By Andrew Cross, president of global research and development at Vizrt
Jenny Priestley 2 days ago
By Andrew Cross, president of global research and development at Vizrt
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin> By Andrew Cross, president of global research and development at Vizrt
https://www.tvbeurope.com/features/sdvs-telegraph-road title=Share via Email class=share-email>
those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future. John F Kennedy
The future isn't on the horizon, it is well underway. Sitting in our chairs, comfortably immersed in the 21st century, it is all too easy to overlook an incredible revolution changing the world before our very eyes. We can be left behind on the curb wondering what just happened, or ride along as passengers; but do we have an opportunity to take the steering wheel and be part of the transformation.
Let's look back over relatively recent history to gain a wider perspective.
#1 Telegraph Road
Commercial use of the telegraph arrived around 1830. Before that, long-distance communication technology involved dispatch riders and carrier pigeons. We fervently hoped our messages arrived in time, and learned of remote events belatedly if ever. With the magic of the telegraph, messages traversed thousands of miles at virtually the speed of light, even thousands of miles at virtually the speed of light.
Important news and ideas spread like wildfire. It took about 80 years for the telegraph to arrive in the furthest corners of the world, available to nearly every social strata and human pursuit.
This changed the course of history, by delivering a better, more accurate story. We learned of news shortly after it happened, often from multiple sources and in more detail. This changed our reality, affecting our views and actions.
#2 Phoning Home
The next big revolution arrived in the early 1900s.
The telegraph required specialist skills and necessitated a trip to the telegraph office but the telephone allowed anyone to talk and talk back! No longer forced to accept the story as told, we ask questions, discuss details, debate meaning. Since we do so in real-time, the story (or our story) can affect events even as they unfold.
Still, again it took about 80 years before the telephone was a common fixture in most homes. (Despite its wireless advantages, cost and complexity prevented tow-way radio from enjoying a similar adoption.)
Looking back, we see that while the telegraph has been relegated to period dramas, and radio serves only niche applications, the telephone still dominates technological and societal change well over a century later.
#3 The Video Revolution
During the 1950s and 60s we see the rise of television. The 80s and 90s bring personal computing, and the internet.
Accelerated commoditisation delivered these to the masses quickly, over just about four decades. We could argue, though, that compared to the telephonic revolution these play only a supporting role.
The romantic notion many have of The Golden Era of Television', the family basking happily in the glow of a cathode ray tube is really only relevant in the affluent West. As you read this, the majority of the global viewing audience is watching television' on their mobile phones. In this respect, the development of television or the internet that the western world were not the big revolutions often claimed. While they played a role in bringing us to this day, TV, personal computing and the Internet didn't even reach much of the world until the mobile revolution.
Leveraging those advances, mobile' conquered the planet as its devices appeared in every home, hut, pocket and purse.
It's easy enough to identify earlier technical revolutions in hindsight. It is harder to recognise them in their infancy.
We must look deeper to see past countless lesser glitzy details vying for our attention to understand where it's all leading. While significant milestones, rolling out thousands of miles of copper across the seabeds, converting analogue data to zeros and ones by the trillion, and building Clouds to store them all in were not in themselves revolutionary. These were just the building blocks of real transformation. Having laid these foundation cornerstones, what did we erect on it?
#4 A Technology Convergence
In less than a decade beginning around 2010, the confluence of computing power, broadband networks, and software providing stunning integrated video production tools led to this singular moment, when almost anyone in the world can broadcast their story in the blink of an eye using the fastest, most impactful form of communication ever devised (we communicate most effectively face-to-face and visually, evaluating subtle cues impossible to sense when merely hearing or reading humans have literally evolved to communicate face-to-face).
The majority of mankind can now explore the universe and its wonders better and faster than the best-equipped scientists of even the recent past. You can watch your kids play football when far from home, and they can be in their grandparent's daily lives even when oceans separate them. Teenagers in many lands not only have a TV and a camera in their pocket, but are broadcasters with their own personal TV network. And the resulting explosion of content is profoundly affecting our understanding of the world.
(Admittedly this also raises some concerns. It can be a big challenge to distinguish fake news' from truth. And as we have seen, this really matters, because the medium is so potent that the stories directly shape societies, for better or worse.)
Note closely, please, the greatly accelerated pace of this latter revolution. It took many decades and nation-sized budgets to lay wire for the global telephone system under oceans and over mount
Most recent headlines
04/08/2024
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, is excited to announce Santiago Solanas as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO)....
03/06/2024
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, a...
01/06/2024
Busy this week catching up from the Memorial Day holiday? Our TV Tech weekly wrap-up of all our coverage of new products, services and deployments will get you ...
01/06/2024
Young Sherlock, with Guy Ritchie directing and executive producing, is a go at Prime Video. Hero Fiennes Tiffin plays Sherlock. Prime Video calls it the origin...
01/06/2024
The Los Angeles Sparks-Indiana Fever game on Friday featuring the top two WNBA draft picks, Caitlin Clark and Cameron Brink, was the most watched WNBA game on I...
01/06/2024
Lionsgate, which increased its majority stake in 3 Arts Entertainment in January, said it named Brian Weinstein co-CEO of 3 Arts....
01/06/2024
Netflix is launching four video games based on unscripted series this year. They...
01/06/2024
ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox affiliates switched from their regular programming to carry live coverage of the verdicts in the porn star hush-money trial of former Pres...
31/05/2024
A U.S. Marine fires an FIM-92 Stinger missile during a training exercise in Yuma...
31/05/2024
NEW YORK The global body that sets technical standards for digital advertising h...
31/05/2024
In a new analysis of what services might make up a good bundle and what services might benefit the most from bundling, Antenna has released new data that highli...
