DENVER—MediaKind has announced the successful completion of its merger with Harmonic’s video business, creating an independent video infrastructure company with more than $250 million in annual revenue.

The integrated portfolio went live at mediakind.com on June 17.

MediaKind reported that the combined company enters the market with more than $100 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR), and over $150 million in annual appliance revenue. Bringing together complementary strengths across SaaS streaming, appliance platforms and cloud video technologies, MediaKind said that it serves a global blue-chip customer base and is uniquely positioned to help the media industry navigate the next era of streaming and video delivery.

“Bringing these two teams together under one roof is a powerful moment, creating a stronger, more capable partner for the media industry at a time of significant change.” said Allen Broome, CEO of MediaKind. “Outstanding technology, deep expertise, and a shared obsession with customer success — we’re ready to build something exceptional.”

To coincide with the merger, MediaKind has launched its new website. Visitors can now explore how the company is bringing together cloud-native software, SaaS services, and proven video infrastructure into a single, integrated offering at www.mediakind.com.

During the 2026 NAB Show, MediaKind will be showing attendees how its cloud-native Multiview capabilities continue to scale across North America, with recent deployments highlighting growing usage across major live sports events.

Charter recently launched Multiview for the 2026 NCAA basketball tournaments, enabling customers to watch multiple games simultaneously. Adoption grew rapidly during March Madness, with hundreds of thousands of Multiview viewing hours delivered within days of launch.

The Charter rollout builds on earlier deployments with Comcast, where Multiview was first introduced ahead of the 2024-25 NFL season. Initially launched as a curated experience, the service enabled X1 customers to watch up to six live games on a single screen.

Since then, MediaKind has expanded its Multiview capabilities through its MK.IO cloud platform, now reaching more than 20 million subscribers across North America. The platform dynamically combines well over 1,000 live regional channels and has delivered tens of millions of viewing hours to date.

Multiview will also be explaining how it has evolved its offering from predefined layouts to more flexible, user-driven experiences. Comcast’s “Create Your Own Multiview”, introduced in late 2025, allows viewers to select layouts and dynamically combine live streams in real time.

During the show, MediaKind will discuss the development of Multiview further, including the evolution of “Create Your Own Multiview”, at the NAB Show Streaming Summit (#W209-W212) on Monday April 20 (2.45-3.45pm) in a session featuring MediaKind CEO, Allen Broome, alongside Joe Krell, VP Engineering, Comcast.

Mediakind will be exhibiting in the Las Vegas Convention Center from April 19 to 22 at Booth W1743

COLUMBIA, MD—LTN and MediaKind today announced a strategic partnership to tightly integrate MediaKind’s MK.IO Beam on-premise devices with the LTN Network, combining advanced edge video processing with LTN’s global IP transport infrastructure.

The integration connects MediaKind’s MK.IO Beam devices directly to the LTN Network, enabling reliable, redundant transmission of compressed video transport streams — for both contribution and distribution. The companies said the end result will be the delivery of a seamless path from high-availability IP distribution to on-premise content processing at scale.

The partnership comes at a pivotal moment as satellite-based C-Band distribution options continue to decline. With the FCC scheduled to auction off the remaining C-Band spectrum by 2027, programmers and content distributors, particularly in mid- and small-size headend markets, are seeking solutions that match the reliability of traditional C-Band while delivering faster deployment and improved cost efficiency.

“As the industry accelerates its shift away from satellite distribution, programmers and content distributors need IP solutions that deliver the same reliability, with greater flexibility and speed,” said Malik Khan, executive dhairman and co-founder of LTN. “Our integration with MediaKind brings advanced content processing directly to the edge of the LTN Network, enabling customers to deploy faster, operate more efficiently, and confidently scale their IP distribution plans.”

Enabling Direct, Redundant Connectivity at the Edge
Through the integration, MK.IO Beam devices can connect directly into the LTN Network, extending LTN’s multicast and multipath IP delivery capabilities to the edge. This enables multipath delivery over dual redundant IP connections, automatic “steering” of last-mile traffic to the best available LTN Network access node, and reliable, managed transport for both sending and receiving compressed video streams.

At the same time, the LTN Network gains streamlined access to MediaKind’s edge processing capabilities, allowing customers to transcode, multiplex, and transform content directly on-prem — ideal for source- or destination-specific processing requirements.

“The industry is under growing pressure to modernize distribution workflows without sacrificing performance,” said Shahar Bar, senior vice president, Products & Marketing at MediaKind. “By integrating MK.IO Beam directly with the LTN Network, we combine advanced software-based video processing with a highly reliable IP transport backbone—enabling faster deployments, greater operational agility, flexible cloud economics including monthly or hourly pay-as-you-go models, and a seamless transition away from legacy satellite infrastructure.”

Faster Deployment and Simplified Edge Operations
The companies say the partnership significantly accelerates IP distribution and contribution rollout timelines. Any MK.IO Beam device can now be quickly provisioned onto the LTN Network, shortening deployment cycles for contribution and distribution workflows, particularly in environments where time, infrastructure constraints, or cost sensitivity are critical.

For existing LTN customers, the integration enables content transformation at the edge, by simplifying custom encoding for regional or affiliate requirements, multiplexing for cable headends, and destination-specific processing handled locally.

By combining managed IP transport with on-prem video processing, programmers and content distributors can reduce infrastructure complexity while maintaining high reliability, they said.

DENVER—MediaKind, a global provider of cloud-based video streaming technology announced today that it is acquiring the video business of Harmonic Inc. for approximately $145 million. The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2026, subject to customary regulatory approvals and closing conditions, MediaKind said.

The acquisition comes two years after Harmonic announced its plans to put its video business on the block. Although at the time, the company had been seeing a decline in the revenues of its video division, recently it has seen steady growth driven largely by its video SaaS service, which reported record revenues of $16.1 million in its most recent quarter.

Harmonic entered the video business with the acquisition of Omneon, a provider of storage and transcoding technology in 2010. MediaKind was rebranded from Ericsson Media Solutions in 2018.

MediaKind says the transaction will create “a world-class independent SaaS streaming infrastructure provider by combining two established video technology organizations with complementary strengths in SaaS streaming, appliance platforms, and cloud AV workloads.

It says the combined company will serve a blue-chip customer base, generate more than $100 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR), over $150 million in annual appliance revenue, and, as a business 100% focused on video, create an enhanced foundation for long-term growth. The company adds that it expects the transaction is expected “to strengthen financial and operational stability, giving customers greater confidence in the continuity and reliability of their video-infrastructure partner as the market evolves.”

“This combination would represent a meaningful step forward in our long-term strategy and reflect our commitment to supporting customers with enhanced product solutions,” said Allen Broome, CEO of MediaKind. “By joining Harmonic’s Video Business with MediaKind, we would strengthen our ability to invest across our entire portfolio, led by an expanded and complementary research and development platform that will significantly accelerate innovation. Together, we would create the leading independent streaming infrastructure company, giving customers a stronger, more reliable partner to power the future of video.”

Nimrod Ben-Natan, president and chief executive officer of Harmonic added, “This strategic transaction will, if completed, advance the growth strategies of both companies. It would allow Harmonic to zero in on its core Broadband segment, while ensuring the Video Business, its customers and dedicated employees become part of an organization committed to the future of video delivery. We are incredibly proud of our Video team’s accomplishments and look forward to the next chapter of this business’s growth under MediaKind.”

DENVER—MediaKind has announced that it is working with Accedo to deliver a pre-integrated, ready-to-deploy Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) streaming solution designed for today’s digital-first audiences.

The new D2C solution combines MediaKind’s self-serve cloud video platform, MK.IO, with Accedo’s flexible front-end applications to deliver a faster, simpler route to market.

“This partnership unites two trusted leaders in premium streaming,” said Andrew Payson, vice president of corporate development at MediaKind. “With MK.IO powering a robust cloud video infrastructure and feature-rich backend, and Accedo delivering flexible, engaging user experiences, we’re enabling media brands to launch, scale, and evolve standout streaming services faster and with greater simplicity.”

The two companies described the key benefits of the joint offering as follows:

• Proven with leading global brands – trusted by top sports, media, and entertainment providers worldwide
• Lower total cost of ownership – pre-integrated workflows reduce cost and complexity
• Faster time to market – launch premium streaming services in just weeks
• Stronger subscriber loyalty – seamless, high-quality experiences minimize churn
• Future-ready user experiences – a feature-rich backend combined with flexible front-end apps delivers a modern, scalable solution

"Our partnership with MediaKind delivers a foundation of technical and operational excellence that the market is looking for,” said Luke Gaydon, Head of Offering & Portfolio Management at Accedo. “Both Accedo and MediaKind have a proven track record of driving growth for some of the best-known brands in Media & Entertainment, Sports, and Pay TV. We are excited about creating new experiences together that help our customers achieve their key business outcomes, whether that’s increasing revenues, reducing TCO, or combating subscriber churn."

The joint solution is available immediately and will be showcased at IBC2025.

For more information, visit the MediaKind (1.D71) or Accedo (5.F80) booth during IBC2025, or head to www.mediakind.com and www.accedo.tv.

DENVER, Colo.—Sports entertainment platform DAZN relied on the MediaKind MK.IO elastic, cloud-native streaming platform to support high-quality streaming of the FIFA Club World Cup 2025, which concluded last month.

DAZN held the exclusive global broadcast rights to the inaugural tournament, which featured 32 of the world’s top soccer clubs competing in 63 matches across 12 stadiums in the U.S. and was streamed live to hundreds of millions of viewers in more than 200 markets.

The tournament was the first major live sporting event DAZN streamed with its newly deployed, multiregion MK.IO service from MediaKind.

MediaKind was DAZN’s exclusive cloud-based live event delivery partner on Azure. With its API-first design, real-time adaptability and cloud elasticity, MK.IO enabled DAZN to deliver consistently low-latency, broadcast-quality video at scale, regardless of geography, platform or device, the company said.

“Broadcasting the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 to soccer fans around the world requires reliability and agility,” James Pearce, senior vice president of broadcast and streaming at DAZN, said. “MK.IO supported DAZN in scaling effortlessly, adapting in real time and delivering a seamless streaming experience. The service simplified our operations and helped us make world-class soccer more accessible than ever across all devices to fans worldwide with complete confidence.”

MK.IO allowed DAZN to orchestrate end-to-end video workflows from ingest to playback while dynamically scaling in response to match schedules and peak global demand. The upgrade to MK.IO has assisted DAZN’s growth and unified operations and delivery on a scalable, resilient and cloud-agnostic service.

In addition to supporting the tournament, DAZN has also selected MediaKind’s cloud-connected technology as the sole solution for its 24/7 linear channel processing. The initial deployment supports 40 channels and runs on-prem on DAZN’s own infrastructure, with additional scaling planned, it said.

More information is available on the company’s website.

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind has announced the promotion of Cory Zachman to Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and the appointment of Shahar Bar as Senior Vice President, Product & Marketing.

Since joining MediaKind in March 2020, Zachman has been instrumental in developing and deploying next-generation cloud-native streaming solutions, including the Multiview offering for live event viewing. In his new role as CTO, he will now lead the company’s R&D, operations, and support teams to accelerate the evolution of scalable content delivery, AI-powered video optimization, and accessible, next-generation streaming services.

“I am excited to take on this new role at MediaKind and lead our talented team in solving the most pressing challenges in live and on-demand streaming today,” Zachman said. “Our focus is built on innovating, creating better products that solve problems and making media technology simpler, and more efficient than ever before. I look forward to continuing our work across our cloud-native portfolio as we create more advanced, reliable and accessible streaming solutions that empower content owners, operators and sports leagues worldwide.”

Bar, Mediakind’s new SVP, Product & Marketing, spent 25 years with Harmonic, playing a key role in transitioning the company’s traditional video division into a SaaS model that surpassed $50 million in annual recurring revenue, the company said. At MediaKind, Bar will lead the product and marketing teams, focusing on accelerating product roadmaps, go-to-market strategies, and driving global expansion.

“Having worked as a consultant with the MediaKind team over the past year, I am energized by the opportunity to drive innovation and tackle the complex business transformation challenges our customers face today in the streaming space," Bar said. "With my background in product evolution and large-scale SaaS transitions, I look forward to working closely with the Leadership Team to strengthen our global market position, accelerate growth and deliver best-in-class media solutions.”

