BroadcastPro ME January 2023

GOOD TIDE-INGS

With seamless remote production and modified broadcast technologies, Riedel and SailGP bring viewers an intimate view of the sailing action

raz.islam@cpitrademedia.com +971 (0) 4 375 5471 Managing

Vijaya Cherian vijaya.cherian@cpitrademedia.com +971 (0) 4 375 5472

Shiyas Kareem shiyas.kareem@cpitrademedia.com +971 (0) 4 375 5474

EDITORIAL

Editor

Vijaya Cherian vijaya.cherian@cpitrademedia.com +971 (0) 55 105 3787 Sub Editor

Aelred Doyle

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Group Sales Director Sandip Virk sandip.virk@cpitrademedia.com +971 (0) 50 929 1845 +44 (0) 7516 993 862

DESIGN Art Director Simon Cobon

Designer Percival Manalaysay

MARKETING & EVENTS Events Executive Minara Salakhi minara.s@cpitrademedia.com +971 (0) 4 433 2856

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CIRCULATION & PRODUCTION

Data & Production Manager Phinson Mathew George phinson.george@cpitrademedia.com +971 (0)4 375 5476 DIGITAL SERVICES Abdul Baeis Umair Khan

FOUNDER Dominic De Sousa (1959-2015)

Published by

I had the opportunity to take a close look at the running of the communications and broadcast of a global sailing competition in Dubai recently. Much like Formula One, SailGP is a hugely demanding sport primarily because of the nature of the event.

As a relatively young player with no legacy and therefore the ability to tinker with new technologies and production workflows, SailGP has gone all out with remote production, wireless technologies, data analytics and everything that is representative of new-generation ideologies. Alongside that, the event organisers are big on sustainability and have some ground rules that lay greater emphasis on skills than frills. For instance, the teams are all given boats with identical engines and features to ensure they operate on an equal footing. In addition, data about each team is made available to everyone else so that every athlete can learn from the other and strategise in accordance with that knowledge.

The unknowns, however, are the wind and how the tides play out on the day of the race. The athletes and the teams operate in a dynamic environment, where most of the

variables are outside human control. And herein lies the excitement and challenge not just for the athletes but also for the technologists attempting to provide seamless communication and high-quality broadcasts for what may be considered one of the finest examples of a remote production.

Given how salt and water can easily erode electronic equipment in a matter of minutes, solutions provider Riedel, which pretty much enables the communication, production and broadcast of the event in conjunction with SailGP, had to keep going back to the drawing board to re-piece some of its signature technologies to suit the demands of the sport.

They have a great story to tell. I hope the fearless way in which they have stepped into a new era without being daunted by the challenges that keep getting thrown their way inspires us, as we move into the new year, to take a leap of faith and get ready for big beginnings. Happy New Year!

Inside this issue

05

NEWS

Film AlUla begins construction of studio complex; Studio 1932 inks deal with Pressman Film for film production in KSA; Wataaa TV teams up with BIGG TV; Vox Cinemas unveils first slate of original Arabic films; and more

10 ASHARQ NEWS TURNS 2

Senior executives at the network discuss major milestones and viewership stats on its successful completion of two years

12 COVER – GOOD TIDE-INGS

Late last year, Dubai hosted a leg of the third season of SailGP. Its CTO Warren Jones and the Riedel team share what it entails to bring that sailing experience to TV and OTT viewers across the world

18 VIRTUAL PRODUCTION – 8

Matthew Collu discusses tried and tested techniques to take your virtual production workflow to the next level 20

THE CHANGING FACE OF REGIONAL PRODUCTION

Industry pros analyse upcoming content trends, consumer behaviour and expectations, as well as their impact on commissioning projects 26

DEVELOPING THE MENA MEDIA SECTOR

Continued investment and more partnerships is the way forward, according to CEOs 32

WHAT LIES AHEAD?

Industry practitioners discuss 2023 trends 36

GUEST COLUMN

Sunil Mudholkar on creating more engagement in sport

Film AlUla begins construction on first phase of studio complex

Film AlUla, the film agency of the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU), has begun construction of a comprehensive studio complex to kick-start the next phase in northwest Arabia’s emergence as a regional hub for the screen sector. Completion of the first phase encompassing approximately 30,000sqm is targeted for Q4 2023.

The first phase will include two soundstages, production support buildings, workshops, a pyro/sfx building, a catering facility and an admin building, plus a 6,500sqm backlot and a sound recording studio. The complex will also be near 12km of dedicated outdoor shooting locations that showcase the ancient heritage of AlUla.

Charlene Deleon-Jones, Executive Director of Film AlUla, said: “AlUla is a thriving centre for arts, culture and heritage. With the film and screen sector of central focus, the first phase of this studio complex is carefully planned and part of a much larger programme of infrastructure development. This complex

will satisfy the growing demand from regional and international producers to shoot at AlUla, while also supplying an epicentre for our production ecosystem. The studio complex will diversify AlUla’s economy in line with the objectives of RCU, as we build a home to nurture Saudi talent in the screen sector for generations to come.”

Film AlUla has worked with US live-experience company Tait to ensure that the production experience will be uncluttered and comfortable, including during the summer months. The studio complex will be 14 minutes from the Film AlUla Residence, which has 300 rooms, restaurants, recreational facilities and office space

for industry professionals, and 20 minutes from AlUla International Airport, which recently opened a hangar for private jets.

Phase two of the master plan is in the planning stage and will be revealed in Q2 2023. Saudi Arabia offers a cashback rebate of up to 40% for international and local feature films, television series and documentaries that shoot in the Kingdom.

Film AlUla has hosted 694 production-days since opening in 2020. Movies have included Kandahar, directed by Ric Roman Waugh and starring Gerard Butler, which was the first major Hollywood feature to shoot almost entirely in AlUla; the Iraq war story Cherry, starring Tom Holland

and directed by Anthony and Joe Russo; and Norah, the first Saudi feature film to be shot at AlUla and featuring an all-Saudi cast and over 40% Saudi crew. In addition, many TV productions have been filmed in AlUla, including the British series Expedition with Steve Backshall and Nat Geo documentaries, along with commercials, promos, photo shoots and short films.

Film AlUla has also contracted third-party environmental agencies to conduct a 10-month Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) to select an appropriate location for the studio complex. Construction will include continuous environmental monitoring.

Studio 1932 inks deal with Pressman Film for film production in KSA

Hollywood production house Pressman Film has partnered with Saudi Arabia’s Studio 1932 to create an epic feature film which will be shot throughout the Kingdom.

Under the deal, Pressman Film and Studio 1932 will film an action-drama feature based in ancient Arabia. The collaboration of cultural and creative value was made possible

by the support of the Saudi Film Commission and the commitment to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030. Studio 1932 is a Saudi production company

formed by a group of local investors with a common vision to elevate the entertainment industry in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia into innovative and global standard quality.

The studio complex will be situated 14 minutes from the Film AlUla Residence.

Industry veteran launches

The Yard Films in Abu Dhabi

Jakob Mejlhede Andersen, former Chief Content Officer at Shahid, has launched a new production and development company, The Yard Films, based in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Joining him as part of the executive team are Camilla Hammer, an industry expert with global acquisitions, sales and packaging experience; and Phil Rostom, a MENA industry veteran. Together they bring extensive

Ninetnine expands Helwa TV reach in MENA through Arabsat

Content provider Ninetnine has launched free-to-air live linear entertainment channel Helwa TV on Arabsat’s Badr-6 satellite. Operated by Ninetnine and co-owned by BluTV, Helwa TV broadcasts premium Turkish and North African series.

Arabsat CEO Alhamedi Alanezi said: “Following Arabsat’s new strategy to expand our cooperation

with key partners, we succeeded in creating an ecosystem of international media partners that allows us to build strong ties with our clients. Ninetnine’s innovative media distribution approach aligns with our vision and strategy. This partnership is the first brick of more projects to be announced in 2023.”

expertise across the creation, production and financing of content across MENA, Europe and the US.

The Yard Films aims to develop and produce original scripted and nonscripted content for both local and international players. The company has identified a strong need for storytelling that targets millennials and Gen Z, particularly within existing and upcoming OTT services.

Wataaa TV collaborates with BIGG TV

BIGG TV and Wataaa TV have launched a new package, Versus, available for subscription on STC TV for audiences in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Kuwait, and on Jawwy TV for the UAE and the rest of the Middle East. BIGG TV is a 24/7 premium gaming TV channel aired across Asia and MENA. The launch of this new add-on package, consisting of two linear channels combining gaming and combat sports content, will provide a comprehensive offering of premium and diverse content through live and replay.

Jeff Padovani, CEO of BIGG TV, said: “With an affordable monthly subscription, fans will be able to enjoy live events of the most popular games such as CS:GO, DOTA 2, LOL, Starcraft, Hearthstone, Fortnite and so on.”

