AMSTERDAM—Ceeblue, a Dutch-based provider of ultra-low-latency video streaming technology and Australian media technology company Layercake, today announced the expansion of their partnership with the full production rollout of an advanced Digital Rights Management (DRM) framework alongside revolutionary Server-Side Ad Insertion (SSAI).

Building directly upon the integration of Ceeblue’s sub-second WebRTS streaming with Layercake’s orchestration and workflow management platform, Streamcake, the two companies now support studio-grade content protection in live production on sub-second streams.

The upgraded feature set supports both major industry encryption schemes, CENC and CBCS, which unlocks full coverage across the Widevine, PlayReady, and FairPlay DRM ecosystems over DASH, HLS/CMAF, Low-Latency HLS, and WebRTS delivery channels.

Engineered for efficiency and extreme security, the DRM architecture introduces three strategically vital innovations:

• Encrypt Once at Ingest: Encryption metadata is computed and persisted at the origin, eliminating redundant processing and ensuring content is encrypted only once rather than per-output;
• Passthrough at the Edge: Edge and relay nodes forward protected streams without ever holding decryption keys, drastically lowering edge compute costs while materially reducing the key-exposure attack surface, and
• Open Integration Architecture: Built-in trigger hooks allow seamless interoperability with self-managed or third-party KMS/DRM backends, currently supporting Google Secret Manager.

This production capability directly addresses contractual content-protection requirements, unblocking deals for premium tier-1 live sports and entertainment streaming that were previously relegated to much higher latencies by the limitations of HLS/DASH streaming.

Alongside robust content protection, the expanded integration delivers Server-Side Ad Insertion (SSAI). Until now, operators had to choose between latency and monetization. But now, the combination of sub-second delivery, full-fledged DRM, and seamless SSAI running on standard CDNs gives sports and live broadcast operators a huge incentive to go ultra-low latency.

By coupling Streamcake’s automated cloud control plane, which makes management and scaling intuitive and reliable, with Ceeblue’s WebRTS origins, the combined solution delivers targeted value across core verticals:

• OTT Sports & Betting: Eliminates the "spoiler effect" by aligning digital delivery precisely with live play. Feeds delivered under one second expand live-betting windows, combat courtsiding, and protect high-value rights with DRM;
• iGaming & Live Auctions: Provides real-time interactivity to thousands of global users at the same time, allowing hybrid on-site and remote play / bidding. The immediacy of real-time interactivity maximizes Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR) and engagement, and ensures auction integrity, and
• Corporate Comms & Live Commerce: Drives interactive corporate town halls over HTTP, which easily traverses strict enterprise firewalls, while empowering live commerce platforms to handle massive viral traffic surges with automatic edge scaling.

The production DRM framework capabilities are available immediately across the integrated Ceeblue and Streamcake deployment options. Customers can deploy the unified solution across major CDNs, including Akamai, Orange CDN, Fastly, and many more.

Visitors to the 2026 IBC Show can see demos at Ceeblue (5.C43) and Layercake Partner Pod on the Grass Valley Stand (9.A01).

CLEVELAND and HILVERSUM, The Netherlands—Telos Alliance and Pluxbox have formed a new partnership that brings Minnetonka Audio ARC (Audio Realtime Control) technology, directly into Pluxbox CoreOC, its software-based operational platform for broadcast and media workflows.

The integration gives Pluxbox users access to ARC, which provides real-time software-based audio processing, within their existing CoreOC environment, using MXL to connect the applications.

This allows broadcasters and media organizations to add advanced audio processing to software-defined workflows without introducing a separate processing layer or changing the way operators work.

“We’re very pleased to work with Pluxbox to bring ARC into the CoreOC platform,” said Markus Hintz, vice president of Business Development at Telos Alliance. “Integrating ARC with Pluxbox via MXL gives broadcasters access to sophisticated audio processing directly within a modern software-based workflow. It’s a practical example of how interoperability can make it easier to build flexible media facilities without adding unnecessary complexity.”

The ARC integration is the first step in a broader collaboration between companies. Other Telos Alliance capabilities planned for integration with CoreOC include Minnetonka Audio UPMAX upmixing, Omnia Forza audio processing and Telos VX broadcast VoIP.

“Integrating Minnetonka Audio ARC into Pluxbox was straightforward because ARC supports MXL, enabling real-time exchange of uncompressed video, audio and metadata within software-defined broadcast and live production environments,” said Caspar Adriani, chief technology officer at Pluxbox. “For our customers, that means access to advanced audio processing without disrupting the workflows they already know. We’re excited to continue working with Telos Alliance and expand what we can offer through CoreOC.”

Caspar Adriani, CTO, Pluxbox, added: “Integrating Minnetonka Audio ARC into Pluxbox was straightforward because ARC supports MXL, enabling real-time exchange of uncompressed video, audio, and metadata within software-defined broadcast and live production environments. For our customers, that means access to advanced audio processing without disrupting the workflows they already know. We’re excited to continue working with Telos Alliance and expand what we can offer through CoreOC.”

The ARC integration is the first step in a broader collaboration between Telos Alliance and Pluxbox. Additional Telos Alliance capabilities planned for integration with CoreOC include Minnetonka Audio UPMAX upmixing, Omnia Forza audio processing, and Telos VX broadcast VoIP.

MONTREAL and NEW YORK—Haivision has announced that it is integrating Chyron LIVE into its live video contribution ecosystem, simplifying camera-to-cloud live production. Chyron LIVE is Chyron’s cloud-native platform for vision mixing, broadcast-grade graphics, data display, remote commentary, and illustrated replay. The joint solution will be showcased at IBC2026.

The combined solution will allow broadcasters to capture, transport, and contribute high-quality live video from virtually any location into Chyron LIVE, streamlining live production workflows while delivering the performance, reliability, and ease of use required for professional broadcasting.

Built for sports, news, and live event productions, the integrated workflow combines Haivision's live video contribution products, including Haivision mobile video transmitters (Falkon, Pro, and Air) and Makito video encoders and decoders, with Chyron LIVE, powered by Chyron’s PRIME Platform which is developed natively on AWS. The combined solution enables broadcasters to reliably contribute live video over cellular networks, the internet, satellite, and IP networks directly into cloud-based production workflows, according to the companies.

“Broadcasters are increasingly looking for flexible, cloud-native production workflows that simplify live content acquisition,” said Nikole McStanley, senior vice president of product, Chyron. “Together with Haivision, we're enabling customers to bring high-quality live video into Chyron LIVE more efficiently, giving production teams greater flexibility to produce live content from anywhere with ease.”

Visitors to IBC2026 can see the integrated workflow firsthand at Haivision (2.B32) and Chyron (7.A23) .

ATLANTA—The Orlando Magic NBA franchise and Gray Media have announced a deal that will see Gray stations in Gainesville, Panama City, and Tallahassee broadcast about 70 games during the 2026-27 season.

All regular-season games, excluding exclusive national telecasts, will be broadcast over-the-air on digital subchannels of WTGB (Channel 34.3) in Gainesville, WJHG (Channel 7.6) in Panama City, and WCTV (Channel 6.3) in Tallahassee.

Each subchannel is affiliated with the 365BLK network and is also available on local cable systems.

In addition, select games will air on Gray’s ABC, NBC, CBS, and MyNetwork stations in these markets. A complete station lineup and broadcast schedule will be announced later.

“We are excited to partner with Gray Media to bring Magic basketball to Gainesville, Panama City, and Tallahassee,” Magic President of Business Operations Charlie Freeman said. “Adding Gray to our lineup will provide Magic fans a direct connection to the team all season long.”

Added Gray Chief Operating Officer Sandy Breland: “Gray knows that Orlando Magic fans in Gainesville, Panama City, and Tallahassee will love watching the full season of the Magic free, over-the-air. This relationship with the Magic builds on Gray’s other successful NBA partnerships and we look forward to continuing to build on this relationship with the Magic.”

The Magic’s broadcast team will comprise full-time play-by-play announcer Dante Marchitelli; analyst Jeff Turner, a former Magic forward; and Kendra Douglas, who is entering her fourth season as team reporter.

The Magic said that they will also announce a direct-to-consumer streaming partner in the near future.

LIEGE, Belgium and MONTREAL—EVS and Matrox Video are combining their respective platforms to accelerate the broadcast industry's transition to software-defined live production. Aligned with the European Broadcasting Union's Dynamic Media Facility (DMF) initiative, the collaboration pairs EVS's orchestration and workflow management capabilities with Matrox ORIGIN’s software-defined media transport and processing to help broadcasters build more flexible, resource-driven production environments.

DMF architectures enable production resources to be provisioned and assigned according to operational needs rather than permanently tied to individual workflows or dedicated hardware.

Matrox ORIGIN gives EVS a software-defined media processing foundation designed to run broadcast workloads on standard compute infrastructure, while supporting open, interoperable approaches including the EBU’s Media eXchange Layer (MXL) and IPMX. Its scalable architecture allows media processing resources to be deployed and allocated dynamically, aligning closely with the resource-driven principles of the DMF. As an OEM building on Matrox ORIGIN, EVS can focus its engineering investment on the orchestration, automation, and operational layers where it delivers differentiated value to broadcasters.

EVS provides the orchestration and operational layer that enables broadcasters to align infrastructure resources with evolving production requirements. Through Production Resource Manager (PRM), a key component of EVS's Flexible Control Room solution, processing resources can be dynamically deployed, configured, and reconfigured based on the specific needs of each production. This allows broadcasters to maximize infrastructure utilization, increase operational agility, and reduce total cost of ownership, according to the company.

Complementing this approach, EVS’s Tactiq UI provides a modern, workflow-driven user experience that abstracts the complexity of the underlying technology stack, allowing operators to focus on producing content rather than managing infrastructure. In parallel, Cerebrum delivers the same simplification for engineering and operations teams, providing a unified control layer across SDI, IP, on-premises, and cloud environments.

Today, EVS' Cerebrum broadcast control and orchestration platform integrates with Matrox Video's Avio 2 IP KVM extenders and ConvertIP baseband to IP converters and encoders/decoders, enabling centralized control and routing across IP-based production environments.

The companies said they will continue collaborating on technologies that advance the industry's transition "toward more dynamic, scalable, and software-defined production infrastructure."

BERLIN—TiVo today unveiled significant enhancements to its TiVo OS media platform, expanding generative AI-powered content discovery experiences, more free streaming content, enhanced sports experiences, interactive commerce capabilities and platform optimizations that the company says could reduce costs for smart TV manufacturers.

TiVo, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Xperi, also announced the appointment of Tal Bone as senior vice president and general manager of TiVo OS. Bone, who brings more than a decade of experience building and scaling global smart TV and entertainment platforms most recently served as vice president of global product and chief technology officer at VIDAA, Hisense's smart TV operating system.

The company made its announcements in advance of the the IFA 2026 tech show, which takes place Sept. 4-8 in Berlin.

Expanded TiVo Channels Offering
TiVo announced that it has added hundreds of new global and local FAST channels to its TiVO Channels platform and added a new mini guide for faster channel navigation and personalized content carousels that offer relevant programming based on viewers’ preferences.

TiVo has also enhanced sports discovery across search, recommendations and the home screen on its OS, allowing viewers to more easily discover, follow, and access live games and sporting events through improved surfacing of sports content and real-time event promotion directly within the TiVo OS experience.

And in a nod to expanding its presence overseas, particularly in Europe, TiVo also announced that its OS now supports DVB-I, a protocol that adds IP capability to the DVB standard. DVB-I enables broadcasters to deliver television content over the internet while simplifying access for consumers. The enhancement allows viewers to discover and watch local broadcast channels without requiring a traditional aerial or antenna.

TiVo has also significantly reduced the TiVo OS memory footprint, enabling deployment on devices with as little as 1 GB RAM and 4 GB eMMC. These improvements are designed to help reduce bill-of-material costs, allow for more efficient hardware configurations, and expand deployment opportunities across a wider range of smart TVs and connected entertainment devices, the company said.

AI Enhancements
TiVo is also collaborating with IRCODE in a partnership that now combines AI and computer vision technologies to recognize on-screen content and enable immediate viewer interaction on its OS, unlocking “new opportunities for commerce, content discovery, advertising and companion experiences, allowing consumers to engage with content in entirely new ways while creating new monetization opportunities for partners,” according to the company.

TiVo said it plans to implement the soon-to-be released AI-powered discovery product, Agent TiVo, which is designed to enable consumers to navigate entertainment through natural conversation and help them discover content more intuitively and efficiently. Rather than relying on traditional keyword searches, viewers will be able to describe what they're looking for and receive personalized recommendations and guidance, creating a richer and more engaging content discovery experience, the company said.

SAN ANTONIO—The San Antonio Spurs have announced a deal with the sports entertainment platform DAZN that will make it the team’s new direct-to-consumer media partner.

As part of the deal, which begins with the 2026-27 season. DAZN will serve as the exclusive direct-to-fan destination for Spurs games, airing all regular season games not selected exclusively for national broadcast, plus all preseason contests and team-produced original programming.

The Spurs also reported that they will also offer 22 games over-the-air through a soon-to-be-announced local broadcast partner.

“Partnering with DAZN gives Spurs fans an easy and innovative platform to follow Spurs game action and additional behind-the-scenes highlights,” said Frank Miceli, chief commercial officer at Spurs Sports & Entertainment. “This partnership expands access to Spurs basketball and original content across our home broadcast market while creating more ways for fans to connect with the team. We’re excited to work with DAZN to deliver an engaging viewer experience beginning with the 2026-27 season.”

“The San Antonio Spurs are an iconic sports brand with deep roots in their community,” added Shay Segev, CEO of DAZN Group. “DAZN’s partnership with the Spurs is another important step in our strategy to build the leading entertainment destination for sports fans in the United States. Across the country, we’re partnering with top-tier teams and rights holders to help them strengthen direct relationships with their audiences through a modern, flexible viewing experience. The Spurs share our commitment to innovation and fan engagement, and together, we look forward to bringing Spurs basketball and premium team content to local fans."

As part of the deal, the Spurs will oversee and manage the full production of all games.

The subscription service, which will launch in the coming weeks, will be available throughout the Spurs home broadcast market, which includes full coverage across Central, South and West Texas.

DAZN noted that fans who become Official Spurs Fan Club members by Wednesday, Sept. 9 are eligible for an exclusive subscription discount. A Monthly Pass will be available for $19.99, while a Season Pass will cost $119.99. Spurs season ticket members will receive a 20% discount on Season Pass subscriptions.

DAZN will also offer its Ultimate Tier with incremental benefits including a 25% off one-time discount code to the Spurs Fan Shop in addition to alternate feeds and camera angles, and multi-view capabilities, enhancing the fan viewing experience.

Monthly Pass Ultimate will be available for $24.99 and Season Pass Ultimate will be available for $139.99.

DAZN will also distribute select Spurs Sports & Entertainment programming, including San Antonio FC matches and NBA G League Austin Spurs games.

More information more about the San Antonio Spurs on DAZN and to sign up to be notified when subscription access becomes available can be found at DAZN.com/Spurs.

