As a leading provider of mission-critical, media solutions for broadcasters, cable networks, corporations and government agencies, Encompass Digital Media credits its success to an innate ability to stay well ahead of the technology curve, and the ability to adapt quickly and effectively when opportunities arise. The latest example is an ambitious new facility build-out for two large content providers at Encompass' Stamford, CT, broadcasting center. One, an existing Encompass client, turned to the company to provide outsourced master control services in addition to uplinking for an SD channel with intentions to migrate to HD in the near future. The other company is a new client that sought to outsource master control services for four HD channels.
Encompass' intention was to design a technology infrastructure that would, first and foremost, seamlessly add the new channels to its existing operation and continue to deliver top-quality results for its clients. Simultaneously, Encompass wanted to establish a new scalable and flexible model for master control and playback services that could serve the company and its clients well into the future. The emphasis was on centralized automation, monitoring and control for maximum operational efficiency using few devices, and fully redundant playback services to ensure complete reliability.
The new build-out is a 100-percent file-based operation that delivers fully-featured branding and DVE. The HD channels include full-time surround audio compressed with AC3 and processed with automatic level control to maintain consistent volume levels (in accordance with the newly enacted CALM loudness regulations).
p Snell's Morpheus provides centralized automation that controls the flow of content from the point of ingest to the Encompass archiving system and then to playback. Based on playlists, Morpheus automatically accesses the required content and draws it into the Snell ICE branding and playout systems for scheduled playout. By integrating playback, branding and other functions such as DVEs, crawls and voiceovers into a single unit, ICE is a key component in Encompass' drive towards technology consolidation. Also key to this strategy is the Miranda Densité modular processing systems, which consolidate audio and video processing — including stereo/5.1 upmix, ALC and AC3 compression. Further, Harmonic's Rhozet encoding system enables automatic file QC at the time of ingest. Operational efficiency is maximized by the use of the Miranda Kaleido-X and iControl systems for advanced monitoring and control. Signal monitoring is further enhanced with Miranda's lip-sync and content compare algorithms.
Launched in late October 2011, the new build-out is the epitome of Encompass' business philosophy: to deliver the highest-quality services that enable operational efficiencies through centralized automation and monitoring.