Al Aan TV deploys Actus Digital solutions

Dubai-based regional TV channel Al Aan TV has implemented Actus Digital's intelligent monitoring platform to record compliance, monitor content, create advanced clips and export them, all while increasing viewer engagement and ensuring high quality of service. The Actus compliance and monitoring software is hardware-agnostic, enabling Al Aan TV to deploy the platform on existing, onpremises servers.

Cesar Eid, Deputy Head of Technical Operations at Al Aan TV, said: "Our legacy broadcast monitoring system had reached its end of life and we needed to find a replacement that was robust, reliable and flexible, to support our evolving requirements and provide solutions that not only support the requirements of the technical department but also those of other departments, such as the digital media and OTT. Actus Digital's platform provides us with a feature-rich solution that supports countless capabilities beyond compliance and technical monitoring."

Jakob Mejlhede Andersen.

Ninetnine co-founders Samir Zehani (front left) and Adel Hamla (back right) with the Arabsat team Wael Al Buti (front right) and Laith Alani (back left) at the signing ceremony.

MAD Solutions launches new unit for Arab talent behind the camera

MAD Solutions has launched MAD Crew Celebrity, a new unit dedicated to boosting the careers of Arab directors, producers, writers, cinematographers, costume designers, composers and editors. This comes after the company announced the MAD Rising Celebrity division in 2020 to launch up-and-coming film and TV actors from across the Arab world – a specialised spin-off of its core MAD

Sharjah Media City launches new venture for media startups

Sharjah Media City (Shams) has announced Shams Valley to launch startups in the media and technology sectors and create new opportunities for Sharjah's economy. Launched in collaboration with Grow Valley, the initiative allows Shams to tap into Grow Valley’s extensive expertise in the field, which covers everything from experimenting with startup ideas to developing them into viable businesses that cater to market requirements, in addition to ensuring future longevity and growth.

Zero Density has appointed Yacoub Al Husseini as new Regional Sales Manager for the Middle East and Africa. Al Husseini will work closely with the local community to continue expanding the business in the region, and will support the network of regional partners and customers as demand for photorealistic virtual production and upgraded broadcast graphics tools increases. He was previously with Vizrt.

BeIN Media Group has announced a successful action to combat piracy in Jordan, tackling a major retailer of set-top boxes. It was carried out against a widely known Jordanian electronics retailer across multiple branches. In each store, the authorities discovered multiple illegal IPTV boxes being marketed for sale. The retailer was found to have been proactively selling to customers, with several hundred boxes likely to have been sold in October alone. The Department of National Library (DNL) and beIN have been monitoring local retailers’ activities for months, learning that 50% of dealers in Jordan are likely to

Celebrity unit for top-tier actors and TV hosts.

MAD Crew Celebrity aims to nurture and burnish the careers of Arab industry professionals in a region where such local representation has been virtually non-existent. It will be managed by Angie Skaik under the oversight of Kareem Samy, Executive Director of MAD Celebrity, one of the five operating divisions at MAD Solutions.

recommend pirated products and services over genuine boxes.

The Jordan Media Commission (JMC) also blocked 77 websites which streamed proprietary beIN content without permission in less than a month.

Furthermore, JMC issued a formal instruction last month to all media outlets in Jordan, asking them to refrain from presenting any proprietary World Cup content without a licence.

JMC is also expected to issue a similar warning against the promotion or advertisement of illicit streaming devices.

DNL and JMC have been working with beIN to tackle the activity of illegal providers of sports and entertainment broadcasts.

BeIN strikes blow to retailers of illegal IPTV boxes in Jordan

Zero Density announces new regional hire

Tunisian producer and coproducer Dora Bouchoucha is one of the talents being represented by MAD Crew Celebrity.

Vox Cinemas unveils first slate of original Arabic-language films

Vox Cinemas has unveiled its debut slate of original Arabic films under a commitment first announced in 2021 to make 25 films in the region in five years. The line-up features titles from new and established filmmakers in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UAE and Lebanon.

HJWN (Hawjen) is the third film from Vox Cinemas, Image Nation Abu Dhabi and MBC Studios. The three companies signed a landmark alliance at the Cannes Film Festival in 2019, a production partnership for film and TV projects across the Middle East. The three entities also joined forces on King of

the Ring, a Saudi remake of the South Korean comedydrama hit The Foul King. Slated for 2023 is Voy! Voy! Voy!, a collaboration between Vox Cinemas, Film Clinic and Image Nation Abu Dhabi. The Egyptian film is the directorial debut of Omar Hilal. Vox

Cinemas will also join forces with Sirb Productions, a sister company of Myrkott Animation Studio and the firm behind the Masameer franchise, to produce their second live-action film, a Saudi comedy; and director Hadi El Bagoury’s first Egyptian

action-comedy feature is being developed in partnership with The Producers, the creative minds behind Hepta, the highest-grossing romantic film in Egypt on its release.

Vox Cinemas has teamed up with The Big Picture Studios, an Imagic Group company. It has also signed a deal with Blue Engine Studios, helmed by Ziad Kebbi and Hani Ghorayeb. Through working with writers and hosting workshops, it is enabling emerging filmmakers and providing resources to accelerate their careers, including guidance on how to market and distribute films for the big screen.

Jordan’s Telescope secures Series A round of funding

Lawo founder dies aged 85

Peter Lawo, founder of a German company for broadcast and media technologies, died on November 24 at the age of 85. The engineer and entrepreneur founded today’s Lawo AG in 1970 and laid the foundation for the company’s worldwide reputation and economic success with innovative audio products and uncompromising quality standards.

Jordanian content creation incubator Telescope has raised an undisclosed amount in seed investment from Select Venture Equity in the UAE, with the investment agreement signed recently in Dubai. Founded in 2019 by Dr Moatasim Masalmeh, Telescope offers a range of content under multiple categories including art, entertainment and education, with over a thousand shows and video series and 2m followers across the MENA region. It also caters to influencers and content creators looking to grow their online presence.

According to Masalmeh, this investment will be used to expand Telescope operations in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, as well as improve engagement with Telescope influencers and customers through technology. In a statement, the company said: “We aim

to be the most prominent content creation incubator, building on the success we had in the last three years and state-of-theart studios we built. Our technology front will take our content creation and distribution to another level.”

From left: Telescope founder Dr Moatasim Masalmeh with Select Venture Equity Director Amjad Mustafa.

Toni El Massih, MD of Majid Al Futtaim Cinemas, and Abdulaziz Almuzaini, CEO of Sirb Production and Myrkott Animation Studio, signed a deal at the Red Sea International Film Festival.

Advanced Media Showroom Mezzanine, Galadari Building, Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai, UAE

ASHARQ NEWS MOVES UP THE RANKS

In November 2022, Asharq, which includes Asharq News, Asharq Business with Bloomberg, and more recently Asharq Discovery, successfully completed two years since its launch. Asharq has witnessed unprecedented growth since its launch, with the network marking several milestones, opening new bureaus across the region and achieving an impressive slew of awards.

A subsidiary of the Saudi Research and Media Group (SRMG), the MENA region’s largest media group, Asharq was launched with the mission to “unravel the economic insights behind every headline”, says Nabeel Alkhatib, GM of Asharq News. Driven by this, Asharq has multiple digital channels in addition to a dedicated television channel. A multi-pronged approach has enabled the network to offer continuous insights into events, ideas and people that impact the MENA region and international markets.

“Our approach is based on telling the story to the people wherever they are and however they prefer to consume it. And over the past two years, we have been adamant on elevating our experience as we grow and attend to audience needs,” says Alkhatib. Cases in point are its Moasherat Asharq

show, which offers insights into business and politics, and another political talk show, The Washington Report (aired from Washington, DC), which hosts politicians, researchers, academics and journalists to discuss current issues from decision-making centres such as the White House, Congress, the State Department, the Treasury and the Pentagon.

Asharq’s social media followers and website traffic are a testament to its popularity among audiences. The channel boasts a portfolio of 60 accounts across seven social media platforms and nine sub-brands covering news from multiple angles, industries and sectors such as technology, green, business, crypto, sports and opinion articles. The network also boasts three mobile apps: Asharq News, Asharq Business and Asharq NOW. It recently celebrated 30m followers across social platforms, making it the fastest-growing brand in the region and the most viewed, followed and engaging business accounts across social against all competitors. Both Asharq News and Asharq Business place first among their competitors in terms of growth.

Asharq’s digital footprint includes four websites, the newest of which is its sports website, which has a heavy focus on football.

Backed by accurate and insightful content, multiplatform Arabic-language news service Asharq is cementing its reputation in the MENA media landscape

“We are very well aware that sports news has a large audience and fan base, and it is increasingly becoming one of the key trending topics across the world, especially amongst the younger generation,” explains Alkhatib. Asharq’s Fil Mondial programme, featuring prominent football stars, players and coaches from the Middle East, such as Egyptian football star Ahmed Hossam ‘Mido’, has raked in millions of viewers too.

