Comrex Looks to Internet Delivery, ‘Inevitable Change’ in Codec Use

Broadcast audio over the Internet is going to be an important theme for Comrex at the NAB show, judging by announcements this week.
The codec manufacturer said it will present a technical paper on its new BRIC technology; the paper is subtitled “Responding to the Changing Telecom Industry with Reliable, Real-Time, Broadcast Audio Delivery on the Public Internet.”
VP Kris Bobo and Technical Director Tom Hartnett made the announcement, saying they see BRIC as an important new approach to the way live audio is delivered.
“Due to changes in the existing telephone infrastructure, this technology is likely to replace current ISDN and POTS audio codec transmission methods within the next 3 to 5 years,” Hartnett said.
“Already broadcasters have reported situations where the phone company would no longer install ISDN lines,” Bobo stated in the announcement. “We feel it’s important for broadcasters to understand what’s happening as early as possible in order to prepare for this inevitable change.”
Comrex also will roll out a new codec, the Access, and called it the “first wideband audio codec to work reliably over most data networks including the public Internet.” It uses the BRIC technology and lets the broadcaster use a variety of Internet access points to broadcast high-quality, real-time audio. These include wired DSL, cable, POTS and Frame as well as wireless circuits like Wi-Fi, 1XRTT, EDGE and 3G data networks, Comrex said.
“Additionally, using the public Internet to reliably deliver real-time audio could represent vast cost savings and convenience for remote audio delivery.”
Hartnett will speak on Tuesday, April 19 at 5:30 p.m. as part of the “Leading Edge Technologies” Engineering Conference session.
The codec will be available in rackable or portable versions. The company said it can provide voice connections over IP connections and also has a high-quality stereo mode for use on managed data networks.
Info: www.comrex.com