Jake’s Take: Cloud Codec Controller Delivers Network Management Solutions
Welcome to 2021 and hopefully a fresh start to a year that will get progressively better for all of us. As we continue to live and work through the pandemic, audio engineers everywhere are now managing more remote broadcasting locations. With this in mind, I thought it would be a good idea to start the year off with a discussion about remote management and why a broadcasting company should invest in good remote control for their engineering team. Whether you need to monitor your Tieline STLs or manage talent using Report-IT for a remote broadcast, have I got a solution for you… the Cloud Codec Controller, or “CCC” as we like to call it. Let’s take a dive deep into our awesome cloud-based network management application.
How does it work?
For those who aren’t aware, Tieline’s Cloud Codec Controller program is designed to give users remote access to Tieline products that are used as an STL, are solutions for remote content delivery, or even configured for studio contribution equipment to affiliate connections. This means that an engineer, while at the studio or at home on the couch (24/7/365) can monitor and control an entire fleet of Tieline equipment that is being used in any location. It also means that your engineering team can monitor and adjust audio levels, edit customized program schedules, etc. Not only will our application allow engineering teams to monitor our equipment, but it provides the ability to take full control of the equipment as if you were on site. The only thing CCC cannot do is turn a Tieline codec on or off. We are pretty confident that the talent can handle that part of the remote set-up.
My next point about Cloud Codec Controller is specifically about security on your network. Other codecs may allow an engineer to take full control of the equipment, but with significant risk. That risk is associated with your network security, and the opening up your network firewall to allow remote management. With Tieline’s Cloud Codec Controller we have the ability to bypass the need to open up firewall ports that exposes your network to the public internet. Tieline is able to accomplish this is by programming our hardware equipment to dial into our home servers here at Tieline. This gives Tieline’s CCC the ability to proxy your management data from the codec to your PC with the highest level of safety.
Finally, it is important to note how useful the Cloud Codec Controller is while talent is using Tieline’s smartphone codec application, Report-IT. Report-IT is a very powerful tool that is used to connect remotely and broadcast crystal clear, high fidelity audio to the main studio. Report-IT Enterprise is tied to our cloud-based servers for management, so we wanted to give engineers the ability to control content contribution from your talent and/or guests who are using the app on either an iOS or Android device. This means your engineers and producers can achieve the correct audio levels, and assist the guest while they are being interviewed. Without such control you are at the mercy of the talent or guests to control the quality of their audio… “Houston, we may have a problem”.
The pandemic will eventually end. But we believe that a high percentage of broadcasting from home will continue after things return to normal. In addition, radio companies are asking their employees, especially engineers, to do more with less. Therefore, we believe that it is more important than ever to give engineering teams remote access to their AoIP equipment. Affording tech personnel the tools they need to manage their codecs remotely will not only free up time to spend on other projects, but also give your talent the ability to focus on what they do best, to be the voice of your stations.
If you have an idea for a future “Jake’s Take”, please feel free to contact me directly at Jacob@tieline.com.
For information on the Cloud Codec Controller visit http://www.tieline.com/cloud-codec-controller/
Contact Tieline:
• For USA, Canada & Latin America contact: sales@tieline.com
• For Australia and International: info@tieline.com
(“Cloud-Based Network Management” first published on 1st February, 2021)