EverPass Media has announced a multi-year distribution agreement with Netflix that will bring Netflix's NFL content to commercial establishments nationwide.

The agreement builds on the existing agreements between EverPass and Netflix, which has delivered NFL Christmas Day games on Netflix over the past two seasons and distributed other Netflix-exclusive live boxing events to bars and restaurants.

Through the expanded agreement, commercial venues will have access to Netflix's full NFL slate.

The 2026 lineup includes the NFL's Week 1 Melbourne game, the first-ever Thanksgiving Eve game, two Christmas Day matchups, a Week 18 game and NFL Honors, the league’s annual awards show during Super Bowl week.

“Netflix continues to bring some of the NFL’s biggest moments to fans, and we're excited to expand our partnership to make those events available to commercial businesses across the U.S.,” said Alex Kaplan, CEO of EverPass Media. “Digital distribution has fundamentally changed how audiences access content, and EverPass was built to help commercial businesses keep up with that evolution. By providing a simple, authorized way to access premium live events, we help bars, restaurants and other venues deliver the games that matter most to customers. Adding Netflix’s NFL live events to EverPass further strengthens our offering, giving establishments access to even more must-see events that drive engagement and create memorable experiences.”

Through EverPass, commercial businesses will have access to the following NFL games and events on Netflix during the 2026 season:

• Week 1 (Melbourne): San Francisco 49ers vs. Los Angeles Rams – Thursday, September 10, 2026
• Week 12 (Thanksgiving Eve): Green Bay Packers vs. Los Angeles Rams – Wednesday, November 25, 2026
• Week 16 (Christmas Day): Green Bay Packers vs. Chicago Bears – Friday, December 25, 2026
• Week 16 (Christmas Day): Buffalo Bills vs. Denver Broncos – Friday, December 25, 2026
• Week 18 (Final Week of the Regular Season): Saturday, January 9, 2027
• 2027 NFL Honors: TBD Super Bowl week

Under a separate multi-year agreement with EverPass, DirecTV for Business will market, sell and distribute these NFL games and events, along with other premium sports programming available through EverPass, to commercial customers.

The deal comes in the wake of recent news that EverPass has agreed to be acquired by the sports entertainment platform DAZN.

The acquisition, announced August 26, will bring together EverPass' leading U.S. commercial sports distribution capabilities with DAZN's global scale, premium content portfolio, established international commercial distribution and technology capabilities. The transaction is expected to close following receipt of required regulatory approvals.

CLEVELAND—Telos Alliance will highlight its latest product line for TV, streaming, and radio at the 2026 IBC Show, Sept. 11-14 at the RAI Amsterdam.

Visitors to Stand 8.D37 will find two European product debuts as well as major updates and additions across intercom, live production audio, and file-based audio workflow tools.

New this year for Jünger Audio flexAI, is flexAI CastCompanion. Powered by JAIC, the Jünger Audio Intelligent Companion, flexAI autonomously manages live voice sources that may arrive at very different levels, with varying quality and background noise. JAIC analyzes the incoming audio and helps optimize parameters, while Jünger’s deterministic algorithms handle the actual processing, delivering predictable latency and broadcast reliability. CastCompanion combines automixing, AI-assisted de-noising, voice enhancement, and loudness management to create consistent, intelligible mixes without an operator constantly riding levels.

Telos Alliance will show new flexAI support for 12G-SDI and NDI and will demonstrate how flexAI now integrates with the TVU MediaMesh cloud-native live production platform, allowing producers to extend Jünger’s powerful processing ecosystem across hardware, server, IP, partner, and cloud workflows.

The company will also highlight new Infinity MK2 hardware panels for the Telos Infinity IP intercom range. Designed for use in the studio and in the field, the larger buttons feature bright TFT displays, programmable colors, flexible Talk/Listen controls, three shift pages, a Reply to Last Caller function, and four-way “compass” controls.

For sports commentators, Infinity VCP Virtual Commentator Panel now integrates directly with Elgato Stream Deck+, adding compact physical controls to its browser-based commentary environment without requiring a traditional dedicated commentary box. VCP also uses adaptive bitrate control to help maintain contribution audio intelligibility and network reliability.

Also making its debut in Europe is Axia Pulsar, a compact AoIP console, that features an 8-fader Master Module that uses dual operating layers to provide access to 16 inputs; an optional Expansion Module gives physical access to all 16 faders. Axia Pulsar features bright TFT displays, touch-sensitive encoders, spill-proof 100mm motorized faders, programmable controls, Show Profiles, and integrated EBU R128 loudness metering. Powered by the 2RU StudioCore engine, the compact Pulsar integrates directly into all Livewire and AES67 environments. Optional Pulsar Soft browser-based control also makes remote operation possible from a computer, tablet, or smartphone, according to Telos Alliance.

Minnetoka AudioTools Server v7 will debut at IBC, with new A.I./machine-learning modules that include Language Detection, Dialog Intelligibility, and a powerful new tool, AudioTools Source Separation by AudioShake. This new subscription module can extract dialogue, music, and effects from finished program audio to give broadcasters, studios, streaming providers, and content owners new ways to work with existing material when original multitrack sessions are unavailable or incomplete.

Dialogue can be isolated for dubbing or intelligibility enhancement, music can be replaced for creative or licensing reasons, and clean M&E tracks can be created for alternate-language versions and new distribution opportunities. Because source separation runs inside AudioTools Server, it can also be combined with existing loudness, QC, transcoding, language, and delivery processes to create repeatable, automated workflows at scale.

For radio, the Omnia XII will mark its European debut at the show. Its new processing architecture combines wideband AGC, five bands of intelligent multiband AGC and compressors, six bands of multiband limiting, smart dynamic EQ, refined bass management, and a new “Clemenza” clipper, designed to deliver competitive loudness without the distortion and listener fatigue that can come with aggressive processing.

Along with products featured at IBC, Telos Alliance will showcase its work with industry partners to advance interoperability and more consistent audio workflows.

As part of the IBC Accelerator “Crystal Clear” project, Telos Alliance is collaborating with Nugen Audio, RTW, Steinberg, Fraunhofer IDMT, Channel 4, BBC, ITV, and others on standardized dialogue intelligibility measurement across the industry.

Telos Alliance will take part in Grass Valley's AMPP demo, with Minnetonka Audio ARC loudness processing and UPMAX up/down/cross-mixing interconnected via MXL to enable higher-quality, lower-latency audio processing within AMPP workflows.

Telos Alliance will also participate in Qvest’s Dynamic Media Facility demonstration, a portable, multi-vendor production environment handling live feeds, real-time audio and video processing, Dolby Atmos upmixing, signal monitoring, and multiviewing. Telos Alliance processing will operate alongside tools from other vendors, with MXL providing the common connection between applications. The demo shows how MXL can simplify integration and reduce latency across on-prem and cloud workflows.

Telos Alliance will be in Stand 8.D37.

OSLO, Norway—Bridge Technologies has announced that its flagship VB440 production probe now supports monitoring of Blackmagic Design's IP10 codec and will provide demos in its booth as well as Blackmagic’s booth at the upcoming 2026 IBC Show, Sept. 11-14 at the RAI Amsterdam.

IP10 is Blackmagic's lightweight, low-latency codec designed to address a specific challenge in ST 2110 environments: fitting high-frame-rate Ultra HD video through a 10 GigE connection while maintaining broadcast-quality, 10-bit 4:2:2 colour performance.

With a latency of just eight-pixel samples and an extremely small FPGA footprint, IP10 is license-free and open, allowing broadcasters to deploy ST 2110 workflows without the expense of 25GE or 200GE switching infrastructure. For broadcasters operating in OB trucks, remote locations, or smaller facilities where high-speed network infrastructure is not available, IP10 offers a pragmatic path to uncompressed-quality IP production over widely available 10GE links, Bridge said.

The VB440 itself is equipped with dual 200 GigE interfaces, capable of handling uncompressed ST 2110 streams at the highest data rates. But in contexts where the wider network infrastructure is operating on smaller bandwidth channels—with IP10 being used precisely to address that limitation—the VB440's native support for the codec means engineers can monitor IP10-encoded streams with the same depth of visibility they expect from uncompressed workflows, according to the company. This ensures that even in bandwidth-constrained environments, the VB440 remains a viable and powerful monitoring presence.

Facilities using IP10 as an underlying codec will thus have full access to the extensive range of tools present within the VB440, which itself represents a uniquely powerful production tool that combines both network monitoring and a full suite of practical production tools within a single RU appliance, thus drastically truck roll weight, energy consumption and the cost and space associated with screens and cabling, Bridge said.

The demos will take place at Bridge Technologies stand (Booth 1.A71) and Blackmagic’s (7.C49) during the show.

MONTREAL—Encompass Digital Media has launched Altitude Playout Plus, a software-defined channel origination platform it has developed with Grass Valley to help broadcasters manage live, late-changing and complex programming.

Encompass Digital Media provides managed media services to broadcasters, networks, sports leagues, federations, and OTT platforms worldwide, supporting channel origination, content processing, live event distribution and delivery.

The new service combines Encompass’s managed services, Media Cloud and Altitude Flow, with Grass Valley AMPP and Playout X, creating an integrated workflow from media supply chain operations through to channel origination and transmission. Channel 4 has selected Altitude Playout Plus to support its channel portfolio under a new multi-year managed playout agreement, with services scheduled to launch in 2027. Channel 4 is the second major U.K. public broadcaster to select the Encompass and Grass Valley platform, following the successful launch this month, according to the companies.

Altitude Playout Plus has been developed for channels where schedules and content can change close to and during transmission, such as live sports, news and entertainment. Alongside playout, the architecture supports live contribution, event management, recording and fast-turnaround workflows.

Grass Valley’s AMPP provides the software-defined production and playout foundation, with Playout X supporting channel origination. Encompass integrates these capabilities with Altitude Flow, its media supply chain and control platform, while its web-based Playout Director brings together the operational data needed to manage live programming and late changes.

This distributed architecture can be deployed across cloud and on-premises infrastructure and operated from multiple Encompass locations, the companies said. Services for the UK public broadcasters will be delivered from Encompass facilities in London and Riga, providing geographic diversity while giving operational teams flexibility over where resources are deployed.

The architecture also gives Encompass access to additional AMPP applications when specialist capabilities are required. Resources can be introduced according to the requirements of a channel or event rather than maintained permanently for workflows that may only be used periodically.

Grass Valley says the deployment demonstrates how its Dynamic Media Facility approach supports established broadcast services across hybrid, geographically distributed infrastructure. AMPP applications can operate alongside existing systems and Encompass technology without requiring the service provider or its customers to standardize operations around a single deployment location.

The two companies have completed extensive design work ahead of the Channel 4 transition to ensure the platform meets the broadcaster’s technical and operational requirements.

Visitors to the 2026 IBC Show can learn more about Grass Valley AMPP, Playout X and the Dynamic Media Facility at the company’s booth (9.A01), Sept. 11-14 at the RAI Amsterdam.

NEW YORK—Elon Musk’s social media platform X has launched "NFL Gametime on X," a new fan experience that brings real-time scores and stats, official team content, news, creators and the ongoing NFL conversation together into a single destination that is integrated throughout the platform.

“For years, X has been a key platform for NFL fans to connect, react and engage around every NFL moment,” said Brent Lawton, vice president of media strategy and business development, NFL. “We’re excited to deepen our partnership with NFL Gametime on X, allowing our fans to have official scores and stats, team content, and the conversation together in one place.”

Developed in partnership with the NFL and designed by Musk’s SpaceXAI, NFL Gametime on X is designed to bring fans closer than ever to this season’s on-field action. It features two complementary experiences built for avid NFL fans:

• NFL Timeline pinned alongside For You and Following tabs at the top of the timeline, fans can follow news, highlights, creator takes and fan reactions all in one prominent feed for the entire season.
• Gametime Hub delivers official NFL data alongside the conversation in the NFL Timeline. Fans can track scores and key stats in real time while staying connected to everything happening on X.

The social media platform noted that two out of three U.S. users are already on X and that NFL Gametime on X opens powerful new opportunities for brands and advertisers to reach highly engaged fans.

“NFL Gametime on X turns football fandom into a seamless opportunity for brands,” said Monique Pintarelli, head of global advertising, SpaceXAI. “Advertisers can now reach highly passionate fans across the entire funnel, from awareness and cultural conversation to real-time engagement during live games, all on X. Together with the NFL, we’re giving brands a powerful, authentic way to show up throughout the season.”

NFL Gametime on X is now live. Follow @Sports and @XBusiness for more updates.

OAKLAND, Calif.—Truthset announced an agreement with FreeWheel, a global technology platform for CTV advertising, that will allow advertisers to activate its independently validated Data Rated Audiences (DRAs) across the FreeWheel CTV advertising ecosystem.

The agreement provides advertisers with more accurate and consistent audience activation, while reducing wasted impressions and improving outcomes, the two companies said.

"As CTV continues to scale, the industry needs a more reliable way to connect high-quality audience data to premium video inventory without adding complexity for advertisers or publishers,” said Michelle Eule, executive director of Data and Measurement at FreeWheel, which is owned by Comcast. “This integration helps solve that challenge by giving advertisers and publishers greater accuracy and higher quality audience data across their campaigns.”

The integration allows advertisers to match Truthset’s Data Rated Audiences or DRAs, which are multi-sourced from participating members of its Data Collective and independently scored, to FreeWheel Identity Network. By embedding Truthset’s DRAs into the identity matching and activation process, advertisers can achieve more accurate targeting across premium CTV inventory. Ultimately, advertisers gain greater confidence they're reaching the right people and households to drive stronger campaign performance.

Initially, the integration will support audience activation through FreeWheel's Advertiser Suite, including FreeWheel Buyer Cloud (formerly Beeswax), and Curation Hub, , with broader availability across FreeWheel's unified audience marketplace planned.

This direct integration builds on Truthset's recent partnerships with The Trade Desk, Magnite, Yahoo and Databricks, where Data Rated Audiences are being 1:1 matched to IDs to ensure accuracy is maintained throughout platform and publisher activation. Together, these integrations advance the open web toward end-to-end validation, enabling advertisers to achieve walled garden-level performance while retaining the flexibility of programmatic advertising.

"Premium CTV inventory commands premium pricing, making audience accuracy more important than ever," said Gregg Galletta, President of Truthset. "We’re seeing a shift towards creating a more validated path between audience creation and media activation, to bring walled garden accuracy to the open web."

PARAMUS, N.J.—Sony Electronics and Vitec today announced a strategic global collaboration targeting corporate environments, entertainment venues, hospitality, healthcare, and public facilities by integrating Sony’s Bravia professional displays with Vitec’s IPTV and digital signage platform. The collaboration delivers an end-to-end IPTV and signage ecosystem that enhances visual experience and eliminates the need for external media players, offering a simpler-to-deploy, native Android-based app for Sony’s displays, the companies said.

By integrating Sony’s Bravia professional displays with Vitec’s Avedia IPTV and digital signage platform, the combination offers a player-less IPTV solution directly to the display’s system-on-a-chip (SoC). The Android-based Bravia professional display’s deployment tools offer smooth deployment of Vitec’s Avedia player software directly onto Sony displays without the need for additional hardware. This all-in-one approach reduces installation complexity, streamlines management, and lowers the total cost of ownership for end users, the companies said.