“With the strategic appointments of Cory and Shahar, we are significantly strengthening the expertise of the MediaKind leadership team,” said Allen Broome, CEO, MediaKind. “Cory’s technical vision and leadership in cloud-native innovation will drive the next phase of our technology strategy, positioning us at the forefront of live and on-demand streaming. Shahar’s deep expertise in product strategy, commercial execution. and market growth will enhance our ability to deliver powerful, customer-centric media solutions. Together, they will strengthen our position as a trusted partner that’s committed to delivering unbeatable experiences and sustained value to our customers worldwide.”

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind is expanding its MK.IO Platform to Amazon Web Services (AWS), making it easy for media, sports and entertainment brands to launch high-quality streaming applications, the company said.

MK.IO Platform is now built to run on AWS’s global infrastructure, offering flexible deployment options and enabling content to deliver premium streaming experiences at scale.

MK.IO offers high-quality video experiences, monetization options and audience-engagement tools, enabling brands to deploy, scale, innovate and engage audiences globally within their preferred cloud ecosystem. The platform will be available on AWS Marketplace by the end of 2024.

“Our mission is to empower creators, developers and brands to redefine streaming for a global audience,” MediaKind CEO Allen Broome said. “Providing MK.IO Platform on AWS strengthens that mission by making MediaKind’s trusted solutions accessible to even more of the media community. Clients can now deliver groundbreaking content that drives fan loyalty, knowing their revenue streams are protected by a future-ready architecture.”

MK.IO Platform on AWS offers:

• Premium quality streaming, guaranteeing flawless video for live and on-demand content, ensuring uninterrupted experiences and unmatched performance during major global events.
• Advanced monetization tools that help brands maximize their fan base with dynamic ad placements, promotions, interactive banner ads and subscriptions, enabling hybrid monetization strategies.
• Integrated innovation ecosystem with MediaKind partnering with leading tech innovators to provide seamless access to the latest in app development, AI workflows and monetization tools.

Enhanced live sports contributions via MediaKind’s Beam, part of the MK.IO offering, offering real-time, programmable edge nodes for audience engagement.

MK.IO is the most recent step in MediaKind’s work with AWS. Through a pay-as-you-go model, customers can begin to use innovative media technology without the need for upfront integration costs. Seamless integration with AWS tools like Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (EKS) and Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3), along with built-in digital rights management (DRM) and security features, ensures an efficient, secure and high-quality viewing experience with the best video quality available, the company said.

For more information is available on the company’s website.

NEW YORK—MediaKind has announced it is expanding its streaming tech lineup by working with Skreens Technology to launch an advanced Multiview solution that enhances live-event viewing experiences.

The new solution combines Skreens’ content compositing technology with MediaKind’s MK.IO streaming platform to offer broadcasters, operators, OTT service providers and content owners the ability to deliver multiple simultaneous video feeds, giving viewers more control and flexibility in how they watch live content, the companies said.

“With the new Multiview solution, MediaKind is taking live event viewing to the next level,” MediaKind Senior Vice President of Engineering Cory Zachman said. “By integrating Skreens’ technology, we’re enabling broadcasters, operators and OTT providers to offer more dynamic, customizable content experiences to their audiences—unlocking new levels of engagement and interaction.”

The solutions allow audiences for sports, esports, or live events to toggle between multiple camera angles or streams, enjoying a personalized viewing experience on any device.

“The future of viewing experiences lies in the personalization of live content, particularly in sports,” Mark Todd, CEO and co-founder of Skreens, said. “Our partnership with MediaKind leverages Skreens' patented live multiview personalization technology, combining two innovative platforms. This collaboration not only enhances our customers’ offerings with dynamic new features, but also opens up exciting monetization opportunities.”

Key features of MediaKind's Multiview solution include:

• Enhanced Viewer Experience: Audiences can personalize multiple live streams by seamlessly switching between camera angles and feeds as well as choosing audio feeds. This makes the solution perfect for sports, live events and other interactive experiences.
• Cross-Platform Support: The Multiview experience is accessible on a wide range of devices, from smart TVs to mobile phones, ensuring platform/device choice is not a barrier for viewers.
• Seamless Deployment: MediaKind leverages Skreens’ server-side compositing technology to deliver Multiview as a single stream, requiring no changes to existing infrastructure. This means even low-powered devices can support the experience without additional upgrades.
• Pay-as-You-Go Model: Tailored for live-event broadcasts, Multiview operates on a pay-as-you-go basis, aligning costs with live event schedules, promoting further flexibility for viewers as well as keeping the solution cost-effective.

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind launched new services at IBC 2024, which concluded Sept. 16, within its MK.IO platform to streamline live event workflows from the edge to the cloud.

The capabilities include Fleet Management, Flow Control and AI Automation. With MK.IO Beam edge processing, the new services create a programmable media network that allows producers to manage diverse live workflows on a per-event basis, thereby reducing the complexity and cost of live production and in-venue operations, MediaKind said.

The solution addresses the rising complexity of managing an increasing number of video feeds, camera views, diverse data inputs and formats. Sports venues, in particular, are increasingly using digital video to enhance experiences for spectators, referees and athletes. Traditional production methods rely on stacks of single-purpose hardware that can drive up infrastructure costs, slow integration and require extensive staff training, it said.

Programmable media networks offer a solution by allowing operators a way to rethink how they approach live events. A programmable media network enables them to set up a contribution network with just a few words and use the same infrastructure to stream every camera angle to the public during an event, it said.

MediaKind’s approach enables operators to reprogram live workflows on a per-event basis, eliminating the need for significant infrastructure investments or lengthy setup times. The same infrastructure can support content contribution, distribution, in-venue streaming, replays and even expand to new applications leveraging real-time data from the venue, it said. 

MediaKind’s MK.IO enables programmable media networks with its MK.IO Beam and Fleet Management, a containerized software solution running on commercial off-the-shelf servers that delivers flexible, reprogrammable edge video processing. Managed through MK.IO’s unified cloud control plane, Beam devices can easily be upgraded, configured and monitored across the entire production network, it said.

MK.IO Flow Control and AI-Assisted Automaton is an intuitive API that streamlines feeds and workflow management allowing operators to define network feeds with a few mouse clicks. It automatically routes, configures and processes content. A natural language interface enables operators to set up, monitor and manage workflows without the need for advanced knowledge, it said.

More information is available on the company’s website.

FRISCO, TEXAS—MediaKind has formed a strategic partnership with ThinkAnalytics to bring advanced AI-powered content discovery and advertising solutions to MediaFirst TV Platform users. 

The integration of the Think360 suite will enhance MediaFirst’s existing core recommendation engine with best-in-class AI-driven functions. As the battle for viewer engagement intensifies—driven by the rapid expansion of streaming platforms, app-based services and super-aggregation—the partnership empowers MediaKind customers to deliver standout user experiences, the company said.

Key benefits include: 

• Enhanced content discovery and cutting-edge personalization: AI-driven recommendations and content discovery improve user engagement, reduce churn, and increase Customer Lifetime Value (CLV). 
• Natural Language Search: ThinkVoice enables users to discover content intuitively with advanced voice search features. 
• Targeted Advertising: ThinkAdvertising combines first-party data with actionable audience insights, delivering precision-targeted ads that align with MediaKind’s Prisma technology. 

"This partnership takes our MediaFirst TV Platform to the next level. By integrating ThinkAnalytics’ advanced AI tools, we’re delivering more than just recommendation services, we're empowering MediaFirst customers with a foundation for long-term innovation, making content more accessible and advertising more relevant,” said Ashish Patel, president of operator platforms at MediaKind. “These new features enhance their ability to rapidly test and adapt, making data-driven decisions to optimize streaming services, while delivering an enriched user experience that will ultimately increase retention and monetization." 

ThinkAnalytics’ Think360 suite enables operators to run A/B tests, make real-time adjustments and implement new strategies without expensive development. In-depth analytics from ThinkInsight allows operators to measure UI performance and optimize their content strategy, while editorial tools and flexible balancing of content sources allow users to find exactly what they want, even as content libraries and super-aggregated services continue to expand, the company said.

MediaKind’s Patel and ThinkAnalytics' Peter Docherty will present during the "Innovation through Strategic Partnerships in PayTV" IBC Showcase, Friday, Sept. 13, at 2:45 p.m. during IBC 2024, Sept. 13-16, at the RAI Amsterdam Convention Center. They will be joined by Evergent CEO Vijay Sajja and Bitmovin chief architect Igor Oreper to discuss the impact of these collaborations on customer success. 

More information is available on the MediaKind and ThinkAnalytics websites

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind will introduce a new AI-assisted approach to live events that enhances operational efficiency and scalability by automating routine tasks at IBC 2024, Sept. 13-16, at the RAI Amsterdam Convention Center.

MediaKind’s product portfolio empowers international sports leagues, broadcasters, content owners and smaller enterprises to deliver business-critical video services with the same quality and reliability that powers the world’s most-watched live events.   

At IBC 2024, the company will show:

• MK.IO: MediaKind's SaaS platform designed to manage the complexities of live and on-demand streaming at any scale.  
• MK.IO Beam: An edge processing solution for live video contribution, production and distribution, MK.IO Beam enables operators to deliver pristine live video while optimizing production and delivery costs. 
• MK.IO Platform: A comprehensive OTT streaming platform that enhances fan experiences through exceptional video quality and interactivity, while supporting a wide range of monetization strategies. 
• MediaFirst: MediaKind's pay TV platform offering live, VOD and cloud DVR services with advanced analytics and monetization options and delivering personalized viewing experiences across all devices.

“Our recent achievements have positioned MediaKind as a leader in delivering broadcast-quality video experiences,” said Allen Broome, CEO of MediaKind. “At IBC 2024, we’re excited to showcase how our solutions benefit from the latest AI innovations and discuss how we can help our customers captivate their audiences, enhance content value, and simplify their operations.”

The company also will participate in speaking opportunities and panel sessions at IBC 2024, including:

Innovation through Strategic Partnerships in the PayTV domain

Location: Showcase Theatre, Friday, Sept.13, at 2:45 p.m. 

Speakers: Ashish Patel, president, Operator Platforms, MediaKind; Vijay Sajja, founder   and CEO, Evergent Technologies; Igor Oreper, chief strategy officer, Bitmovin; Peter Docherty, founder and CTO, ThinkAnalytics. 

 Advances in Video Encoding—encoder optimizations and film grain 

Location: IBC Conference, Conference Room 2, Sunday, Sept. 15, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.

Speakers: Julien Le Tanou, video research manager, MediaKind; Abdul Rehman, chief product officer, IMAX; Vignesh V Menon, postdoctoral researcher, Fraunhofer HHI.  

 Harnessing AI in live video applications 

Location: Innovation Theatre, Sunday Sept. 15, 2:45 p.m.

Speakers: Amit Tank, head of solution architecture, MediaKind. 

See MediaKind at IBC 2024 Stand 1.D71.

More Information is available on the company's website.

• Empty list

At this year’s NAB Show, the almost child-like excitement around AI revealed a collective belief in its transformative potential for our industry. The AMPLIFY bar in the West Hall, for example, was abuzz with discussions on AI's promise to change how content is created, delivered, and consumed. 

A May 2024  McKinsey report showed that 65% of the organizations it surveyed actively use generative AI, and this number has doubled over the previous 12 months. The question for media organizations is not about whether they should use AI - but how they should do so effectively.

As the media landscape evolves, content owners, broadcasters, and streamers must adapt to these changes to stay relevant and competitive. Understanding and implementing AI is no longer optional—it's essential. Treating AI as an integral component of operations can enhance content value, increase monetization, and improve operational efficiency. It offers powerful solutions to pressing business challenges, opening new avenues for growth and enabling a competitive edge.

Viewers Expect Personalized Experiences; Creatives Require FreedomThe shift towards streaming and video-on-demand has rendered traditional content delivery and monetization methods increasingly inadequate. AI provides the tools necessary to navigate this complex media environment, addressing critical issues and enhancing viewer engagement. 

According to data from Google Cloud, 81% of viewers expect streaming services to provide highly personalized experiences.  Making content more engaging and stickier helps build viewer loyalty, ensuring that audiences return time and again. Tailoring content to individual preferences is not a luxury; it’s necessary to retain viewers and stay competitive. 

AI’s ability to analyze viewer data and offer customized recommendations is key to meeting these expectations and reducing viewer churn. Tailoring content to individual preferences is not a luxury; it’s necessary to retain viewers and stay competitive. AI’s ability to analyze viewer data and offer customized recommendations is key to meeting these expectations and reducing viewer churn.

Today, AI can enhance the value of content, expand metadata coverage in archives, and much more. AI can also reduce manual operational costs, but this does not fully alleviate the wider pressures facing media businesses, which includes fully optimizing their workflows. 

Traditional processes like video editing, highlights packages, metadata generation, and quality control are often time-consuming and labor-intensive. AI can streamline these operations, allowing more resources to be allocated to strategic initiatives that drive revenue growth and innovation—often by using a hybrid approach with AI providing a first pass, with human creativity used to verify and be creative. Automating repetitive tasks with AI frees creative talent to focus on what they do best - enhancing the overall production process. 

AI Has Been Around for a While...What’s Different Now?
Traditional AI in the media technology space focused on applying machine learning (ML), which uses training data to enable systems to learn, improving from experience without being explicitly programmed for each task. This enabled better processing enhancements for efficient video encoding, dynamic resource allocation, super-resolution upscaling of video, and fast data analysis to derive predictions that can be fed into recommendations or customer care platforms. While ML has improved efficiency and quality, generative AI technology is set to have an even greater impact on the future of media. 

Generative AI, which essentially mimics human intelligence, enables radical innovation and a level of speed and quality in output that ML alone can rarely achieve. For example, AI-driven content translation and localization, with careful tailoring of instructions can produce stunning translated commentary. 

Commentary that retains the original speaker’s tone and timbre but with the intonation and grammar of a different language, all while preserving the ambiance and background of the stadium! This capability could allow media companies to connect with diverse audiences by offering content in multiple languages and enhancing accessibility. It ultimately comes down to audience preference: viewers can opt for native language commentary or an AI translation that captures 95% of the original.

Monetizing content effectively is another area where AI shines. AI can optimize ad placement by providing insights into audience behavior, and ensuring that advertisements are contextually relevant and more likely to resonate with viewers. Picture a game where a celebrity is seen drinking a Coke, followed by a perfectly timed Coke ad. This level of personalization can significantly boost ad effectiveness and viewer engagement. 

Further Challenges: Hyperscaling and Societal Acceptance
The efficiency gains from AI are substantial. AI-powered tools enhance video encoding and compression, improving quality while reducing bandwidth requirements. Automated workflows expedite tasks like auditing and reporting, providing faster turnaround times and more accurate insights. These efficiencies translate to significant cost savings and improved profitability. According to McKinsey, high performers in generative AI report that these efficiencies allow them to attribute over 10% of their profits to AI deployment.

But there’s a catch—the creation of generative AI models can require the levels of resources and data that only the Hypescalers can access. Leveraging some of the best AI capabilities will almost certainly mean connecting to AI tools in multiple hyperscale cloud environments and working agilely, updating and swapping models and tools to meet changing business goals. 

There are also social acceptance issues to consider. What will audiences accept? Would they prefer to know that the content is in some way enhanced by AI or not? Additionally, 44% of organizations have faced negative consequences from generative AI (McKinsey), including inaccuracies and cybersecurity threats. Generative AI, like humans, can make errors, so expectations that software-based processes will always behave predictably and correctly need to be managed.  

In today’s world, AI can be a cause of fake content, but equally, it provides the best potential for detecting fakes. This is an area of increasing importance, which is being address by the industry body C2PA, in order to provide a means to authenticate genuine  content and validate its provenance.

Empowering Developers
AI accelerates innovation, allowing rapid deployment of new features and enhancements. This agility enables developers to test multiple functionalities simultaneously, gather real-time feedback, and iterate quickly. The ability to experiment rapidly without wasting time and resources ensures developer innovations are aligned with market needs. Moreover, AI-driven insights guide development, reducing the risk of investing in non-resonating features and ensuring efforts are focused on what matters most. 

Data ownership and management needs careful consideration to ensure businesses retain control over their valuable data and intellectual property and don’t just hand the insights to third parties. Building multi-layered workflows that have the flexibility to integrate different AI models (including those developed by the customers themselves) into existing processes allows for flexibility and scalability. Empowering both developers and non-developers with accessible AI tools ensures broader team contributions to AI initiatives. Ongoing training and expert support are vital for robust, scalable AI implementations.

The path to AI integration may seem complex, but it can be navigated effectively with the right approach and partners, leading to significant rewards. AI is not just another technology; it’s a change in mindset for the media workflow, offering the power and versatility to address business challenges with radical innovation. 

The Importance of Embracing AI
Integrating AI into media workflows is not a futuristic concept but a present-day necessity. Embracing AI allows media companies to meet the demands of today's viewers and stay ahead of tomorrow's trends. The real challenge lies in harnessing AI's potential , as its true power lies in its versatility. With the right tools, AI can solve diverse business problems, from enhancing audience engagement to streamlining operations and driving innovation. AI frameworks can be customized to address specific business challenges, whether it's improving ad targeting, optimizing content distribution, or enhancing viewer analytics. 

Data and content created by AI is additional value that can be derived from original content and audiences, it becomes a key asset for whoever owns it.

AI models should be seen as another tool that can be enhanced, changed, or modified to achieve goals, rather than a huge, customized workflow that only serves to feed that model. As a business grows, AI solutions should scale and adapt with them, ensuring that AI investments continue to deliver value.

MediaKind has added support for low latency streaming with dynamic advertising and blackout to  MK.IO, its cloud streaming platform. Leveraging the Low Latency HLS and DASH standard, MK.IO reduces latency by 75% and continues to support standards-based dynamic ad insertion (DAI), blackouts, and DRM security for premium content providers, the company said.

MK.IO comes pre-integrated with multiple CDN providers, video players, and popular ad decision servers. This unique combination of low latency, security, and targeted advertising makes MK.IO a prime choice for operators, content owners, and sports teams who want to monetize live video at scale, according to MediKind.

“We are thrilled to introduce this update to MK.IO, as it represents a significant advancement in our streaming technology and empowers our customers to deliver a premium user experience they can monetize,” said Cory Zachman, SVP of Engineering and Services at MediaKind. “We’ve built MK.IO for high viewership events by providing the ability to prefetch ad decisions and auto-scale our infrastructure in the cloud. All this is achieved without sacrificing MediaKind’s trusted picture quality and security.”

MediaKind’s latest update is available on request for existing MK.IO customers. 

MediaKind will showcase this new functionality at Booth W2201 in the West Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center during the 2024 NAB Show, April 14-17. 

The acceptance of cloud-based media operations in the media and entertainment (M&E) industry has reached a tipping point. This shift has been accelerated by advances in digital technology, changes in consumer preferences, and business necessities accelerated by the coronavirus pandemic. Remote cloud-based broadcast production is now a game-changer, providing unprecedented flexibility and scalability to content producers.

The norms of social distancing introduced during the pandemic triggered the rise of remote and cloud-based broadcasting, which is steadily becoming standard practice. Technological advancements have led to significant cost savings by eliminating the need for extensive on-site infrastructure, including production trucks, large crew teams, and travel costs. With 90% of the world's largest businesses adopting multi-cloud infrastructure, it was inevitable for this trend to permeate the broadcasting world.

Previously, the transition to cloud-based operations was intimidating for many, mainly due to the enormity of moving workflows into a cloud-based environment. But this is changing. Remote and cloud production workflows are becoming the norm for all types of live programming. 

The broadcast industry has also seen a shift towards smaller and more capable POV (Point of View) and PTZ (Pan-Tilt-Zoom) cameras. These cameras are smaller, more versatile, and easier to use than traditional broadcast cameras. They are also (usually) more affordable, making them accessible to a wider range of producers and broadcasters. The combination of these features makes them ideal for use in remote and at-home broadcasting, where space and budget are often limited.

It is estimated that about 10% of the live production market currently relies on either remote production or client production. While traditional in-studio models remain relevant, remote broadcasting offers flexibility and scalability. Broadcasters can now prioritize efficiency and seamless content delivery, whether the content is produced remotely, on location, or in the studio.

This shift is allowing smaller sports, such as polo, to utilize remote production to reach global viewers. For events like the Tour de France, which are challenging to broadcast using traditional on-site infrastructure due to the length and complexity of the terrain, cloud-based remote broadcasting presents a huge advantage.

Over the past few years, the entire media processing chain has moved away from the traditional on-premises approach towards a more virtualized and cloud-based environment. This process involves various stages, with the private cloud being one aspect. Some production vendors have developed remote production capabilities that allow for remote utilization of a 24/7 production studio, increasing efficiency.

Recently, the European League of Football (ELF) transitioned to cloud live production for its 2023 season in just three weeks. The ELF viewership is expected to reach more than half a billion households worldwide. The organizers aimed to enhance advertising options for sponsors, reduce production costs, and lower carbon footprint, all of which were made possible by moving their live productions to the cloud.

Last year, BT Sport and UEFA used a new cloud-based approach to live broadcasting that could reduce the carbon footprint of sports broadcasts and enhance content innovation. The NBA has been using cloud-based remote production since 2021.

MediaKind, well-positioned to lead this transition, has added new technology advances to its edge product portfolio, offering greater technology integration options for content owners, broadcasters, and TV operators. The edge portfolio enables live events to be captured and transmitted to the cloud with high quality, low latency and bandwidth, and securely distributed from the cloud to regional networks for further video adaptation and processing.

MediaKind and Net Insight have partnered to develop a cloud-first IP video distribution system. The solution integrates MediaKind's RX1 professional receiver-decoder and CE1 cloud-ready contribution encoder with the Aquila Live cloud-based processing and delivery head-end. 

The introduction of 5G services has played a major role in enabling remote cloud-based broadcasting to reach its current level of acceptance. Network slicing capabilities of 5G are a tremendous advantage for cloud broadcasting. For example, this technology is useful for broadcasting challenging events like the Tour de France, where a slice of the network can be dedicated to cloud broadcasting in a congested 5G network.

Finally, artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing the broadcast and media industry with a wide range of applications, from content management to virtual world creation. AI simplifies content management workflows, enables high-volume content analysis, and boosts discoverability of older archive content. It also enables powerful localization and has the potential to eliminate a significant portion of repetitive tasks. 

Automation is one of the major advantages for broadcasters to adopt cloud-based media production solutions that automate parts of the production process, eliminating the need for time-consuming adaptation of programs and software for each project. This allows the creative team to start working immediately once the production team has uploaded their work into the cloud. Unlike traditional broadcast systems, a cloud-based system prepares content for digital distribution, saving time and money in the production process, established a clear business case for this remarkable technology shift. 

The applications may seem innocuous when they suggest new programs for you to watch, but content personalization/recommendation engines are truly powerful platforms that significantly benefit broadcasters and content distributors.

Case in point: ThinkAnalytics produces content personalization engines for Bell Canada, Crunchyroll, Tata, Liberty Global, SkyMexico and BritBox International, among others across 38 countries. Based on its presence on one billion devices serving 475 million people, ThinkAnalytics’ research has found that its content recommendations increase on-demand viewership up to 100%, boost the consumption of linear TV by 35% and increase the number of channels viewed by 30%.

“Content recommendation engines are all about placing the content in front of the subscriber in such a way that they’re going to act,” said Greg Riker, chief revenue officer with ThinkAnalytics in the U.K. “The key is making the viewing experience on that channel/platform interesting enough for them to continue to come back because they’re being served the content that they like to watch on an ongoing basis.”

How It Works
Content personalization is all about monitoring the types of content a given viewer chooses to watch—particularly when they do so for an entire series—and using the data accumulated during their viewing experiences to recommend similar kinds of content. 

“There are two ways that you can use personalization,” said Tony Jones, principal technologist with MediaKind, which offers its MediaFirst TV recommendation platform. “First, there’s video on demand, where content appears as a recommendation for viewers based on their preferences. Second is the creation of a ‘Custom Linear Channel.’ This involves creating a custom channel filled with content from the recommendation engine. It’s like a continuous channel specifically crafted for an individual user, eliminating the need to swap channels. It’s essentially a recommendation-driven playlist.”

To do all of this successfully, “video content recommendation engines leverage several data sets to suggest content by analyzing a user’s interests and viewing behavior,” said JT Taylor, product marketing lead with Synamedia; maker of Synamedia Go, a cloud-based video management platform that includes content recommendation modules. “There are several factors that these recommendations are based on—for example, the viewer’s search and watch history, and the content they have previously liked or shared among others.

 “By analyzing data, identifying patterns, and understanding viewer preferences, these engines, driven by algorithms developed with a combination of AI and research, offer personalized content recommendations that expand beyond surface level recommendations solely based on what someone has already watched,” Taylor continued. “They also enable viewers to discover new content that they might have otherwise overlooked.”

ThinkAnalytics refers to this concept as developing “taste profiles” that capture viewers’ program preferences in ways that can lead to successful content recommendations. 

It’s an in-depth process: “We do a lot of what we call ‘metadata enrichment’ to get much more granular on the ability to make good recommendations,” said Riker. “It’s not just that you’re watching a drama or a romcom or that you like this actor. We get much more detailed than that. It’s the ability to compare that taste profile against the rest of the catalog and then put similar content in front of this person so they continue to watch this channel.”

As the numbers from ThinkAnalytics demonstrate, content personalization can help keep viewers watching the same channel/platform more often. This reduces churn at a time of ever-fragmenting audiences due to increased content choice. 

Taylor concurs. “Ultimately, the synergy between personalized recommendations and content discovery increases user loyalty and leads to greater lifetime value for each user,” he said. 

From ThinkAnalytics’ standpoint, it’s about engagement, according to Riker.

“That’s really important, he said. “If you can begin to offer similar content and advertising to viewers, you can keep their engagement levels very high, and then you can go from there.” 

Privacy and Security Concerns
Although content personalization platforms do harvest viewership data, they do so in such a way that their identities remain anonymous and their personal information stays private.

“Privacy is paramount,” Jones said. “Personalization tools should ensure that individual users remain unidentified. A token-based system can ensure user or group anonymity. The design of personalization engines must prioritize the end consumer’s privacy.”

His view is endorsed by others in the industry. “Striking a balance between offering personalized content recommendations and respecting user privacy is crucial to ensure customer trust and maintain a positive relationship with users,” said Taylor. “As a responsible technology provider, we prioritize implementing robust data protection measures and providing transparency to address these privacy concerns and ensure a secure and enjoyable user experience for our customers.”

What’s Coming Next
With its ability to keep viewers engaged, content personalization/recommendation platforms are helping broadcasters and content distributors retain and grow their audiences today. 

As for the future? Taylor expects content recommendations to transcend video and encompass music, gaming and spoken word podcasts. 

“As well, content recommendations will incorporate real-time contextual information,” he said. “Factors like time of day, location, current mood, and trending topics will influence content suggestions. And content discovery will extend beyond traditional text-based to include voice-based recommendations, image recognition, and interactive interfaces.”

Artificial intelligence will play a more important role, with broadcasters and content providers working through AI platforms such as ChatGPT to provide recommendations based on users’ questions. “Whether it’s Discord or WhatsApp or Twitch, you can start to create these one-to-one relationships outside of the service providers’ own platforms, leveraging chatbots and generative AI to drive recommendations,” said Riker.

Whatever comes next, the primary goal for content personalization is enhancement, Jones concluded. “While current recommendation engines are better than random selections, there’s room for improvement in targeting content to users’ interests. The challenge lies in moving beyond simply relying on a user’s historical habits.” 

FRISCO, TEXAS—EPTV, a TV Globo affiliate and Brazilian network, has selected MediaKind to replace its microwave network solution with IP/SRT transmission protocols.

The Brazilian network will deploy MediaKind edge video processing solutions to deliver better quality, security and reliability for video contribution and distribution across the open internet at a reduced cost, the company said.

The deployment of MediaKind’s CE1 contribution encoder and RX1 multi-codec, multi-service professional receiver decoder solution will enable EPTV to deploy two-way codecs integrated at all its stations. This will ensure added security and peace of mind with the IP/SRT protocol delivering high-quality video performance, 4:2:2 HEVC compression and very low latency, all within a platform that integrates an IP/SRT gateway, the company said.

“After much deliberation and evaluation, we selected MediaKind to integrate the contribution and distribution of signals from our stations using the Internet and IP/SRT protocols,” said EPTV director of engineering José Francisco Valencia. “Integrating every solution, including the SRT gateway with HEVC encoders and decoders, allows us to deliver a low latency, reliable and cost-effective solution while meeting our OPEX and CAPEX targets.”

More information is available on the company’s website.

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind’s Mediaroom Play platform now delivers more services, including VOD streaming television and movies from over 1,000 content owners and 7,000-plus apps from the Google Play Store, to TV viewers in Canada, the company reports. 

Using Mediaroom Play, service providers can deliver live TV, on-demand shows and movies, Cloud PVR via MediaKind’s Video Storage and Processing Platform (VSPP), apps, voice remote and search in the same platform. Offering access to the Google Play Store enables Mediaroom Play users to access Android TV steaming content and other apps. MediaKind and Bell Canada collaborated on the latest evolution of the Fibe TV service—debuted in July—that leverages Mediaroom Play, the company said.

“As one of our longest-standing Mediaroom customers, we’re delighted to see Bell integrate Mediaroom Play with its pioneering Fibe TV service and position itself as Canada’s leading content aggregator,” said Steve Payne, MediaKind president and chief revenue officer.

“With Mediaroom Play, Fibe TV’s customers can experience the next evolution of TV and entertainment, whereby live TV and on-demand movies and shows are accessible through apps, voice control, and powerful search functions," he continued. 

Mediaroom, MediaKind’s IPTV platform, increases the value of services providers offer customers. Developed on the Android TV operating system, the pre-integrated product provides a tested, robust and market-ready solution enabling quick launches of new Android TV-powered set top boxes, it said. 

Integration of Google Play Store access also opens up new revenue-sharing opportunities for operators, as do earnings from Google Ads. Revenue from content and app curation is also possible, it said.

More information is available on the company’s website.

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind has announced a number of new technology advances in its portfolio of edge products that enable live events to be captured and transmitted reliably to the cloud and distributed securely from the cloud to regional networks. 

These advances include: adding support of Zixi technologies alongside SRT on its modular CE1 and RX1 edge platforms; next-generation security and monitoring for MediaKind’s Director solution; increased link resiliency; superior IP discovery and control; and user experience advancements.

The edge portfolio combines all the decoding, encoding, transcoding, content replacement, content protection, and reliable IP transport technology developed by MediaKind, enabling the expansion of cloud-based linear workflows, the company said. 

“Some of the world's biggest brands have been requesting Zixi integrated into MediaKind’s CE1 and RX1 offerings,” said John Wastcoat, senior vice president alliances, and marketing, Zixi. “We are thrilled to partner with MediaKind and deliver best-in-class solutions to the market, allowing our mutual customers to seamlessly leverage proven architectures with market-tested technology.”

“By adding support of Zixi technologies to our pre-existing SRT and FEC options, we are enhancing the flexibility, security, and resilience of our CE1, RX1, and CE Mini products at a time when media companies increasingly need integration options for their video workflows,” added Boris Felts, chief product officer, MediaKind. “Advancing the MediaKind edge portfolio means our customers continue to receive access to industry-leading, resilient, cloud-ready, and highly secure live end-to-end workflow capabilities that tackle the most demanding live event coverage, now and in the future.”

MediaKind’s edge portfolio architecture combines an efficient cloud-native design, leveraging software containers and micro-services to expand its capabilities seamlessly, with a platform supporting hardware acceleration and broadcast video interfaces, the company said. 

This combination enables live video delivery within the most demanding live contribution and distribution environments. Thanks to this architecture, Zixi-protected congestion and network-aware protocols further expand the Secure Reliable Transport (SRT) and Forward Error Correction (FEC) options available on MK CE1 and MK RX1. The integration offers MediaKind customers greater flexibility and interoperability with cloud contribution and linear programming systems.

Additional edge portfolio development include:

• MK RX1 (receiver and media gateway) – now includes the latest evolution of MediaKind’s Director capability, enhancing security with 128-bit rotating keys, and maintaining the technology’s traditional key values, including over-the-air control and lifecycle management. RX1 also receives dual redundant transport streams for hitless switching with SMPTE 2022-7, enabling it to perform continuous, seamless decodes when upstream feeds lose integrity.
• MK CE1 (media contribution encoder) – an improved user interface and update of the CE1’s SMPTE ST 2110 capabilities aligning with Networked Media Open Specifications (NMOS) discovery and control. It also now offers a greater variety of workflows with the support of ASI input alongside IP input for remux use cases and the ability to interface with cloud platforms through its Real Time Messaging Protocol (RTMP).

In addition the company has launched the latest addition to the portfolio family, the MK CE Mini.

A high-performance, single-channel contribution encoder. CE Mini addresses the demands of live content contribution at temporary live events, such as college campus transmissions and ‘pop-up’ sports broadcasts, offering cost-efficient, low-power encoding in a portable, compact form unit.

MediaKind will showcase its edge devices' full spectrum of features at IBC2022 (#1.09). To book a meeting with MediaKind at IBC2022, click here.

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind has announced the appointment of Allen Broome as the company’s new CEO. 

In the last two year Broome has led MediaKind’s Research and Development organization as company’s CTO and was vice president of cloud engineering at Comcast Cable before joining MediaKind.

Since joining MediaKind in October 2019 as CTO, Broome has helped advance the company’s teams in the industrialization of broadcast-quality OTT streaming while also reshaping its portfolio to enable full-service solutions. Under his technology leadership, MediaKind’s 11-time Emmy-winning Engineering team has successfully broken down the barriers of live video delivery, the company said. 

“I am excited to lead the amazing MediaKind team into this next chapter and to continue to drive our innovation leadership in the media industry,” Broome said in a statement on his new role as CEO. “Our goal is to give our customers the freedom to stream live without limits. We’ve tackled the many complex barriers of live video delivery to unlock unprecedented efficiency and ensure quality and low latency at any scale – enabling our customers and partners to focus on their own next-level creativity in content and experience.” 

Angel Ruiz, chairman of the board at MediaKind, added: “The Board would like to thank Matt McConnell for his service and leadership and wish him well for the future. With the elevation of Allen Broome to CEO, we have a true Engineering visionary at the heart of our company. Allen is well equipped to lead and guide our future strategy roadmap and technology innovation and ensure that we continue to provide the best level of support and collaboration with our customers and partners worldwide.” 

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind has announced that Brazilian telco Oi has deployed MediaKind’s Cygnus Contribution solution to deliver live events with high quality and low latency to its IPTV service.   

The deployment of Cygnus Contribution will allow Oi to add several new features to its service, including premium video quality up to 4K, enabled by MediaKind's latest HEVC/H264 codec implementations. The solution offers several different operating modes to allow the operator to choose the latency, bandwidth, and image quality compensation that best suits their needs. 

The transmission cost, whether the cost of leasing satellite transponder capacity or the cost of IP bandwidth, is generally the most significant operating expense, so minimizing the required transmission bandwidth is critical to cost efficiency, MediaKind said. Operators also desire to minimize any latency introduced by a distribution network, and this is particularly true for live sports content and…international sporting events. 

André Ituassú, engineering director at Oi, explained that “we are increasingly seeing a rise in subscriber demand for high quality, low latency services. By partnering with MediaKind and deploying its Cygnus Contribution solution, we can deliver the best experience for our customers. The solution contributes to the transmission of audio and video in our state-of-the-art live IPTV service, with no transmission delay.” 

“The solution's innovative design provides operators with the flexibility and scale needed to handle more and more live events,” added Luciano Oliveira, senior sales director, MediaKind. “With our robust in-house processing and delivery software, we can collaborate with Oi to deliver a premium viewing experience to its subscribers that offers high image quality and reach on even more devices.” 

More information is available at www.mediakind.com. 

STAMFORD, Conn. – June 7, 2021 – NBC Olympics, a division of the NBC Sports Group, has selected MediaKind to provide video contribution and distribution solutions for the production of the Tokyo Olympics. 

MediaKind will provide a range of its video processing and advanced modular receiver technologies to support NBC Olympics’ high quality video distribution to millions of viewers. MediaKind’s specialist engineers will also provide assistance through the installation of equipment and system set-up. The engineers will be present on-site 24/7 to offer multi-site support throughout the event.

“We are delighted to extend our long-standing partnership with NBC Olympics and to help support its coverage and production of the Olympic Games in Tokyo,” said Matt McConnell, CEO, MediaKind. “The Olympic Games continue to captivate viewers all over the world and the enduring appeal of this prestigious live event underlines the critical importance of high-performing, ultra-reliable broadcast delivery. By providing our leading compression solutions and services, including our market-leading encoder and receiver technologies, NBC Olympics will benefit from a high-quality, satellite distribution solution that realizes the immersive viewing expectations of today’s U.S. audiences.”

MediaKind’s encoding solutions were most recently used by NBC Olympics for the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea. Prior to this, MediaKind supported NBC Olympics’ production of Turin 2006, Beijing 2008, Vancouver 2010, London 2012, Sochi 2014 and Rio 2016.

WALTHAM, Mass.—Zixi and MediaKind are collaborating to integrate Zixi’s Software-Defined Video Platform with MediaKind’s CE Mini contribution encoder to assist with IP video delivery.

Zixi SDVP has been natively integrated into all MediaKind CE Mini encoders as standard. This enables users of the CE Mini encoders to stream to any deployed Zixi Broadcaster. Zixi ZEN Master is also integrated, allowing users to manage large-scale configurations and orchestrate, analyze, monitor, alert and report on live video streams and devices across the Zixi Enabled Network.

The Zixi protocol is designed to adjust to varying network conditions and uses patented Forward Error Correction techniques for error-free video transport over IP. It also has DTLS and AES encryption, allows for protected multicast transport, provides bandwidth efficiency and enables encoder backpressure.

“We are happy to partner with Zixi and deliver best in class solutions to the market, that will allow our customers to seamlessly leverage proven architectures with market tested technology,” said Boris Felts, head of products, MediaKind.

For more information, visit www.zixi.com.  

FRISCO, Texas—Altice France’s SFR, one of France’s biggest telecom operators, has extended its deployment of MediaKind’s Video Storage and Processing Platform (VSPP) for OTT delivery of the Union of European Football Associations’ Champions League (UCL), MediaKind said.

In August 2020, SFR used MediaKind’s VSPP to enable more than a million concurrent streamers to watch the finals of the UCL competition. VSPP offers a simplified, flexible architecture to provide resilient, efficient live streaming that supports multiple services, networks and devices, the company said. 

“As the shift towards streaming content intensified last year, we understood the demand for OTT would quickly translate to the live sports space, too,” said Christophe Delaye, CTO of SFR. 

“Working with MediaKind offered a wonderful opportunity to test our growing competency in the live streaming space by delivering one of Europe’s most important sporting competitions to our subscribers across France,” he said. “By leveraging the power of MediaKind’s high-performing VSPP solution, we have been able to scale our platform and provide stable, high-quality live coverage of European soccer to our largest-ever OTT audience.”

The extended MediaKind deployment includes the company’s monitoring service to enable remote access to the VSPP platform to observe its performance and identify and mitigate potential risks to streaming output, MediaKind said.

The deployment will continue throughout the current European soccer season, MediaKind said.

More information is available on the company’s website.

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind is helping to bring some Olympic-quality content to China’s BTV channel, working with New Digital Technology Group (NDT) for the delivery of recorded 4K content by providing a range of its encoding and decoding systems.

Beijing Radio & Television (BTV) launched in China around the end of 2020, and is expected to serve as a key channel for carrying winter sporting events, including the 2022 Winter Olympics taking place in Beijing. According to MediaKind, BTV is the first provincial level 4K UHD channel broadcast on satellite in China.

To support this, MediaKind supplied its AVP 4000 HEVC encoder, MK RX1 multicodec, multiservice professional decoder and AVP 1000 Stream Processor. The combined solution is integrated into NDT’s iSwiftMedia, an end-to-end multivendor Network Management System, Operational Support System and orchestration software solution for the broadcast, satellite, cable, telco and mobile industry. The NDT unit’s Software-Defined Network Management software is compatible with SDI over IP non-compressed and transport stream over IP compressed signal streams.

The MediaKind solution also adopts the HEVC coding compression standard to direct content across a large-scale network, while the AVS2 coding compression standard is adopted to facilitate satellite distribution. The last stage output enables stream fault detection and automatic switching. The system link supports embedded audio and Dolby related standards to meet the application requirements of Dolby Digital (AC-3) and Dolby Digital Plus (E-AC3).

The entire MediaKind system is equipped to continue running satellite channels’ broadcast demand during required emergency maintenance. In addition, the satellite receiving system can receive UHD signals with special encryption methods at home and abroad.

“The integration of our technologies enabled our IP-baseband hybrid architecture to power the broadcasting master control, ensuring BTV’s exciting 4K UHD channel went online smoothly and onto the screens of thousands of households nationwide,” said Wang Tong, president of NDT.

BTV officially went on air on Dec. 30, 2020.

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind has announced that its encoding portfolio of products has been integrated with Dolby Vision technology. With the new level of support, MediaKind users can encode solutions to deliver content in Dolby Vision across a range of consumer devices and form factors.

The integration gives MediaKind Packaging multiscreen video distributor and MediaKind Encoding Live encoding and transcoding software system support for Dolby Vision, while MediaKind’s cloud-native Aquila Streaming and Aquila Broadcast units can now provide resolution up to UHD.

Dolby Vision is an advanced imaging technology that combines HDR with wide color gamut capabilities to provide high-quality pictures. According to MediaKind, it can make images appear 40 times brighter and 10 times darker than other technology.

“As more UHD channels come to market, service providers, broadcasters and operators will require the latest HDR encoding technology advancements to enable and realize the immersive potential of their content,” said Boris Felts, head of Products, MediaKind. “Support for Dolby Vision means we can further enhance our encoding solutions to meet the needs of our customers and provide them with the ability to deliver premium, next-generation experiences to the market faster than ever before.”

For more information, visit www.mediakind.com.  

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind has hired Amy S. Marmolejo as the company’s chief financial officer, reporting directly to CEO Matt McConnell. She joins the company with a background in advising and leading financial organizations for both domestic and international corporations.

“Amy brings a unique skill set to MediaKind, combining a robust, results-driven background in finance, alongside a genuine passion for helping high-growth organizations to aspire, grow and scale,” said McConnell in a press release. We welcome her to the leadership team and look forward to benefitting from her extensive experience and strategic thinking as we drive overall productivity and strategic, profitable growth.”

Marmolejo brings deep experience gained from working with organizations of all sizes, ranging from growing start-ups and large public companies to multinational technology providers. Marmolejo started her career in public accounting where she spent seven years serving clients across multiple industries. She later held several corporate finance leadership roles within both public and private companies, including CFO of Tendril (now Uplight), where she was part of the core team that transformed the business to a SaaS model, raised complex strategic capital, grew the valuation substantially and positioned the company for the eventual sale to private equity.

“I look forward to leading the company's financial operations and accelerating MediaKind's evolution into SaaS and cloud-based applications,” said Marmolejo,  “as well as expansion into a range of new markets, to fully capture the sizable opportunity in front of us."

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind has launched Mediaroom Play, a new client solution that enables rapid deployment by operators of set-top boxes powered by Android TV.

The Mediaroom Play is a pre-integrated, robust solution. Pre-integration includes CommScope’s latest VIP7802 set top using Broadcom’s 72180 system-on-a-chip (SoC), ruwido remote control unit and support for many premium streaming service applications. This pre-integration ensures Mediaroom Play is ready for the future with further integrations of Third-Party Publishing (3PP) applications, the company said.

Mediaroom Play increases an operator’s aggregation value with access to more than 7,000 applications and games available on the Google Play Store. The integration also enables new monetization opportunities, such as revenue shares on the Google Play Store and Google Ads, it said.

Together the new offering and its custom launcher user interface give consumers the ability to access games, utilities, communications, securing and home automation. The solution also opens up free value-added features from Google for the consumer and operator, such as Google Assistant, YouTube, Accessibility Services, the application update tool GOTA and the First Time Configuration Wizard, MediaKind said.

“We are delighted to integrate our world-leading Mediaroom media platform with Android TV by launching our new client solution,” said Raul Aldrey, MediaKind chief product officer.

“With this major new investment, we are enabling existing and new Mediaroom customers to rapidly launch modern video services that meet today’s consumers’ needs while also encompassing the vast array of converged experiences offered by Android TV,” he said. “The pre-integrated, robust solution enables our customers to evolve from being video-only service providers to multiservice providers, tapping into Android TV’s abundant consumer experience offerings.”

Core Mediaroom components and services remain, including video on demand (VOD), Timeshift TV, PF application framework and Mediaroom audio-video delivery.

Other features include:

• Support for Release 10 of the Android TV operating system 
• Widevine DRM support
• Enhanced cloud DVR features
• Data, reporting and analytics capabilities 

More information is available on the company’s website. 

FRISCO, Texas—While sports remain one of the biggest content draws for broadcast, it is not immune to growing trends regarding direct to consumer (D2C) OTT platforms, as shown in a new MediaKind report.

The MediaKind 2021 Sports D2C Forecast shows that most of the 40 rights-holders analyzed, while still viewing D2C platforms as complementary to broadcast coverage, consider it an essential part of their future distribution strategy for live sports and connecting with fans. Almost three-quarters of the rights-holders already offer some form of D2C service to their fans through subscription packages.

Among those that have a D2C offering, half use it as a supplementary content hub, focusing on delivering high-quality video. The other half attempts to make use of OTT’s interactive possibilities, embedding fan engagement features into the services.

To distribute these D2C services, 58% have a standalone D2C web domain, while the other 42% provide D2C services via a sub-domain of their main website. A little more than a third of rights-holders offer D2C services through a standalone mobile app, per MediaKind.

One area the MediaKind report shows that rights-holders can improve on is monetization tools for the D2C services. None of the analyzed rights-holders featured an integrated betting service, while other monetizing services like ticketing (3% of rights-holders have), merchandising (5%) and advertising (8%) are rare.

An area of concern found in the report is how the future of these streaming services will stand-up when dealing with a high volume of concurrent live streams.

"The results of our study are clear—rights-holders cannot afford to be without a D2C service moving forward,” said Raul Aldrey, chief product officer, MediaKind. “All 40 of the rights-holders have recognized how D2C services offer crucial, data-driven touchpoints with their fans and provide unique opportunities to enhance fan engagement and tap into new monetization streams. But the performance of these D2C platforms remains table-stakes and fundamental to attracting and retaining audiences long-term. Future D2C services must guarantee stability at scale, and the overall delivery must be at least as good as the broadcast-quality linear services that sports fans have been accustomed to and enjoyed for decades.

"Streaming is a major part of sports media, with internet-based delivery now very much the present, as well as the future of media content distribution. The growing ubiquity of D2C platforms means they now form an essential part of any strategy for live sport – regardless of whether they are a complementary service to broadcast coverage or the primary means of distribution. While current D2C services are largely representative of an emerging market, this sector is ripe for experimentation, exploration, trial and error, innovation, creativity, and risk-taking—with big rewards for those that get it right."

The full MediaKind 2021 Sports D2C Forecast is available online. 

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind has launched CE Mini, a single-channel contribution encoder that can be used for live event coverage.

Part of MediaKind’s Cygnus Contribution package, CE Mini provides quality video contribution using HEVC or MPEG-4 AVC video compression. The encoder facilitates the delivery of content over managed IP networks or via the open internet for the ability to handle content acquisition into both production and streaming workflows. CE Mini also adds support for encoding HD content, with the ability to deliver over Secure Reliable Transport and Real-Time Messaging Protocol.

Users can connect the CE Mini to professional or prosumer cameras via a built-in SDI and HDMI input interface. It generates an IP encapsulated MPEG transport stream output with SRT error correction and security or an RTMP output.