The network has been able to create unparalleled and premium quality content thanks to the substantial technological investments it has made. Despite being only in its second year of operation, the network undertook a comprehensive infrastructure improvement drive across all its bureaus spread across different parts of the region including Saudi Arabia, Palestine, Iraq, Sudan and Egypt. It introduced the object matrix solution for deep archive storage to improve connectivity among its network bureaus across the Middle East. “With the ability to connect to product asset management (PAM) systems, the object matrix enables

Asharq to share and archive content between its storage archive and PAM easily,” explains Omran Abdallah, Director of Engineering and IT at Asharq News.

The network is also investing in the Qibb cloud solution from Qvest. “This is mainly to aid distribution between our different offices across the network and centralise all operations such as content archives, dashboard and transcoding,” says Abdallah. Another significant development at Asharq has been its partnership with Newsbridge, a cloud-based platform for next-gen media valorisation. “One of the most important things we are doing now is content provisioning and content artificial intelligence. We are using Newsbridge to enrich the database of our content and enable research using speech and face recognition. This will speed up things in the newsroom, enabling the editorial department to research and access the content in our archives quickly,” adds Abdallah.

Going forward, Asharq’s roadmap includes setting up state-of-the-art studios

for its different bureaus across the region. The network boasts a brand-new studio in Riyadh which is also set up for remote operation, should the facility need to be controlled from its Dubai HQ. The studio has currently been fitted with a 30m Barco video wall and an additional AV control room that enables Asharq’s Saudi team to go live directly from Riyadh when required. With most facilities designed for multiple purposes, the Saudi operation also serves as a disaster recovery studio and there are bigger plans to expand this facility with state-of-the-art solutions.

Asharq is continuously looking to push the envelope and integrate new and disruptive solutions that ensure scalability, flexibility and reliability. To that effect, it is also now ambitiously moving towards building a new connectivity hub between its various sites, to work on public internet and codex. Given its ambitious expansion plans, its determination to be the best news network across multiple platforms and its technical prowess, Asharq is on an upward trajectory. PRO

The Moasherat Asharq show offers insights into business and politics.

Omran Abdallah, Director of Engineering and IT at Asharq News.

Dr Nabeel Alkhatib, GM of Asharq News.

The Washington Report, aired from Washington, DC, hosts politicians, researchers, academics and journalists.

GOOD TIDE-INGS

In November last year, the world’s sailing elite descended on Dubai for a leg of the third season of SailGP. In an interview with SailGP

CTO Warren Jones and the Riedel tech team, Vijaya Cherian learns that bringing that sailing experience to TV and streaming fans across the world required a potent combination of technical strategy, out-of-the-box thinking and a raft of technologies modified for the sea

SailGP may be a new entrant to the sail racing scene but it is fast attracting some of the world’s best sailors. In this annual global championship, national teams compete using identical hydrofoiling F50 catamarans designed to race at speeds exceeding 100km/h. Established by Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and champion yachtsman Sir Russell Coutts in 2018, and headquartered in London, the competition sees teams compete across a season of multiple grands prix at some of the world’s most iconic harbours.

In Dubai, fans were not disappointed, with the reigning champions, Tom Slingsby’s Australia team, edging past France and Great Britain to stay at the top of the leaderboard. The spectacular fan experience is available on-site, on the water, on air, through an app and year-round through digital channels.

Each SailGP event has two competition days featuring all nine boats going head-to-head in fleet races. The top three then face off for the individual Grand Prix win.

The season culminates in the SailGP Grand Final, where the top three boats compete in a final podium race and the overall champion walks away with $1m in prize money. This season the total bonus prize money has grown to $4.3m, with a final prize purse of $1m for the Grand Final in San Francisco.

Unlike most sailing competitions, all the SailGP teams work with the same catamarans and are given access to the same data and technologies, so they compete on an equal footing. This ensures that winning is entirely based on skill and sailing prowess.

A significant part of the competition is communication between the teams and SailGP’s HQ in London, which produces and broadcasts the championship for TV and streaming audiences. This is where Riedel was called in “to provide a service solution that sets new standards and a benchmark for TV audiences with close insights of videos and audios from each yacht”, according to Jonas Badura, Junior Project Manager at Riedel. Although experts on land, the sea called for a raft of revised

wireless solutions, modifications to cameras and several alterations to existing solutions to make them work efficiently in water.

“Sailing was pretty new territory to us,” explains Thomas Riedel, Group CEO of Riedel Communications. “The event came with requirements of very long distance and wireless connectivity, not just for video but for audiovideo communications and all kinds of telemetry data. We had to customise a full system for sailing because salt water is incredibly aggressive to electronic gear. Every connector needed to be right.

“Secondly, RF on water is not easy because of the reflections you get from the water. So we were not just working on unidirectional video, but audio, video and then bi-directional communications and data. This is the second season we are working with SailGP, and they are high-tech and truly modern in their approach.”

As a new entrant, SailGP has been fortunate to begin, CTO Warren Jones puts it, with “no legacy contracts, no legacy hardware and no legacy ways of doing things”. As a staunch advocate for the environment, SailGP lays down ground rules for all participants. One is a limit on the number of containers each team or solutions provider can bring to an

event – four for teams, two for suppliers – and SailGP itself only uses one. “Back in 2013, with another organisation, we carried 38 containers. With SailGP, we have one. I call this progress,” says Jones.

Sustainability is a key part of SailGP’s agenda, and Riedel’s essential

equipment is stored in two 40’’ sea freight containers which travel with the other SailGP containers, with everything else maintained remotely.

“We start with an empty ground and two containers full of gear, and the rest is all handled remotely,” explains Badura. “The only given local infrastructure is an internet connection. In three days we usually finish installing the broadcast compound, rigging the race yachts, checking the cameras on the boats, setting up the workshop and making everything fully operational for the first rehearsals. We also service and maintain the equipment on-site, because they need more attention due to the harsh environment of sailing.”

Riedel has 25 wireless cameras fitted for each event – two on each of the nine team boats, four camera chase boats, one on the helicopter and two extras. They are handled remotely by operators in London. In fact, SailGP has fully embraced remote production, making the whole event more efficient, cost-effective and sustainable.

“We wanted to do remote

“Our director, our producer, our camera operators and our umpires are all seated in London. There’s nothing at the site of the event”

Warren Jones, CTO, SailGP

Jonas Badura, Junior Project Manager at Riedel, says the solutions provider

had to modify its products substantially to make them work with

salt and water.

production, because this is where the industry is going and we also wanted to be as sustainable as possible. We have events all around the world and rather than moving them around, it is more sustainable to have all the equipment sit in London,” explains Jones.

“Our director, our producer, our camera operators and our umpires are all seated in London. There’s nothing at the site of the event. Our umpires can monitor the race closely, as each boat has a camera installed in the front and the back. They can talk to the teams in each of the boats and issue penalties with the push of a button. The boats have TV screens on each side of the wing. If a team has been given a penalty, a red light will flash on them. The boat drivers can communicate with the umpires and everything is seamless.”

Riedel Communications facilitates this both on-site

and across continents, with several users logged into the system remotely through the Artist Intercom System. The solutions provider has 24 HD videos for TV production, and dedicated 4K transmitters help transmit up to four pictures at the same time using just one frequency. There are up to 45 RF carriers in use at an event.

True to SailGP’s remote production format, Riedel has only 12 members onsite while the rest of the support team

works remotely from its Remote Operations Centre (ROC) in Wuppertal, Germany. “They support various projects remotely on a day-to-day basis, but for SailGP events they provide dedicated services and engineering. All our learnings on-site are taken into consideration for further developments through our remote engineers,” explains Badura.

Producing and broadcasting a live sailing event has been a welcome challenge for the team, which needed to go back to the drawing board and revisit each of its technologies to make them compatible and durable for water or wireless requirements. On sea, weather changes, wind, salt water and altering currents create a dynamic working environment “with no fences or fixed points, as everything is floating”.

“Sailing is quite a challenging scenario; the mixture of speed,

“Sailing is quite a challenging scenario; the mixture of speed, wind and open sea in combination with saltwater is challenging for our technology and staff on-site at every event”

Jonas Badura, Junior Project Manager, Riedel

The Riedel team at the MCR.

wind and open sea in combination with saltwater is challenging for our technology and staff on-site at every event,” explains Badura.

Footage is captured from boats, helicopters and on-boat cameras to cover every possible angle. To ensure salt water does not get into the cameras, they are sealed. In addition, the cameras are shockproof and have a washing system so that the lenses get a clear image for the broadcast audience. Riedel is continuously working to improve the solution: “It's a harsh environment, but we are getting

a lot of lessons learned for product development. We even have 3D-printed headsets for prototyping,” says Badura.

This kind of housing also generates a whole set of new challenges, such as temperature management, because the gear needs to be cooled down. The team has to continuously monitor various parameters remotely from the shore and change the cooling remotely if there are temperature changes on a race boat.

Likewise, there are changing mast heights to address. “For low wind times the mast can go all the way up to 29m, while at events with high winds they go out on the water with an 18m mast.

Special custom-made masthead units from PIDSO and Riedel address this,” explains Badura.

The weight on the highperformance F50 race boats is a challenge, as they are designed to be as lightweight as possible to slice through the water while remaining sturdy. And there are other logistics to deal with – some on water, some technical.

Badura explains: “The course can be changed due to the wind conditions as well as the water’s current direction. It is also well accessible to spectators with

Clockwise from left: A Swiss SailGP Shore Team member climbs to wing at the Dubai SailGP – Photo by Ricardo Pinto; the French team working on their F50 catamaran in the hangar – Photo by David Gray; and the Spanish team practising ahead of the race – photo courtesy Bob Martin for SailGP.

their own boats. It is often very close to the seafront; you need to respect and consider harbour traffic, ferries, cruise ships, etc. And on water, everything needs to be wireless – data transfer, GPS from various assets like buoys, as well as racing yachts. Critical event communication as well as video footage needs to be transmitted reliably and constantly. The system we designed needed to be flexible in a modular way. The entire technical system had to be planned and designed for future growth of SailGP with more boats, more venues and events.”

Riedel solutions were used in various parts of the workflow. At the heart of the communications operation is the Riedel Bolero, which helps with crew communications and connects radio and intercom with the official committees around the globe.

“We connect all our systems, like Bolero stand-alone on the yachts and chase boats, Tetra for all SailGP crew members, and Remote Artist intercom panels for the umpires around the globe. Our technologies are interconnected with various stakeholders such as the Oracle Cloud or the SailGP systems department,” explains Badura.

“For SailGP, we’re using 4K video transmitters to transmit the video from the race boat, from the camera boat and the helicopter. We even have a data mesh that helps get telemetry data for the cameras from the boat. We get very high-quality audio from the races for interviews that go live for broadcast, for example. And we're using our Riedel radio solutions for all end users here, and it's fully connected into each other.”

With multiple events each season, Riedel has had to prove that efficiency is not limited to building reliable systems, but also to ensuring they work in all countries and are functional with the shortest

Thomas Riedel, Group CEO, Riedel Communications

set-up time. Fortunately, they have enjoyed great success on that front.

What makes this event truly hightech, however, is how data is processed and shared with everyone so that participants can learn from other teams and plan their own strategy. The day prior to our chat with Jones, SailGP had generated 46bn data requests.

“We know exactly what everybody does on the boat, how many times they press a button, what the road differential is, what the heart centre of the athlete is and so on. The data goes to the boats from our data logger. It goes up to the top of the wing. And when you see the boats, you'll see a little white masthead that is supplied by Riedel. From there it then goes to shoreside, and from them to the Oracle Data Centre in London,” Jones elaborates.

“During season two, Oracle delivered

40bn data points to the Oracle cloud during each day of racing. 30,000 data points are processed every second from each F50 catamaran per SailGP race. From that, we create patterns like where a boat is in its distance to other boats and how fast they go. This information goes to the umpires so they can see what they're doing from their point. We send this to the teams.

“SailGP is a little bit different to other federations in that our data is open source. Each team can see what the other team is doing and learns from them. If you go to the Oracle Cloud Analytics dashboard, all the information is there for anyone who wants it. It took 120ms for the data to go from the boats to our data centre in London and back to Dubai for broadcast. We have a live leaderboard. Then we’ve got augmented reality graphics. All the AR graphics then work out where everything is on the racecourse, and we paint the full picture.”

From SailGP’s TV studio in London, footage is distributed to 187 broadcasters around the world, Jones goes on. “We are very proud to be working with Oracle. It has huge data centres around the world. We have our core in London, and then we build edge devices around the world. We're totally wireless. We don’t use satellite trucks. We have no producers anywhere but back home in London. Everything is blended in from London, and then it is sent back here to watch the show in its full glory from that point of view and on the big screens. That round trip takes around 200ms and is the beauty of a full remote production.”

With the Australian team having elbowed New Zealand out of the way to secure top position, the teams next head to Singapore, Sydney and Christchurch, before the Grand Finale in San Francisco in May. PRO

“We had to customise a full system for sailing because salt water is incredibly aggressive to electronic gear. Every connector needed to be right”

TRIED AND TESTED: REAL TECHNIQUES OF WORKING WITH A VIRTUAL WORLD

Throughout this series, we’ve covered a menagerie of different topics, all surrounding the notion of providing valuable, educational and actionable production insights into virtual production. From terms and vocabulary to set-ups and breakdowns, the goal of truly demystifying virtual production seems to drift closer and closer with each passing month.

As we approach the final stops along this trip, I believe it’s time to apply all those insights and curate a list of real, production-ready, battle-tested virtual production techniques that take this already efficient workflow to completely new heights. These techniques aren’t the only ones, but they maximise virtual production’s potential power on-set; once aware of them, you will certainly better understand it all even before you arrive at call time.

Let’s begin with the simplest solution that yields the largest results, shall we? As I may have mentioned, the virtual production workflow depends on real-time rendering software to extend reality out into anything our brains can muster up and a virtual art department can piece together. With an extension such as this, the freedom of venturing off into any nook or cranny of that world is well within reach, to whatever degree you wish. This creates a fourth dimension of freedom that is very easily missed.

In traditional production, the camera is locked to the position of the physical world around it. If you need a wider shot, your choice is either to swap lenses or to kick back the camera altogether in the hope of capturing what you need in frame. This could be a few metres or, in extreme cases, a few miles.

Having gone through a long list of do’s and don’ts over the last few articles in this 12-part series, Matthew Collu puts together some tried and tested techniques to take your virtual production workflow to the next level

Simply put, we have all become accustomed to moving ourselves in relation to the very heavy real world we wish to shoot – but what about when shooting in an LED volume?

Depending on your stage of choice, the thought of being restricted to a certain viewing angle bubble can be a little intimidating and off-putting. What if you need to move farther back than the volume allows, or even the studio space itself? That’s easy: don’t. With a completely digital world, that freedom to move wherever you want is the power to choose where you want the world to be in relation to your camera – not the other way around. So instead of fighting a physical world working against you, make the digital one work for you. This is also an extremely valuable workflow insight to keep in mind, to avoid spending a ridiculous amount of production capital on a massive mega-stage, just for the illusion of usable space. If you need a better understanding of how to pick that stage, we’ve covered it previously.

Speaking of extending reality, our next technique is about blending it to the real world as seamlessly as possible, depending on the content you wish to shoot and the intricacies of the set in which your scene takes place. While building the digital world, assets are used and constructed to flesh out whichever setting the production needs. Typically, if the environment plays well on camera and no foreground set is required, that should be more than enough to begin the rest of the set-up for your shots. However, sometimes your digital world needs to blend with a physical set. Maybe one with trees and leaves, or specific scatter terrain. How do you get the digital terrain to look like the real one, you ask? That’s also easy: don’t. Making something look exactly like something else is far more complicated than simply having it be the same, wouldn’t you say?

Collu, Studio Coordinator, The Other End

Luckily enough, a lot of others have said that as well, leading to the use of asset scanning. With the correct preparation, scanning the physical assets to create 3D versions is leagues above the rest when it comes to blending two worlds into one. The assets used to build the digital world are now exactly the same as the ones used to build the real one, closing the gap between digital and physical that much further. Alternatively, this can also be done if those physical elements were already designed in a 3D application, which makes it that much easier to transition them into usable assets for real-time rendering engines. This is common in sci-fi productions, and goes a long way to making the extension of your world feel grounded and connected to the reality you’re attempting to craft.

Lastly, we arrive at the most overlooked and over-complicated technique in the virtual production handbook: light. As I’m sure you know, the LED wall kicks off a rather decent amount of light, just like your TV, computer monitor, smartphone, etc. I’d also argue that even if you haven’t read up on your innovative film production workflows, we can all surmise that LEDs are capable of projecting light.

With this light, the digital environment can cast realistic, one-to-one lighting onto the subject without the need for a recreation set-up akin to other extended reality workflows. This also allows traditional soft lighting without physical rigging or set-ups. By adding light cards to

the environment or adjusting specific area brightness or contrast, you can save immense amounts of time on lighting your subject or scene. Although this doesn’t outright replace any traditional lighting set-ups, including situations where harsher and more direct light sources are needed, it can certainly save hours of rigging time on the day of production, with just a short conversation and a few clicks. Not only does this speed up production efficiency, it also saves on costs incurred for specific equipment that may not even be needed when leveraging this type of real-time software lighting. These techniques, though seemingly obvious, are in fact some of the greatest solutions offered by virtual production. Understanding how it all works is definitely an advantage when deep diving into your next shoot, but once you’ve passed through the foggy mists of uncertainty and curiosity in how virtual production extends reality, you’ll enter the most exciting phase of your virtual production journey: bending reality.