The combined technology, orchestrated by Vitec’s CMS can support thousands of displays—covering a wide range of screen sizes—while maintaining centralized control. From live IPTV channels to interactive signage and targeted advertising, users can adapt content in real time to maximize engagement and revenue opportunities.

“By combining Sony’s world-class display technology with Vitec’s powerful IPTV and signage platform, we are delivering a game-changing solution across many verticals,” said Rik Willemse, Head of Professional Display Solutions Europe, Sony Europe. “This collaboration allows operators and end users to create dynamic, engaging environments while simplifying installation and reducing operational complexity,” said Rich Ventura, Vice President, Professional Display Solutions America, Sony Electronics Inc.

This integration provides robust performance even in large-scale deployments with demanding requirements. Centralized content control, redundancy features, and support for the latest security standards ensure that any setup can rely on the system for mission-critical operation with end-to-end content protection.

“This strategic global collaboration between Vitec and Sony marks the beginning of an evolving collaboration focused on delivering innovative, secure, and scalable IPTV and digital signage solutions worldwide. By integrating our technologies and expertise, we are committed to providing customers with seamless, future-ready platforms and workflows that address the diverse needs of modern organizations,” said Eli Garten, Senior Vice President, Global IPTV and Partner Solutions for Vitec.

In addition to IPTV and digital signage solutions, Vitec’s end-to-end offering includes head-end encoding and streaming, IP gateways and video wall systems to manage, distribute and display content across using any network.

GENEVA, Switzerland—GlobalM today announced that it is integrating its GMX software-defined media platform with Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI), bringing together Oracle’s global cloud infrastructure with GlobalM’s technology for live media contribution, processing, and distribution.

The integration will enable GMX Cloud services to run across OCI regions, giving broadcasters, sports organizations, and media companies access to a significantly expanded global footprint for live media workflows, GlobalM said.

At enable improved automation, GMX creates a software-defined media network on OCI, automatically deploying the compute, networking, media processing, and routing resources required for each service. Infrastructure is spun up and configured on demand, point to multipoint contribution and distribution paths are established automatically, and resources can be scaled as requirements change before being automatically released when services finish.

This allows broadcasters to schedule and consume OCI infrastructure dynamically without having to manually build and configure the underlying cloud environment for every production, the company said.

OCI is particularly well-suited to professional broadcast applications because of its high-performance networking and flexible compute architecture. OCI Flexible Shapes allow compute and memory resources to be configured according to individual workload requirements, enabling GMX to optimize infrastructure for applications ranging from SRT and RIST gateways to transcoding, remultiplexing and high-throughput media distribution.

Oracle’s global cloud footprint also complements GlobalM’s distributed architecture. GMX processing and routing nodes can be automatically deployed across OCI locations, allowing contribution feeds to enter the cloud close to their source and receiving broadcasters to connect through infrastructure close to their destination. This helps keep the unmanaged first and last miles as short as practical while the core media workflow operates across managed cloud infrastructure.

The collaboration will also extend GlobalM’s hybrid capabilities. GMX1 processing and routing nodes deployed within customer facilities will be able to operate alongside GMX Cloud resources running on OCI. Combined with Oracle’s hybrid cloud capabilities, this will allow broadcasters to integrate existing facilities with dynamically deployed cloud processing, international distribution, additional capacity, redundancy, and disaster recovery.

GlobalM (1.A11) and Oracle (5.A21) will showcase GMX running on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure at their booths during the 2026 IBC Show, Sept. 11-14 at the RAI Amsterdam.

The Walt Disney Co. and TikTok have struck what they call a first-of-its-kind global content-sharing deal that allows users of the social media platform to create content utilizing memorable scenes and moments from Disney movies and shows.

The agreement, which will pilot in the U.S. in the coming months with plans for other markets to follow, will bring a collection of what the two companies describe as “thoughtfully curated Disney-centric fan-created content” from TikTok to the Disney+ app.

At launch, short-form videos from participating creators will be live on both TikTok and Verts on Disney+, and will feature characters and stories from across Disney’s brands including Pixar, Marvel, “Star Wars,” FX and others.

The deal comes as content companies are scrambling to expand their offerings of vertical and short-form video content, which dominate viewing on social media. It also represents a notable embrace of fan-created content by Disney, which has a long history of protecting its brands from unauthorized use by creators, and a push by Disney to expand its connections to the creator economy.

As part of the deal, TikTok will offer participating creators access to assets related to hundreds of films and series from Disney’s library of franchises. Videos created through the program will be refreshed regularly on the Disney+ Verts feed, providing subscribers with another means of discovering Disney-related content.

“The best storytellers are fans first,” Asad Ayaz, Disney chief marketing and brand officer. “That has always been true at Disney, and today, fans are celebrating our stories in entirely new ways. This collaboration creates a new bridge between the stories we tell and the creativity they inspire, giving creators a bigger stage to share what they’ve made, and audiences more to discover on Disney+ every day.”

Added TikTok Global Head of Entertainment Dawn Yang: “Creators are at the heart of everything we do at TikTok. Their creativity extends the life of films and shows into conversations that fans discover and share. Together with Disney, we’re bringing the authentic creator expression of the TikTok community to Disney+, inviting audiences to experience the shared creativity that makes fandom so powerful.”

Through the jointly run Disney Creator Ambassador Program, Disney and TikTok will also help creators unlock special rewards and provide increased visibility, access to exclusive events and career development pathways, the companies said.

Disney said that this tiered program reflects its commitment to building relationships with the next generation of creative talent in partnership with TikTok.

In announcing the deal, Disney noted that fan-created content continues to play an increasingly important role in how audiences discover, engage and celebrate entertainment.

According to internal TikTok data, fans shared an average of 6.5 million film and TV-related posts on the platform each day last year. Nearly half of users said they went on to watch a movie or TV show on a streaming service or television after discovering it on TikTok, according to the platform.

LENEXA, Kan.—The National Content & Technology Cooperative (NCTC) has announced a new agreement with Minerva, a provider of cloud-based IPTV and OTT platforms, that will expand the range of technology solutions available to independent operations and to work to improve their video offerings and strategies.

Minerva powers video services for Tier 2 and Tier 3 operators, delivering a comprehensive platform that integrates subscriber management, content aggregation, and user experience into a single, cohesive solution.

The deal will give NCTC members access to a cloud-native platform that serves as the control and experience layer between video infrastructure and end-user devices. It enables operators to deliver a unified, branded viewing experience across live TV, on-demand content, streaming services, and more.

“Our role is to ensure members have access to the right partners and solutions to stay competitive in a rapidly changing video landscape,” said Lou Borrelli, CEO of NCTC. “Minerva brings a strong track record of supporting broadband operators with modern IPTV and OTT solutions, and this partnership expands the options available to our members as they evolve their video strategies.”

Minerva’s platform is designed to allow operators to maintain ownership of the customer experience, with tools to customize the user interface, integrate multiple content types into a single experience, and deliver consistent viewing across devices— including smart TVs, streaming platforms, mobile, and web. It also includes built-in capabilities such as cloud DVR, catch-up TV, and AI-driven content discovery, designed to increase engagement, improve retention, and unlock new monetization opportunities.

“We are excited to partner with NCTC to support its members as they modernize their video offerings,” said Mauro Bonomi, CEO of Minerva Networks. “Our platform was built to help operators deliver a seamless, high-quality entertainment experience while maintaining full control of their brand and customer relationships. Together with NCTC, we look forward to helping members accelerate their transition to next-generation TV services.”

Minerva and the NCTC said that the partnership will be particularly valuable for operators transitioning from legacy video platforms to IP-based delivery, as well as those looking to launch new OTT offerings like NCTC Broadband TV. Minerva’s cloud-based approach supports faster deployment timelines and reduces operational complexity, while providing a scalable foundation for future growth.

The National Content & Technology Cooperative (NCTC) is a Kansas-based, not-for-profit corporation comprised of more than 650 independent broadband and cable operators serving one-third of the connected households in all 50 United States and territories. The NCTC negotiates content, connectivity, and technology solutions for its member companies that create operational efficiencies, new products, and revenue streams for sustainable growth. For more information, visit: nctconline.org.

WALTHAM, Mass. and PHILADELPHIA—Zixi and Comcast Technology Solutions (CTS) today announced a strategic new integration to deliver C-band replacement solutions for linear broadcasters and content distributors. The collaboration brings together the end-to-end video management capabilities provided by Comcast Media360 with the Zixi Software Platform to give operators a direct migration path from C-band satellite to IP-based content distribution, they said.

With the C-band satellite transition underway, programmers and distributors are exploring solutions to migrate linear workflows to IP while maintaining the kind of reliability, rights compliance, and affiliate distribution control that C-band has historically provided. At the core of the joint Zixi and CTS solution is a technical integration between the Zixi Software Platform and Comcast Media360, which provides customers with a 24/7 managed service backed by the proven reliability and scale of Comcast Technology Solutions.

“The C-band transition is not a distant deadline for our customers. It is a decision they are making now. Working with Comcast Technology Solutions means that we can offer broadcasters a solution that does not ask them to trade rights compliance and reliability for IP flexibility. The integration between the Zixi Software Platform and Comcast Media360 is the kind of joint engineering that makes a real operational difference," said Marc Aldrich, CEO, Zixi.

"Broadcasters are looking for ways to operate their linear channels more efficiently while continuing to scale distribution as part of their C-band transition efforts,” said Bart Spriester, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Streaming, Broadcast, and Advertising at Comcast Technology Solutions. “Comcast Media360 helps make that possible across broadcast and IP workflows and, together with Zixi, delivers a satellite replacement option that gives programmers and distributors a manageable path to IP and unlocks new monetization opportunities."

Notably, CTS’ linear rights management normalizes rights metadata using the SCTE 224 standard, enabling content providers to manage alternate content delivery, ad insertion windows, and audience-based content restrictions across broadcast and streaming destinations. Zixi ZEN Master orchestrates the live video workflow across cloud or hybrid network environments, with native support for SCTE-35/224 signaling, blackout enforcement, and schedule-driven source switching.

Together, the integrated platforms can provide broadcasters a single, intelligent, rights-aware distribution chain that combines signal orchestration, affiliate distribution, and rights enforcement enabling new monetization and distribution capability, while removing the dependency on satellite infrastructure and maintaining compliance and control.

As C-band satellite capacity is reclaimed and transition deadlines approach, the need for end-to-end IP workflows has become a near-term business imperative for broadcasters, the companies said, adding that the combined Zixi and CTS solution gives broadcasters a migration path that preserves existing investment in rights management infrastructure while moving to the flexibility and cost structure that IP distribution offers and simplifying the path from ingest to monetization.

LONDON—Gravity Media, a global provider of production, content, media services and facilities, is powering an innovative reverse remote production setup for ITV’s FIFA Football World Cup coverage, connecting Gravity Media’s London Production Centre with ITV Sport’s live studio operations in New York through a fully integrated workflow.

In this three-hub production model, match feeds are received via the International Broadcast Center in Dallas and transmitted to Gravity Media’s London Production Centre, where production galleries are operated and enhanced with live editorial and presentation content.

Meanwhile, ITV Sport’s presenting team based in New York delivers the live studio segments, creating a seamless workflow across three international locations rather than a traditional single-site production. The result is a highly resilient, flexible production model that brings together transatlantic collaboration and state-of-the-art infrastructure.

The production also incorporates venue injects, with game-side presentation elements seamlessly integrated into Gravity Media’s London galleries, elevating storytelling and live coverage.

This project highlights Gravity Media’s continued investment in advanced remote production technologies and its ability to deliver complex, multi-location workflows at scale for major international sporting events, according to Kate Rendle, Global Sales Director at Gravity Media.

“This is a perfect example of how Gravity Media is redefining what’s possible in remote production. By integrating our London Production Centre with live presentation in New York, we’re able to deliver a seamless, resilient and highly creative workflow for one of the world’s biggest sporting events. Our investment in infrastructure ensures that we can support our clients with true operational flexibility and continuity, no matter what challenges arise. It’s about delivering innovation and reliability at scale, and we’re proud to be doing that for ITV.”

ITVX says it achieved its strongest monthly performance to date in June, crossing the 400 million monthly streams milestone for the first time in its history.

ITV Sport showed seven out of the top ten biggest matches in the group stages, including England's two winning games, with peak audiences of 16.4 million and 13.8 million respectively, as well as the opening match of the tournament, Mexico vs South Africa, Norway vs France, Netherlands vs Japan, Scotland vs Morocco, and Germany vs Cote D’Ivoire.

WUPPERTAL, Germany—Riedel Communications says it's expanding its partnership with SKAARHOJ, a Danish provider of tactile controllers for media production, bringing official SKAARHOJ panel support to SimplyLive production workflows. Enabled through the latest SimplyLive 2.1 release, the integration expands SimplyLive’s control options with a tactile switcher panel experience, complementing both its touchscreen interface and existing RCU-based workflows.

The integration addresses customer demand for dedicated hardware control in live production environments where operators want the speed, confidence, and familiarity of a classic switcher panel, Riedel said. With SKAARHOJ panels, SimplyLive users can control key live production functions such as source switching, program output switching, transitions, auxiliary output control, keying, graphics, and macros.

“SKAARHOJ was the obvious partner for this integration because of their strong reputation for high-quality products designed with the user in mind,” said Paul Macklin, Senior Product Manager, SimplyLive at Riedel Communications. “Their collaborative approach allowed us to tailor the solution around the specific needs of SimplyLive operators, especially in single-operator environments where speed, confidence, and ergonomics are essential.”

This operator-focused approach extends beyond the panel integration itself. To support fast deployment, Riedel and SKAARHOJ said they provide a curated starting configuration that helps customers get up and running quickly while preserving the flexibility to adapt the setup to their preferred production workflows.

“We're excited to expand our collaboration with Riedel through the SimplyLive integration,” said Kasper Skårhøj, CEO, SKAARHOJ. “Having previously integrated with Riedel SmartPanels and MediorNet, this is another great example of how our technologies can come together to create new and flexible workflows. While the solution is tailored for the Master Key 48, users can choose any SKAARHOJ panel that best fits their production needs.”

SimplyLive 2.1 introduces official support for SKAARHOJ panels through a gRPC API, enabling responsive communication between the panel and the SimplyLive ViBox application. Alongside a range of other enhancements and new features, the release also adds a new Venue Gateway license for SimplyLive Production Suite Flex customers, allowing the same server hardware to support Venue Gateway applications in addition to All-in-One, Replay, Ingest, and Review workflows.

Additional SimplyLive resources, including the curated starting configuration, are available via the MyRiedel portal. Further guidance on SimplyLive 2.1 workflows, including instructions for implementing the SKAARHOJ configuration, is available in the SimplyLive 2.1 user guide.

VIENNA—Bitmovin, a provider of video streaming solutions, is collaborating with Simplestream, a provider of OTT and broadcast solutions, and technology provider Xperi, to extend playback to TiVo OS smart TVs and devices.

