Inside Out : Integrated Media Enterprise, Al Kovalick

Cloudspotter’s Guide to Apps

Al Kovalick — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 05:00:00 GMT

Say goodbye to installable applications. Goodbye, to all apps? Well no, but to installable desktop apps in particular. You won’t have to say adios to all desktop apps for some time but the trend is clear. Says who? Says the research.

IDC predicts (Ref 1) the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) market will reach $40.5 billion by 2014. The same year, 34% of all new business software purchases will be delivered to browsers. This is a remarkable trend that media professionals cannot ignore. SaaS apps are not installed but accessed via web browsers or small “app players” as with ubiquitous Flash.

SaaS is a business model not a technology. The technology underpinnings are generally based on HTML5/AJAX, Adobe Flash/AIR, JavaFX or Microsoft Silverlight. Applications based on these technologies are often referred to as Rich Internet Applications (RIA). When RIA-based applications are rented to end users, in some financial accounting sense, then the SaaS model applies. And SaaS is all about the cloud. As cloudspotters know, installable apps are not usually cloud friendly.

October 25th in Hollywood, I will present a paper at the SMPTE Technical Conference on the trend toward web enabled apps and cloud deployment. If you fancy cloudspotting, you will enjoy this talk. The Avid Interplay Central app suite is cited of a prime example of taking apps to the next level.

Reference

1. www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prUS22431810

Do you hear that rushing sound? It’s the sound of FIMS getting louder.

Al Kovalick — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 05:00:00 GMT

It’s the sound of a new era in building media workflows.

The logo spells it out, FIMS is about media services. The idea of services is not new. Google, Twitter, YouTube and 1000s of other web sites offer service interfaces to remotely initiate an action, export data, import a file, query for something, and other you-name-it things. FIMS specs how media services should operate and cooperate in a professional, multi-vendor, IT environment -- not just through a web site interface.

FIMS is based on the concepts of a Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA). So what makes it different from the run-of-the-mill SOA business environment? Plenty. For one, FIMS is designed from the ground up to be media friendly for broadcast, production, post production, media distribution, and media archive applications. It understands large files (TB+), frame accuracy, and long task times (transcode). It’s media aware Lego Blocks for building workflows.

At the just completed IBC 2011 in Amsterdam, Avid participated in a joint technology demo along with Sony, IBM, Cinegy, and Cube-Tec. These five vendors worked cooperatively to show file-based camera capture, ingest, transcoding, audio processing and final display in a Media Composer timeline. This was the first European demo of FIMS. Many hundreds of people saw three fundamental FIMS services (ingest, transcode, move) lashed together to implement the 2 minute camera driven workflow.

FIMS is the joint brainchild of the Advanced Media Workflow Association (AMWA.TV) and the European Broadcast Union (EBU.CH). To date, there are over 100 participating members aligned with FIMS efforts. See wiki.amwa.tv for more info and to download the recently produced FIMS 1.0 spec.

Some comments heard during the IBC demo; “Wow, this is what I need now” , “How can I join the effort?” , “This is a crucial step in making SOA work for me”. Avid is a contributing member to FIMS on many levels. We intend to integrate its principles into our Integrated Media Enterprise products over time.

Yes, FIMS is making big noises. Fortunately, it’s a sweet sound to those of us creating the new world of agile media workflows.

FIMS is Heating Up

Al Kovalick — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 05:14:00 GMT

Never heard of FIMS? Can’t blame you, it’s so new. If you care about media workflow, design and architectures you should care about FIMS.

As the logo above hints, FIMS is about media services. The idea of services is not new. Google, Twitter, YouTube and 1000s of other web sites offer service interfaces to remotely initiate an action, export data, import a file, query for something, and other you-name-it things. FIMS specs how media services should operate and cooperate in a professional, multi-vendor, IT environment -- not just through a web site interface.

FIMS is an effort sponsored by the Advanced Media Workflow Association and the European Broadcast Union -- http://wiki.amwa.tv/ebu/index.php/Main_Page. Avid is a major supporter of FIMS and other AMWA activities.

FIMS is a vendor-neutral, common framework for implementing interoperable media workflows using a Service Oriented Architecture (SOA). FIMS applies SOA principles to create solutions for broadcast, production, post production, media distribution, and media archive applications. The framework supports interoperability, interchangeability and reusability of media specific services across vendors and networks. Yeah, it's a mouthful so a demo might help to decode it.

At NAB 2011, Avid is participating in a joint technology demo along with Sony, IBM, Cinegy, Radiant Grid and Cube-Tec. These six vendors are working cooperatively and showing file-based camera capture, ingest, transcoding, audio processing and final display in a Media Composer timeline. This is the world’s first demo of FIMS and promises to be the start of a new way to build efficient media workflows.

The demo will be shown at the FIMS booth N3134, a booth dedicated for this purpose.

So, you are pondering, is FIMS firm? Think crawl, walk, run and the NAB demo is the crawling phase. The current state of FIMS has the framework and a few key services defined (media transfer, transcode, ingest). The next phases will add lots more services and test over a broader range of vendors and products.

When will Avid products be FIMS enabled? No announcements at present but we are enthusiastic about FIMS so stay tuned.

I will be presenting on the values/benefits of FIMS at the FIMS booth. Come hear what all the buzz is about;

· Monday 4/11/11 @ 2:00 (20 min)

· Tues/Wed 12:30 and 1:00