XOR deploys new play-to-air and production storage platform at MTV Oy
XOR technologies replaced MTV Oy's 10-year-old multi-vendor server system, which had reached its storage operational limit. The broadcaster also experienced challenges in the complexity of having separate SD/HD servers and in repurposing content for new viewing platforms.
Finnish commercial television station MTV Oy (MTV3) chose XOR for its mixed play-to-air and production storage infrastructure. The new MTV Oy play-to-air and production setup utilizes the XOR Universal MediaLibrary storage and XOR MediaClient software codecs servers.
XOR technologies replaced MTV Oy's 10-year-old multi-vendor server system, which had reached its storage operational limit. The broadcaster also experienced challenges in the complexity of having separate SD/HD servers and in repurposing content for new viewing platforms. MTV Oy needed to redesign their ingest, production, and play-to-air architecture to keep up with new broadcasting demands; yet they need to minimize changes in their already reliable workflow.
To delimit MTV Oy's storage infrastructure, XOR Media deployed the Universal MediaLibrary storage system, each of the two nodes with a massive capacity of 144TB, located separately with a distance of 7km between them. In MTV Oy, one UML node serves as ingest/playout while the other as production storage. The UMLs are mirrored to act as each other's backup systems, resulting in a simplified and fully redundant architecture.
Eight XOR MediaClient 8200 (MCL 8200) software codec servers are connected to both UMLs to support the 30-input and 42-output channel requirement, with HD playout and SD up conversion. In the present configuration, the MCL 8200 features a new functionality called multipath, which allows the playback decoder to stream clips from either the primary or the secondary UML in a fully automated manner. The multipath feature adds redundancy and flexibility to the playout server.
"We are pleased to select XOR Media as the backbone of MTV Oy's mission-critical broadcast operations," said Antero Hoffman, vice president for technical operations, MTV Oy. "The new architecture provides a fully redundant ingest, playout, and storage system. Because each appliance is flexible and scalable, we expect that this fresh installation and investment is built to last us for years."
Marcello Dellepiane, vice president for EMEA sales, XOR Media, said, "We are glad to continue being the solutions provider for the critical applications of MTV Oy. Right now, we are focused on delivering a new generation of servers and storage for production and playout, for modern and innovative media workflows."
About XOR Media
XOR Media develops high-performance, open, IT storage, specialized for media applications and private cloud data centers. Formerly SeaChange Broadcast, XOR Media offers a product line that includes open, cloud-capable, and media-optimized technologies used by hundreds of broadcasters and content providers around the world: ingest and playout codecs MediaClient and MediaServer; and the prizewinning, clustered and scalable Universal MediaLibrary storage. XOR Media operates globally with over 200 employees and manages 15,000 channels on air. www.xor- media.com.
About MTV Oy
MTV3 (MTV Oy) is a Finnish commercial television station. The letters MTV stand for Mainos-TV (advertisement television), due to the channel getting its revenue from running commercials. Number 3 was added later, when the channel was allocated the third nation-wide television channel and it generally became known as "Channel Three" – Finnish Broadcasting Company’s YLE TV1 and YLE TV2 being the first two – and also to distinguishing it from the later MTV Finland. The channel's logo is a stylized owl, changed to an owl's eye after an image renewal in 2003. MTV3 currently has about 500 employees. www.mtv3.fi.
XOR technologies replaced MTV Oy's 10-year-old multi-vendor server system, which had reached its storage operational limit. The broadcaster also experienced challenges in the complexity of having separate SD/HD servers and in repurposing content for new viewing platforms. MTV Oy needed to redesign their ingest, production, and play-to-air architecture to keep up with new broadcasting demands; yet they need to minimize changes in their already reliable workflow.
To delimit MTV Oy's storage infrastructure, XOR Media deployed the Universal MediaLibrary storage system, each of the two nodes with a massive capacity of 144TB, located separately with a distance of 7km between them. In MTV Oy, one UML node serves as ingest/playout while the other as production storage. The UMLs are mirrored to act as each other's backup systems, resulting in a simplified and fully redundant architecture.
Eight XOR MediaClient 8200 (MCL 8200) software codec servers are connected to both UMLs to support the 30-input and 42-output channel requirement, with HD playout and SD up conversion. In the present configuration, the MCL 8200 features a new functionality called multipath, which allows the playback decoder to stream clips from either the primary or the secondary UML in a fully automated manner. The multipath feature adds redundancy and flexibility to the playout server.
"We are pleased to select XOR Media as the backbone of MTV Oy's mission-critical broadcast operations," said Antero Hoffman, vice president for technical operations, MTV Oy. "The new architecture provides a fully redundant ingest, playout, and storage system. Because each appliance is flexible and scalable, we expect that this fresh installation and investment is built to last us for years."
Marcello Dellepiane, vice president for EMEA sales, XOR Media, said, "We are glad to continue being the solutions provider for the critical applications of MTV Oy. Right now, we are focused on delivering a new generation of servers and storage for production and playout, for modern and innovative media workflows."
About XOR Media
XOR Media develops high-performance, open, IT storage, specialized for media applications and private cloud data centers. Formerly SeaChange Broadcast, XOR Media offers a product line that includes open, cloud-capable, and media-optimized technologies used by hundreds of broadcasters and content providers around the world: ingest and playout codecs MediaClient and MediaServer; and the prizewinning, clustered and scalable Universal MediaLibrary storage. XOR Media operates globally with over 200 employees and manages 15,000 channels on air. www.xor- media.com.
About MTV Oy
MTV3 (MTV Oy) is a Finnish commercial television station. The letters MTV stand for Mainos-TV (advertisement television), due to the channel getting its revenue from running commercials. Number 3 was added later, when the channel was allocated the third nation-wide television channel and it generally became known as "Channel Three" – Finnish Broadcasting Company’s YLE TV1 and YLE TV2 being the first two – and also to distinguishing it from the later MTV Finland. The channel's logo is a stylized owl, changed to an owl's eye after an image renewal in 2003. MTV3 currently has about 500 employees. www.mtv3.fi.
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CCW 2012