Under the new partnership, Bitmovin and Simplestream have created a fully integrated streaming platform combining Simplestream’s content management and application framework with Bitmovin’s advanced playback technology.

The consolidated platform enables video providers to deliver a consistent, high-quality user experience to viewers with TiVo OS devices, the companies said. Bitmovin’s automated testing system uses AI analysis to process and analyze over a million tests each week to pinpoint root causes of playback issues faster and with greater accuracy to ensure the highest quality viewing experiences. Bitmovin first extended support to include TiVo OS in October 2025.

The companies claimed that the joint solution will help media companies and operators simplify their technology stack to reduce operational complexity and integration risk, while ensuring consistent and reliable playback across devices. It also enables flexible monetization capabilities including support for a range of ad formats such as pre-roll ads and pause ads, as well as standardized accessibility features that support inclusive viewing experiences.

“This collaboration represents an important step forward in simplifying and modernizing OTT delivery for our customers,” said Ashley Reynolds-Horne, Technical Director for Simplestream. “By combining Simplestream’s end-to-end platform capabilities with Bitmovin’s proven playback technology, we’re enabling media companies and operators to deliver reliable, scalable streaming experiences while unlocking new opportunities for monetization and service growth.”

James Varndell, Senior Director of Product Management, Bitmovin, commented: “Video providers want their service to be accessible by as many viewers as possible including those running TiVo OS, which is rapidly gaining traction. By extending support to include TiVo OS and collaborating with Simplestream to simplify launching on TiVo OS, we’re supporting customers to reach more viewers across a wider range of devices.”

Stephane David, Senior Director, Content Partnerships and Business Development EMEA, Xperi, added: “TiVo OS is designed to put great content front and centre. Collaborating with Bitmovin and Simplestream will help more streaming services to launch on TiVo OS with a high‑quality, consistent playback experience, so audiences can find, watch and enjoy more of what they love.”

Developed by Xperi and launched in 2022, TiVo OS is a content‑first operating system designed to make it easier for viewers to find, watch and enjoy great television. The platform powers smart TVs from leading brands, as well as a range of smart TV devices including set‑top boxes.

READING, Pa. and CHESTERTON, In—Miri Technologies has just signed a new distribution partnership with Midwich, a distributor of audio-visual and unified communications solutions for the United States and Canada. The agreement reinforces Miri's channel partnership strategy for meeting the rapidly growing demand for the X510 dual-cellular bonding router and the new V410 4K live encoder/decoder in the world’s largest commercial market.

The Miri X510 router enables resilient internet connectivity anywhere by forging multiple wired and wireless links—including Ethernet, Wi-Fi, 4G, 5G and satellite—together to overcome speed limitations and withstand network disruptions even in challenging environments, according to the company. Powered by Speedify channel bonding technology from Connectify, the X510 bolsters internet connectivity for any type of data and supports use cases ranging from live streaming and remote broadcast contribution to trade shows and disaster response.

The Miri V410 live 4K encoder/decoder combines intuitive interfaces with rich functionality, robust connectivity and flexible format support for live streaming, IP-based production and AV-over-IP distribution. It can encode one 4K Ultra HD output at 60FPS or two simultaneous QHD (2560x1440) channels, and can also transcode from NDI® sources to streaming formats. As a decoder, the device can decode two 4K Ultra HD streams concurrently from most supported source formats.

Midwich sees Miri as a great addition to its offering in the Broadcast & Media/Entertainment sector.

“The channel partners we service are constantly looking to create the most complete solutions that solve problems, simplify workflows and open the door to new revenue streams,” said Rich D’Angelo, Midwich executive director of business management for Media & Entertainment. “Miri solutions will complement our existing brands in helping our resellers and integrators achieve these goals. Miri's approach to resilient connectivity and the powerful yet simple interfaces in their products combine with class-leading levels of flexibility and insight that truly set them apart.”

“We’re excited to expand the availability of our solutions by partnering with Midwich,” said David Cohen, vice president of sales and business development at Miri Technologies. “We see tremendous opportunities for synergy between Miri and the many brands that Midwich represents and we're looking forward to growing our footprint across the continent with their support.”

NEW YORK—Nielsen has announced a new integration with Mediaocean’s Prisma platform that will improve audience measurement and allow marketers to maintain a single, consistent audience definition throughout the campaign lifecycle.

This integration and its resulting capabilities will officially launch in September, just in time for the fall TV season, Nielsen said.

Prisma is an enterprise-level, end-to-end media management and campaign execution platform that acts as a central “system of record” for advertising agencies and brands, that is designed to unify workflows across digital, linear (TV/radio), print and out-of-home (OOH) channels.

As part of the integration, Nielsen will provide reporting on advanced audience segments for data-driven linear (DDL) national TV campaigns to expand the integration of its Big Data + Panel audience measurement solution directly within Mediaocean’s Prisma platform.

This will help drive greater industry interoperability by allowing marketers to maintain a single, consistent audience definition throughout advertising campaigns. Clients can define advanced audience segments (first- and third-party and Nielsen-owned) within Nielsen Audience Builder and then see the corresponding measurement metrics directly within Mediaocean.

This will allow marketers to move beyond traditional age and gender based demographics by enabling more advanced audience definitions to be applied consistently across ad planning and measurement workflows.

The collaboration also brings greater continuity and visibility into data-driven linear campaigns, giving advertisers a better way to understand and evaluate multi-screen ad performance.

“Advertising’s next frontier will be built on true interoperability — not just data sharing, but a consistent audience definition that travels from planning all the way through to measurement,” explained Nielsen Chief Product Officer Akhil Parekh. “Together with Mediaocean, we're giving marketers exactly that: the ability to define audiences once and then to carry that precision across the entire campaign lifecycle.”

“The big theme here is consistency,” said Prisma Chief Product Officer Drew Kane. “As the advertising ecosystem becomes increasingly fragmented, maintaining a consistent audience definition across planning, activation, and measurement has become a challenge. By teaming up with Nielsen, we are helping to create a more connected workflow that brings greater visibility and alignment across the marketing journey.”

In addition, Nielsen announced that S&P Global Mobility is integrating insights from its Polk Automotive Solutions Portfolio, a leader in automotive advanced audiences insights, so that marketers can better reach customers in this sector. (Polk intelligence encompasses nearly 35 years of vehicle owner history, more than one billion vehicle transactions annually, and more than 650 million vehicles tracked daily.)

That means marketers and agencies can now leverage Polk Audiences across Nielsen’s planning and measurement products, including Nielsen Audience Builder, Nielsen Media Impact, Nielsen ONE Planning and Nielsen ONE Ads. These audiences will also be available against Nielsen's Big Data+Panel data and integrated into Nielsen's digital planning/measurement solutions.

In addition, MRI-Simmons and S&P Global Mobility are expanding advanced audience capabilities into Nielsen ONE.

MRI-Simmons, a leading provider of survey-based insights about American consumers, is expanding its relationship with Nielsen to deliver new, research-driven audience insights within Nielsen ONE planning and measurement tools.

Taken together, these developments mean improved campaign performance, via even better data-driven planning, measurement, and optimization capabilities, Nielsen reported.

Montclair State University has been selected as the operator of NJ PBS, New Jersey’s network of four state-owned public TV stations, ending a period of uncertainty about the broadcaster’s future in the wake of federal funding cuts.

New Jersey State Treasurer Aaron Binder and the university announced the five-year deal to make the university the programming and management operator of NJ PBS. The state legislature now has 15 days to review the contract between the New Jersey Public Broadcasting Authority and the university. Lawmakers have expressed strong support for NJ PBS to continue operations.

Montclair State was one of four bidders for the management contract, which follows months of uncertainty over NJ PBS’s future. The WNET Group, parent of WNET New York and WLIW Garden City, N.Y., had operated NJ PBS since 2011, but said last fall that it wouldn't renew its contract with the NJBPA, citing significant state and federal budget cuts.

WNET Group’s contract is set to expire June 30. That prompted fears NJ PBS might shutter at the end of this month.

“Public broadcasting is a vital public service that ensures New Jersey families have access to trusted news, educational programming, and information about their communities,” said New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat. “At a time when local journalism faces growing challenges, today’s action keeps this essential service alive in New Jersey.”

The five-year agreement includes two five-year extensions and makes Montclair State responsible for programming the network and providing at least six hours per week of New Jersey-centric programming, including a nightly newscast on weeknights and other public-affairs programming; live broadcasts of the governor's State of the State Address and budget message; and New Jersey election coverage.

Public television has long held importance to government officials in New Jersey, who argue the state is underserved by commercial and public TV stations in nearby New York and Philadelphia. In 1968, the state established the NJPBA to launch and operate the four stations, known on-air as New Jersey Network (NJN) until former Gov. Chris Christie ended direct state involvement and inked the deal with WNET Group in 2011. The NJPBA still holds the station licenses.

“New Jersey’s public television stations exist to serve every resident of this state, and this selection reflects our commitment to ensuring that mission continues on a sustainable, long-term foundation,” said Rick Williams, NJBPA executive director. “Montclair State University brings broadcast-ready infrastructure, deep community ties, and a demonstrated commitment to New Jersey journalism. We look forward to working with the University and the Legislature as this transition moves forward.”

In announcing the deal, MSU said it plans to reimagine public media and expand the value public broadcasting can provide to New Jersey residents. As part of that effort, it said it plans to draw on the state’s 300-plus news organizations, its colleges and universities and its diverse communities to create and inform programming made stronger through collaboration and shared expertise.

In addition to a robust broadcast presence with daily newscast and discussion programming, NJ PBS said it will focus significant efforts on digital and social media content as well as in-person events and public engagement.

MSU’s proposal used existing university assets to create an operational budget that reflects the difficult financial climate for public media in the wake of the Trump Administration's push to end federal funding.

Montclair State has committed to providing $1.2 million annually of in-kind contributions, including studio access, engineering expertise, IT infrastructure, human resources, finance, legal, and facilities management. It also includes teaching and internship opportunities for students.

The station will be housed in MSU’s College of Communication and Media. The college has a production facility, complete with professional broadcast studios and film stages, multiple control rooms, a multimedia newsroom and engineering infrastructure built for network-level production. Faculty and staff bring extensive professional experience in the New Jersey and national media landscapes, and the college has been nationally recognized for its work while preparing the next generation of New Jersey media professionals.

More than 20 full-time employees will initially operate NJ PBS, including three reporters and a production team of 11. Students will also participate through internships and supervised experiential learning opportunities.

In addition, MSU said that the Center for Cooperative Media, housed within its College of Communication and Media, will help build the backbone of NJ PBS’s statewide journalism model.

The university said the center’s longstanding relationships with hundreds of New Jersey news organizations provide NJ PBS with an existing statewide journalism ecosystem to support collaborative reporting and community-informed storytelling across all regions of the state. Montclair’s operation of NJ PBS will also include content partnerships, including collaborative agreements with other New Jersey colleges and universities as well as civic, arts and news organizations, ensuring network content reflects the diversity and talents of New Jersey’s residents and communities.

MSU plans to produce a daily newscast and discussion program, a weekly public affairs roundtable, and sports coverage, including a formal partnership with the New Jersey Athletic Conference.

WASHINGTON—The National Association of Broadcasters has launched Merkhet Solutions, an independent company focused on commercial deployment of the Broadcast Positioning System (BPS).

BPS is a terrestrial timing and positioning technology that uses the NextGen TV (ATSC 3.0) broadcast standard to deliver precise time and location signals over the existing network of U.S. broadcast towers.

First conceived by the technology team at NAB in 2021, the patented terrestrial, GPS-independent timing and positioning technology is designed to leverage the high-power, geographically diverse broadcast infrastructure already covering the United States.

"BPS represents a powerful intersection of innovation, public safety and opportunity for broadcasters,” NAB President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt said. “Launching Merkhet Solutions is the next step in commercializing this technology and ensuring it reaches the critical infrastructure operators who need it most, while continuing to create meaningful long-term opportunities for local stations."

BPS has been designed to address the more than $1 billion-per-day economic and national security risk posed by overreliance on GPS. To push forward the commercial deployment of BPS, Merkhet Solutions is engaging across critical infrastructure sectors, including energy, data centers, telecommunications and financial services where a loss of precision time can trigger grid instability, outages and lost trades.

“BPS solves a problem we can no longer afford to ignore: an entire economy and national security posture resting on a single, contested signal from space,” said Merkhet Solutions CEO Sam Matheny. “We built BPS at NAB because broadcast infrastructure is uniquely suited to deliver assured terrestrial timing at scale. We're launching Merkhet Solutions because the time to operationalize this technology is now."

Under Matheny’s leadership at NAB, BPS advanced rapidly from research concept to real-world deployment.

NAB demonstrated the first BPS prototype to the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) in 2022, followed by the first live broadcast demonstration in 2023. In 2024, NAB entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and Nexstar Media Group.

In 2025, NIST concluded in a peer-reviewed paper presented at the Institute of Navigation International Technical Meeting that BPS was “comparable to or better than GNSS” for time transfer stability and a “viable complementary PNT solution.” Later that year, the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded NAB a contract to deploy a BPS field trial with critical infrastructure partner Dominion Energy.

BPS is designed as a terrestrial complement to GPS, providing operators with an additional resilient source of timing and positioning that can be used alongside GPS or relied upon when satellite-based services are disrupted by jamming, spoofing, cyberattacks or natural events. The federal government recognized the need for terrestrial complements to GPS through the National Timing Resilience and Security Act and Executive Order 13905.

NAB said Merkhet Solutions intends to serve customers across all critical infrastructure sectors, with an emphasis on the lifeline sectors of energy, telecommunications, data centers and financial services, where timing precision is mission-critical and GPS vulnerability is an unacceptable risk.

Learn more at the Merkhet Solutions website.

SIEGEN, Germany & NEW DELHI, India—Guntermann & Drunck GmbH (G&D), and CT Square have agreed to establish a new joint venture company in India.

The new company will serve as the exclusive distribution platform for G&D and VuWall solutions across India, bringing advanced KVM, video wall management, visualization, and control room technologies closer to one of the world's fastest-growing infrastructure and technology markets.

The agreement was concluded during NAB 2026 in Las Vegas and takes effect immediately. The formal establishment of the joint venture office in New Delhi is expected to be completed in the coming months. A dedicated location for the future showroom and office has already been secured.

The agreement will allow G&D and VuWall to significantly strengthening their presence in India, creating a local operation to support customers, consultants, system integrators, and partners working in mission-critical environments, including energy, transportation, public safety, broadcast, government, defense, utilities, and industrial control rooms.

"India is one of the most dynamic and promising markets for mission-critical control room technology worldwide," said Thorsten Lipp, CEO, Panoptec Technologies Group, which owns G&D and VuWall. "With CT Square and Chandresh Shah, we have found a highly experienced partner who understands the market, the technology, and the operational requirements of control room customers. This joint venture is an important milestone in our international growth strategy and a strong commitment to India."

The joint venture will provide customers with local access to G&D’s high-performance KVM solutions and VuWall’s video wall management and visualization solutions, along with expert consulting, product demonstrations, technical support, and project-specific solution design.

