NEW YORK—Don’t put that nail in the coffin of broadcast television quite yet. Contrary to a chorus of voices from the connected television and digital sectors, broadcast TV—specifically the local broadcast news—leads other media and platforms in driving the conversations of Americans about the topics of the day.

The finding, one of several underscoring the continued strength of broadcast TV among Americans, comes from a national study of more than 4,000 people conducted by GfK/NIQ for the Television Bureau of Advertising (TVB), the trade association representing U.S. local commercial TV stations.

TVB commissioned the study to learn more about media’s role in influencing conversations. Respondents across demographic groups, political party affiliations, races and ethnicities were also asked about the influence of various media outlets and their platform preferences.

Questions covered include:

• Which medium is the strongest conversation driver—TV, streaming, radio, social media, podcasts or newspapers?
• What are people’s attitudes toward news sources regarding trust, believability, shareability and fake news?
• How do media platforms influence political word-of-mouth?
• How influential are media platforms on word of mouth among those who are in the market for products and services like auto, healthcare, home improvement, legal services, physical fitness, restaurants, retail and travel?
• On which platforms do people prefer to view their sports—linear or streaming?

Researchers found 80% of respondents have daily conversations about topics covered by local broadcast TV station newscasts. TV remains the dominant driver of these conversations, whether they are about the news of the day, local and regional news, weather, sports, traffic or politics when compared to ad-supported streaming platforms, social media, print, radio, podcasts or direct mail.

The study also revealed that among all digital choices, conversations about news of the day are most affected by local TV stations’ websites and apps.

Broadcast TV was also identified as the primary news source among survey takers. Respondents found local broadcast news assets to be the most shareworthy, trustworthy and believable among key age demographics, high-net-worth homes and consumer categories, the survey found.

Social media, though, was regarded as the least trustworthy and believable, as well as the most strongly associated with fake news, per the survey.

Other findings:

• Across key product categories, TV was selected most by respondents as the media that sparks or is referenced in their daily news conversations.
• Across the spectrum of professional and college sports, respondents overwhelmingly chose linear TV over streaming sources as their viewing source.
• Regardless of political affiliation, respondents chose TV as the biggest impact on their daily conversations about news.

Respondents also reported feeling a strong sense of closeness and familiarity with local TV news. This emotional connection to their local stations further reinforces TV’s importance and effectiveness in influencing both personal dialogue and consumer behavior, TVB said.

More information is available on the TVB website.

COVID-19 has caused consumers to dramatically and suddenly adopt new media consumption patterns. And now they are consolidating their choices. Companies in media & entertainment, in turn, are rushing to see where consolidation will occur, and in some cases are attempting to move faster than they would like to beat the competition. This rush to meet the consumer where they’re headed next is already disrupting the industry.

How do consumers choose the right media companies to serve their needs? And how can media organizations understand faster how to be that right choice? In the next decade, we’ll look back at 2020 and the start of 2021 and see how data operations and the advent of enterprise artificial intelligence were the hallmarks of the companies that discovered where their consumers were headed and meet them there.

Here’s why.

A TURNING POINT

Digital media organizations with direct-to-consumer distribution models can collect and monitor viewership data in real time. That’s a vital advantage if we consider the big picture of what the media industry is confronting today. 

Amidst COVID-19 lockdowns and social distancing measures that have severely limited traditional family activities, consumers increasingly look to replace outings to restaurants, concerts and movie theaters, and to keep the kids out of their hair while working from home. 

Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu and other streaming services now complement traditional cable and satellite television. Kids who had been told to stop spending so much time on the screen are now being told to get on the iPad to attend online school and connect with friends remotely to chat, play games and watch content.

As we move into an uncertain future, media consumers won't be looking back; their changed viewing habits are firming up. Across the media spectrum, the Global Web Index found more than 80% of U.S. and U.K. consumers taking in more content since the onset of COVID-19.

People of all ages are looking for news updates in a chaotic period that looks to extend into 2021. But Generation Z is more likely to be listening to music. Younger people are more likely to be engaging with each other through digital games. Millennials are searching for cooking recipes and healthy eating. Each has favored channels to get what they need.

