ITV News—a staple in London since its first broadcast in 1955—requires reliable trusted technology to manage the many dozens of video sources being fed into the newsroom throughout the day. Working alongside broadcast technology specialists Densitron, Lee Sanders, technical director at ITN, has designed a system powered by Datapath and Densitron that serves a multitude of purposes, from greeting displays for visitors that automatically change to ‘On Air’ notifications, to multi video walls in the newsroom that can switch sources both automatically and manually when circumstances dictate.
ITN, headquartered at Gray’s Inn Road, has long been respected in the news industry, providing news services to ITV1, ITV London region, Channel 4, and Channel 5 as well as its multiple other non-news production divisions. With three ITV News broadcasts a day—lunchtime, evening, and News at 10—the organization has a multitude of sources including multiple external broadcasts, displaying internal messages and useful crewing information, other televised news feeds from broadcasters across the world, in-house content and much more. The recent upgrade with Datapath and Densitron solutions solve these challenges.
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“We’ve only just completed the redesign of this newsroom, and we needed technology that fitted our requirements, something that could bring us into the connected and flexible age,” said Sanders.
IDS from Densitron is a control and content display system, that interfaces with equipment from any vendor. The IDS control system allows users to control multiple connected devices through an elegant and intuitive user interface. For the ITV newsroom, source feeds are initially received by the IDS hardware before being sent to a powerful Datapath VSN1172 processor for distribution to its selected source. The system uses Datapath’s renowned WallControl 10 management software, with Densitron driving the system using WallControl’s API.
“The big problem we always had was that, when we switched control rooms or studios, we’d have to change all the feeds to our video walls in the room manually," Sanders explained. "Because it’s all now automated, the displays will switch sources automatically – and that’s a Datapath switch from the VSN1172. This is being controlled by IDS, sending the correct IP feed and name to ensure the right content goes to the right display without the need for manual operation.
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“This means that, for example, whenever we switch TV galleries, everyone can see which production control room is in use, which is so, so vital. We can see our rosters and the crew for a particular production on the newsroom displays and phone numbers for who to call are just a glance away. Now, everyone is so used to having it, we can’t imagine operating without it.”
Sanders has also designed his own crisis controller, which works in much the same way as a stream deck but can be completely customized. The touchscreen pad works with the IDS software and Datapath processor to manually switch all video wall content to pre-programmed layouts in the event of breaking news—allowing the entire newsroom to view events in real time.
At the heart of the pixel crunching and video processing of content is the Datapath VSN1172 processor. Containing two VisionSC-HD4+ capture cards, five Image4K graphics cards, and four ActiveSQX IP decode cards, the Datapath VSN system works in harmony with Densitron’s IDS Control platform to send content to three video walls, consisting of 55-inch Samsung 4K displays in a 5x2, 2x1, and 3x1 formation in the newsroom.
There are also five additional 65-inch Samsung displays on the fringes of the newsroom which serve a dual purpose. With custom content, these display welcome messages and key program information for visitors and guests, but auto-switch to ‘On Air’ signage whenever a studio and/or production gallery is in-use, giving notice to everyone on the bustling newsroom floor - from reporters to visitors alike.
Reuben Such, Densitron’s global business director explained that the technical expertise at ITN meant that system design and implementation was all done in-house, with the excellent relationship between the two parties ensuring the project ran smoothly from start to finish. "The initial requirement for our IDS platform was for timing control within their broadcast gallery for when they go out to the studios," he said. "The production assistants could see when a program is going to start—the countdown to and the countdown from—and, as with everything within IDS and the Densitron range of products, once the customer uses it and understands it, they can then use in a multitude of ways, including live microphone indication or On-Air control flash displays for example.”
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The use of IDS in broadcast environments has grown from there. Sanders works across both ITV News and Channel 4 News so when he saw the initial design in Channel 4 News, he then expanded IDS across the whole company to ITV News, Channel 5 News, Jeremy Vine, broadcast support and more—all operating from the building at Gray’s Inn Road.
"ITN is one of the very few Super Users who we work with globally," Such said. "Working with them for several years, we know we can just provide them with a basic system, and they then build it themselves to their requirements.”
The result is a smooth and automatic transition of relevant information to wherever it is needed—from live news feeds and studio status on three video walls, to visitor greetings and information wayfinding using digital signage.
“Our video processors are utilized in a broad scope of markets, in thousands of control rooms across the world," concluded Matt Tibbitt, product manager for Datapath. "We take great pride in seeing our technology used in such a vital and effective way at ITV News’ flagship premises.”
