Broadcast and media workflows are going through an accelerated period of change in large part as a response to the pandemic. 

Where in-studio workflows were the rule for decades, remote methods of working have emerged. Broadcasters and other M&E Industry professionals have learned firsthand over the past couple of years that it is possible to maintain –and even enhance—productivity when critical members of their production teams work from home or elsewhere.

This situation raises important questions for the media: Where do we go from here? If working remotely offers media enterprises and their workers flexibility and other numerous benefits and doesn’t impinge on productivity, what’s the best strategy for moving forward.

Many are considering a full-on transition to the public cloud and virtualized workflows as the smartest direction. But before making that choice, it’s important to do so only after being fully informed about both its strengths and weaknesses.

A new white paper from Dell and TV Tech examines some of the myths and misunderstandings that have grown up around the public cloud. While a full-on transition may benefit some organizations, others can derive the same types of benefits from on-prem and co-lo alternatives. Click the link to download your copy of this informative white paper.

MIAMI—The Miami Dolphins selected Dell Technologies for new infrastructures that will expand the use of video for fan engagement, safety, and security at Hard Rock Stadium, Dell has announced. 

Using Dell’s unstructured data storage and hyperconverged infrastructure systems, the NFL team estimates it has generated more than $1.2 million in cost savings, which was used to help fund a data recovery site.

The deployment also helped the Miami Dolphins enhance the fan experience through social media and build on its leadership as the No 1. NFL team for branded content video views. Using the Dell Technologies infrastructure solutions, the organization has significantly improved its ability to share content on social media, while also extending the lifespan of its data storage systems from three to five years and reducing both number and footprint of systems at its stadium and training camp, the companies said. 

The NFL team also wanted to improve safety and security at Hard Rock Stadium by modernizing its infrastructure to keep pace with day-to-day requests and handle data distribution internally, including security, video access and use of systems and analytics to organize events. With a new technology foundation in place, the organization said it has strengthened its safety and security systems by being able to better visualize traffic flow and management as well as improving its understanding of pedestrian modeling, Dell said. 

“We’re posting video content of all entertainment content captured at Hard Rock Stadium much faster while helping build excitement and engagement with our fans,” said Kim Rometo, vice president and chief information officer, the Miami Dolphins and Hard Rock Stadium. “Dell Technologies’ solutions provide the foundational environment to give our fans a richer experience by making sure all our IT resources are working most efficiently to give them the information they need when and wherever they need it. With this level of engagement, fans can share game highlights and clips, crowd celebrations, tailgate fun and more – all made easy through their connected journey with us.”

The NFL team worked with Integrated Media Technologies Inc. (IMT), the technology solutions and services provider and Dell Technologies Platinum Partner, to deploy and assess IT systems and workflows to standardized on Dell solutions for all applications, media asset management, safety and security, disaster recovery, data backup and virtualization. In a first of its kind within the NFL, the use of Dell’s hyperconverged systems offered the team a singular view of its IT infrastructure, simplifying the overall environment’s management, the companies said. 

“With Dell Technologies infrastructure, the Miami Dolphins are bringing the fan experience to a new level while transforming IT operations,” said John Byrne, president of North America Sales, Dell Technologies. “Moreover, this is only the beginning. Fueled by best-in-class technology, the legendary Dolphins organization and Hard Rock Stadium will continue to innovate how they bring the ultimate NFL experience to fans – safely and securely, no matter where they’re interacting with their favorite team.” 

The deployments were prompted by the organization’s plan to host Super Bowl LIV in 2020, when it realized that its prior IT infrastructure was becoming more complex to manage while running out of speed, flexibility and storage capacity. 

Located in hurricane-prone Florida, the organization also needed a more robust disaster recovery strategy, Dell said. 

With Dell Technologies infrastructure, including Dell EMC PowerScale storage systems, Dell EMC DataIQ software, Dell EMC VxRail hyperconverged infrastructure and Dell EMC PowerProtect DD systems for data backup and recovery, the Miami Dolphins were able to deliver a more powerful game-day and social media experience, improve stadium security and speed up the process for retail purchases, which shortened lines and assisted with crowd control, Dell said. 

With Dell EMC PowerScale as additional storage for the VxRail systems, the Miami Dolphins have also deployed an integrated, high-performance system for video editing and cost-efficient storage for video assets, collaboration and archiving. This approach has helped the Miami Dolphins transform IT operations to increase overall efficiency, Dell said. 

“The IMT Advanced Consulting plan for the Miami Dolphins project included examining their unique needs for sports production,” said Jason Kranitz, president, Systems Integration, IMT. “By having the right plan in place and the right technology partner in Dell Technologies, IMT was able to help the Miami Dolphins virtualize their media asset management software with centralized VxRail and PowerScale solutions.”

Looking to the future, the Miami Dolphins are working with other NFL teams that are reviewing its IT modernization design as a model implementation, the companies said. 

More information on the deployment is available here and a video of the effort is available here.  

PARIS, MIAMI, SINGAPORE—Ateme, Dell and Intel have teamed up to create the Titan, a 4K-UHD and HD transcoding system that addresses the broadcast industry density standard.

The Titan is a combination of Ateme’s video compression skills, Intel’s Video Compute Accelerator PCIe card, and Dell’s optimized hardware. It delivers 200 HD channels in a 1RU server, with 5W per channel. The system delivers high video quality at minimum bit-rates for DTH, DTT, cable and OTT. Based on Ateme’s fifth generation Stream compression engine, the Titan utilizes Intel and Dell’s infrastructure with support for high-efficiency MPEG2, H.264 and HEVC.

Dell is currently showing the Titan at its booth (Hall 3 stand 3K30) at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain.