In Broadcast - September 2015 - 52


52

www.inbroadcast.com | Vol: 5 - Issue 9 | September 2015

InMedia

Utilising Cloud Infrastructures In
The Broadcast Environment
Amagi Cofounder K.A. Srinivasan discusses the various applications of
cloud-based delivery platforms for broadcasting in the Internet age...

C

loud technology has become
an
undeniably
disruptive
force across a variety of markets,
including
broadcast.
Leveraging
utility-computing,
storage,
and
network bandwidth, cloud technology
dramatically increases the
flexibility and scalability of TV
network operations, lowering
CAPEX and OPEX. In addition,
cloud infrastructures open
up new business models by
enabling TV networks to
distribute content directly to
end-users.
There are three types of cloud
infrastructure that TV networks can
implement: public, private, and hybrid.
With public cloud infrastructure, TV
networks can purchase computing,
storage, and bandwidth resources ondemand from an offsite utility source.
Private clouds reside on-premises and
are the ideal choice for TV networks
that want to manage their own data
and processes, with exclusive access
to resources. A hybrid approach
consists of a mix of both public and
private clouds, whereby TV networks
split operational functions across the
infrastructure based on security and
other requirements.
This article identifies the top
applications that TV networks
can utilise for adopting a cloud
infrastructure, discussing the
benefits of each use case.
Content Creator To
Broadcaster Workflow
In the broadcast environment,
high-resolution content is sourced
from multiple locations into a content
store for processing and distribution.
All content assets can be managed
via the cloud networks, whereby
content creators and broadcasters
are connected over a secure cloud
platform that is used transfer media
content. This enables broadcasters to
commission content creation across
the globe, with instant access to early
versions of content for quick feedback.
Once the content is ready, it
is pushed to a secure cloud, at
which point it can be accessed by
broadcasters across any of their

global facilities. This workflow ensures
a seamless flow of content across
geographies, making it possible
for review, feedback, and editing
discussions to take place in real-time.
See Figure 1.

Figure 1: Content creator to
broadcaster cloud workflow

Post-Production Workflow
Traditionally, for post-production,
there has always been a large-scale
content-transfer activity: a significant
volume of data is sent to postproduction facilities and brought back
to delivery locations. Often, this results
in a long and rigid post-production
process.
With cloud technology, this workflow
is optimised. Master content is
uploaded to a secure cloud, and
low-resolution versions are sent to
post-production locations where the
edits are made. Once the edits to the
low-resolution version are reviewed

Figure 2: Post-production
cloud workflow

and accepted, these changes are
pushed back to the cloud, and edits
are applied on the master content in a
batch process.
This workflow offers extreme
flexibility and agility, speeding up
post-production
operations.
The
entire workflow becomes locationindependent, with time saved by
sending low-resolution files across
multiple locations. Moreover, security
is not a concern since all master
content is protected in one location.
The workflow described above
can also be applied to subtitle and
voice-over services, which enables
operations to take place in parallel.

The final master file is prepared in
the cloud with all the edits, tracks,
subtitles, and metadata for playout
and distribution. See Figure 2.
Content Delivery To
Distribution Platforms
Traditionally, content delivery
on linear feeds has been via
satellites. The challenge for
broadcasters is that satellites
are
expensive,
despite
providing a larger geographic
reach.
As
TV
networks
increasingly expand across the
globe, this can be a significant
issue. While broadcast regulations and
content rights are generally countryspecific, advertising requirements are
regional in nature, necessitating that
TV networks have multiple linear feeds
for different countries. Delivering
these linear feeds on a separate
satellite for each country does not
make much sense, since the ROI is
oftentimes too insignificant.
The emergence of cloud computing,
combined with edge playout devices,
gives TV networks the opportunity to
broadcast linear television channels
worldwide without the use of
satellites. Under this approach, edge
playout devices are placed at multiple
distribution headends within the
various regions that TV networks are
present. All of these playout
devices are connected via
public Internet connections and
are controlled, monitored, and
fed content through a secure
cloud infrastructure. For TV
networks looking to expand
their global footprint, a cloudbased broadcast infrastructure
offers significant benefits in terms
of reducing CAPEX and OPEX and
improving worldwide manageability.
Multiple networks across the globe
have successfully deployed this model
to augment their existing satellite feed
with a few hours of local content in
specific geographies, or to adopt an
edge channel playout infrastructure.
Amagi's
cloud-based
playout
infrastructure is one example of such a
solution, offering a guaranteed SLA of
99.99% uptime. See Figure 3.

Direct To Consumer
Distribution Model
Given the recent increase in
bandwidth
for
home
Internet
connections and the rapid proliferation
of mobile devices, TV networks and
content owners have the unique
advantage of reaching consumers
directly with their content. This
concept is known as OTT delivery.
Many TV networks and content
owners are using this approach to

Figure 3: Content delivery to distribution
platforms cloud workflow

deliver linear and on-demand channels
via their own branded Web portals and
mobile apps. Content can be hosted
on the cloud, and leveraging an endto-end OTT infrastructure platform,
seamlessly created and distributed
to end-users. Utilising Amagi's
personalised mid-roll ad-insertion
capabilities, TV networks can increase
the monetisation of OTT content
without requiring any integration on
behalf of the broadcaster.
In fact, broadcasters no longer need
to remove linear feed TV ads; Amagi's
watermark technology automatically
detects the ad breaks and splices
different mid-roll ads to various users
based on their user profile. See Figure
4.

Figure 4: Direct to consumer
cloud workflow

Conclusion
In this Internet age, where
consumers have access to a wide range
of devices capable of playing highquality video content, broadcasters
are looking to broaden their reach
into new regions. Cloud-based
delivery platforms offer an affordable
alternative to traditional satellite and
fibre distribution methods, enabling TV
networks to deliver content globally at
a fraction of the cost.
http://www.inbroadcast.com http://www.amagi.com/tvnetworks/ http://www.amagi.com/tvnetworks/ http://www.amagi.com/tvnetworks/ http://www.amagi.com/tvnetworks/
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