31/05/2024
Global SVOD revenues will increase by $116.6 billion by 2031, a growth rate of 13.3% per year over the next eight years, according to a new report from MIDiA Re...
31/05/2024
WASHINGTON, D.C. The FCC Media Bureau has announced that effective August 1, 2024 the Commission's TVStudy software will incorporate the most recent U.S. Ce...
31/05/2024
NBCUniversal has announced that its FAST channel TNBC will be rebranding to NBC Comedy Vault on June 1 and that the free streaming service will officially launc...
31/05/2024
PARIS Ateme has announced that the Indonesian public broadcaster TVRI is making the transition to 4K UHD OTT streaming using Ateme technologies....
31/05/2024
The proposal had received support from James Cameron, Andy Serkis, Paul Greengrass, Richard Curtis, and Jeremy Irons
By Matthew Corrigan
Published: May 31, 2...
31/05/2024
According to multiple reports, the new bid from Skydance offers a better deal to Paramounts Class B shareholders, who were said to be unhappy with the companys ...
31/05/2024
The awards recognise women and companies who are stand-out performers, innovators and leaders in the broadcast media technology industry
By Matthew Corrigan
...
31/05/2024
NEW YORK The global body that sets technical standards for digital advertising has expanded the reach of its measurement software development kit to include Sam...
31/05/2024
The rise of digital platforms is fundamentally changing the broadcast newsroom and its investment in technology according to Jon Roberts, director of technology...
31/05/2024
In a new analysis of what services might make up a good bundle and what services might benefit the most from bundling, Antenna has released new data that highli...
31/05/2024
WASHINGTON, D.C. Fifty state broadcasters associations, including the District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, have sent a letter to Congressio...
31/05/2024
EVS has announced the appointment of Richard Katz as senior vice president of operations for the North and Latin American (NALA) region. This appointment is par...
31/05/2024
CommScope has announced that it was selected by Casa Systems, Inc. as the highest to acquire Casa's cable business assets and that the two companies have en...
31/05/2024
Robert De Niro won't be receiving the Service to America Leadership Award from the NAB Leadership Foundation after all....
31/05/2024
Viant Technology said it formed an integration with Google Cloud's BigQuery data clean rooms...
31/05/2024
The CW said it will broadcast the 2024 Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl presented by Gin & Juice by Dre and Snoop Last year, The CW aired the game when it was called Bar...
31/05/2024
Allen Media Group said it made a deal with Amazon's Fire TV Channel that will make content from several of Allen's outlet available via Fire TV and Echo...
31/05/2024
Robert De Niro, announced as the winner of the NAB's Leadership Foundation's Service to America Leadership Award on May 28, will not get the award. The ...
31/05/2024
Comcast Technology Solutions was selected by AccuWeather to create, manage and distribute linear and over-the-top video channels....
31/05/2024
Connected TV is becoming a bigger deal for consumers and advertisers, according to a new report from TVision....
31/05/2024
By Craig Anderton
Let's get right to what this sounds like. It's not quite feedback or tape reverse, it's well, listen to what it does in this blue...
31/05/2024
31 May 2024
VEON discloses April YTD trading update at its AGM Amsterdam, 31 May 2024 07:00 CEST -
VEON April YTD 2024 Highlights
Total revenue of USD 1,278 ...
31/05/2024
31 May 2024
VEON Announces Its New Board, Names Founder Augie Fabela as Chairman Amsterdam, 31 May 2024, 16.00 CET: VEON Ltd. (NASDAQ: VEON, Euronext Amsterdam...
31/05/2024
May 31st, 2024
TRIBECA FESTIVAL AND OPEN AI ANNOUNCE SORA SHORTS'
Five Commissioned Short Films Created Using Sora Debut at 2024 Tribeca Festival
New ...
31/05/2024
In-Venue Technology Wrap-Up: How 4K, IP, and More are Changing the Game Pres Gam...
31/05/2024
UEFA Champions League Final 2024: The host broadcast facts and figures for Real ...
31/05/2024
UEFA Europa Conference League Final 2024: Bringing the broadcast to global TV sc...
31/05/2024
Willow Offers Free 2024 ICC T20 Cricket World Cup Preview via DirecTV, Verizon, ...
31/05/2024
Women's College World Series: ESPN Brings Live Drone, Two-Point Cabled, and ...
31/05/2024
SVG College Summit Brings Video-Production Industry Together in Atlanta in the M...
31/05/2024
UEFA Champions League Final 2024: CBS Sports' UCL Today Studio Show Is Pitch...
31/05/2024
Back to All News
Master of the House' Unveils a Scandalous Tale of Power and Greed on July 18
Entertainment
31 May 2024
GlobalThailand
Link copied to ...
31/05/2024
Back to All News
JEEtu Bhaiya is Back: Kota Factory' Season 3 Arrives on Netflix June 20
Entertainment
31 May 2024
GlobalIndia
Link copied to clipboar...
31/05/2024
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
With around 9,000 employees, Ground Transportation Systems is a global leader in Rail Signaling and Train Control Systems, Telec...
31/05/2024
RT 2FM is the home of music this summer, entertaining listeners across the day and night, with the best music, chat and interviews providing the soundtrack to ...
31/05/2024
After the 2008 financial crisis and increased risk-management regulations that f...
31/05/2024
RT Supporting the Arts: What's On this June
Watch our promo: RT Supporting the Arts | What's on YouTube
This June, RT is delighted to support Lim...
30/05/2024
When to Upgrade Software or Firmware This post is from our blog and news archive. The information may be out of date. Please contact us for further information ...
By Andrew Cross, president of global research and development at Vizrt
