NAB. In the central hall of NAB there is an important space for companies that offer radio solutions, a segment with which the fair was born. And one of the novelties found in this pavilion has to do with the handling of audio and video files without affecting the operator.
Avra (Video Automation for Radio), is what this system from the manufacturer POWERcast has been called. It is an operator assistance and radio automation software that incorporates management of audio or video files indistinctly, opening the field of a new multimedia language; radio with simultaneous video.
It maintains the intimate and colloquial language that is the essence of radio but adds image transmitted over the Internet. There is no need for significant investments or specialized video personnel, which makes it a solution for large and medium-sized broadcasters.
Alex Bonello, chief technology officer of POWERcast's AVRA business unit, said: "The transition from traditional radio to this new multimedia radio format is imminent. While the protagonist is still what the listener hears, now this experience is supported more and more in the video."
Thanks to its auto-VJ (automatic video content switching) capabilities, video scene changes can be handled by the software without manual intervention. Simply turn up the attenuator of the driver's microphone, for AVRA to select the correct camera in the air. Similarly, if two microphones are open simultaneously, the scene can show the two cameras next to each other, while in the background an image with the logo of the station is observed. The automation possibilities are highly configurable and flexible to accommodate various types of programs, and ways of working on the air.
The new software, distributed in Latin America by Broadcast Depot, allows music themes to now be ingested in MP4 video format and thus be able to broadcast video clips on the Internet along with music.
It includes a multilayer graph generator that allows you to display the moving logo of the station, place baseboards with background image and transparency, and even a news crawl at the foot. Each element can be pre-programmed to go on the air almost without the attention of the operator. The built-in H.264 video encoder has the ability to connect directly to the streaming server, making the product an integral solution for 'multimedia radio'.
