The International Research and

Exchanges BoardMedia Technical Community of

Practice session

Strengthening Independent Minority Media

• Total budget $5.5 million over 5 years• $ 462,000 for equipment• Strengthening capacity of TV and radio stations in

isolated communities• Developing news and program making• Improving technical quality• Building networks covering 80-90% of Serbs

KOSMA Radio Network

KOSMA Radio Network

• 5 stations with two extras

• Existing microwave network built by OSCE not functioning

• New Comrex broadcast Internet based system

• US technology

KOSMA Radio Network

• Designed by Rich McClear and Shkumbin Rama

• Distribute individual news items and broadcast simultaneously

• Outside broadcast capacity

• Share around 130 news items per month.

KOSMA Network Technical Specification

ACCESS Rack installed in all studios for interchange of ACCESS Portable kits to all stations for Outside programs, remote interview, Broadcast, news gathering over public internet, OB reception etc. WIFI or POTS

$ 7500 / Statio

n

COMREX ACCESS

• Uses BRIC technology to deliver broadcast audio over the public Internet

• User interface via standard web browser enables control from any location there's Internet access

• Backward compatibility to Comrex POTS codecs (including Matrix, Vector or BlueBox)

• Optional MPEG 4-AAC algorithms available for extremely high quality audio

COMREX ACCESS• ACCESS will work on a wide variety of

wired and wireless data circuits, including:

• Wired Ethernet Networks - Cable, DSL, T1, T3, etc.

• Wireless Networks - 802.11b,g,n WiFi• 3G / 4G Cellular Data Networks -

EVDO, UMTS, WiMax• Satellite Terminals• POTS Analog Telephone Lines• Public Internet - Uses Revolutionary

BRIC Technology, designed to overcome the innate unreliability of the public Internet

COMREX The Smart Codec

MODE BIT RATES (KB/S) AUDIO BANDWIDTH CODING DELAY

BRIC HQ1 – A2 Stereogood quality audio 42 15 kHz 60 ms

BRIC HQ2 – A2 Stereoexcellent quality audio 30 15 kHz 260 ms

Linear PCMuncompressed audio 1536 20 kHz 40

AAC 64, 96, 128, 256 20 kHz 300 ms

AAC-LD96, 128, 192, 256, 384

15 kHz 80 ms

TV Mreza Network

TV Mreza Network

• 4 stations with a hub in central Kosovo

• Equal partners though competitors as well

• New Streambox Internet based system

• US technology

TV Mreza Network

• Exchange news and longer programs

• Share 100-140 news items per month

• New “Agrar”, “Slobodno Srpski” and “Kosnet INFO” programs

TV Mreza Technical Specification

$ 30000 / Statio

n

Streambox SBT3-E5201 Encoder

Streambox SBT3-D5201 Decoder

Streambox

• The network uses a virtual private network (VPN), built by Kosovo internet service provider Kujtesa

• Streambox technology to connect with each other to exchange both live and recorded videos

Streambox

• Chain method of sharing data

• Multicast / unicast• Options: Store and

Forward• Bandwidth can be set up

from 64 Kbps up to 8 Mbps

• Encoding Latency: Adjustable from 200 ms to 10 seconds

Encoder

Decoder

Encoder

Decoder

Encoder

Decoder

TV 2

TV 1

TV 3

TV Mreza Back-up System

• FTP – File Transport Protocol is used as backup, in case of electricity power cuts, or in case of ISP failure

Radio Transmission Links

• Separate from broadcast licenses

• Add additional cost which stations can’t afford

• Use free allocated frequencies through IP technology

Radio Transmission Links

• BRIC-Link is uniquely suited to point-to-point "nailed up" high-quality audio links over a variety of data networks, such as:

• ISM Band IP Radios• T1/E1• Satellite• WANs and LANs

Network Technical Problems

• Power cuts• Inexperienced technical

staff needs to be more familiar with IP technology.

• Unreliable Internet Service Provider (ISP) to guarantee 24/7 uplink

• Expensive Internet Service Cost