Streaming Media - December 2008/January 2009 - (Page 62)

• The encoded media streams are sent to multiple load-balanced, multicast-enabled streaming servers for optimal scalability and redundancy. • HTTP content, including graphics and image synchronization information, from the speaker’s computer is sent to multiple load-balanced web servers. • The media streams and HTTP content are sent to multicast routers, which enable organizations to send a single stream across the backbone network that is later “split” and sent to routers located closest to the end user. • End users access webcasts via single sign on or another authorized secure login process that authenticates them against an SQL or other database. • The webcast leverages IP bandwidth via the corporate VPN or eCDN. • Archive versions of all webcast files (streaming and web) are routed to network-attached storage. • Links to archived webcasts are included in the organization’s media management or content management system, which resides on application servers. planning for webcasting success designed in a way that enables them to track, collect, assimilate, and deliver information without impacting the quality of the event they are measuring. MIXED-NETWORK ENVIRONMENTS Enterprise webcasting platforms that take an open system, standards-based approach (versus proprietary) enable clients to expand capacity using their existing network hardware, platforms, and purchasing contracts. This also enables the enterprise webcasting platform to operate in the mixed-network environments of today’s multimerger, multinational corporations. Whether it is Cisco, BlueCoat, Windows Media servers, VPN, or multiple CDNs, a variety of legacy systems and multiple external services are leveraged by most enterprises to reach the widest audiences possible. Subjecting these clients to arbitrary server licensing or mandatory hardware devices hampers their ability to expand rapidly and cost-effectively. SECURITY CONSIDERATIONS Architectural Considerations Studies have repeatedly proven the viral nature of online multimedia communications in the enterprise; once employees experience compelling and exciting multimedia communications, they want to not only receive more information in this fashion but also participate in the creation of multimedia communications content. A successful enterprise streaming initiative, by default, must therefore be prewired for rapid scalability. Understanding how that system is built will dramatically affect scalability, as it determines whether it will unnecessarily consume network resources that could otherwise be used to accommodate more business units, more capture devices, and more desktop-enabled webcasters. CENTRALIZED AND DECENTRALIZED NETWORK ENVIRONMENTS Truly scalable, enterprisewide solutions will be designed for deployment over a highly decentralized network environment using multicasting technology. Rather than a unicast network, which sends one video stream to each viewer, multicasting enables media streams to be delivered simultaneously to multiple destinations by assigning special IP addresses to the multicast packets and by using session announcement protocol (SAP) to tell user applications when and how to connect to the multicast. INFRASTRUCTURE-OPTIMIZED APPLICATIONS Since multimedia assets are no different than other intellectual property, enterprises need to ensure that once they have the ability to create multimedia assets, they can easily protect each asset from unauthorized viewing or distribution. However, since the characteristics of streaming assets are significantly different from those of static documents or images, organizations should consider specialized solutions. It’s one thing to protect assets from unauthorized access via login but quite another to ensure that links are protected via secured login and tokens and obfuscated so that if a link is passed along to an unauthorized viewer, it will not be playable or downloadable. Nor will it reveal any confidential information attached to the link or presentation. Additionally, the organization must set policy-based rules that determine which employees will be trainers and establish a sensible hierarchy of groups, subgroups, and permissions that determine exactly who has access to which training modules and for what period of time. Conclusion A rich media webcast deployment can substantially lower an organization’s communications and training costs—from reducing monthly or event-based outsourcing costs to improving the usable life of time- and resourceintensive training and educational programs. This same technology also offers exceptional productivity benefits, enabling business leaders and subject matter experts to rapidly share consistent information across the globe, thereby transferring time-critical knowledge for competitive advantage. However, since every enterprise network, application, and security environment is unique, success requires choosing experienced, consultative partners and solutions that have been proven in these highly complex environments. Mike Lorenz (mlorenz@accordent.com) is chief technology officer of Accordent Technologies, Inc. Comments? Email us at letters@streamingmedia.com, or check the masthead for other ways to contact us. Whether being used to create, deliver, or collect information, truly scalable enterprise webcasting solutions must be capable of creating bandwidth-optimized content without inhibiting the users' ability to fully utilize their infrastructure. A content creation solution, for example, should enable users to publish in multiple bitrates, adjust video and image quality to achieve the optimal file size, and enable users to fully leverage its infrastructure regardless of server, cache, and/or CDN topography. Similarly, management and tracking solutions must be 62 STREAMING MEDIA December 2008/January 2009

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Streaming Media - December 2008/January 2009

Streaming Media - December 2008/January 2009 Table of Contents User-Generated Politics Netflix Needs a Business Model Technology and Business Trends by the Numbers Improving Video Color Quality What Makes for Compelling Video? Game On: Bringing the NHL to IPTV Give! The New Era of Corporate Communications New Video Frontiers: Taking It Beyond the PC The HD Showdown: Codec Vendors Battle It Out for Supreme Quality The Ultimate Guide to Creating Online Video Content That Works, Part 2 Planning for Webcasting Success: Considerations for Deploying an Enterprise Video Communications Platform All Mobile Devices Are Not the Same Datmedia Datpresenter LSI Tarari Encoder Accelerator LCPX-6140 Gomez Active Streaming XF Transcoding for Global Reach Executive Visions 2009 The Revolution Is Being Televised

Streaming Media - December 2008/January 2009

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