Cloud 视频制作 Takes the Spotlight at NAB Conference

The third great theme at NAB2011 aside from 3D and 4K imaging is that of cloud based content production and 管理.

A growing number of solutions are emerging from new players and traditional video developers taking advantage of aspects of cloud hosting.

Among them is a framework from Avid whose core business is editing systems. Fifteen years ago non-linear editing systems were packaged as turnkey products bundling software into expensive hardware processing platforms. At its height there were between 20 and 30 competing non-linear edit systems. A decade ago the software was liberated from bespoke hardware to run on standard PCs and prices were slashed leaving Avid, 苹果和Adobe是主要的供应商. 今天的情况依然如此, but Avid has begun to take the sector to its logical next step by freeing software from the PC all together.

在逮捕, Avid推出了Interplay Central, 一个基于网络的pc生产门户网站, 笔记本电脑, 还有手机. Targeted first at mobile newsgathering it could also serve applications in fast turnaround genres such as sports or reality TV shows. It is also the first in a much wider plan by the company to offer products based on an IP framework.

Interplay Central is described as a web-based portal offering workflow tools for the creation, 管理, and distribution of media held locally or centrally. However the mobile app is released only for Blackberry phones initially -- not iPhone or iPad, 这些都是Avid的主要竞争对手苹果公司拥有的.

“在过去, 新闻制作有严格的工具, but this breaks the mold and enables media professionals to access a single user interface on a laptop or mobile device and tap into newsroom systems,克里斯汀·维埃拉解释道, Avid's vice president for product and segment marketing. "If a journalist in the field were using a mobile device they could browse and edit content directly and in real-time, 无论是否在无线范围内."

Although currently optimized for Avid's new production platform i新闻 and its asset 管理 system Interplay, Interplay Central is open to links with third party systems, 比如来自Quantel或苹果的产品.

从最大吞吐量改编的技术, 该公司于2009年7月被收购, 也在被部署. Maximum Throughput assets included the Sledgehammer line of storage solutions and MaxEdit, 基于网络的编辑平台.

"That technology is going to be central to our plans across the enterprise since it gives us a huge amount of flexibility in how we deploy client-web apps as well as supporting a mix of media formats,萨姆·波格说, Avid的企业销售项目总监. "Cloud-based configurations are the future and a big part of the future for Avid."

Avid并不孤单. Fellow post production company Quantel has devised QTube software, which it claims offers frame accurate cloud-based edit and review of video content.

QTube is aimed at creating a cloud-based global media workflow by allowing media assets to be accessed online. It is being shown with an open API so that anyone on any platform, 包括平板电脑, 可以访问全质量的高清和标清内容吗. "QTube needs to be compatible with all of the devices our customers use," said Quantel's Steve Owen.

与此同时, 福德拉公司, 这是一家由LucasArts员工创立的初创公司, has come out with a cloud-based solution for managing stereo 3D content. Based on the firm's Ambassador platform and aimed at content producers, 分销商, 以及3D视频的出版商, its 3D frame-packing and 管理 in the cloud uses 微软 Azure and 亚马逊 EC2. Ambassador is also available to manufacturers of 3D hardware as an OEM/white-label solution.

"Our platform has brought together a powerful network of technologies from NVIDIA, 微软, 亚马逊, 和Akamai, to provide a seamless way to manage and deliver 3D video,Fordela首席执行官罗恩·斯佩克特说. "3D video content can now be easily managed and delivered from the cloud to any connected 3D enabled device."

NAB is running a Content in the Cloud conference stream at which Marty Lafferty, CEO of the Distributed Computing Industry Association, said: "Cloud computing is an opportunity for content makers and 分销商 to reach new audiences and to make more money from their products. It truly is the next big thing and something everyone involved in broadcast needs to learn more about."