The Broadcast Industry's Transition to IP-Based Workflows
As our lives become increasingly governed by IP-based technologies, it might surprise you to learn that some industries have remained anchored to legacy, non-IP methods. One notable example is the broadcast industry’s traditional content distribution.
Historically, when professionals exchanged media content, they relied on the Serial Digital Interface (SDI), a standard developed in 1989 by the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE). SDI represented a major milestone, moving broadcast transmission from analog to digital formats.
Through a single, robust coaxial cable, SDI enabled the reliable delivery of high-quality digital video and audio signals, solving interoperability issues between various production equipment.
However, as the global shift towards cloud services accelerates and content quality demands continue to surge, SDI’s limitations have become increasingly apparent. Its rigid, cable-bound nature struggles to meet the flexibility, scalability, and efficiency required in today's rapidly evolving media landscape.
Introducing SMPTE ST2110 for Media over IP
To address these evolving requirements, SMPTE developed the ST2110 standard suite, which enables media content to be distributed over standard IP networks.
Unlike SDI, SMPTE ST2110 separates video, audio, and metadata into individual streams, transmitting them independently over IP and reassembling them at the destination.
This innovative approach enables broadcasters to:
• Migrate media production tools to the cloud.
• Leverage remote production capabilities.
• Dramatically improve workflow efficiency.
• Significantly lower production costs.
As discussed in our earlier blog, Cloud Adoption and Optimization: Embracing a Digital-First Strategy, IP technology empowers broadcasters to implement hybrid cloud strategies to maintain critical data on-premises while using public cloud platforms for scalability and global content delivery
How Are Separate Streams Perfectly Aligned?
In the SDI world, everything traveled together serially through one cable. In the IP world, with ST2110 splitting the content into separate streams and sending them across a packet-switched network, the big question becomes:
How do we ensure these separate streams remain perfectly synchronized?
The answer lies in SMPTE ST 2059-2, the time alignment standard that underpins media synchronization over IP.
At the heart of this synchronization process is Precision Time Protocol (PTP), a protocol widely used across industries for accurate time distribution.
ST 2059-2 defines a specialized PTP profile, specifying:
• Message intervals and frequencies.
• Announce and Sync message behaviors.
• Timing parameters optimized for broadcast and professional media environments.
By referencing all devices to a common time source, the data packets they generate carry synchronized timestamps. On the receiving end, even if network delays cause packets to arrive out of order, the timestamps enable accurate reassembly to ensure you won't hear someone's speech seconds before (or after) you see their lips move on screen.
How Are Separate Streams Perfectly Aligned?
In the SDI world, everything traveled together serially through one cable. In the IP world, with ST2110 splitting the content into separate streams and sending them across a packet-switched network, the big question becomes:
How do we ensure these separate streams remain perfectly synchronized?
The answer lies in SMPTE ST 2059-2, the time alignment standard that underpins media synchronization over IP.
At the heart of this synchronization process is Precision Time Protocol (PTP), a protocol widely used across industries for accurate time distribution.
ST 2059-2 defines a specialized PTP profile, specifying:
• Message intervals and frequencies.
• Announce and Sync message behaviors.
• Timing parameters optimized for broadcast and professional media environments.
By referencing all devices to a common time source, the data packets they generate carry synchronized timestamps. On the receiving end, even if network delays cause packets to arrive out of order, the timestamps enable accurate reassembly to ensure you won't hear someone's speech seconds before (or after) you see their lips move on screen.
UfiSpace's SMPTE ST 2059-2 Solutions
At UfiSpace, we offer full-featured, highly accurate timing synchronization solutions across all of our telecom product series. Our PTP performance and precision have been field-proven and recognized by major operators worldwide.
With an additional license, UfiSpace products can enable the SMPTE ST 2059-2 profile to fully support Media over IP applications.
One of the examples is UfiSpace S9510-28DC, developed jointly with a leading system integrator in Japan to support the migration to an all-IP infrastructure within the broadcast industry.
Learn more : Next Generation Technology Promoting Remote Production and Video Contribution
For other platforms supporting SMPTE ST 2059-2, check our UfiSpace Telecom Solution Page.
About the Author
 |
Will Chang Will Chang, Technical Marketing Manager at UfiSpace, provides technical expertise and executes marketing campaigns on technical topics. |