May2012
www.tvbeurope.com
TVBEurope 41 Broadcasting in the Cloud Wake up and smell the cumulonimbi
Security is one of the key concerns of the broadcast industry when it comes to holding valuable digital assets in the Cloud. ByBen Roeder, CTO, Sohonet
IT IS not surprising that the broadcast industry is a tad circumspect about cloud computing, since no other industry values its digital assets more highly. Yet it is precisely because of the industry’s need to create and manage ever larger volumes of high-quality, fast- moving data that it will have to look to the Cloud, if it really wants to do this effectively and cost-efficiently. The use of Cloud-based services has been around for decades, with the virtualisation of mainframes in the early 1980s and ever improving virtualisation technologies to enable data centres to significantly condense hardware platforms into cost- effective, energy-efficient, space saving single entities. Cloud-based services offer huge computational power and innovative, hosting service solutions at the flick of a switch and at pay-as-you-go prices. We are all increasingly turning
away from the physical world of discs and tapes and moving into an omnipotent digital world. Businesses — especially the highly creative media and entertainment industries — will ignore this fact at their peril. Did video game retailer Game really stand a chance when kids are
Ben Roeder: “It’s all good stuff. So why is the industry dragging its heels in taking part? The answer is pretty simple. SECURITY”
increasingly buying from the Cloud? Why bother waiting for days for your game to arrive in the post when you can have it right now directly on your Xbox, Playstation or PC — for the same price or less? It might just be game over for bricks and mortar retailers like Game. But, for the likes of digital online games platforms like Steam from Valve — the sky really does seem the limit. Like the games industry, the Cloud is also impacting the consumption of films and other media. According to a recent report from IHS Screen Digest, 2012 will mark the tipping point when US consumers will pay more for online films than physical media — a historic worldwide migration of consumption from physical to online. The content production industries should take note. It’s not just about moving away from tape to digital methods of content production and delivery anymore — already revolutionising the broadcast industry in many positive ways —
it’s also about managing, storing and innovating content in new and exciting ways.
Faster innovation Cloud services will not just enable the industry to innovate better and faster. Flexible, pay-as-you go cloud solutions will give smaller players increased business agility and the opportunity to compete with the big guys — helping to further democratise the industry. In fact, the Cloud is the ‘poster
solution’ for the recession. By leveraging third-party computing solutions and capability over the network and reducing browser- based workstations across the enterprise, broadcasters can significantly cut costs, increase
organisations to standardise their workflow templates and interfaces so that everyone in the production and delivery lifecycle can collaborate to deliver a more consistent result. Cloud services will undoubtedly make the world a much smaller, more energetic place with their increased facilitation of remote and 24/7 working practices.
Security concerns It’s all good stuff. So why is the industry dragging its heels in taking part? The answer is pretty simple. SECURITY. Content owners are more obsessive about their digital assets than any other industry and understandably so. Even the digital off-cuts of the
get more valuable an asset than our money — then it’s high time that our industry wakes up to the very real possibilities that the Cloud can bring financially, creatively and collaboratively. The cultural change required within the industry does not necessarily have to be that painful. Technology providers need to educate the industry better to alleviate its fears. If it’s the internet-based concept that initially makes media owners nervous, then technology providers should explain the security benefits of dedicated hosted services and private cloud networks. With multi-Gigabit bandwidth speeds now much cheaper, the
In fact, the Cloud is the ‘poster solution’ for the recession. Broadcasters can significantly cut costs, increase productivity, reduce risks and dramatically improve their business agility
productivity, reduce risks and improve their business agility. Content producers and
broadcasters will be able to realise much faster, more convenient and more affordable access to the very latest technical advances without having to invest in expensive R&D trials or the constant mainten - ance of soft ware updates and bug fixes. User-friendly
tools, high- performance hosting and strong levels of service reliability will enable
latest blockbuster are valuable — to keep the project itself under wraps and protect the questionable out-takes involving star talent. The broadcast industry
simply does not trust working within or indeed storing its highly prized assets in an intangible cloud world where it ultimately sees a hugely
reduced degree of control. Yet, if the financial industry can successfully revolutionise the way we manage our money with electronic banking — and let’s face it, you can’t
Cloud-based services offer huge computational power and innovative hosting service solutions at the flick of a switch and at pay-as-you-go prices
high-performance networks required to facilitate effective cloud working are within easy grasp. The infrastructure is there, the creativity is there and the need to enhance production and delivery services is there. While technology providers need to reassure media businesses that cloud-based solutions are safe, secure, high-performing and compliant-friendly, media companies themselves would be wise to, at the least, ensure their network infrastructures are fit for purpose to embrace the next generation of production and delivery methods. I predict that those that adopt new Cloud services early will steal the creative thunder from those more reticent media corporations that sadly prefer to keep their feet firmly on terra firma.
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