SURVIVAL OF THE FRICTIONLESS

Consumers who rushed to sign up for every streaming service available at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, worried there could not possibly be enough options to keep themselves and their families occupied, now have skyrocketing monthly digital entertainment bills they can no longer justify. 

As PricewaterhouseCoopers recently noted, viewers have started deciding which services have proved more useful than others, and which to jettison. For content providers, it's imperative to get a grip on this fluid situation by analyzing viewership numbers and demographics. 

Effectively tracking how many subscribers have been gained over the past eight months, how many have been lost (and why) and producing accurate predictive models for 2021 and beyond are vital to forming strategies to increase profits, cut costs and stay relevant. 

To do this, media companies need precise tools that can centralize disparate data and derive actionable insight—continuously, and in real time. Data analytics tools must provide a 360-degree view of distribution, and they need to take data from siloed systems of record, add additional data outside of those systems of record and get that into decisionmakers’ hands. Today, this is often accomplished manually or with multiple point solutions, but streamlined intelligence is the better and scalable route.

Without this centralized intelligence, companies can end up overestimating or low-balling viewership, taking too long to recognize the mistake and falling behind in the market rather than driving it. Those slip-ups leave revenue on the table.

EASIER AND FASTER DIGITAL

If deployed correctly, digital solutions provide a logical vehicle for media companies to harvest reliable data at scale and choose wisely which path to follow when presented with the many forks in the road they’ll be sure to encounter in the market. 

These digital solutions include cloud-based business software like revenue auditing software, software that tracks subscriber activity and connects it to revenue and cash flow as well as getting on-premise software that can’t connect with other software and data well.

Essentially, executives want to tag data automatically so they can see how the value of content changes at every step of the process, and how it connects to everything else. Technologists call it a 360-degree view.

For example, if an artist sells rights to distribute their show or music, how do you know it was shown or played when you’re told it was? When you can get that data automatically from the distributor’s system, and check it automatically, that helps. When you can also see how many subscribers signed on when the show was shared on streaming, versus linear television, or what other content was available next to it, you can start to see more value than you did before. These software solutions connect with other software and systems to see how your product’s value changes in the hands of other people.

These data and software solutions can improve efficiency and effectiveness while simultaneously reducing risk exposure. Enterprise AI should be accessible to technical and non-technical business users to arrive at the most accurate and valuable insight. 

With these solutions at hand, media companies will move past retrospective questions about how their business coped with the disruption and dramatic changes caused by COVID-19. They will utilize superior insight to monetize that data in the form of predictive insight and prescriptive recommendations. The smartest will emerge from the current tumult aware of the powerful capabilities to understand and predict consumer behavior.

Let’s take churn. Media companies accept churn as a reality. But what can we understand from churn? Why does a customer leave or come back? If we can comprehend that, the knowledge can be used to reduce customer acquisition cost and win back lost subscribers. Let’s call it “churn learnings.” 

The first step is to normalize data; the second step is to analyze it to capture insights. The third is to use those insights to improve the business, capturing the full value of that data.

Through this, we get closer to answers about which customers are subject to churn and why. Predictive analytics can empower companies to race out ahead of the competition, improving engagement for subscribers according to the content they need and desire. 

The companies that use digital technologies and cloud software that sets the stage for enterprise AI and other advances in the next year will find and keep the customers they earn.

Mark Moeder is CEO of Symphony MediaAI.

LOS ANGELES—SAG-AFTRA, an entertainment industry union whose members include broadcast journalists, offered its condemnation of the storming of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 by rioters and says that the concurrent attacks against members of the media during the riot were fueled by President Donald Trump and other members supporting baseless conspiracy theories.

SAG-AFTRA called the attack “an inevitable result of sustained misinformation campaigns that attempted to discredit journalists while weaving a counter-narrative based on falsehoods.”

During the riot, members of the media were charged, equipment was destroyed and graffiti was left of the door of the Capitol that read “Murder the Media.”