Matthew Collu is Studio Coordinator at The Other End, Canada. He is a visual effects artist and cinematographer with experience working in virtual production pipelines and helping production teams leverage the power of Unreal Engine and real-time software applications.

“By adding light cards to the environment or adjusting specific area brightness or contrast, you can save immense amounts of time on lighting your subject or scene”

Matthew

THE CHANGING FACE OF REGIONAL CONTENT PRODUCTION

This era has been one of the most impressive in the history of the Middle East, with prolific content production increasingly carving a space for itself on the world stage. At the BroadcastPro Middle East keynote panel in November, producers and broadcasters got together to analyse upcoming trends in the content market, consumer behaviour and expectations, and their impact on commissioning projects

There’s been an exceptional movement across the MENA television landscape recently. Just recently, Netflix announced five upcoming projects from the Arab world, shows and films from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UAE, Jordan and Egypt. Of these, UAE-produced Dubai Bling raked in millions of viewers – and dollars. More OTT players are expected to follow in Netflix’s path, along with new apps taking over streaming.

There’s also been a sharp rise in big-budget MENA productions in the past few years, with films such as Kandahar and Desert Warrior and OTT series Al Asouf and Room 207. There’s been a digital revolution, with audiences favouring social media and OTT services instead of traditional broadcast networks.

Another significant development has been the rise of the Saudi Arabian market in terms of both production

and consumption. The Kingdom has emerged as the biggest market for productions from the US and Egypt. The number of screens in the country has passed 400; in 2021, 341 new films were released in Saudi cinemas. With more Arab productions taking over OTT and other streaming channels, the changing face of content production in the region was a pertinent topic of discussion at the 12th edition of the ASBU Broadcast for Summit and Awards. Moderated by Fadi Ismail, founder and GM of DKL Studio, the panel discussed how regional producers and media companies are recalibrating content and commercial and technical strategies to tackle the new generation of streaming. The four-member panel comprised Ziad Kebbi, CEO, Blue Engine Studios; Adil Memon, Executive VP – Content & Marketing, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited; Safa Abu Rizik, Director of Content,

MBC Studios; and Mazen Laham, founder and Managing Director, Different Productions FZ LLC.

Revisiting production models in the wake of consumer data and viewing behaviour patterns

Among the first points of discussion were the rising cost of production resulting from general inflation and the demand for bigger-budget productions spiked by the rise in viewership. Some relief has come from the generous rebates offered by film commissions across the region, including NEOM and AlUla in Saudi Arabia and similar initiatives in Jordan, Morocco and the UAE. Another way to tackle the rising cost of production is co-production, a route Zee Entertainment has been following for some time now.

“With the value of the US dollar being a critical aspect of the production funding process, Zee devised the co-production model as a solution to counter the frequent currency depreciation across the region, excluding the GCC,” said Adil Memon of Zee Entertainment. “We come in as an investing partner

for up to 65-70% if the project is impressive. And we follow a principle of 80:20, whereby 80% of our projects are based on feasibility analysis, and on 20% of our projects, we might take a chance of experimentation.”

The panellists felt that the entrance of entities such as Rise Studios in the Middle East has the potential to be a game changer in terms of ownership, finance, planning and production processes. Such enterprises help producers to negotiate better and relieve some of the financial pressure, as producers now don’t need 100% of finance or commissioning from big media houses or streaming platforms.

“Being part of Rise will create more opportunities and have more blings, due to the data provided, the opportunity to own

“The change is based on what we do individually.

It’s not coming from the media companies; it’s the production companies that are trying to make an effort to ensure what they produce is attractive to the viewers”

Ziad Kebbi, CEO, Blue Engine Studios

the IP and the ability to finance,” commented Mazen Laham of Different Productions, producer of reality series Dubai Bling.

Some studios have adopted the commissioning model. However, the commissioning process still doesn’t have set parameters or criteria producers can be guided by. “There’s no specific strategy for any platform,” said Kebbi. Ismail also pointed to global giants such as Netflix going back to AVOD (advertising-based video-on-demand); regionally, MBC’s Shahid platform has also been investing heavily to strengthen its AVOD offering.

Experimenting with new genres

While there have been changes in production techniques and models, the panellists agreed that the process of choosing the concept for a series has not undergone much change. Streaming platforms haven’t been of much help to production houses in assessing the mood of the viewers, and producers have

had to devise their own methods of gauging audience content preferences.

For instance, Blue Engine Studios measures the attention span of viewers based on how they consume

content on social media, through ‘attention loops’, and try to reflect these trends in their productions, said Blue Engine CEO Ziad Kebbi, explaining that the change in content is being driven solely by production houses. “The change is based on what we do individually. It's not coming from the media companies; it's the production companies that are trying to make an effort to ensure what they produce is attractive to the viewers.”

Safa Abu Rizik of MBC Studios voiced a different opinion about how media houses commission projects. Pointing to MBC’s “scientific approach”, she highlighted a more dynamic approach in script selection: “We now request a bible, a pilot and beats of events per episode. All these terminologies were not there five years ago.”

In the case of Zee, the company capitalises on the cultural similarities between the Indian sub-continent and the Middle East to develop its storylines. It

“Being part of Rise will create more opportunities and have more blings, due to the data provided, the opportunity to own the IP and the ability to finance”

Mazen Laham, founder and Managing Director, Different Productions FZ LLC

currently has more than half a dozen such co-productions on its slate, explained Memon. “We have done five such projects, including experimenting with comedy and drama series in Egypt, a thriller and social drama in Lebanon, and a social drama series in Syria. We are in the process of doing a film in Egypt which is expected to release during Eid of 2023. We have already signed two drama series, with two more in the pipeline. The production slate from here on will be at least five to seven projects a year.”

With the core story idea belonging to it, the company retains the IP (intellectual property) rights of the series. “But the video asset exploitation has been negotiated upon for ‘x’ number of years with broadcasters, depending upon multiple territories,” Menon said, giving a further example of a story dubbed into Arabic for Alwan.

While there have been series that have been huge hits regionally, very few have been able to transcend boundaries to become global successes. An exception is the new reality show Dubai Bling, produced by Different Productions, part of Rise Studios. While it didn’t

intentionally target a global audience, its creator believes the show went global because of its strong content. “We monitored docu-soaps trending worldwide, such as Made in Mexico and Bling Empire,” said Laham. Based on these studies, Different pitched the idea of replicating those concepts in Dubai to Netflix.

In the future, Different Studios plans to pitch all its shows in the market, backed by numbers and research. Some panellists were sceptical of this claim, since the Middle East is not an established data-driven market, but Laham seemed confident: “We are up to this. This will de-risk production.”

Having said this, all the panellists agreed that there is no sure-shot success formula. “We have had big projects that had the leverage of production, budget, time and access to talent. They succeeded locally; for instance, MBC’s mini-series Rashash that was streamed on Shahid was a regional hit, but it did not reach the globe,” said Rizik.

Kebbi further attributed some of the lag in Arabic-language content going global to clients’ mindset.

“Unfortunately, the clients – the broadcasters and platforms –have not changed. This is one of the main criteria that impacts the way content is produced.

In this situation, it is up to the production houses to usher in any change – which is challenging.”

Addressing duration and number of episodes with OTT

The panel also identified a fundamental shift in the region in

“We now request a bible, a pilot and beats of events per episode. All these terminologies were not there five years ago”

Safa Abu Rizik, Director of Content, MBC Studios

terms of the storytelling process. Over a hundred series are shot across the Arab world annually, and many of these now favour the short-form approach, with multiple seasons. On average, most series are now a maximum of ten episodes, demanding quicker story progression. The shorter duration of shows has made the market more competitive, said Rizik. At the same time, the limited number of episodes for each series allows the original story to have arcs that can be potentially extended to another season.

In Memon’s opinion, “Season one is a critical milestone for both the platform and the producer.”

All the panellists agreed that demand for another season is a clear indication from the audience that the project is successful and they want more. However, the decision for multiple seasons

has to be taken when the series is commissioned, allowing better story planning and telling, asset management and de-risking of the production. “If a platform commits to multiple seasons, it also helps the production companies to plan the series well. This is very important when talking about de-risking by numbers and data,” said Laham.

The panellists agreed on the need for local platforms to have more faith in production houses. Most platforms or broadcasters wait until a series has succeeded internationally before investing in it for local streaming. In the case of Dubai Bling, Laham said it was easier to approach Netflix than regional platforms. “I don’t see that we lack any creativity; we just need more chances in the region.”

