As head of international technology at ITV Studios, Rob O'Brien is always on the lookout for new technology that can allow the company to work more flexibly and develop new workflows.
Based in the UK but with operations in 12 other countries, ITV Studios is a television production and distribution company owned by the British broadcaster ITV plc. Best-known for its output for UK channels such as ITV and Channel 4, ITV Studios is also intensively involved with broadcast production and distribution in the US, Australia, Germany, The Netherlands, Italy, Israel, France, Spain and Scandinavia.
Overseeing the non-UK technical operations from London, head of international technology Rob O'Brien concisely summarises his main role as being to maintain, organise and innovate. I spend a lot of my time looking at innovation, managing technical teams, and heading up the shift towards a new landscape which inevitably involves a great deal of research around the cloud and computing innovation in general.
Whilst there might seem to be an air of inevitability about O'Brien landing such a role by his own admission he was the geek that teachers asked to help with their IT he insists that he originally studied computing because I was rubbish at everything else! But it's true that I knew from a young age that I was going to pursue a career in technology, and once I had completed my Bachelor of Computer Engineering I started out in the newspaper industry working on picture asset management.
Given his subsequent progression into broadcasting, it was a case of right place, right time' as developers of asset management technology were then beginning to target TV production. Recognising that this is where his aspirations resided, O'Brien had an initial stint at ITV working on ITV's early digital and tapeless initiatives, but also picking up invaluable knowledge of CDNs, transcoding and media distribution. He then spent a period at Sony Pictures, where he added an international dimension to his career by overseeing digital content production distribution for platforms around Europe.
All of this experience meant that he was very well-prepared for his second, and ongoing, stint at ITV Studios. Working as lead technologist in digital creation, O'Brien was tasked with making our use of data more structured and, latterly, working to better align the ITV businesses in the UK and internationally so that they could communicate and create more efficiently. Eventually that evolved into the new role of head of international technology.
Alignment between the different ITV Studios operations continues to be an overriding priority for O'Brien, who works closely with each territory's technology head to ensure that the corporate stacks are working well and that all of the systems we use i.e. for production, data and archiving are effectively organised, and where they differ between operations that they are fully aligned.
Innovation as a Competitive Edge
In terms of both content production and distribution, and the technologies that underpin them, few would argue with the assertion that we are in the midst of a period of profound change. But while this undoubtedly heralds some significant challenges, it also brings with it some exciting opportunities. Innovation is a big part of our world, confirms O'Brien. Everyone is looking at, and comparing us to, the new peers in our market, such as Netflix. That means there is a lot of emphasis on how we can use innovation in order to secure a competitive edge.
It's not surprising, then, that O'Brien keeps a close watch on emerging technology trends, such as the migration of media production to the cloud. Like many broadcast tech leaders, his enthusiasm for the cloud's potential is only marginally tempered by its economic implications. As well as being more reliable for example, in terms of the risk of system failures the cloud offers much greater capacity to change, adapt and scale our operations, he says. So, if we acquire another system, it's very easy to upscale. Plus, there are some fantastic cloud services we can utilise, such as those using AI to deliver translation and localisation services.
O'Brien is also in no doubt that going it alone' for example, in terms of creating a bespoke ITV data centre would be prohibitively expensive, not only in terms of technology, but also in salaries for staff with the necessary technical expertise to run those systems. Building their own data centre would also be problematic in terms of the broadcaster's low-carbon trajectory. Sustainability is a big thing for ITV, we have made a commitment to becoming Net Zero and are on track for that, so it's great that [leading cloud service providers like] AWS and Microsoft support our sustainability targets, he says. We also need to retain the ability to scale up in a way that is sustainable. We are a growing business that is often developing interests in new territories and having that availability of resources whenever we need them is critical.
But he is acutely aware of cloud challenges, especially when working at the kind of scale required by ITV Studios. Of course, there are negatives and cost is potentially one of those. I don't really like the word cloud, I prefer the word rent' because all you're doing, really, is renting someone else's servers. And, if you use too much, it's going to cost more than you expected.
Rapid Content Migration
Many of these strands have come together during the past year as O'Brien has sought a fresh approach to the management of ITV Studios' content archive. Once again, alignment is the watchword here as many of the leading formats are distributed or franchised internationally. If ITV Studios makes a show such
Europe Stories
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
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...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
11/05/2026
As Eurovision fans gear up to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the iconic song ...
11/05/2026
Pela primeira vez na hist ria, o Brasil figura entre os oito maiores mercados de...
11/05/2026
New desktop instrument focused on tactile performance
Bastl Instruments have announced the Kalimba, a new desktop instrument that combines physical modellin...
11/05/2026
Compact sampling workstation gains new features
1010music have announced the blackbox 2, a new version of their compact standalone sampler designed for DAWl...
11/05/2026
Performance-focused sequencer with microtonal control
Berlin-based KOMA Elektronik have announced Monoplex, a new 42HP Eurorack sequencer designed for hands...
11/05/2026
Boasts wireless control from mobile devices
The latest iteration of IK Multimedia's compact amp and effects modelling pedal expands on the capabilities ...
11/05/2026
Spans traditional orchestral and experimental sounds
Sonora Cinematic have recently released the third instalment in their Transfigured Orchestra series, de...
11/05/2026
Our exhibition coverage
Watch all our SUPERBOOTH 2026 video coverage in one place. Check back to this page regularly as we will be updating with more video ...
11/05/2026
aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, is participating in the Equity Forum Ge...
