Haivision To Release the Kraken Low-Latency IP Video Transcoder at 2011 NAB Show

Optimized for high-efficiency, low-latency performance, the Kraken systems are an ideal solution for demanding video delivery applications within the education, enterprise, and military markets.

Haivision clients need to get live media to any user, anywhere, and on any platform, said Peter Maag, executive vice president at Haivision. The new Kraken transcoder meets this need with advanced and diverse technologies tuned to help our clients light up screens wherever and whenever required — with all the metadata handling, content protection, and low latency performance that Haivision solutions are known for.

The Kraken is offered in two formats: Enterprise and ISR. Both models include compression format conversion, media scaling, stream encryption, stream encapsulation, and stream replication capabilities. The Kraken Enterprise tames large, volatile IP video streams, such as those typical to digital video broadcasts, converting them into IP video streams that can easily be networked and formatted to reach all authorized users, whether via set-top box, desktop, or mobile device. The Kraken ISR addresses specific challenges within the military intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance (ISR) segment, offering not only low latency, but also MISP compliant metadata handling.

The Kraken Enterprise enables Haivision's Furnace™ IP video system to deliver live HD digital broadcast content, which may only be available as MPEG-2 at bitrates up to 19.4 Mbps, as H.264 multicast with each stream output at the bit rate, resolution, frame rate, and other encoding parameters tuned specifically for network capacities and the receiving device capabilities. As a result, H.264 output streams tuned for set-top-boxes, desktop players, and mobile devices can, for example, be output at 6 Mbps, 2 Mbps, and 700 kbps, respectively.

The Kraken ISR supports MISP compliant metadata, accurately passing through critical KLV/CoT data that is essential when forwarding military mission information. The Kraken ISR also enables users to monitor the fully uncompressed signal stripping and injecting metadata as required by advanced ISR exploitation systems. Adhering to Haivision's fundamentals, the Kraken provides ultra low latency, real-time, transcoding.

Haivision has been providing significant technology to U.S. federal clients, specifically supporting low latency H.264 encoding of live ISR assets with our Piranha™ and Makito Air™ systems, said Andy Vaughan, Haivision's vice president of U.S. federal markets. Our customers are implementing end-to-end HD H.264 video, as both sensors and platforms are being upgraded. The Kraken ISR builds on our understanding of the challenges and our experience in contributing to mission success.