VSF Releases Specification for RIST Satellite-Hybrid: In Band Method

07 August 2025 – The Video Services Forum (VSF) has further enhanced the Reliable Internet Streaming Transport (RIST) protocol by incorporating a new feature, RIST Satellite-Hybrid: In Band Method. This feature can be used to augment  satellite distribution, using the Internet as a recovery mechanism for data that is corrupted or lost in the space segment.  This is important for Ku-band operation, as it is subject to rain fade. 

This feature, detailed in TR-06-4 Part 7, creates a mechanism to use the satellite (or any similar unidirectional one-way transmission method employing MPEG-2 Transport Streams, such as DVB-T) as the main distribution channel, with RIST as a backup to recover data that is lost or corrupted between the satellite and the receiver. This data is then retransmitted over the Internet using RIST, only to the locations that need it. The method is backward-compatible with existing legacy receivers, and requires a small metadata stream to be inserted into the transmission before it is uplinked to the satellite. 

Rick Ackermans, Chair Video Services Forum – RIST Activity Group, commented: “With its wide reach, satellite, and most commonly C-band, is widely used by broadcasters to send the same content to many receivers at different locations. Yet, as a result of the recent US legislation authorizing the FCC to reallocate more of the remaining C-band frequencies to non-television applications, many broadcasters will be forced to use an alternative band, namely Ku-band, which is highly susceptible to rain fade. The RIST Satellite-Hybrid: In Band Method addresses this problem by providing broadcasters with a method to recover lost data over the Internet using RIST.” 

The RIST protocol is designed to reliably transport video over unmanaged networks such as the Internet. It provides an open, interoperable, and technically robust solution for low latency video contribution. It can be used for any use case where video needs to be transported over the Internet, but is typically used for professional media workflows, such as news and sports contribution, remote production, affiliate distribution and primary distribution. 

Technical recommendations are freely available from the VSF website for all to download and use.