Lars Larsson, CEO at Varnish Software details why CDNs are key to meeting consumers' expectations of 5G
By Contributor
Published: January 21, 2021
Lars Larsson, CEO at Varnish Software details why CDNs are key to meeting consumers' expectations of 5G
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin> Lars Larsson, CEO at Varnish Software details why CDNs are key to meeting consumers' expectations of 5G
https://www.tvbeurope.com/media-delivery/getting-close-to-the-edge title=Share via Email class=share-email>
There has long been significant hype around 5G and the possibilities it can bring to businesses and consumers, but 2020 saw that interest grow to new levels. The technology has been something the general public have been aware of for some time, however, it is the launch of new flagship handsets from consumer technology giants that is driving the latest wave of hype around 5G.
Discount the conspiracy theories linking the technology to the coronavirus pandemic, you'll see that the largest search volumes associated with 5G are related to those premium handsets. Indeed, the week of Apple's iPhone 12 launch saw a significant spike in searches for 5G, refuelling the hype-train, with promises of how 5G will improve video streaming as well as a host of other applications.
But, even if they're equipped with the latest 5G capable mobile devices, consumers won't experience real' 5G streaming for a while, as networks aren't sufficiently developed and standalone 5G is still in the works.
Currently, almost all the 5G commercial networks are non-stand-alone' (NSA), meaning they are reliant on the operator's existing 4G core infrastructure, and don't yet support the full span of 5G performance capabilities. Therefore, in reality, the biggest benefit to those that have got on-board early with 5G is its enhanced speed.
With that, video/game streaming will likely be the first area to really benefit - in a similar way to the launch of 4G - with content shops already starting to market themselves on the 5G experience they can deliver.
Delivering on demand One of the main draws of 5G networks is the ability to support many more devices simultaneously than 4G, as well as being able to offer higher bandwidth and reduced latency. Once full stand-alone (SA) 5G networks are more commonplace, this will be more noticeable, but it means that more people will be able to simultaneously stream high resolution video content.
Here, quality of experience is key. Consumers have high expectations after years of hype, so streaming providers need to ensure they are delivering experiences in line with the premium prices people have paid for the privilege of their services and the devices capable of accessing them.
For streaming services, getting the quality of experience right isn't just about the IP, it's about ensuring content loads quickly, doesn't buffer, and streams in the highest possible resolution. This is as much about the providers content delivery network (CDN) as it is the consumer's connectivity.
Popular content, such as Disney Plus's The Mandalorian, will have huge numbers of people all trying to access the latest episodes as soon as they become available on the platform. With such large numbers of people trying to stream that content at the same time, and potentially in 4K, bottlenecks at the server hosting that content can appear quickly, causing lag, buffering, or even failure to load content at all.
This has always been an issue for streaming, no matter the resolution or connectivity type, however the higher the resolution the larger the file sizes involved, and with 5G the number of devices accessing content concurrently can increase dramatically too - putting greater strain on the origin server.
To tackle this, streaming providers need to work with CDN providers. Together they are able to build systems that allow multiple cached copies of popular content to be hosted on servers closer to their users at the very edges of the network. This not only reduces the bottleneck on the origin server, by spreading the load across multiple locations, but in locating content much closer to the users, the time it takes for those servers to respond to user requests is significantly reduced too.
Placing this caching layer close to the edge of the network to reduce latency and increase the number of devices that can stream content concurrently is critical to providing the optimal quality of experience.
A new virtual reality Traditional CDNs however, will face significant pressure to keep up with 5G as it rolls out. True, real-time content distribution will necessitate the storage of significant volumes of content at the edge of the network.
A new breed of virtual content delivery networks (vCDNs), is now helping streaming providers future proof their networks and prepare to usher in an era of true 5G experiences.
Tightly integrated with the network infrastructure and utilising edge cloud data centres, rather than the more traditional data centre sites, these vCDNs make the most of the inherently different architectures of 5G networks, compared to their predecessors. This means they can more easily be built in urban areas much closer to where the user density is highest, and as such allowing providers to locate their cached content where it will have the greatest impact on backhaul and latency.
These highly elastic, cloud-native vCDNs can handle much higher densities than traditional equivalents, meaning use cases that have historically been difficult to service, such as those needed in stadiums and city centres, are now able to see sub-millisecond cache response times, with zero lag or buffering.
As 5G networks continue to roll out, the demand for streaming higher resolution content on an ever increasing numb
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
13/06/2026
Latest expansion pack includes 252 presets
Devious Machines have recently introduced another expansion for their powerful multi-effects plug-in, Infiltrator...
13/06/2026
Create custom DAW/plug-in controllers using prompts
MetaGrid have recently introduced an all-new AI Builder function to their touchscreen-based control surf...
13/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
YES Network and The Gotham Sports App will air seven Athletes Unlimited Softball...
