Rikei Corporation (Head office: Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo; President & CEO: Satoru Isaka; hereinafter “Rikei”) is pleased to announce that it has participated in a joint evaluation test with TOKYO ELECTRON DEVICE LIMITED (Head office: Yokohama City, Kanagawa; President: Atsushi Tokushige; hereinafter “TED”), Hewlett Packard Enterprise (Head office: Koto-ku, Tokyo; President and Representative Director: Hirokazu Mochizuki; hereinafter “HPE”), and ATEME SA (Head office: France; CEO: Michel Artières; hereinafter “ATEME”) utilizing the “TED BI Lab”, an evaluation laboratory for the broadcast industry set up by TED.

Background of the market

SDI using coaxial cable was the mainstream for video transmission media in the past, but the limitation of broadcast network has been pointed out in recent years due to the need for full high-definition support, frame rates (*1), and an increase in high-definition video such as 4K/8K. Therefore, the broadcasting industry has been increasingly adopting IP technology using bidirectional optical fiber for broadcasting equipment and using it as the primary transmission medium.
In addition, it became possible for Rikei to procure ATEME’s software and HPE’s servers in Japan, and combine them into products at the Rikei Technology Center. This enables understanding of server configurations and settings than ever before, and created an environment where customers can use maintenance support with reliability.

*1 Frame rate: A unit that shows how many images make up one second of video.

Details of the Joint Evaluation Test

Rikei and ATEME evaluated low latency Internet video delivery using video delivery protocol (low latency HLS/DASH) delivery by inputting a video transmission standard “SMPTE ST2110(*2)” source to the “TITAN Live encoder (*3)”.
In the evaluation test, “TITAN Live Encoder,” HPE servers, and 10/25G NICs (*4), an expansion device to connect to NVIDIA’s (formerly Mellanox Technologies, Ltd.) LAN, which are prepared at the TED BI Lab were used, and evaluated interconnection with “ATEME’s TITAN Live encoder” with the low latency mode, using a system capable of transmitting uncompressed video over a 100Gbps high-speed IP network centered on a network switch (*5) from Arista Networks Inc.
The network switches from Arista Networks Inc. are hardware switches capable of handling the Precision Time Protocol (PTP) for time synchronization.
Through this evaluation test, it was confirmed that multi-bitrate encoding (*6) signals can be output with low latency using ST2110 signals and that interconnection is possible.
By converting the broadcasting system from SDI (*7) signal input using conventional coaxial cables to encoding and other distribution processing to ALL-IP technology, it will be possible to propose the building of a broadcasting system that achieves efficient and flexible transmission of high-definition content in the 4K/8K era.

*2 SMPTE ST 2110: A video transmission standard for the transmission of broadcast program material established by the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers. It is characterized by the transmission of video, audio, and auxiliary data in separate streams.
*3 Encoder: A product used to convert video and audio to the most suitable format for transmission.
*4 NIC (Network Interface Card): A card-type expansion device for connecting computers and other devices to a LAN.
*5 Network switch: A concentrator that relays and transfers data between multiple information and communication devices connected by cables.
*6 multi-bitrate encoding: Encoding a streaming file so that it can be played back as a single file across various bandwidths and connection environments.
*7 SDI (Serial Digital Interface): A high-speed serial interface standard used mainly in professional video equipment.

Evaluation points of the test

• Signal input of uncompressed video by SMPTE ST 2110
• Hitless switching of video signals by SMPTE ST 2022-7
• Video signal incorporated into NMOS IS-04 (SDP) network
• IP multicast
• Synchronization signal for PTP signal
• Input signal control by NMOS AWMA IS-04 IS-05
• Low latency multi-bitrate encoding output
• Low latency HLS/DASH output

＜Product Overview of ATEME’s “TITAN Live Encoder System”＞
ATEME’s “TITAN Live Encoder System” is software that does not depend on specific hardware and can run on general-purpose servers or public. The strength of the product is its low latency mode, which enables low latency multi-bitrate encoding output as well as low latency HLS/DASH output.

Future development

Rikei, TED, HPE, and ATEME will cooperate in proposal activities to meet the demands of equipment renewal for the shift to IP broadcasting equipment at domestic broadcasting stations.

About TOKYO ELECTRON DEVICE LIMITED

Tokyo Electron Device (TED) is a technology trading company with a “trading company business” that provides semiconductor products and IT solutions, etc., and a “manufacturer function” that undertakes design contracts for customers and develops its own brand products.

About HPE (Hewlett Packard Enterprise)

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (NYSE: HPE) is a global edge-to-cloud company that helps accelerate customer’s business outcome by unlocking the value of all the data stored all kinds of places. With decades of rethinking the future and innovating to improve the way people live and work, HPE provides unique, open, and intelligent technology solutions with “as a service”. HPE helps customers create new business models, deploy new engagements, and maximize operational performance by providing compute, HPC & AI, intelligent edge, software, and storage as a consistent experience across all cloud services and edges.
Please visit the following websites for more details https://www.hpe.com.

About ATEME SA

ATEME SA is a global leader in video compression and delivery solutions, helping Tier One content providers, service providers and streaming platforms to increase viewer subscriptions and reduce churn.
ATEME SA supports ST2110 and NMOS in each of its products to meet the demand for IP for uncompressed signals.

About Rikei Corporation

Since its establishment in 1957 as a solution vendor in the IT and electronics industries, Rikei Corporation has provided a variety of solutions ranging from systems to networks, VR/AR contents, electronic materials and electronic devices.

Rikei proposes solutions that utilize cutting-edge technologies and advanced products from Japan and overseas, and contributes to business development such as improving efficiency of operations and profits of customers.

*Product and company names mentioned herein are the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.