IPMX at tipping point: Open standards steadily breaking down barriers between broadcast and Pro AV

By Shaun Lim

For years, one of the most persistent frustrations in broadcast and Pro AV infrastructure has been vendor lock-in. The need to protect content flowing through a system has effectively forced organisations into single-brand silos. 

Internet Protocol Media Experience (IPMX), developed by the Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS) together with the Video Services Forum (VSF), the Advanced Media Workflow Association (AMWA) and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), is changing that.

IPMX is a set of open standards and specifications designed to extend SMPTE ST 2110-based media transport and Network Media Open Specifications (NMOS)-based control into a broad range of markets.

“Currently being adopted into broadcast and Pro AV environments, IPMX is already being used today as a media routing infrastructure,” declared Samuel Recine, Vice-President, Strategic Partnerships, Matrox Video, and IPMX Pro AV Working Group Chair, AIMS.

Speaking to APB+, he added, “IPMX is also used in various media processing applications including live production. But it particularly shines when organisations are supporting multiple workflows with their media routing infrastructure, media processing equipment and corporate communications products and services.”

Beyond media routing, IPMX introduces support for compressed video, simplified system timing, High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP), interoperable USB over IP, media encryption between brands, and defined system profiles. These capabilities are designed to make deployment more practical, scalable and cost-effective across broadcast and Pro AV environments.

At the second IPMX Product Certification Test Event held this year from August 24-28 at the EBU headquarters in Geneva, eight manufacturers submitted 14 products for testing. All 14 were officially certified, bringing the total number of certified IPMX products to 62.

“The expansion of capabilities being tested not only provides more useful and interoperable options for systems but also helps to refine the information in the IPMX product registry to help users succinctly identify combinations of products suitable for their applications,” said Recine.

The certification programme is designed to ensure predictable behaviour, reliable interoperability and adherence to the published IPMX test plans and specifications. “Manufacturing peers as well as hardware and software developers alike help to ensure that their products have known-compatible modes, which is exactly what the market wants and expects,” added Recine.

Closing the door on single-brand silos

One of the most significant barriers to interoperability in media infrastructure has been content security. The need to protect content flowing through a system has historically forced organisations into single-brand deployments, limiting their ability to mix equipment from different vendors. The introduction of the Privacy Encryption Protocol (PEP) and HDCP Key Exchange Protocol (HKEP) at the August certification event directly addresses this barrier.

“Both the PEP and HKEP specifications focus on standardised key exchange mechanisms and can be used independently or in tandem,” Recine explained. “Where the Digital Content Protection LLC (DCP LLC) standard already defines how to handle HDCP over IP, IPMX adds the layer of how different product types from different brands exchange privacy keys.”

PEP focuses on the priorities of IT and AV infrastructure. When PEP is supported across IPMX products in a system, administrators can manage encryption keys to specific endpoints, authorise secure links between devices from competing brands, and maintain a fully encrypted media infrastructure. Critically, this is possible even across products from different manufacturers.

“One of the things that has limited media infrastructure to single-brand silos has been the need to protect the content flowing through the system. This need is now met with interoperability between brands,” said Recine. “The user reclaims all the control, including the ability to add new equipment from different partners as technology evolves and systems change.”

IPMX takes root across APAC

IPMX adoption across the Asia-Pacific region is already further along than many might assume. Companies such as Novastar and Panasonic, both leaders in their respective product categories, already have IPMX-certified products in the market, including the former’s COEX MX2000 Pro LED video processors and the latter’s KAIROS IT/IP video processing platform.

Meanwhile, a growing number of companies from across the region, spanning IP providers, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and original design manufacturers (ODMs), as well as fully vertical solutions providers, are joining the IPMX ecosystem, said Recine. This, he added, is giving organisations the flexibility to build, buy, or partner their way into IPMX-capable infrastructure.

Case studies of deployments in Asia are also beginning to emerge, and the knowledge base around IPMX is now available in many of the world’s languages, lowering the barrier to adoption across diverse markets.

One of the clearest signs of adoption in the region is in display technology. In the premium display space, including LED walls and projectors, manufacturers have been steadily adding native IP input compatibility alongside established connectivity options such as HDMI, DisplayPort, and SDI. “They have focused on standards like ST 2110 and IPMX because that’s what is being adopted by a lot of the media processing equipment in the equipment chain that comes in front of the display,” Recine noted.

IPMX offers display makers a compelling set of capabilities. It supports multi-essence transport, carrying audio, video, USB, and other data as separate streams. Built-in digital rights and privacy encryption mechanisms are included, alongside compatibility with ST 2110 and AES67. It can operate on Precision Time Protocol (PTP) synchronised networks or standard media networks, giving deployments greater flexibility. 

Media profiles are optimised for all content types, including video and high-frequency graphics from computers, and a wide array of routing and orchestration partners round out the offering. Many AES67-capable products from Asia are also adding NMOS support, increasing the flexibility of AES67, ST 2110-30 and IPMX products being used together.

“The chain from IPMX-native sources, to IPMX-capable systems — both hardware and software — to IPMX displays is already deployed and growing,” said Recine. “Asia manufacturing power, from the most specialised and advanced equipment down to the most cost-conscious, is of course central in this.”

Looking ahead, the IPMX testing events planned for 2027 will add more media profiles, deepening the appeal to camera makers, display technology companies, software developers, appliance makers, and media processor vendors alike, further expanding the ecosystem across the region and beyond.

As the certified product base grows and real-world deployments multiply, IPMX is moving steadily from a standard on paper to infrastructure in practice.

For broadcasters and Pro AV professionals across APAC navigating the shift to IP-based workflows, the message from AIMS is clear: the ecosystem is ready, the choice is expanding, and the barriers that once locked organisations into single-brand silos are coming down.