“The reckless rhetoric by some leaders—including many members of Congress who continued to perpetuate lies even after the attack—is damaging the fabric of our nation and costing lives,” SAG-AFTRA’s statement read.

In addition, the union condemned the displays of Confederate flags “and other symbols of white supremacy and hate” that appeared during the riot, calling them attempts to subjugate and terrorize people of color and certain faiths.

Fifteen people have so far been charged with crimes for their involvement in the riot, with the acting U.S. Attorney General Michael Sherwin saying they are looking at “all actors” involved in inciting the riot. 

WASHINGTON—The nation was shocked on Wednesday, Jan. 6, as a group of rioters incited by President Donald Trump’s false accusations of the 2020 election being “rigged” and “stolen” and vitriol against the news media stormed the U.S. Capitol as a joint session of Congress was in the process of certifying the electoral college vote for President-Elect Joe Biden.

Local broadcasters and cable networks provided full coverage of the unprecedented scene. Those on site were also targeted by parts of the mob.

William Turton of Bloomberg posted a video on Twitter that shows the rioters approaching and then attacking members of the media.

Paul McLeod from Buzzfeed News also tweeted on many of the interactions with the media, including the above charge, which he provided quotes from rioters boasting about it. He also posted a photo that showed a noose being made out of a camera cord. After the 6 p.m. curfew that was instituted for Washington D.C. by Mayor Muriel Bowser, McLeod tweeted parts of the mob that were still around the Capitol “chased out a TV crew while threatening and cursing at them.”

A pair of Washington Post video journalists covering the events were also temporarily arrested for being out after the 6 p.m. curfew.

“We are saddened and disheartened by the actions unfolding in our nation’s capital,” said NAB President and CEO Gordon Smith in a statement on the riots. “To the journalists risking their lives to bring this unprecedented scene to Americans across the nation, stay safe and vigilant.”

Four people died during the riots, as well as 14 Metropolitan Police Department Officers were injured, but no reports have indicated that those numbers include anyone from the media.

Away from the scene, many advertisers pulled commercials that were scheduled to air around news coverage, according to Business Insider. Many news broadcasts ran uninterrupted during the events.

Outside of traditional news broadcasts, late night talk shows spent extended time commenting on the tragic events, including an initially unplanned live broadcast of “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.”

Just hours after the Capitol had been breached and Congress and staffs sheltered in place, they returned to the Congress floor and in the early hours of Thursday, Jan. 7, certified the electoral college for President-Elect Joe Biden, who will be inaugurated as the 46th president on Jan. 20.

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y.—A majority of TV viewers believe that the coverage from the media on issues like the ongoing protests over the killing of George Floyd plays a role in perpetuating stereotypes by focusing on the riots, looting and violence that has occurred, according to studies conducted by market research firm Horowitz Research.

Horowitz’s State of Viewing & Streaming 2020 study found that 58% of TV viewers agreed that TV is the best way to get in-depth news and reporting, but an equal percentage of respondents believe that the media plays a very big role in reinforcing stereotypes. The trust in TV news does differentiate between age groups—33% of 18-24 year olds think TV is best source of in-depth news and reporting; that rises to 56% for 25-34 year olds and to 64% for those 35 and older.

“Some networks and media outlets have faced backlash over coverage of the protests, with critics pointing to outlets’ tendency to focus on the negative—the riots, the looting, the violence—rather than empathy with the expression of rage over overt racism and a system that seems to deny that Black lives matter,” said Adriana Waterston, Horowitz’s senior vice president of Insights and Strategy. “For decades, TV news has been one of the primary ways that the American public has stayed informed. Trust, engagement and context, not just viewership, are critical for brands and advertisers. That cultural connection is now the immediate challenge and responsibility for major TV and cable networks to stay relevant.”

The study also found that 68% of viewers say that they feel it is important that the media represent diverse people and communities in the U.S. in ways that challenge and break stereotypes.

