NTT DOCOMO BUSINESS and TBS Television Jointly Establish Remote Production Center
~Utilizing the NTT Group's IOWN APN to conduct terrestrial live broadcasts of large-scale sports events~

News Highlights:

Background

In video production, remote production, which connects the filming site and the production base via a network, and other video and audio production DX (digital transformation) initiatives face efficiency challenges. Traditionally, many pieces of equipment must be transported to the site using broadcast vehicles, and a large number of staff must be dispatched on location. In addition, these initiatives are expected to help address social issues such as the declining number of video and audio engineers due to population decrease. To make this possible, standardization and consolidation of video and audio production equipment and technologies have been progressing.

For large-scale events held in stadiums or theaters, a significant number of broadcast vehicles and production staff must be deployed on site. Reducing these costs while maintaining a high-quality production environment has been a major challenge.

Overview of the Initiative

In this initiative, TBS Television and NTT DOCOMO BUSINESS connected the newly established remote production center with the National Stadium in Shinjuku, Tokyo, where a large-scale sports event was held, using IOWN APN, which features high capacity, low latency, and stable performance without fluctuations. By connecting video and audio equipment such as switcher panels and mixers at the remote production center via IOWN APN, remote production was achieved, enabling a flexible production environment that is not bound to a specific production base.

The remote production center newly established by TBS Television and NTT DOCOMO BUSINESS was utilized, and IOWN APN was configured using NTT EAST's All-Photonics Connect powered by IOWN (4).

Figure 1 Conceptual image of remote production utilizing IOWN APN

Key Points of the Initiative

Figure 2 Example of utilization at a large-scale sports event

Outcomes of the Initiative

Photo 1 Newly established remote production center

[Comment from TBS Television]

Roles of Each Company

This initiative was promoted as a joint effort by the NTT Group and TBS Television.

Future Developments

Going forward, we will jointly explore the commercialization of video and audio production at the remote production center, building on the remote production technologies utilized in this initiative as well as advanced technologies such as 5G millimeter wave that contribute to further enhancements. Through these efforts, we aim to improve the quality of production, advance video and audio production DX, and ensure greater accessibility to audio production bases and filming sites.

In addition, by expanding the IOWN APN technology that underpins this initiative to broadcasters and production sites, we will continue to collaborate in promoting greater efficiency and sophistication in video and audio production across the entire industry through the advancement of production DX.

[Glossary]

^1.Remote Production Center
A remote production center is a setup in which video and audio signals from sports or other events held in stadiums or arenas are transmitted via an IP network to a production base (center) located remotely. Program production tasks such as switching and mixing are then carried out remotely.

^2.IOWN
The IOWN (Innovative Optical and Wireless Network) is an initiative for networks and information processing infrastructure including terminals that can provide high-speed, high-capacity communication utilizing innovative technology focused on optics, as well as tremendous computational resources. For details, please visit:
■ What is the IOWN Initiative?
https://www.rd.ntt/e/iown/

^3.IOWN APN
IOWN APN is the communications infrastructure of the future. It is a high-quality all-optical network that responds to increasingly diverse and complex needs by making use of photonics-based technologies in all areas from network to terminal.. For details, please visit:
■ All-Photonics Network
https://www.rd.ntt/e/iown/0002.html

^4.All-Photonics Connect powered by IOWN
"All-Photonics Connect" is a service that connects customer-specified sites point-to-point and provides high-speed, large-capacity, low-latency, and energy-efficient communication at 10 Gbps, 100 Gbps, 400 Gbps, or 800 Gbps. For details, please visit:
■ About All-Photonics Connect powered by IOWN
https://business.ntt-east.co.jp/service/koutaiikiaccess/ (Japanese)

^5.Tally
A tally is a lamp attached to a camera or monitor that visually indicates when recording or broadcasting is in progress.

^6.5G Slicing
5G slicing is a technology in 5G SA (standalone) that allows a network to be virtually divided (sliced) to provide services tailored to a wide variety of needs. 5G SA is a communication method that combines 5GC (5G Core), which is dedicated core network equipment for 5G, with 5G base stations.

^7.SMPTE ST2022-7
SMPTE ST2022-7 is a standard established by SMPTE (Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers) concerning network redundancy (Hitless Protection) when transmitting broadcast program material signals over an IP network.

^8.PTP
PTP (Precision Time Protocol) is a time synchronization standard for networks that enables highly accurate synchronization on the order of microseconds (one-millionth of a second).

About NTT

NTT contributes to a sustainable society through the power of innovation. We are a leading global technology company providing services to consumers and businesses as a mobile operator, infrastructure, networks, applications, and consulting provider. Our offerings include digital business consulting, managed application services, workplace and cloud solutions, data center and edge computing, all supported by our deep global industry expertise. We are over $90B in revenue and 340,000 employees, with $3B in annual R&D investments. Our operations span across 80+ countries and regions, allowing us to serve clients in over 190 of them. We serve over 75% of Fortune Global 100 companies, thousands of other enterprise and government clients and millions of consumers.