There have been a few common themes emerging in the AV/Broadcast/Media world over the past year; AI, Partners/Ecosystems, and Enterprise Broadcast are three of these. While these items have been on my mind, a few recent trips this year have renewed these themes. InfoComm 2024 in Las Vegas, large enterprise client visits, and international organization support has re-invigorated these themes. It was encouraging to see the industry focusing on these and finding so many creative and engaging ways to serve customers, and customers adopting these more advanced solutions.

The Transformative Power of Generative AI in AV Technology

With the onset of generative AI, the last 18 months have been dynamic and disruptive in the technology world. As AV/Broadcast/Live Event technologists, we are always looking for the latest and greatest, we thrive on the new, cutting edge, bleeding edge and we oft forget the lessons of the past.

When it comes to AI, every tech outlet seems to be talking about it, generative AI, Robots, job replacement, sentience, the end of the world. Ok, so maybe the end of the world is a little severe, but with technology changes and innovations happening at an ever-faster rate, it can be very tiring trying to keep up with the changes.

InfoComm24 carried this theme well throughout. Our very own Mark Gershuny wrote on AI in his InfoComm24 review . As Marc noted, the AI discussion was far and wide anchored by Joe Pham’s opening keynote. Mr. Pham masterfully noted, “This is the worst AI we will ever see; it will only get better from here”. He encouraged us to think of AI as a new platform, much like electricity was during the Edison/Tesla days. It wasn’t Edison who created televisions or Tesla that created high-speed electronics but their work on electricity created the baseline platform that engineers, innovators, and others built on. Looking at AI in this fashion allows us to take a step back and see the ‘long view’ of AI.

Take advantage and learn what you can today, see where it fits, what benefits can be derived to be more efficient, increase productivity, but remember it will only get better. What about ethics? If an AI assistant is creating e-mails for you, and the person you e-mail uses AI to respond, we are just letting computers talk to each other and have lost any personal connection. What about the ethics of AI, its ability to lie, and be convinced it is true? There is much to learn, dig through, and develop over time. Remember the long game, this is a new platform of technology for our future. Learn, ideate, test, demo, fail, and try again!

From Siloed Systems to Collaborative Ecosystems

Just a handful of years ago our industry was far from collaborative. This approach often led to disjointed designs and poorly thought-out products as each manufacturer tried to be a one-stop-shop for end-to-end systems. Their strengths were apparent, and their weaknesses remained an ever-present frustration to clients. As our industry wrestles with emerging technology and accelerated technological growth, manufacturers are moving away from the silo approach to partnerships, collaboration, and networks.

The future of AV/Broadcast/Live Events lies in these partnerships and ecosystems. Companies that continue to operate in silos will struggle to survive. While these partnerships simplify AV design and offer more options, it can quickly become an issue when the toolbox gets too large. Let me explain, I have always described the process of consulting and design to always be seen through the end customer viewpoint. Their needs and operation are more important than the ‘fun toys’ we can play with. While these partnerships simplify AV design, they can also overwhelm clients with too many similar products. Therefore, evaluating products, understanding manufacturing diversity, company agendas, and true interoperability is crucial for selecting the right product and partner for any customer. This is the fun role of consultants and designers. These experts can look at the tools and select the best fit for the service needed.

InfoComm24 again showed the number of partnerships being forged and expanded. Companies like NETGEAR, Zoom, Teams, Crestron, Aver, Q-SYS, Logitech, and Neat, among others, were prominently featured across multiple booths. Technologies like AV over IP via ST2110, IPMX, SDVoE, DanteAV, HDBase-T, HDBase-1G, and 10G were also highlighted. Kudos to the industry for its recognition of the customers’ needs: interoperability and cohesive ecosystems.

AV Meets Broadcast: A Growing Convergence

The convergence of AV and broadcast continues to gain momentum, albeit slower than expected. ST2110 is the global standard for broadcasters, yet the AV industry still uses various versions of video over IP solutions, each with its own benefits. Marketing, creative, and digital teams are increasingly demanding higher-quality video within flexible, professional workflows. The crossover between AV and broadcast can meet these needs. I encourage all AV manufacturers to explore integration into the enterprise broadcast world, as they will quickly see the adoption of their flexible solutions across both industries. At InfoComm24 several new vendors showcased ST2110 solutions and enterprise broadcast technologies. Matrox highlighted converters and gateways, while Ross Video demonstrated the Ultrix platform, offering a robust solution for both broadcasters and enterprise AV. It is encouraging to see the blend which has been subtle for a decade start to accelerate.

