TVBEurope sits down with Imagine Communications president Steve Reynolds to discuss the rise of AI, the use of actual intelligence, JPEG XS, partnerships with other media tech vendors, and more
By Jenny Priestley
Published: May 4, 2023 Updated: May 5, 2023
TVBEurope sits down with Imagine Communications' president Steve Reynolds to discuss the rise of AI, the use of actual intelligence , JPEG XS, partnerships with other media tech vendors, and more
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin>
Everybody's talking about artificial intelligence, whether you work in the media tech industry or not, AI is the big talking point at the moment.
AI isn't new to the media tech industry, vendors have been employing the technology for quite some time.
But with the rise of generative AI such as chatbots and AI-driven images, more and more media tech vendors are considering what the technology could offer as we go forward.
Steve Reynolds One such company is Imagine Communications, which has been looking at how AI could enhance both its video and production products. We haven't launched any products yet that include AI, he tells TVBEurope. There's a little bit of uncertainty right now in the market as to how things like ChatGPT are going to be used, so it's a little bit speculative for us right now to build any of that technology into our products.
But, adds Reynolds, from a technology standpoint obviously, Imagine is looking very closely at what it could be doing with AI and machine learning to enhance its products. Bottom line, we want to help our customers make content more efficiently, and we want to help them monetise audiences more effectively, he adds.
There's no question [AI and ML are] going to be a big piece of the future. There'll be some growing pains that we have to go through, there'll be regulatory stuff, there'll be business model stuff that's got to get figured out, but we're definitely keeping an eye on it.
Imagine's Aviator platform One of the ways AI is already being employed is in creating metadata. Imagine's Aviator is cloud-native platform that uses metadata to enable broadcasters, MVPDs and digital-first providers to plan, make and monetise premium-quality linear and OTT content from a single, unified platform.
Currently, Aviator does not employ AI, relying instead on Imagine's product team to create algorithms that deliver repeatable and valuable results. Graham Heap our product manager says, we're still in the phase where we're getting significant gains out of actual' intelligence, explains Reynolds. Moving forward, can AI and ML improve that? Yes, of course it can. And so those are the kinds of things that we're doing research on now to understand where we can continue to improve. But as a first step, just getting the metadata built into the system is pretty dramatic. That's what this Aviator framework is all about, tying together the plan, make and monetise pieces of content delivery.
CLOUD AND JPEG XS Another big topic of conversation within the industry is the rise of the ultra-low latency codec JPEG XS. Imagine has implemented the standard into its Selenio Network Processor, its IP media processing platform.
JPEG XS is high quality with low latency, explains Reynolds, and if you're doing production in the cloud, or you're doing contribution into cloud, both of those things become critically important.
At NAB 2023, Imagine launched Magellan Connect which extends the path-routing capabilities of Magellan into the cloud. It means users can include cloud infrastructure as a part of their entire video path. The reason that we're doing that is because as customers implement these hybrid topologies, they need to be able to see the entire topology, they can't have this kind of dotted line where it says prem' on one side and cloud' on the other, explains Reynolds.
They need to be able to see across the line and into what's happening up in the cloud, because ultimately, the endpoint for JPEG XS is somewhere up in the cloud, and you need to be able to control that.
Just before NAB Show, Imagine announced a partnership with Vizrt to integrate the Viz Vectar Plus cloud live production solution with Aviator. The aim is to provide a single cloud production/playout product to enable live production workflows for sports, news, and live events to feed downstream live linear workflows.
Imagine is not in the production business, states Reynolds. We're more on the origination and monetisation side of the business and so we work with partners on the production piece, and that link with Vizrt is getting tighter.
Imagine also announced a strategic partnership with Amagi, to provide significant benefits to TV networks and broadcasters, including a better-managed path for cloud migration, hybrid operations and orchestration, improved monetisation through advertising, and extensive reach into FAST and CTV platforms.
We're working with partners that have deep expertise. Amazon's a great example. Vizrt is a great example. Amagi is a great example. IntoPIX is a great example. We're really trying to work with companies in this space who are experts at what they do, he concludes.
Most recent headlines
06/10/2025
France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...
04/09/2025
Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...
07/08/2025
July 8 2025, 22:30 (PDT) Tata Motors & Dolby Bring Dolby Atmos to Harrier.ev, R...
12/07/2025
As the death toll continues to mount, with at least 120 killed and more than 170 people still missing on July 10 from devastating Texas floods, a number of broa...
12/07/2025
EL SEGUNDO, Calif., and MIAMI -DirecTV and TelevisaUnivision have signed a deal that will make the ad-supported premium subscription tier of ViX, ViX Premium wi...
11/07/2025
PARK CITY, UTAH, July 11, 2025 - The nonprofit Sundance Institute announced today the 11 producers chosen for its annual Producers Labs, returning to Ucross Fou...
11/07/2025
If you've ever wondered what might be playing in Clark Kent's headphones...
11/07/2025
L3Harris Technologies President of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Jason Lambert and General Manager of L3Harris Waco facility Sean Ling held a ce...
11/07/2025
ARLINGTON, Va. WETA, the flagship public media station in the national capital area, has launched WETA+, a new streaming service tailored for the local Washingt...
11/07/2025
The Federal Communications Commission has emerged as one of the central players in the broadcast TV landscape in 2025, with its deregulatory policies sparking h...
11/07/2025
Calrec will introduce usability, customization and system enhancements across its entire range of Argo consoles during IBC2025, Sept. 12-15, at the RAI Amsterda...
