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SMPTE 2022-7

SMPTE 2022-7 is the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) standard for seamless protection switching of IP video streams. It defines a dual-stream redundancy model where identical video + audio is transmitted over two independent network paths simultaneously, and the receiver performs packet-level merging such that any packet loss on one path is concealed by the other — without viewer-observable impact.

It is a broadcast-industry standard, not a Netflix-specific technology, and is widely used across professional broadcast workflows.

Core properties

  • Hot-standby dual-stream reception. Both paths are active and carrying identical content at all times. No cold-to-hot promotion latency.
  • Sub-frame-granularity failover. Switching happens at the packet layer, not the frame layer — viewers see no break.
  • Path-independent failure domains. Each stream should travel over physically diverse infrastructure (separate fiber, separate line cards, separate network providers) so that a single path failure doesn't take out both legs.
  • Complementary to signal contribution redundancy. SMPTE 2022-7 is typically a BOC-side terminator — the receiver-end standard that terminates contribution redundancy that was set up at the venue.

Distinct from failover switching

Generic failover switching (cold standby + health check + promote) has observable latency — a frame drop, a viewer-visible stutter, sometimes a reconnect. SMPTE 2022-7 is designed to be imperceptible to viewers: both streams flow continuously, the receiver merges them packet-by-packet, and gaps on one leg are automatically covered by the other.

This is why Netflix positions it as part of the "highly redundant architectures" inside the BOC: live broadcast has "no ability to pause or roll back", so observable failover is not an option.

Role at Netflix

Per sources/2026-04-17-netflix-the-human-infrastructure-live-operations: "By utilizing a hub-and-spoke model with highly redundant architectures, such as dual internet circuits and SMPTE 2022-7 seamless switching technologies, the BOC replaces direct, vulnerable paths from the venue to the live streaming pipeline."

SMPTE 2022-7 is the BOC-side termination for the venue-side triple-redundant transmission discipline. The BOC receives multiple contribution legs; 2022-7 ensures that the stream handed to the encoder is a merged/protected version insulated from single-leg failures.

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