"Establishing this joint venture is a decisive step in our international growth strategy,” said Eric Hénique, CRO of G&D and VuWall. “India is a market with exceptional momentum, and we are committed to supporting our customers and partners there with the full depth of our technology portfolio, local expertise, and long-term commitment."

In addition to its focus on India, CT Square will also act as a preferred partner for G&D and VuWall in the Middle East. For these activities, CT Square will leverage the existing Panoptec Group showroom and office in Dubai, creating an immediate regional hub for demonstrations, customer meetings, and project support.

Chandresh Shah brings extensive experience in control room technology, with particular expertise in KVM systems and mission-critical infrastructure. His market knowledge and technical expertise will play a central role in positioning the joint venture as a trusted platform for customers and partners across the region.

"I am delighted to join forces with G&D and VuWall to bring world-class control room technology to the Indian market," said Chandresh Shah, CEO, CT Square. "Together, we are creating a powerful offering for customers who require reliable, secure, and future-ready control room technology. This is an exciting moment for India, for the Middle East, and for the entire control room community."

NEW YORK—Major League Soccer (MLS) has announced the 2026 list of companies that will be participating in its MLS Innovation Lab.

The initiative, which is focused on identifying, deploying and scaling the next generation of sports technology and is now in its third year, brings together leading startups from around the world to actively test and prove cutting-edge solutions in three areas of focus: player performance, fan engagement, and media production.

This year's cohort is focused on testing AI solutions that league said are pushing the boundaries of how soccer is played, analyzed, and experienced.

"With each new cohort, MLS Innovation Lab continues to surface technologies that have the potential to meaningfully impact how the game is played, experienced, and consumed," said Chris Schlosser, MLS senior vice president of Emerging Ventures. "This group represents a strong mix of real-world AI technologies that can have immediate impact across athlete performance, television production, and fan-focused innovation, and we look forward to working with each of them to drive important outcomes for our players, fans and Clubs."

The MLS Innovation Lab aims to give participating companies the opportunity to build and test their technologies in real-world MLS environments such as the 2026 MLS All-Star Game presented by Chime, as well as elite youth competitions like MLS NEXT Fest and Generation adidas Cup and premier events including MLS NEXT Cup and the MLS NEXT All-Star Game presented by Allstate.

This real-world testing gives MLS an early look at emerging AI technologies that can shape the future of the industry for years to come.

After a competitive global selection process, the five companies chosen for the third MLS Innovation Lab cohort will deploy solutions designed to address real challenges across the soccer ecosystem. The league described the companies as follows:

• Springbok Analytics: Springbok Analytics uses AI to transform MRI data into detailed 3D muscle analytics, enabling the precise tracking of muscle health, performance, and injury risk which supports data-driven decision-making for teams, leagues, and clinical research.
• Orreco: Orreco is a global leader in sports bio-analytics, using AI, computer vision, and biomarker data to optimize athlete performance, predict injury risk, and accelerate recovery, trusted by elite teams and athletes across major leagues worldwide.
• Fit:match: Fit:match.ai is a player identification and assessment platform that uses mobile devices, AI, and computer vision to capture detailed body data. It generates a full 3D avatar with measurable physical insights in seconds, providing clubs with standardized information to support talent evaluation, inform development decisions, and enable more consistent comparisons across players.
• Advanced Image Robotics (AIR): AIR makes broadcast-grade sports video production radically more accessible. Their AI-powered robotic camera systems combine automated tracking with remote operator control — enabling leagues, teams, and broadcasters to capture dynamic game and player footage at a fraction of the cost and complexity of traditional production.
• WMT AI Ticketing: WMT AI Ticketing optimizes pricing and distribution in real time by analyzing fan behavior, demand and market dynamics. These capabilities help sports and entertainment organizations move beyond static pricing, maximize ticket revenue and make faster, data-driven decisions.

For more information on MLS Innovation Lab, or to be considered for future cohorts, visit MLSSoccer.com/InnovationLab.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill.—In a move that could make TV programming both accessible and engaging, Cobalt Digital announced a partnership with SineSix Media that will integrate SineSix’s vocalVision audio description solution into Cobalt’s 9922 frame synchronizer family.

The combined solution brings real-time audio descriptions of on-screen graphics directly into the broadcast workflow ensuring visually impaired viewers don’t miss critical information. Demonstrations of the collaborative solution will be conducted at 2026 NAB Show at Cobalt’s Booth # N 1340.

“By integrating vocalVision with our 9922 family, we’re enabling broadcasters to meet regulatory requirements while delivering a richer, more inclusive viewing experience,” said Suzana Brady, senior vice president of worldwide sales and marketing for Cobalt Digital. “This collaboration goes beyond regulatory compliance to provide an environment that supports greater audience engagement, trust, and promotes safety.”

Designed to help broadcasters comply with the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (21CVAA), vocalVision ensures that visually impaired audiences can fully access critical information that is often conveyed visually during live and recorded broadcasts.

The solution goes beyond traditional compliance tools by providing automated, real-time narration of graphical content such as lower-third headlines, weather radar maps, election data, sports graphics, and more. Integration with Cobalt Digital’s 9922 enables visual and audio accessibility tools to be combined into a unified workflow, ensuring that critical visual information is both seen and heard, improving accessibility for visually impaired audiences while enhancing overall viewer engagement.

The integrated workflow allows broadcasters to trigger audio description events directly from existing graphics systems via SineSix’s Watchman API, or through a user-friendly browser-based interface.

The system also provides flexible control options, allowing operators to manage alerts and descriptions manually, on scheduled intervals, or via automated triggers. Shared watch folders enable seamless ingestion of text and image assets, while Cobalt’s +TTS functionality converts text to speech and inserts audio into the program stream in real time. Cobalt’s +EAS option supports emergency alert delivery, and +LOGO enables on-screen graphic insertion, creating a unified and efficient accessibility solution.

Additional capabilities include AI-assisted image description for elements such as weather radar maps, customizable pronunciation dictionaries for accurate text-to-speech output, and multilingual support for broader audience reach.

“vocalVision was designed to make accessibility seamless and meaningful,” said Taylor Hightower, CTO for SineSix Media. “Working with Cobalt allows us to bring this capability directly into the broadcast signal chain, making it easier than ever for broadcasters to serve all audiences effectively.”

SAN JOSE, Calif.—Netgear has announced a global technology partnership with EVS Broadcast Equipment to deliver certified, interoperable AV–over–IP solutions for broadcast and live production teams. The companies have validated EVS live production systems on Netgear AV switching platforms, giving customers a pretested network foundation for IP–based workflows.

The partnership focuses on open, standards–based deployments that help customers adopt SMPTE ST 2110 and related IP workflows with less integration effort and more predictable results in real–world productions, the companies said.

“When productions shift to IP, the network can’t be an afterthought,” said Dieter Backx, Vice President of Control and Orchestration at EVS. “We’ve validated our media infrastructure solutions on Netgear’s AV switches so customers can spend less time tuning infrastructure and more time running shows. It’s a practical and efficient path to SMPTE ST 2110 workflows, or any other IP transport mechanism such as NDI or Dante, whether on site, remote, or distributed environments.”

Netgear and EVS jointly tested EVS technologies—including Cerebrum, Neuron and Strada—across Netgear M4350 and M4250 series switches. Netgear also provides supported configuration guidance and Netgear Engage Controller profiles, backed by AV–focused technical support services, so teams can bring validated configurations online faster.

The validated approach supports fully IP–based live production workflows and improves day–to–day deployment consistency. Customers can use out–of–the–box configurations designed to shorten setup and reduce risk. The result is more predictable behavior across key network requirements such as broadcast–grade timing, QoS, and bandwidth handling, the companies said.

Beyond lab testing, the partnership includes joint work on customer deployments, training, and global technical support. Netgear and EVS are focused on helping broadcast teams build interoperable AV–over–IP environments that scale as production needs evolve. The partnership is global in scope, with no geographic limitations, and becomes effective upon the joint announcement.

“As live production continues its transition to IP, customers want proven solutions they can deploy with confidence,” said Richard Jonker, Vice President of Commercial Business Development at Netgear. “By validating EVS live media infrastructure solutions on our AV switches, we’re providing a reliable, standards–based network foundation that simplifies deployment while delivering the timing accuracy and performance required in mission–critical broadcast environments.”

Lawo and swXtch.io, a provider of software-defined networking for media workflows, have announced that groundSwXtch, swXtch.io’s software-defined multicast overlay for on-prem and hybrid ground/cloud networks will be integrated into Lawo’s HOME management platform for IP media infrastructures.

This integration integration “enables high-performance multicast IP networking across hybrid cloud and on-premises environments, delivering greater flexibility, scalability, and efficiency for live production, remote workflows, and compact infrastructure deployments,” the companies said.

groundSwXtch extends swXtch.io’s cloudSwXtch technology to physical, ground-based networks, providing software-based multicast capabilities, protocol flexibility, and low-latency media transport without reliance on traditional hardware switches.

“Partnering with swXtch.io allows us to further enhance the software-based capabilities of our HOME ecosystem and deliver even more agile solutions to our customers,” said Axel Kern, Senior Director of Cloud and Infrastructure Solutions, LAWO. “By integrating groundSwXtch, we hope to turn on-prem and cloud networking into a unified fabric, empowering broadcasters to handle dynamic production demands.”

The envisaged partnership supports several key customer use cases that will be highlighted during the NAB Show:

Use Case 1: Private Cloud-Based Production with Remote Contributions. Building on private-cloud-centric workflows, this scenario incorporates contributions from external remote sites such as arenas, town halls, or mobile production units.

Essences generated at remote locations feed into the local production environment, which is orchestrated and controlled from a central site. Program-ready signals are distributed to the main facility for final output and dissemination. The integration of groundSwXtch ensures reliable, low-latency transport between remote sites, cloud resources, and on-prem infrastructure.

Use Case 2: Peak Utilization and Cloud Bursting. Customers facing sudden spikes in demand — such as breaking news coverage or major sports events — can rapidly provision additional compute resources. Lawo HOME Apps run in the cloud with management and workflow control from the main site.

Media essences (audio and video) feed production tools including DSK/switchers, multiviewers, and video processors. IP streams return program signals and visualizations to the main facility, and finished program feeds route directly to distribution channels.

“groundSwXtch brings the power of software-defined multicast and hybrid networking directly to on-prem media operations,” said Brent Yates, CEO of swXtch.io. “Our collaboration with Lawo demonstrates how combining our virtual overlay technology with Lawo’s renowned open HOME platform create powerful new possibilities for broadcasters transitioning to IP and cloud-native workflows.”

Details about the LAWO-swXtch.io integration will be given at the NAB Show in Las Vegas (April 18–22, 2026). Interested visitors are invited to contact Axel Kern (Lawo, booth C2108) or Jerry Schall (swXtch.io, booth W1377HS).

For more information, visit www.lawo.com and www.swxtch.io.

PLANO, Texas—Diversified has announced that it is working with Comcast Technology Solutions (CTS) to support the expansion of CTS’s new global Broadcast Operations Center at its Dry Creek facility in Colorado.

The initiative reflects the growing need for an advanced centralized, fully IP-based infrastructure to support modern content delivery across broadcast, streaming and live sports, the two companies said. The expansion will help CTS offer clients scalable, cost-effective, next-generation media operations for its clients.

This initiative focuses on scaling CTS’s playout infrastructure to meet increasing customer demand for outsourced content management while improving operational efficiency, speed to deploy and system resilience.

As part of that, Diversified has worked alongside CTS’s engineering and operations teams to modernize and expand its playout environment, including the integration of SMPTE ST 2110-based IP infrastructure, advanced monitoring technologies and centralized network operations capabilities.

The result is a new unified monitoring and control environment that consolidates multiple workflows, businesses and clients into a single operational view—enabling more efficient staffing, automated and swift issue resolution and improved scalability, they reported.

The expanded facility is designed to serve as both an operational hub and a showcase environment for clients and partners, highlighting the next generation of playout and distribution technologies in a live environment, the companies said.

“This expansion represents more than a facility upgrade. It reflects where the industry is going,” said Jason Kornweiss, senior vice president of advisory services at Diversified. “As playout and distribution operations become more critical to growth, media companies need partners who understand both the technical complexity and the operational realities of these environments. Diversified has been investing in that exact capability, and this collaboration with Comcast Technology Solutions is a strong example of the impact.”

To support ongoing growth, Diversified has also established a dedicated on-site presence at the Dry Creek facility, embedding engineering and delivery teams directly alongside CTS operations. This model enables real-time collaboration, accelerates decision-making and ensures continuous optimization as the environment scales—allowing CTS to stay focused on client engagement, workflow optimization, 24/7 operational support, scale and reliability that CTS provides sports leagues, teams and premier media entertainment companies.

“As demand for next-gen playout services continues to grow across broadcast, streaming and sports, having the right team in place is critical,” said Bart Spriester, senior vice president and general manager, streaming, broadcast & advertising at Comcast Technology Solutions. “Our collaboration with Diversified allows us to continue scaling, innovate confidently and deliver the level of performance our clients expect.”

The collaboration reflects a broader industry shift toward centralized, IP-based media operations. As content distribution expands across streaming, live event platforms and FAST channels, playout is evolving from a standalone technical function into a scalable service layer—one that must support increasing channel volume, multi-platform delivery and real-time audience engagement. In response, media organizations are consolidating operations, outsourcing non-core functions and investing in infrastructure that can adapt quickly without increasing operational overhead.

Attendees of the 2026 NAB Show in Las Vegas will be able to get a deeper diving into some of these trends from executives at Diversified and Comcast Technology Solutions for a deeper look at these trends.

On Monday, April 20 at 2 p.m., Kornweiss will join Comcast Technology Solutions’ Director of Sports Management Solutions Kyle Eichman and Anthony Brock, vice president of business strategy and analytics for the Philadelphia Flyers, for a featured session titled “From Playout to Platform: How Comcast Technology Solutions Is Evolving Media Operations for Scale.”

The session will examine how media organizations are connecting playout, distribution and direct-to-consumer experiences to create more responsive, data-driven engagement models—and why the link between operational infrastructure and fan experience is becoming a critical competitive advantage.

NEWARK, NJ—Panasonic Video and Audio Systems North America has announced a partnership with NEP Group, integrating Panasonic’s Kairos IP live production system with NEP’s recently announced NEP Platform, a new software orchestration system.

The companies said the integration enables media companies and live events service providers to deploy flexible and scalable production workflows that bridge traditional and IP-native infrastructure without vendor lock-in.

“Media, broadcast, and streaming companies are rapidly shifting to software-defined, IP-based production architecture. Operators face mounting pressure to reduce infrastructure footprint, increase workflow agility, and support hybrid cloud–on-premises models without compromising the frame-accurate reliability live production requires,” said Steve Milley, Vice President, Professional Video and Audio Systems at Panasonic. “Our partnership with NEP marks a meaningful step forward for Kairos’ open-platform vision, giving customers a clear, validated path to IP. With flexible, scalable workflows, Kairos is designed to eliminate the integration challenges that have slowed adoption of software-defined production.”

