Veset – Getting the Most from Investments in the Cloud
Gatis Gailis, CEO and Co-Founder, Veset
It’s certainly been a challenging few years for the broadcast and wider M&E industry, with many businesses having been forced to make some extremely difficult decisions. Now, however, businesses are seemingly shifting from a cost cutting mindset, to one where revenue generation strategies are back on the table. A recent report by PwC forecasts that the global M&E industry’s revenue will grow from US$3 trillion in 2024 to US$3.5 trillion by 2029, resulting in US$577 billion in incremental new revenues by 2029. The way that viewers engage with and consume content is continuing to evolve, and simultaneously, cloud technology is reshaping how channels and services are run, how content reaches audiences and how quickly new ideas can be tested in the market.
With cloud playout for example, a new or temporary channel can be launched in a matter of hours, something that would take weeks or even months when operating traditional on-premise infrastructure. This makes the cloud ideal for trying new revenue streams without long-term commitments or capital expenditure. Yet to really maximize these benefits, broadcasters need to be able to tightly control costs in the cloud. This is true whether a broadcaster is working entirely in the cloud or following the now-common hybrid model where on-prem and cloud infrastructure work together in a complementary way.
Controlling Cloud Costs
Most broadcasters begin with modest steps, perhaps operating a single disaster recovery channel in the cloud, trialing a pop-up or temporary channel, or moving some storage workloads to the cloud. These initial deployments build confidence and familiarity with cloud operations, showing the C-suite that cloud infrastructure works reliably. From there, further transition to the cloud can follow gradually, with decisions being made to move other operations including core channels to the cloud over time.
Traditional infrastructure is fixed and often inflexible, but it also makes inefficiencies obvious, so are quick to fix. For example, you can walk into a broadcast facility and easily see which hardware is underused or running idle. Conversely, the cloud is incredibly elastic in that resources can be scaled up or down as needed; but while this is one of its greatest strengths, it also introduces new complexities. Without proper oversight, those same conveniences can lead to unnecessary spending that can go unnoticed.
Visibility is the foundation of good cloud cost management. Broadcasters need clear insight into what is running, who is using it, and when. Idle resources left active after a live event or a test stream can quietly consume budget. Scheduling and automation tools that power down resources when they’re not needed are a simple but effective safeguard. Another contributor to needless cloud spend is using storage systems that don’t match content needs and requirements, for example using costly nearline storage for content that could be archived.
Closer collaboration between operational and finance teams is also important, so that there is a clear understanding across the board about the financial impact of cloud usage and operational decisions. The goal isn’t to spend less, but to spend wisely and transparently. That mindset sets the stage for adopting more structured approaches like FinOps, where financial and operational accountability go hand in hand.
Focusing on FinOps
Managing cloud costs effectively also means rethinking traditional financial processes to suit a much more fluid and fast-moving environment. Old-school budgeting methods and rigid planning frameworks fall short when applied to the dynamic nature of cloud operations. Without the right approach, costs can become unclear and planning unreliable, making it harder to seize the benefits and value that cloud-based infrastructure offers.
To maximize value from the cloud, broadcasters need processes and practices that can help them to identify, manage, optimize and gain visibility over their cloud spending. This type of operational framework, known as FinOps (Financial Operations), sets out to bridge the gap between finance, engineering and operations teams, ensuring cloud resources are used efficiently while keeping costs under control. One example of such a framework is AWS’ Cloud Financial Management which is essentially AWS’s set of tools, services and best practices for managing costs in the AWS cloud.
Smarter Planning and Decisions
By building financial visibility into every stage of cloud adoption, from initial migration through to scaling operations, broadcasters can stay ahead of costs rather than constantly uncovering new and unexpected costs. When finance and operational teams are aligned and have a shared understanding of usage and spend, forecasting becomes sharper, and broadcasters are better able to control costs.
With the right tools in place, broadcasters can gain greater visibility over their cloud workflows and track and forecast spending much more efficiently. If teams understand how their decisions and actions impact costs, planning is more effective, smarter decisions follow, and costs can be better managed. Embedding FinOps style practices and tools into cloud operations will help broadcasters to achieve cost efficiency, maximize the return on their cloud investments, and unlock new revenue opportunities.
