www.tvbeurope.com
Business, insight and intelligence for the media and entertainment industry
May 2016
UEFA Euro 2016 Inside the production of this year’s footballing centrepiece
David Ross, exclusive interview
Mobile World Congress review
Stagebox
Control Room
Studio B
Studio A
ROI from media tech investment
DEZILARTNEC DE CENTRALIZED MEDIORNET as a flexible real-time network supporting HD-SDI and 3G-SDI and 4k. The scalable network includes various processing capabilities and is IP compatible.
STAND-ALONE • POINT-TO-POINT • ROUTER MCR
www.riedel.net
01 TVBE May16 Cover v2.indd 1
15/04/2016 15:30
Anything worth streaming is worth recording.
Matrox Monarch HD Don’t miss the moment. The multi-award-winning Matrox Monarch HD offers professional video producers live event streaming and master-quality recording in a single device.
www.matrox.com/monarchhd/tvbe
Matrox is a registered trademark and Matrox Monarch HD is a trademark of Matrox Electronic Systems Ltd. All other company and product names are registered trademarks and/or trademarks of their respective owners.
TVBeuro_MonarchHD_ad_220x290mm_UK_0416.indd 1 new tvbe template remade.indd 1
2016-04-08 08:28:40 13/04/2016 12:29
TVBEurope 3
May 2016 www.tvbeurope.com
Welcome
EDITORIAL Content Director and Editor-in-Chief: James McKeown jmckeown@nbmedia.com Deputy Editor: Holly Ashford hashford@nbmedia.com Staff Writer: James Groves jgroves@nbmedia.com Group Managing Editor: Joanne Ruddock jruddock@nbmedia.com Contributors: Michael Burns, David Davies, George Jarrett, Adrian Pennington, Philip Stevens, Catherine Wright Sales Manager: Ben Ewles bewles@nbmedia.com +44 207 354 6000
M
Thou shalt not ship crap
odus operandi; code of ethics;
by an unfamiliar ecosystem stretching across
corporate vision. We all have them,
an unknown timeframe. Many organisations
to one degree or another: the ‘about
and corporations have seen early and credible
us’ page of our business proposition. They exist
promise in this area, however ‘imperial’ their
to educate the marketplace as to who we
ambitions have been translated. But more
are, what we do, why you need us to fix your
generally, the strategies required to engage with
problems or service your needs. In some cases,
the future ecosystem remain open to debate; a
Sales Executive: Nicola Pett npett@nbmedia.com +44 207 354 6000
you could argue that they exist to remind the
topic that will be at the centre of our TVBEurope
‘us’ what they’re supposed to be ‘about’. It
2020 conference on 28 June. The agenda
Head of Digital: Tim Frost
is a peculiar time to be committing to rigid
addresses the future role of broadcasters in an
Human Resources and Office Manager: Lianne Davey
business models. For broadcasters and those in
IP-enabled world, the value and effectiveness
Head of Design, Hertford: Kelly Sambridge
the business of fuelling the consumer’s hunger
of common standards across the convergent
Senior Production Executive: Alistair Taylor
for content and ‘experiences’, it’s difficult to
IP and UHD ecosystems, and the impact of
Sales Director: Mark Rankine
be exact on what the mission statement should
market forces on long-term business strategy.
Managing Director: Mark Burton
be in the years to come. Indeed, what role
We’re very happy to be in partnership with AIB,
US Sales: Michael Mitchell mjmitchell@broadcast-media.tv +1 (631) 673 0072
will broadcasters play in a future that does
IBC, and IABM in producing this year’s event,
not rely on traditional modes of delivery and
which promises to be the most forward looking
consumption, and in the same breath, the
conference programme we’ve put together.
Account Manager: Richard Carr rcarr@nbmedia.com +44 207 354 6000
Japan and Korea Sales: Sho Harihara sho@yukarimedia.com +81 6 4790 2222 Circulation Free subscriptions tvbe.subscriptions@c-cms.com Subscriptions Tel +44 1580 883848
TVBEurope is published 12 times a year by NewBay Media, 1st Floor, Suncourt House, 18-26 Essex Road, London N1 8LN, England +44 207 354 6002
traditional infrastructures and chains of workflow
I look forward to seeing you there, but
that the consumer hears little of and cares
beforehand, let me nudge you in the direction of
nothing for?
Holly Ashford’s excellent interview with
Business agility has for some time been a
David Ross, who’s brilliant ‘Code of Ethics’ I
known necessity – and in many marketplaces
have borrowed (and for the sake of effect,
– and we are at a stage in our industry where
made more biblical) for the headline of this
such agile thinking will be tested to its extremes
welcome note. n James McKeown
SECTION EDITORS
Editor-in-Chief
NewBay Media is a member of the Periodical Publishers Association © NewBay Media 2016. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior permission of the copyright owners. TVBEurope is mailed to qualified persons residing on the European continent. Subscription is free. Allow eight weeks for new subscriptions and change of address delivery. Send subscription inquiries to: Subscription Dept, NewBay Media, Sovereign Park, Lathkill Street, Market Harborough LE16 7BR, England. ISSN 1461-4197
Printing by Pensord Press, Tram Road, Pontllanfraith, Blackwood NP12 2YA
03 TVBE May16 Welcome v1.indd 1
Philip Stevens Production Editor
Michael Burns Post Production Editor
George Jarrett Business Editor
David Davies Audio Editor
15/04/2016 15:29
4 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
In this issue
6
Opinion
14
Production
Uefa reveals its plans for Euro 2016, and Philip Stevens looks at how rights holders will serve their domestic audiences
In the first of a two-part series, Russell Grute looks at the challenging issue of establishing the total return on investment for next generation projects
Business
23
Axonista’s CEO and CTO chart the journey of the Dublin start-up, from initial trials to powering real-time interactive graphics
04 TVBE May16 Contents v4 HA.indd 1
28
TVBEverywhere Mobile World Congress returned to Barcelona earlier this year. Heather McLean talks to exhibitors at the show about the future of mobile TV
32 Interview
David Ross speaks to Holly Ashford about joining the family firm, leading the company through a recession, and Ross Video’s unstoppable growth
41 Data Centre
Ernst and Young’s latest report focuses on Generation Z, and how the group is dictating the strategies of M&E firms
15/04/2016 15:46
Blackmagic URSA Mini, the lightweight Super 35 4.6K digital film camera with 15 stops of dynamic range! Blackmagic URSA Mini is a handheld Super 35 digital film camera with an incredible 4.6K image sensor and a massive 15 stops of dynamic range! The super compact and lightweight design is perfectly balanced, making it comfortable enough for all day shooting. URSA Mini lets you shoot at up to 60fps, features a 5” foldout viewfinder, dual RAW and ProRes recorders, and more!
Incredible 4.6K Sensor URSA Mini can capture images at a resolution and dynamic range that goes well beyond that of traditional motion picture fi lm so you can shoot your own epic, cinematic masterpiece! You can capture images up to 4608 x 2592, which is larger than 4K DCI, with 15 stops of dynamic range so you get incredibly clean pictures with amazing detail in everything from the darkest shadows to the brightest highlights! URSA Mini can record 4.6K at up to 60fps, or 1080 HD at up to 120fps.
Lightweight and Portable URSA Mini’s perfectly balanced is body made out of space aged magnesium alloys so it’s rugged, yet lightweight and comfortable enough to be used all day. You get a super bright 5 inch fold out 1080 HD display for on-set monitoring, professional connectors such as 12G-SDI, a high quality stereo microphone and a side grip with control buttons mounted on a standard rosette. The fold out monitor is also a touchscreen that can be used to change settings, display overlays for timecode, histograms, audio meters, focus peaking and more!
www.blackmagicdesign.com/nl *SRP is Exclusive of VAT. Electronic Viewfinder, lens and accessories sold separately.
new tvbe template remade.indd 1
Completely Customizable Blackmagic URSA Mini is completely customizable so you can create a rig that’s built specifically for your production! Add accessories like the Blackmagic URSA Viewfinder and Blackmagic URSA Mini Shoulder Kit, or choose from hundreds of third party accessories. URSA Mini has 9 standard ¼” threaded mounting points on the top and bottom of the camera so you can mount it directly to a tripod as well as add accessories such as rails, matte boxes and more.
Non-Stop Recording You never have to stop recording because URSA Mini features two CFast 2.0 recorders! When one card is full, recording automatically continues onto the next. URSA Mini uses the latest, incredibly fast CFast 2.0 technology for recording speeds up to 350 MB/s. Wide dynamic range images are saved as 12-bit RAW files, which are perfect for high end grading and effects work, or as broadcast quality ProRes, for easy post production workflows with minimum storage requirements!
Blackmagic URSA Mini 4K EF €2 885* Blackmagic URSA Mini 4K PL €3 355* Blackmagic URSA Mini 4.6K EF €4 805* Blackmagic URSA Mini 4.6K PL €5 275* Blackmagic URSA Mini Shoulder Kit €385* Blackmagic URSA Viewfinder €1 569* Blackmagic URSA Mini B4 Mount €289* All models include DaVinci Resolve 12 Studio for editing and color correction.
13/04/2016 12:30
6 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
Opinion and Analysis
No pain no gain. Maximising the ROI from media technology investment For many next generation projects, the most challenging issue by far is establishing the total return on investment (ROI), and agreeing how to monitor and deliver it, writes Russell Grute, in the first of a two-part series
I
n our experience, the crunch comes during
What do we mean by ROI?
starting as early as possible to secure a positive ROI
the late stages of negotiation, when the
Our context is a leading broadcaster, pay-TV
from the outset. Using this process whilst prioritising
procurement department or the CFO renews
operator, cable, satellite, service provider or telco
business-led requirements, workflow design and test
their interest. The situation is already a long way
investing in new cloud, IP, UHD, MAM and media
planning provided a more informed pre-emptive
down the line. The customers’ operational and
logistics processes to drive their onscreen business
estimate of optimal ROI.
technical teams have been prioritising their business
and revenue. Let’s focus at a higher level on the
requirements, future plans and securing budget
real potential gains to improve their return, and
Legacy
approval for the investment. Perhaps they have
better secure the project for all parties.
Global video insurgents like Amazon, Apple or YouTube, alongside new agile local competitors,
issued a business-led RFP, whilst competing suppliers, SIs and service providers have done their legwork
Mind the gap
use cloud-based SVoD and live OTT to pick
too. Lucky shortlisted vendors may have also hosted
Who is working toward the best overall ROI,
and choose where to grab viewers’ digital and
a dreaded proof-of-concept. And then it comes, a
and how? Is there a gap? During 2015, our
programmatic advertising pennies. Do these
simple enough question from the CFO: ‘so…what’s
engagements moved beyond improved media
insurgents accelerate their ROI by leapfrogging
our ROI on this project?’
workflow and better solutions architectures,
today’s legacy? Have they even heard of a VTR,
and instead looked at more closely integrating
VDCP, MXF or LTO? They are sharply focused
After all, the RFP said the project should be business-
media planning with media operations to
on their unique technology stacks, optimising
led. When investing a million dollars, shouldn’t there
significantly improve the ROI. Great media
their content rights, delivering the highest quality
be a higher return? Yes. Definitely.
services and workflow can only do so much
telco-friendly streaming, managing rich content
without being driven more directly top-down by
metadata and crucially, subscriber intelligence.
the business requirements.
Netflix recently announced it was re-encoding its
The answer should and can be highly favourable.
But without identifying a robust, pragmatic and achievable target from the outset, that return is easily lost along the way. Perhaps during an
Using six core areas as shown (ROI potential, p8),
legacy content to improve picture quality and
aggressive final negotiation, where cost reduction
we devised a process to build from technology
replaces the original project vision or key parts
foundations, through operational efficiency, toward
of the supplier’s value-add, or later during the
cost reduction and all the way up to onscreen
requirements prioritisation and low potential ROI,
project delivery where the day to day challenges
planning and revenue. This process allowed us
a broadcaster recently asked if we could help
in technology-led and operational testing displace
to work together from day one with stakeholders
make up for lost time with even newer technology.
the original business targets.
from media planning, production and operations,
In reality, the quickest and best strategy was not
The Time To Switch Is Now!!
reduce streaming bandwidth. Following an unsatisfactory RFP, caused by poor
Harnessing The Power of Light
MultiDyne is now offering special trade-in deals on aging Telecast Fiber products, whereby we'll take back your Copperhead (or any Telecast product) and give you a substantial rebate towards the purchase of a new MultiDyne SilverBack transceiver or other MultiDyne Fiber product. Think Fiber First. Think MultiDyne. Email Sales@multidyne.com and find out more.
6-8 TVBE May16 Feature ROI v4 HAJMcK.indd 1
www.MultiDyne.com
13/04/2016 16:58
Convert with AJA Solutions for integrating a world of different signals. FS2–Maximum Conversion, Minimum Size. FS2 delivers dual-channel conversion and frame synchronizing power in a slim 1RU space. With two independent video and audio processors, FS2 can do the work of multiple devices with support for DVI/HDMI input and Region of Interest scaling allow computer signals to be brought into video workflows easily. With comprehensive analog and digital I/O (including optional fiber connections), GPI automation and a compact size FS2 integrates easily into any workflow. • Two independent 3G/HD/SD up/down/cross conversion channels • DVI input support with Region of Interest scaling • Dolby E™ decoding option
• Full I/O mapping with all outputs active at all times • Video processing amplifiers for signal and color adjustments
ROI
V2Digital and V2Analog
High quality DVI to SDI Mini-Converter.