Enterprise Broadcast: Driving Innovation for Corporate Communication

In my visits with various large fortune-listed companies, Enterprise Broadcast is at the forefront of everyone’s minds. These companies see the flexibility, power, and non-proprietary options which are enabled by interoperability and open standards. They want to produce professional events, town halls, and world-reaching meetings. They want to utilize expert technicians and operators who can produce high-quality content not only for websites and social media but for the in-room and online audiences. These companies have money to spend and are looking for strategic partnerships, long-term resilient planning, and sustainability of buildouts. This last one is driving more and more decisions in larger organizations. 

At TeamPeople we are all about leveraging the very best of technology solutions closely partnered with top-notch operators and engineers. Whatever the customer’s vision, we believe that the right people coupled with flexible and efficient workflows will always deliver the most engaging and successful meetings and events.

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Last month, Las Vegas played host to InfoComm 2024, an exhilarating convergence of innovation in audiovisual communication technology. Spanning several expansive convention halls, this year’s InfoComm welcomed 30,271 attendees and exhibitors from 125 countries around the globe, each contributing to a tapestry of cutting-edge advancements and transformative ideas.

Keynote Address Delivers Powerful Insights: “Everything Has Changed”:

One of the pivotal moments at InfoComm 2024 was the keynote address focused on artificial intelligence (AI) and its transformative impact on communication technology. Q-SYS CEO Joe Pham took the stage to discuss groundbreaking applications such as AI-driven analytics for optimizing video conferencing, intelligent automation in content creation, and predictive algorithms enhancing real-time decision-making. In his follow-up seminar, Pham also delved into ethical considerations surrounding AI deployment, sparking insightful dialogues on privacy, bias mitigation, and the evolving role of AI in reshaping collaborative environments.

Immersive Technology Showcase: Exploring the Future at the Convention Hall

Navigating the expansive convention halls at InfoComm 2024 was a sensory overload of technological marvels. Booths glittered with state-of-the-art displays, immersive audio demo rooms, and interactive products that showcased the limitless potential of modern communication technology. With 833 exhibitors across 407,000 net square feet of space in the West & Central Halls of the LVCC, attendees were treated to a showcase of the latest innovations from established industry giants, emerging startups, and international innovators.

Key Trends and Innovations Explored:

The convention featured 200+ educational sessions, workshops, and panels exploring key trends and advancements in audiovisual and communication technology applications. Beyond AI, renowned speakers and experts delved into several key themes that define the future of communication technology:

• Hybrid Events: With the global shift towards remote work and digital connectivity, InfoComm 2024 highlighted innovations in hybrid event technology. The DTEN Vue Pro Smart Camera System was a standout product, winning the Best of Show award . This system, designed for seamless integration with DTEN D7X series, enhances hybrid meeting experiences with advanced AI features, providing superior video quality and intelligent framing to ensure all participants are clearly seen and heard​​​.
• Sustainability: Addressing the urgent need for eco-conscious technology solutions, InfoComm 2024  debuted its program focused on advancing sustainability in the Pro AV industry . Featuring the new AVIXA Sustainability Advisory Group, SAVe Certification Workshop, and show floor tours of manufacturers and exhibitors dedicated to sustainability. Sharp NEC Display Solutions highlighted their sustainable display products, including ePaper displays with significantly lower power consumption and recyclable materials. Additionally, the SDVoE Alliance showcased AV-over-IP solutions that promote sustainability through reduced power consumption and smaller form-factor products​​​​​.
• Immersive Experiences: The convention hall buzzed with immersive technologies that transported attendees into virtual realms and augmented realities. Fujifilm presented a fully immersive 360° booth experience with walls, floor, and ceiling projections using their FP-Z8000 projectors, creating a truly all-encompassing environment. Christie also showcased their award-winning MicroTiles LED technology by wrapping a piano in MicroTiles, while also demonstrating the latest in high-performance video walls and projection mapping.
• Collaboration Tools: Enhancements in collaboration tools were a focal point, with advancements in AI-powered conferencing solutions and interactive whiteboards that fostered seamless communication and collaboration across distances. KUDO showcased their AI-driven simultaneous interpretation services , which allowed attendees to experience real-time language translation on their smartphones, breaking down language barriers and enhancing global collaboration. Additionally, Microsoft introduced new Teams Rooms and device updates, enhancing meeting intelligence and workplace solutions to support hybrid work environments.

