NAB Show: Media Links Debuts Scalable IP Transport Solution for Metropolitan Networks

Media Links, manufacturer and pioneer in media over IP transport technology, announces its new MetroXPRESS IP over fiber system solution for transporting multimedia services across metropolitan wide area networks.

MetroXPRESS by Media Links will be showcased at the 2022 NAB Show (April 23-27 in Las Vegas) in Booth W3922.

Designed for broadcasters, service providers and content rights holders who have access to, or own fiber connectivity, MetroXPRESS is intended as a replacement for legacy point-to-point SD/HD video transport over dark fiber networks in local or metropolitan or regional areas.

The core value proposition of MetroXPRESS is to more simply and cost effectively accommodate new differentiated IP-based media services while optimizing the efficiency of and visibility into overall network operation and performance. All with the overall objective of lowering the total cost of ownership over the life of the investment.

The system solution provides real-time, low latency delivery of media (video, audio and data) from the content source to multiple destinations and back again. It includes an integrated, self-contained portfolio of edge, core and network management components necessary to directly connect to native IP networks on a fiber infrastructure for wide area media content delivery. A typical package consists of the Media Links MD8000 platform, MDP3000 Series IP media Gateways, MDX aggregation/core switches, and ProMD EMS network management software. These products are known for their robust reliability, stability in mission-critical environments and overall flexibility.

It is designed to accommodate today’s existing SDI-based infrastructure with the ability to gracefully transition to a more versatile, flexible IP environment with evolving media resolutions, encoding and encapsulation formats.

“For service providers to offer competitive media over IP transport services to their customers, they require an agile IP over fiber network infrastructure that can be adapted and scaled as technology and media distribution needs quickly change,” said Al Nuñez, Media Links president. “For example, traditional metropolitan distribution content models are typically nailed up for long time periods, which do not support flexibility or scalability when customers need to launch new services such as 4K UHD, hitless (i.e., uninterrupted and dropout free) media transfers, or low latency JPEG-XS compression for remote production applications. Further, they often are unmanaged with no real visibility into overall network assurance and performance. MetroXPRESS solves these such challenges.”

Media Links said it created MetroXPRESS to provide an adaptable, scalable and managed media over IP transport solution addressing SD all the way to UHD video and beyond. While also supporting data services up to 100Gbps across a robust, resilient fiber-based IP architecture. The solution allows for remote set up and tear down, provides real-time equipment and service quality assurance, and can be securely accessed and serviced from office and field (or home) locations.

Complementing the turnkey MetroXPRESS solution is the full suite of comprehensive Media Links Professional Services, including design, staging, turn-up, training, and ongoing field support.