Digital Rapids Unveils New Format Support, Features and Workflow Advances for Highly-Acclaimed Media Proceing Platform

IBC 2013, Amsterdam, Stand 7.F33: Digital Rapids is showcasing a wide range of new features and enhancements for the Digital Rapids Transcode Manager 2.0 automated, high-volume media transformation software and its underlying Kayak dynamic workflow platform at the IBC 2013 exhibition in Amsterdam. Previously-unannounced new capabilities include support for the x264 codec, AVC-Intra format and Digital Production Partnership (DPP) file specification; mixed-platform distributed workflows including ProRes encoding on Mac OS X ; and enhanced core video processing tools. These new extensions are being demonstrated alongside advances such as HEVC (H.265) format support and 4K Ultra HD encoding first previewed earlier this year.

The rich format flexibility of Kayak continues to expand with an array of new output capabilities. Optional support for the highly-regarded x264 codec expands users choices for high-quality encoding to the H.264 (AVC) compression standard. An additional new optional component provides encoding to Panasonics AVC-Intra format, widely used in acquisition, post production, broadcast and archive workflows. This AVC-Intra encoding ability also combines with new support for the AMWA AS-11 MXF application specification to enable the production of deliverables compliant with Digital Production Partnership (DPP) media file interchange guidelines. The DPP is an initiative formed by the UKs public service broadcasters to help content producers and distributors maximize the potential of digital production, including a goal of standardizing the technical requirements for the delivery of programming.

Highlighting the distributed processing flexibility of the Kayak platform, Digital Rapids is providing a preview of mixed-platform workflows with a demonstration of ProRes encoding on the Mac OS X platform as part of a larger media process alongside Windows-based actions. Select tasks within an individual workflow design can be distributed across disparate platforms, letting users spread the processing load between systems and leverage platform-specific advantages within a single workflow while managing it seamlessly in Transcode Manager 2.0. Exemplifying these benefits, the demo features output support for the complete range of ProRes variants and other QuickTime formats including those available only on OS X.

The expansion of Transcode Manager and Kayaks output options to include the x264 codec, AVC-Intra and the DPP specification continue our commitment to providing our users with the broadest range of supported formats while giving them choices of how to achieve them, said Darren Gallipeau, Product Manager at Digital Rapids. Meanwhile, our preview of mixed-platform workflow capabilities provides another excellent example of the workflow agility and efficiency that Transcode Manager and Kayak offer.

Also being featured within Transcode Manager demos are the first two releases in the new Kayak Studio series of components. The Kayak Studio Scaler and Kayak Studio De-Interlacer carry forward Digital Rapids tradition of providing outstanding quality for core video processing functions. Offering a choice of scaling methods including Lanczos and Digital Rapids own optimized techniques, the Kayak Studio Scaler produces superior visual quality even while significantly exceeding the performance of typical software scalers. In addition to high-quality motion adaptive de-interlacing, the Kayak Studio De-interlacer also incorporates inverse telecine with comprehensive cadence detection including robust handling of broken and mixed cadences. Both components take advantage of the 16-bit precision of the Kayak platforms robust processing pipeline.

LINK:	http://www.digitalrapids.com/en/News/PressReleases/2013IBCTM2Advances....
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