Game-Changing Broadcasts: How Fuji TV Revolutionized Remote Sports Production with Monarch EDGE
Fuji Television Network, Inc. (hereinafter referred to as Fuji Television) conducted a proof of concept (POC) for remote production using the Matrox Monarch EDGE encoder at a large-scale international sporting event.
We spoke with Hiromasa Kawai, Chief of the Line and Transmission Technology Department of the Technology Bureau at Fuji Television, about the demonstration experiment using Matrox Monarch EDGE.
“Matrox Monarch EDGE” 4K remote production and web distribution encoderAbout the REMI Demonstration Experiment
What is the objective and workflow of this PoC?
Mr. Kawai:
The goal of this POC was to explore the possibility of remote production using Monarch EDGE to transmit video in real time to a switcher in the cloud.
We created a workflow in which multiple video signals are encoded in Paris, France, and then input and switched into a switcher located in the cloud, and the program is then received in Tokyo, Japan.
How was “Monarch EDGE” used in this demonstration experiment?
Mr. Kawai:
During the event, Fuji Television used a borrowed Matrox Monarch EDGE demo set to remotely manage multiple video signals.
The encoded video was sent to a switcher in the cloud and received smoothly at the Tokyo headquarters.
This remote production endeavor proved that Monarch EDGE maintains high quality even over long distance video transmissions, without any synchronization or picture quality issues.
The video transmission from Paris, France to Tokyo was also of high quality and operated without any synchronization issues.Monarch EDGE Benefits and Technical Features
What are the advantages of “Monarch EDGE” compared to other products?
Mr. Kawai:
The main advantage is its excellent I/P conversion. In recent years, there are many products that do not support interlacing for IP stream video, which has led to many situations where I/P conversion is required during encoding/decoding. The “Monarch EDGE” encoder has excellent performance in interlaced (I) to progressive (P) conversion, playing an essential role in ensuring optimal video quality in IP-based workflows.
Monarch EDGE, capable of I/P conversion, enables IP-based video transmission workflows for broadcast applicationsFuture prospects and challenges
What do you expect to see from the POC results?
Mr. Kawai:
Although the POC was successful, several improvements were requested, including better identification of control and media ports, the addition of a function to identify encoding status, and H.265 support.
Fuji Television is very interested in using Monarch EDGE for future multi-camera events, especially where tally and intercom functions are required, and is also interested in the Transport Stream (TS) functionality.
Fuji Television’s use of Matrox Monarch EDGE for major international sporting events clearly demonstrates its value in remote production.
Although there are still some areas that need improvement, Monarch EDGE has the potential to be used in an even more diverse range of broadcast events in the future, and we hope it will help Fuji Television break new ground in remote and IP-based production.
Monarch EDGE is expected to be adopted in even more remote production areas in the future.