RTL provides coverage of German elections with cloud technology from LiveU and Blackbird

RTL Deutschland’s German election coverage has reached new dimensions with the use of LiveU Matrix and Blackbird.

The project was managed by CBC, the production and technology/IT company of Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland. Netorium AG, LiveU and Blackbird’s German partner, provided 24-hour local support.

CBC used the LiveU Matrix IP cloud-based management and distribution platform LiveU Matrix IP to share dynamic live news content, complementing its existing fleet of LiveU field units. Live feeds were shared from 12 political party headquarters in Berlin and Magdeburg. LiveU’s network operations center (NOC) provided proactive monitoring of the feeds with targeted real-time alerts.

Selected feeds were then distributed to multiple recipients and broadcast on national news as well as other German broadcasters. SRT transmission streams were also introduced for the first time on the Matrix platform.

Cloud editing with Blackbird

Once the feeds were shared in the cloud, users were able to access the files via the Blackbird editing platform. Working remotely, distributed teams of editors were able to quickly and collaboratively clip, edit, enrich and publish highlights from the many events.

Blackbird delivered high-definition digital assets, of varying lengths and also digital media-ready, to multiple channels simultaneously.

A successful union

Jens Schilder, project manager at the CBC, considers this cloud-based coverage a success: “This year is the first time that we did this kind of project and it was important for us to work with trusted partners who could provide an integrated end-to-end solution, with real-time support. LiveU and Blackbird met our requirements, enabling us to respond instantly with engaging coverage.”

Zion Eilam, VP Sales EMEA, LiveU, says the company is very pleased to partner with CBC: “We were able to extend the use of LiveU with a cloud-based solution as an alternative to satellite and showcased our pre-integrated workflow with Blackbird.” Finally, Blackbird CEO Ian McDonough comments that this has been a “great opportunity” for Blackbird and LiveU to demonstrate their joint workflow.