On the back end, AVB-based inventory should be more liquid (easier to sell), and therefore more valuable than gear that’s only useful to another user of the same proprietary network.
Of course, this assumes that A/V plumbing will continue to be a value-added service.
IEEE 1722 and 1722.1 could change that, which is why they are the really disruptive aspects of AVB.
Today, buyers at shows like CED IA, InfoComm and ISE earn a decent living by knowing how to interconnect complicated A/V systems like high-end home media centers, retail digital signage systems, and live event production systems.
If AVB becomes a global standard, the network will take over at least 90 percent of that kind of work.
Audio and video sources and playback devices will all use the same connector, identify themselves to the network, and be connected with a simple graphical software interface. So what will the system tech do, exactly? What does it leave for actual people?
Changing Jobs & Roles
It could take a decade, but AVB has the potential to push pro audio and A/V into a “white glove” occupation.
In the networked live sound venue, the “plumbing” required to make sound and get picture onscreen could become about as valuable as typing and dictation skills are in the networked office.
The finer points of tweaking loudspeakers and multi-loudspeaker systems, of optimizing displays and projectors, and of managing content in real time, will be the marketable services of real value.
That may affect ownership patterns as well as job descriptions.
Right now, pro audio companies have two legs to stand on: You own specialized pro equipment, and you and your team have the expertise to make it function.
In the AVB world, nearly everyone will be able to make the inventory function, at least on a basic level.
As a result, ownership may become much more widespread: manufacturers might like to see this happen. Watch out for that trend, because it could make some of your inventory more of a boat anchor (as in “sunk capital”) than a sail.
In the AVB-networked world, your business might be standing on just the one leg of experience and expertise.
If you expect to make a living as a live sound professional, you may have to provide more than the opposable thumb needed to make an Ethernet connection.
Increasingly, that’s going to mean the ability to use sophisticated test and measurement tools and the intelligence to apply them appropriately for specific venues and events.
Christian Doering, M.B.A., CSI, CDT, is the principal of Me, Ink, a marketing consulting firm that provides strategic insights, marketing communications, and technical writing to companies in the professional AV and lighting industries.