Manufacturers and broadcasters from the EBU’s technical project group, N/ACIP, have reached an agreement regarding an interoperability standard for audio over IP contribution equipment for radio and TV. The agreement is good news not only for broadcasters trying to share content, but for manufacturers too, as it should provide a fillip for sales in compatible products, writes Andy Stout.
The interoperability standard is based on the already extant open IETF standards such as RTP and SIP and is being touted as an extension of the Voice over IP standard that is used to accommodate wideband high quality audio codecs.
“Network systems and formats such as ISDN, E1, and X.21 currently used for audio contribution will tend to become very expensive and disappear,” commented Lars Jonsson, chairman of the N/ACIP project group. “It is therefore necessary to find replacement solutions. In the context of a converged telecommunication world, IP seems the natural choice.”
