Twenty-Year-Old Broadcast International Gets Boost from Big Blue Partnership

BI’s solution is made possible by IBM’s multi-core Cell Broadband Engine, processor which IBM describes on its web site as, "a multi-core chip comprised of a 64-bit Power Architecture processor core and eight synergistic processor cores, capable of massive floating point processing, optimized for compute-intensive workloads and broadband rich media applications. A high-speed memory controller and high-bandwidth bus interface are also integrated on-chip. The breakthrough multi-core architecture and ultra high-speed communications capabilities deliver vastly improved, real-time response, in many cases 10 times the performance of the latest PC processors. The Cell BE architecture is OS neutral and supports multiple operating systems simultaneously."

"We are constantly striving to provide innovative solutions to our customers," added Jim Comfort, vice president, IBM Systems and Technology Group. "The IBM BladeCenter QS21, based on the multi-core Cell Broadband Engine processor, is designed to yield quicker application results, enabling organizations to get information faster in order to facilitate important business decisions," he adds.

Changing With the Times
One of the key benefits of the CodecSys software approach is CodecSys-based encoders can be easily changed as standards and requirements evolve. With CodecSys, codecs can be upgraded and added through simple, cost-effective software downloads. Other commercial solutions based on embedded systems require costly, full replacement. The underlying IBM multi-core hardware platform is also highly programmable and scalable, enabling users to add additional processing power by simply adding extra processors.

This upgradeable, "future-proof" approach eliminates the need for the costly replacement cycles required with encoders based on tightly-coupled hardware/software architectures.

"Right now," said Tiede, "there are literally billions of dollars in video compression infrastructure that will have to be thrown away when new standards like h.264 are adopted. You don’t have to throw out your computer every time Microsoft launches a new version of software. Why should you have to throw away a $50,000 piece of equipment like an encoder? It just doesn’t make sense."

According to Tiede, "What the IBM chip allows us to do is all these unique things with video compression that we are doing, not only in codec switching, but just with H.264, that’s where a lot of our abilities come. Certainly there are a lot of companies out there working on their version of multi-core processors and things that like, but we selected IBM just because of the performance that we’ve seen so far with that chip and what it can do."

He says he hasn’t seen any thing offered by Intel or AMD at this point that fully competes with IBM’s Cell Processor technology. Tiede also noted, however, that the company is working with other chip manufacturers as well, but that IBM sought them out in order for IBM to add such high-speed HD encoding capabilities to its Media Hub Solution, which is a web service platform that integrates many applications for media and entertainment companies.

The company is seeing a lot of opportunity via the relationship with IBM, according to Tiede, "You can imagine, with the performance that we have described and demonstrated in the booth and being sold under the brand name of IBM—image the number of broadcasters, webcasters, satellite providers, cable providers that are probably standing in line to get these boxes from IBM—but those are things we can’t talk about."

Athough Broadcast International has been around for over 20 years and it has just recently hit the $5 million revenue mark, from the expression on Tiede’s face as he discusses his relationship with IBM and his new technology, it probably won’t take the company another twenty years to grow to the next $5 million.