CE Mini can integrate with MediaKind’s cloud-based and SaaS streaming technology, including Aquila Streaming.

For more information, visit www.mediakind.com.  

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind is debuting the CE1 next-generation media contribution encoder designed for professional contribution video processing.

The CE1 is combined with MediaKind’s multicodec and multiservice RX1 decoder for an end-to-end media contribution workflow. It is available as a cloud-native deployment model and can integrate with public cloud providers to enable broadcast quality contribution to the cloud. CE1 software also is available within a hardware platform to allow broadcasters to run services on-premise.

CE1 delivers low latency, HEVC or MPEG-4 AVC encoding of HD and UHD video content for live events. It also provides a platform to support 4:2:2 10-bit content contribution in the cloud and accommodates industry standards SMPTE ST 2110, SRT and BISS-CA. Utilizing the X86 server platform, CE1 can accommodate all new codecs and standards.

For more information, visit www.mediakind.com.  

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind is the choice of The Switch to provide the next-generation IP infrastructure and content delivery services for New England Sports Network (NESN) as it transitions from satellite distribution to an IP-based terrestrial distribution system.

MediaKind’s Cygnus Distribution product will be a key piece to this transition, which combines video processing and content protection technology from MediaKind and The Switch’s hybrid fiber network to help NESN deliver live 4K UHD, HDR quality content.

The Cygnus Distribution platform controls the workflow, which consists of the MK Stream Processing software-based stream processing application for ensuring high availability and delivery efficiency on broadcast and multiscreen platforms; the System Multiplexer to support NESN’s stream processing applications in terrestrial central headends, which can be updated for future expansions; and RX1 Receivers for delivery of NESN’s content at low-latency. The workflow is also supported by SRT open source transport specification.

“NESN now benefits from a flexible video distribution network, and guaranteed delivery of superior live sports feeds for Boston Red Sox and Boston Bruins games, as well as hundreds of other live college sports events,” said Robert Szabo-Rowe, senior vice president of engineering and product management, The Switch.

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind has launched Aquila On-Demand, a video-on-demand solution that processes and delivers video files via any network, including cable TV, IPTV and OTT, to any device, the company said.

The new video-on-demand solution supports HEVC encoding, 8K resolution and Common Media Application Format (CMAF) and delivers a high-end user experience on multiple streaming devices by transforming file-based content for on-demand delivery, the company said.

Designed for global TV operators, Aquila On-Demand offers their subscribers an immersive way to consume video content while reducing operational complexity, optimizing server footprint and reducing time to market for content, the company said.

“Through the launch of Aquila On-Demand, we are providing a fast and optimized content delivery workflow that responds to multiple use cases and applications, supports the latest audio and video capabilities and enables operators to provide richer user experiences to consumers,” said Stuart Boorn, vice president product management at MediaKind.  

“This single solution addresses the significant growth in usage of on-demand content and offers the necessary tools to process and deliver video files over any network to any device.”

Aquila On-Demand enables the encoding, transformation, processing, packaging and delivery of file-based video content. Its automated workflow can trigger encoding and packaging processing from a single standalone request. As an alternative, it can be controlled from an external content management system, such as the MediaKind CMS, as part of a full workflow solution.

Support for fast asset provisioning enables a rapid time to market for valuable content, and embedded just-in-time packaging and encryption provides support for a wide variety of formats and DRM platforms. Content also can be created in a pre-packaged format for publication to external origins, including the MediaKind Video Storage Processing Platform (VSPP), the company said.

The VOD solution supports MPEG-2, MPEG-4 AVC and HEVC. It ensures bandwidth usage is optimized to reduce distribution costs and network load. It optimizes picture quality regardless of resolution, whether SD, HD, UHD or 8K. The product also supports current players and delivery mechanisms like CMAF chunks for DASH and HLS, it said.

The solution includes MediaKind Encoding On-Demand and MediaKind Packaging. It also can be combined with MediaKind VSPP, which acts as a highly scalable media storage system that can also perform content transformation and streaming.

More information is available on the MediaKind website.

FRISCO, Texas—Matt McConnell has been appointed CEO of media technology company MediaKind, the company announced.

With more than 30 years of experience in the media industry, McConnell joins the company from Comcast Technology Solutions, a division of Comcast Cable, where he was senior vice president and general manager. He established the division in 2012 and ran it till 2018.

“Matt is the perfect leader to accelerate MediaKind’s strategy execution and the delivery of innovative solutions required by our customers,” said company chairman Angel Ruiz, who stepped down as CEO to take on his new board role. “The market and consumer behaviors are changing faster than ever and Matt is a battle-proven media executive with an extensive track record in successfully leading and growing business in this sector. I am looking forward to working with him and have full confidence that he will continue to drive the success of our organization.”

McConnell will report directly to the company’s board. The new CEO will work closely with Ruiz, CTO Allen Broome, a former colleague of McConnell at Comcast, chief business officer Raul Aldrey and the rest of the company’s executive leadership team, the company said.

“I have the privilege to join a great organization that has created one of the best media portfolios in the industry and is driving an important transformation,” said McConnell. “We are experiencing unprecedented changes in the way people consume content, and our customers need to adjust their technology footprints and business models to meet these dynamic consumer needs.”

“MediaKind is at the forefront of this technology transition and perfectly positioned to enable next generation user experiences. I am excited to be leading this charge as we increasingly focus on creating products that harness the potential of the cloud and maximize the power of streaming,” he said.

More information is available on the company’s website.

A poll by TV Technology's sister publication TVBEurope and MediaKind has found consistent broadcast quality across all devices is the most important element for an operator when delivering streaming services.

The poll was carried out as part of our "Live Streaming 2020—Shifting Consumer Habits" webinar.

The audience was asked to vote on what they thought is the most important element for an operator when delivering streaming services.

The options were, consistent broadcast quality across all devices; bandwidth and storage optimization; per user targeted advertising and content replacement; and QoE monitoring and analytics.

Consistent broadcast quality was the overwhelming the choice of the audience, receiving 65.8% of the votes cast.

It was followed by bandwidth and storage optimization, which received 18.4% of the votes.

Per user targeted audience gained 10.5% of the vote, while QoE monitoring and analytics had just 5.3%.

The webinar featured a number of topics, including how the coronavirus pandemic could change sports broadcasting, particularly in terms of remote production; what are the biggest hurdles when starting an event-based streaming service; and will there be an acceleration to HEVC in the next year to improve bandwidth utilization?

"Live Streaming 2020—Shifting Consumer Habits" is available to watch on-demand.

This story originally appeared on TVT's sister publication TVBEurope.

The biggest area of content to have been hit by the coronavirus pandemic has been live events, be that sports, concerts or live entertainment shows.

But eventually these events will return, and operators need to be ready for what’s expected to be a large audience hungry to watch their favorite football team once again.

The question is, are operators ready for that returning audience?

This will be the focus of TVBEurope’s free webinar with MediaKind on Tuesday, May 5.

The webinar, which will include contributions from Carl Furgusson, MediaKind’s vice president of Portfolio Strategy, and Richard Mansfield, head of Media Delivery and Advertising Product Management, will look at how consumer habits toward streaming will have shifted during the first half of 2020.

For many viewers, live TV has been king over the past 10 years or so, with BARB figures showing viewers are still tuning in to live TV for around 2.5 hours a day.

Therefore, delivering live broadcast quality content across all screens is the toughest challenge, especially when the internet is seeing increasing use due to the numbers of people working from home.

Among the questions the webinar will pose will be:

• How can operators achieve a broadcast-like streaming experience?
• What's next for pop-up sport channels?
• Will the coronavirus pandemic accelerate the shift to cloud?
• Is the industry too reliant on on-premise playout?

All of these questions will be answered during the Live Streaming 2020—Shifting Consumer Habits webinar.

Don’t miss out on this webinar with leading experts sharing their knowledge of live streaming. Register for free here.

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind is rolling out the Aquila Broadcast next-generation broadcast solutions, a tool to help broadcasters transition from appliance-based platforms to all-IP media delivery, MediaKind says.

Aquila Broadcast is powered by software-based video compression, control and stream processing to provide resolutions up to UHD with HDR support, as well as offering wide codec support and bandwidth savings.

The goal of the Aquila Broadcast system, per MediaKind, is to ensure compatibility with all-IP technologies and standards, as well as increased transponder density keeping video quality.

The system is deployable as an appliance or software-only either on-premise or in the cloud. It supports the MPEG-2, MPEG-4 AVC and HEVC video codecs.

Aquila Broadcast combines different MediaKind consumer delivery products, including Encoding Live, Stream Processor  and nCompass control.

For more information, visit www.mediakind.com.  

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind has reworked its PRISMA advertising and content distribution rights portfolio, announcing a new modular set of products that include PRISMA Core and PRISMA Edge. The Core and Edge platforms provide specialized content distribution rights definition and enforcement, as well as targeted advertising capabilities.

The advertising portfolio is designed to enable new monetization opportunities and protect content. PRISMA can be deployed in the cloud, as an appliance or as components integrated into the Aquila portfolio.

PRISMA Core is tapped to connect content providers and service providers by delivering advanced scheduling control and enabling rules enforcement for traditional broadcast and OTT-based delivery. It works with SCTE-224, SCTE-35 and CableLabs ESAM. It can be used for blackout and alternate content enforcement across broadcast and IP networks; placement management via SCTE-35  insertion/rewrite and manifest conditioning; linear ad replacement; and EAS compatible SCTE-18.

PRISMA Edge enables the activation of premium TV inventory and is meant to enrich it with qualified audiences across live and nonlinear workflows and in major streaming protocols. It protects from audience data leakage and ensures compliance with privacy protection regulations. It also provides a way to manage audience-based targeting use cases; supports SCTE-224 policy ingest through PRISMA Core; and implements placement routing capabilities.

For more information, visit www.mediakind.com.  

FRISCO, Texas—MediaKind has announced the hiring of Allen Broome for the role of chief technology officer. Broome, who most recently was the vice president of cloud engineering at Comcast Cable, has more than 20 years of experience in media technology leadership and software expertise, and for the last year has been providing strategic consultancy to the MediaKind team.

In the role of CTO, Broome is expected to help foster industry collaboration for the improvement of video delivery and user experience. Among the areas of focus will be the industrialization of broadcast-quality OTT streaming, building and operating cloud-native systems at scale to shorten deployment timelines and improve TCO.

“Having previously worked inside one of the industry’s leading cable MSOs, Allen has a deep understanding of the main challenges that operators face as they strive to create compelling and competitive consumer video offerings,” said MediaKind CEO Angel Ruiz. “I look forward to seeing that experience contribute to deepening relationships between MediaKind and our customers as we forge close collaborations to ensure mutual success.”

Allen Broome, in the press release, said: “Over the past year I have seen how MediaKind has developed and I am excited to be joining the highly talented team as we consolidate the company’s pioneering heritage and unique position in leading the future of global media technology. I am driven by the opportunity to help MediaKind’s customers define the future of the entertainment industry by creating and delivering faster, smarter and more efficient media experiences for everyone, everywhere.”

Broome will report to Ruiz, as well as work closely with Mark Russell, MediaKind’s chief strategy and corporate development officer.

Lisa Aussieker, MediaKind’s VP of Marketing and Communications, explains the speed, portability, flexibility and cost-savings of their four new application-based solutions released at IBC 2019. They include Cygnus 360° Events for providing high resolution 360° video from live events, and Cygnus Contribution that supports low-latency point-to-point live contribution links via satellite or IP networks. There’s also Cygnus Distribution to distribute live content via satellite and IP networks, and the cloud-based OTT and broadcast headend platform branded as Aquila Streaming.

AMSTERDAM—Global media technology company MediaKind has announced a slate of new cloud-based systems that make up its MediaKind Universal portfolio that will be on display at IBC 2019: the Aquila Streaming, Cygnus 360-Degree Events, Cygnus Contribution and Cygnus Distribution. These systems are designed to help with core broadcast needs like delivering immersive OTT streaming services, multichannel HD or single channel UHD, remote production and 360-degree video content.