Compact, high-quality integration of analog and digital signals.
Incorporate computer signals into the video world without sacrificing budget or space with AJA’s ROI Mini-Converter. ROI supports DVI and HDMI inputs as well as audio embedding and new Region of Interest scaling controlled through an interactive interface, making it the high-quality choice for AV, broadcast and post production needs.
AJA makes high-quality conversion even more affordable. The new V2Digital and V2Analog Mini-Converters handle a wide range of analog and digital signal types for easy integration and pristine image quality.
Find out more at www.aja.com
new tvbe template remade.indd 1
13/04/2016 12:31
8 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
Opinion and Analysis ROI POTENTIAL
of utilisation and ROI. Both are right, depending on the logistics, programming and presentation. Multi-
Cost reduction
channel and multi-screen challenge this balance, especially if the audience is on the move.
Efficiency
Alongside interoperability and scalability,
IMAGE: BROADCAST INNOVATION
More on-screen
utilisation is actually the key benefit from the use of IP; whether it is automatic recognition of
Scalability
wireless camera contribution sources or the use
ROI
of the inherent multicast advantages of IP in task management, flow control, routing and distribution.
Revenue +
Legacy
SIX KEY AREAS TO TARGET AND MONITOR TO ACHIEVE IMPROVED ROI
If the interoperability is good enough and, as an industry, we master the skills to command it, the wider use of IP will dramatically increase utilisation, and improve the ROI from investment in IP. Improved utilisation is the key driver toward virtualisation, cloud and SaaS to improve ROI. Build
A combined view of the wider potential ROI from media technology investment. Moving beyond legacy technology integration toward greater scalability and the efficiency in media planning and operations to cost effectively provide new on-screen services and revenue
a big one for the peak load versus pay as you go. If the big one is rarely used or you go so often that you are always paying, then the ROI will be lower. Defend a business or build a business.
to look further forward, but instead to remove 12
costs of producing, packaging and/or distributing
months from the past. Systematically reducing
content, or at least find a unit. Using benchmarks
Achieving ROI is not easy
legacy is now a significant contribution to positive
such as media title throughput time, efficiency per
For some media organisations in 2016, technology
ROI. Without a focused business-led view, and
role or business process versus number of versions,
and organisational legacy is dramatically hindering
taking the painful yet necessary steps to discard
channels, streams or distribution outlets, that unit
progress, as well as reducing their ROI from new
legacy integration and inefficient manual processes
cost must go down. If it doesn’t, proposed new
technology. Crucially, legacy thinking may also be
in media workflow, the ROI from new technology
workflows are not yet optimised: try again.
stifling their innovation on screen.
alone is often too low. More importantly, by 2016 some broadcasters are
“To succeed, you are either born in the cloud or
Reducing unit cost improves ROI. Content
legacy” I was told at the recent London AWS Media
creation, media throughput and logistics continue
encumbered by their actual business organisations.
and Entertainment Cloud Symposium. That’s quite
their inexorable growth, currently driven by VoD and
Are the business and operations optimally
a statement, highlighting the crucial importance
OTT, so new solutions must increase scalability and
configured for the new on-screen challenges
of aggressively discarding legacy coupled with a
improve efficiency to reduce unit cost. In well-run
ahead? Does the business really know its best
revolution in the cost base of media logistics and
projects, practices such as business process design,
options, and are those in-house or third party? Are
distribution. Does using AWS give a new type of
programme management and software integration
media planning, production, media operations
benchmark in unit cost? In conjunction with value
are recognised disciplines, yet in few projects is
and technology in sync or out of alignment? Are
added software and services, web services are
there sufficient overall ROI monitoring and control to
those activities currently split between their legacy
rapidly adjusting the potential ROI.
secure the potential upsides.
linear channels and growing digital services? How
Elsewhere, the current industry-wide thrust to
For the broadcaster, it has been challenging so
can branding and promos be adapted from
use IP to control, manage and stream live and
far to establish practical media IP solutions with a
multi-channel to multi-outlet? These are just some of
on-demand video and audio for contribution,
positive ROI. This is more than a technology barrier.
the key business challenges that require attention
production and distribution is also clearly aimed at
In today’s disrupted and opportunistic value
alongside new technology investment.
lower-cost scalability.
chains, new and existing actors are disrupting,
Scalability and unit cost reduction
Efficiency and utilisation
sufficient standard interoperability, the ROI from IP
More content for wider audiences means higher
Working top-down to improve media workflow
will increase. If the return on investment from new
throughput. Growing media businesses need
can dramatically improve efficiency and ROI.
services and technology is optimised and based
predictable and cost effective scalability. For new
Removing unnecessary concatenated manual and
on practical solutions and safe delivery, then that’s
entrants, their prospective growth may exceed
replicated tasks and achieving the correct workflow
good for everyone: customers, services partners and
their practical or financial capacity to invest
orchestration are crucial areas.
suppliers. Strategic project investment can proceed
competing or partnering as never before. Given
pre-emptively in their own infrastructure, whilst
Improved efficiency is also based on utilisation.
established players may not be able to cope
Higher levels of utilisation improve the ROI from both
their innovation in profitable future digital media
with peaks in demand, or be able to launch next
staff and technology, and this highlights one of the
entertainment services.
generation services from their existing facilities.
fundamental differences between the broadcast
A useful KPI to improve scalability is unit cost.
securely to enable broadcasters to continue
Next month we’ll examine the upsides for ROI
and media IT perceptions. Broadcast’s instinctive
from new on-screen media services driving revenue
We can’t predict what a new audience might
feel for the value of live and speed, versus the
growth, and at practical benchmarks and KPIs to
pay; that’s beyond our equation here. But to
digital community’s trust in parallel and on-demand
monitor and deliver the required return over the
calculate ROI, we can better estimate the unit
activities, leads to two very different perceptions
required duration. n
6-8 TVBE May16 Feature ROI v4 HAJMcK.indd 2
13/04/2016 16:58
The future of IP-based production has arrived with NewTek NDITM Network Device Interface technology incorporated into TriCaster® Advanced Edition software. Discover how you can take advantage of this new technology immediately. You don’t have to wait for the future. It’s already here.
See NewTek IP solutions in action at NAB Booth SL5817 or visit newtek.com
© 2016 NewTek, Inc. All rights reserved. TriCaster and LightWave 3D are registered trademarks of NewTek, Inc. NDI, 3Play, TalkShow, LightWave, ProTek, and Broadcast Minds are trademarks and/or service marks of NewTek, Inc.
TVB Europe 31516-NAB SNipe.indd 1 new tvbe template remade.indd 1
3/21/16 9:28 AM 13/04/2016 12:28
10 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
Opinion and Analysis
Widening the reach of multiscreen
Dr Neale Foster, COO and VP of global sales, Access, looks at the benefits and challenges for service providers of living in an increasingly connected world
C
onnectivity has enabled operators
that adapt to the consumer. While this appears
to launch multiscreen services and
highly beneficial at first sight, the sheer number of
extend the reach of their TV offering to
data points can be overwhelming for operators.
connected consumers. However, the increase
Especially for OTT services, search and
‘By 2020, there will be 1.7MB of new information created every second for every human being on the planet’
recommendation headaches, one person may
in the number of devices is also creating
recommendation engines have to become
access world news from their smartphone in
significant fragmentation challenges. At the
highly personal to ensure that consumers get the
the morning but watch content from streaming
top of the list, operators need to provide a
best value from the service. For example, a fan
platforms such as Amazon Prime, Netflix and Sky
seamless experience across multiple devices
of Orange is The New Black is more likely to be
Go on their laptop in the evening.
while ensuring that the content delivered across
interested in Making a Murderer than cartoons.
each device, sometimes over a wide range of
However, limiting recommendations to the
All these points add to the data challenge, leading operators to look at deploying third
networks, is protected at all levels of the media
‘safe’ options that are immediately relevant
party data gathering and analytics solutions
delivery chain.
to the consumer can also prevent subscribers
that integrate with their services to better keep
discovering new content, which can have a
track of the variations in consumer habits.
Using data to better understand viewing and device habits
negative impact on the user experience. To
These services can bridge the information that
avoid this, operators need to be able to expand
operators receive from multiple devices and
IDC forecasts that by 2020, there will be 1.7MB
their recommendations outside traditional areas
paint a clearer picture of the different types
of new information created every second for
to help broaden the consumer’s horizon.
of audiences and improve the quality of their
every human being on the planet. In addition
To meet the data gathering challenge,
to this abundance of information, the plethora
many service providers have built their own
open up new monetisation avenues based on
of devices used by consumers has led to an
data analytics systems. However, multi-screen
the consumer’s habits, including highly personal
increase in data points that operators can
services are reshuffling the cards: in addition to
advertising such as pre- and post roll videos on
collate and analyse in order to develop services
accessing a wide range of content, leading to
the viewer’s PVR content.
10-12 TVBE May16 Opinion Access v2 HAJMcK.indd 1
recommendation engines. In addition, they
15/04/2016 16:48
NETWORK. AUDIO. VIDEO. CONTROL. smart IP live production infrastructure.
Flip your mind.
V__matrix – World’s 1st virtualized broadcast ecosystem with software-defined functionality based on high-capacity generic compute blades. www.lawo.com
new tvbe template remade.indd 1
13/04/2016 12:39
12 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
Opinion and Analysis Personalising the consumer experience Most operators are trying to crack the content personalisation code, but we strongly believe that aggregating and analysing data has an added benefit, helping operators differentiate the
‘Connectivity plays an ever more central role, and it is now up to service providers to ensure that they harness the power of data’
per cent of cars will be connected to the internet, and car manufacturers have recognised that this opens the door to more entertainment, and the advent of driverless cars means that we can expect video delivered to passenger screens. At CES earlier this year, car manufacturers
devices used to access content in order to design
demonstrated how the automotive and
experiences that accommodate the interaction
communication industries are becoming
method. For example, subscribers accessing
intertwined, with panoramic screens providing a
content via their TV need the interaction to adapt
As players outside the traditional broadcast and
range of infotainment to the passenger seat or
to a remote, as opposed to a joystick preferred
video industry enter the market, and with names
enabling consumer smartphones to interact with
by games console viewers or the finger tap of
like Amazon and Apple becoming leading actors
the vehicle. This reinforces the idea that cars have
a mobile user.
in the conversation, we can expect that multi-
the capacity to evolve into real life companions
screen services will soon have to accommodate
to support our day-to-day lives.
While the technical challenges associated with creating a seamless experience for all these
smart watches and other smart devices.
devices can appear daunting at first, they can
Operators looking beyond the living room can
and it is now up to service providers to ensure that
be solved by utilising standards. At present, the
find another major revolution in video technology:
they harness the power of data to ensure they
responsive design features of HTML5 provide a
delivering content to the car.
can bridge the gap between connected devices
solution to reducing development time for the
Connectivity plays an ever more central role,
and entertainment. For pay-TV operators and
user experience as they automatically scale
The connected car conundrum
OTT providers, this means utilising consumer data
to the device and screen, while the Digital
Interestingly, these data lessons can be extended
to ensure they deliver a first class experience to
Living Network Alliance (DLNA) facilitates
outside the living room, particularly as our vehicles
subscribers, while it provides the first step for the
interoperability between devices for secure
become connected and able to gather data
automotive sector to launch services that deliver
media sharing.
themselves. Gartner estimates that by 2020, 90
a highly personalised experience. n
Come Visit Us at
www.osee-dig.com www.oseeamericas.com
D59, Hall 10
LMW Series:
Workhorse at Low Cost Broadcast Monitor
23＂
● Low cost broadcast “workhorse” for monitor wall and stand alone operation ● 12-bit Image-Fidélité processing provides exact match to all OSEE monitors image color and quality ● Dual Screen PBP Display
21.5＂
● WFM / Vector plus up to 16ch Audio Analytic Displays ● Closed Caption Display and AFD
17＂
● Horizontal Flip ● Multiformat Analog and Digital Inputs ● Remote Ethernet Control (Included with all OSEE products)
15.6＂
OSEE TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.
Tel: +86 (10) 6243 4168-8017
E-mail: sales@osee-dig.com
Website: www.osee-dig.com
OSEE AMERICAS LTD.