Waterston said that young people do not feel that older members of their family who rely heavily on TV news are getting a “well-rounded picture” of the protests, something that young people believe they have through social media platforms.

“Can the major broadcast and cable outlets rise to the challenge of providing truth and perspective and less sensationalism” said Howard Horowitz, president of Horowitz Research.

The State of Viewing and Streaming 2020 study was conducted in March with more than 2,000 TV content viewers.

For more information, visit www.horowitzresearch.com.  

WASHINGTON—(UPDATED 5/14): Media outlets, from TV stations to radio and newspapers, would be eligible for the Paycheck Protection Program as part of an expansion of access to U.S. Small Business Administration loans if a new coronavirus relief plan from the House of Representatives, as well as a similar bill introduced by a bipartisan group in the Senate, is passed. 

The details of the expansion of PPP are as follows:

• It would provide TV and radio broadcasters, as well as newspapers, the same treatment hotels and restaurants received under the original CARES Act PPP, with eligibility based on a physical location basis; 
• It would require a local station to fit within the SBA size standard for the broadcasting industry, or under $41.5 million in revenue annually; and 
• It ensures that expanded PPP funds would remain at the local level through additional oversight

Members on both sides of the aisles in the House and Senate have been calling for additional support for media outlets during the coronavirus pandemic, citing their importance in providing information to communities. Other organizations, like the NAB and National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters were also pushing for expanded government support of broadcast stations.

Some groups, however, like the American Television Alliance, have been wary of giving small business loans to TV stations that are often owned by large conglomerates.

In a statement, NAB President and CEO Gordon Smith thanked members of Congress for their action.

“Hometown broadcasters and community newspapers are providing vital news and information during these unprecedented times to keep families and communities safe, while struggling with record advertising revenue losses,” Smith said. “Broadcasters look forward to working with all members of Congress to ensure that such legislative language is swiftly enacted.”

Smith applauded the work of both the House and Senate.

From content creation to distribution and everything in between, content creators of all sizes require media and entertainment workflows that put top notch media in the hands of consumers.

AWS solutions enable customers to build faster, smarter, and more agile workflows across the entire value chain—reducing constraints, increasing efficiency, and creating opportunities to delight viewers and drive new revenue— across all types of media, including audio, video, text, and images.

Download the eBook, Innovate Quickly, to discover how you can:

• Eliminate traditional capacity and geographic constraints
• Realize the benefits and efficiency of production workflows in VFX, editing, rendering, and asset storage
• Scale storage up and down to better integrate analytics for viewer content personalization
• Enhance broadcast, OTT and D2C and digital publishing distribution
• Experience the value of AWS services – you can watch real-world video case studies from companies such as National Geographic, Untold Studios, Mikros Animation, Universal Music Group, and more

Download Now!

NEW YORK—The average adult in the United States spends 11 hours and 27 minutes per day interacting with media across TV, TV-connected devices, radio, computers and mobile devices, according to Nielsen’s Total Audience Report (Q1, 2019).

This is an increase of 21 minutes since Q1 2018, but while that time comprises nearly half of the day, some simultaneous usage does occur across devices (e.g. texting while watching TV, etc.), Nielsen added.

Overall video consumption on TV’s, computers and mobile devices among U.S. adults averages 5 hours and 46 minutes a day, down 11 minutes from a year ago. Nielsen says this is mainly due to the lack of marquee events like the Winter Olympics.

When it comes to audience reach, traditional linear and time-shifted TV and radio are still the champs, with total TV viewership reaching 86% of U.S. adults and radio reaching 92%.

Connected TVs are a particular growth area for media consumption with viewing increasing 8 minutes daily through either smart TVs or TVs connected with streaming devices. Video viewing on smartphones and tablets grew an average of 5 minutes per day.

The biggest demographic consumer of media is adults 50-64, who spend an average 12 hours and 51 minutes per day. The greatest growth in media consumption was among millennials (18-34), who increased their consumption an average 31 minutes per day across all media, compared to the same period in 2018. This age group spends an average of 1 hour and 22 minutes on TV-connected devices, more than any other age group.

