Media backbone for the Olympics; automated QC for fast turnaround soaps; cloud-based delivery for Euro2012; BBC infrastructure from London to Salford; horror to reality at Chello Zone playout; digital delivery to Supersport South Africa; and a lot more besides! You should have been at TVBEurope’s June IT Broadcast Workflow conference at BAFTA: but if you couldn’t make it, Melanie Dayasena-Lowe, Dick Hobbsand Fergal Ringrosereport here on the event highlights
Introduction by Jeremy Bancroft, IT Broadcast Workflow conference chairman
What marked out the fourth TVBEurope IT Broadcast Workflow conference from its predecessors was a sense of realism. In previous iterations the message was that if only we move to a completely file-based environment all would be well: our operations will be faster, more productive and more agile. Today we are finally
acknowledging (it seemed from the series of case studies), that you never do have a completely clean sheet of paper. Even with a brand new building and technical infrastructure, like BBC Sport in its move to Salford, you still have the same staff, with long-established preferences in ways of working. Moving to an IT-driven system means, as much as anything, change management and business process management.
IN HIS opening remarks, conference chair Jeremy Bancroft of consultancy Media Asset Capital reminded us how quickly things are changing, and thus the dangers of planning too far in advance. Two-and-a- half years ago we had not heard of the iPad, yet no one today would deny the huge impact it has on broadcasters. Bancroft quoted research by Nielsen, which said that 70% of connected device — tablet and smartphone — owners used them while watching television, and 86% used them to watch video content. Not all of this is what some would call television, it must be said: that figure will include YouTube clips of cats in washing machines and other user generated content. On the other hand, anyone who has handled an iPad recognises its attractions as a media consumption device.
The Ericsson Media Lab is a
huge research project, and it has found that consumers are now viewing more hours of video on non-television devices than the conventional screen in the living room. Yet according to the most recent Big Broadcast Survey by Devoncroft, just 17% of broadcasters see the distribution and monetisation of content on other platforms as a top priority. Will the IT industry be the
salvation for broadcasters in the immediate future? Bancroft had serious doubts. The successful IT implementations in broadcasting have been led by broadcast companies, not IT businesses, he suggested. “We have to remember that we need IT companies, they do not need us. Broadcasters want small volumes of highly- tailored systems; IT companies want to supply large volumes of completely standard products.” His final thought concerned the changing economic climate for broadcasters. As an industry we have been used to amortising capital investments over seven or even 10 years: in the IT industry systems are obsolete in three years. Further, the equipment cannot be kept running by in-house engineering teams: you have to budget an additional 15-20% of the capital cost each year on support contracts. That can have a catastrophic effect on the business case. Having set the tone and
stimulated the interest of the delegates he handed over to the first session of the day, a panel session that attempted to tackle head-on the W word – workflow. — Dick Hobbs
70% of connected device
owners use them while watching television — Nielsen
Delegates take their seats for the first session of IT
Broadcast Workflow 2012 at BAFTA
ITBW Chairman Jeremy Bancroft (centre) welcomes delegates for pre-event coffee