One of the largest high-profile deployments of the cloud in a broadcast environment is Fox Sports 1's use of a cloud video production platform developed by Aframe.
SAN FRANCISCO At its simplest, cloud technology is seen as a straightforward means to a wondrous end place media up into the Ethernet, and then with a few clicks, see it pulled down by someone else half-way around the world.
The reality is much more complicated, of course. The cloud craze that made headlines in 2013 was overshadowed by a long list of concerns: Copyright fears, format struggles, redundancy and security woes.
Looking at those big events over the last 12 months that relied on cloud technologies, it's clear the industry is still struggling with issues like architectural limitations and workflow bottlenecks.
There's still a perception in the industry because of these failures, that maybe online streaming is still a risk, that there's still too much drama. Will it work or will it not? said Kurt Michel, director of product marketing for Media Solutions at Akamai. We need to make sure people understand that [this technology] is robust, he said.
ASKING QUESTIONS
The first place to start is by asking questions. How robust is the solution? What is the strategy for redundancy? How do you make sure that this is going to meet 100 percent of my availability requirements?
The recently wrapped 2014 NAB Show tried to answer some of those questions, sprinkling cloud-focused sessions and speakers across the convention and showing ways that broadcasters can begin to rely on the cloud.
Cloud services have enabled media and entertainment companies to tackle distribution challenges and the complexities of offering consumers content anytime, anywhere and on any device, said Mark Ramberg, general manager of Media and Entertainment for Amazon Web Services, who offered the keynote address at the convention's two-day Media Management in the Cloud conference.
Expanding beyond the original business-to- consumer scenarios that first lit up the cloud, the technology is maturing to a point where it has begun to be leveraged for professional media workflows in both broadcast and post productions.
If you combed the NAB Show floor, it seemed that every other booth was touting a cloud-this-and-cloud-that. But in discussions with experts and manufacturers, the technology is beginning to show a maturity that is capable of handling large-scale content like 3D, HD and 4K, as well as more complex scenarios like second-screen distribution and complex content personalization.
Media industry companies are realizing that they can't keep up with the IT needs [required to handle some of these next-generation offerings], and are looking at the scalability and elasticity of the cloud, Ramberg said.
There are certainly benefits: scalable bandwidth, open storage opportunities and transcoding solutions, to name a few.
In response, the real-world examples continue to expand. One of the largest is the high-profile cloud solution being used by Fox Sports 1, a cable channel launched by Fox Sports in the summer of 2013 that includes football, baseball, NASCAR and soccer programming. To handle a number of basic workflow issues dozens and dozens of freelance stringers submitting hundreds of video files in a range of disparate formats the network created a news media submission system that allows contributing videographers to upload content to a cloud video production platform developed by Aframe, a U.K.-based developer of cloud technology for media enterprises.
Broadcast workflows today still contain steps where manual intervention, such as transcoding, is essential, [but] in competitive TV formats like sport, that simply can't exist any longer, said David Peto, CEO of Aframe.
The Aframe platform is being used to automatically transcode formats at the time of ingest, and then converts media to a DVCPRO format for editing or playout. An H.264 proxy viewing copy is created that can be viewed by stringers or editors in the field.
[It] provides an easy mechanism for making content easily accessible for people who need it immediately, in a self-service model, said Wendy Allen, vice president of media engineering at Fox Sports. It's a new paradigm shift that will save Fox time and money.
The approach makes it feasible to use a global set of freelancers, many of whom are contributing media files with different professional equipment. The solution also allows the network to save bandwidth because a proxy is created at the time of ingest, instead of requiring all material to be downloaded prior to transcoding. At the NAB Show, the company released Aframe 3.0 and announced partnerships with Sony and Panasonic to integrate cloud capabilities directly into new wireless cameras and adapters, allowing for a completely wireless workflow.
IS THIS THE YEAR?
Companies like Signiant are pointing to cloud technologies as a key reason for its recent success: an uptick in customers is directly attributable to the adoption of Signiant's hybrid SaaS solution, said Margaret Craig, CEO of Signiant.
Cloud technologies have taken off for a number of reasons, she said, including improvements in storage, advancements in speed and upgrades in security. Companies are also leaning toward the cloud's track record on redundancy issues. That's one of the things that the cloud is good at: allowing you to keep multiple files and keep them safely, she said.
This is really the year that [cloud adoption] becomes very real, Craig added, whose company has seen adoption of cloud technologies all around the world, most vociferously in the United States. The company recently introduced the new software application CloudSpeX, which validates media file formats prior to transfer, and introduced file sharing capabilities to the compan
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
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...
16/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/07/2026
Zixi, a leader in live video delivery and workflow orchestration, and Comcast Technology Solutions (CTS) today announced a strategic new integration to deliver ...
