Tencent The logistics of reality program production media management with GV STRATUS and EDIUS

CUSTOMERTencent, China

V.QQ.com

China’s biggest video website

CHALLENGESManaging content recorded 24/7 using 120 remote HD cameras and two sets of 360-degree full-view cameras, with audio from 80 microphones for The 15 of Us — the first major test of a reality TV program with extensive online distribution

SOLUTIONGV STRATUS video production and content man-agement system to handle the production and post production logistics of almost 3,000 hours of video captured each day

BENEFITSGV STRATUS and EDIUS bring a smooth workflow to The 15 of Us, with program management, acquisition, editing and playout

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CASE STUDY TENCENT

BackgroundAs China’s largest and most used Internet service portal — and the country’s biggest video website — Tencent Video, headquartered in Nanshan District, Shenzhen, needed to meet the ever-increasing demand for online video content in China.

In November, 2014, Tencent announced that they would partner with Netherlands-based Talpa — the world-famous production company — to produce the reality show The 15 of Us. This came after a year of audience and market research conducted by both companies.

The content and distribution of The 15 of Us differs from a traditional broadcast program. It would also be the first major test of whether a reality TV format can be successful online.

The 15 of Us focuses on 15 people who come from different parts of China and find themselves on an isolated mountain of Tong Lu. They are given the opportunity to help each other to achieve their respective

dreams, but they must first create a new home, be self-sufficient and earn money. As many as 100,000 people applied to take part in the social experiment. Also integrated in the program are China’s many national festivals, especially those reflecting the Chinese Lunar Calen-dar and the country’s traditional seasonal changes.

Development took more than a year due to the complexity of the pro-duction’s requirements. Specific challenges included product selec-tion, system integration, workflow design and application develop-ment for local shooting.

In September 2014, Tencent shifted to pre-production to determine location specifics as well as select the initial 15 participants, with the goal of an on-air date of June 2015. Unlike other reality programs with a standard on-air run schedule, The 15 of Us would run a full year, from June 2015 through June 2016, accessible 24/7/365 online.

Production & DistributionThe 15 of Us is produced in an open space site, with a barn, 12 ponds, a cowshed and a hennery. The overall production area is approxi-mately 3.7 acres (15,000 square meters).

The production uses 120 remote HD cameras, two sets of 360-degree full-view cameras and 80 microphones for an uninterrupted pro-

duction and broadcast schedule. The more than 100-person crew includes camera teams, data loggers, content management teams, a post production division, technical support operations, and of course, a program director.

For The 15 of Us, we researched and tested a number of solutions. We found GV STRATUS to be the most appropriate for our program workflow because of its program management, acquisition, editing and playout tools.

Chang Shu Lei, Technical Director, The 15 of Us, Tencent

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CASE STUDY TENCENT

All of this content would be available online in a number of ways: on Tencent’s official website, plus through Android and iOS apps. This would include four live channels and both 360-degree cameras. In addition, Shanghai-based Dragon TV (covering most of China, including Macau, Hong Kong, Taiwan and overseas in North America, Japan, Australia, Europe and other countries and regions) would air a 30-minute daily program as well as a weekly highlights program on the weekend. The daily online audience averages between 200,000-300,000, with peak hour viewers measuring almost 3 million.

“The advanced logging of GV STRATUS is very helpful. During a live production, it can input metadata in real time and the operation is very convenient. During post we can tag, search, modify and export all the metadata. This is very important and helpful for our 24-hour non-stop reality show.”

Zhang Lei, Program Director, The 15 of Us, Tencent

LogisticsWith previous experience using Grass Valley K2 media servers and EDIUS nonlinear editing systems, Tencent was well aware of the reliability of Grass Valley products. This led them to select GV STRATUS (which uses K2 servers and EDIUS) for advanced 24/7 non-stop logging.

In a project of this magnitude, metadata is of prime importance. Oper-ators have been entering metadata in real time to aid in the production workflow for rough editing, craft editing, audio dubbing, packaging, approval and more.

BenefitsGV STRATUS has many features geared towards live programming, with relatively simple operation. Tencent found GV STRATUS easy and quick to learn, even for their new and junior staff. Tencent has not only found GV STRATUS very reliable in their 24/7 operation, but that it also makes the production workflow very smooth.