Tag Archives: HbbTV

GPAC scalable and hybrid demo, including French Tennis Open 2015

Dear readers,

For the last few years, the GPAC tools backed demos at the French Tennis Open (Roland Garros) in its demo corner called RG Labs. This year, through the H2B2VS project, we participated in a demonstration showing the use of Hybrid Broadcast Broadband delivery for Ultra HD video content.

The video was encoded using the SHVC format with two layers. The encoder was MPEG reference software. The base HEVC layer, corresponding to HD content, was delivered using MPEG-2 TS, produced by our MP42TS tool. The enhancement layer, enhancing the spatial resolution to UHD, was delivered using MPEG-DASH generated by MP4Box. Both streams were synchronized based on the recent MPEG-2 TS TEMI extensions (inserted by MP42TS in the mux) and played by MP4Client, rendered on this nice curved 4K TV. You can find the press release by France TV here.

RG_TV_small

The GPAC player is very powerful. It features a graphical statistics module able to display and control the player. Look at the screenshot below. It can also be used to choose your HLS or MPEG-DASH quality or limit the download bandwidth to simulate a saturated server environment.

statistics

During the first week of June we were also present at the MediaSync 2015 workshop for talk and demos, as well as invited in the demo session of TVX 2015. We presented some demonstrations developed during the H2B2VS project:

  • HD/UHD hybrid delivery, same demo as the one in RG labs, bug using Tears of Steel (left on the picture).
  • Sign language picture-in-picture service enhancement, with main content on broadcast and sign language video on broadband using MPEG-DASH (right on the picture).
  • Dynamic switch between broadcast and broadband versions of the same content, to allow trick modes in a broadcast (time shifting, rewind, fast forward).

TVX_small

The demonstrations were all using MP42TS for broadcast génération, MP4Box for live or onDemand DASH packaging and MP4Client for the playback. Complete instructions for reproducing the test bed are available here.