NEP Platform allows broadcasters to customize and optimize their production environment, saving valuable time and resources. By achieving certified interoperability with Kairos, the two platforms share a unified control and data plane that allows operators to dynamically allocate production resources, trigger Kairos' multiviewer and production switching events, and synchronize metadata from a single interface.

The integration between Panasonic and NEP delivers operational advantages for production teams by streamlining control, scaling flexibility, and reducing deployment time, according to the companies. Operators can manage Kairos production switching, NEP routing, and resource orchestration through a single unified interface, eliminating the need for constant context switching. Additionally, the pre-validated integration was created to significantly reduce system commissioning time, with the goal of a faster, more efficient deployment.

“Through our ongoing partnership with Panasonic, we've been able to bring together best-in-class technologies into a unified, software-driven ecosystem,” said Dan Murphy, VP of NEP Platform. “Integrating NEP Platform with Kairos demonstrates how open, standards-based innovation can simplify complex workflows and deliver the performance and reliability live production demands.”

The collaboration builds on Kairos’ open architecture and established use across broadcast and live production environments worldwide. The platform exposes fully documented APIs through the Kairos Alliance Partners program, enabling third-party integrations and interoperability. Built on standards including SMPTE ST 2110 and NMOS, Kairos supports true software-defined workflows without legacy SDI constraints. The platform also aligns sustainability goals through its COTS-based, software-first approach, designed to reduce power consumption and physical infrastructure requirements.

The companies will showcase a joint demonstration at NAB Show 2026 in Las Vegas from April 19-22 at Panasonic’s booth (#C3509).

NEVADA CITY, Calif.—Telestream has announced a strategic collaboration with Grass Valley to enable deeper interoperability between Telestream’s workflow automation, processing, and monitoring solutions and Grass Valley’s AMPP (Agile Media Processing Platform).

Telestream Vantage for file-based workflow orchestration, Pulse for end-to-end observability and Telestream UP for cloud-native media processing are being integrated with AMPP, Grass’s software-defined production platform enabling live and distributed workflows across on-prem, cloud or hybrid environments. The integration supports modern media operations, giving customers greater flexibility to build scalable, hybrid infrastructures without vendor lock-in.

The collaboration builds on existing integrations between Telestream Vantage, DIVA and Grass Valley solutions, extending these capabilities to include Telestream UP and Pulse within AMPP-based workflows.

“Media workflows that were created 10 years ago are now becoming a constraint to forward progress,” said Charlie Dunn, vice president of Product, Telestream. “By working with Grass Valley, we’re helping customers bridge live production and file-based processing within a unified, open architecture. This collaboration is about giving media organizations the power to streamline existing workflows and deploy them in the most cost-effective environments, with the flexibility to scale as the business grows."

“Open, interoperable workflows are now a requirement for modern media operations,” says Adam Marshall, chief product officer for Grass Valley. “Our continuing collaboration with Telestream further extends the AMPP ecosystem, enabling customers to connect live production, playout and file-based workflows within a unified, hybrid architecture. By integrating capabilities such as orchestration, processing, and monitoring, we are giving media organizations the flexibility to build workflows that scale, adapt, and operate efficiently across any environment.”

The companies said their strategic partnership “ensures robust interoperability within customer environments, combining Grass Valley’s leadership in live production, content management, and playout solutions, with Telestream’s strength in workflow automation and observability.”

Grass Valley’s Framelight X plays a central role in this vision, enabling the full content lifecycle—from capture and access to editing, collaboration, and publishing—within a browser-native, story-centric environment. Rather than relying on fragmented toolsets, Framelight X brings content into a unified workspace where stories can be shaped and delivered faster, with less friction.

Built on AMPP’s open and extensible architecture, Framelight X integrates with best-of-breed technologies across the content lifecycle—storage, graphics, AI services, automation, and distribution. Telestream’s workflow automation, processing, captioning, and quality control capabilities extend this ecosystem, ensuring that content moving through Framelight X can be automatically processed, quality-controlled, and delivered across platforms, at scale.

Telestream’s ability to integrate across the media supply chain, from ingest and processing to QC, metadata, and delivery, positions it as a key enabler of hybrid workflows that span multiple systems and environments. Grass Valley AMPP enables flexible deployment models, allowing customers to optimize for performance, cost, and operational requirements. This alignment ensures that workflows can scale dynamically while maintaining visibility, control, and consistency across distributed environments.

Both companies are aligned around a hybrid-first approach to infrastructure, recognizing that media organizations must operate across a mix of on-premises systems, private infrastructure, and public cloud environments.

MONTREAL—During the 2026 NAB Show, Grass Valley will showcase its latest Alliance Partner ecosystem innovations and demonstrate how integrated solutions within the AMPP ecosystem are being used to address real-world operational challenges across live production, content creation and distribution.

“At NAB Show, we are focusing on how customers can operate across multiple production models, innovate and scale, all without increasing complexity,” said Matt Yates, director, strategic alliances at Grass Valley. “Our Alliance ecosystem extends AMPP across key workflows, allowing teams to connect best-of-breed technologies, scale resources and deliver content more efficiently through a unified operational environment.”

The improvements are designed to address the fact that broadcasters, sports organizations and media companies continue to operate across multiple environments, often supported by separate systems. This creates challenges such as duplicated infrastructure, fragmented workflows and increased cost, forcing teams to choose between operational speed and production quality.

The Alliance ecosystem solves these challenges through AMPP’s open-by-design approach, enabling customers and partners to retain the freedom to choose best-of-breed solutions while benefiting from a more connected, cohesive and flexible platform environment. In doing so, teams can reduce duplicated tasks, improve agility and simplify operations in line with the Dynamic Media Facility approach.

The Alliance Partner ecosystem will be exhibited at Grass Valley’s Central Hall booth (C2408), with partner companies demonstrating real-world AMPP integrations that are actively benefitting media organizations today.

Across content creation, Grass Valley is showing how its partners are enhancing storytelling possibilities. For example:

• Speed to market is critical in Social Media and News. Digital Joy’s Newsroom NRCS is integrated natively with Framelight X and production playout, reducing friction between story conception, production, distribution and playout.
• Telestream Vantage is natively supported within Framelight X workflow engine, ensuring that using the industry’s leading transcode tool is as seamless as possible.
• Graphics are a critical component of content production and are made easy with native support for MXMZ scalable HTML5-based graphics across live production, playout and content editing workflows, while the new RT Software Swift native AMPP apps extend AMPP’s support for advanced 2D and 3D scene-based graphics offerings.
• Motion Impossible’s Agito robotic camera system operates with Grass Valley’s LDX C180 to support dynamic camera movement with planned AMPP control integration, while Vislink’s INCAM module natively integrated to the LDX 100 RF camera lineup enables new wireless production workflows using public and private 5G networks.
• As venue experiences become more demanding, new Daktronics Show Control integration within K-Frame provides a cohesive production experience combining the control of broadcast outputs and venue displays all from the same production switcher surface. This includes control of the latest generation Daktronics 1.2mm COB dvLED display which will be demonstrated live on the Grass Valley booth showcasing high-resolution, uniform image quality optimized for live production environments all under Show Control and K-Frame control.

Addressing TCO efficiency and platform scalability, the Alliance ecosystem includes innovative solutions that optimize resource use across production environments:

• LayerCake enables automated provisioning of AMPP production environments on demand, stitching together end-to-end workflows, allowing infrastructure and costs to better scale in line with requirements. Cuez provides a unified automation layer across hybrid hardware and software workflows, while NEP Platform showcases how one of the world’s largest managed service providers are integrating with AMPP to automate the deployment and configuration of software-defined workflows at scale for remote and facility-based workflows.
• AI-Media integrates real-time captioning and transcription directly into production workflows, saving manual effort and Digital Joy Insight provides visibility over cloud and AMPP-related costs, enabling real-time monitoring and optimization of resource usage through FinOps capabilities.

As infrastructure becomes more flexible, allowing applications and workflows to be hosted and deployed wherever needed, Grass Valley reported that there is a growing expectation that platforms can support any required format – compressed or uncompressed – within a single, cohesive orchestration layer.

Native support for the latest generation of NDI 6.3 is now available within AMPP, enabling IP video sources, including HDR workflows, to be routed directly into and out of the platform.

Native Dante support connects AMPP with professional IP audio production workflows, while the newly announcing TVU MediaMesh gateway application provides direct access to TVU’s globally distributed contribution feeds directly within AMPP compute.

Zoom ISOcloud enables remote participants to be brought into production as discrete sources and together with TVU MediaMesh is one of the first applications to directly leverage MXL inside AMPP.

While not all broadcasters can move immediately to software-defined workflows, TSL Hummingbird helps bridge those worlds by providing protocol conversion that allows legacy systems to be controlled alongside AMPP.

The growing range of alliance partner applications natively supported within AMPP is built on the platform’s open architecture and publicly available SDKs, with increasing use of the newly supported Media eXchange Layer (MXL) as a common transport and interoperability layer. This allows applications to operate within the same compute environment without requiring point-to-point integration and will be demonstrated by Alliance Partners at NAB Show 2026 as part of Grass Valleys demonstration of a Dynamic Media Facility in action. As software-defined workflows become more established, the pace of innovation continues to increase, with the introduction of MXL further accelerating integration across the AMPP ecosystem.

“We know from our customers that they need systems that integrate reliably across production, infrastructure and distribution,” added Yates. “The Alliance is built on a common architecture, so applications can operate together without additional integration overhead. As new capabilities are added, they extend across existing workflows without increasing complexity. And we’ll see that in action at NAB Show as we welcome a new partner to the Alliance.”

Grass Valley and its Alliance partners will be at the Grass Valley booth (C2408) in Central Hall at NAB Show 2026 April 19-22, to demonstrate how the connected ecosystem supports production across multiple formats, locations and platforms within a unified operational framework.

NEW YORK—In what advertisers hope will be a notable development in advertising standards and transparency in the creator economy, the Institute for Responsible Influence has announced the launch of its Responsible Influence Certification Program.

The launch of the program by the Center for Industry Self-Regulation's Institute for Responsible Influence is supported by a broad coalition including TikTok, the American Association of Advertising Agencies (4As), the Association of National Advertisers (ANA), the American Advertising Federation (AAF), the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), the Independent Beauty Association (IBA), the Creators Guild of America (CGA), and various creative firms and brands. (Full list below)

The program aims to equip creators with tools to meet truth-in-advertising standards and supports brands and agencies in partnering with creators in ways that promote accountability, and consumer trust.

The launch of the program comes at a time when the creator economy continues to see both rapid growth and concerns about the trustworthiness of some influencers who are paid by brands to create content.

The Responsible Influence Certification Program was developed to address a growing need to increase trust in influencer marketing. The certification program features a 90-minute interactive curriculum grounded in real-world scenarios. The course covers FTC Endorsement Guides and other government requirements, industry advertising standards, and responsible brand partnerships.

"The launch of the Responsible Influence training and certification program underscores the industry's commitment to responsible, transparent creator marketing," said Francis Stones, global head of brand safety at TikTok. "Creators are the lifeblood of TikTok, and we’re proud to partner with the Center for Industry Self-Regulation and its Institute for Responsible Influence (IRI) on an initiative that raises standards across the marketplace. Creators who complete IRI training give brands confidence that they understand advertising standards, supporting a safer, healthier advertising ecosystem for both brands and consumers."

Creators who complete the program’s video-based curriculum and pass the assessment receive the Institute for Responsible Influence Certification Seal, a credential signaling training in truthful and transparent digital influence. Certified Creators gain access to ongoing resources and will be included in a forthcoming searchable database, making it easier for brands to discover and connect with trained creators.

“Our Responsible Influence Certification Program raises the bar for the creator economy,” said Jennifer Santos, program lead for the Institute for Responsible Influence, which works to advance transparency, accountability, and trust in the U.S. creator economy. “We are fortunate to work with an extraordinary Advisory Council of leading brands, top agencies, and respected industry organizations to shape a framework that empowers creators, helps reduce risk for brands, and will ultimately earn the trust of consumers.”

The launch comes as the creator economy continues to grow rapidly. Roughly 86% of U.S. marketers work with paid creators, driving a $37 billion market and supporting more than 27 million people influencing consumer decisions. Yet trust has not kept pace: while 58% of consumers have made a purchase based on a creator’s recommendation, only 5% fully trust influencer content. Transparency remains critical, with 71% of consumers saying clear disclosure increases trust, while 70% say hidden sponsorships leave them feeling misled.

The Responsible Influence Certification Program was developed with guidance from its Advisory Council and Supporters, which includes:

• American Advertising Federation
• American Association of Advertising Agencies
• Association of National Advertisers
• Billion Dollar Boy
• Brand Networks
• Cohley
• Coterie
• Creators Guild of America
• Harry’s
• Health Union
• Independent Beauty Association
• Interactive Advertising Bureau
• International Council for Advertising Self-Regulation
• Linqia
• Mammoth Brands
• Moroch
• SuperAwesome
• TikTok
• Uncommon Creative Studio

“The creator economy thrives when it’s built on trust. Our partnership with the Institute of Responsible Influence reflects what we've always believed at #paid, that the most powerful collaborations happen when creators and brands share that foundation of trust,” said Bryan Gold, Chief Executive Officer, #paid. “The Responsible Influence Certification Program brings more education and knowledge to creators, so creators can become professionals and brands can continue to succeed partnering with creators.”

More information is available here.

Every year at NAB, the conversation centers on what's new at the production layer, cameras, switchers, encoders, cloud playout. And every year, connectivity is treated as the assumed foundation: the thing that's supposed to just work so everything else can shine.

That assumption is costing broadcasters.

The broadcast industry has spent a decade investing in software-defined workflows, IP infrastructure and cloud-native production architectures, and yet many organizations are still routing that chain over connectivity infrastructure that hasn't kept pace. The weakest link isn't the switcher or the encoder. It's often the network path between the field and air.

This is the problem the Field to Air demonstration at NAB 2026 was designed to expose, and solve, in plain view on the show floor.

What "Field to Air" Actually Is
Field to Air is a live, end-to-end broadcast workflow running in real time with six production partners: Dejero, Eutelsat, Ross Video, Matrox Video, Clear-Com, GlobalM and Cuez. Everything is live, connected, and dependent on the reliability of the network beneath it.

When you build a workflow with the network at the center, the production chain changes character. Redundancy is built in, not bolted on. Failover becomes invisible. The field-to-air chain stops being a series of fragile handoffs and becomes a single, resilient system.

The Hidden Cost of "Good Enough" Connectivity
Bonded cellular was a meaningful step forward, but bonded cellular is not the same as intelligent network blending. Where bonded approaches aggregate paths and switch when one fails, intelligent blending simultaneously uses all available connections, cellular, satellite, Wi-Fi, fixed-line, weighting each dynamically based on real-time conditions. Eutelsat's OneWeb LEO constellation extends into locations where terrestrial networks are unavailable or under stress.

The practical effect is a connectivity layer that actively maintains signal quality rather than reacting after degradation occurs. For live production teams, that's the difference between infrastructure they can plan around and infrastructure they're constantly compensating for.

