Two major PBS stations have selected T-VIPS solutions to transmit their programming, with WNET using the vendor's product to deliver programming to the PBS Network Operations Center in Alexandria, Va., and WGBH using a T-VIPS solution to deliver content to cable operator Thames Valley Communications in Groton, Conn.
WNET first encodes the HD video to a 30 Megabit MPEG-2 ASI transport stream and then uses the T-VIPS TVG420 ASI to IP Gateway to move the compressed digital video over a OC 3 IP network to PBS' network operations center in Alexandria for HDTV broadcast nationwide. At the PBS network operations center, the video is decoded back to ASI-HD video for broadcast.
"We're extremely pleased with the reliability and performance of the T-VIPS TVG420 Gateway solution," said Jeff Dockendorff, associate director of engineering for WNET. "Our goal is to deliver a very high-quality product to PBS, and with the TVG420, the picture quality is exceptional."
Boston PBS affiliate WGBH is using the T-VIPS CP510 Transport Stream Processor to filter select services from the WGBH-DT transport stream for delivery to Thames Valley Communications.
"WGBH looked at dedicated circuits for delivery to Thames cable but the cost was prohibitive," said Michael Foti, director of engineering for WGBH. "I'd seen a demo of video over IP using the TVG420 and was impressed with its performance over the public Internet. We had to put something together fast with little budget, and the T-VIPS demo came to mind."
The deals represent a major shift in the way stations can transport content, Joe LoGrasso, vice president and general manager of T-VIPS America Inc. added in a statement, "While broadcasters such as WNET, WGBH and Thames Valley have a legacy of relying upon satellite, telco, and dedicated fiber connections for real-time, professional video transport solutions, our technology is ushering in a revolutionary shift to transporting and viewing video over IP networks in real-time, cost-effectively, and with the Quality of Service (QoS) the broadcast industry demands," he said.
