LAS VEGAS—TV Technology asked a cross-section of NAB Show-goers a series of five questions regarding what they considered the main themes, evidence of those, whether or not these initiatives will take hold, and what promising technologies from past NAB Shows did not see daylight. (A complete list of quotes from respondents and links to their full 5Qs is at “NAB 2016 in 21 Quotes.”)
Thomas Edwards, vice president of engineering and development at Fox:
Q1.How many NAB Shows have you attended?
T.E. This is my 14th NAB. My first was just after joining PBS after coming from the Internet industry. It was very impressive, and my first time in Vegas.
Q2.What, in your opinion, were the main themes of the show this year?
T.E. Main themes: 4K equipment everywhere, especially cameras (despite distribution challenges), an example are the very affordable 4K devices at Blackmagic. And of course the reaching of an industry consensus on live IP production standards as epitomized by the Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS), especially the huge interop demo in the Arista booth.
Q3.What were some examples of these themes?
T.E. [See preceding answer]
Q4. Do you foresee any or all of these technologies or initiatives taking hold?
T.E. 4K will no doubt take hold as the distribution business models evolve. Live IP production is already a reality in larger sports OB trucks, and will shortly begin to move into play out and master control.
Q5.What technology that impressed you most at a past show didn’t see the light of day?
T.E. I’m sad that non-glasses 3D displays seem to have largely disappeared from the floor. There was some significant progress over the last few years, but they never quite achieved the level of quality to match stereoscopic displays.
