Win Sports now distributes its sports channels in HEVC and AVC to broadcast platforms across LATAM, using the X Platform to complement satellite primary distribution with IP transport.
Colombia’s sports broadcaster Win Sports is now distributing its Win Sports and Win+ channels in HEVC and AVC to broadcast platforms across the country. This implementation is strategic for Win Sports and marks a milestone in its work to deliver high quality sports content in a flexible manner. In particular, it enables Win+ Soccer to complement traditional satellite primary distribution with IP-based transport to broadcasters.
To support the project, Win Sports has deployed Appear’s X Platform for the primary HEVC and AVC distribution of the channels. The Appear X Platform is now central to Win Sports distribution of major content including the global World feed for the Mundial Sub-15 Baseball and, as mentioned, Colombia soccer signals for Win Sports and Win+ Soccer.
Appear also supports the distribution of international events and broadcasts for the Colombian Professional Basketball League and the distribution of all Colombia’s professional soccer, including FPC (Categoría Primera A) soccer content to international providers.
“The integration of satellite and IP transmissions is a key requirement for many broadcasters in LATAM. With the X Platform, we have been able to effectively combine both technologies. This flexibility enables Win Sports to partner with operators that have satellite infrastructure as well as those that prefer the flexibility and scalability of IP transmission," said Gerssonn Alfonso Barrios Cortés, Technical Director TV Broadcasting, Win Sports.
Bridging Legacy and All-IP Infrastructures
Appear’s X Platform, built for high speed video networking and IP-centric operations, has a hardware chassis capable of high-density, high-capacity video processing, operating at a minimum internal throughput of 140G. It also has 10G bi-directional IP interfaces to maintain IP security at each connection node.
The X Platform supports uncompressed video conversions from and to legacy SDI and SDI over IP, with options to perform light compression with such codecs as JPEG XS and JPEG2000, as well as full encoding/decoding using AVC or HEVC, as in Win Sports case. Its extremely low latency, plus its implementation of current and future IP video standards including SMPTE 2110 and SMPTE 2022-6, makes it suitable for most video applications.
The hardware can be fitted with different input, processing and output modules that bridge between common legacy video platforms and an all-IP infrastructure. Specifically, the platform can handle video processing in legacy DVB networks such as cable, satellite, terrestrial
and IPTV owing to its support for MPEG TS multiplexing, DVB scrambling/descrambling and AVC/HEVC encoding/decoding.
Using the capabilities of the Appear X Platform, Win Sports has been able to secure new contracts with cable operators that, until now, were unable to engage in high-quality sports broadcasting due to their lack of satellite infrastructure. This move not only enhances Win Sports' distribution network but also opens up audiences’ access to sports content across Colombia and LATAM. www.appear.net