Pay-TV continues to lose subscribers; Nielsen reported the percentage of households with traditional pay-TV in Q1 was down nearly 5 percentage points to 72.9% in June, compared to 77.5% in Q1 June 2018. Virtual MVPDs (Youtube TV, Hulu, Sling TV, etc.) are now streaming into 5.2% of U.S. homes, up from 3.3% in 2018 and over the air homes grew to 13.3% from 13% while broadband only homes grew from 6.2% to 8.5% in 2019.

Portland, Oregon, USA – March 27, 2019 – Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS), an Amazon.com company, today announced the Secure Packager and Encoder Key Exchange (SPEKE), an open, extensible API specification developed to streamline integration of Digital Rights Management (DRM) with encoders, transcoders, and origin servers (encryptors).

Until recently, most integrations required a custom API for each DRM solutions provider and each encryptor, which proved costly and time consuming, and often delayed the launch of new services. SPEKE solves these challenges by providing a standardized method for key exchange between encryptors and DRM systems. It also enables customers to use SPEKE-enabled key servers or encryptors in on-premises, cloud, or hybrid infrastructures. SPEKE is designed for both live and on-demand media workflows.

Built on the DASH Industry Forum’s Content Protection Information Exchange Format (CPIX) standard for key exchange, SPEKE provides a universal, secure way for SPEKE-enabled key servers and encryptors to encrypt content. An API specification supports HLS, MSS and DASH packaging as well as standard DRM platforms, including Apple FairPlay Streaming, Microsoft PlayReady, Google Widevine, AES-128, and proprietary DRMs.

Multiple APN partners already have implemented SPEKE, including AWS, Axinom, castLabs, EZDRM, INKA Entworks, Insys Video Technologies, Intertrust Technologies, Irdeto, Kaltura, NAGRA, NEXTSCAPE, Verimatrix, Viaccess-Orca, VUALTO, and WebStream.

“SPEKE is an exciting development for our industry. Building on the CPIX API, it further improves operational efficiencies and reduces both the time and costs involved in launching OTT services,” said Will Law, founding board member and Vice-Chairman, DASH Industry Forum.

“Prior to SPEKE, integration required a custom API tailored to each DRM solutions provider and each individual encoder, transcoder, and packager,” said Michael Callahan, Head of Media Solutions Marketing at AWS Elemental. “This often resulted in delayed new service launches for customers. SPEKE simplifies DRM integration to a single secure API. Any SPEKE-enabled DRM key server works with any SPEKE-enabled encryptor out of the box without the need for proprietary integration.”

To learn more about how to encrypt live or on-demand media workflows using SPEKE-enabled integrations, please visit the AWS Elemental SPEKE solutions page.

Basingstoke, UK — January 15, 2019 - EditShare a technology leader in intelligent scale-out storage, AQC and media management solutions, announced today that global energy brand BP, has invested in the XStream EFS scale-out storage platform and Flow media asset management to manage the commissioning, producing and publishing of BP-related media projects.

“In its 110-year history, BP has published more than 10,500 films, documentaries, commercials and corporate videos covering a diverse range of topics produced in a wide range of geographic locations all around the world. And until recently, nearly all of the filmmaking was done with external resources. In 2015-2016, the BP Communications and External Affairs team set out to build an internal state-of-the-art production and post-production department that would support the diverse project needs and fast-growing content catalog,” states Steven Croston, head of visual media for BP. “We outgrew our original storage and media management system. We needed a replacement that would give us both the room and production capabilities to allow a fluid workflow supporting both internal teams and external contributors dotted around the world. EditShare proved to be the media-centric platform we required. With embedded production tools and workflow automation, we are able to connect the many moving parts and players across BP’s very dynamic production flows.”

The move to in-house streamlined production processes and reduced budgets. Croston adds, “The net result of the move to internal productions was a 40% savings on budget with zero reduction in the number of projects we could achieve or the quality in which they are produced.” The BP-TV team produces around 80 films per year published inside and outside BP.