12/06/2026
The United Football League will host its FAST Innovation Suite at the 2026 United Bowl presented by Credit One Bank on Saturday, June 13 at 3:00 p.m. ET at Audi...
12/06/2026
PTZOptics and LayerJot will present live demonstrations at InfoComm 2026 showing how natural-language AI prompting, robotic camera control, and on-device comput...
12/06/2026
MultiDyne Video and Fiber Optic Systems will exhibit at InfoComm 2026, featuring...
12/06/2026
Ateme has announced that Eurovision Services is using Ateme's software-based frame-rate conversion technology for international live event workflows. The de...
12/06/2026
Bitmovin and Simplestream have announced a partnership with Xperi to simplify the launch of OTT streaming services on TiVo OS smart TVs and devices. The collabo...
12/06/2026
Net Insight has announced that a multinational technology company is deploying a...
12/06/2026
MLB Players Inc., the business arm of the MLB Players Association, has announced a partnership with Athletes First to develop and sell brand partnerships across...
12/06/2026
Guntermann and Drunck (G&D) and VuWall have announced the CommandKeyboard-Advanc...
12/06/2026
Comcast Smart Solutions announces a new smart technology deployment with Major L...
12/06/2026
Elevation Worship completed the initial leg of its Elevation Nights 2026 tour ...
12/06/2026
AJA Video Systems has announced KONA IP25 support for Colorfront Transkoder and ...
12/06/2026
Audinate Group Limited (ASX: AD8) will exhibit at InfoComm 2026 (Booth C7321, Ce...
12/06/2026
Pac-12 Commissioner Teresa Gould has announced the appointment of Scott Adametz as Chief Technology Officer. The Pac-12 describes the hire as the first CTO appo...
12/06/2026
Grass Valley has announced AMPP Edge Live, a production system combining Grass Valley hardware, NVIDIA Blackwell GPU acceleration, and AMPP OS in a single platf...
12/06/2026
At one time a trailblazer with the launch of the Longhorn Network, the Universit...
12/06/2026
Ratings Roundup is a rundown of recent rating news and is derived from press rel...
12/06/2026
Chyron has announced PAINT 10.4, an update to its illustrated replay and sports ...
12/06/2026
SVP, Production, Mark Gross: With the new schedule, with not having every Sunday night, it has given us an opportunity to take a step back and reimagine what o...
12/06/2026
For Televisa Technical Engineering Manager Roberto N nez Ibarra and the small team of 12 technicians and two production personnel at the IBC things are already ...
12/06/2026
Simple Steps to Better Acoustics - Taming The Small Room
Most of us mix in spare rooms and small spaces, where the acoustics fight us at every turn. At Gear...
12/06/2026
Latest addition expands vintage-inspired effects palette
Meris' Ottobit pedal range draws its inspiration from vintage gaming consoles, and the latest a...
12/06/2026
Soundbox-based chamber strings series expanded
Sonora Cinematic have just announced the launch of the second instalment in their Soundbox-based chamber stri...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
AJA Announces KONA IP25 Integration with Colorfront Software
Brie Clayton June 12, 2026
0 Comments
Collaboration enables uncompressed SMPTE ST 2110 I/O ...
12/06/2026
URSA Cine 12K LF Used to Create Visuals for STUTS' K-Arena Concert
Brie Clayton June 12, 2026
0 Comments
Organic visuals projected on a giant scre...
12/06/2026
MTI FILM Acquires Mango New Edit, Expanding its Global Post-Production Services ...
12/06/2026
AI Point Tracking Speeds Up Complex VFX Tracks in Mocha Pro
Jessie Electa Petrov June 12, 2026
0 Comments
The 2026.5 release adds automatic point trac...
12/06/2026
Bitmovin, a provider of video streaming solutions, has partnered with Simplestream, a provider of OTT and broadcast solutions, and technology provider Xperi, to...
12/06/2026
Leostream Corporation, creator of the world-leading Leostream Remote Desktop Access Platform, today announced Jigsaw24, a leading B2B IT solutions provider wit...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
How Aussie indie games and screen are levelling up with IP 11 June 2026
Ari Harrison, Pro Jank Footy
Head of Games Joey Egger and Ari Harrison of Umbrella sha...
12/06/2026
AgentPerf from Artificial Analysis, the industry's first agentic AI benchmark, gives developers, enterprises and infrastructure providers a clear way to com...
12/06/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils First-Look Images from Villaflor, Santiago Mitre's New Film
Entertainment
12 June 2026
GlobalArgentina
Link copied to ...
12/06/2026
Back to All News
Cross the Boundaries of the Real World into the Spirit Realm i...
12/06/2026
With John Daro, DI Colourist at Warner Bros. Water Tower Color Tuesday 23 June, 10am-1pm or 3-6pm
Restar Corporation
Tokyo
Register here
John Daro is the ...
Lars Larsson, CEO at Varnish Software details why CDNs are key to meeting consumers' expectations of 5G 