Despite the lacunae, the panel was optimistic about the future of the industry. All the panellists agreed that there was no dearth of creativity or budgets – globally and regionally, “budgets are aligned”. Apart from developing content for multiple seasons and formats, they agreed that production companies should look at exploring animation, or even the multiverse, for future projects. PRO

“We follow a principle of 80:20, whereby 80% of our projects are based on feasibility analysis, and on 20% of our projects, we might take a chance of experimentation”

Adil Memon, Executive VP –Content & Marketing, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited

DISTRIBUTED IP VIDEO NETWORKS

FROM TALENT TO TELCOS, CEOS DISCUSS INDUSTRY CHALLENGES

As with other sectors, the pandemic worked as an establishing shot for the Middle East’s broadcast industry. Over-the-top digital media has filled the frame, boosting viewer demand for quality content with local themes – demand that is only likely to accelerate over the long term, in view of the region’s demographics.

Building out this dynamic new industry requires investment at every level, from content and talent to the enabling infrastructure. CEOs from the region’s broadcast sector gathered at the BroadcastPro ME Summit in November to zoom in on how the industry is pivoting in response to recent developments, and on what remains to be done.

The discussion featured Amanda Turnbull, CEO and cofounder, Rise Studios; Markus Golder, CEO, Intigral; Maaz Sheikh, CEO and co-founder, StarzPlay; and Hans Fraikin, Abu Dhabi Film and TV Commissioner, Abu Dhabi Film

The panel began with a bit of scene-setting, with Sarkis outlining how the media sector in some Middle Eastern countries is expanding faster than the global industry. Among the key trends discussed were the growth of the OTT sector, an emerging class of digital talent and wideranging government support across different markets.

At the same time, the panellists cautioned against viewing the region as a homogenous entity. Each of the 21 nations is at a very different phase of maturity, Fraikin pointed out. While Cairo has been a film and content hub for almost a century, Emirati films only aired on national TV in the eighties, making it to cinemas a good twenty years later.

As StarzPlay’s Sheikh elaborated: “We have a very fragmented audience; we talk about 400 million people, but their interests are very different. Even Arabic content doesn’t translate

Commission. Karim Sarkis, Partner, Strategy&, moderated.

As broadcasters look beyond the seismic shifts of the past couple of years, continued investment and new types of partnerships will be essential to assuring business continuity, industry CEOs said at the BroadcastPro ME Summit

across the board – for example, between the Maghreb and Egypt.”

Consumers are demanding better production values

However, in every market across the region, consumers are increasingly prioritising quality. Having tasted better fare with the globalisation of OTT during the pandemic, viewers now want local producers to rise to international standards, Fraikin said, and regional broadcasters will need to adapt to keep pace.

But quality requires investment at every level. Besides establishing the supporting infrastructure, funds need to go towards developing new talent, towards allowing regional producers the budgets they need, towards marketing and distribution, and towards building partnerships.

Turnbull explained it from the perspective of development time.

“One of the things we want to do is give our producers the time they need to create the content. The average time from script to screen in Hollywood is four or five years, whereas here it’s nine to 12 months. We would like to [give] our production

Hans Fraikin, Abu Dhabi Film and TV Commissioner,

partners more time at the beginning of the process for scripts, character development, storylines … so you can have a writing room where the people in it can stay there for the period, and they don't have to keep going off and doing freelance jobs. It's about buying time for these guys and giving them almost security of tenure.”

Investment could come from government players such as the Abu Dhabi Film Commission and its partners. Private companies such as Turnbull’s Rise Studios, formed in October this year by regional industry veterans, will invest to protect their intellectual property (IP). Or, as Fraikin said, private-public partnerships could offer a third route forward.

Investment is facilitating industry growth

Across the board, investment is helping create new value as the region’s economies look to capitalise on local demographics. People aged 15-29 comprise about a quarter of the region’s population, OECD data shows, and are likely to remain a significant percentage through to 2050. A mature broadcast sector can support economic diversification and job creation, but these young audiences also want content that speaks to their own unique tastes, and they want it delivered at a time and place of their choice. The UAE and Saudi Arabia have led investment into broadcast in recent years, as they seek to respond to these fragmented audiences.

“There are opportunities across the whole value chain,” Golder said.

Prospects range from supporting young talent to building new production facilities, which the region desperately needs. Last year, Abu Dhabi’s Department of Culture and Tourism (DCT) announced an investment of Dh22bn over a fiveyear period to build a sustainable

“There are hundreds of crafts required to make a film or TV series. At the Abu Dhabi government, we now go into educational institutions to highlight the wealth of opportunity available”

Abu Dhabi Film Commission

culture and creative industries (CCI) ecosystem. That’s in addition to an outlay of Dh8.5bn over the previous five-year period. The move builds on the sector’s resilience and adaptability in the face of changing economic dynamics, the DCT said.

Parallel moves by the Abu Dhabi Investment Office in enabling the technology infrastructure are also supporting broadcasters, such as through the GrowthX Accelerator programme, jointly run with Microsoft. And in Saudi Arabia, telecommunication company STC recently committed an additional $300m to Saudi venture capital firm STV, on top of an earlier $500m outlay. The move aims to tap opportunities in digitisation, including in broadcast production, Golder said.

The Saudi government has been making very significant efforts to make the investment attractive, he added, for example by improving ease of doing business in the Kingdom to improve market access. “A couple of years ago, we took 15 days just to register a company; now it’s down to 30 minutes,” said Golder.

Private sector investment has also begun to flow in. Rise Studios has signed agreements with studios across the region, including Different Productions, the team behind Dubai Bling, and Partner Pro (Finding Ola).

Its own backer, Great Mountain Partners, has strengths in global media and entertainment, including with companies such as Concord, Confluential Films, AiMi and A24. Rise will invest in companies that have a successful track record in Arabic production and already work with established players such as MBC, OSN, Netflix and StarzPlay, with a view to accelerating their growth and

taking more of their productions to regional and international platforms.

Public-private partnerships are also taking shape. Fraikin talked of how MIPCOM hosted an umbrella booth from Abu Dhabi, with 10 local production companies scouting for future co-production deals and promoting content produced within the region to international buyers.

Broadcasters’ evolving relationship with telcos

One type of partnership that is familiar to regional broadcasters is with telcos. Communication service providers have traditionally played an enabling role for broadcasters in the Middle East, but the relationship continues to evolve, both because of their longstanding role in providing the enabling infrastructure for television networks, and because of their relationships with the customer.

As Golder put it, telcos don’t just allow broadcasters to bypass customer acquisitions, they also deliver a wealth of existing data about these customers, such as their language preferences: “So when pitching to the customer, you're in a better position than someone who doesn't have any existing customer relationship.”

Fraikin called it a symbiotic relationship – telcos benefit from new

“There is lots of talent here, it’s about how we allow them to flourish. And most of that is about funding”

Amanda Turnbull, CEO and co-founder, Rise Studios

revenue streams, while producers in the unicorn economy can tap new capital for content creation.

A case in point is StarzPlay Arabia, which has had a partnership with STC, Etisalat and Oredoo since 2015. The SVOD and streaming provider sold a controlling stake to a consortium led by E-Vision’s telecoms parent e& (formerly the Etisalat Group) earlier this year, part of a transition away from relying entirely on the telecom network business to also providing DTC services across the MENA region.

“The commercial relationship with STC, Etisalat and Oredoo is how we’ve sustained ourselves. These three companies partnered with us months before we launched the service,” Sheikh said, adding that the e& investment had “changed everything for us”. As an investor, e& offers valuable reach and distribution, while at the same time the shareholding pattern enables StarzPlay to work with other players such as Intigral.

“Being inside the telcos –becoming one of their products

Maaz Sheikh, CEO and co-founder, StarzPlay

– will make a difference. We have the reach and distribution that the e& group gives us, but hopefully we’re still able to maintain our neutrality and work with other partners on a commercial basis. To me, [the investment] is both the reach but also the flexibility to continue to run the

business the way we want to run it.”

As the market develops, players across the spectrum realise that flexible partnerships are good for the industry. At the same time, given the fragmented nature of the region, it’s important for creators and broadcasters to consider how they can achieve economies of scale, Sheikh said, explaining that industry collaborations can help players adapt to market changes.

“Whether you are an OTT company or a studio, it's very important to find those economies of scale because the government will subsidise or will invest in you only to a certain extent. And for that, you must build bridges. You cannot scale in this region unless you build bridges. That’s where a lot of companies have struggled, because of the notion of exclusivity.”

Sheikh drew on StarzPlay’s own recent experience of the Serie A season. After the streaming service acquired the rights to air the Italian league’s matches, he reached out to STC and other players across the region. “If we can’t partner with STC, we cannot take pan-regional

“You cannot scale in this region unless you build bridges. That’s where a lot of companies have struggled, because of the notion of exclusivity”

rights. It’s just difficult to monetise. Because of the fragmentation in the region, it’s extremely important for a private enterprise to build those bridges with other telecom operators, OTTs and other [broadcasters] in other markets.”

