Progress Report on the Internet Protocol Media Experience (IPMX)

The Internet Protocol for Media Experience (IPMX) was born out of a proposal by the Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS) to promote the use of the SMPTE ST 2110 and the Networked Media Open Specifications (NMOS) suites of standards from Advanced Media Workflow Association (AMWA) for use in the Pro AV space. The match is logical: the transition to AV over IP is also happening in the Pro AV space, and many members of AIMS are active in both broadcast and Pro AV. In Pro AV, however, there is a multitude of proprietary AV over IP solutions, none of which are open standards-based. This results in solutions with limited interoperability and triggers a frustrating situation for system designers and end customers alike who, although using off-the-shelf networking equipment, are still being locked into a proprietary endpoint solution. These closed standards are failing to deliver on the full promise of AV over IP. There is a clear opportunity to propose SMPTE ST 2110 and AMWA NMOS as open standards that enable interoperability between different vendors, thus offering integrators and end customers a best-of-breed selection of products.