Leveraging GPU Power for Live Broadcast

Correcting in realtime: LiveScene

Aimed very much at the live end of the market, PION's newly launched LiveScene could represent the tip of a whole new iceberg: live, realtime, GPU-based image processing.

LiveScene takes the uncompressed feed from broadcast cameras, or an inbound compressed stream from live ENG or event coverage, and enhances it in real-time to overcome some of the common live production challenges caused by adverse conditions — such as lack of highlight and shadow detail, noise and poor colour or contrast.

These are all fairly endemic, especially in environments such as sports stadia where the lighting can be best said to be interesting at times, and the company claims its single rack form factor and an easy-to-use control panel should fit seamlessly into any existing OB or studio-based infrastructure and knock out most of the imaging gremlins as it does.

Works with 4K as well

Interestingly, it's also positioning itself as part of the 4K production chain. ‘With the advent of ultra-high definition (4K) acquisition, which further accentuates common picture quality issues, we believe our Live Camera Enhancement and upcoming colour correction solution is perfectly placed to address the quality issues that capturing and processing live 4K and beyond will bring to a production’, added Michael Jonsson, CTO of PION.

Details of the colour correction system have yet to emerge, but the company has a track record in the space so it should be worth looking at. Jonsson and CEO Kenneth Tang Laerke initially set up Danish digital imaging photo software company Pixmantec ApS, was acquired by Adobe Systems in 2006, and also created the RawShooter software application.

We’ll be talking to the LiveScene developers soon about exactly how it all works and how production staff can still retain control over the final image.