A Question Worth Asking
Have we been building sophisticated production architectures on a connectivity foundation that isn't ready to carry them? In too many cases, the honest answer is yes.

The story doesn't start when the camera goes up. It starts when the network is ready.

COLUMBIA, MD—LTN has announced major enhancements to its purpose-built global IP video network, introducing new capabilities for channel creators as they accelerate their transition from legacy satellite models. The latest innovations are based on the company’s experience completing large-scale migrations for national networks, station groups and sports networks to deliver even better reach, reliability, visibility and operational control.

LTN will showcase the new network enhancements at Booth W2100 in the West Hall of the LVCC during the NAB Show, April 18–22 in Las Vegas.

U.S. federal auctions to free up large portions of spectrum capacity for 5G services are approaching, with up to 180 MHz set to be reallocated in the next auction cycle, expected before the end of July 2027. As broadcasters face severe pressure on the remaining C-Band capacity for content distribution, LTN says it is enhancing the transition to reliable, IP-based alternatives with new capabilities that exceed the performance, visibility and reach of C-band or Ku satellite or protocol-only IP solutions.

LTN’s latest innovations prioritize resilience under real-world conditions, operational visibility, scalable management and flexible deployment—aligning with evolving customer needs as broadcasters expand IP distribution footprints and increase channel complexity, according to Malik Khan, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman, LTN.

“We are continuing to invest in the areas that drive clear value for major networks and broadcasters—resilience, visibility, scale and cost control,” he said. “As the C-band spectrum auction approaches, broadcasters are looking for certainty and measurable performance. We’re seeing unprecedented momentum and are innovating to ensure we continue to deliver the market’s leading reliable and intelligent distribution platform. For our customers, this means they can unlock new growth opportunities while also driving meaningful cost efficiencies.”

Enhancements include:

• Reliability and performance: Enhancements include Adaptive Multicarrier Rapid Error Recovery (RER), hitless switching and last-mile improvements, delivering improved stability and consistent performance at scale.
• Visibility and monitoring: New capabilities include historical performance views, enhanced source monitoring and expanded API integrations for advanced reporting and analytics – providing greater transparency across feeds, faster issue identification and improved monitoring across complex distribution footprints.
• Reach and deployment enablement: LTN has introduced expanded network access options, including a gateway capable of receiving 500 channels targeted at headends with large channel lineups and small-footprint gateway targeted at affiliates needing to receive just a handful of full time channels. These enhancements deliver open interoperability, greater reach and faster deployment while integrating seamlessly into existing workflows and technical architectures.
• Edge device integration: LTN is working with the leading edge device manufacturers—encoding and IRDs systems—to integrate LTN Network access directly into those devices. The roster of partners—including MediaKind, Harmonic, Appear, and Ateme—will be demonstrated for the first time at the 2026 NAB Show.
• Control, orchestration and scale: Enhancements include more robust dynamic content routing, advanced distribution group management and centralized portal-based orchestration. Broadcasters can manage hundreds of affiliates, across a hybrid footprint, via a single interface, reducing manual workflows while improving visibility and control as scale increases.

LTN has delivered successful satellite-to-IP migrations for leading organizations, including Tennis Channel, TelevisaUnivision, Mid-Atlantic Sports Network, MSG and MovieSphereGold, while expanding innovation for cable, broadcast and streaming networks through new capabilities and partnerships.

The company says its IP distribution footprint surged 200% in 2025, enabling seamless access to every content delivery platform. Today, LTN powers over 80 million hours of live video content annually — including nearly 5 million hours of live news and over 1 million live sporting events.

STAMFORD, Conn.—Charter’s operating brand Spectrum and Amazon have announced that the Spectrum TV App will launch on Amazon Fire TV devices starting on April 15. The deal will allow subscribers to Spectrum to stream their full pay TV lineup on Fire TV devices.

“The Spectrum TV App is designed to fit seamlessly into how customers stream TV today,” said Elena Ritchie, senior vice president, video at Spectrum. "Making it available on Amazon Fire TV devices will give our customers even more flexibility to access their Spectrum TV service on the streaming platforms they use every day.”

The Spectrum TV App is available to Spectrum TV customers at no additional cost. Access on Fire TV devices will let customers:

• Stream Spectrum TV with the ability to pause live TV.
• Use the new Multiview feature for select sports games.
• Access Cloud DVR recordings.
• View On Demand entertainment.

“Our mission at Fire TV is to get customers to the content they want fast, and we’re super excited to add Spectrum TV to the Fire TV experience,” said Aidan Marcuss, vice president Amazon Fire TV. “Spectrum customers will now soon be able to access the Spectrum TV App on a wide range of smart, powerful, and fast Fire TV devices, from Fire TV Sticks to Fire TV-powered Smart TVs from leading TV brands."

Once launched, Spectrum Video customers can install the Spectrum TV App on their Fire TV device and seamlessly log in to the app without credentials while inside their home. The Spectrum TV App will be available on Amazon Fire TV devices running Fire OS 6+ or Vega OS, including the Fire TV 4K Select, Fire TV 4K Max, Fire TV Omni QLED Series, Hisense U6, TCL QM64L Series, and Panasonic Z95B.

In addition to Amazon Fire TV devices, the Spectrum TV App is available on Xumo Stream Box, as well as Android and iOS smartphones and tablets, Apple TV, Amazon Fire Tablets, LG smart TVs, Roku, Samsung smart TVs, VIZIO smart TVs, Xbox and Xumo TV.

This year’s NAB Show is focusing its lens onto the exploding content creator economy, with conferences and special exhibit areas showcasing the tech and programming.

Bridging the two worlds of online content creation and traditional broadcast will be discussed in a number of sessions, including one with Jefferson Graham, a Los Angeles based writer-photographer.

Jefferson is the host of the PhotowalksTV travel series on Scripps News and YouTube, a photography instructor for Kelbyone.com, the author of the popular Substack Photowalks newsletter and a former tech columnist for USA TODAY.

“From YouTube to TV (and Back): Building a Cross-Platform Content Brand,” takes place on Monday April 20, 4 PM-5 PM in Rm. 239/241 of the Las Vegas Convention Center during the show.

Jefferson, whose “Photowalks TV” YouTube channel hosts more than 1,000 videos and more than 36,000 subscribers, will discuss how his relationship with Scripps News group evolved over time, moving from weekly updates on a morning news show to his own hosted show.

“I was brought on to be a travel contributor to Scripps News and to go on the air every Friday morning with travel segments,” he said. “At a certain point, I went to the guy who brought me on, and said ‘I'd like to do a whole TV show based on my YouTube channel’ and he said, ‘well, send me something.”

“So I sent him some ideas, and that was on a Friday,” Jefferson continued. “On Monday, he told me, ‘you're on the air in two weeks. We're going to do six episodes, but you're going to expand the YouTube show into a half hour—half hour being 22 minutes—and you're going to do it in three segments. You're going to do an 11 minute segment, a seven minute segment and a four minute segment. That's how we do it in TV.'”

Jefferson said the tone was also different. “On YouTube, the series was about visiting great places and showing viewers where to find the best photo spots,” he said. “For TV, I re-jiggered it into a traditional travel show, one that's shot on a phone, with four minutes of photo tips at the end of each show.”

Planning for a TV show—with its strict time limitations—was probably the biggest challenge transitioning from YouTube to TV, Jefferson said.

"I did episode on Barcelona as a YouTuber, and I had 10 minutes of content… I didn't have 22 and I can't go fly over to Barcelona, to go finish it, right? So that was a challenge,” he said. “But the way you fix that is you just know going in that you're making a TV show, and you're not going to have that problem again, so you just shoot more stuff.”

There are also legal issues that differentiate the two platforms, according to Jefferson. He has used royalty-free background music and obtained other music from some low-cost subscriptions for his YouTube channel but he ran into some rights issues when moving to TV.

“When I made the deal with Scripps, I started off recutting some of my older episodes, and I had to wipe the soundtracks clean and start over again with new music,” he said. “But I have an advantage that most people don't have—I play the guitar, so I'll just record a soundtrack and put it on there. And then my brother is a professional pianist, and I'll call him, and tell him I need some ‘driving music.’”

The half-hour “Photowalks on Scripps News,” airs at 10 AM (ET) on Sunday mornings and replayed at 10 PM (ET) that night, with the previous week’s episode rerun at 10:30 PM on Scripps News affiliate stations. Jefferson says budding content creators who want to get the attention of their local TV stations have a great opportunity in YouTube to experiment with their program strategy.

“I would do what most people are doing, put every story up, put extended interviews, do live chats with my anchors. I would use everything at my disposal to shoot the vertical videos I've done interviews with Scripps reporters,” he said. “One of them was a digital reporter in San Diego, and she shot the interview vertically, because that's how they wanted to run it. I would use every, every avenue available to reach the audience, wherever they are.”

Jefferson says the relationship with Scripps also pays off when he visits communities where Scripps owns a local TV station.

“I get to work with some of the local people there, so big shout out to WCPO in Cincinnati!” he said. “They spent a day with me shooting and then I also went on the air and did a segment with them, that was fantastic,” adding that he also worked with local broadcasters in Detroit, San Diego and Missoula Mont as well

Jefferson adds that the two platforms work off of each other, and as a result boost viewership for both outlets. Since launching in the fall of 2024, more than 70 episodes have been broadcast on Scripps and Jefferson says the relationship has been lucrative. Without revealing his financial arrangement, Jefferson said “it's great because they pay a lot more than YouTube does.”

To register for the NAB Show, visit www.nabshow.com.

NEW YORK—NBCUniversal Local’s NBC- and Telemundo-owned stations today launched "Our 250 (Nuestros 250)," a comprehensive multiplatform campaign commemorating the 250th anniversary of the United States’ independence. The 100-day celebration culminates on July 4 with NBCUniversal News Group’s six hours of exclusive live coverage of Sail4th 250 events in New York Harbor, which will gather the largest assembly of international ships in U.S history for an unprecedented maritime spectacle.

“Our country’s 250th anniversary is a significant milestone for all Americans, and a meaningful opportunity to bring us together to share our pride as citizens, recognize our nation’s achievements, and honor our rich history,” said Valari Staab, Chairman of NBCU Local. “We’re excited to launch this special initiative to inform, entertain and support our communities as we count down the final 100 days to our national celebration on Independence Day, which we’re proud to commemorate by presenting Sail4th 250’s festivities to audiences nationwide.”

NBC’s plans call for extensive news coverage, specials, features and vignettes covering semiquincentennial storylines across NBC- and Telemundo-owned stations’ broadcast, streaming and digital platforms.

NBCU Local’s stations will showcase America’s history, traditions, people and places, and covering events and activities taking place across the nation celebrating the milestone through July 4th, with local programming tailored to each market. NBC- and Telemundo-owned stations are also supporting 250-related events and initiatives in their respective communities.

As part of Our 250, NBCU Local is serving as an “official media partner” of Sail4th 250, the non-partisan, non-profit host of international goodwill events and civic celebrations in the Port of New York and New Jersey from July 3 to 8. Through the partnership, NBC News and Telemundo, in collaboration with NBCU Local, will produce multiplatform English- and Spanish-language coverage of Sail4th 250’s marquee Fourth of July events featuring tall ships, naval vessels and aircraft from 46 nations from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. ET.

The live presentation will cover the entirety of Sail4th 250’s International Parade of Sail—which will include 26 Class A international tall ships and a fleet of Class B vessels—and showcase the 52 allied and U.S. naval vessels participating in the International Naval Review and the International Aerial Review’s 100-plus U.S. and allied aircraft, led by the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels. The coverage will begin as tall ships form a line near Sandy Hook, N.J., starting at 7 a.m. ET, and will continue as the first ships enter New York Harbor, sail past the Statue of Liberty, and up the Hudson River to the George Washington Bridge.

Our 250 also covers Sail4th 250 activities and themes leading up to July 4. Open House—the architecture, design and real estate series produced by NBCU Local’s LXTV Productions—debuted a special edition this week offering behind-the-scenes tours of tall ships from Germany, the Netherlands and Portugal. Participating ships and their adventures at sea will also be showcased through multiplatform vignettes, and news coverage will follow the flotilla’s journey from New Orleans to Norfolk and Baltimore, en route to New York.

Other Our 250 highlights include a ‘Destination America’ edition of 1st Look, LXTV Productions’ travel program, and a series from the NBC-owned stations’ lifestyle shows on international culture and cuisine that have become American traditions. NBCU Local’s stations will also cover ‘America’s Field Trip,’ a nationwide contest for students to share what America means to them via an essay or artwork. As part of the America 250 program, 250 students will earn the chance to visit historic and cultural American landmarks.

Additionally, NBC- and Telemundo-owned stations are participating in other local celebrations across the nation. Those events are highlighted by Philadelphia’s ‘Welcome America,’ the city’s premier Fourth of July festival featuring musical acts and fireworks—which will be presented exclusively on NBC10 / WCAU—and the Battle of Gloucester Reenactment in the Boston area, which will take place June 20-21.

SYRACUSE, N.Y.—Spectrum News and Syracuse University's Newhouse School of Public Communications have partnered to provide students with hands-on experiences and professional development opportunities in journalism and media production.

The partnership was announced last night (March 23) at Syracuse University’s Toner Prizes Celebration by Mike Bair, executive vice president of Spectrum Networks. The collaboration also will provide Spectrum News with student-produced content that will enhance coverage and give viewers a look at the next generation’s perspective on today’s top issues.

“This unprecedented partnership with such a respected news platform will blaze a new trail in how media organizations and universities can work together to serve local communities," said Mark Lodato, dean of the Newhouse School. "Experiential learning has always been at the heart of a Newhouse education, and this collaboration, which places our students alongside some of the best journalists in the business while reporting for real audiences, is exactly the kind of transformative opportunity that defines Newhouse’s legacy of excellence in journalism education.”

As part of the program, Spectrum News journalists will work side-by-side with Newhouse School students and faculty in Syracuse. Students will also participate in internships at Spectrum News newsrooms across the country.

Starting in the 2026-27 school year, Spectrum News producers will engage with students in advanced producing classes and in a jointly led investigative journalism course. The partnership also includes a unique field study program, offering students the chance to report on significant events like the 2026 midterms from Washington, D.C., the 2026 Dodgers season and the 2028 Olympics from Los Angeles.

“This collaboration brings real-world experience to the classroom and underscores our commitment to fostering the next generation of journalists,” said Bair. “We’re supporting students as they embark on their journalism careers and providing a pathway to create a sustainable future for local news, supported by these talented emerging reporters.”

Beginning in the fall 2026 as part of the collaboration, student journalism will be showcased across Spectrum News’ website, the Spectrum News mobile app and its social media channels. Students will produce local news coverage and an issues-based magazine show for Spectrum News networks. Student reporting will also contribute to the Syracuse network's daily on-air sports coverage.

To celebrate the partnership, Spectrum News and the Newhouse School will host an on-campus kick-off event March 26-27. The two-day celebration will include a reception for students, a panel discussion on the future of local journalism and a series of professional development sessions conducted by Spectrum News journalists and leaders.

