut its new Global Ingest strategy at IBC2025, introducing a next-generation ingest architect...
28/08/2025
Tier 1 operator selects Broadpeak to power high-performance, unified CDN solution across Norway, Sweden and Finland
Broadpeak, a leader in streaming and moneti...
28/08/2025
Leading video software provider, Synamedia, today announced that 24 Frames Digital, one of India's leading live event streaming service providers, has chose...
28/08/2025
Meet VisualOn at IBC2025: See What's Next in AI-Powered Video Streaming Join VisualOn at IBC2025 and discover how our AI-driven Optimizer and advanced media...
WBRE/WYOU of Wilkes-Barre, Pa., uses Telestream to transcode its media files. 