Local content becoming a focal point International markets aside, the potential for local content is a major draw for investors, coupled with regional viewers’ tolerance of advertising and digital-first lifestyles, Turnbull continued. “Of all the content that is being loaded onto the internet on a daily basis, only 3% is in Arabic. When you look at our region and the demographics and the tech-savviness of everybody under 30, there is a huge opportunity for content creation.”

At the same time, she said, the market for content has expanded considerably. Although media companies themselves may be shifting the focus of their business model, such as from free-to-air to OTT, buyers may come from either segment – or anywhere in between.

“There's never been a better time to be in the content production business, because everybody

needs quality content for different sorts of reasons. And studios such as Rise can be platform-agnostic. We’re happy to work with everybody. The important thing is that the content leaves a lasting impression and [has] a universality that will resonate with regional audiences, whether that is on Netflix, StarzPlay, TikTok or YouTube.”

Changing audience perceptions mean regional players finally see a profitable route to producing local content. Global

players such as Netflix and Shahid have helped spark a readiness to pay for Arabic content.

“The timing is right for players like StarzPlay and Rise Studios to go into Arabic content and take advantage of this trend,” Turnbull added. “But it's still a challenging market, because you’re competing with someone who's very established and has global economies of scale.”

Working together to address talent development

But creating quality content requires talent. Buoyed by government policies supporting knowledge development, the industry has now begun to focus on deepening the talent pool. Sarkis touched on the large number of regional initiatives, from new academies being launched to grant programmes, particularly across the GCC.

The Middle East Media Initiative (MEMI), for example, has been taking more than a dozen Arab nationals to the University of Southern California each year since 2018, to support local stories and build cultural bridges. At a different level, Rise Studios sponsors masterclasses at local film festivals, such as a recent workshop with Hungarian filmmaker Béla Tarr at the Cairo International Film Festival.

However, more remains to be done to develop the sort of ecosystem for talented professionals that is the norm in more established markets. Besides enacting the policies required for a healthy pool of freelancers, media academies also need to consider building professional strengths at every level, though the depth of each programme may vary by country.

“Everybody is doing talent development. I think we all need to contribute to it. And it’s an area where we can be collaborative,” Turnbull said, offering the example of the UK, where broadcasters such as BBC and ITV are working on talent development. “There is lots of talent here, it’s about how we allow them

“When pitching to the customer, you're in a better position than someone who doesn't have any existing customer relationship”

Markus Golder, CEO, Intigral

to flourish. And most of that is about funding.” Grants could be one way of bridging the gap, she added.

The Abu Dhabi Film Commission has several achievements to its credit on this front. The commission currently runs a vocational training internship programme, Fraikin said.

Projects given incentives and rebates by the commission commit to accepting interns from the region on their sets. “Because of the size of a Hollywood production, we’re placing nearly a dozen interns everywhere, from the camera department down to production assistants,” he said. By drawing on best practices from markets such as the European Union, the commission has now built up a directory of 2,000 freelance broadcast professionals, up from 400 three years ago.

Its partners have had similar success. Image Nation Abu Dhabi administers the successful Arab Film School, while a sister company, the Creative Lab,

trains up-and-coming broadcasting professionals through programmes in partnership with CNN in the UAE.

Fraikin spoke of the importance of showcasing alternative career options within the sector. “As commissioner, I'm often invited to speak at universities, film schools, institutions, and the first thing I do is ask who wants to be a producer or a director –and everybody lifts their hand. Who wants to be a gaffer? Nothing. Who wants to be a production accountant? Nothing.”

Yet by his estimate, only one in ten

Amanda Turnbull, CEO and cofounder, Rise Studios

frontline or above-the-line professionals – such as writers, producers, directors and actors – make a good living. The other nine work in restaurants to make ends meet. “It’s the total reverse below the line, [where] nine in ten people are making a good living as cinematographers, set designers, production accountants and so on. There are hundreds of crafts required to make a film or TV series. At the Abu Dhabi government, we now go into educational institutions to highlight the wealth of opportunity available.” The panel concluded by highlighting several other issues that must be tackled if the industry is to achieve its potential, from piracy and IP rights to widening access to broadcast services by making high-speed internet more widely available and developing data tools for better industry benchmarking. In almost every case, investment and partnerships will continue to assure business continuity. PRO

“One of the things we want to do is give our producers the time they need to create the content. The average time from script to screen in Hollywood is four or five years, whereas here it’s nine to 12 months”

KEY TRENDS SHAPING THE BROADCAST MEDIA LANDSCAPE

Energised

2022

Looking ahead to 2023, broadcasters and their technology partners are identifying pioneering methods to harness new monetisation streams amid increasing complexity and media fragmentation. BroadcastPro ME spoke to several leading technology vendors and media service providers for a pulse check on the key trends set to shape the broadcast media landscape this year.

Realising a cloud-first future

Media companies of all shapes and sizes are beginning to understand the full potential of the cloud for broadcast and streaming. Cloud and hybrid environments have been on the agenda of visionary media technology providers for some time, but they will continue to find their way into the

mainstream of video production and distribution in 2023, as cloud has become fundamental to product strategy and the unlocking of new revenue streams.

“The media and entertainment industry’s shift to the cloud can’t really be considered a future trend anymore –it’s happening right now, every day, on every continent,” notes Venugopal Iyengar, Deputy COO, Digital, at Planetcast International.

Pointing to cloud-based media asset management systems harnessing AI workflows to enable efficiencies, he also explores how cloud-based playout systems can help drive new OTT monetisation opportunities and the growth of FAST channels across international markets. “Cloud innovation is empowering technology partners to enhance almost every area of their

by the return to large-scale in-person events,

was seen by many as the year the media industry came together again to re-engage, reconnect and innovate. Rapidly evolving consumer trends, new technologies and shifting market conditions have brought new business models to the forefront of an industry in flux

product portfolio to design more agile, scalable and affordable solutions to help media brands achieve evolving business goals in the digital-first era.”

Planetcast International considers playout disaster recovery (DR) one of the vital business challenges that can be addressed through cloud innovation. Iyengar notes: “Taking learnings from the past couple of years and looking to 2023, broadcasters of all shapes and sizes have become acutely aware of the need for reliable disaster recovery

systems. Cloud-based DR models are democratising access to playout disaster recovery for the global media market. Facility- and location-agnostic virtualised disaster recovery offers a more flexible and commercially viable alternative to traditional monolithic DR models based on a full active/active on-premise set-up.”

Net Insight’s Jonathan Smith, Solution Area Expert – Cloud, sees cloud technology as fundamental to powering growth in the global esports market: “The cloud opens up new opportunities for esports organisations and athletes to create new experiences by ‘meeting’ and competing in virtual environments. In 2023 we’ll see esports scaling even further, reaching more digital platforms, markets and geographies.

“More eyeballs mean more monetisation potential, and this will be a key area of focus for the esports industry this year. As a sport created, produced and distributed in the cloud, esports can also leverage the power of cloud technology to deliver more personalisation and targeted advertising.”

While digital-native esports has been quick to embrace cloud-based production methods, in 2023 we’ll see greater adoption of cloud workflows for traditional event production as the media industry moves out of the experimentation phase and pioneers real-world, feasible cloud use cases.

Robert Szabo-Rowe, SVP Engineering and Product Management at The Switch, explains: “Cloud-based production is now capable of producing live events of every calibre and scale, and in 2023 more content owners and broadcasters will use it for both core and overflow production work. Cloud-based production is now mature enough to be used for large-scale, mainstream productions – however, many broadcasters continue to use on-site and remote production for tierone live broadcasts, which often involve more complexity around the end-to-end workflow. This will likely continue for 2023, but cloud will increasingly be used to deliver lower-cost productions for second- and third-tier and online events.”

David Bramley, Director at Platform Communications, notes an accelerated cloud trajectory as we begin the new year. “Cloud has been on everyone’s roadmap,

with various levels of buy-in, for years, but the necessity to move to cloud production during lockdown accelerated this process. Once you’ve got one workflow on the cloud, media and entertainment companies discovered very quickly that it makes sense to move other workflows there too.

“In the same way that corporates initially used the cloud as back-up for their on-premise solutions and have now moved to on-premise as a backup for their cloud-based IT systems, we’re seeing that cloud is becoming the primary mechanism for many media and entertainment companies throughout acquisition, production and distribution. There will probably always be a place for islands of onpremise storage, but the benefits of spin-up/spin-down economics, containerisation, edge compute and intelligent networks will see the cloud continue to dominate,” he concludes.

