January-February 2017
MANAGEMENT 21
Asia-Pacific growth driving Ross Video ’ s global reach
At the opening of Ross Video ’ s new Singapore office last November , David Ross , CEO of Ross Video , announced that the company has achieved 25 years of continuous growth , with Asia-Pacific now its fastest-growing region .
With 12 acquisitions in the past seven years alone , Ross Video is showing no signs of slowing down . In fact , the company ’ s growth continues to speed up . More significantly , Ross Video has achieved an average 17 % year-onyear growth for the past 25 years , as announced by David Ross , CEO of Ross Video , at the opening ceremony of the company ’ s new Singapore office last November .
Ross tells APB : “ Although our biggest sales are from North America , sales from Asia-Pacific are coming in second , surpassing Europe . Hence , we are planning to do more business here in Asia-Pacific than we do in Europe , as this is now our fastest-growing region .”
As part of the company ’ s continued expansion into Asia-Pacific , Ross Video ’ s new Singapore office has been designed to showcase the company ’ s products and deliver on its brand promises . At the new facility , Ross Video will also be providing training sessions for its business partners and customers from Asia-Pacific , where they will receive complete product demonstrations and have hands-on experience on the company ’ s end-to-end solutions .
One of the main products Ross is keen to highlight in Asia-Pacific is the Raptor IPG-8970 gateway card for the openGear platform . As the company ’ s first major IP product , the multi-protocol solution , he adds , will bridge legacy broadcast live production equipment to packet-based studio infrastructures .
Featuring encapsulation modes in SMPTE ( Society of Motion Picture & Television Engineers ) ST2022-6 , AES ( Audio Engineering Society ) 67 , VSF
( Video Services Forum ) TR-03 and TR- 04 , the software is also upgradeable to support additional formats such as ST2110 and ASPEN ( Adaptive Sample Picture Encapsulation ).
At IBC 2016 in September , Ross Video announced its membership into the Alliance for IP Media Solutions ( AIMS ). “ Everybody is in the conversation on IP , and Ross Video , being a supporter of IP , is in at the right time and doing it correctly . We ’ re on a mission to make sure people know that Ross Video is in IP and that IP works ,” Ross explains .
To address the long-term implications of IP technology in media networking and video production , Ross Video recently acquired Coveloz Technologies , a technology company offering design services and firmware solutions to address the networking of audio , video and control signals .
Ross elaborates : “ We needed Coveloz ’ s consulting help to understand all the standards and technologies of both the telecommunications and broadcast industries . Having Coveloz on board allows us to offer our customers the services of Coveloz , which can help them to accelerate their transition of video workflow to an IP-based infrastructure .”
Stepping into the new year , he highlights that 2017 will be “ a challenging year , because there is some confusion between which direction to go , and sorting out the hype that could be in the industry , which may be ahead of realities ”.
More importantly , manufacturers need to offer cost-effective solutions in solving the “ real fundamental problems ” faced by the broadcast industry , instead of focusing on pushing for new technologies to drive new businesses , Ross emphasises .
Claiming SDI will continue to be around for “ a very long time ”, he adds that not all broadcasters have the budgets to experiment new technologies without a proper return on investment ( ROI ).
Thus , while Ross Video aims to play a key role in driving the industry into IP as a service , Ross foresees that the industry will be fragmented into two halves — SDI and IP .
To support all operational requirements , Ross Video will continue to invest in both technologies to ensure that the company is ready and capable of providing hybrid solutions to cater to its customers ’ needs .
Ross continues : “ 4K / Ultra HD ( UHD ) is achievable today , whereas IP would appeal to broadcasters with budgets who are willing to experiment . Despite the desire for IP in Asia-Pacific , I think 4K / UHD will probably be more interesting because if broadcasters want to deliver 4K / UHD today , they might want to do that in 12G-SDI .”
For instance , Ross Video is offering its Ultrix routing switcher platform , which is capable of handling SDI data rates from 270Mbps-12Gbps . Primarily designed for 12G support , the Ultrix is equipped with audio processing and multi-viewers and supports the SMPTE 12G standard that allows the delivery of 4K / UHD video on a single coaxial cable .
Particularly for sports , where there is an increasing demand for higher resolutions , Ross believes that broadcasters will “ eventually be demanding for 4K / UHD equipment in their infrastructure so as to future-proof themselves ”.
Other Ross Video ’ s highlights for 2016 included the continued expansion of the company ’ s flagship line of production switchers , and in particular , the Carbonite Black Solo . Delivering video production in a compact size , the Carbonite Black Solo is integrated with Ross Video ’ s DashBoard , allowing users to create a purpose-built user interface for a specific production environment .
Equipped with six HD-SDI inputs and three HDMI inputs , the Carbonite Black Solo features a single M / E with four keyers , a transition keyer for DVE and media wipes , as well as an Ultrachrome chroma keyer . Furthermore , the switcher is shipped with the XPression LiveCG software licence to provide production graphics .
A first foray into the camera segment was also made with the introduction of the ACID camera . Designed to capture live actions within virtual environments , the ACID camera provides not only standard SMPTE 4:2:2 video signals but also UltraChromeHR output that contains full-bandwidth colour information in a 0:4:4 coding format from the camera image sensors .
Available in two models — ACID H200 and ACID Z50 — these cameras can be equipped with viewfinders , output adapters and the accessories necessary for usage in production studios , as well as with the company ’ s robotic systems .
Ross concludes : “ Over four decades , Ross Video has moved beyond where we started as a production switcher company . Ross Video has robotics and other product lines that go beyond single formats , and we are doing more than just SDI and IP .
“ So if our customers are not aware of what Ross Video has to offer , we would like to get to know them better .”
Present at the opening ceremony of Ross Video ’ s new Singapore office were David Ross ( second from right ) with , from left , Andrew Tan , director of sales , Asia-Pacific , Ross Video ; Vivian Yu , marketing & operations manager , Asia-Pacific , Ross Video ; Jessie Tan , director , sales & marketing , APB ; and Andrew Yeo , publisher for APB .