SHOW REVIEW: IBC2012 Technology and creativity NETHERLANDS
IBC continues to expand beyond its traditional broadcast industry heartland, bringing increasing relevance to the AV market. Paddy Baker reports from Amsterdam
Hall 14, a temporary structure, enabled expansion from the main halls at the RAI
Andreas Hilmer of Riedel and Adrian Curtis of Soundcraft-Studer show off one of Riedel’s new RockNet expansion cards
development over the next 12-18 months. The IBC Big Screen saw the
FOR PEOPLE in the AV industry, IBC provides an opportunity to think a little wider than usual. Among the exhibitors are some manufacturer names familiar to Installationreaders looking beyond the traditional AV marketplace, as well as unfamiliar companies whose technologies are becoming more relevant to us as markets evolve. Of all the attractions at
this year’s IBC, the one that most epitomised the idea of thinking outside the box was surely the keynote by
will.i.am. The Black Eyed Peas frontman, who is also director of creative innovation at Intel,
charmed delegates with thoughts about the interplay between technology and creativity. For instance: “The biggest
pieces of hardware in anyone’s life are their house and car yet these are also the dumbest. The car should be the most intelligent thing you own and it should talk to the house which is even more intelligent,” he said. “Instead of giving all the content and data which we consume and create to private organisations we should be able to keep and access them via Cloud storage in our own homes powered by servers kept in the fridge.” He also warned that too
much focus on making money from new technology can stifle creativity: “The problem in big organisations is that the CFO blocks innovation because they want to see monetisation. That’s why start-ups like Google or Twitter can impact change by creating tools that become adopted only by thinking about monetisation later.” Areas beyond traditional
Recording artist
will.i.am had some interesting reflections on technology, creativity and commerce
18 October 2012
broadcast that were being targeted by exhibitors at this year’s event included enterprise video and IPTV, sporting events, concerts and other live events. In fact, as Tim Siddons of Blackmagic Design remarked, the take-up of 4K display technology is
likely to be faster in live-event environments with very large screens than in broadcast, where the vast majority of content consumers have equipment whose processing limit is 1080p.
BRIEF HIGHLIGHTS A number of exhibitors were showing equipment ranges that straddled the worlds of broadcast and AV. Haivision, for instance, was
displaying technology that was used to stream Olympics footage to broadcasters in Ireland and Jamaica; but also on its stand was the recently launched Viper – an all-in-one dual-channel streaming encoder which can be used singly for applications such as lectures, or combined for multi-channel uses. For IPTV company Exterity,
broadcasters are a target market in two ways. The first is as end-users of its
technology (as in the Endemol case study on page 57 of this issue). However, the manufacturer is developing encryption solutions that will give broadcasters greater confidence to license their premium content over IPTV networks, as they will know that it can only be viewed by those authorised to do so. CTO Mike Allan identified increased content security as a key driver for product
world’s first screening of a full-length movie using laser projection technology, supplied in this instance by a Christie prototype. One of the criticisms often levelled at 3D cinema is the lower levels of light output by the projectors, compared with 2D; but the IBC Big Screen showing of Martin Scorsese’s Hugo 3Dwas at a brightness of 14 foot- lamberts – a similar level to regular 2D cinema exhibition. eyevis’ stand included its
versatile omniSHAPES videowall modules and its recently launched SquareTiles LCD product – which was set up in an interactive floor as well as being wall-mounted. You can see exclusive video from the company’s stand on the Installationwebsite. As well as launching its SAM (Smart Active Monitor) concept, Genelec drew attention to the ErP directive, European legislation that will require manufacturers to reduce standby power consumption to no more than 0.5W across a range of product types. Genelec intends to meet its responsibilities here by implementing an AutoStart feature across its products. IBC saw the first public
showing of the Sennheiser Digital 9000 wireless system – billed as the “first digital wireless system able to transmit completely uncompressed audio, artefact-free and with superb dynamics”. The system has been a decade in development, at a cost of over €12 million.
Targeting broadcasting
professionals, musical theatres and high-profile live audio events, the Digital 9000 system includes the EM 9046 receiver, SKM 9000 handheld and SK 9000 bodypack transmitters, as well as a comprehensive suite of accessories. Audio console manufacturers included Lawo, which launched the second-generation mc256; Studer, with its Vista 1 and the Compact Remote Bay; and DiGiCo, which was at IBC for the first time with its broadcast- variant SD7B, SD10B and SD11B consoles. In addition, intercom manufacturer and networking specialist Riedel Communications announced new interface cards which enable SSL and Soundcraft Si Compact consoles to use its RockNet real-time digital networking technology. Trilogy Communications,
launched a new audio interface for its Gemini intercom system. This adds AES and MADI capability to the system, and supports transparent routing of audio streams. Finally, IBC2012 brought the opportunity to see the new Hall 14 in action. This is a temporary structure added to the RAI complex to increase capacity beyond the main halls; if ISE, which will occupy halls 1-12 in 2013, expands further in future years, this space will be available. IBC’s organisers made a clever move to ensure high levels of visitor traffic through this less familiar space: they moved the registration area there.
www.ibc.org www.installation-international.com
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