Fraunhofer IIS has integrated the Livewire™ standard for IP-Audio connectivity into Fraunhofer ContentServer™, its professional digital radio broadcasting encoder solutions. ContentServer now connects directly with Axia IP-Audio networks and devices via a single Ethernet connection, providing broadcasters with a convenient way to handle audio distribution. Fraunhofer IIS and Axia are jointly demonstrating the updated ContentServer with Livewire functionality at NAB Las Vegas, booth N7620.

”Fraunhofer DRM ContentServer“ and ”Fraunhofer DAB/DMB ContentServer“ are professional broadcast servers for the digital radio standards Digital Radio Mondiale DRM and Eureka 147 DAB Digital Radio. They provide live audio encoding, data service management, and broadcast multiplex generation. Thanks to the integration of Livewire, ContentServer solutions now seamlessly integrate into IP-based audio networks, eliminating discrete wired connections. This allows for direct access to any available audio stream and, if required, dynamic switching between streams. Even surround sound signals can easily be supported. All this makes it very convenient for broadcasters to distribute audio throughout the broadcast plant, right up to the final broadcast encoding.

In addition to real-time audio encoding, Fraunhofer ContentServer solutions provide broadcast automation features, security features and very sophisticated data application handling including Journaline^®, Electronic Programme Guide, and Slideshow support. They support the digital radio standards DAB (DAB, DAB+, DMB), and DRM (DRM for short wave, medium wave, long wave; DRM+ for band I and FM band II) and are available through a number of OEM partners worldwide.

“More and more studios recognize the great potential of internal IP based audio routing. Now broadcasters and network operators can make the broadcast encoders part of this network.” says Alexander Zink, responsible for the ContentServer solutions line at Fraunhofer IIS.“And even users without a general Livewire infrastructure benefit from the available external converter boxes through reduced server complexity, hardware size and rack cost.”

Fraunhofer IIS joins a growing list of Axia partners offering hardware and software products that integrate with Axia IP-Audio networks. Axia networks are now in use in over 1.000 broadcast studios; Axia products include a family of microphone, analog line and AES/EBU “audio nodes” and DSP mix engines, routing control and administration software, and the popular Element™ modular studio console.

For more information on Fraunhofer ContentServer solutions, please visit www.iis.fraunhofer.de/amm.

For more information on Livewire and Axia, please visit www.AxiaAudio.com.

About Fraunhofer IIS:
Founded in 1985 the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS in Erlangen, today with 585 staff members, ranks first among the Fraunhofer Institutes concerning headcount and revenues. As the inventor of mp3 and co-inventor of the MPEG■4 AAC audio coding standard, Fraunhofer IIS has reached worldwide recognition.

It provides research services on contract basis and technology licensing.

The research topics are: Audio and video source coding, multimedia realtime systems, digital radio broadcasting and digital cinema systems, integrated circuits and sensor systems, design automation, wireless, wired and optical networks, localization and navigation, imaging systems and nanofocus X-ray technology, high-speed cameras, medical sensor solutions and communications technology in transport and logistics.

The budget of 72 million Euro is mainly financed by projects from industry, the service sector and public authorities. Less than 25 percent of the budget is subsidized by federal and state funds.

About Axia:
Axia, a Telos company, builds Ethernet-based professional IP-Audio products for broadcast, sound-reinforcement and commercial audio applications. Along with the popular Element modular console for on-air, commercial production, audio workstations and personal studios, Axia products include digital audio routers, DSP mixers and processors, and software for configuring, managing and interfacing networked audio systems.

* Fraunhofer USA Digital Media Technologies, a division of Fraunhofer USA, Inc., promotes and supports the products of Fraunhofer IIS in the U.S.