IBC 2011: CLIPSTER^® and VENICE support Panasonic’s new AVC-Ultra codecs

Right on time for IBC 2011, DVS is the first manufacturer in the market to support the AVC-Intra Class 200 format both in its CLIPSTER^® and VENICE systems. The AVC-Intra Class 200 codec is part of Panasonic's AVC-Ultra codec group and allows encoding and decoding for 720p, 1080i, and up to 1080p 50/60.

CLIPSTER^® and VENICE support Panasonic’s new AVC-Ultra codecs. (Photo: DVS)

Hanover/Amsterdam. Right on time for IBC, DVS has equipped its CLIPSTER^® DI workstation as well as its VENICE broadcast video server with the new AVC-Intra Class 200 codec. This makes DVS the first manufacturer in the market to offer native support for the latest version of the intra-frame based Panasonic technology that supports frame rates of up to 1080p50/p60 at a bit rate of 440 Mbps. In particular, broadcasters and post productions will benefit from visually lossless quality with the most efficient H.264/AVC-Intra compression available in the market.

Thanks to the high bit rate and efficient AVC compression technology, AVC-Intra Class 200 is ideal for broadcast events where scenes are very dynamic and there is lots of movement, such as sporting events. With the multi-channel VENICE video server, camera signals can be recorded directly in AVC-Intra Class 200 at frame rates of up to 1080p50/p60. The recorded material is available to all connected editing clients for immediate processing – with fully edited footage able to be directly played out in maximum quality.

CLIPSTER^® and VENICE offer the new AVC-Intra Class 200 codec wrapped in MXF format. As AVC-Intra Class 200 enables encoding and decoding at resolutions of 720p, 1080i and 1080p at up to 60 frames per second, AVC-Intra Class 200 wrapped into MXF OP-1a is also ideal for archiving in the broadcast environment. Consequently, the DVS systems make workflows seamless when working with compressed material – from digital acquisition through to production and distribution.

Both CLIPSTER^® and VENICE also support P2-3D – the dual P2 Card AVC-Intra 3D stereo format, which is generated by the 3D capable P2 Deck AG-HPD24, or the upcoming 3D Camcorder AG-3DP1. The streams for the left and right eye are assigned a UMID (Unique Material Identifier) allowing them to be merged easily and automatically in post production.

In addition to the support of AVC-Ultra in CLIPSTER^® and VENICE, DVS’s content management system Spycer^® is able to transfer P2 material directly from a P2 reader into an Avid ISIS^® system.

Kunihiko Miyagi, Director of Professional AV B.U., Panasonic Corporation: "Our vision of AVC-Ultra is to offer every choice to meet various customers’ workflow requirements. The excellent video quality of AVC-Intra Class 200 is exactly what high-end customers desire. We are pleased that DVS supports it so quickly and is able to show workflows at this year’s IBC.”

Bernhard Reitz, Head of Product Management at DVS: "DVS is very proud to be the first manufacturer to have integrated Panasonic's new AVC-Ultra codec family into its CLIPSTER^® and VENICE systems. The AVC-Ultra codec family – especially the new AVC-Intra Class 200 codec – opens up a host of additional opportunities for broadcasters to switch to a tapeless, file-based workflow environment."     

About DVS: DVS, a Rohde & Schwarz company, is a leading manufacturer of high-quality hardware and software for broadcast, digital film and video post production, presentation and event markets. DVS applications cover the production of popular TV series and Hollywood blockbusters, and enable 4K films for Digital Cinema. With over 25 years of experience in the professional video industry, DVS has cultivated a “passion for perfection,” and continues to develop revolutionary systems for customized, flexible, high-performance workflows. With CLIPSTER^®, DVS was the first company in the world to make real-time 4K processing possible. Its future-proof video server VENICE offers a flexible solution for modern, file-based workflows in broadcast environments. Headquartered in Hanover (Germany) and Los Angeles (USA), DVS also has branch offices in Miami (USA), Paris (France), and Singapore. www.dvs.de