ViewCast has introduced new enhancements to its Niagara SCX streaming media management software. Niagara SCX 6.1 includes a number of advanced features, including support for live encoding in H.264 via Adobe Flash platform, profile grouping, multistream redundancy and automatic stream reconnect, providing customers with greater capabilities for streaming real-time, rich media content and enhanced encoder management agility. The software will be available on ViewCast’s Niagara Pro, Niagara Pro II, Niagara GoStream SURF and Niagara 7500 streaming media systems and is also available as an upgrade for existing owners of ViewCast streaming appliances.
Niagara SCX Version 6.1 adds key advanced features including:
- Live encoding via the Adobe Flash H.264 format — Niagara SCX 6.1 software streams in H.264 Flash via the RTMP, a proprietary protocol developed by Adobe Systems designed for high-performance transmission of audio, video and data between Adobe Flash-based technologies. H.264 support enables Niagara customers to deliver rich, real-time Flash experiences for a broad range of streaming applications, such as the Web-based delivery of sports, news and entertainment broadcasts, VOD and streaming to mobile devices.
- Profile grouping — The 6.1 software allows the assignment of multiple encoding profiles together in a single group. Users can select any predefined encoding profile group, and with the push of a single button, begin streaming to any number of destinations in any number of compression formats simultaneously over the Internet. This capability is particularly important for broadcasters seeking to stream in both high and low bit rates to accommodate a wider audience.
- Multistream redundancy — Niagara SCX 6.1 can connect a media stream to a content delivery network using multiple entry points, each with unique credentials and delivered to different locations. This robust connection method significantly reduces the risk of interrupting a live event, and ViewCast accomplishes this with little system overhead.
- Automatic stream reconnect — A crucial component that protects the integrity of live video broadcasts, this feature automatically reconnects the user's stream if the Internet connection is temporarily lost or the stream is dropped.
ViewCast Niagara SCX 6.1 provides a single, unified user experience for all of its supported streaming codecs, equipping users with flexibility to reach their audience via the most popular media formats. Users can capture and stream in Adobe Flash H.264, Windows Media, Silverlight, RealVideo, 3GPP and other formats — simultaneously, in any combination — via one easy-to-use interface.
Niagara SCX 6.1 also offers local or remote control. Users can view the captured video on the fly, check and adjust key audio and video settings, select A/V inputs and configure profiles that determine capture size, frame rate, data bit rate speeds and CPU loads. Users can even manage bitmap overlays (e.g., logos, graphics) on their streams, including transparency and positioning.
