Delivering immersive live events, whether it’s the thrill of the Olympics’ 100-meter sprint or the suspense of an awards ceremony, while simultaneously meeting sustainability goals, is no easy feat. Broadcasters are rising to this challenge by leveraging cutting-edge technologies and innovative production methods. Today’s audiences expect nothing less than best-in-class coverage, and the recent summer of sports presented broadcasters with the dual challenge of delivering high-quality live content, while adhering to stringent sustainability standards.
Amagi – Embracing cloud technology for a sustainable future
Like many others, the broadcast industry is facing increasing pressure to reduce its environmental impact. While essential for delivering high-quality content, traditional on-premises infrastructure often consumes significant energy and resources. This is due to several factors, including a few that I will be discussing below.
Agile Content – How TVaaS empowers telcos and ISPs to seamlessly enter the TV market
In the ever-evolving and highly competitive telecommunications landscape, delivering high-quality TV services has become a critical factor for success. However, for Tier 2 and Tier 3 telcos and Internet Service Providers (ISPs), entering the TV service market presents a daunting challenge. The obstacles are numerous, ranging from limited infrastructure and technical expertise to significant capital investment requirements. Building and maintaining a robust TV platform demands not only substantial financial resources but also continuous content management and the agility to respond to rapidly changing consumer preferences. For many smaller telcos and ISPs, these challenges result in either subpar TV services or an inability to offer these services at all. Studies have consistently shown that households with bundled TV and internet services exhibit significantly higher retention rates compared to those with standalone services. For instance, a recent report by Deloitte revealed that 40% of consumers are more likely to stay with their current provider if they are satisfied with their TV service. This customer retention is crucial for smaller telcos and ISPs operating in a saturated market, where competition is fierce and customer loyalty can be hard to secure. Offering a compelling service can act as a significant differentiator, helping these companies retain customers who might otherwise switch to competitors offering more comprehensive service packages.
Blue Lucy – It’s time to hit refresh on the product roadmap
We’re always being asked about our roadmap for BLAM, when really what most people want to know is what features or integrations we’ve got planned. And if you think that’s the same thing, think again.
What is the Cloud? Surprisingly a question still asked today
It’s 2024 and I (wrongly) assumed that the ‘cloud’ was a well understood concept. That said, one of the top Google trends on the cloud is still surprisingly questions like “what is cloud computing?” and “the cloud”, and it shows that what I thought has long been common knowledge might still need some ‘clarification’.
In addition, I have had some ‘interesting’ conversations with some production companies and studios that also suggest that the cloud still is not well understood. Without mentioning any names, one of the funniest conversations I had recently was with a producer who informed me it was company “policy” not to use the internet or cloud, and yet the entire business was entirely dependent on cloud hosted SaaS services like Google Drive!? When I (politely) challenged this, they went on to explain how their files were on their computer, not in the ‘cloud’ (despite having shared links to these files with me via Google Drive and other cloud services). It was conversations like these that inspired me to write a course on the cloud for the IABM. Given that this is still happening, I thought it worth a super-simple summary of what the cloud is in this article.
Tedial – Navigating the complexities and unpredictability of media operations
The landscape of the media industry has undergone a remarkable transformation, fueled by the rapid evolution of software technology and the proliferation of omnichannel streaming platforms. The swift advancements in digital cloud technology are placing considerable strain on applications and solutions vendors within the Media and Entertainment (M&E) market.
The unease is evident when communicating that media operations are inherently intricate and unpredictable. Anyone claiming simplicity or ease has likely not experienced the challenges present in the real-world scenario. This scenario is not novel; a similar shift occurred over a decade ago in more established IT markets, such as health, finance, and retail. During that time, vendors justified shortcomings and high budgets by emphasizing the inherent complexities of supply chains.
To expedite digital transformation in the M&E market, software technology vendors must embrace best practices and tools developed in more mature IT markets. This entails adopting no-code solutions that ensure interoperability, scalability, resilience, and security.
Synamedia – Why flexing your business agility muscles with SaaS matters
Headbands and sweatbands. Legwarmers and leotards. Step aerobics and jazzexercise. Fitness trends come and go but looking after customers’ needs and keeping an organization in good shape is always in vogue.
Times are tough for the media and entertainment industry. Alongside the ongoing debate about the death of linear and Pay-TV, there is growing unease about the underlying economics of streaming – especially for sports – with subscription income flatlining and high churn rates continuing as end-users evaluate whether they are getting value for money.
Keeping up with the industry’s relentless pace of change and staying competitive by scouting out ways to lower total cost of ownership while adding new monetization features to keep the balance sheet healthy have never been more critical.
Zixi – Factors contributing to the TCO of streaming at scale
In the dynamic world of video streaming, media organizations are constantly seeking efficient and cost-effective solutions to manage their large-scale implementations. One of the key metrics that has to be met to validate any purchase decisions is Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). And, like Maslov’s famous Hierarchy of Needs, TCO analysis must start with foundational requirements.
MediaKind – Is the cloud a no-brainer for broadcasters today? It’s not as simple as that…
Broadcasters and telecommunications companies are facing a seismic shift. The traditional powerhouses of Pay-TV services and over-the-air broadcast television are witnessing a change in viewing as consumers increasingly gravitate towards subscription and ad-supported streaming video. This progressively changes the balance of the importance between traditional and streaming services, even from the same provider. The shift demands a re-evaluation of media supply chains and infrastructures, leading many broadcasters to contemplate a move to the cloud.
MainConcept – Can ad-funded services reinstate the golden age of streaming?
In the early days of streaming, subscription costs were low, and viewers were spoilt for choice by series after endless series of top-quality content – think House of Cards, Orange is the New Black and Stranger Things to name just a few. It was this promise of low costs and a seemingly never-ending stream of top-quality content that helped to entice consumers away from cable TV. The steady growth in subscriber numbers allowed for an unprecedented number of new shows to be ordered, which in turn helped to bolster growth. Many dubbed this the era of Peak TV. Streaming services reached record breaking subscriber numbers in 2020 as a result of the pandemic. Netflix reportedly added an extraordinary 36 million subscribers in that period which led it to pass the 200 million mark for the first time.