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KSC Core as the Central Control Platform for the ARD-Hauptstadtstudio

  • Jul 20
  • 3 min read

Reliable Control of a SMPTE ST 2110 Live News Production Environment


The ARD-Hauptstadtstudio in Berlin is one of Germany’s most important production facilities for national political news coverage. Every day, it produces live news broadcasts and special coverage of current events. As part of a comprehensive modernization of its broadcast infrastructure, BFE migrated the production environment to a fully IP-based architecture compliant with SMPTE ST 2110 between February 2024 and December 2025. Since then, KSC Core has served as the central control and monitoring platform for all relevant production resources.


Why the ARD-Hauptstadtstudio Modernized Its Broadcast Infrastructure

The existing infrastructure had provided reliable service for many years. However, evolving production requirements and future technological developments increasingly exposed structural limitations. Key components were approaching the end of their planned lifecycle, technical expansion options had become extremely limited, and the existing cabling infrastructure no longer allowed for meaningful upgrades. A comprehensive modernization became unavoidable.


Requirements for a SMPTE ST 2110 Control System in a Live Production Environment

Reliable operation of the new production environment required a control system capable of handling IP-based workflows while significantly reducing operational complexity for both engineering and maintenance teams. The solution needed to provide a central control layer that transparently visualizes connections, dependencies, and resources, enables operational changes during live production, and ensures complete control throughout the migration process.

The project also included a significant organizational component. Transitioning to an IP-based architecture required fundamental changes to operational workflows and service procedures. As a result, technical implementation, user onboarding, and close support of the operations team were integral parts of the project from the very beginning.



KSC Core: Centralized Control for IP-Based Broadcast Infrastructures

KSC Core was integrated as the central control platform within the new SMPTE ST 2110 infrastructure. Working together with the Nevion VideoIPath Broadcast Orchestrator, KSC Core controls all production resources while providing a clear visual representation of complex signal paths and resource dependencies.

To create sufficient installation space without interrupting on-air operations, the project team, led by Katrin Brümmer, first implemented a comprehensive temporary infrastructure. The existing Commander system continued to operate without changes, while a completely independent KSC Core environment was installed and configured in parallel.


Seamless Migration During Live Operations

The project's greatest challenge was carrying out the migration while maintaining uninterrupted live broadcasting. KSC Core significantly simplified this process by allowing production workflows and signal configurations to be created, tested, and validated in advance, while remaining instantly available throughout the migration.

Broadcast operations continued without interruption during the entire transition. Construction work, system testing, and commissioning were completed without impacting ongoing news production.


"Migrating to a fully IP-based production environment was a major milestone for us. With KSC Core, we now have a control layer that provides complete transparency across our workflows while giving us the flexibility we need for day-to-day news production."

Michael Schultz, Head of Production and Engineering, ARD-Hauptstadtstudio


A Scalable Production Architecture for the Future

With its new IP-based production environment, the ARD-Hauptstadtstudio is well positioned for the future and can respond flexibly to the fast-paced and often unpredictable demands of modern news production. KSC Core provides the foundation for stable, transparent, and scalable broadcast operations.


Key Benefits for Technical Decision-Makers

  • Centralized control of complex SMPTE ST 2110 infrastructures

  • High operational reliability in 24/7 live production environments

  • Complete visibility into resources, dependencies, and system status

  • Support for migration, parallel operation, and user training

  • Foundation for long-term scalable production architectures

 
 
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