Matrox Video Announces Framework Agreement With Rai

Matrox Video has secured a three-year framework agreement with Rai to support the broadcaster's transition from SDI to SMPTE ST 2110-based infrastructure, the company announced.

The agreement centres on the deployment of the Matrox ConvertIP Series of encoders, decoders and converters, which will play a role in Rai's ongoing shift toward IP-based broadcast workflows. Matrox Video worked alongside local systems integration partner Allyn Srl during the tender process and solution development that led to the award.

Rai is continuing to evolve its operations toward IP, adopting SMPTE ST 2110 workflows to enable greater flexibility across both production and playout environments.

"Our move to IP is a long-term transformation, and we need solutions that will let us migrate at our own pace without disrupting operations," said Stefano Marchetti, head of playout and network engineering at Rai. "The Matrox ConvertIP Series will provide a practical foundation for how we want to build and manage our ST 2110 environments going forward, enabling incremental deployment, operational continuity, and long-term scalability."

Under the framework agreement, the ConvertIP Series will support gateway and monitoring requirements within Rai’s developing IP ecosystem. The ConvertIP DSS and DSH models offer compact, standalone signal conversion and monitoring capabilities, supporting both SDI and HDMI interfaces and enabling broadcasters to bridge legacy and IP infrastructures.

The solution is designed to support a range of IP migration use cases, including signal transmission and reception in smaller environments, quad-split monitoring and inter-site media transport. Its standalone design allows broadcasters to adopt ST 2110 incrementally, avoiding the need for large-scale infrastructure replacement while maintaining operational control.

"IP migration is a long-term transformation that requires solutions capable of supporting both current and future workflows," said Francesco Scartozzi, vice president of sales and business development at Matrox Video. "Our early and sustained investment in SMPTE ST 2110 has not only enabled us to build robust, standards-based products, but also to collaborate with forward-thinking customers like Rai who share our vision for IP-based infrastructure. We are proud that the Matrox ConvertIP Series has been included in Rai’s framework agreement, delivering broadcast-grade reliability with the flexibility required for real-world IP migration."

The framework agreement follows a competitive technical evaluation process, with the ConvertIP Series meeting Rai’s requirements for standalone gateway functionality and monitoring within a standards-based ST 2110 environment.

video.matrox.com/en