Exclusives

Quality assurance (QA) and testing services firm Eurofins Digital Testing has inked an exclusive, global licensing agreement with the Institut für Rundfunktechnik (IRT) — a joint research center of the German, Austrian and Swiss public service broadcasters — to develop Interoperable Mastering Format (IMF) solutions built on IRT’s technology, the company announced.

The new software solutions will be geared toward helping studios, post-production facilities, distributors and broadcasters alike in adopting IMF, and supporting implementation of component-based media workflows.

IMF — a Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) standard — provides a single, interchangeable master file format allowing for tailored versions of the same piece of content to be rendered for different audiences, and incorporates the Material Exchange Format (MXF) container format. Eurofins will showcase the solution at IBC.

“The market for media content is global, which means that several different versions of every media title must meet the technical requirements for many different distribution channels and localized applications,” said Johan Craeybeckx, business line director for Eurofins. “IMF is the solution to versioning and localizing at scale — enabling faster workflows and reductions in storage costs. Eurofins’ solutions for IMF will enable studios, post-production houses, distributors and broadcasters to optimize their IMF quality assurance processes at every stage in the content supply chain.”

Eurofins’ IMF offerings will provide QA of IMF packages to support flexible distribution for broadcast, cinema, mobile content, OTT, VOD and more, and is built on IRT’s technology, which combines technical media validation with production and distribution workflow business intelligence.

“At IRT, our mission has always been to explore, observe and develop new technologies that adapt broadcasting to new market environments and needs,” said Michael Hagemeyer, managing director of IRT. “The IMF format plays a significant role in the future of broadcast and OTT media, and we are confident that Eurofins, a proven-leader in quality assurance, is ideally placed to carry this mission forward and lower the barriers to adoption of the standards at this critical point for the digital media industry.”

For additional information about Eurofins Digital Testing, please visit: http://www.eurofins-digitaltesting.com/.