RBB Broadcasters, Germany

RBB works to contribute and distribute video signals primarily within Germany, although some pool signals – such as from sports events – come from other territories or are distributed internationally. With the growth in Secure Reliable Transport (SRT), RBB decided it should support the transport protocol as part of its offering. As well as contributing pool signals, RBB also acts as a provider of its own pool signals, such as for press conferences or local political events, which may be used by news outlets.

“We face the same challenges as other broadcasters within the ARD, and SRT was a topic for us,” says Florian Hesse, systems engineer, RBB. “We had used different systems previously which had become expensive – they required a separate network and we had to pay for the service. In the IP world there are now easier and simpler solutions like SRT over IP, which we were keen to provide.”

“We had a project to migrate to a new network provider for our internet traffic and also direct peering connections to cable providers. The idea was to have technology to easily connect cable providers and give them the option to connect via SRT. We wrote down all our issues on paper and sent them to different companies asking them for their solutions. VITEC responded to us and offered a perfectly suitable solution in this case, and the most competitive. As a public broadcaster we must be very careful to ensure we are getting value.”