16/07/2026
Blackmagic Design Cameras Capture Immersive Flight for New Cirrus App
Brie Clayton July 15, 2026
0 Comments
Leader in Personal Aviation taps URSA Cin...
16/07/2026
XenData Announces LTO Archive Appliances with both File and S3 Object Storage In...
15/07/2026
The 2026 FIFA World Cup is a big deal for DAZN, which has distribution rights in three markets: Italy, Spain, and Japan. Each requires a different editorial app...
15/07/2026
As sports-media organizations manage rapidly growing content libraries and incre...
15/07/2026
HBS director of digital Johannes Franken talks SVG Europe through the operation built to serve FIFA World Cup 2026 rights holders remotely from Stratford, east ...
15/07/2026
IBC has unveiled the conference program for IBC2026, with this year's event ...
15/07/2026
Software-defined wideband RF platform supports 96-kHz monitoring, streamlined fr...
15/07/2026
New AI-powered module enables broadcasters and content owners to extract dialogu...
15/07/2026
Weeklong gathering at EBU headquarters will test new IPMX capabilities and expand certified product ecosystem...
15/07/2026
Force Tech has announced the appointment of Bryan Adams, CTS, as Vice President of Integration. Adams will oversee AV and broadcast integration project delivery...
15/07/2026
USA Sports has announced an exclusive English-language agreement with the Bundes...
15/07/2026
ITV Sport's FIFA World Cup 2026 coverage has been produced from one of the m...
15/07/2026
Program will provide professional camera kits, training, and technical support to participating local newsrooms...
15/07/2026
San Francisco church becomes first U.S. deployment of the 2 M/E production switcher...
15/07/2026
Former ESPN and NFL Network executive to advise startup league on media, distribution, technology, and fan engagement...
15/07/2026
The Houston-based RSN is the live-game home of the Astros and Rockets...
15/07/2026
Launched alongside new FreqSoft installer
Designed to bridge the gap between hardware and software, Freqport's FreqInOut FO1 unit provides a simple way ...
15/07/2026
Save up to 55% on software until 23 July 2026
Expressive E have just launched their Summer Offer sale, with discounts of up to 55% now applied across their ...
15/07/2026
Real-time stem-separation tool updated
zplane have recently released a new and improved version of their real-time stem-separation plug-in which they say ma...
15/07/2026
A new benchmark in bass enhancement
Described as a new benchmark in bass enhancement , Baby Audio's latest release has been designed to augment the lo...
15/07/2026
DMC Production's AR 1 and AR 2 units reverse the conventional OB workflow, keeping all production-critical processing at the venue while operators work remo...
15/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/07/2026
GigaCloud, a leading Ukrainian cloud service provider, and Cubbit, the first geo-distributed cloud storage enabler, today announced a new Business Alliance Part...
15/07/2026
SMPTE, the global society for media professionals, technologists, and engineers, has announced the launch of the SMPTE 110th Anniversary Campaign, a fundraising...
15/07/2026
Studio Technologies, a leading manufacturer of high-quality audio, video, and fiber-optic solutions, unveils the new StudioComm Model 762 Stereo Level Control, ...
15/07/2026
COW Jobs: Producer, Virtual Events - Hybrid, Full Time, Salaried
Brie Clayton July 15, 2026
0 Comments
Producer, Virtual Events (Hybrid | Full-time | ...
15/07/2026
Brazilian media organization builds nationwide CDN with Broadpeak's high-performance software for low-latency streaming and new content distribution service...
15/07/2026
DHD announces a new utility designed to increase the efficiency of its audio mixing systems during initial installation and subsequent configuration.
Anyone w...
15/07/2026
BCNEXXT Brings Next-Generation Vipe to IBC2026, Breaking the 1:1 Channel-to-Server Ratio New innovations liberate broadcasters from legacy playout infrastructur...
15/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/07/2026
General-purpose robots and autonomous machines are moving from research labs to ...
15/07/2026
Wednesday 15 July 2026
Screeners and press pack now available: Gomorrah: The Or...
15/07/2026
Trinity's Treasures features Ruth Negga, Eleanor McEvoy, and David Norris, a...
15/07/2026
Join geographer Dr Susan Hegarty, Engineer Tim Joyce and Architect Orla Murphy a...
15/07/2026
Home to leading manufacturers, robotics pioneers, infrastructure builders and iconic gaming companies, of course, Japan is one of the world's centers of AI ...
14/07/2026
South end zone videoboard, cloud-based control system will be ready for 2026 football season...
14/07/2026
Redesigned website, enhanced mobile app unify content, ticketing, and personalized fan engagement...
One of the largest high-profile deployments of the cloud in a broadcast environment is Fox Sports 1's use of a cloud video production platform developed by Aframe. 
