ConnecTechAsia 2018: VSN Brings Raft of New Products and AI Solutions

VSN will introduce the latest features and functions of its VSNExplorer Media Asset Management solution to the Asia-Pacific region during BroadcastAsia 2018 (booth 4N5-02) in Singapore. Visitors will be able to see demos of VSNExplorer MAM with its 100% web-based editing tool Wedit including brand-new features such as audio waveforms and voiceover capability, plus a new MOS Media Bus 100% HTML5 for NRCS, VSNExplorer Plugin and artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities for automatic metadata detection via cloud API integration with professional media analysis services (such as Azure, Google or IBM).

Nicholas Morgan, VSN’s Sales Director for APAC, said: “VSN is placing a strong focus on the implementation of some of the most up-to-date technologies that we believe will be crucial for the future of media management and content production. These include AI functionalities, such as speech-to-text, image processing, face recognition, object detection, sentiment analysis, audio effects detection, contextual information and text transcription and translation. This new production-enabling technology is used to automate metadata detection and extraction and to enhance business intelligence gathering processes, combined with the introduction of 100% cloud environments for our entire solutions portfolio. We are showing these new features for the first time in Asia, along with new production tools including Wedit with voiceover and our web-based NRCS Plugin, bringing an even more powerful solutions to our broadcast and media customers in the APAC region.”

New tools for broadcasters and journalists
Launched in its first version at NAB Show 2017, Wedit is a tool developed in HTML5 that allows journalists and editors to edit videos and prepare them for broadcast or on-line and social platforms from a single and unique interface, without having to switch to non-linear editing (NLE) option. As already showcased at NAB 2018, the tool now also includes audio editing and voiceover capabilities, while Wedit’s features are also fully available in the cloud to ensure maximum flexibility for users. The new MOS Media Bus, VSNExplorer Plugin, is also provided as an add-on feature to the VSNExplorer solution and has been fully developed in HTML5 to avoid the need to use or install additional hardware or software. In essence, this web plugin for NRCS systems enables users to edit and unify video files and graphics directly within the journalists’ NRCS GUI. It is compatible with most newsroom computer systems (NCRS), including Octopus 8, Inception from Ross Video, iNews from Avid and others, and is integrated with the NRCS via the Media Object Server (MOS) Communications Protocol.

In addition, VSN will be presenting its latest cloud-based production solutions, following the implementation of four VSN systems to the cloud (VSNOneTV, VSNCreaTV, VSNExplorer and VSNWebTV). In this way, VSN technology enables broadcast and media companies to manage and deliver all their content and data anywhere and anytime, just by using a standard internet connection. Users are provided with broader access to all types of daily tasks, from programme scheduling to automated file transfer and delivery to video servers and on-line and social platforms — all from within the cloud.

Expansion of Hong Kong-based team
Ahead of the BroadcastAsia event in Singapore, VSN is expanding its APAC team at its Hong Kong office to reflect the increasing importance of the region to its business.

Nicholas Morgan said: “Asia has long been one of the three regions where we pay special attention in terms of international expansion and the development of the VSN brand. The region has significant potential for this industry’s future and we are building up our team of experts at our APAC headquarters to ensure that we better support our existing APAC clients while also exploring new opportunities for business expansion. I believe there is significant potential in APAC for VSN’s advanced workflow enabling technologies, and we are continuing with our strategy to build a substantially increased presence over the coming years. Customers in APAC need to be exposed to new technology options that provide their production teams with tools that are better suited the future media landscape”.

Show attendees interested in discovering more about the VSNExplorer MAM including new tools such as Wedit and the VSNExplorer Plugin for NRCS can visit VSN’s booth (4N5-02).