The EditShare XStream EFS, Flow and AirFlow provide BP an advanced, fault tolerant shared storage infrastructure with comprehensive media asset management tools that connect BP systems and support remote productions. Serving as the control layer for media, Flow tracks all assets from capture to playback with tools to search, retrieve and assemble content as well as automate processes including migration to and from the BP content archive. The XStream EFS 300 stores all BP content up to 8K resolution including rushes, work in progress and finished productions for distribution. With metadata tracked, assets can be easily searched and retrieved via Flow or AirFlow for production internally or externally.

The installation, which was supported by EditShare reseller gaselec.tv, alleviated multiple pain points for BP. “BP is pushing the envelope when it comes to the range of productions they need to manage and this requires immense versatility with their infrastructure,” comments Tara Montford, managing director, EditShare. “They are producing documentaries, promos, animations, and commercials, and require flexibility in how they manage these projects with potentially hundreds of users all over the planet. This is where EditShare shines; you can manage near endless amount of projects simultaneously, limit user access to only certain projects, and have editors step into a different editing suite in which they were working and pick up a project right where they left off. With automating transcoding, EditShare also gives BP a way to create a mezzanine format and standardize production codecs. This is critical when dealing with content volumes of this magnitude.”

For more information on EditShare XStream EFS, Flow media asset management and AirFlow, please visit www.editshare.com.

About EditShare

EditShare is a technology leader in networked shared storage and tapeless, end-to-end workflow solutions for the post-production, TV and film industries. Our groundbreaking products improve efficiency and workflow collaboration every step of the way. They include video capture and playout servers, high-performance EFS central shared storage, AQC, archiving and backup software, media asset management, and Lightworks – the world’s first three-platform (Windows/OS X/Linux) professional non-linear video editing application.

©2019 EditShare LLC. All rights reserved. EditShare is a registered trademark of EditShare.

Press Contact

Alex Molina
Zazil Media Group
(e) alex@zazilmediagroup.com
(p) +1 (617) 834-9600

Basingstoke, UK — November 7, 2018 - EditShare a technology leader in intelligent scale-out storage, AQC and media management solutions, announced today that the South Korean based global electronics telco and IPTV powerhouse LG U+ has selected EditShare solutions to produce and distribute the highly popular SBS Medianet music program, “The Show”, to its valued subscribers. The advanced EditShare architecture is designed to support the unique LG U+ “omni-view” experience, offering LG U+ subscribers new camera angles not available on traditional TV or OTT viewing options. The cutting-edge media infrastructure features EditShare’s flagship XStream EFS 450 high-availability, scale-out shared storage solution with integrated Flow media asset management as the core platform. EditShare’s new award-winning AQC solution, QScan, facilitates automated quality checks on all content. In addition, eight EditShare Geevs servers, offering up to 32 channels of HD video, manage the coordinated ingest and playout of content. The connected EditShare workflow allows fans of “The Show” to select any of the 16 synchronised live camera streams for a unique viewing experience.

LG U+ has said of the installation, “EditShare provides the exacting media infrastructure and workflow options we need to launch our new service and ensure show content is available to audiences on the platform of their choice. We look forward to a smooth rollout and successful show launch.”

Collaborating with South Korean Broadcaster SBS, LG U+ is innovating content distribution and increasing subscription value-add by offering better access to high-profile shows such as “The Show”. A key component to powering this brand-new service model for LG U+ subscribers, the new EditShare media infrastructure supports a diverse range of viewing habits, from traditional TV to emerging OTT channels and platforms. Spearheading the design and installation is EditShare Partner and systems integrator, EGNet (Expert Group Network).

“The LG U+ team is known for their forward-thinking approach to technology and requiring the very latest to build a world-class media infrastructure and services,” comments JS Ryu, president, EGNet (Expert Group Network). “With EditShare, they are building a robust media foundation in which they can produce and broadcast program content to a multi-generational audience. This means that the 80% of millennials who want their entertainment programs via mobile, can have it, while others can tune in to traditional broadcasts. It's the best of both worlds on a platform that LG U+ can grow with, making their offering even more valuable to their subscribers.”