Tel: +1-510 996 4499
E-mail: info@oseeamericas.com
Online Mall: www.oseedirect.com
10-12 TVBE May16 Opinion Access v2 HAJMcK.indd 2
13/04/2016 17:02
Simplifying the remote acquisition, cloud management, and multiscreen distribution of professional live video over IP
new tvbe template remade.indd 1
13/04/2016 12:44
14 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
Production
Personalising the coverage B
Philip Stevens asks several Euro 2016 rights holders how they are planning to serve their domestic audiences
oth the BBC and ITV will be showing the Euro 2016 tournament for viewers in the UK, although only the final will be shown
simultaneously. Phil Bigwood, executive producer, BBC TV Sport explains that the Corporation’s presentation will centre on studio facilities in Paris with a spectacular view of the iconic Eiffel Tower. “We will be part of a studio complex that is being built by the German company, Plazamedia. This facility has the full support of both Uefa and the city of Paris authorities and will house various broadcasters. By sharing facilities with broadcasting partners we can deliver value for money, as well as provide a location that is readily recognisable.” Bigwood says that he plans to build on the production model that the BBC has utilised successfully for the last World Cup in 2014 and at previous Euro finals. “Subject to the conditions laid down by Uefa, we will be placing unilateral cameras at the games involving the three home nations and some of the bigger matches. As
coverage will be enhanced with data analysis
studio, but also offices and extensive technical
well as providing addition stadium presentation,
and social media interaction. On the Red Button
facilities.” Those ZDF facilities will receive a dirty
these will provide ISO footage and allow us
there will be different audio options, such as the
feed for its live programmes. “For every match,
personalised interviews. Because of the extremely
Radio 5Live commentary or language services.”
we will utilise the ISO feeds being offered by
comprehensive coverage plan from Uefa, only
He concludes, “With such a major
Uefa. In addition, there will be a clean feed and
a minimal number of these dedicated cameras
undertaking, it is obvious that our plans have
that, along with the ISOs, will be used in post
are necessary.”
been reformulated on a number of occasions.
production where we can add our own graphics
At those venues, the BBC will utilise a simple
But now we are ready with what we believe is
for the studio experts when they analyse action
SNG solution, where the producer will be calling
a strategy that will provide our viewers with the
and incidents. When it comes to dedicated
and cutting shots. These will be fed back to the
most comprehensive coverage of the upcoming
coverage of the Germany matches, we will be
Paris gallery where a programme editor and
tournament in France.”
using a production truck with additional cameras, and this facility will supplement the international
director will oversee the main output. “We will also have the services of ENG crews around France to
German plans
feed. We will also utilise bookable stand-up
collect other content for interviews and so on.”
Broadcasting rights for Germany are being
positions at each ground, as necessary. All the
In common with other broadcasters, the BBC
shared by ZDF, ARD and SAT1/Pro7, marking the
signals will be sent to our own gallery at the IBC
will have access to the UEFA Livex server and its
first time the broadcaster will show live games
where our directors will have a good choice
wide range of available content. “By carefully
from a Uefa European football championship.
of content to help tell the story of the game.”
managing our facilities and making use of the
Coming on the heels of its World Cup success,
Gruschwitz reports that his presenting team
material on offer, we have been able to reduce
Germany, alongside hosts France, is being
will be Oliver Welke and Oliver Kahn. The ZDF
our location commitment, again allowing us to
placed as joint favourite for the tournament.
provide value for money for the Euro coverage.”
“We, together with ARD, will be showing 45 of
Alongside the extensive live match coverage,
lead commentators will be Bela Rethy and Oliver Schmidt. Each match day, ZDF will
the 51 games,” says ZDF’s head of sports, Dieter
broadcast a highlights programme showing all
the BBC will be providing Euro 2016 services such
Gruschwitz. “To enable us to provide the most
games played earlier. “We will also be using three
as catch-up programming, online features, TV
comprehensive coverage, ZDF will be utilising
crews in France to collect stories and reactions,
highlights and analysis sequences. “The BBC
the International Broadcast Centre (IBC) to a
especially from the German training camp. We
has rights to broadcast all matches online. This
considerable extent. Our plans call for not just a
will also be using a special studio for interviews.”
14 15 16 TVBE Uefa Production_v3 HAJMcK.indd 1
13/04/2016 17:04
TVBEurope 15
May 2016 www.tvbeurope.com
Production Maintaining the Swiss watch
and then replay the other a little later.” The
SRG SSR is Uefa’s broadcasting partner for
broadcaster will utilise a small office and a control
Republic will be Uefa broadcast partner,
television coverage in Switzerland. Because the
room within the IBC. “Our plan is to use the main
Ceská Televize (CT).
country is multi-lingual, this will involve providing
stadium world feed with the provided graphics,
three language versions of the games from its
plus stand-up positions at each venue and then
2016 tournament,” reveals Vladimir Drbohlav,
various broadcast outlets. Sven Sarbach, head of
add our commentaries. For certain games, we
head of international transmissions department
major events SRG SSR, business unit sport explains
will be using our own unilateral camera. However,
at the broadcaster. “Our main commentators in
more. “SRF will provide the German language
for those games which involve the Swiss national
France will be our popular team of Jaromir Bosak
output, RTS for the French speakers, while RSI will
side, we will add our own production vehicle.”
and Vlastimil Vlasek.” CT has no plans to operate
serve the Italian speaking viewers. Each unit will
A special studio will be built at the Swiss base
Covering the games for viewers in the Czech
“We will be showing all 51 games in the Euro
through the IBC, but will rely on the international
send its own presenters and commentators to the
camp in Montpellier, but for the Swiss matches
feed with the provided English language
stadia around France.”
a presentation studio in the stadium will be
graphics. “CT’s own ENG crews will be on hand
used. Montpellier is also the location for the
for games that involve their national team, and
broadcaster’s three Sony XPRI edit suites.
for those matches we have booked stand up
Those main commentators include Sascha Ruefer, Daniel Kern and Daniel Wyler for the SRF broadcasts, Philippe von Burg, Jean François
Sarbach concludes, “There will be different
positions.” Its main presentation studio for all the
Develey and David Lemos for RTS and for
feeds from each game that can be used
matches will be located at its broadcast facility
RSI, Armando Ceroni, Omar Gargantini and
for second screen purposes. Whatever their
in Prague.
Severino Piacquadio.
nationality, viewers back in Switzerland will be
“Where our own graphics will help to tell the
treated to the most comprehensive coverage
story, we will add those back at our studio base in
from this festival of football.”
Prague,” states Drbohlav. “And when it comes to
Sarbach reports that all 51 matches of the tournament will be available to Swiss viewers.
utilising statistics, we will be using those provided
“With so many different nationalities living in our country, viewers have different loyalties,
Checking out the Czech coverage
so coverage of all games is important. When
Finishing top of its group in the qualifiers, the
matches kick off at the same time, we will choose
Czech Republic will meet Spain in the first of its
a special highlights programme on each
the most important for the live transmission,
Finals game at the Stadium Municipal in Toulouse.
match day. “Our crews will prepare reports,
to us by Uefa.” Beyond covering the games, CT will broadcast
www.asperasoft.com moving the world’s data at maximum speed
14 15 16 TVBE Uefa Production_v3 HAJMcK.indd 2
13/04/2016 17:04
16 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
Production there will be a clean feed for our studio in Brussels and we will add in our own language graphics for our unilateral pre and post-match statistics,” states De Lathouwers. He continues, “Our OB van will be present at all the national team’s games, and this will allow both us and RTBF to use additional cameras for a combined production. There will be a director from RTBF, Thierry Delrue, who will carry out his own vision mixing, and me as the producer in Česká Televize‘s main commentators will be Jaromir Bosak and Vlastimil Vlasek; Phil Bigwood, executive producer, BBC TV Sport; and Dieter Gruschwitz, ZDF’s head of sports (Copyright SRF Oscar Alessio)
the OB van.” VRT will employ two ENG crews at the
interviews and profiles concerning the Euro 2016
Vangramberen and Karl Vannieuwkerke, with
Bordeaux training camp. Again, the two Belgians
atmosphere and the participants’ preparations
Ruben Van Gucht as the anchor at the venues
will share facilities offered by an SNG vehicle,
and reactions.” The material from these ENG
where the games involving Belgium are played
supplied by RTBF. An additional ENG crew will
crews will be edited in France, with distribution
and at their training camp.
travel around the country collecting stories about
In France, VRT will share facilities within the
via the internet. CT also plans to offer matches through its websites and on mobile phones.
IBC with RTBF and NOS, the Dutch national broadcaster. The Belgian broadcasters will
Belgium’s opponents at their training camps and providing reports on matches. Each evening will conclude with a talk
Covering the Red Devils
each use two edit suites, although there will be
show programme which will cover post match
All 51 matches will be broadcast live in Belgium,
additional edit facilities at the journalists’ desktops
analysis and highlights.
with coverage by RTBF in the French language
in the office area. Linking these facilities will be
and VRT for the Flemish speaking audience.
a shared Avid production network and storage
and create special events for up to 300
system. “Our live transmissions will be centred on
spectators when the Belgian matches are
the dirty feed from the host broadcasters, but
on the schedule.” n
Bart De Lathouwers, producer VRT Sport says
201602_200X135.pdf 1 2016-01-14 오후 2:45:41
that its main studio presenters will be Maarten
“We will also work with a studio audience
C
M
Y
CM
MY
CY
CMY
K
14 15 16 TVBE Uefa Production_v3 HAJMcK.indd 3
15/04/2016 16:27
new tvbe template remade.indd 1
13/04/2016 12:50
18 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
Production
Uefa’s plans call for 38 cameras to be used during the games in France
A festival of football in France Philip Stevens talks to Uefa about its plans for the upcoming Euro 2016 finals
F
provide live HD coverage, encoded with Dolby
Overseeing the production will be a team of
5.1 surround sound, of all matches. All replays will
around ten producers and five match directors.
be housed outside the OB trucks via a centralised
A minimum of 38 live match cameras will be used
solution provided by EVS.
at each match, which will include three aerial
As always, the priority for Uefa is the live match
systems; spidercam, helicopter and external
or the first time in Euro history, 24 teams will
coverage, but Uefa Broadcast Partners (UBPs) will
beauty shot. Implemented since Euro 2008, these
contest for the UEFA Euro 2016 trophy in
also receive a wealth of additional programming
provide priceless footage of the match and
France during June and July. The estimated
material before and after games. Twenty-four
atmosphere around the stadium.
two billion viewers, wherever they may be in the
dedicated teams will follow each completion
world, are set to be provided with even more
nation, providing daily team reports, highlights
having first tested the technology at the 2014
televised content than ever before.
and cultural features. UBPs will also have access
Lisbon Champions League final. At Euro 2016,
to other footage, including the teams’ arrivals
alongside the HD output, the opening match,
the Stade de France in Paris. Here the host nation
at the venues, the various pre-match press
quarter-finals, semi-finals and final will also be
will take on Romania in the first of 51 matches
conferences and post-match interviews.
covered by 12 dedicated 4K Ultra HD cameras,
Kick-off for the finals takes place on 10 June at
that culminate in the same venue for the final
UBPs will also have the option to receive all
Uefa continues to innovate in 4K production,
overseen by a separate production team.
on 10 July, which is expected to attract a global
broadcast quality video content via the Euro
Other innovations for Euro 2016 will include next
viewership of around 300 million people.
2016 Livex broadcast media server, based on
generation tracking and the use of unmanned
EVS server technologies. Livex is Uefa’s content
aerial vehicles (UAVs) for pre-tournament filming
tournament in a row that Uefa has overseen
publication and distribution platform that
above the host cities. Outside of the venues,
the host broadcast (HB). Using the services of
stretches across the dedicated cross-France fibre
the focal point of the entire HB operation is
five outside broadcast (OB) providers; Telegenic
network. Through this platform, broadcasters
the International Broadcast Centre (IBC). This
(from the UK), Outside Broadcast (Belgium),
will have access to video and audio clips, data,
will be custom built for Uefa by host broadcast
Euromedia and AMP Visual (both based in
graphics and statistics as well as all the additional
services (HBS) at the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles
France) and Mediatec (Sweden), the HB will
programming provided by Uefa.
exhibition centre. Construction of the IBC
UEFA Euro 2016 will represent the third
18 19 TVBE May16 ProductionUEFA_v2 HAJMcK.indd 1
14/04/2016 10:07
TVBEurope 19
May 2016 www.tvbeurope.com
Production operational by 6 June, a day before it officially opens. More than 800 UBP and Uefa staff will
picture courtesy of Polsat
begins on 28 March and the facility will be fully
Poland is one of the teams taking part in the tournament
call the IBC home during the tournament, which also houses studios, commentary booths and office space. The IBC will take on the feel of a small village complete with restaurants, laundry and postal services, and even a tourism desk for visiting broadcasters. The production galleries within the IBC will be equipped with Sony and Barco solutions, with Adobe used as the edit system. Once the tournament is underway, UBPs will be able to enhance their coverage by booking unilateral services at each match to give their own programmes a unique look and feel. These unilateral facilities include camera positions, studios, announce platforms, TV compound stand-up positions and pitch reporter positions. A team from Uefa TV will be on hand at each
‘Innovations for Euro 2016 will include next generation tracking and the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for pre-tournament filming above the host cities’
venue to oversee both the unilateral and
exploit their media rights and augment the digital footprint, across all platforms, in their respective markets. Uefa’s unprecedented HB delivery to UBPs for Euro 2012 included more than 15,000 hours of production. Uefa’s industry
multilateral coverage. Uefa has invested heavily in digital media
smartphones. These will allow UBPs to further
benchmark coverage before, during and after including a live match streaming player and
the tournament will dramatically increase for
services, and Euro 2016 will see a roll-out of
separate video streams, match-highlight clips,
UEFA Euro 2016, bringing the fans even closer to
several new services, delivered by deltatre,
data feeds and VoD solutions for tablets and
the tournament, the cities and the players. n
MORE CHANNELS & BEYOND The new Channel Max option allows you to configure more than 12 channels with your new or existing XT3 — as well as add more key features including 1080p and UltraHD-4K standards support — further expanding the power of the most flexible and reliable production server in the industry.
