‘Three screens’ is the Holy Grail of TV. The attraction of being able to watch the same video on the TV, PC and mobile devices is obvious to consumers and service providers alike. While deceptively simple to the layman, actually accomplishing it is fraught with complications for service providers in today’s multi-codec world. While more and more content is encoded using the bandwidth-thrifty MPEG-4/H.264 codec, MPEG-2 remains predominant, particularly when it comes to media libraries. Transcoding is a straightforward method for converting content from one codec to another to accommodate the requirements of the particular distribution network, however, high cost remains a stumbling block. The purchase price of today’s single channel transcoders might seem affordable at first glance, but when it comes to scaling a three screens deployment from a handful of channels to a meaningful line-up, the costs grow dramatically. Further complicating matters are the associated costs of single channel transcoders—equipment racks, power consumption, complicated network management system, etc.—which make scaling a three screens service a money losing proposition.

Density is the answer—the more program streams that a single device can transcode, the lower the all-important ‘cost-per-stream.’ Process enough streams in one device, and integrate that capability with a number of other critical video processing functions to further lower cost and complexity, and the cost to scale a three screens deployment goes from outrageous, to affordable, to a revenue-generating opportunity that cannot be dismissed.

With more and more subscribers embracing the benefits of watching television where and when they want, operators would be well advised to explore a single, high-density solution for the delivery of a three screen reality. If you’re at this year’s IBC, please come by our stand—#5.C14—and learn about RGB’s new content repurposing solution, an integrated approach to transcoding that can help save you time, money and some very serious headaches.