Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and PlexusAV?
I have been in the AV/IT/Broadcast Industry for over 20 years, working in various roles covering installation, distribution and also for various manufacturers. I previously worked for a brand called Sencore, a major player in the global broadcast sector. When Sencore saw the convergence of AV and broadcast developing 2 years ago, they decided that they wanted to move into AV sector and so hired me to review the market and then help launch this new brand, PlexusAV.
So what makes PlexusAV different?
That’s a great question. In the broadcast industry, equipment from different manufacturers has to work together. Whereas in the AV Industry, we found that there was a lack of true interoperability.
Therefore, we decided to base our new offering around the IPMX standard. Whilst our products work independently of IPMX in their own right, they also work with NDI, Dante and H.264/265 based formats.
What sets them apart is the ability to deliver both high bitrate/highest quality and efficient bitrate/high quality feeds simultaneously, which allows us to break down a few typical AVoIP barriers. Think about connecting to remote locations, connecting to bandwidth constrained parts of larger networks and streaming directly to recording solutions or CDN’s
This allows the end user, consultants, SI’s and even VARs to design systems in a much more cost-efficient manner for their projects, as well as helping future proof them because they are based on a standard.
Tell us more about IPMX
IPMX has been created by a dedicated workgroup inside of AIMS (Alliance for IP Media Solutions) that started its work in 2019. IPMX is based on the SMPTE 2110 standard which all major broadcasters have been using for years.
However, IPMX adds the extra capabilities needed for pro AV applications, such as supporting both compressed and uncompressed workflows, device discovery and connectivity, HDCP, USB routing, secure transport and EDID support. IPMX also addresses the PTP timing elephant in the room by including a different set of requirements that fit perfectly for Pro-AV applications.
This ensures that the platform will be able to be used as the main system architecture on major projects to allow everything to work together, without any single brand being “in charge” of the operating platform since IPMX is based on a standard.
Why should end users and integrators consider PlexusAV for their future projects?
As an end user, PlexusAV allows you to install PlexusAV products knowing that they will allow you to integrate any brand and at any time. This is especially important for large projects, where the systems are designed and installed in phases that can take many years to deliver.
From the AV Industries point of view, we offer unique features and benefits, at highly competitive prices, with great margins and excellent customer support.
What does the next 12 months look like?
We should start shipping the first products in Q2-’24 and so at that point, we will start to get a much better feel for the uptake of IPMX across the AV Industry and also the Channels reaction to PlexusAV and our approach. I also expect a good amount of other companies announcing their IPMX roadmaps and products at ISE!
Our initial focus is the EMEA region, as well as a big push in the US. Sencore already has offices and a significant presence in the US and so we will share backroom resources. That’s the great thing about PlexusAV, we are a bit like a 70-Year-old startup! We have all the excitement and pain points of a startup, but we are anchored by the financial and operating stability of a well established Global business.