www.evs.com/ChannelMax-ads
XT3 CHANNEL MAX_200-135_TVBEurope.indd 1 18 19 TVBE May16 ProductionUEFA_v2 HAJMcK.indd 2
6/04/16 14:27 14/04/2016 10:07
20 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
Post Production
Camera technology is driving and exploiting demand for higher resolution and high dynamic range, expanding creativity on the acquisition side, writes Michael Burns. However, opportunities and challenges at the finishing end are also growing
can make something on the screen. Or skin to
e see a lot of grading now in
sharp, super bright and highly saturated colours,
Talking specifically about colour
standard television programmes,
but a more immersive viewing experience by
“Before 4K HDR television, colourists graded in
and there is a very clear push
creating visually stunning images. 4K and HDR
Rec 709 with a 2.2 Gamma curve; it was pretty
helps to do that.”
simple, but now there is more choice and
“W
towards more a artistic, more filmic look to it,” says Wolfgang Lempp, CEO of FilmLight. “It’s also
Colourist and colour scientist Dado Valentic is
look like a cherry, because it can be as red as you want it. It’s more about creating beautiful images, using all the available data.”
more deliverables.” says Bartlett. “Therefore,
fed of course by the modern cameras which
the founder of Mytherapy, and after working on
the main challenge is not in the grading itself,
have fantastic dynamic range, that allow you
Netflix’s HDR production of Marco Polo, is very
but understanding the choices you have when
to play with lighting and grading in a way that
well placed to talk about the opportunities and
working in a specific colour space with an
wasn’t possible before. And anyone who has
challenges offered by cameras and monitors
appropriate transfer curve that is required by the
seen HDR realises very quickly that is more of a
supporting higher dynamic range and wider
different deliverable formats. Otherwise clipping
pull for the consumer than Ultra HD.”
colour gamuts. “HDR is giving us incredible
and other artefacts might appear when colours
precision in shadows that we didn’t have before.
can’t be reproduced on a particular display
place outside of DI for theatrical features,”
HDR screens offer a very high contrast and a
device. Post production pipelines will also need
says Simon Bartlett, marketing and business
larger amount of colour. You can also use much
to gear up to efficiently service an increase in
development EMEA for post production at
more available light on set. Because we have
4K demand and also to handle the increased
SAM. “The main driver for this is the new breed
screens that are now able to display that light
number of deliverables from a 4K HDR master.”
of broadcasters such as Netflix and Amazon
sensitivity, we can actually work [on set] more
“A lot of customers are playing with HDR, but shy
commissioning 4K work. 4K HDR will be a natural
naturally. You don’t have to limit yourself by not
away from it in the end,” says Patrick Morgan,
extension of this and will help up-sell 4K or Ultra
being able to display what’s interior and exterior.
product marketing manager for Digital Vision.
HD consumer displays from HD.”
You can see what’s out through the window.”
“One of the big issues is standardisation; there’s
“More and more mastering at 4K is taking
“Although there are challenges, mainly the
“We are able to expose more detail, but also
no real [display] standard. The BBC and NHK
cost investment and client education, the
sometimes unwanted detail, and problems
pushing their Hybrid Log Gamma curve, and
benefit of both 4K and HDR is increased viewer
that the camera might have captured,” he
you’ve got Dolby pushing PQ [SMPTE 2084].”
enjoyment as well as revenue for the post
continues. “Any grading tricks that we
house,” says senior colourist and MD of The
were able to get away with in the past are
Nucoda],” he says. “We’ve been working with
Look, Thomas Urbye. “As a colourist, I relish the
becoming more visible. We have to work with
DolbyVision for a long time, such as on Pixar’s
opportunity to grade in HDR as the contrast
much higher precision.” The colourist also advises
Inside Out and Disney’s Tomorrowland. We
range, and in some instances saturation, in Rec
moderation in HDR. “I don’t want people to have
changed our keyer, so that you can key on value
709 can be restrictive. It’s not all about super
their eyes fall out just because of how bright I
as opposed to luminance. We changed our
20 21 TVBE MAY 16 Post Production_V3 HAJMcK.indd 1
“We’ve kind of future-proofed ourselves [with
15/04/2016 16:29
TVBEurope 21
May 2016 www.tvbeurope.com
Post Production colour curves to be able to work in extended
and creating a look at the end of the job.”
Valentic says his biggest bugbear is time: “To the
range. We changed our clipping tool, so we
“I wouldn’t do HDR in any other way,” he adds.
producers, if you’re going to be working in HDR,
can tell it at what level to clip. We’ve got the PQ
“I really do not want to do a job where it’s just
give us more time. It’s not necessarily that we are
curve in our matrix. So we did a lot of stuff that
shot and given to me for grading, that’s almost
slow in working with HDR, it’s just that we need to
people can now use to work in HDR. Standards
like rescuing something. In HDR we have to know
be more precise in what we’re doing, and that
will make it easier for the customer.”
what we’re getting, when they shoot it.”
needs more attention to detail.” n
Thomas Urbye says he has concerns about going from a committed Rec 709 project to Rec Members Of:
2020: “To offer a truly great visual experience I think its necessary to grade for both, grading within the same system and using a special set of highly specialised grading transforms to get from the grade for Rec 709 to P3 or Rec 2020, all signed off by myself and my clients. To just use a simple linear transform seems an unsophisticated and poor approach to the true visual opportunities offered by HDR.” “Originally when we first started working with HDR, we would receive an SDR grade and repurpose the grade and make it HDR,” recalls Valentic. “I found that was not really giving me the best results. HDR images can look absolutely stunning and beautiful, and just taking an SDR master and stretching it to be HDR is not the way to do it. The best way for me was actually to grade in HDR and create a SDR master in parallel.”
Holistic thinking in colour “One of the really important things for us, and it’s particularly true for television, is productivity,” says Lempp. “That’s why we’ve always pushed this idea that we should start grading early. There’s a lot you can do on set, or as part of post production and visual effects, if there is consistent way of viewing colour.” Mytherapy follows a colour managed workflow, working with the DoP before shooting starts. “We develop what we call a show LUT,”
NLE, 3D/2D, Grading, Audio, CGI, VFX. Instantly. One desk. Set your suites free.
says Valentic. “We can track the metadata for the looks that were implemented on set to the grading suite, so when I conform, I don’t just conform the picture and sound, I also conform the colour metadata as well. I’m not inventing Thomas Urbye, The Look
Welcome to the world of High Performance KVM
Award Winning
AdderLink I N F I N I T Y Queen’s Award for Enterprise: Innovation 2014
An endlessly scalable high performance KVM matrix. Set your users free.
Meet us at BCA 2016 May 31 - Jun 3, Booth 4D2-06
TVBEurope_JRpage_suitesfree_080416.indd 1
20 21 TVBE MAY 16 Post Production_V3 HAJMcK.indd 2
EASY TO DEPLOY SIMPLE TO MANAGE
DL-DVI
DVI
USB
AUDIO
RS232
adder.com
The no compromise, IP based KVM matrix. Instant access and control from any location, at any time.
08/04/2016 17:25:51
15/04/2016 16:29
AMOS - 6 Coming in 2016
new tvbe template remade.indd 1
13/04/2016 12:52
TVBEurope 23
May 2016 www.tvbeurope.com
Business
Intuitively interactive television George Jarrett met the co-founders of Axonista, a Dublin start-up going beyond the two-screen experience
W
alking away from an interview with Claire McHugh and Daragh Ward, I couldn’t prevent myself from singing
‘When Irish apps are smiling’. Respectively CEO and CTO, and driven to be in the vanguard of where all video is intuitively interactive, this successful Dublin start-up already counts QVC, Viacom, AOL and Qyou amongst its clients, and now it has the Ediflo Pro platform, a cloud-based SaaS system that allows the user to add video services via Object Based Broadcasting (OBB). The message to the likes of BT is simple: when you have finished fussing over 4K and HDR, interactive video apps distributed on multiple platforms are the next big thing. In fact they are here now, but where did Axonista come from in terms of its pedigree? “I worked for a number of years as a sports broadcaster, and Daragh’s background is in
“So many technology companies just try to put widgets everywhere and say how clever they are. This is just intuitively perfect” Daragh Ward, Axonista Daragh Ward, Axonista enterprise development. It happened in typical
editorial could shape interactive experiences.”
is tap-able and it does something, but it does not
Irish start-up fashion, created over a few pints
What McHugh and Ward discovered was
interrupt the editorial of the show itself,” she said.
in a pub,” said McHugh. “There was the very
that anything in a live setting, such as sports,
experimental stage, before the ubiquitous mobile
shopping, fashion, news and current affairs,
Innovate or die away
device became what we have today.
worked brilliantly.
Jump forward three years from the TV3 trials
“We did trials with Irish broadcasters. We
“If you were a little bit removed from the
and Axonista has several core products; Ediflo
produced companion apps for specific shows,
content it was difficult to create an experience
Live (scheduling and playout), Ediflo Library
and looked to see how we could help the
that actually added any value for the viewers.
(DAM), Remoco (interactive video), and now the
editorial flow,” she added. “And then we did a
So we have concentrated on, and have
professional version of Ediflo. Its mission statement
project with TV3 which was pretty ambitious for
developed our product to target it towards
could be, ‘We create interactive apps that
2013. It was a completely synced companion
live shows,” said McHugh.
can be distributed on multiple platforms, and managed by producers’.
app for TV3’s entire primetime schedule of 40
This is not about creating more than a
different shows. That project gave us a really
two-screen experience, but a single unified
good understanding of what worked and what
experience. “If you are watching on a mobile
you are not going to be around in ten years from
did not work with second screen. We also learnt
device, it works perfectly for that device. If there
now. We work with innovators who can look
what sort of assets were available, and how
is a caption that looks like it should be tapped, it
forward and see how the market is shifting, and
23 24 26 TVBE May Business_v4 HA.indd 1
“If you are in TV and you are not innovating,
15/04/2016 16:34
24 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
Business Claire McHugh, Axonista
be there at that time,” said McHugh. “For people like QVC and the big global broadcasters, this is a no brainer. And then there are the new digital natives, and a large version of those is AOL. It has lots of different video properties and is really open to doing new and interesting things because its target market is people who have maybe never actually had TV or cable, and are used to viewing on different mobile devices. “And then we have the people who are getting into broadcasting for the first time and don’t have all that legacy stuff,” she added. Ward contributed: “We still want to be working with broadcasters and other companies who are influencing the editorial. We always like to take video from the broadcaster we are talking to and say, ‘Here’s your content and this is what it’s like if you use our system to make it interactive on devices. We are not going to change editorial’. The content has come off the screen now and has come onto all the little screens, and it is about that intuition of how it works on different devices.” McHugh said: “It could eventually come completely off the screens and just be on any flat surfaces or in VR environments. Anywhere video can play it can be interacted with, and that’s where we want to be.” Axonista is six years old. The three products were created by just 15 staff. How will it find the talent and funding to expand? “That is a big issue,” said McHugh. “Luckily enough I have a technical co-founder who has built good software teams before. This is Daragh’s third company.” Ward added: “Dublin has a vibrant start-up community that is technically heavy. Google, Facebook, Twitter and many Silicon Valley companies have European HQs there, and they attract large numbers of engineering talent. “In some ways that is difficult, because we are not competing with those guys, but nobody spends their entire career at Google. They come out the other side and look for a new challenge. We are able to tell the story of what we are doing and attract people that way,” he continued. Axonista raised its seed money and it has
“If you are in TV and you are not innovating, you are not going to be around in ten years” Claire McHugh, Axonista
become profitable. The next step after growing the team will be penetrating the American market more competitively. “We are looking right now for a really good venture capital partner who will inject the right amount, but also give us good connections and the ability to fill gaps in our team,” said Ward. This is a sensible foot in the past, foot in the future thinking. “We continue to work with
23 24 26 TVBE May Business_v4 HA.indd 2
15/04/2016 16:34
All-Round Innovation. SAM’s unique mix of experience and energy is complemented by a true belief in innovation. It is fundamental to everything we do, and helps us deliver solutions that really make a difference to our customers.
If you want to go IP immediately, next year or 5 years from now, we have products and systems you can invest in with confidence.
