Hiren Hindocha in conversation with TM Broadcast International about AI and Big Data for M&E organizations
Author:TM Broadcast International Answers supplied by Hiren Hindocha, CEO, Digital Nirvana
What does Big Data bring to this sector?
When we talk about big data in broadcast, we're talking about the hundreds of terabytes or even petabytes of data that a system gathers during direct interaction with end users. Typically that happens when broadcasters make their content available through VOD or streaming options. Broadcasters can analyze this big data to understand customers' preferences, which in turn helps them serve better content to viewers and serve the right demographic to advertisers.
Besides the massive amounts of data exchanged between broadcasters and end users, big data also refers to the many content feeds most broadcasters ingest continuously and simultaneously. For example, the volume of incoming video feeds for a news organization is huge -several hundred gigabytes to terabytes on a daily basis.If broadcasters can make sense of that big data, they can use it to help make content.
What are the possibilities of Artificial Intelligence in the broadcast industry?
Applying artificial intelligence across audio and video opens a world of possibilities for the broadcast industry. For example, speech-to-text technology has reached a point where it is better than humans at understanding specific domains. A well-trained speech-to-text engine can provide a very accurate transcript and captions of incoming content. At the same time, other well-trained engines can extract facial recognition, perform on-screen text detection, detect objects in the background, and more.
In the case of multiple and continuous incoming video feeds, artificial intelligence can help describe what is in the feed and make it very easy for editors to find what they're looking for. AI capabilities can also generate metadata that makes the content easily searchable and retrievable, leading to easier content creation and better content publishing decisions.
How can all these technologies enrich the content consumer experience?
Once content providers become more familiar with user preferences,they can bubble up content within their archive that is better-suited to those preferences. They can also use AI to quickly access data that will inform their content feeds, such as in social media channels. Take World Cup soccer, for example. Rightsholder Fox Sports could use AI technology to identify moments in the game that are worthy of viewing, and within a few minutes of the game ending, they can put up those highlights on YouTube. Before AI, this process would have taken a human many hours.
And of course, the more consumers watch content that is in tune with their preferences (action, drama, certain news topics), then the better the system gets at predicting and serving similar content. That's an example of tailoring the content for a better consumer experience.
How should traditional broadcasting adapt to these technologies to get the most out of them?
Broadcasters need a website or platform where users can search, find, and consume content. The smaller the chunks broadcasters produce, the greater the consumption,which means they need to be able to capture all of that consumer information and make it useful. (See examples mentioned before.) To be able to do that at scale, broadcasters have to adopt technologies that can process the information faster and better than employing an army of people.
From what perspective does Digital Nirvana approach the use of technology associated with Big Data?
We don't do anything with big data at this point.
From what perspective does Digital Nirvana approach the possibilities of Artificial Intelligence?
Digital Nirvana believes AI has great potential to accelerate media workflows and make life easier for our clients. To realize that potential, we're always looking for new and better ways to help our clients use artificial intelligence tools like speech to text and facial or object recognition to describe what is in their audio and video.
Digital Nirvana is doing a lot of work on training speech-to-text engines to automatically recognize who is speaking and what they are saying - such as distinguishing one media personality from another and identifying different topics.
How does Digital Nirvana intend to take advantage of the confluence of both technologies?
Our focus right now is to leverage AI technologies in the audio, video, and natural language processing sectors. Natural language processing is the ability to understand what is being said in the content. Not only can we provide a verbatim transcript of what is being said, but then we use natural language processing to figure out who is doing the talking and what the topic and context are.For example, our Trance application uses multiple technologies, including automatic speech to text and an automated translation engine. Our goal is to make sure those engines keep getting better and better.
It has not yet become main stream technology, but there are already many developments and pilot projects. Which ones would you highlight as the most challenging and interesting?
One pilot project we've been working on with a major U.S. broadcaster is automatic segmentation and summarization of incoming news feeds. Suppose the programming in the feed lasts 60-90 minutes and contains multiple segments on different topics. Today in production, we are generating real-time text of that content, but in the future,we'll automatically be able to figure out which people and places are being discussed in that feed, then provide a headline and summary of each of the segments.We'll also be able to detect changes in topics and categorize accordingly. This is not an easy thing to do.
A similar use cas
Most recent headlines
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...
31/05/2026
Olivia P rez-Collellmir to Premiere Original Work at Gaud Centennial in Barcelona The Berklee graduate and faculty member will debut her choral symphony with...
30/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/05/2026
Zero in on one that says yes (and no)
Andy Marken May 29, 2026
0 Comments
Hero image courtesy of Deposit Photos
For content creators the most difficu...
