that would incorporate the branding of the Achmea company addressed. Previously, these events had been delivered by an external production house, but it was time to empower Verbeek’s internal teams with their own technology set-up. The department was already familiar with the NewTek TriCaster video production system, having
WE ALL CARRY AROUND IN OUR POCKET A PHONE WITH A CAMERA ON IT, WHICH THEORETICALLY IS CONNECTED TO EVERY OTHER SCREEN ON THE PLANET
SHARING KNOWLEDGE Netherlands-based insurance company Achmea houses multiple sub-brands under its massive umbrella, including Dutch companies Centraal Beheer, Interpolis, Syntrus, FBTO and Zilveren Kruis. It provides a spectrum of insurance products that cover health, life, pensions, business and government organisations. And it’s also a holding company for other successful insurance brands in Greece, Turkey, Slovakia, Canada and Australia. Achmea wanted to offer video learning and development resources across its huge array of platforms and locations, requiring a new way to transform and unify its communications. This called for something more sophisticated and powerful than an ordinary video conferencing service. “We saw the pressing need for sharing knowledge in a scalable manner, but in a unique way to an online meeting,” says Yvo Verbeek, Achmea’s learning consultant for digital. “We needed our subject matter experts to make content with the same quality standards, but from home.” At the centre of the Achmea learning and development plan were graphics-rich live shows
used it for video editing and recording live interviews to camera. The TriCaster 2 Elite was employed for its ability to record multiple channels of full-resolution video to QuickTime or H.264 files, which can be saved together for archiving. Live streaming is made easy thanks to two encoders, with user-friendly presets for a choice of output to different live or on-demand platforms. NewTek’s NDI technology for IP-based workflows was added to the mix. With NDI Webcam Input, NDI sources are recognised as standard Microsoft Windows video and audio sources. This allowed Achmea to use its existing video communications set-up without having to add new technology. Any remote contributor, anywhere in the world, could now become part of the production – using NDI Bridge, NDI Remote, Live Call Connect, or the built-in Skype TX channels or SRT streaming. A NEW SET-UP Achmea saved on-set expenses and increased flexibility, by making use of TriCaster ’s ability to turn a simple green screen room into a full virtual set. The system’s LiveSet technology easily combines live performance with professionally designed virtual environments, complete with real-time reflections, specular highlights, animated lens flares, multiple camera angles, virtual camera moves and top-end augmented reality effects. Achmea created virtual sets using a combination of green screens, LiveSet and NewTek’s LiveMatte technology, allowing them to switch from corporate setting to comfortable living room, or any other environment, with a few keystrokes. The simplicity of the TriCaster system means that even non-technical operators can create and composite scenes from different elements – like live video, graphics and virtual sets – for the full variety of content Achmea is producing. The set-up was delivered by NewTek reseller Lines Broadcast, headquartered outside Arnhem, as a complete turnkey solution. And it got the Achmea team up and running straight away. “Our first video was delivered at the beginning of the pandemic,” says Verbeek. “It was a great success from day one.” Incorporating NDI makes it easy for production devices on the network to communicate with each other. Using it in combination with video conferencing tools like Teams and Zoom, which
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