Program content is accessible in both original and proxy formats via Flow, satisfying the production team’s search and asset management needs. Flow also provides workflow automation capabilities, allowing LG U+ to streamline repetitive and complex production and playout scenarios. QScan guarantees that LG U+ content is compliant with the distribution specifications, giving factual confirmation that content is being aired as planned.

EditShare’s Regional Sales Manager, Paul Hayes, worked with EGNet to satisfy all commercial aspects. “After a grueling proof of concept, we were able to demonstrate the many unique features of EditShare that will streamline the workflow. We were also able to provide a 'no-single point of failure’ storage and asset management architecture, something critical for this type of production.”

For more about EditShare solutions, please visit editshare.com.

About EditShare

EditShare is a technology leader in networked shared storage and tapeless, end-to-end workflow solutions for the post-production, TV, and film industries. Our ground-breaking products improve efficiency and workflow collaboration every step of the way. They include video capture and playout servers, high-performance central shared storage, AQC, archiving and backup software, media asset management, and Lightworks – the world’s first 3-platform (Windows/OS X/Linux) professional non-linear video editing application.

©2018 EditShare LLC. All rights reserved. EditShare® is a registered trademark of EditShare.

Press Contacts

Alex Molina

Zazil Media Group

(e) alex@zazilmediagroup.com

(p) +1 (978) 866 7354

Increasing content volumes, shorter turnaround times, and a growing range of outlets for content are combining to drive media enterprises to look for ways to automate their production workflows. One technology that has begun to bear fruit is Artificial Intelligence, which can be used to streamline repetitive tasks and simplify media operations.

For an in-depth analysis of the survey results, download the whitepaper titled "There's Nothing Artificial About A.I. for Broadcasters".

TV Technology recently completed survey of over 300 media professionals, sponsored by Quantum, that shows artificial intelligence (A.I.) technologies are already in use within the media and entertainment industry. Fully two-thirds of the companies which have tested A.I. have adopted it for one or more tasks. Large media organizations, those with media archives containing over 20,000 hours of content, are particularly enthusiastic adopters of A.I. technology for both metadata creation and automated clip generation and distribution.

Providing appropriate tags for new materials and content that is already stored in media libraries is growing in importance as all types of media organizations seek to maximize the value of content they already own. Quantum Corporation has developed an e-book titled “Applying the Power of AI to Your Video Production Storage” that describes how metadata can be automatically created using on-premises appliances to analyze content housed in object storage. This e-book also explains how to avoid the cost, complexity and potential security risks of uploading content to a public cloud service.

Quantum offers perspective on the value of metadata for locating and using existing video and audio files in a blog post titled “It’s 2020—Why Aren’t You Mining Metadata?” Many media companies have large and growing archives of raw and fully-produced content that can be re-purposed to generate new revenue streams. To unlock the value within these files, metadata is crucial, providing the means to locate clips that are relevant to current events or ones that can be used in new productions. This blog post describes some of the key ways in which content companies can increase their revenues and viewer mindshare by leveraging assets they already own.

At NAB 2017, Quantum showed a new A.I. system in operation that was specifically designed to process large volumes of video contained in object storage owned or operated by media companies. The aiWARE for Xcellis™ product that was demonstrated is described in detail on this web page which also includes links to the product data sheet and other useful reference material.

Additional Resources:

Ebook: Applying the Power of AI to Your Video production Storage

Find out what AI means for the media and entertainment industry, How AI can help your video production workflow and the value of running AI engines on an on-premise appliance. Click here for more.

Webinar: The Future of Artificial Intelligence in Broadcasting

Join TV Technology as they reveal results of a survey on how the M&E industry is deploying A.I. today. Sponsored by Quantum, the survey revealed that two-thirds of the organizations that have tested A.I., have deployed the technology for at least one critical role in their workflow. Find out the applications where A.I. is making a difference in M&E workflows and more.

Watch the webinar here.