The SAM Difference.
www.s-a-m.com SAM product sectors
new tvbe template 1 TVB_220x290 SAMremade.indd Innovation 2.indd 1
13/04/2016 19:33 12:53 10/04/2016
26 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
Business technology companies just try to put widgets everywhere and say how clever they are. This is just intuitively perfect,” said Ward. In the prototype seen (QVC had baked in the sell data panel on its pages) the Axonista replacement panel is an interactive overlay offering many more benefits. These can be partly identified from a demo experience with presenter Craig Doyle. “Craig is going to start by asking his audience a question, and he will encourage them to engage on Twitter to reply. The question is, ‘which is more important, performance or victory, and why?’ He wants people to call the show and include the hash tag, and this is fine for TV again, similarly to QVC. But in a device what you are actually asking people to do is leave the app they are watching and go to twitter and launch. They then have to remember how to spell the hash tag and try to remember the question, just as a friend
The Dublin start-up counts QVC among its clients
posts a crazy picture of his cat,” said McHugh. Irish broadcasters, TV3 particularly; we do all
“It is an editorial workflow system but is
its free player stuff on different platforms from
designed to be incorporated into your existing
Clean feed without the graphic
IOS, Android and Roku to Xbox,” said McHugh.
workflow. We do not want to ask you to
What Axonista worked out, which it has presented
“Ireland is a great market to test things because
change anything around, so we have very easy
to BT as an idea was: “Why not give us a clean
it is a kind of mini UK market and a very mini US
integrations. We can integrate our scheduling
feed without the graphic. This is a very similar
market in terms of demographic breakdown. The
piece into your scheduling system, and you
graphic but it is native. The guys in the studio
QVC Apple TV app has got us the most attention.
don’t necessarily have to use Ediflo to create the
do not have to change what they are saying,
When we got to do that it enabled us to show
schedule. You would use it to drive the digital side
change the editorial or change the production.
what the future of TV really looks like.”
and drive the apps,” he added. Axonista is working with a number of customers
“We can take the data they are sending the Chyron and funnel it down to the app and
Everywhere video can be played
to build out Ediflo Pro and make it 100 per cent
display it in a way that looks the same. But when
Axonista started as a services company doing
ready. Ward went into demo mode.
you tap it you can respond to that poll, put in
second screen apps and developed by taking
“This is the asset library of Qyou, and you can
your bit of guff and Tweet, and you have not
all the technology it had been building for apps
see we can store the content and metadata for
creation and coalescing it into solid product.
all of the videos these guys use to comprise their
It had been selling an enterprise version of
offering. They are both linear and on-demand so
talk to our users about the results that came
Ediflo, meaning involvement in the customer
they use the library to manage their digital assets
out, some of them are pretty astounding,” he
implementation. The new professional version
in the cloud,” he said.
continued. “For QVC it is a natural progression,
is something users can set up for themselves.
missed a beat or left the show,” said Ward. “This really increases engagement: when we
“On the scheduling side Qyou curates short-
but not yet for broadcasters and BT. Those guys
It has a creative team that handles design to
form content for the web, so lots of really good
are focussed on 4K and HDR but there will be a
prototype, and a development team that builds
youth oriented short-form video, and they put it
thing that will be next after that, and what we are
the prototype out.
all together as shows with presenters who call out
trying to do with Ediflo Pro is to drive that market
what’s happening and the content makers as
and to put it in front of decision makers and say
guests. They make a whole show out of it.”
this thing is possible now.” Axonista does not
“We work everywhere where video can be played. Our product side is broad: there is the asset management, which you could use on
The point here is that the run down of media
make the mistake of claiming it is unique. “There
its own to create an OTT service. We work with
assets in an hour-long show were there to
are other people doing what we are doing, and
partners where we have features we don’t want
frame accuracy, and played out from the
if there wasn’t I would be worried. It is always a
to build ourselves. We want to focus on the
cloud. The interactive TV part of the Axonista
good indication you are doing the right thing if
interactive graphics part of it,” said Ward. “We
strategy is Remoco.
somebody has also thought of it,” said McHugh.
work with Yospace for ad insertions at TV3. We
“It’s an SDK that you can drop into your own
“The difference is our keen focus on the user
work with Pay Wizard for payments, and
apps,” said Ward. “And we can build an app for
experience and also on the editorial experience.
for automated content recognition we work
you based around this. You can have interactivity
Producers are the storytellers; so enabling them
with Civolution.”
against one show out of your schedule or around
to use more ways of telling their story is really
anything you want.”
the thing for us. OBB is the next phase in video
Axonista software is a cloud-based subscription deal. Ediflo is all about workflow, and the new professional system hits the market in Q3.
23 24 26 TVBE May Business_v4 HA.indd 3
This led to QVC as a user. “It is really simple. That’s the real killer thing about it. So many
delivery for content makers who want to stay ahead of their competitors.” n
19/04/2016 11:03
Re f Sa or gi ve o st £1 n 00 l y £ er n ww b on ow t w. ef tv or he 14 s be e ur 13 tan 9. op M d 0 e2 ay ar 0 02 0.c om
dr at
e
Tuesday, 28th June 2016 Bafta, 195 Piccadilly, London
A strategic roadmap for the future of broadcast KEY SUBJECTS FOR DISCUSSION INCLUDE: • Do we need broadcasters in an internet enabled future? • Who are the content stakeholders in an all IP World? • Broadcasting in a software defined age • Does UHD provide the complete picture? • Demystifying HDR Last year’s delegate list included senior representatives from the BBC, ITV, Netflix, Sky, ITN, Rovi, BT Sport, Channel 4, Viacom, CNBC Europe, Al Jazeera, Fox International, NBC Universal, Discovery, Reuters TV, Modern Times Group, Bloomberg, BT Media and Broadcast, PwC, Ernst and Young, SNL Kagan, KPMG, and more…
INTERESTED IN ATTENDING? CONTACT: Georgia Blake, Delegate Sales Executive +44 (0)207 354 6010 Email: gblake@nbmedia.com SPONSORSHIP AND EXHIBITION CONTACT: Ben Ewles, Sales Manager +44 (0)207 354 6000 Email: bewles@nbmedia.com Richard Carr, Account Manager +44 (0)207 354 6000 Email: rcarr@nbmedia.com
Part of
Book now and be a part of the discussion on the industry’s future. Gold partner
www.tvbeurope2020.com
Silver partner
@tvbeurope
Conference partner
Partner
#tvbe2020
28 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
TVBEverywhere
“Mobile TV” is old hat Heather McLean spoke to attendees at this year’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona about how the market has evolved in 2015, and where they expect it to go over the next year
C
hem Assayag, EVP
comprehensive ‘TV everywhere’
marketing and sales
experience from a viewer
at Viaccess Orca,
standpoint, and TV everywhere
commented that the term ‘mobile
solutions from a vendor standpoint.”
TV’ does not accurately reflect the television landscape today.
TV on mobile everywhere
He noted that, “instead, it refers
“The last 12 months have been
to the mid-2000s when specific
absolutely amazing for mobile
technologies such as DVB-H were
TV,” agreed Iddo Shai, director
being used to deliver video to
of product marketing at Kaltura.
mobile devices”.
“First, we saw much more content
Assayag explained: “At that
28 30 31 TVBE MAY16 TVBEverywhere_V3 HAJMcK.indd 1
becoming available on mobile. In
time only broadcast-dedicated
2015, users with a mobile device
technologies were capable of
and no TV or TV subscription device
delivering a decent viewing
had access to much more premium
experience on mobile devices. This
content. The biggest move was
approach had shortcomings and
HBO going direct to consumer with
has since been replaced by mobile
a $15 per month SVoD service in the
video experiences allowed by 3G
US. Others soon followed like CBS
and 4G networks, dynamic bitrate
and Showtime. Some of the most
technologies, Wi-Fi hotspots, new
popular sports are now available
devices such as smartphones and
via apps like Sling.TV (ESPN), MLB.
tablets with good memory capacity
TV, NBA League pass, NHL Mobile
and processing power, and
and more. Even the Super Bowl, the
mobile-friendly content formats.
biggest sporting event of the year,
Now, video on mobile is part of a
was streamed on Yahoo.
15/04/2016 16:25
31 May - 3 June 2016
Level 4 & 5 Marina Bay Sands, Singapore The 21st International Digital Multimedia & Entertainment Technology Exhibition & Conference
www.Broadcast-Asia.com
INTEGRATING TECHNOLOGIES, EXPERIENCING CONTENT Be sure to check out the theme specific technologies in
Witness key trending technologies
OTT
Video over IP
Audio over IP
Digital Media Asset Management
@ Level 4 Hear from award-winning / well-known directors and DOPs who will be sharing their experience and insights on the different equipment / solutions and best practices when addressing the different challenges in their work.
Visit www.Broadcast-Asia.com/TrendingTechnologies for more information!
Network with over 600 leading brand owners and solution providers across the entire broadcast value chain Hear experts from Amazon Web Services, Astro Radio, Discovery Communications, Google and many more who will share collaborating strategies and exchange views that will further shape the broadcasting industry.
Azran Osman Rani Chief Executive Officer iflix Malaysia
Chris Fetner
Director of Global Content Partners Operations Netflix
Kazufumi Nagasawa Chief Content Officer Hulu Japan (HJ Holdings)
Nick North
Director of Audiences BBC
Shane Mitchell
Head, Digital MediaCorp
and many others
Register online early at www.Broadcast-Asia.com/pre-registration to participate in the Online Business Matching Programme! Organised by:
Worldwide Associate:
Held concurrently with:
A Part of:
Hosted by:
Endorsed:
new tvbe template remade.indd 1 BCA16AdW220xH290-TVBE-FA.indd 1
#BroadcastAsia2016 CommunicAsia & EnterpriseIT incorporate:
Supported by:
Held in:
14/04/2016 12:09 14/4/16 10:25 am
30 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
TVBEverywhere group is most likely to watch TV
founder, corporate development at
on mobile (35 per cent), whereas
SPB TV, said: “The mobile TV business
25-34s are the most likely group to
has [gone] mainstream, a service
watch TV on tablets (32 per cent).
that is offered almost everywhere
Michal Fridman, VP of marketing
The world’s largest gathering for the mobile industry returned to Barcelona in February
today. The difference in services
at Comigo, commented that
can be seen by the quality and
things are getting exciting: “With
quantity of offerings, which vary
the younger generation changing
a lot. We have also seen that the
viewing habits, both in terms of
most advanced operators, who
multi-tasking and decreasing the
started years ago with mobile TV,
amount of time spent on the main
have reached market saturation,
TV screen, it is not surprising that
[whereas] newcomers in the field
mobile TV has been the fastest
can reach new heights if they
“With so much premium content
globally prefer to access internet
growing form of TV watching in the
implement [their] service [smartly]
available online, it’s safe to assume
TV via a mobile, tablet or laptop.
past 12 months. We’re also seeing
and market their solution well.”
that we will continue to see more
Recent launches of 4K screens
that viewers are demanding a
‘cord-nevers’ that don’t see a need
on mobile devices and debuts of
television experience that is more
has been a big change in
to subscribe to traditional pay-TV
new Airplay-, Chromecast- and
contextual and personalised on
mobile over the past 12 months.
and wonder if they should even
Miracast-enabled devices support
every screen.”
“Twitter’s Periscope was one of
own a TV,” said Shai.
research findings that younger
Shai also said that live streaming
the most talked about video
audiences (18-34s) now use almost
Going mainstream
apps of the year. It’s not surprising
study released in January by pay-TV
twice as many devices as over
On how the mobile TV landscape
that Facebook also added live
provider, Paywizard, which showed
55s to watch TV. In fact, the study
evolved over the past 12 months,
broadcasting capabilities to its app.
that 66 per cent of consumers
showed that the 18-24 year-old
Sebastian-Justus Schmidt, co-
Google already offers a somewhat
Shai pointed to a Research Now
The global resource portal for media technology content NewBay Connect now offers even wider content for its registered users, is easier to navigate and provides users with dedicated weekly newsletters offering a digest of the latest content and carefully selected content from its themes of the month. Why join NewBay Connect? Free and easy to use: stay informed with the latest industry white papers, opinion pieces, web seminars and case studies that affect your business and your career. •
Categorised content All material is organised into clearly referenced, specialist areas.
•
Customised search You can quickly locate the information relevant to your business or area of interest.
•
Tailored email alerts Notifications sent to you whenever there is an update within your chosen areas.
•
Dedicated weekly newsletters
NewBayConnect-MediaInfo-PDF.indd 1
26/05/2015 12:59
Visit www.newbayconnect.com to register, browse and download content for free today. Content Director: James McKeown jmckeown@nbmedia.com +44 (0) 20 7354 6002
NewBay Connect HP.indd 1
28 30 31 TVBE MAY16 TVBEverywhere_V3 HAJMcK.indd 2
Editor Neal Romanek nromanek@nbmedia.com +44 (0) 20 7354 6002
Sales Manager: Ben Ewles bewles@nbmedia.com +44 (0)207 354 6000
Campaign Manager: Warren Kelly wkelly@nbmedia.com +44 (0)207 354 6000
15/04/2016 12:17
15/04/2016 14:09
TVBEurope 31
May 2016 www.tvbeurope.com
TVBEverywhere allow watching content anywhere
case, it becomes important to find
individuals. TV service providers
and any time in a personalised
a way to deliver advertising in a
must gather data about their
experience,” Shai said.
targeted, smart and non-intrusive
customers and their viewing
way. The beauty of mobile devices
behaviour through set-top boxes
referred to new TV devices such as
is that they are personal devices.
and other screen-based viewing
Apple TV, while Google is pushing
Finding the right advertising formats
devices and video apps. This will
Android TV and Chromecast.
on mobile devices have become
put them in a potentially very
“We should expect a more fluid
the Holy Grail for all companies.
powerful position as the segment
TV experience in the near future,
In the video space, pre and post
of the value chain with the highest
in which our mobile devices will
roll ads have become the norm,
visibility of the audience, the
work in unison with our iOS or
allowing advertisers to keep
household subscriber relationship,
Android devices. Bringing mobile
changing the formats.”
and the ability to gather and
In terms of what’s next, Shai
Top to bottom; Chem Assayag, Viaccess Orca; Iddo Shai, Kaltura; Sebastian-Justus Schmidt, SPB TV; Michal Fridman, Comigo
to the living room is a revolution waiting to happen.” Yet he added: “The most interesting mobile TV player these days is Facebook; it is adding more video capabilities. It’s likely to become a mobile video powerhouse, especially when you consider its reach.”