Looking to the Future:

As InfoComm 2024 drew to a close, the buzz of excitement lingered, carrying with it the promise of a future where AI continues to revolutionize audiovisual technology. The integration of AI promises to enhance user experiences with intelligent automation, personalized content delivery, and seamless integration across platforms. Looking ahead, the industry is poised to embrace AI-driven solutions that not only elevate functionality but also redefine how we connect and collaborate in an increasingly digital world.

More than just a convention, InfoComm 2024 was a testament to the relentless pursuit of innovation and the boundless possibilities of technology. As we reflect on the advancements and insights shared, one thing remains clear: the future of communication technology is bright, driven by AI’s transformative potential and the collective ingenuity of industry pioneers. We can’t wait to see what’s new next year in Orlando, at InfoComm 2025!

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Another year at a showcase of the best in broadcast. At least that’s what I like to call it.  

NAB 2024 was held at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, this year with a show attendance of approximately 61,000 professionals registered. This is a dip from last year’s attendance numbers but an increase for first-time attendees who represented 54% of attendees.  

The event itself is always intimidating for first-time attendees as the convention halls by themselves are absolutely enormous, let alone 3 that are filled with vendors and manufacturers and that is not inclusive of all the additional meeting and learning spaces located on other floors and in nearby hotels. The renovations taking place at the Las Vegas Convention Center did make the convention halls feel even more spread out than they typically are but the way the exhibition halls are organized and categorized by production division always makes it more manageable.  

There seemed to be more of a focus on booths than on stages like the last few years as larger vendors, like VizRT , had their own stage and presentation schedules to highlight updates, workflows, and collaborations. This move to vendor stages make the free exhibit hall passes worthwhile, but I could also understand how this could further confuse newbies to NAB since the schedules for these specific sessions are not found on the NAB mobile app or on the website since it is not technically put on by NAB. 

The National Association of Broadcasters conference is truly an indication of the heartbeat of our industry and a look into what is not only possible but actually implementable.  

So what were the latest trends out of NAB? 

Trend 1: Pro AV & Broadcast Tools 

Pro AV is using broadcast tools. For people in the Pro AV world, you might be thinking: “Duh. This isn’t news.” Well, I would like to inform you that the broadcast world didn’t really want to fully acknowledge it until this year when someone spelled it out on the main stage and someone in the audience chuckled. Many more vendors were accustomed to hearing about conference room workflows and integrated their gear for those use cases. If you work in Pro AV, I would also instruct you to consider making a pilgrimage to NAB to scope out the gear since many vendors admitted to significantly scaling back their displays for Infocomm. Maybe this narrative shift will change their minds, maybe not. But you could be missing out on a solution.  

Zoom had a presence at the OfficeHours booth in Central Hall as Andy Carluccio, the man behind ZoomISO and all the wonderful new API additions, made several announcements that piqued the interest of our team including continued advancements on multilingual workflows, the new Liminal app “Tiles” and Zoom Rooms Pro AV feature expansions to include Dante, NDI and hardware expansion cards. 

Microsoft Teams had their usual spot out near Epiphan where they integrate into their cloud system. But no major updates from Teams or Cisco Webex were present on the NAB Show floor. 

In addition, one-man-band kits for the AV world were prevalent all over the show floor, many trying their shot at Blackmagic’s ATEM Mini, with a bit more function and a few more features. Traditional TDs would appreciate the addition to the tiniest little T-bars I have seen in my life and a mix of both SDI and HDMI inputs, sparing a possible need for converters for that pesky mix of SDI cameras and presentation PCs.  

Trend 2: SPMTE 2110 & IP Video 

I have been to the last two NAB shows and I wish the Vegas Strip had prop bets on industry trends because I would be up. IP and SMPTE 2110 infrastructures have become more common in large broadcast operations. After a rapid surge of technological advances, we seem to have hit a stabilization point, a safe enough time to get gear that should have a shelf life that won’t become irrelevant too quickly. Blackmagic Design continues to pivot hard into the space to force the larger manufacturers to take an inward look at their pricing models. 

In terms of IP and streaming some manufacturers, like Sony and Teradek, have created their own protocols that are faster than open-source protocols, like SRT. However, it requires you to exist within their proprietary ecosystem.   

