Nevion Virtuoso further optimizes media transport with new HEVC enhancements
New audio compression and continued HEVC improvements help balance bandwidth usage and latency, without compromising quality
Oslo, Norway, August 27, 2026 – Nevion, a Sony Group Company, today announced that the latest upgrade to its Virtuoso software-defined media node further optimizes media transport by giving broadcasters more precise control over bandwidth and latency when using HEVC/H.265 compression.
A key component of Sony’s Networked Live offering, Nevion Virtuoso is widely used for live contribution, remote production, IP facilities, outside broadcast and cloud connectivity. Its software-defined architecture enables media transport, processing and monitoring functions to be deployed and reconfigured as needs evolve.
The new release introduces audio compression alongside Virtuoso’s HEVC capability, helping customers reduce overall transport bandwidth even further. This is particularly valuable in highly compressed HEVC workflows, where multiple channels of uncompressed audio can represent a significant share of the total payload. By compressing audio as well as video, Virtuoso enables more efficient use of constrained network capacity while maintaining the professional quality required for live production. In line with Networked Live’s aim to promote interoperability with third-party equipment, the Virtuoso audio compression is based on the widely adopted AAC-LC audio codec.
At the same time, Nevion is continuing to optimize the latency performance of Virtuoso HEVC. The platform already offers attractive encode-decode latency, and the recently introduced optimization mode provides the option to further reduce latency by approximately 40%. Development is underway to offer a true Ultra Low Latency solution, taking advantage of the advanced capabilities of the Sony chipset Virtuoso uses. In all modes, the codec delivers pristine images.
Steve Hard, VP of Product Management for Virtuoso at Nevion, said: “Live production workflows are increasingly diverse, and there is no single definition of optimized transport. For some applications, the priority is to reduce bandwidth as much as possible; for others, it is to minimize latency while preserving picture quality and reliability. With this latest Virtuoso upgrade, we are giving customers more options to tune HEVC transport to their real operational requirements.”
In addition to the transport optimization enhancements, the latest Virtuoso release also includes new operational improvements, including customer-defined “Inspect” views in the web interface. These views enable users to bring selected function diagrams together on a single screen, making it easier to visualize and monitor the specific parts of a workflow that matter most to them.
The latest Virtuoso developments will be on show on the Sony booth (13.A10) at IBC 2026 in Amsterdam, 11-14 September.
Further information about Virtuoso can be found at nevion.com/virtuoso.
About Networked Live
Sony and Nevion’s Networked Live is an ecosystem of solutions, products, services, and partners that combines hybrid on-premises and Cloud processing with network connectivity to transform the logistics and economics of high-quality mission critical live production. It does this by enabling resources (places, people, and processing) to be connected, used, and shared optimally and seamlessly in productions – regardless of their locations. For more information, see: https://nevion.com/sony-nevion/