Interactive personalised services On what is missing, Schmidt
subsequently interpret the data on viewing behaviour. However, we
“A rise in mobile TV subscriptions will lead to a significant increase in pay-TV revenues, globally, over the next few years” Chem Assayag, Viaccess Orca
have so far seen little evidence of operators leveraging the wealth of data available.” Meanwhile, Fridman said: “The evolution of internet and video technology enable contextual enrichment capabilities to be introduced to the mobile TV experience. As such, we’re seeing pay-TV and content providers
commented that, “targeted
developing applications that
advertisement has still not arrived
are contextual, dynamic, and
in the heads of the decision
Indeed, personalisation is the next
interactive, complementing the
makers, although the technology
trend, Ed Barton, practice leader
mobile TV viewing experience. An
is available”. He added: “But the
for TV at research firm, Ovum,
operator’s subscribers can engage
most stunning service and the next
commented: “Ovum believes
with these applications on top of a
real evolution will be interactive
that operators must progressively
video stream or broadcast, opening
services. Content producers
transition the TV experience from
up new and innovative revenue
who are looking for new ways of
addressing households, as it has
sources, based on contextual
engaging with their users will define
since the 1950s, to addressing
relevancy of the application.” n
new formats which will further change the way people consume content in future.” As to what Assayag sees as the future business model for mobile TV, he stated: “The majority of video content viewed on mobile devices is sold as a component of a TV everywhere package, and we should expect similar option via Hangouts.
this trend to continue. With the
“We are about to experience
increase of mobile bandwidth
a boom in mobile companies
around the world, consumers
going into the TV market,” said
will be more willing to pay for or
Shai. Vodafone Ireland and Spain
subscribe to premium content
launched services recently and he
on mobile devices, particularly
predicted other countries should
in emerging countries. A rise in
follow. “Telcos are in a position to
mobile TV subscriptions will lead
launch the TV services of tomorrow
to a significant increase in pay-TV
with a mixed business model of
revenues, globally, over the next
advertising, subscriptions and
few years.” However, he observed
transactions. I expect that they will
that specific advertising funded
deliver on the promise of OTT TV to
models have also emerged. “In this
28 30 31 TVBE MAY16 TVBEverywhere_V3 HAJMcK.indd 3
Streamlin
e your
SCHEDU LING Model you r schedule s concept u p to broad from the c a sting and beyond ov er multiple media. www.med ia
gwewn.m w ixed.tiavgenix.t v
14/04/2016 10:26
32 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
Feature
Inside the
chief executive’s office Many senior figures in the broadcast industry claim to be experts in the field, but after chatting with David Ross I couldn’t think of a more fitting tagline when he tells me his is a company of “production technology experts”, writes Holly Ashford
R
oss Video was founded by John Ross in
says Ross. The company has a Rocket Surgery
1974, who was joined at the firm by his son,
Election 2016 package, promising to ‘make your
David, in 1991. Still a family business, Ross
coverage #1’.
the younger now heads up the company and owns close to 90 per cent. I spoke to Ross just
Doing it all
two weeks before NAB, surely one of the busiest
Ross continues: “We also own and operate five
and most stressful periods of the broadcast year.
broadcast production trucks across the states,”
Yet this CEO seemed decidedly upbeat and
with Ross Mobile Productions (RMP), which
collected, something I should have gleaned
provides a full-service solution with equipment
from his Twitter picture; bedecked in sunglasses
rental and crew, “so there’s Ross cameramen,
and lei, cocktail in hand, backed by a blue,
Ross producers, Ross directors.” RMP has
sunny sky. And it’s no wonder: Ross opened our
produced live sports for the likes of Fox, ESPN
discussion by sharing “one really exceptional
and NBC. It’s not an exaggeration when Ross
success story”; that the company has
states “we do it all”, but how does a company
experienced “Twenty-five consecutive record
which offers such an array of products
years with no down years, and an average
and services covering almost every
compounded growth of 17 per cent year over
facet of the broadcast industry,
year.” Most companies have their ups and
maintain a high level of quality and
downs, but this one seems to be heading in just
customer service?
one direction, an extraordinary feat considering
“There’s a lot of method to
the volatility of the market in the late 2000s:
making all that work,” admits
“Growing in the recession was an interesting
Ross. Inside Ross Video there
trick.” admits Ross.
are product line managers
The company of “production technology
“who are experts in both the
experts” offers a vast range of products and
customer application and
services: production switchers, social media
the technologies involved,”
management, robotic camera systems, control
he continues. “They make
and monitoring, graphics and routing systems,
sure the quality is there,
signal processing, video servers, teleprompter
that we’re using the right
software, newsroom computer and master
technologies.” There is
control systems. “We have 17 product lines at this
also standardised quality
point, with lots of sub-products underneath that,”
across the company, and
explains Ross. And if this wasn’t enough, “We also
everything is manufactured
sell art!” Ross Video also specialises in graphics
in the same factory, in the
for TV and sport, and its creative services include
same way, in-house. “That’s
Rocket Surgery, a ‘one-stop-shop’ for design and
another cool thing about
API development. “If you’ve got a stadium or
Ross,” its owner explains,
a news programme and you want to get your
coolly. “We have 70,000sqft of
election package together, or the game day
manufacturing capability that’s
experience, what it looks like on the big screen,
running 16 hours a day, every
we have artists that do all that work for you,”
day.” There are also business
32-35 TVBE May16 Feature David Ross v4 HA.indd 1
15/04/2016 15:39
May 2016 www.tvbeurope.com
TVBEurope 33
Feature development managers that look at customer
part of, getting involved in “demonstrations,
facilities vs virtualised facilities, remote
applications and make sure that the company
product comparisons, making sure that we had
production vs on-site production, and at the
offers “constellations of products” for various
good sales and marketing, making sure that
same time “we’ve got a whole advertising
applications. “We look at the Lego blocks that
we had processes for growth.” Ross also played
and revenue model somewhat in question,
we have, and then we design interconnects
a significant role in the company’s financial
with the advent of OTT and Netflix and
between them to make them work extremely
strategy. Ross the senior was “a big believer” in
YouTube and all the other things that are
well inside of those applications.” The company
screaming for eyeballs.”
creates products which work together, rather than just offering a big checkout: “We’re more Apple than Walmart.”
Growing a global force In an industry which has seen consolidations and takeovers continue apace, Ross seems to be
All of these factors throw up a significant dilemma for just about every business operating
“My father started the company in 1974 and we would wobble anywhere from 20 people to 100 people and crash back down again”
in the market: “On one side you’ve got a need to evolve” as well as “a desire to go to 4K and IP”, which will require significant investment, and are “fabulously more expensive”. On the other side there is less money to do it with, “because of the
in a rare position, maintaining majority control
fragmentation of the audience.”
of his family business. Even more surprisingly, his
Rather than floundering in the middle of this
employees own the other ten per cent. As a high
mess, however, Ross Video aims to “guide a
school and university student Ross undertook
being debt-free, having steered the company
path” and provide clarity amidst the “epic battles
internships at his father’s firm, which started life
through a number of recessions. After he came
going on for standards” the industry is currently
as a “small 25-person company that my dad
on board, Ross was able to convince his then-
embroiled in.
had been struggling with for a few years.” His
CEO father that “a little bit of debt could go
background is in computer engineering and
a long way to investing in the company.” Ross
It makes alliances, and hopes it is on the right
business, and while in high school, he won three
Video did not – and still does not – rely on any
team. Ross likens the company to a customer,
major engineering competitions at national level
external investors, but by “taking advantage of
who sometimes has to make purchases and
with projects involving real-time programming
some of our line of credit that we had to push”
hope that what they’ve bought today isn’t
and computer graphics. He admits that he “had
was able to add more sales people in a particular
obsolete and unsupported in two years. However,
the basics…of what you need to eventually
field, more engineers to a certain project, and
as a global company with fingers in many
become a business manager” though at the time
after a while “that becomes ten more, and 100
broadcast pies, “we can do something that
he graduated, was considering a career at NASA
more”. Ross happily describes how the company
maybe our customers can’t do, and place our
or IBM. Taking on the family business “just didn’t
now has manageable debt, which is “continually
bets in multiple places.” The company is involved
seem like a lot of fun.”
swamped by our growth”. This strategy has
in IP, 4K, is “looking at” HDR and workflow
obviously paid off; the company now employs
improvements, and is trying to make sure it offers
was founded in the early ‘70s and over the first
over 500 people, invests heavily in R&D, which
solutions to support the “dizzying number of
15 years or so would “wobble anywhere from
it does itself in house, and manufactures and
directions the industry may go in.”
The company was “up and down” since it
20 people to 100 people and crash back
markets its products
down again.” So what led Ross to step in,
worldwide through a
and help out? “I like building things, so I
global sales force.
guess I convinced my dad and my dad it a shot.” It was only after Ross joined in
Mess and disruption
1991 “that we hit sustained growth”, he
Ross’s positive disposition
says, though when pressed on what he
is no surprise considering
brought to the company, he hesitates.
the financial stability and
“I think I have to be careful with what
unstoppable growth
convinced me that maybe I should give
I say. If I say I brought something it
of his company, yet
means it wasn’t here, and I don’t
what he has less control
want to say anything bad about
over is the state of the
my father.” The perils of working in
industry. “We’re in a
a family business! “It was a good
bigger mess than we’ve
combination of my father’s grey
ever been in our history,
hairs and experience, and maybe a
in more ways than you
little bit of youthful energy that was
can count.” He gives it
injected in,” he concludes. This experience resulted in an
indecision around 4K, HDR, and IP, proprietary
32-35 TVBE May16 Feature David Ross v4 HA.indd 2
WORK FLOW
Optimize linear bro adcasting on-deman and d services in a single system an d streamli ne your workflows www.med company-wid e. iagenix.tv www.med
iagenix.tv
the development of and
sales, re-aligning the company from which Ross himself was very much a
Optimize y our
a go though, naming
increased focus on marketing and an “engineering-driven” one to a firm
How does Ross Video achieve these aims?
systems vs COTS, the lack of standards, traditional
15/04/2016 15:40
34 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
Feature I spoke to Ross before the circus of NAB, which would involve 160 of the Ross (Video) family descending on Las Vegas for “our most exciting NAB ever.” Maintaining this verve is commendable, considering this is Ross’s 28th
“We do something that our customers can’t, and place our bets in multiple places”
time at the broadcast show. Rather than trying to promote any single strong point, the Ross Video
lot of companies, he concedes, which spend a
stand would feature an information section,
lot of engineering money developing products
offering an unbiased view of “what everyone’s
which are not part of an ecosystem and not
doing” and “explain(ing) what it actually all is
standardised. Instead, Ross Video has been head
on a one-on-one basis.” Like a ringmaster in a
down, designing things, gauging the changes
confusing and eclectic NAB tent, who better
in the industry, and partnering with companies
than a company that has so many products on
including Evertz and Hitachi, to ensure what they
a global reach to be able to say, in Ross’s words:
produce serves their customers. In short, as its
“if you’re confused, we’re not surprised! Let me
Code of Ethics states: ‘We will not ship crap’.
lay out the facts right now of how things stand, so you can make a choice.”
Ross is in the somewhat unique position of having had the broadcast industry as a backdrop
Despite the considerable “mess” of the
to his life, from a very early age. Is the rate of
industry, Ross Video has continued to grow;
change in the industry over the past decade –
how does the company evolve its products and
and the resulting mess – dramatically faster than
services in uncertain conditions? David Ross
the previous decade? And how will the industry,
has retained the engineering base of the firm,
and Ross Video, cope with the challenges if these
investing in research and development, and
uncertainties continue for the decade to come?
avoiding “science experiments”. There are a
First of the two major inflection points in Ross’s
EDITORIAL PLANNER 2016
2016 will see an even greater commitment from TVBEurope to cover more of the pressing areas of concern, challenge, and opportunity within our burgeoning marketplace. The biggest change for this year will be the introduction of new sections to enable us to provide greater coverage to specific business areas. Our Workflow section will now be divided into two new sections: Production, and Post Production. We will also be introducing a new Business section to follow the increasing acquisition and investment activity permeating the sector, and are also introducing a dedicated Audio section to bring regular insights and updates from an often overlooked strand of our industry. These new sections will be manned by a team of section editors.
