MainConcept and BBright Demonstrate Role of Dynamic Metadata Management for Live Sports Production with Advanced HDR by Technicolor at NAB 2023
The role played by dynamic metadata management with Advanced HDR by Technicolor to streamline the production, distribution and storage of live sports content in high dynamic range (HDR) and standard dynamic range (SDR) formats were demonstrated during NAB 2023 in Las Vegas, April 15-19, 2023.
The demonstration showcased the latest innovations in the HDR ecosystem by BBright, a provider of high-end software-based advanced media processing solutions, and MainConcept, a provider of video and audio codecs, plugins, and applications to the production, streaming, and broadcast industries.
On display at the Ultra HD Forum – West Hall W4009 – Futures Park, BBright recorded live HDR content in the material exchange format (MXF) using dynamic metadata technology included in Advanced HDR by Technicolor’s solutions (known in the technical community as SL-HDR). Advanced HDR by Technicolor is a suite of technology solutions collaboratively developed by researchers and industry experts from InterDigital and Philips.
MainConcept Live Encoder, enabled for real-time HEVC encoding and streaming, was used to capture content from playout and compress for delivery to consumer devices for both HDR and SDR formats, eliminating the need to manage two versions of the live event.
Most importantly, the demonstration proved how content captured and stored in HDR and SDR can be replayed from storage without compromising the quality or creative intent of both formats.
“This is the first time that the industry will see the ability to store SDR with the SL-HDR metadata so that we can reconstruct either format at any stage in the chain,” said Valérie Allié, Video Solutions Group Director at InterDigital.
“We have made it possible to record live content, replay, and distribute in either format in real-time. It’s a great demonstration of our ability to cover all the stages of the dynamic metadata management requirements while streamlining the entire lifecycle of live event content,” she added.
The demonstration illustrated the ability to innovate and dramatically improve production processes that deliver enhanced viewing experiences to consumers using standards-based technologies.
“We’ve always focused on the advanced format for video and audio, so our partnership with Advanced HDR by Technicolor has been an excellent opportunity to demonstrate how complex workflows with metadata can be streamlined utilizing existing SMPTE standards,” explained Guillaume Arthuis, CEO at BBright.
The demonstration also showed how recent developments in compression technology improve technical performance throughout the production lifecycle — even as new innovative formats create a more complicated environment.
“While video codecs evolve, metadata tends to transcend individual codecs. Encapsulating the metadata within the compressed bitstream means that we can process it without impacting compression quality,” said Thomas Kramer, VP of Strategy and Business Development at MainConcept.
“Advanced HDR by Technicolor perfectly fits into the modular, multi-codec design of MainConcept Live Encoder. Since Advanced HDR by Technicolor gets encapsulated into the compressed bitstream, MainConcept Live Encoder is able to frame-accurately append its HDR metadata to the core content. This brings broadcasters the right tool to support SDR content with legacy consumer devices while enhancing the same signal to a greater user experience on HDR-enabled TVs,” concluded Kramer.
Editorial Note: To learn more about Advanced HDR by Technicolor, please visit: www.advancedhdrbytechnicolor.com