The Aquila Streaming system is a convergent, cloud-based OTT and broadcast headend platform that is designed to allow content to be received, transcoded, multiplexed, packaged, encrypted and managed on- and off-premise, or as a channel-as-a-service or cloud native offering.

With Cygnus 360-Degree Events, operators and content owners can complement existing live services with additional 360-degree video. The system can process and deliver live 360-degree video into resolutions up to 8K and format for simultaneous live publishing over a public CDN or social media platforms. There is also 24/7 technical support and monitoring throughout the staging and broadcasting of the event.

Cygnus Contribution is tasked with providing high-quality, low-latency point-to-point live contribution links via satellite or IP networks, including ingest into a public cloud. Live contribution links include HDR support via satellite or over fiber, allowing for support of the latest IP interfaces and content production standards. Cygnus Contribution can also help enable remote or at-home production using HEVC.

The Cygnus Distribution model, meanwhile, enables operators and broadcasts to distribute live content via satellite and IP networks. It provides ingress and egress of live video and audio from public cloud instances. Cygnus Distribution can be paired with MediaKind’s modular receivers and MK director to secure content across all distribution networks.

MediaKind will have all of these products available at stand 4.A01 during IBC 2019.

LAS VEGAS—At the 2019 NAB Show, MediaKind launched Cygnus Director 128, a control and conditional access management software product. The newest generation of MediaKind’s Cygnus Primary Distribution platform, Cygnus Director 128 enables broadcasters and content owners to secure and manage the primary distribution of their content to secondary broadcast operators, by identifying and helping to prohibit the unauthorized streaming and broadcasting of their live and on-demand content to consumers.

MediaKind’s Cygnus Primary Distribution solution utilizes advanced 128-bit encryption coupled with forensic watermarking technology to deter and help prevent piracy of high value content from the broadcaster/content owner’s distribution network, as well as better protecting subsequent copies or streams.

Coupled with the newly enhanced encryption, Cygnus Director 128 provides a management platform for further control, upgrade and standards alignment with the following benefits:

• Individual and group management of remote professional receivers including entitlements, forced tuning to avoid satellite sun outages, and forced channel selection for automated blackout management, and over-air software download for network wide updates.
• The advanced reporting system will give broadcasters and content owners new operational visibility on the configuration status of their entire network of professional receivers.
• Offers the ability to deter, detect and prohibit piracy of high value content, coupled with control over who can view content, including affiliate networks that wish to receive and access their high value content.
• Cygnus Primary Distribution security solution can be applied over either an IP, Satellite or hybrid Primary Distribution environment, and will also support the BISS2 conditional access to ensure support for open industry based standards.
• The current global deployed list of Cygnus Director customers will be able to easily upgrade to the newly enhanced security from their existing systems utilizing an IP return path.

LAS VEGAS—MediaKind will showcase immersive live viewing experiences provided by its portfolio of content creation and distribution products at the NAB Show next month.

Formerly Ericsson Media Solutions, this year marks the company’s first NAB Show under its new moniker, according to CEO Angel Ruiz.

“We are looking forward to demonstrating the full scope of the MediaKind Universe portfolio and show how our innovations and partnerships are responding to consumer demands, especially in immersive live viewing through our latest innovations in 360-degree video delivery,” Ruiz said. “As we rapidly move into a mobile-first world, we are committed to helping our customers reach their potential by delivering high quality immersive media experiences for everyone, everywhere.”

The MediaKind booth will be divided into five defined areas of the “universe,” each addressing a specific trajectory with how content is delivered to the consumer and manifest in the real world as defined media workflows:

• Orion – Immersive and compelling consumer experiences through the advancement of Media Platforms, Content Discovery, Targeted Advertising, Content Rights Distribution and actionable insights via end-to-end analytics. Delivering the as-a-Service capabilities across consumer applications
• Pictor – Optimizing Storage and Delivery enabling Catch Up & Cloud DVR and true optimization across the entire AV pipe whilst ensuring that content is available on any screen, any device at the highest quality
• Aquila – Efficient, optimal-quality processing for all screens, delivering broadcast quality OTT, operationally efficient headends, and ATSC 3.0 propositions
• Cygnus – Ensuring quality content is delivered securely across Contribution and Primary Distribution networks, leveraging applicable standards and the benefits of Cloud deployment
• Vega – Ensuring a smooth implementation and operation of the MediaKind Universe solutions as well as demonstrating how value is created in the ‘as-a-Service’ model.

MediaKind execs will discuss the company’s latest products for advertising and distribution rights; recent developments in optimized end-to-end media delivery; new advances for all-IP, OTT and UHD/HDR delivery; and its SaaS capabilities through recent advances within Linear and On Demand processing, cloud-based TV platform, MediaFirst, and IPTV Mediaroom platform.

The company will also recreate a multi-partner, collaborative proof of concept demonstration, which saw companies including Deutsche Telekom, TiledMedia and Magnum Film enable the world’s first multi-channel 6K 360-degree live sports event during a basketball match in Germany in December 2018 to an audience of real-world consumers.

MediaKind will be in booth SU7210

DishTV, provider of direct-to-home satellite (DTH) service to viewers in India, will deploy the MediaKind AVP 4000 video processing platform to deliver content to more than 23.5 million subscribers.

“Through the deployment of MediaKind’s AVP technology, we can enable the highest video quality for our consumers alongside far greater bandwidth efficiencies, thus enabling us to cost-effectively deliver the next generation services to our subscribers,” said DishTV Group CEO Anil Dua.

The DTH service provider is replacing legacy D2H technology with the MediaKind headend compression technology to make evolution to traditional broadcast and multiscreen service possible. The deployment of MediaKind’s AVP 4000 encoder will be used to support delivery of both DishTV brands to customers.

Deploying the MediaKind solution will allow DishTV to unify control and management of its two headends in an orchestrated way and drive greater operational efficiency, the company said. The AVP 4000 also will enable DishTV to achieve greater bandwidth efficiency and deliver higher picture quality.

The encoder has a modular architecture that enables on-site upgrades, which reduces maintenance time and service interruptions. The AVP 4000 encodes MPEG-2, MPEG-4 AVC and HEVC and makes a smooth upgrade to 4K UHDTV easy, the company said.

BONN, GERMANY—Sports production at its best can give viewers –if even for a fleeting moment—the feeling that they’re part of the game.

Deutsche Telekom and MediaKind extended that immersive feeling with the help of 6K tiled 360-degree video to viewers via the Magenta VR app on Dec. 9 when the Telekom Basket Bonn met EWE Baskets Oldenburg on the hardwood at the Telekom Dome in Bonn, Germany.

“Consumers are always seeking new ways to experience their favorite sports content. Through the rapid evolution of 360-degree technology, we have the potential to push boundaries and take the consumer to the heart of the game itself,” said Angel Ruiz, CEO of MediaKind.

[Read: Samsung, USA Basketball Team Up On VR]

The multi-camera, 360-degree live stream was delivered to Deutsche Telekom customers via the company’s Magenta VR service on a consumer app. Technical project management was handled by MediaKind, which worked with Deutsche Telekom, Magnum Film, Tiledmedia, Iconic Engine and INVR. Magnum Film shot and produced the event in 360-degree video.

The coverage was the latest milestone in a collaboration over the past year and half between MediaKind and Tiledmedia to demo 360-degree viewport adaptive ClearVR video and supplement traditional broadcast production, bringing viewers closer to the action. “The success of this world first live sport event using 6K 360-degree video with ClearVR tiled format is a major milestone for our team of engineers and our partners who turned this around in a short space of time,” said Ruiz.

MediaKind’s virtualized software encoding technology was deployed in the Google Cloud Platform. MediaKind’s software-based probes were used to monitor every point of data traffic flow and cloud processing operation. They also created customizable and detailed operational dashboards using common cloud visualization tools.

Deutsche Telekom’s T-Labs research team sponsored the event.

More information is available on the MediaKind website.

ONTARIO—When you think about artificial intelligence (AI)–specifically software capable of performing self-directed tasks historically performed by human intelligence–it conjures up images of Skynet; the evil AI in the Terminator movie franchise.

That’s fiction. But in real-life, AI is finding its way into the workplace, and that includes the encoding, transcoding and decoding of compressed video. Using the power of AI in their programs, vendors such as Bitmovin, Cobalt Digital, MediaKind, Telestream and V-Nova are speeding up their encoding programs while reducing bandwidth demands; resulting in faster, more affordable products for their customers.

“AI is starting to play an important role in encoding, where it has enormous potential to dramatically improve workflows,” said Stefan Lederer, CEO and co-founder of Bitmovin, a developer of cloud-based media streaming technology. “With the emergence of new codecs, new video file formats and delivery methods, the TV and media industry needs solutions that improve encoding in the automated, immediate and highly efficient way that AI offers.”

[Read: How We See: The Human Visual System]

That said, there is a debate underway among vendors as to the limits of AI in the encoding process. Certainly AI–also known as “machine learning”–can accelerate the encoding process. But can it do everything that a human observer can to detect and remedy artifacts in compressed video? No one really knows.

It’s important to remember that the the improvement in speed is in the process of removing humans from the review stage after an encode has happened, according to Paul Turner, of Turner Media Consulting. “Encode parameters can be set to a predefined set of values, but you still have to look at the result and assess if the encoded output is of sufficient quality,” he said. “If not, you have to iterate on the settings.”

(For the record, ML is a narrower version of AI, in which AI-enabled software is charged with making decisions about specific data within predefined parameters; rather than becoming self-aware and choosing to annihilate the human race. In this article, we will use the two terms interchangeably, as the people who were interviewed tended to.)

HOW AI CAN IMPROVE ENCODING

Today’s video codecs use algorithms to analyze video imagery, to determine which bits can be removed to reduce file size without degrading the subjective image quality perceived by the viewer.

Injecting AI into the encoding process takes this process a step further. AI allows the software to proactively assess the quality of the compressed video before transmission. This lets the encoding system detect and remedy any artifacts inadvertently generated by the codec. As the AI does this, it “learns” from its actions, and uses this knowledge to improve its performance over successive applications.

The result: “By using AI, encoding solutions can make smart decisions about the compression settings and visual parameters of each frame, speeding up processing and improving encoding efficiency,” said Lederer. “Trained AI models can even predict the optimal encoding settings, as well as preprocessing tools, for every given source asset.”

There are other ways that AI can be used in encoding, according to Guido Meardi, CEO and co-founder of V-Nova, a U.K.-based developer of codecs. One of the most common is to improve an existing codec’s predictive capabilities, for deciding which bits can be safely removed.

“The better you predict the image, the less residuals you have to eventually encode,” Meardi said; “therefore the less you have to send down the pipe without compromising quality.”

THE LIMITS OF AI

In each of these examples, AI is trying to improve the video production process by automating quality control. This is meant to reduce much-slower (and more costly) human intervention to perform the same tasks.

“What you’re fundamentally trying to do is emulate human assessment,” said Shawn Carnahan, CTO for Telestream in Grass Valley, Calif. “You’re trying to use machine learning to emulate how the viewer perceives the quality of the content, and use that to decide questions such as ‘can I drive the bitrate even further, or do I need to increase the bitrate to maintain subjective quality?’”

If this sounds like a daunting task, it is. AI software is literally trained “to look for things in the image that human viewers would find objectionable,” Carnahan said. “You are training a machine to spot things that shouldn’t be there.”

This is where the limits of AI-enabled video encoding come to bear. “Mapping or trying to best represent the human visual system using software is near impossible,” said Carl Furgusson, vice president of Portfolio Management for MediaKind (formerly Ericsson Media Solutions). “People have been trying to do it for 20 or 30-plus years without success, and I don’t think anyone will ever really get to an accurate mapping of the human visual system.”

The problem is the subjective nature of human viewing, compared to a metrics-based AI viewing model. “You will always get different results between what people think in reality is better picture quality, and what the measurement tools will give you,” Furgusson said; no matter how sophisticated the AI viewing model may be.

Quality assessment isn’t only about absolute picture quality; there are artifacts that non-trained human viewers will not notice, according to Turner.

“That has to be factored in to the AI training too,” he said.

Does this mean that AI is doomed to play a minor role in video compression? V-Nova’s Guido Meardi doesn’t think so. Even with its limits, he predicts that AI will become “an integral part of compression engines in the future.”