29/05/2026
With InfoComm 2026 just weeks away, NDI is giving attendees plenty of reasons to...
29/05/2026
Reaffirming a partnership that has defined Canadian sports broadcasting since 19...
29/05/2026
Mobile/tablet is No. 2 device for watching TV, suggesting that the sports-production industry needs to take another look at the format
Ring Digital's Sprin...
29/05/2026
Berliner Ensemble, one of Berlin's five major theater companies, has expande...
29/05/2026
Solid State Logic will showcase its new compact, fly-away TCA Tour audio product...
29/05/2026
Gerald (Jerry) Pierce, a pioneering technologist who helped shape the digital transformation of the motion picture industry, passed away last month on April 12 ...
29/05/2026
Paramount+ will be the English-language U.S. home for Barclays Women's Super...
29/05/2026
Further strengthening its virtualisation strategy to fully support broadcasters ...
29/05/2026
Swiss broadcaster Canal Alpha has deployed Harmonic's award-winning, software-based XOS Advanced Media Processor to modernize playout operations across cant...
29/05/2026
PTZOptics will showcase a new generation of intelligent video workflows at InfoComm 2026, June 17-19, Las Vegas. Visitors to booth N8227 will see how PTZOptics ...
29/05/2026
Arizona's Family has launched the Arizona's Family Sports (AZFS) streaming app, a new direct-to-consumer destination for live, local sports. The app is ...
29/05/2026
Starting in 2027, DAZN will be the exclusive home of The Canadian Football Leagu...
29/05/2026
Comcast Business has detailed the advanced network infrastructure it has deploye...
29/05/2026
In two-day event, leaders from academia and industry explored solutions to chall...
29/05/2026
The Basketball Tournament (TBT), now entering their 13th year of competition, ha...
29/05/2026
Roku has launched FOX One as a Premium Subscription on The Roku Channel in the U.S. Roku customers can now subscribe to FOX One using their Roku account for liv...
29/05/2026
In its sixth year, the broadcaster's coverage has become a global brand and ...
29/05/2026
Ratings Roundup is a rundown of recent ratings news and is derived from press re...
29/05/2026
The days are getting longer, the temperatures are rising, and playlists are filling up for the season. With summer around the corner, Spotify's global edito...
29/05/2026
New retro-inspired MPC announced
There are few devices that have gained the status held by Akai Pro's MPC range, and in recent years, the company have s...
29/05/2026
Save up to 30 on acclaimed titles
Following a successful launch at Superbooth 2026, Bjooks have revealed that they will be continuing the Kickstarter campa...
29/05/2026
Binaural monitoring application improved
Genelec have just released an update that brings some powerful new features to their HRTF-based binaural headphone ...
29/05/2026
6 June 2026 at SAE Institute, London, UK
IMSTA FESTA 2026 is almost upon us, with some of the biggest names in pro-audio set to descend upon SAE Institute i...
29/05/2026
Gerald (Jerry) Pierce, a pioneering technologist who helped shape the digital transformation of the motion picture industry, died April 12, 2026, at his home in...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Comparing 5 AI Video Enhancers for Restoring Old Video Quality
Kate Luvis May 29, 2026
0 Comments
Digitizing VHS, MiniDV, and other legacy formats doe...
29/05/2026
Studio Hamburg Builds New Post Pipeline with DaVinci Resolve Studio
Brie Clayton May 29, 2026
0 Comments
Workflow replaces a patchwork of legacy tools...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
At the Intersection of Music and Dance, an Epic Collaboration Boston Conservatory musicians and dancers found creative parallels in their recent performance o...
29/05/2026
Back to All News
Latino Film Institute Fellows Screen Their Short Films at the Egyptian Theatre
The Inclusion Fellowship and Spark Animation Grant uplifts 15 ...
29/05/2026
GLOOKAST LAUNCHES CINNAFILM TACHYON PLUGIN FOR MEDIA PRODUCER AND MEDIA SERVICES
This release first appeared here.
Visit our Tachyon product page or contact...
29/05/2026
May 29 2026, 09:00 (PDT) Dolby and rednote Bring More Immersive Storytelling to...
29/05/2026
Something fundamental has shifted in how people consume media. Audiences aren't abandoning television or radio content; they're just expanding how, wher...
29/05/2026
Youtube exclusive special drops today
Watch now
UKTV today announces another e...
Hiren Hindocha in conversation with TM Broadcast International about AI and Big Data for M&E organizations 
