SyncBak's VUit an OTT Sandbox' for Local Broadcasters

WASHINGTON-Earlier this month, SyncBak, a developer of technology for live local OTT, announced the launch of VUit, an OTT platform for local broadcasters that provides a free, ad-supported national streaming service built in partnership with local television station groups, including Gray Television, Meredith and others.

TV Technology recently sat down with Syncbak founder Jack Perry and Mike Braun, senior vice president of digital media for Gray TV, a major investor in Syncbak, to discuss how VUit could change the OTT landscape for local broadcasters.

TV Technology: Jack, how did this come together, can you kind of give us the genesis of this?

Jack Perry (Image credit: SyncBak)Jack Perry: Yeah, I think it really came together last winter. [Gray CEO] Hilton Howell and the executive leadership team of Gray invited me to give a talk to all of their general managers in Miami. Mike and I have a shared vision that there is a ton of opportunity in the OTT space for local and hyperlocal and giving their viewers something more to watch.

Five minutes after the talk about what the future could look like for OTT were on a roll and ready to go and the leadership team at Gray said, we like this we want to go. And so we developed VUit.

Mike Braun: Like Jack said, weve been talking about what the future holds for not only OTT, but local broadcasting in general, and from Gray's perspective, we always felt Jack and his team saw the vision, usually before anybody else. That meeting just sort of brought it all together, but it was multiple years of planning to get to this stage. We needed to be ready to go to that next level, to make sure that we as broadcasters were ready, but we wanted to make sure our audience was ready for it as well, and we feel that time is right now.

TVT: So when you say this was years in the making, youre talking about the concept and then Jack helped bring it to reality?

MB: Yeah, absolutely. Gray and Syncbak have been working together now since 2013, so its evolved quite a bit. It started with finding the tech partner for us to be able to bring our live streams to multiple platforms. That work started all the way back then and to me VUit has just become sort of the cherry on top of everything else that weve done, and it starts a whole new roadmap for us.

TVT: Jack, would you say that this kind of is like the logical evolution of SyncBak and what you originally intended it for?

JP: Yes, it really is getting back to the original vision of connecting every broadcaster to every viewer and were very proud to power, live on many of the MVPDs. We're equally as proud to have the ability to give broadcasters really a sandbox, if you will, to experiment and get their viewers something else to watch, but youre absolutely right, this is the realization of the original vision for Syncbak.

TVT: When I was reviewing VUit, the first thing that came to mind was this is to local television like what iHeartRadio or TuneIn is for radio.

JP: I think it is. We're aggregating the content and giving viewers the ability to watch unique programming from across the country, but perhaps most important is it's connecting in advertisers as well, who have really needed an on ramp to OTT for a long time. This gives the kind of level playing field for the smaller advertiser, it gives them the ability to get out and reach a viewer. If theyre watching a dirt track race in Cadillac Mich., they can put their ad into that, if theyre watching a snowmobile race or if theyre watching a local parade or theyre watching the news, now the local advertiser knows how to find the viewers and that really is kind of the essence of the deal-it is connecting broadcasters to viewers, and then advertisers into the mix as well.

TVT: Were there changes in FCC rules over the years that helped spur this along?

JP: Well you know when I originally started Syncbak I went to Capitol Hill and said Im going to be the first cable company that uses the internet in a private way. And Congress kind of looked at me and said well why dont we just let the free market work that out.

So thats what really caused the whole notion. I dont know if its as much as whats happening with the FCC as much as its the technology enabling the local broadcaster to really create special and unique offerings to reach viewers. I think thats more the driver. The proof is in the pudding when you start running advertisements, and revenue is going up and the small advertisers are able to get into the mix. Thats whats driving it, the technology and the ability to monetize viewing.

MB: Were now allowing our viewers to decide where is local. With us and the OTT space in general, the viewer is now deciding whats local to them. And thats the key I think about this whole thing is, were not limited anymore to certain channels and TV grids. This allows us to have multiple channels live at all times on VUit. And it could be channels that are there forever, but it also could be what we call pop up channels, which become local not only in your market, but they become local for anyone that is interested in that event.

TVT: How, if any will this impact the relationship between the local station and the network when the networks themselves have launched their own OTT services?

Mike Braun (Image credit: Gray TV)MB: Heres the thing with that-theres going to be a lot of players in the space, theres going to be our peers in local broadcasting, and then theres going to be the national networks.

The OTT space is very big, and theres a lot of room for all of us to be in that field. I think the important part for us and local broadcasting is to focus on what we do best and not really worry too much about what the others around us are doing. Theres nobody thats going to do live and local better than we will, in our marketplace. So thats wher

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