RIST and JPEGXS are the other protocols that have begun to pick up steam after the pandemic stumbling block and navigating around the SRT surge. More and more manufacturers and developers are now beginning to prioritize work with these protocols.  

I brought up AV1 a few times to try and peek at roadmaps and was shut down so many times I stopped asking.  

Trend 3: NDI 6 

Newtek’s newest update to NDI deserved its own trend space rather than to be bundled up into IP workflows. NDI 6 was the bell of the ball this year. NewTek announced their open Beta right before NAB and the first feedback has been brow-raising.

Announced new features include:  

• Native HDR and 10+ bit color support.  
• Meets broadcast industry demands for professional-grade video streaming over IP.  
• Broad compatibility with support for PQ and HLG formats, extending streaming to most HDR and non-HDR devices.  
• WAN connectivity embedded into cameras through NDI Bridge utility for hardware.  
• Enable sending encrypted NDI streams over a WAN for secure, remote real-time collaboration.

More features and updates are to be announced from the roadmap, but the creator of NDI did tease the roadmap for NDI audio during a presentation at the VizRT booth on Sunday.  

NDI’s software is free and was prevalent throughout the entirety of all 3 expo halls. Every workflow has at least one compatibility or another. It is a low-cost, high-reward solution for video production.  

BUT  

You need to work with your IT team to integrate NDI. For high performance, it should be set up on its own VLAN or even its own independent network. NDI uses multicast traffic and when using full bandwidth NDI it can affect the entire network.  

You may have heard of NDI|HX3. Full NDI provides the highest quality of video transmission, while NDI|HX3 offers a balance between image quality and network bandwidth making it an ideal option for use cases where network bandwidth is limited. But it is not always available for certain hardware or software workflows so make sure you do your research about what version of NDI the software or hardware you are looking into implementing. 

Trend 4: Cloud Tools 

Everyone has developed a cloud tool or acquired and bundled cloud tools. Every major broadcast manufacturer now has a cloud production model in one form or another. From Grass Valley to Ross Video, it was no longer a flex but an expectation that the biggest booths were not highlighting just a video wall or a large jib but a variation of screens displaying active low latency cloud environments that are not theoretical but battle-tested. Cloud-native SaaS is now the norm for most large-scale broadcast vendors in one way or another.  

I spoke about cloud production briefly the last time I was at NAB. The smaller HTML5 graphics products, some with simple NDI integration, have all landed themselves with integrations within the big players and continue to expand their reach. If you are looking for a way to streamline graphics for productions and have not looked at the different HTML5 tools available, the VizRt Flowics product is very robust but there are plenty of smaller players with fewer bells and whistles.  

The saturation of smaller cloud tool companies has been snatched up and integrated into larger systems/companies allowing for more flexible and bundled services. For example, Backlight, a postproduction cloud service, now comprises of iconik, Celtx, cineSyne, Gem, Wildmoka, and Zype. Standing alone, Wildmoka is just a browser-based clipping tool but when tied into iconik it includes a post-production review process. Alone they are not much to talk about but together a powerful combination for a post-production team experiencing the burn of the content churn. 

Trend 5: LED, XR/AR & Virtual Production (VP) 

Demonstrations of virtual sets and tight-pitch LED walls took up significant square footage at NAB 24, showing the interest and strides made in the virtual production (VP) space over the past few years. Our team got a chance to view two different systems up close and personal: one from Unilumin and Vū and another from Planar and OptiTrack. Unilumin showed off its sophisticated LED technology in collaboration with Mark Roberts Motion Control (acquired recently by Nikon) with “The Unreal Ride.” Our own Jeff Eggleston got to experience this epic demo with motion cameras flying around on a virtual set while sitting in a car to enact a high-speed and dynamic scene. Back at the Unilumin booth, their team demonstrated a workflow that allowed them to use virtual production sets without placing marker points around a set to generate extended reality content. This new tech will save time and resources on a fast-moving production schedule.  

On the other hand, Planar showed off to us their latest LED technologies and a more “traditional” VP workflow using their OptiTrack system. Nevertheless, it was impressive to see their system in full force and get an up close and personal view of its capabilities.  

The Planar booth also showed off a curved, touchscreen LED wall that was responsive and quite impressive. While this tech seemed more suitable for news or sports outlets in the broadcast field, it is still stunning to see where these technologies are headed, especially as they become more affordable for companies in the studio production space. 