Still, until this technology can actually match the complexities and nuances of the human visual system, human intervention will remain a necessary element of high-quality video compression. At best, AI will continually drive down the percentage of instances when humans have to step in to fix the picture quality.

WHITE PLAINS, NY--The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers has announced the new leadership for the 2019-2020 term, electing Patrick Griffis, vice president of technology in the Office of the CTO at Dolby Laboratories as its new president. Griffis, who succeeds current SMPTE President, Matthew Goldman, senior vice president of technology at MediaKind (formerly known as Ericsson Media Solutions) will take over, Jan. 1, 2019.

Griffis, who currently serves as SMPTE executive vice president and has previously held roles including education vice president, secretary-treasurer, and U.S. western region governor, will serve a two-year term as SMPTE president. Goldman will continue to serve as a SMPTE officer on the Executive Committee of the Board of Governors as the Society's immediate past president.

"SMPTE is building on the success of its centennial by focusing on new initiatives across its three pillars: standards, education, and membership," said Griffis. "We're embarking on some exciting new projects that will allow the Society to be even more agile in addressing the requirements of modern media and entertainment. I am particularly passionate about expanding our outreach to the next generation of membership and becoming an even more global organization. I look forward to working with my SMPTE and HPA colleagues to ensure the Society continues to meet the needs of the individuals and organizations advancing the science and the art of next-generation media and entertainment experiences."

Other incoming SMPTE officers elected for the two-year 2019-2020 term include:

• Executive Vice President: Hans Hoffmann, senior manager, media production technologies, for the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) Technology and Innovation department;

• Education Vice President: Sara Kudrle, product marketing manager at Imagine Communications, and

• Secretary Treasurer: John E. Ferder, director of engineering at MultiDyne Video & Fiber Optic Systems

Newly elected SMPTE Governors include:

• Sylvain Marcotte, systems architect and product owner at Grass Valley, a Belden Brand, for the Canada Region;

• Marina Kalkanis, CEO at M2A Media, for the United Kingdom Region;

• William T. Hayes, director of engineering and technology at Iowa Public Television, for the USA - Central Region;

• Michael DeValue, director of technology standards and strategy at Walt Disney Studios, for the USA - Hollywood Region, and

• Rosemarie Lockwood, northeastern U.S. regional sales engineer at Belden, for the USA - New York Region.

Six Governors were re-elected:

• Masayuki Sugawara, executive engineer at NEC Corporation, for the Asia-Pacific Region; François Abbe, president and founder of Mesclado, for the Europe, Africa, Middle East, Central and South America Region;

• Gary Mandle, consultant at Outtahand Displays, for the USA - Western Region;

• Michael Koetter, senior vice president for digital media systems at Turner, for USA - Southern Region;

• James M. Burger, partner at Thompson Coburn LLP, for the USA - Eastern Region, and

• Christopher Fetner, director, post partnerships and integrations (PPI) at Netflix, for the USA - Hollywood Region.

Governors who were not up for re-election and who continue on the SMPTE Board of Governors include:

• Merrick (Rick) Ackermans of MVA Broadcast Consulting (USA - Southern Region);

• Paul Briscoe of Televisionary Consulting (Canada Region);

• Mark Harrison of the Digital Production Partnership (DPP) (United Kingdom Region);

•  Siegfried Foessel of Fraunhofer IIS (EMEA and Central and South America Region);

• Paul Chapman of SIM Group (USA - Hollywood Region);

• Renard Jenkins of PBS (USA - Eastern Region), and

• Ward Hansford of Grass Valley (Asia-Pacific Region); and Ben Waggoner of Amazon (USA - Western Region).

Officers who were not up for re-election and who continue to serve on the SMPTE Board of Governors Executive Committee include SMPTE Standards Vice President Bruce Devlin of Mr. MXF and SMPTE Membership Vice President Peter Wharton of Happy Robotz LLC.

Newly elected officers and governors will be introduced to the SMPTE membership at the Society's Annual General Membership Meeting, 8:00 a.m., Oct. 23 at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel and Suites in downtown Los Angeles in conjunction with the SMPTE 2018 Annual Technical Conference & Exhibition (SMPTE 2018). The Annual General Membership Meeting is open to all attendees of SMPTE 2018, including those with exhibits-only passes. Further details and registration are available at smpte2018.org.

The election leaves the positions of finance vice president and governor for the New York Region vacant. These positions will be appointed by the SMPTE Board of Governors and will be announced at the Annual Membership Meeting. The Board of Governors will appoint governors-at-large as well as directors of standards, education, and membership at a later date.

Further information about the newly elected SMPTE leadership is available at smpte.org/2018-society-election-results. More information about the SMPTE Board of Governors is available at smpte.org/board.

The 2018 IBC Show wrapped up a successful event last month in which the industry took stock of the latest technologies, trends and insight into what’s on the horizon. Like it’s bigger cousin, the NAB Show, the IBC event provides an opportunity for our industry to not only examine its current status but to hear from emerging players as well as established leaders in content creation and media distribution.

The major talking points coalesced around 5G, UHD, IP, the cloud, immersive audio and VR and AI, which has had an increasingly important impact on both creation and distribution over the past year. I had a chance to speak with many of the vendors about industry trends and how they saw our market changing.

That change is constant now, according to Jeff Rosica, CEO of Avid. “Welcome to 2018 where disruption is the new norm,” he said. “We’ve got to admit that this is not some kind of temporary situation that is going to go away. We have to think differently and that includes technology suppliers.”

Rossica noted the importance of the industry working together to solve problems. “We’ve got to get on open environments where we can develop openly together,” he said. “We not going to solve the problems individually, and we’ve got to do it fast. We used to talk about doing one thing at a time, now we’re talking about doing 10 things at once.”

While SMPTE standards are still important particularly in real time live production scenarios, Rosica noted the impact that Silicon Valley has had on the modern media landscape, illustrated by Apple’s announcement just prior to the show that its next generation iPhone XS platform will support Dolby Vision and HDR 10. “That’s a big deal and all the telcos are now going to focus on those standards,” he said.

On the show floor, Grass Valley moved into the exhibit area occupied by SAM just a year ago, announcing that the integration of the two companies is now complete. At the company’s press conference, President Tim Shoulders discussed a recent company survey that revealed some interesting industry trends.

Looking at the core broadcast segment, Shoulders said that while industry revenues from subscriptions, advertising and licensing have been growing “at a very rapid pace,” at around 4 percent annually, customers’ costs are increasing due to the explosion of content creation and distribution platforms, illustrated by competition from OTT players such as Netflix and Amazon.

“Multiplatform distribution has been a problem for our customers in that they have been investing a lot of money to access new markets,” he said. “This change in market cost structure has put pressure on our segment of the industry and when you combine that with being in the middle of a technological revolution where it’s the cloud, IP, or the need to go UHD, it’s made it a difficult market to participate in.”

Shoulders said he thinks that the pace of revenues from the video business will decelerate with the average price of subscriptions dropping as we see more “skinny bundles” proliferate as well as the expansion of viewership in China and India. He also expects the cost of live TV production will increase as rights to marquee events get renegotiated and expectations for UHD/HDR coverage will be added to the packages.

Imagine Communications CEO Tom Cotney sees similar market pressures as well.

“Our customers are under increasing pressure, they’re being squeezed by a change in technology and loss of viewership to different mediums,” he said. Cotney also called for more intra-industry cooperation. “What I’ve learned over the nine months since I entered this industry is that I’m not competing with everyone else who has a booth in this exhibit hall,” he said. “Imagine is competing with our customers’ number one problem and that is the total cost of ownership and technology is part of that answer but not the complete answer.”

At the show, Cotney announced that Imagine will begin rolling out a new set of services that will help its customers not only migrate to IP but help those customers that may not be ready to take the plunge.

“We’re going to be beta testing three new service offerings that address the needs of customers who may be too risk averse to go to IP right away,” he said. “Some people like to buy into technology later on the maturity curve. We need to be a partner for that customer as well as the one who is ready to make the deal this quarter.” The new services will be ready by the 2019 NAB Show.

For the former Ericsson Media Services, the show served as the coming out party for “MediaKind,” the new name for the company division, which was spun off last year as its parent company chose to focus on its core market, 5G. Matt Goldman, senior vice president for the division, noted the launch of the “MediaKind Universe” which resulted in the renaming of all of its core products around constellations, adding that the renaming of the business represents a renewed vision.

“The product line is everything that we were before Ericsson Media Solutions,” he said. “But now we’ve bloomed because we now control our own destiny.”

Although attendance was down by a mere 3 percent, the exhibit floor grew by 667 square meters (7,180 square feet) and conference delegates were up by 14 percent from 2017.  

AMSTERDAM--At IBC2018, MediaKind, formerly Ericsson Media Solutions, has launched the MediaKind Personalization Suite, with a new workflow designed to allow service providers and broadcasters to deliver more relevant and personalized advertising. The MediaFirst Personalization Suite is a member of the company’s new Orion family of solutions that forms part of the wider MediaKind Universe portfolio.

The suite is designed to help transition broadcasters and service providers from the traditional one to many approach to the more personalized approach enabled by IP, which also brings along with it, new monetization opportunities.

The MediaKind Personalization Suite includes the newly launched placement and content distribution rights (PRISMA) application, an advertising product that comes pre-integrated with MediaKind’ Dynamic Ad Insertion (DAI), encoding & packaging, storage and delivery capabilities. This product gives TV service providers and broadcasters access to real-time broadcast schedule ingest from the playout automation system, and the ability to frame-accurately identify different placement opportunities such as ad breaks and ad spots or any other program boundaries.

Frame accurate signaling allows multiple use cases downstream including blackout, dynamic ad insertion and program substitution. With greater control and accuracy over the delivery of ad content, the ground is prepared for downstream Server-Side Ad Insertion (SSAI) which in turn removes in particular any latency at the time of switching between original programming and replacing or inserting ad spots to ensure a true TV-like quality of experience for viewers, with reduced customer churn.

The MediaKind Personalization Suite also offers protection of audience data and its value to TV service providers and broadcasters. The application prevents leakage of this data to the Demand side and ensures it reaches its full value, by using a full abstraction layer between the operator’s cost per engagement (CPE) and the Demand side. In partnerships with leading ad tech suppliers, MediaKind is embedding a full trading stack to support both Direct and Programmatic inventory sales methods.

Further information about the MediaKind Personalization Suite, is on the new Orion family solution page.

SANTA CLARA, CA—Ericsson Media Solutions today announced it has rebranded itself as MediaKind, the home of technologies from companies acquired by Ericsson, such as Aspex, Azuki Systems, Envivio, Fabrix, HyCGroup, Microsoft Mediaroom and Tandberg Television.

“We understand the power of media and how it is evolving. It runs in our DNA, and it’s our passion,” said Angel Ruiz, MediaKind CEO. The goal of the company is to enable MediaKind customers to “create and deliver immersive media experiences,” he added.

Currently, the company serves more than 900 cable, satellite and telecom service providers as well as broadcasters worldwide. In 2017, Ericsson divvied up its media businesses into two divisions: Ericsson Media Solutions, which includes its Emmy award-winning video compression solutions for contribution and direct-to-consumer video service distribution, advertising and content personalization, cloud DVR and TV and video delivery platforms; and Red Bee Media, formerly Ericsson Broadcast & Media Services, which focuses on playout, OTT, media management and accessibility solutions. 

[Read: Ericsson Media Solutions Launches MediaFirst UHD Media Processing And Encoding Platform]

On Jan. 31, private equity firm One Equity Partners announced its intention to become the majority owner of Ericsson Media Solutions. The MediaKind brand will be carried forward when the this transaction is complete, MediaKind said.

Besides Ruiz, the management team of MediaKind includes: Gowton Achaibar, COO and Head of R&D; Heather Andrade-Neumann, Chief People Officer; Arun Bhikshesvaran, CMO; Misty Kawecki, CFO; Mark Russell, CTO and Strategy Officer; Sven Bolthausen, SVP commercial management & sales support; Alex Borland, SVP EMEA sales; Clayton Cruz, SVP Latin American sales; Steve Payne, SVP North America sales; and Ken Yap, SVP North East Asia sales.

More information is available on the company’s website.