Working in the streaming industry for quite a few years now, I’ve had the pleasure of delivering and working on project that require linking up people across the globe for some live interaction. Although it’s been a periodical thing for us, it seems more interest is amping up in this now.
But how do you choose the right method of linking up and how do you get the best quality? Slightly older school methods have swayed to using Video Conferencing units. This way may be fine if you’re in the boardroom, but if you’re working with someone across the pond that’s only got a laptop available then it’s best to use something they understand. And that’s where Skype TX can come in.
Now Skype TX isn’t a new thing, it’s been kicking around for a while now. The great thing about it is the hardware that’s been developed to allow TV Broadcasters such as News channels to bring in a commentator abroad and get a video signal with professional connections for an interview live. That is, TV broadcast and Internet Broadcasting too.
Working with Kinura, one of the UK’s #1 live stream companies, we’ve brought together people in a simple 2 way link from Leeds to London for internal comms, and even 4 way link for a conference happening simultaneously across the UK. Doing this, you have to get your head around some of the audio + video in’s and outs. What’s different in these instances is that you’re not doing it just for broadcast, you’re also doing with for people at the venue and no-one really wants to hear and see themselves talking back at them!
Our tech of choice in delivering this time round has been the Newtek Talkshow VS-100, with a few of them paired up on location. With these, we can appropriately split the audio into the Venue sound desk, and video into a Vision mixer. With some control on the unit itself, the audio desk then plays it’s part in splitting the audio out to the venue, the webcast and the return feed to Skype. Of course, to get your head around it you definitely need a diagram or too to make sure the AV team are on the same page, and we’ve got plenty in the broad and bespoke to each venue.
Internet Broadcast always has it’s own challenges over Traditional broadcast, as we’re not just about point to point, we’re about the live event as a whole. What the client needs for the experience dictates what we need to deliver, and at times it’s more than simply pointing a camera at someone. But that’s not to say we can’t use some of the tech and toys that Traditional has to offer!
If you’ve for an event that requires production and a Webcast studio, then Kinura is definitely your go to. You can find out more about them here - kinura.com
Of course, if you’ve got anything that requires crazy AV, then give us a shout here at Viridian VS!