NASA uses 2netFX Technology for Live HDTV-over-IP Demo

San Jose, CA -- Technology from 2netFX, a provider of enterprisenetwork media software for intranet and broadband Internet mediadelivery, was used in a recent HDTV-over-IP live demonstrationconducted by the government's NASA Research and Education Network(NREN). Used was the company's ThunderCastIP HDTV, a multicast serverfor high-definition video streaming over ordinary IP-basednetworks.

"The selection says a lot about the capabilities of our technology,"said Eric Yao, 2netFX CTO, who participated in the demonstration."Hearing all the positive comments when the crystal-clear HDTV videoimages first appeared on the screen made me feel proud of our companyand of all our engineers and technicians who have worked so hard onthis technology."

The entire demonstration involved the simultaneous feed of a 20MbpsHDTV signal through a satellite uplink and an optical ground network.The feed was sent from the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington,D.C. to the NASA Ames Research Center at Moffett Field in California.The demonstration provided NREN with the opportunity to work with anHDTV feed in three distinct formats: ATM, DVB, and the Internet.

Yao said ThunderCastIP HDTV is an industrial-strength multicastvideo server for professional enterprise applications. "The softwaresupports live or pre-recorded video streaming from 10- to 50Mbps overordinary IP-based networks. Video can be streamed to virtually anunlimited number of users simultaneously via an IP multicast withoutsignificantly impacting the network."

ThunderCastIP HDTV is the first multicast server for high-definitionlive or prerecorded video streaming from 10- to 50Mbps over ordinaryIP-based networks, including future advanced Internets, according tothe company. Engineered into the unit are such server features asremote management and scheduling, multiple live encoder support, groupand user management, video-on-demand media management, and support forMPEG-1, MPEG-2, and HDTV. It allows playback on a standard PC orset-top appliance, which are displayed on most PC monitors or HDTVsets.

Yao said future upgrades will include fully scalable distributedclustering architecture with media asset management, media replication,media migration, datacasting, and store-and-forward functionality.

The demonstration originated at the Naval Research Laboratory inWashington, where a stored HD video was sent to two differenttransmission sources. One was a terrestrial feed via ATDNet and NREN byway of the NASA Goddard Research facility. The other was a satellitefeed via Telstar 6. Both feeds were directed to the Ames ResearchCenter in California.

The 2netFX ThunderCastIP HDTV server was used to transcode anddecode the satellite feed and deliver it to the monitor used to displaythe life-like images.

The demonstration successfully proved that the technology existstoday to deliver stunning HDTV imagery virtually anywhere in the world-- or above it. Besides the practical applications of delivering datafrom one earthbound structure to another, HDTV-over-IP data deliveryand reception also has critical applications in any of NASA'souter-space programs.

The goal of the NASA Research and Education Network (NREN) is toenable more effective communication and information exchange amongpeople at remote locations. It provides a test bed for anext-generation network that fuses new technologies with NASA missionapplications. These networking technologies provide NASA missions withthe advantages of enhanced data sharing, interactive collaboration,visualization, and remote instrumentation.

NREN works with various technology companies, governmental agencies,and research institutions to integrate multicast technology.Additionally, it partners with the NASA Integrated Services Network(NISN) and NASA local area networks (LANs) in upgrading NASA multicastsolutions. Plus, it is working with major NASA programs to incorporatethe use of high bandwidth multicasts in revolutionary NASAapplications.

Nothing in this press release is to be construed as anendorsement of a product or service by the National Aeronautics andSpace Administration within the meaning of 14 CFR Part 1221.100 et seq.or 42 U.S.C. 2459b. Nor does NASA make any assurances regarding theperformance of objects tested in NASA facilities, any resultingdesigns, hardware, or other matters.