Issue
Exhibitions present at
Feature
Editorial Close date
Advertising close date
June
• TVBEurope Strategy Week • TVBEurope 2020 Conference • Broadcast Asia
• TVBEurope 2020 preview • RIO 2016 Olympic feature: live production • Visions of the future: the connected world
12th May
5th May
• OTT feature
10th June
3rd June
12th July
5th July
July
• Automation and playout • RIO 2016 Olympic production feature:
August
• IBC thought leadership insight and product preview
September
• IBC
• IBC 2016 Show issue: thought leadership insight and product showcase
19th August
12th August
October
•TVBAwards
• Audio for broadcast • IBC Best of Show Winners • IP technology
23rd September
16th September
For all advertising and sponsorship opportunities, contact the sales team: Europe Ben Ewles: +44 (0) 20 7354 6000 bewles@nbmedia.com TVBE Editorial Planner 2016 half page.indd 1
32-35 TVBE May16 Feature David Ross v4 HA.indd 3
Richard Carr: +44 (0) 20 7354 6000 rcarr@nbmedia.com
Nicola Pett +44 (0) 20 7354 6000 npett@nbmedia.com
USA Mike Mitchell +1 631 673 0072 mjmitchell@broadcast-media.tv 15/04/2016 11:04
15/04/2016 16:30
TVBEurope 35
May 2016 www.tvbeurope.com
Feature “We look at the Lego blocks that we have, and then we design interconnects between them to make them work extremely well inside of those applications”
basketball, hockey, wrestling and a number of live events; 64, in fact, this February alone. One of the reasons for the move, says Ross, was that he “wanted to have a deeper core confidence in Ross, making sure our products worked.” Now, he guesses that the company may be the second largest production company based out of Canada. Clearly things are working just fine. Ross Video has gone from strength to strength, the company is still in the family, (his father sits on the board of directors), and is not driven by “ruthless investors” and “maximum quarterly profit”. In addition to his role of CEO and chairman of the board, Ross continues to work as product manager for production line switchers, his original gateway into the business. Ross Video’s technology, and Ross himself, is award winning, he values “consistency of vision”, and engineering. He competes in triathlons, is happily married, has a ‘cute’ rescue dog as a
For its election coverage, Belgium’s RTBF used Ross Video’s newsroom content and editorial system Inception, which places social media integration at the heart of news production
pet and uses NAB as an excuse to drive into the mountains to go hiking. The “exceptional success story” seems far from ending. No wonder his skies are so sunny. n
life, he says, was going from analogue to digital
graphics specialist Media
video which brought about “a lot of benefit and
Refinery, Australian
not too much confusion.” The second, the move
comms equipment
from SDI to HD similarly “wasn’t too painful” and
company Codan and
didn’t change workflows too much. The current
more recently, AR and
move to IP, however, is somewhat different: “It
VR set solutions provider
has the potential to be quite disruptive and
Unreel. Ross remains coy
difficult.” All the knowledge which those working
about his company’s
in the industry have acquired concerning “how
future buying strategy. He
to connect things and make them work” no
confirms that “we’re not
longer applies to IP. “The knowledge you need
done yet” and that there
to have goes beyond just broadcast, workflows,
are more acquisitions
and technologies, and the needs of putting
in the pipeline. Perhaps
a production on the air,” Ross continues. “You
most interesting of Ross
need to know some extremely sophisticated
Video’s buyouts has
networking information,” which, for a while, he
been Mobile Content
admits will become “an almost superhuman task
Providers (MCP), turning
for chief engineers everywhere.”
the mobile sports
e your
Streamlin
VOD
ion over t acquisit g and n te n o c from shin g to publi schedulin our content using y . package channels r render .tv o ts s li v y .t minipla iagen.mixediagenix
d
www.me
www
production packager
Going mobile
into a national mobile
As well as growing profits, Ross Video keeps
production company,
growing its family with a flurry of acquisitions
Ross Mobile Productions.
over the past eight years, including Dutch
The unit has covered
32-35 TVBE May16 Feature David Ross v4 HA.indd 4
15/04/2016 15:41
36 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
Audio
Further signs of the audio revolution at Prolight + Sound 2016 The annual Prolight + Sound exhibition in Frankfurt plays host to an increasingly strong contingent of broadcast technology suppliers. David Davies reflects on some of the highlights of this year’s show
T
he presence of huge outdoor stages and
Ethernet audio streaming capability is compliant
interface equipped with a Ravenna card; and
halls stocked full of PA and equipment
with AES67 and Ravenna, and supports all
Boldburg’s Galileo range of Ravenna-enabled
geared towards the live and install markets
the typical standard audio sample rates. The
modular multi-core devices.
mean that Prolight + Sound hasn’t always been
resulting system is suitable for settings including
perceived as a must-attend for broadcast
digital edit suites, radio, TV, outside broadcasting,
‘Indisputable extra value’
professionals. But with an increasing number of
post production facilities and music studios.
Another Ravenna technology user, Lawo brought
vendors working successfully across all of these
“With the technological progress that
a very extensive selection of its latest and
areas, its coverage of broadcast technology
has been made in the field and the serious
greatest products to Frankfurt. These included
continues to expand with every passing year.
involvements with AoIP by broadcasters and
the mc²36, an all-in-one mixing desk ‘built to
As might be expected, many of the most
other customers, we feel there is potential for
broadcast standards’ but with a feature-set
exciting developments at this year’s event –
a well-engineered monitor to provide both
that also makes it suitable for theatres, houses
which took place at usual venue, the Messe
convenience and high performance benefits
of worship and more. Also in the spotlight were
Frankfurt, from 5-8 April – pertained to networking
that IP networks can deliver,” said Siamäk
the mc²56 and mc²66 mixing consoles, as was
technology. Consider, for example, the
Naghian, managing director of Genelec. “We
the Nova37 hybrid Ravenna/MADI plug and
showcasing of products that support Ravenna:
think that the 8430 is exactly that monitor and
play audio router for instant set-up of small-sized
ALC NetworX’s low-latency, IP-based networking
I anticipate an enthusiastic reception of the
audio networks with a maximum of 1536x1536
technology that was primarily devised with
product amongst the audio community. Audio
crosspoints. Lawo also showed its range of video
the broadcast market in mind. More recently,
over IP is no longer the future of monitoring – it
tools, including V__pro8 and V__link4.
the technology’s compatibility with the AES67
is here now.”
standard has been widely highlighted.
But Genelec’s new monitor was by no means
With Lawo’s Kick automated, close-ball audio technology continuing to make an
the only Ravenna-related product development
impact throughout the broadcast sector, the
on ALC NetworX’s own booth and individual
on show at PL+S, with other notable items
company’s innovative credentials remain as
company stands, and included the
including: the GigaCore 14R Gigabit Ethernet
robust as ever. As Christian Struck, senior product
groundbreaking Genelec 8430 IP network
switch from Luminex; Omicron Lab’s OTMC-100
manager audio production at Lawo, told
compatible SAM studio monitor. Incorporating
antenna-integrated PTP Grandmaster clock;
TVBEurope: “Lawo has always been a driving
Smart Active Monitoring and GLM AutoCal
Merging Technologies’ Hapi networked audio
force of the development and adaption of
automated system adjustment, the 8340A’s
interface; Neumann’s DMI-8 digital microphone
new technologies, and the latest technologies
An extensive selection was to be found
36-37 TVBE May16 Audio v1JMcK.indd 1
15/04/2016 16:45
TVBEurope 37
May 2016 www.tvbeurope.com
Audio [surrounding immersive audio and other
are very happy with our current position.” An
the showfloors of an event that is now
next generation audio techniques] are no
example of vibrant attention to detail and
on the calendar of many broadcast
exception. We pushed the development of
cutting edge R&D characterises the Optocore
professionals as they gear up for the
early 3D mixing for broadcast some years ago,
and BroaMan stories. Fortunately, there
frenetic period that commences with
and we actively follow the latest developments
were plenty of other examples to be found on
NAB very shortly afterwards. n
around object-based mixing, personalisation and so on. When the market embraces the technologies we will be happy to support it.” With regard to forthcoming developments, Struck confirms that “the usability and additional benefits [brought to the production]” continue to underline Lawo R&D for broadcast. “Without revealing any secrets, it is clear for Lawo that new and innovative technologies with an indisputable extra value always have a substantial position in our development plans,” he says.
Processing progress The continued evolution of digital mixing technology was another recurring theme at Prolight + Sound ’16. One of the most notable developments came from DiGiCo, which presented an SD7 desk installed with the new Quantum 7 processing engine that is scheduled for release in spring 2017. Developed with seventh generation FPGA devices, Quantum
Qx UHDTV
The Award winning Qx UHDTV1 4K and UHDTV2 8K
7 is set to deliver a number of enhancements.
• True ‘next generation’ product
These include Nodal Processing – which means
• ‘Worlds First’ real-time multi-rate 12Gbps capable SDI Eye/Jitter analysis
that processing can be applied to any node
• Advanced jitter insertion and analysis option
on the auxiliary section of the console, allowing engineers to send unique processing on each
• Comprehensive range of Audio and Video tool sets • Support for up to 48Gbps Analyser and Generator payloads • HDR, WCG, HFR, and object based audio formats*
send from a single or multiple channels – and
• Client/Server based architecture
the True Solo system, enabling the operator’s
• App based control - PC, Android, IOS
monitoring system to replicate almost any section of the console. Finally, the show provided a basis to mark
• 2 x SFP± supporting 10Gbps networks* and 12Gbps optical sdi • SMPTE 2022-6 over 10Gbps networks* • Compact, low power, low volume solution • Price - best value for money solution in the market
several significant company anniversaries,
PHABRIX UHDTV SUPPORTED FORMATS Table Entries: Mapped Video Payload (Gbps) [numberof 12Gbps links required] * (6Gbps)
not least the 20th birthday of networking technology Optocore. Two decades on from the first Optocore product being made available, its networks are used in OB vans,
HDTV2/8K
Pixels
Lines
Frames
10b 4:2:2/4:2:0 (Gbps)
10b 4:4:4( :4) (Gbps)
12b 4:4:4 (Gbps)
12b 4:2:2(:4) (Gbps)
7680
4320
120/119.88
80 [8]
160 [16]
160 [16]
160 [16]
7680
4320
100
67 [8]
133 [16]
133 [16]
133 [16]
7680
4320
60/59.94
40 [4]
80 [8]
80 [8]
80 [8]
UHDTV2UHDTV2/8K OPTION
7680
4320
50
34 [4]
67 [8]
67 [8]
67 [8]
UHDTV1 OPTION
7680
4320
30/29.97
20 [2]
40 [4]
40 [4]
40 [4]
the company founders created a separate
7680
4320
25
17 [2]
34 [4]
34 [4]
34 [4]
company, BroaMan, to focus on the
STANDARD
32 [4]
studios, stadiums, theatres and more. In 2012,
broadcast and AV markets. On a busy PL+S stand, Tine Helmle, who was
UHDTV1/4K UHDTV1/4K
Optocore VP of sales and marketing from 20012012 and now serves as BroaMan’s managing director, reflected: “A lot of this success is down to the fact that the technology is rock-solid, user-friendly, long-lasting, and involves low power consumption; the green aspect of our
7680
4320
24/23.98
16 [2]
32 [4]
32 [4]
3840
2160
120/119.88
20 [2]
40 [4]
40 [4]
40 [4]
3840
2160
100
17 [2]
34 [4]
34 [4]
34 [4] 20 [2]
3840
2160
60/59.94
10 [1]
20 [2]
20 [2]
3840
2160
50
9 [1]
17 [2]
17 [2]
17 [2]
3840
2160
30/29.97
5 [1] *
10 [1]
10 [1]
10 [1]
3840
2160
25
5 [1] *
9 [1]
9 [1]
9 [1]
3840
2160
24/23.98
4 [1] *
8 [1]
8 [1]
8 [1]
* in development
Phabrix® Limited Omega House, Enterprise Way, Thatcham, Berkshire RG19 4AE United Kingdom tel + 44 (0)1635 873030 email: info@phabrix.com www.phabrix.com
products is very important. We have great clients worldwide, a great worldwide portfolio, and brilliant projects to work on. So yes, we
36-37 TVBE May16 Audio v1JMcK.indd 2
Made in the UK
14/04/2016 10:27
38 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
Data Centre
The changing rules of engagement own a tablet than ‘Gen Xers’ or baby boomers.
The face of the broadcast industry is changing, but just how quickly are millennials altering the rules? Jim O’Neill, principal analyst for Ooyala, investigates
Perhaps a surprising statistic is that 60 per cent of Singaporeans own a tablet.