Trend 6: AI 

You thought I wasn’t going to talk about AI, didn’t you? The keynote was done side by side with an AI robot after all! AI was on the minds of quite a few booths and a hot topic of conversation, as it has been since the public release of ChatGPT3. The Adobe Firefly additions to Adobe Premiere were very exciting to see.  

The whole idea of speeding up work for an increase in shorter turnaround times is critical. “Content is king” has been the coined phrase and has increased the churn for many post teams. More content, less time to do it.  

For the post world present at NAB this was front of mind. Speed, reliability, and resilience were key. How long does this transfer take? Does this integrate into my cloud environment, or do I have to use yours? Can we do this in browser? How easy is it to share or encrypt? If you couldn’t answer these questions, you weren’t on the expo floor (or we missed you. It’s a big show.) Post is always well represented at NAB due to its affiliation with the film industry of course but they continue and will always be front of mind.  

There were quite a few Language AI companies helping expand content reach regarding live translation. A lot of these products involved “side car” like features with a large library of languages at your disposal. The limitation to many of them is how many discrete outputs you can get. Accuracy and the amount of language output is something I always keep an eye out for as Multilingual streaming and events become increasingly prevalent. You also need to be sure that the LLM being used for translation is trained. For example, in one demo I was given was of a Spanish speaker for an event. I asked to try out the product with my elementary-level of Czech. I was impressed with the Spanish bidirectional output; I was not impressed by the Czech-to-English output. My accent is not that bad.  

My warning is not that these tools don’t work, it is just to make sure you have a good litmus test for new tools and when moving away from live interpretation and stenographer solutions that the client is informed that they are not working with a foolproof solution. The question we ask ourselves as engineers and SMEs should always remain to be not “Could we?” it is “Should we?” 

AI is a tool in the tool belt not a full replacement part for a workflow. Can you drive a car with a donut tire? Yes. That’s what AI is: reliable to a point. 

Trend 7: Post-Production Collaboration 

Frame.io is no longer the only game in town. There was a multitude of offers from companies such as Backlight, EditShare, BirdDog, and even Blackmagic. But if you need to fix a post-production workflow, LucidLink is the clear favorite. It is a standout in the post-production workflow space. Options for bring-your-own storage workflows (i.e., Google Cloud Storage, AWS S3, and Azure) to allow for a more seamless post workflow for editing teams. There are even a few former Frame.io people that work for LucidLink now. What we witnessed with LucidLink on the floor of NAB proved to be an excellent solution for the persisting snags we have when working on large-scale productions. 

In addition to this Cloud as a local drive offering, LucidLink and BirdDog Cloud offer a real-time collaboration tool set for post-production teams. These companies’ offerings feature tools where a direct NLE plugin (to be used in Adobe Premiere Pro or DaVinci Resolve) allows editors to collaborate with their stakeholders in real-time, like a virtual meeting platform, to review footage and timelines to give feedback from anywhere in the world. For BirdDog, this product was developed during the Covid-19 pandemic with the likes of Netflix battle-testing this software set to continue in their content delivery pipeline. From what we saw, the quality of the streams is fantastic from both products to deliver high-quality AV for an in-person-like experience. These kinds of tools still have an excellent place in a highly globalized company like TeamPeople to bring the edit suite closer to home. 

Final Thoughts 

There is always a lot to cover with NAB and my step count is always pretty reflexive of that. What you should take away is this:  

• The pre-production process continues to expand as each year rolls around. Allocate the time to get the details right because as the audience grows, the people that can execute will get the right engagement from their consumer base.  
• Make sure your teams can communicate and collaborate with the cloud tools in their arsenal.  
• AI is a tool for teams to use. Not a tool to replace teams.  

From the rise of cloud-powered solutions to the integration of AI, the event highlighted the industry’s trajectory towards innovation. Pro AV and broadcast tools converged, while IP video infrastructures reached a stabilization point. NDI 6 stole the spotlight with its groundbreaking features, promising professional-grade video streaming over IP. Additionally, AI emerged as a tool to be considered nurturing the “churn burn” of post-production workflows, by streamlining processes and enhancing collaboration. Did I miss something? Probably. And only time and customer success stories will determine what flops and what flourishes.  

This blog is a collaborative effort between Sarah Doyle , TeamPeople’s Technical Director for Virtual Services, and our teammate at Dreamtek, Alessandro Altman . Connect with them on LinkedIn to keep the conversation going and tap into their wealth of knowledge and expertise.

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