ENCO: First Closed Caption Encoder EN848 at NAB New York

This new product strengthens ENCO’s position as the first company in the broadcast industry to develop a fully native closed captioning workflow solution. The EN848 is now available for shipment and can be purchased either as a standalone unit or as part of ENCO’s enCaption system, offering both on-premise and cloud-based options for quick and automated captioning and translation.

EN848 and enCaption Integration

The EN848 allows broadcasters to utilize the system over an IP network and integrate it with enCaption for cloud-based captioning services like those offered by ENCO’s partner, VITAC. The device provides dual connectivity, enabling redundancy in captioning workflows. In the event of a network outage, the EN848 can immediately switch from cloud-based services to an on-premise setup. ENCO will showcase the EN848’s features and deployment options at NAB New York, Booth 907, on Wednesday and Thursday.

Compliance with Global Captioning Standards

The EN848’s primary function is to insert closed captions from any source downstream, adhering to global captioning standards. It supports a wide range of closed captioning formats, including CEA-608/CEA-708 and Teletext/OP47, ensuring compatibility with both modern and legacy protocols. The device is designed to enhance the speed and accuracy of enCaption’s automated captioning system, providing a reliable solution for broadcasters to meet compliance requirements during live broadcasts.

Development and Engineering of the EN848

The EN848 was developed as a result of ENCO’s 2023 acquisition of DoCaption, bringing DoCaption’s technology and engineering team in-house. The device was created in collaboration with ENCO’s engineering team, resulting in an FPGA-based SDI captions encoder and inserter with ultra-low latency. The EN848 can process captions from both human and speech recognition sources, making it suitable for on-premise and cloud-based workflows. For on-premise setups, the device includes a dedicated server to handle ASR sources from enCaption systems.

President’s Statement on EN848

Ken Frommert, President of ENCO, stated, “The EN848 was developed to pair natively with enCaption, eliminating the need for third-party devices. This provides broadcasters with a unified solution that enhances redundancy and quality while offering direct access to cloud services like those provided by VITAC. We have modernized DoCaption’s technology and packaged it into a 1RU unit, giving broadcasters a flexible and reliable solution.”

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