IP foundations fundamental to international distribution

For Malik Khan, LTN Executive Chairman and co-founder, the shift to IP video transport is paramount to achieving efficient scale in today’s digital landscape and is a necessary foundation for reaching new international markets: “Bringing niche content to diverse global audiences used to be unfeasible from both a technology and business perspective. In other words, the juice wasn’t worth the squeeze.

“Today, organisations are pivoting to an IP-first future as they shift away from restrictive satellite and fibre-based models. Pioneering IP video transport technology empowers media owners to reliably and costefficiently deliver high-value content to untapped markets, extending reach and elevating monetisation potential.”

Szabo-Rowe shares Khan’s perspective: “Traditional broadcasters are realising that delivering content to their distributors via satellite links is becoming expensive and

less available as mobile operators continue to eat up spectrum for their 5G investments. In 2023 we’ll see a heightened push from broadcasters to move to IP-based distribution, now that the technology is proven to be reliable and fault-tolerant – plus it provides improved flexibility.”

New business models for bold media leaders

With challenging global market conditions set to continue in 2023, content owners are searching for ways to drive audience retention while streamlining costs. Growing business models such as free adsupported streaming television (FAST) and direct-to-consumer (D2C) services are front of mind for many international brands, and technology partners are focused on delivering greater innovation, to turn buzzword opportunities into real-world revenue engines.

Red Bee Media Chief Product Officer Steve Russell spotlights a maturing FAST market as high on the agenda for media leaders in 2023 – “2022 saw the rush to volume as numerous channels were launched to join the FAST explosive growth“ – and continues to keep an eye on optimisation as customers look to achieve greater quality and business impact with FAST. “We expect a new phase in 2023 as the market trends back towards quality

– how to make FAST look and feel great in alignment with the wider business.”

MediaKind’s Luke Williams, Sales Director for Middle East and Africa, aligns the move to software-centric technology investments with increased market demand for D2C streaming strategies.

“In 2023, the ongoing development of D2C streaming services will continue to catalyse the industry’s move away from hardware-based static solutions for traditional broadcast, towards softwarebased managed cloud investments. We’ve already seen a swathe of major content owners undergo considerable digital transformations as they build out compelling D2C streaming offerings, and they will continue to lead the charge in delivering highly engaging and personalised media experiences.

“There is a new competitive landscape emerging, and we can see that in the way content owners are now delivering their D2C services on networks that the local telcos are themselves providing to customers. As the infrastructure powering

D2C services continues to evolve, we’ll also see broadcasters and service providers make more third-party partnerships with cloud vendors, to make new technology investments happen faster and cheaper.”

Williams also points to data as a powerful tool for broadcasters to enhance monetisation potential and consumer experiences. “Over the next 12 months, it’s likely we’ll see content owners benefit most from adopting new technical solutions, as the data they receive from customers through streaming is far more personal than we’ve ever seen before. They can see exactly

“The streaming giants, from Apple to Amazon to Netflix, are all eyeing and buying up live event rights, and this will certainly continue into 2023”

Robert Szabo-Rowe, SVP Engineering and Product Management, The Switch

Robert Szabo-Rowe, SVP Engineering and Product Management, The Switch.

David Bramley, Director, Platform Communications.

Steve Russell, Chief Product Officer, Red Bee Media.

Jonathan Smith, Solution Area Expert – Cloud, Net Insight.

which users are using the platform, what they’re interested in, what age group they are and what adverts they respond to. This feedback loop will play a considerable role in boosting fan engagement and driving new monetisation avenues.”

Streaming battleground for live sports

Frenzied competition and increased fragmentation of sports rights are pushing demand for live event production and distribution services. Szabo-Rowe notes:

“The streaming giants, from Apple to Amazon to Netflix, are all eyeing and buying up live event rights, and this will certainly continue into 2023. This trend in turn has an impact on the production services market, as these platforms don’t have their own broadcast capabilities, despite pitching for top-tier sports rights, so they’re securing their production capabilities from third parties.”

LTN’s Khan likewise forecasts an explosion of rights and licensing deals in 2023. He underlines that to make the most of these, rights holders can harness IP-enabled multicast transmission and powerful versioning technology to enable

efficient multi-platform distribution and maximise the value of premium live content. “Through cloud technology and automation-driven workflows, media companies can create multiple versions of that content for both full-time channels and live events, engaging consumers with tailored viewing experiences at scale on any platform, device or continent.”

2023 outlook

Faced with perhaps more complexity – and opportunity – than ever before, content providers, rights holders and broadcasters have it all to play for in 2023. But setting up for success in the

new year isn’t just about capturing new and exciting revenue models. Offering a broader perspective on industry macro-economics, Red Bee Media’s Russell emphasises the importance of sustainability from both a commercial and environmental standpoint. Broadcasters need to do more for less to navigate economic uncertainties while taking on board stark messages from COP27 to drive good industry practice in environmental sustainability.

For Khan, and indeed the rest of the experts we spoke to, 2023 is shaping up to be an exciting year. Media companies are focusing on creativity, high-quality content and digital innovation, and the technology community is more than ready to help lead the charge. “Right now, the opportunities for media companies with great content and a bold digital mindset are limitless, and it’s up to forward-thinking technology partners to make those golden opportunities a reality.”

There’s a real sense the media industry is moving faster than ever before – and this year, content providers will need to harness creative and transformational technologies to keep up.

“Facility- and locationagnostic virtualised disaster recovery offers a more flexible and commercially viable alternative to traditional monolithic DR models based on a full active/ active on-premise set-up”

Venugopal Iyengar, Deputy COO, Digital, Planetcast International

Venugopal Iyengar, Deputy COO, Digital, Planetcast International.

Malik Khan, Executive Chairman and co-founder, LTN.

Luke Williams, Sales Director MEA, MediaKind.

If we take for granted the rapid moves towards 4K, HDR ultra HD and IP infrastructures, then the major challenge facing sports production today is the need to create more content with less time to get it in front of an audience.

Viewers are constantly looking for more: more angles, more replays, more graphics, more insight. Conversely, production companies are looking to automate and reduce the environmental impact through remote production and hybrid environments. Even if primary switching continues to be in a truck at the venue, highlights packages, expert reports, and opinions and features are being cut remotely.

Those remote edits may be back at the producer or broadcaster headquarters, or – thanks to the cloud – they may be at a completely different location. With proxy-based workflows and cloud rendering, the editor could be working from home or another remote location. This is a very practical proposition as time pressures are eased: perhaps not for the half-time highlights reel, but certainly for a late-night round-up.

While of course we concentrate on bandwidth to move content and ensure timely delivery, what makes all these workflows possible and efficient is metadata and automation. Metadata is always critical in sport; it helps everyone identify the key players and the critical plays. What we need is to make sure that the metadata is available to all with minimal manual intervention, performing much of the heavy lifting as we seek to create

Creating more engagement in sport

ever more engaging productions.

The generation of metadata is already well established, using automated and human logging. The focus now needs to be on how we can use that metadata for maximum efficiency. That calls for a single brain, but with distributed, continual, real-time synchronisation between that metadata and all the other devices that need to use it.

Clearly, for maximum speed you want to give each editor just the content needed for the package they are cutting. In an ideal world, that material would arrive at the edit workstation already organised in the format required by that software and that operator, with the content organised and the timelines aligned. The cleanest way to organise this is to have metadata, content flow and workflow management software working in conjunction with the storage platforms. In turn, the storage platforms need to be capable of supporting multiple sources (the venue and the production base) and the cloud. Projects are then defined in this central workflow space and assigned to individual editors as required.

This abstracts the workflow management from the editing. It follows then that the storage network and asset management system must be completely agnostic to editing software (and other post tools), but capable of delivering material in precisely the right format for each. It may even be that a single event requires the use of more than one editing package: a specialist fast turnaround editor

for halftime highlights, the house standard software back at base, and maybe a third application for the editor working from home.

That is not a trivial requirement. Some software vendors are open and actively encourage plug-ins and integration; others have much more closed systems, thanks to their legacy design. But all must be accommodated if the concept is to work. This calls for imagination on the part of the workflow designer, to find ways to achieve that integration while keeping within the look and feel of the third-party edit software. These challenges must be addressed to provide a universal approach without performance limitations.

The goal is to seamlessly move complex projects between different locations and editing environments, regardless of which client software is chosen. That means full synchronisation including bins and project locking: the content and the structure must be delivered complete, without time lost in dragging and dropping. Synchronisation should occur serverside, with no required extra steps by the user. That synchronisation must be bi-directional, so decisions made by one editor are not only captured but available to other editors if required.

The result will be much greater productivity and efficiency. That translates into a less stressful experience for the post-production team and of course more engaging, entertaining and informative content for the viewer.

Sunil Mudholkar is Vice President of Product Management at EditShare.

“Viewers are constantly looking for more: more angles, more replays, more graphics, more insight”

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