11/05/2026
Fox Corporation Reports Third Quarter Fiscal 2026 Financial Results NEW YORK, NY, May 11, 2026 - Fox Corporation (Nasdaq: FOXA, FOX; FOX or the Company ) t...
11/05/2026
Arvato Systems Becomes a Member of InsurLab Germany
Collaboration in the insurance industrys leading innovation network
G tersloh - Arvato Systems has joine...
11/05/2026
Pirate Predator uncovers new information from victims and survivors of abuse on ...
10/05/2026
RT ALL-IRELAND DRAMA FESTIVAL WINNERS ANNOUNCED DURING GALA AWARDS STREAMED LIVE ON RTE.IE/CULTURE
Kilmeen Drama Group hailing from Rossmore, Co. Cork Scoops ...
09/05/2026
New desktop instrument focused on tactile performance
Bastl Instruments have announced Kalimba, a new desktop instrument that combines physical modelling, F...
09/05/2026
Compact sampling workstation gains new features
1010music have announced blackbox 2, a new version of their compact standalone sampler designed for DAWless ...
08/05/2026
One-button synth generates random four-track ideas
Cyma Forma and French artist Bambounou have announced RND synth, a compact hardware synthesizer built aro...
08/05/2026
Portable four-layer granular and sampling instrument
Tasty Chips have announced the GR-2, a new granular synthesizer and sampling instrument that combines e...
08/05/2026
Video Show Report
Video of SUPERBOOTH 26: Polyend Drums
Polyends big announcement for Superbooth 2026 is the Drums, a new drum machine that features both ...
08/05/2026
Deal agreed as NI enters new chapter
Native Instruments CEO Nick Williams has announced that a definitive agreement has been signed for the company to be ac...
08/05/2026
Video Show Report
Video of SUPERBOOTH 26: Erica Bullfrog Drums
The Bullfrog Drums is the latest collaboration between Erica Synths and Richie Hawtin, and ...
08/05/2026
In our latest blog, Tim Pearson reflects on the recent launch of Play Snooker, the new digital home of snooker by the World Professional Billiards and Snooker A...
08/05/2026
Pete reunites with Dogs Trust for a fourth series and a two-part overseas special
London, Friday 8th May 2026: The award winning factual entertainment series P...
08/05/2026
Wuppertal May 8, 2026
Riedel to Support Glasgow 2026 as Official Connectivity Integration Provider Riedel Communications today announced its return as a spons...
08/05/2026
ICG is excited to share news of our official launch in Northern Ireland, marking a significant milestone in the agency's growth.
Led by Digital Marketing M...
08/05/2026
Over the past ten years, Thames Water, in partnership with Arqiva, has installed more than 1.2 million smart meters, creating one of the most extensive advanced...
07/05/2026
Journalists reporting on Sudan are working in one of the most complex and fast-m...
07/05/2026
Seit dem Start im Jahr 2023 hat DJ (Beta) das personalisierte H rerlebnis von 94...
07/05/2026
Da quando stata presentata nel 2023, DJ (beta) ha aiutato a definire un'esperienza d'ascolto pi personalizzata per 94 milioni di utenti Spotify Premi...
07/05/2026
Since launching in 2023, DJ (beta) has helped shape a more personalized listenin...
07/05/2026
Desde o lan amento em 2023, o DJ (beta) j ajudou a deixar a experi ncia de ouvi...
07/05/2026
From our earliest days, Spotify has been built on a simple principle: Great audio should be easy to reach. It's what's driven us to expand from music to...
07/05/2026
Asian and Pacific Islander artists continue to shape the global soundscape, pushing creative boundaries and connecting with fans worldwide. This Asian & Pacific...
07/05/2026
Company announce long-requested choir instrument
In the latest expansion of their Symphonic Elements series, UJAM have introduced an all-new vocal instrumen...
07/05/2026
Modular-inspired sound generation with digital control
Buchla have introduced Ziggy, a new compact synthesizer built around the company's complex oscill...
07/05/2026
Combines analogue voices with digital synthesis and sequencing
Polyend have announced Drums, a new hybrid analogue and digital drum machine that combines sy...
07/05/2026
Control surface now officially supports four DAWs
When Nektar launched the Panorama CS12 control surface, it worked exclusively with Apple's Logic Pro, ...
07/05/2026
In the first quarter 2026, SGL Carbon generated consolidated sales of 184.5 million, which was 49.8 million, or 21.3%, lower than in the prior year (Q1 2025: ...
07/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz and Greenerwave achieve precise and fast ESA antenna characteriz...
07/05/2026
January 8, 2024
Colorfront (colorfront.com), a leader in high-performance, on-s...
07/05/2026
February 9, 2024
Colorfront (colorfront.com), the multi-award-winning pioneer i...
07/05/2026
March 20, 2024
NAB 2024, Las Vegas - Colorfront (colorfront.com), the multi-awa...
07/05/2026
April 1, 2025
CINEMACON, APRIL 1, 2025 - Colorfront (colorfront.com), the multi-award-winning developer of high-performance dailies/transcoding/streaming syste...
07/05/2026
June 15, 2025
Colorfront (colorfront.com), an Academy and Emmy Award-winning de...
07/05/2026
June 15, 2025
Colorfront participated in the ICTA Barcelona Cinema Technology Summit on Sunday, June 15, 2025. Held at The Phenomena Experience, the event feat...
07/05/2026
July 1, 2025
Colorfront (colorfront.com), the multi-award-winning developer of high-performance dailies/transcoding/streaming systems for motion pictures, OTT,...
As head of international technology at ITV Studios, Rob O'Brien is always on the lookout for new technology that can allow the company to work more flexibly and develop new workflows.
