Distribute low-latency broadcast content in AWS using JPEG XS and AWS CDI

Introduction

Live production workflows are one of the most demanding workloads for broadcasters. Broadcasters require low latency, agility, scalability, and reliability to deliver live content like news and sporting events to consumers. Amazon Web Services (AWS) developed the AWS Cloud Digital Interface (CDI) SDK as an open-source project to help the media and entertainment industry with contribution and distribution workflows that provide high performance cloud networking between cloud applications.

AWS CDI is a network technology that allows for reliable transport of high-quality uncompressed video within AWS. It can be used to send video between applications with network latency as low as 8 milliseconds, which is less than one frame per second. Ground-to-cloud, cloud-to-cloud, and cloud-to-ground contribution and distribution workloads that require minimal artifacts and latency can leverage JPEG XS. JPEG XS is a visually lossless, low complexity, and low latency video codec that can transport over IP using the SMPTE 2110-22 standard. This also allows for the flexible transport of video, audio, and ancillary data separately using the SMPTE 2110 suite. With the combination of JPEG XS and AWS CDI, broadcasters can move live production workflows into the cloud and continue to maintain high-quality, low-latency content delivery while building end-to-end video solutions.

AWS Media Services support both CDI and JPEG XS to help enable live production workflows in AWS (learn more in the What’s New post). This blog post focuses on AWS Elemental MediaConnect and various use cases where it can be leveraged for production contribution and distribution workflows.

The scenarios highlighted in this blog exemplify various workflows using virtual private cloud (VPC) peering or AWS Organizations with Resource Access Manager (RAM). VPC peering is a networking connection between two VPCs that enables you to route traffic between them, either within a single account or another AWS account. AWS Organizations with RAM allows customers to use a single organization unit, with multi-account AWS environments for central governance and management. Resources are shared to minimize the cost and impact of any issues that arise.

This blog covers the following use cases for CDI/JPEG-XS workflows via MediaConnect:

• Routing JPEG XS signals across different subnets
• Routing JPEG XS/CDI signals across two AWS accounts with central governance
  • Leveraging MediaConnect with JPEG-XS (light compression)
  • Leveraging MediaConnect with CDI (uncompressed)

Routing JPEG XS signal across different subnets

When customers operating in independent AWS accounts need to share content inter and/or intra region, VPC peering can be used as depicted in figure 1. This scenario can benefit broadcasters who distribute to various distribution endpoints such as remote broadcast sites and local stations. JPEG XS can also be used in live cloud-based broadcast and production where content is sent downstream to another VPC for remote monitoring.

Figure 1. JPEG XS distribution using VPC peering

Routing JPEG XS/CDI signals across two AWS accounts with central governance

This scenario is for teams that operate independently but have a single organization and single payer configured using Resource Access Manager (RAM). RAM allows multi-AWS account environments with central governance and management. Resources are shared to minimize cost and impact of issues that arise. This scenario is useful for management and execution of multiple deployment stages (production, development, and testing). Account one acts as the source provider for account two’s environment. By sharing resources such as a subnet, CDI can be transported easily.

Figure 2. JPEG XS distribution using Resource Access Manager

VPC sharing allows customers to share subnets with other AWS accounts within the same AWS organization. This is a very powerful concept with a number of benefits:

• Separation of duties: centrally controlled VPC structure, routing, IP address allocation
• Application owners continue to own resources, accounts, and security groups
• VPC sharing participants can reference security group IDs of one another
• Efficiency gains: higher density in subnets, efficient use of VPNs and AWS Direct Connect
• Hard limits can be avoided; for example, 50 VIFs per AWS Direct Connect connection through simplified network architecture
• Costs can be optimized through reuse of NAT gateways, VPC interface endpoints, and intra-Availability Zone traffic

Conclusion

In this post, we explain various ways AWS Elemental MediaConnect can distribute JPEG XS and/or CDI workflows in the cloud. Key factors to consider when deciding upon a distribution approach are:

• Content type and media format, compressed vs. non-compressed
• Currently MediaConnect supports support up to 10 CDI outputs at 1080P. For 4Kp60, you can have up to 10 ST 2110 JPEG XS outputs, but only 4 CDI outputs.

AWS Professional Services specializing in media and entertainment is ready to help you discover and develop the best approach that fits your unique needs. For more information, visit AWS Professional Services or reach out directly through your account manager.

Courtesy: https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/media