A pirate’s life for me? With regards to pirating content, there is no
A
cross the world, we all have our
from APAC were, perhaps unsurprisingly, the
point any more. Millennials grew up in an age
differences over what makes good
same as what is happening in Europe, US
of early streaming, when there was little to
television, but it seems the one thing we
and the rest of the world; mobile is slowly but
no content worth watching that was legal to
all agree on is that we want to watch it on the
steadily becoming the dominant form of
stream. Nowadays, those same millennials have
move. Ooyala’s recent Q4 2015 Global Video
video consumption.
realised that it is much easier to pay a fair price
Index has taken a look at the recent trends
Mobile video in APAC makes up nearly 50 per
for content from a reliable source – not only is it
which appeared in the past few months across
cent of all video plays, in line with the global
higher quality than illegally streamed content,
the world, and what have we discovered? Well,
trend. As in other regions, mobile devices are
but it is also virus free.
we’re all on the same page (or device). By
popular for consuming all kinds of video content,
To give an example of the impact of high
zooming in on the APAC region, it seems we’ve
both long and short, with smartphones being the
quality, legal streaming on the pirating industry,
concluded that these countries are consistent
most dominant device.
illegal downloads dropped by 29 per cent six
xxx xxxxx
with the rest of the world in terms of using mobile
months after Netflix launched in Australia, a
devices to watch video, with nearly half of all
Tablets everywhere
video views on smartphones and tablets.
There is, however, one significant difference
The most recent version of our report, which
country notorious for pirating. Content owners, meanwhile, have begun
Tablets are more popular for content
to discover that making content available
looks at the way 220 million users watch video
consumption in APAC than anywhere else in the
at a reasonable cost also has other benefits:
by collecting data from more than 3.8 million
world. The rest of us may use smartphones more
a revenue line can be created where there
video events a day, also showed strong growth
than six times as often as tablets to watch video,
was not one before, and if your content is
in programmatic advertising, xxxxx a bump in viewing
yet in APAC it’s less than four times this figure.
good enough, you create a reliable and
on tablet devices, and a marked homogeneity xxxx
At the moment, the trend can be put down
lasting fan base.
worldwide in how long-form video is consumed.
X
to those adopting tablets early on. However,
millennials are behind all of this. They’re the cord-
generation is the most tablet-penetrated ever,
2013. And, while the explosive period of growth
nevers, the mobile-first generation and the former
many having been given tablets on their first day
that mobile experienced two years ago has
pirates driving this global phenomenon. They’re
of school. Globally, tablet ownership is surprisingly
slowed somewhat, it’s far too early to say mobile
also universal. Millennials in Los Angeles, Berlin,
homogeneous by region. In the US, 53 per cent
has plateaued. In fact, a number of factors point
São Paulo, Bangkok, Singapore, London and
of respondents to a recent GlobalWebIndex
to a slight pause – or shifting of gears – before
Moscow are, essentially, the same; at least when
survey said they owned a tablet, followed by
mobile accelerates anew. These take into
it comes to mobile devices and the video they
consumers in Latin America (50 per cent), Middle
account some recent announcements by major
watch on them.
East and Africa (48 per cent), Asia Pacific (45
wireless carriers rolling out expanded mobile
per cent), and Europe (42 per cent). Nearly
video services, publishers increasingly turning
video consumption in 15 countries from within
half of global internet users aged 16 to 64 own
to video as a way to grow their businesses,
in the APAC region. When compared with our
tablets (47 per cent of males and 46 per cent of
expansion of faster 4G wireless networks and
previous European report (Q3 2015), the results
females), with (surprise!) millennials more likely to
cheaper data and devices point.
the use of tablets is sure to grow even more as
It’s a millennial wwww thing
Mobile use continues to grow
the generations following the millennials adopt
Mobile video views topped 46 per cent in the
Baby boomers may be loath to pass the torch
tablets more and more.
fourth quarter, an increase of 35 per cent in the
xxxxx n
to another generation, but the reality is that the
In this quarter’s video index, Ooyala looks at
38-39 TVBE May16 Data centre Ooyala v3 HAJMcK.indd 1
But why is this the case? The younger
past year, and more than 170 per cent since
15/04/2016 16:44
TVBEurope 39
May 2016 www.tvbeurope.com
Data Centre For only the second time in the past five years,
quarter for the past year. Programmatic has
saying that they already use programmatic ad
video views on tablets increased their share of
gained huge traction across the whole industry
technology for video, a huge proportion (90 per
mobile plays, something we’ll continue to see as
over this period. Nearly two thirds of marketers
cent) are using it for mobile. In Brazil, nearly 40 per
trailing millennials and digital natives move more
plan to increase programmatic ad spend in
cent of marketers say they plan to increase their
forcefully into the space with tablet devices they
2016, which is more than twice the number of
spending on data-driven marketing this year, up
have grown accustomed to.
marketers who had this intention for 2015.
from 22 per cent a year ago.
In APAC, tablets are already making their mark,
US programmatic digital video ad spending
It is undeniable that the trend for video viewing
contributing up 22 per cent of all mobile views,
topped $2.91 billion in 2015, a number expected
on mobile is expected. What Ooyala’s Q4 Video
with usage in Australia topping 29 per cent,
to increase nearly 85 per cent to $5.37 billion
Index report shows, however, is the consistency
behind just New Zealand (31 per cent) and the
in 2016. The figure for specific mobile video
in its growth over the past year, highlighting how
Philippines (32 per cent).
programmatic spend is expected to reach $3.79
important it is for content providers to recognise
billion by 2017, more than three times as much as
this, and act on creating high quality content,
Programmatic adoption on the rise
was spent on the same thing in 2015.
going into the remainder of 2016. Programmatic
Beyond video consumption, key indicators from
is expected globally, forecasting that the
the focus of the investment naturally focussing on
our video index also demonstrate the continued
programmatic share of digital video ad spend
mobile devices, another area that the industry
growth in programmatic advertising that the
will increase more than 24 per cent in 2016 in
needs to concentrate on in order to capitalise
industry has seen consistently quarter over
EMEA. With 79 per cent of APAC ad professionals
on this growth. n
Research group MediaMath suggests growth
spending has also increased significantly, with
ENGAGEMENT BY DEVICE FOR COUNTIRES WITH THE MOST VIDEO VIEWS, APAC Q4 2015
THE RISE OF THE MOBILE VIDEO Q4 2015
PHONE n TABLET n DESKTOP n
SHARE OF PHONE VIDEO PLAYS n SHARE OF TABLET VIDEO PLAYS n SUM OF PHONE + TABLET VIDEO PLAYS n 100%
50%
40% 75% 30% 50%
20%
10% 25% 0% JUL 2013
JAN 2014
JUL 2014
JAN 2014
JUL 2015
0% AUSTRALIA
38-39 TVBE May16 Data centre Ooyala v3 HAJMcK.indd 2
JAPAN
MALAYSIA
SINGAPORE
INDIA
PHILIPPINES
VIETNAM
NEW ZELAND
INDONESIA
SOUTH KOREA
15/04/2016 16:56
Save the Date IBC2016 Conference 8 – 12 September 2016 Exhibition 9 – 13 September 2016 RAI, Amsterdam
Where the entertainment, media and technology industry does business
IBC.org
new tvbe template remade.indd 1
13/04/2016 12:54
TVBEurope 41
May 2016 www.tvbeurope.com
Data Centre
Move over millenials Enter Generation Z investments: Vice Media has received two rounds
EY’s latest report explains the nuances of Generation Z and how their preferences and habits are dictating the strategies of M&E companies. Holly Ashford investigates
M
of investment from Disney; NBCUniversal holds stakes in BuzzFeed and Vox Media; Comcast also has a stake in Vox Media, is an investor in ftiness tracker creator Jawbone, social network Nextdoor
uch has been said of millenials, but it is
understand their customers need to see this as a
and fantasy sports provider FanDuel. Leaders
a new breed of consumer which media
call to action, and to translate this information into
are investing in unicorns to limit disruption, open
and entertainment (M&E) leaders need
viable products, services and business models.
up new distribution channels and capture new
to turn their attention to: enter Generation Z. In its
The industry as a whole is quickly shifting from
technology, as well as to and retain customers
recent report, ‘From innovation to expectation
B2B to B2C models, which makes understanding
and access new ones.
– how M&E leaders are responding to Gen Z’, EY
customers more paramount to success than
defines the group as digitally native, social media
ever before.”
The outlook is positive, according to the report, with 81 per cent of M&E executives saying the
savvy, and the first to grow up immersed in mobile
To better understand where investments are
technology and mobile video. The entrepreneurial,
being made, EY conducted proprietary analyses
52 per cent who said that a year ago. In the
innovative Generation Z plays an active part
of two groups. These included today’s leading
year ahead, 73 per cent of executives indicate
in content discovery and creation, and seeks
telecoms, technology and media companies but
the M&A market will improve, up from 49 per
immersive experiences.
also the next generation of companies in those
cent last year.
Future consumers The report defines Generation Z, sometimes called the iGeneration, as those born since the mid-1990s, representing about 25 per cent of the US population. Ninety-one per cent of teens (a core part of Generation Z) have access to a
global economy is improving, compared with
Capitalising on IoT
‘Seventy-three per cent of executives indicate the M&A market will improve, up from 49 per cent last year’
The Internet of Things (IoT) will play a significant role in how companies obtaining and monetise on customer data, according to EY, allowing M&E companies to capture information about their customers and deliver relevant content
smartphone, 65 per cent have access to a tablet,
accordingly. Success relies on combining
90 per cent watch YouTube daily, and in just four
three efforts: doubling down on data; telling
years time the group will make up as much as 40 per cent of the US consumer market. In a rapidly progressing digital world,
stories and building experiences; and partnership sectors. An analysis by EY of revenue streams, as well as investments and deal activity, reveals
and acquisitions. The humble set-top box can, and should, be
technologies such as virtual reality, driverless cars
how the top ten in each of telecoms, technology
utilised as a data-collecting device. Its capabilities
and 3D printing no longer surprise Generation Z,
and media remain leaders in core areas, but
are demonstrated by Comcast, which collects
who have moved ‘from innovation to expectation’
it also shows where overlaps are increasing.
viewing data from almost 90 per cent of its
and no longer see tech as disruptive.
Convergence is happening in six principal areas,
subscribers, and monetises this with personalised
and by far the three most common are: digital
ad solutions, and by making data available to
consumption models, capturing consumer insights
advertising, electronic games, and cable, pay-TV
third parties.
and translating them into viable products, services,
networks and internet broadcasting (OTT).
M&E leaders must respond to changing
business models and investments. “Understanding the post-millennial consumer
Unicorns exist
Telling stories The second focus for M&E companies needs to
can prove challenging, but thanks to data
The analysis focuses on 60 ‘unicorns’; the world’s
be on storytelling. Generation Z are interested
analytics and sensor technologies, we now
most value, privately held companies that are
in seamless experiences and building ongoing
have more insight into customers than at any
less than ten years old with market valuations
relationships, which M&E companies must
time in history,” said Martyn Whistler, EY media
greater than $1 billion. ‘Decacorns’ have a market
capitalise on. Sky’s Sky Q box is an example of
and entertainment lead analyst. “Media
valuation of $10 billion or greater. Incumbents are
this, designed to create a TV viewing ‘ecosystem’
and entertainment companies struggling to
taking positions in unicorns and creating a web of
in the home. The service enables users to watch
41 42 TVBE May16 Data Centre_v2 HAJMcK.indd 1
14/04/2016 10:31
42 TVBEurope
www.tvbeurope.com May 2016
Data Centre content around the home on different devices, as part of what the company has dubbed ‘Fluid Viewing’. Sky Q allows users to control all connected devices, and offers, according to Sky’s Jeremy Darroch, “a brilliant new way for customers
“We now have more insight into customers than at any time in history” Martyn Whistler, EY
to experience TV on their terms”.
recently partnered with technology firm Philips, and is using its app to integrate programming with Philips’ Hue smart lighting system. Shows are synced to lighting, with changes in the storyline reflected in changing colours and brightness. Such partnerships show what can be achieved by combining two elements of IoT, and offer a starting point for further
Seeking a partner
development through novel collaborations.
Partnerships and acquisitions are the fastest
It is vital for M&E leaders to acknowledge
route to expanding capabilities, accessing new
distribution, cable pay-TV networks and internet
and better utilise data on Generation Z, an
business models and achieving scale, according
broadcasting and digital advertising. In addition
increasingly dominant proportion of consumers.
to the report. In order to reach new customers,
to telco and tech specialists, M&E leaders are
It is only by gaining a better understanding of
technology, media and telecommunications
seeking partners in cyber security services, health
data on Generation Z’s behaviours and desires,
companies are investing in common areas:
providers, automotive companies and appliance
EY reports, that M&E will win against emerging
voice/data connectivity and multichannel video
manufacturers. NBCUniversal’s Syfy Channel
competitive threats. n
Capital confidence continues to rise
81% 73%
of M&E executives say the global economy is improving
say the global M&A will stay strong in the year ahead
Digital continues to have the greatest impact on M&E companies’ core business and accquisition strategies
UK China US India
Australia
Top investment areas include China, the US, the UK, India and Australia 41 42 TVBE May16 Data Centre_v2 HAJMcK.indd 2
15/04/2016 16:46
r a e y t x e n in ga a u See yo in Amsterdam. Full Page 1 new tvbeTemplate.indd template remade.indd 1 1 ISE2017_SeeYou_220x290_.indd
A joint venture partnership of
2/15/2016 12:17:26 11:42 PM 13/04/2016 12:55 15.02.16
new tvbe template remade.indd 1
13/04/2016 12:57