MTV Networks Europe’s ‘super-digital’ broadcast solution

MTV Networks Europe will be one of the first networks to implement a new “super-digital” broadcast solution that claims to reduce the production process and 'time to air' by up to a third.
IBM, along with storage services company, Sagitta and broadcast technology specialists, Pinnacle Systems, have developed a 'supercomputing' digital video editing and storage solution which will allow MTV Networks Europe to handle large quantities of digital video data simultaneously.
Faster than traditional linear video tape technology was previously widely employed in production, the new solution will eliminate the need to replicate new source material across the production department and multiple edits to reduce production time and simplify media management.
Mike Spinks, VP Broadcast Technology Planning, MTV Broadcast Services, said: "This project is all about putting in place our digital approach for the future. The solution will let us get more work done in shorter periods as a result of more collaborative work and will give us flexibility and scalability in our growth as our needs increase.
"By working with technology leaders such as, IBM, Sagitta and Pinnacle, MTVNE is getting state of the art capability to deliver new exciting programming more efficiently and quickly to our viewers."
The way in which MTV's large video files are stored is crucial to the success of the project, which is being considered as a model for a pan European roll out.
Using IBM's General Parallel File System (GPFS), MTV can tap into "supercomputing technology" to help multiple users of the Pinnacle Systems Liquid editors access and edit the same video files simultaneously using multiple streams.
The Storage Area Network (SAN) solution, which can currently accommodate 3 TeraBytes of disk storage space - 260 hours of online digital video - is built around industry standard servers and storage configured as a Linux cluster and IBM's GPFS. This means it can be easily scaled to meet growing requirements by simply adding additional servers and storage as needed.
The IBM infrastructure includes FAStT 700 storage and IBM eServer xSeries systems to provide a resilient infrastructure with no single point of failure.
The suite of Pinnacle Systems' Liquid editors are fully integrated in the SAN and includes, Liquid blue, Pinnacle System's flagship networked craft editor for broadcast professionals, which offers full end-to-end native digital production in multiple formats.
The pioneering broadcast workflow process developed by industry specialist Marquis Broadcast were designed to meet MTV's specific requirements.
The infrastructure was also subject to thorough stress testing before implementing the proven solution at MTV.
(SP)