North Point Ministries

Shared, immersive worship across church campus made possible by SMPTE ST 2110

Founded in 1995, North Point Ministries has grown from one church in Atlanta to eight campuses across the metropolitan area and developed a global network of more than 150 partner churches.

Each week, more than 50,000 people attend services in person or online at North Point Ministries’ Atlanta-area churches. Each month, sermons and leadership messages are accessed over one million times via its websites.

a live Christian concert at a North Point Ministry event

Global network of more than 150 partner churches

Global network of more than 150 partner churches

50,000+ people attend services each week

50,000+ people attend services each week

Sermons accessed 1 million+ times online each month

Sermons accessed 1 million+ times online each month

The Challenge

Collaboration is key to delivering on North Point Ministries’ mission. As the organization expanded, it became clear that delivering a shared, immersive experience for such a large, geo-diverse audience would require a new technology approach.

 

The goal was to move away from traditional TDM-based, SDI-over-fiber transport between the church facilities to a more efficient, purely IP-based workflow. Something that would allow staff and volunteers to manage ever-changing workflow between sites.

 

But the transition to IP had to take practical concerns into account. North Point Ministries supplements its professional production personnel with volunteer staff, so any new technology solution would have to be easy to operate. The new solution would also have to be cost effective and capable of delivering a shared, high-quality experience.

The Solution

The forward-looking team at North Point Ministries decided that the signal flexibility, capacity and overall agility made possible by the SMPTE ST 2110 standard would provide them with a distinct advantage. Leveraging standardized, readily available COTS hardware, ST 2110 systems would provide a cost-effective way to connect their eight campuses via high-bandwidth, high-speed IP links.

Central to the advanced implementation are five Selenio™ Network Processors (SNP) from Imagine Communications, which integrate into a Cisco 100Gb multicampus IP network. The SNPs provide video and audio processing, timing synchronization, uncompressed UHD HDR capability and an interface between SDI and SMPTE ST 2110 standards-based IP. Using SNPs, the network can synchronize and process up to 32 uncompressed signals, bidirectionally, over as few as two single-mode fiber links, providing immediate improvement in fiber utilization.

North Point Ministries has HD cameras, production switchers, projectors and an Imagine Platinum™ SDI router with integrated multiviewer at each location. The SNPs provide timing synchronization and conversion to and from the SDI routing system to the ST 2110 IP routing network, and the whole installation operates as a single network under the management of Imagine’s Magellan™ Control System.

The SNP’s colorimetry conversion includes SDR-709, SDR-2020, HLG-2100, PQ-2100 and SLOG3, which means North Point Ministries can bring in any source and create the specific production value that, when presented, inspires worshippers with the Ministries’ message. Built on field programmable gate array (FPGA) technology, the SNP can be easily upgraded to add new functionality as it becomes available.

“The Imagine Communications SNP and Magellan Control System have made it possible for us to connect our campuses using SMPTE ST 2110 in the most efficient way possible.”
North Point Ministries Logo
Brendon Petty
Technical Director, North Point Ministries

The Result

Leveraging standardized, readily available COTS hardware, North Point Ministries’ Imagine-based ST 2110 system provides a cost-effective yet extremely powerful route to engaging their audience. As the Magellan control layer utilizes standard remote-control panels that the staff had already been using for daily operations, the result has been streamlined training and more reliable productions, and the production team’s volunteer staff has a solution that is easy to operate.

 

Utilizing the same dark fiber connectivity, North Point Ministries has been able to exponentially increase their capacity to support all local church campuses, an extended partner church network and online viewers. The ST 2110 network’s ability to deliver high-quality, low-latency uncompressed video and audio over IP ensures a shared, immersive experience wherever their audience may be located.

Connect with Our Experts Today!

At Imagine, we’re ready whenever you are. Tell us your vision, and together, we can map your path to a thriving future.

REQUEST A DEMO
Contact Sales Icon

Contact Sales

Get in touch with our sales team to see how we can work together

close

Area of Interest

Inquiry Details

We’re committed to your privacy. Imagine Communications uses the information you provide to us to contact you with relevant content and updates regarding our products and services. To help personalize your experience, please update your preferences. You may also unsubscribe from these communications at any time. For more information, check out our privacy-policy.

Contact Support Icon

Help & Support

Our highly trained personnel, are ready to assist you.
If your query is urgent, please telephone us

close

Message


Technical Support Contact Numbers

Americas & Canada:
+1 866 4 IMAGINE
+1 866 446 2446
Europe & Africa:
+44 208 339 1900
Middle East:
+971 4 433 8260

24x7 MyImagine Care+ Technical Support:
+1 416 445 4032

Customer Community Portal

Expert assistance, resources, and information available to support your organisation 24x7

Log in or sign up

portatif of Steve Reynolds

President

Close BT

Steve Reynolds

Steve Reynolds is President of Imagine Communications, a global leader in multiscreen video and ad management solutions that broadcasters, networks, video service providers and enterprises around the world rely on to support their mission-critical operations.

Steve brings 25 years of technology leadership in the video industry to Imagine Communications. He has served as the CTO at Imagine Communications and Harris Broadcast, Senior Vice President of Premises Technology at Comcast, Senior Vice President of Technology at OpenTV, and CTO at Intellocity USA.

Steve earned a MS in Computer Engineering from Widener University and BS in Computer Science from West Chester University. As the Chairman of the AIMS Alliance and a member of SMPTE and SCTE, he has participated in numerous standards-making bodies in the cable and digital video industries. Steve also holds over 40 patents relating to digital video, content security, interactive television and digital devices.