11/07/2025
LONDON Encompass Digital Media said it will support live and on-demand viewing of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup across multiple global regions for sports enterta...
11/07/2025
Two-thirds of broadcast engineers reaped the benefits of a pay raise within the last year....
11/07/2025
CARY, N.C. SmallHD has launched the Quantum 27, a new 26.5-inch Quantum-Dot OLED monitor designed to deliver postproduction image quality in a compact, set-frie...
11/07/2025
The Federal Communications Commission's Enforcement Bureau and Tegna have entered into a consent decree that will settle an investigation into the accidenta...
11/07/2025
WASHINGTON Following news in early July that Paramount had settled President Donald Trump's lawsuit, Sens. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Ben Ray Luj n (D-N...
11/07/2025
Model/Actriz Performs Lead Single Cinderella on The Late Show with Stephen Colbe...
11/07/2025
Behind the Mic: Amazon Prime Preps for First Season of NBA Action; MSG Networks ...
11/07/2025
SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Suite Studios' Craig Hering on Adapting to Client...
11/07/2025
2025 SVG Content Management Forum Breaks Down AI's Impact, Continued Transit...
11/07/2025
A Journey HOME: University of Nebraska's HuskerVision Goes IP Leaders from the HuskerVision and Lawo share their IP learnings By SVG Staff
Friday, July 1...
11/07/2025
CMSI, Remote Picture Labs, Ace ESPN's Cloud-Based Editing Efforts for Wimble...
11/07/2025
Netflix Enters the Live-Boxing-Production Ring for Round 2 With Historic Taylor-...
11/07/2025
Back to All News
Too Hot to Handle: Italy Is Coming on July 18 Only on Netflix
Entertainment
11 July 2025
GlobalItaly
Link copied to clipboard
July 11, 20...
11/07/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Will Release Death Inc. Seasons 1, 2 and 3
Entertainment
11 July 2025
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Season 1
Season 2
Se...
11/07/2025
AI and Multimedia Authenticity Standards Collaboration launches two papers to guide the future of AI integration, today at the AI for Good Global Summit
The...
11/07/2025
Ceramics - the humble mix of earth, fire and artistry - have been part of a global conversation for millennia.
From Tang Dynasty trade routes to Renaissance pa...
10/07/2025
The current holder of the prestigious Thomson Foundation Young Journalist of the Year Award has been forced to stop reporting over fears for her safety in Afgha...
10/07/2025
Spotify is turning up the volume on Australian music with a multipronged initiative designed to highlight the dominance of Australian artists on the global stag...
10/07/2025
This is not a drill: Oasis is back on the road-marking its first live performanc...
10/07/2025
The music industry depends on fresh ideas, bold voices, and emerging talent. Yet across the U.K., too many young musicians lack the space to develop their craft...
10/07/2025
NEW YORK - July 10, 2025 - Nielsen, the global leader in audience measurement, data and analytics, today announced that it appointed Richard Pacheco as head of ...
10/07/2025
Local newscasts don't exist in a vacuum. News directors and station management constantly evaluate what's working, what isn't and perhaps most impor...
10/07/2025
Lawo has announced that Stuttgart Media University (Hochschule der Medien, HdM) has comprehensively modernized its central recording studio after selecting an I...
10/07/2025
The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) has opened early-bird registration for the Media Technology Summit, which will take place in a ne...
10/07/2025
NASHVILLE, Tenn. TNDV Television has launched Aspiration 35, a new version of its 40-foot Aspiration truck reimagined for cinematic multicamera productions....
10/07/2025
BURBANK, Calif. Key Code Education, a provider of instructor-led postproduction training, is growing its curriculum with new programs for beginner and intermedi...
10/07/2025
HACKENSACK, N.J. Actus Digital will demonstrate how broadcasters can transform compliance monitoring from a necessary expense into a strategic revenue driver at...
10/07/2025
The Federal Register has published a summary of the Federal Communications Commission's Public Notice seeking comments on its ownership rules that lists a d...
10/07/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Presents the Official Trailer for SuperestarPlay Video
Play Video
Entertainment
10 July 2025
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard...
10/07/2025
In the race to understand our planet's changing climate, speed and accuracy are everything. But today's most widely used climate simulators often strugg...
10/07/2025
As one of the world's largest emerging markets, Indonesia is making strides toward its Golden 2045 Vision - an initiative tapping digital technologies and...
10/07/2025
10 Jul 2025
VEON and Cohen Circle Secure Investor Commitments for Kyivstar Listing Kyiv, New York, Dubai, and Philadelphia - July 10, 2025 - VEON Ltd. (Nasdaq:...
10/07/2025
5G for all? What the DFL's use of Easy5G and RefCam could mean for events in...
10/07/2025
Save the Date: PGA TOUR Studios Welcomes SVG Remote Production Summit on Oct 14-...
10/07/2025
Cloud on the Road: How Remote-Production-Service Providers Are Adapting to a New...
10/07/2025
Seattle Kraken's Ryan Schaber on the NHL Team Taking Live Game Productions I...
10/07/2025
FOX Sports Reboots Small Control Room in Los Angeles as Hub for Vertical-First P...
10/07/2025
SVG Sit-Down: MSE's Zach Leonsis, ViewLift's Rick Allen Go Deep on Joint...
TVBEurope sits down with Imagine Communications president Steve Reynolds to discuss the rise of AI, the use of actual intelligence, JPEG XS, partnerships with other media tech vendors, and more