More information is available on the Spectrum Networks website.

SAN DIEGO—Network management and operational support systems specialist MNC Software has announced the appointment of Heartland Video Systems (HVS) as its authorized reseller for North America, and that it will feature its newly introduced Tapestry broadcast automaton and orchestration solution during the 2026 NAB Show, April 18-22, at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

“As broadcasters continue to modernize their operations, we are seeing strong demand for solutions that simplify complexity while improving operational resilience,” said Darren Frearson, CEO of MNC Software. “Heartland Video Systems has deep expertise in designing and integrating advanced broadcast infrastructures, and their strong relationships across North America make them an ideal partner to bring Tapestry and our wider connected workflow vision to more customers.”

Tapestry, unveiled earlier this year, is designed to bring real-time automation and orchestration to dynamic broadcast environments where services are frequently created, modified and decommissioned, such as live sports and event-based production. The platform enables engineering and operations teams to automate workflows, coordinate multi-vendor systems and manage resources across on-premises, cloud and hybrid infrastructures through a graphical interface.

The appointment of Heartland Video Systems comes as MNC Software continues to build global momentum, with several recent deployments across major broadcast networks and media organizations in North America, Latin America and Africa. Across these projects, MNC Software has replaced legacy broadcast reporting systems built on static, scheduled reports with a modern, real-time operational platform.

HVS recently secured a major deployment of MNC Software’s Mosaic monitoring platform with one of the largest U.S. broadcast station groups, replacing its legacy monitoring and control system.

The MNC Software-HVS agreement reflects growing demand for modern broadcast operations platforms that provide unified visibility, automation and control across complex infrastructures. HVS said.MNC Software also recently appointed Marcotec as its new partner in Europe.

See MNC Software and Heartland Video Systems at 2026 NAB Show booth W2661.

More information is available on the MNC Software and HVS websites.

FIFA announced today that it has selected YouTube as its “preferred platform” for the 2026 World Cup, taking place in North America in June and July.

Fox Sports and Telemundo—the U.S. host broadcasters for the World Cup—are YouTube’s media partners for the World Cup in the U.S.; in Canada it’s Bell Media and in Mexico, it's TelevisaUnivision and TV Azteca.

As its media partners, the deal will allow the host broadcasters to share premium content on their YouTube channels, including extended highlights, behind-the-scenes footage, Shorts and video-on-demand content.

In addition, for the first time in the event’s history, media partners will have the option of live streaming the first 10 minutes of every match on their YouTube channel, as well be able to stream a select number of matches in full on their YouTube channel.

FIFA will also give select YouTube creators “unparalleled access” to FIFA's Digital Archive from its official YouTube channel as well as to live matches. FIFA says this coverage will help highlight the human drama and tactical elements of the World Cup.

Calling the event “a global cultural moment that demands a stage as large as its legacy,” Justin Connolly, vice president YouTube Global Head of Media & Sports, said the “game-changing event” will deliver “an immersive FIFA World Cup experience, where premium content from the tournament’s media partners and creators live side-by-side, everywhere YouTube is available.”

“FIFA is delighted to welcome YouTube as a Preferred Platform for the FIFA World Cup 2026. By spotlighting FIFA’s premium content and unlocking new opportunities for Media Partners and creators, this agreement will engage global fans in ways never seen before,” said FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafström. “As the world’s attention turns to the action in Canada, Mexico and the United States, this collaboration with YouTube reinforces our ambition to maximise the tournament’s impact across the ever-evolving media landscape, offering fans everywhere easy access to an immersive view of the biggest single-sport event in history.”

The DPP has published a new report exploring how media companies are using data to drive better decisions, stronger engagement, and improved commercial outcomes.

Making Data Pay is the result of input from over 70 contributors representing 19 content organizations and 19 vendors.

It explores data across four key areas of the media business: management and operations, audience engagement, business strategy, and the technology foundations that support them.

According to the DPP, despite significant investment in data capabilities, many organizations are still struggling to translate that investment into measurable impact. Making Data Pay examines where data is already delivering value, where complexity is emerging, and the practical lessons the industry has learned so far.

The report adds that while data is abundant, impact is uneven, suggesting that media companies are “drowning in data but lacking alignment” and need “data coherence”.

It suggests companies should begin by defining the questions and then find the data points to answer it. “Without purpose, dashboards multiply but strategy stalls,” states the report. “Data must drive decisions, not simply score past performance. Metrics that only look backwards aren’t enough to shape the future.”

The DPP urges companies to “measure what matters” by focusing on the metrics with the greatest strategic importance rather than those which are the easiest to measure.

“Across the industry there’s strong belief in the power of data, but turning that belief into measurable impact remains a challenge,” said David Thompson, technology strategist at the DPP.

“Successful data strategies aren’t just technology projects,” added Thompson. “When the questions being asked of data aren’t clear, organisations quickly end up measuring everything but understanding very little.”

The report is available for DPP members to download here.

This article originally appeared on TV Tech sister brand TVBEurope.

WASHINGTON—In another sign that broadcasters are using the Federal Communication Commission's recently launched inquiry into sports rights and distribution to advance longstanding regulatory concerns, Gray Media used a recent meeting with the agency’s staff to highlight the importance of digital rights management (DRM) being part of NextGen TV deployments and to argue that the agency needs to change rules on how broadcasters negotiate retransmission agreements with vMVPDs like YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV.

The National Association of Broadcasters has taken a similar response to the FCC’s request for public comments on sports broadcasting practices and market place developments by urging regulators and Congress to abolish ownership caps on station groups.

A letter summarizing a March 5, 2026, meeting between FCC staff and Gray representatives explained that “Gray shares the Commission’s concerns about how difficult it has become for consumers to find their favorite sporting event now that so much is moving to streaming and behind paywalls. During the discussion with Commission staff, Gray described the complex sports rights ecosystem. Gray highlighted the following difficulties: (a) professional sports leagues demand those carrying their games to include digital rights management (`DRM’) into the transmission signal to the extent technically feasible, which is why it is critical that the Commission continue to permit the use of DRM in ATSC 3.0 signals, and (b) network affiliates’ inability to negotiate for carriage of local television signals with virtual multichannel video programming distributors, which significantly handicaps local affiliates' ability to competitively bid for local sports rights because affiliates do not control and cannot appropriately monetize the relationship with a significant distributor of their local signals. Shutting out local affiliates from negotiations for sports rights and distribution not only disenfranchises local affiliates, but it also threatens the revenues used to produce local news, weather, and sports programming that is core to Gray’s mission.”

Station groups have long contended that the current practices of letting the media companies like Disney that own broadcast networks like ABC handle retransmission consent deals with vMVPDs harms them financially by reducing the amount of money that they could get in retrans fees, an argument that the broadcast networks reject.

Including DRM in the NextGen TV standard has been opposed by some consumers while broadcasters have long argued that it puts them at a competitive disadvantage to streaming platforms, who use DRM to encrypt streams, in sports rights negotiations because DRM is not part of the existing ATSC 1.0 standard.

The March 5 meeting at the FCC was attended by Robert Folliard, III, Senior Vice President – Government Relations and Distribution for Gray Media, and I met with Ms. Erin Boone, Chief of the Media Bureau; Evan Morris, Deputy Bureau Chief; and Chad Guo, Attorney Advisor.

The full letter is available here.

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.

OSLO, Norway—Appear, a global provider of live production technology, today announced that its X Platform has been officially verified by YouTube for Secure Reliable Transport (SRT) live streaming. This verification enables broadcasters, rights holders, and production teams to deliver high-quality live content to YouTube using Appear’s X5, X10, and X20 hardware platforms, providing a seamless, resilient and low-latency high-quality streaming workflow for news, sports, and live event coverage, the company said..

“Becoming a YouTube-verified encoder partner is a significant step forward for us and our customers,” said Thomas Bostrøm Jørgensen, CEO at Appear. “It reinforces our position in professional-grade IP contribution and gives our users a powerful new route to reach global audiences across one of the most important platforms in digital media.”

Appear says its partnership with YouTube was prompted when a major European broadcast platform approached YouTube to request support for Appear’s encoders in their production pipeline. That initiated a collaboration between Appear and YouTube, culminating in full verification for Appear’s hardware-based AVC/HEVC encoding and SRT streaming, further expanding Appear’s reach across a broader ecosystem of FAST, OTT and hybrid broadcasters.

“YouTube collaborates with technology partners to ensure their products meet our highest standards for reliability and performance when streaming to YouTube Live” says Callum Hewett, Live Solutions Consultant, YouTube. “We’re pleased to verify Appear’s X Platform for SRT delivery which we hope will streamline content delivery for all of their partners. It’s been great working with Appear on this and I look forward to seeing high-quality, resilient live production workflows delivered to YouTube via the Appear platforms.”

ATLANTA—Gray Media has entered into a multi-year affiliation agreement with Telemundo Network that extends its Telemundo affiliations to three new markets.

The new agreement includes new local affiliates in Dayton, Ohio (WZCD-LD); Chattanooga, Tennessee (WTVL-CD, WDNN-CD); and Lafayette, Louisiana (KNGC-LD), on Gray-owned stations in those markets.

Gray’s expanded Telemundo portfolio now reaches over 1.6 million Hispanic TV households across the country, delivering comprehensive news and entertainment programming tailored to US Hispanics including the first and/or only Spanish-language locally produced newscasts in numerous markets.

Gray is Telemundo’s largest affiliate group. The popular Spanish-language television network is also the exclusive Spanish-language home of popular sporting events such as the FIFA World Cup 2026 and Super Bowl LX.

“This expanded relationship with Telemundo demonstrates Gray’s deep commitment to serving this fast-growing viewer and business segment in America,” said Susan Sim Oh, senior vice president of strategy and operations of the Gray Telemundo Affiliate Station Group. “We are excited to continue our strong partnership with Telemundo to deliver high-quality Spanish-language content, sports, and news that resonates with US Hispanic audiences. This growth directly reflects our corporate mission to be the trusted news source in every community we serve.”

Gray Media’s Telemundo stations deliver more than 1,100 hours of local Spanish-language news and investigative news programs each month across all markets and have more than 50 million digital impressions annually across local news sites and apps, making it one of the most important local Spanish-language news operations in America.

Industry pundit Pete Putman weighed on the recent OEM agreement between TCL and Sony:

Well, I predicted this would happen...over 15 years ago. As the Japanese TV market slowly collapsed, egged on by the Great Recession, once-famous brands like Panasonic, Pioneer, Mitsubishi, Toshiba, and JVC either (a) stopped manufacturing TVs altogether and left the business, (b) OEM'ed televisions from Korean manufacturers (Samsung, LG) and Chinese manufacturers (TCL, Hisense, et al) and "private labeled" them, or (c) Washed their hands of the manufacturing end, but licensed their brands to Korean and Chinese manufacturers.

Profit margins on televisions plummeted over the past decade.

Both Samsung and LG were getting ready to shut down their LCD panel manufacturing facilities before the pandemic, but a surge in demand for everything from TVs to laptops and tablets kept those fabs open. Now, even the Korean giants shop in China for wholesale LCD panels and even finished TVs, with only LG's WRGB OLED fabs and Samsung's RGB OLED materials manufacturing still in operation.

Sony bragged for decades that they manufactured everything in the television chain, from cameras to TV screens. But even Sony was shopping for panels in the Chinese wholesale marketplace like everyone else. And their market share continues to slide year-over-year, with Samsung, TCL, Hisense, and LG together commanding over 90% of worldwide TV shipments.

Considering that 65-inch LCD panels for televisions can be bought for about $100 apiece (or less!) on the wholesale market (and TCL is one of the largest LCD panel manufacturers)—and you can buy an 4K 85-inch LCD TV for about $700 at BJ's and Costco—this deal was probably inevitable. Sony is slowly getting out of a lot of hardware businesses like laptops and audio gear. (They still are, by far, the world's biggest manufacturer of camera sensors, a very profitable business.)

The Bravia TV business was losing money 15 years ago and was spun off into a separate company from Sony Corporation because of that. I would not be surprised to see Sony eventually exit the TV manufacturing biz entirely, along with consumer audio, and just license their brand to a OEM company, like Hitachi, Toshiba, and JVC have done.

It's hard for some Japanese companies to admit when they've lost, but that's just the brutal economics of the TV biz nowadays. (And to think that 45+ years ago, we were still building and selling televisions in the U.S.!)

MIAMI & ORLANDO—Hemisphere Media Group and Entravision have announced a partnership to launch WAPA Orlando, a new full power broadcast television station with programming to serve the Orlando–Daytona Beach–Melbourne DMA.

WAPA Orlando started broadcasting on Feb. 4 on Entravision’s WOTF (Channel 26).

WAPA Orlando will be carried by multichannel video programming distributors throughout the Orlando–Daytona Beach–Melbourne region.

Broadcasting programming from WAPA-TV, Puerto Rico’s #1 TV network for 16 consecutive years, the backers of the new station that will be also be customized and programmed for Central Florida’s Latino population, with a particular focus on the region’s large and rapidly growing Puerto Rican community. The Orlando area is now home to the second largest Puerto Rican population in the continental U.S. and has seen sustained population growth over the past decade.

WAPA Orlando will take advantage of WAPA-TV's news and entertainment production infrastructure, which now produces 80 hours per week of original content, and will be the first station specifically serving Orlando’s Puerto Rican community. Its programming will feature news and entertainment produced in WAPA’s Puerto Rico studios, complemented by locally produced newscasts branded NotiCentro Orlando from Entravision’s award-winning news organization.

The station will initially launch with two daily locally-produced newscasts—morning and midday—with plans to expand to evening and late-night editions over time.

The partnership also will also draw on Entravision’s news resources from stations across 24 U.S. markets to drive expanded local news and editorial coverage for WAPA Orlando. This access to Entravision's extensive content and resources will complement WAPA Media’s original programming and journalism, enhancing coverage of issues relevant to Latino communities locally and nationally.

“We are excited to bring WAPA’s world class news and entertainment content and programming expertise to Orlando, which is often referred to as Puerto Rico’s ‘79th municipality’.” said Alan J. Sokol, president and CEO of Hemisphere Media Group. “By combining WAPA’s trusted programming and journalism with Entravision’s broadcast infrastructure and market expertise, we are creating a compelling and completely unique local service custom made for the Orlando Hispanic community.”

“The launch of WAPA Orlando reinforces our commitment to delivering relevant, community-focused media in key Latino markets,” said Jeffery Liberman, president and COO of Entravision.” This strategic collaboration leverages the complementary strengths of trusted brands to better serve our audiences, distributors, and advertisers throughout Central Florida. Our expertise in local media and news programming will be instrumental in driving WAPA Orlando's growth, especially as we develop and manage its new standalone digital platform to connect with the Orlando Latino audience."

Entravision will develop and manage WAPA Orlando’s digital strategy, which includes a rollout of digital platform solutions, including a website. In addition, Entravision will fully handle the sales operations and maintain a dedicated sales team and production staff in the market. As part of its customary service to clients, Entravision will offer creative support, talent-driven integrations, and turn-key video production, alongside traditional commercial and digital buys.