May/June 2023

Magazine Features

A Broadcaster’s Cloud Migration Primer

This article offers a primer on how a traditional broadcaster could start to move services to a cloud provider.

Buyers' Guide: PTZ Cameras

Today's professional PTZ cameras are nothing like their security camera predecessors. Now you can find models with all the professional features, technology, and hardware that you find on professional camcorders and digital cine cameras. In this PTZ buyers guide, I'll explain many of these features so you can make informed decisions when evaluating PTZ cameras in your own video production workflows.

How to Launch a FAST Channel

Free ad-supported television (FAST) has been a rapidly rising element of the streaming industry since the beginning of the pandemic. This article covers the best practices for launching a FAST channel and how to handle the challenges faced, including insights from key industry leaders such as Jonathon Barbato of Best Ever Channels, DeShuna Spencer of kweliTV, and Paul Kontonis of Revry.

Review: GoPro Hero11 Black

Well-known as an action camera for capturing on-the-go video, the GoPro is popular with those involved in sports, underwater activities, capturing va­ca­tion footage, and a host of other use cases. However, the GoPro Hero11 Black can also serve as a high-quality webcam for meetings or online conferences using web applications like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and GoTo Meeting, and it can be deployed in production streaming workflows for YouTubers and video podcasters.

Scale Matters: How to Deliver Five-Nines Streams to Global Live Audiences

Any streaming workflow is only as strong as its weakest (or least-tested) link. The more massive the stream, unfortunately, the larg­er the opportunity and the smaller the margin for error. So, what do the experts say about the architectural demands and challenges of main­taining five-nines uptime and broadcast quality when the stakes are too high to let either suf­fer? And what solutions do they recommend?

Streaming Media’s Trendsetting Products and Services of 2023

A detailed guide to Streaming Media's Trendsetting Products and Services of 2023.

Warner Bros. Discovery SVP Renard T. Jenkins Talks About Managing WBD's Massive Production Pipeline

Figuring out how Warner Bros. Discovery can pick the best technology to manage its massive production pipeline is what Renard T. Jenkins and his team do. Jenkins and I spoke on Zoom in late March about how those choices have changed in the past few years, his thoughts on machine learning (ML)/artificial intelligence (AI), and the unique demands of leading technology teams.

Editor's Note

What Else Did We Get Wrong?

Based on what I'm hearing from a wide array of streaming producers, the heightened demand for streaming live events that we expected to be a natural outcome of its COVID-era ascendancy is either evaporating or simply hasn't materialized.

The Video Doctor

Why Aren’t You Streaming Your Live Event?

These days, the cost and technological barriers to live streaming are few are far between. Robert Reinhardt outlines some reasons why organizations may still hesitate to live stream their events, and he shows why these reasons are misguided. He breaks down the ways that even events with small budgets can still produce high-quality live streams.

Future in Focus

I’ve Seen The Future of The Streaming Video Tech Stack

The evolution of the evolution of TV is coming soon, hinted at by services like Norsk. I for one can't wait.

Spotlights

Discover LEXI 3.0: The Future of Automatic Captioning

Trusted by leading live streamers and broadcasters worldwide, Lexi 3.0, a new and improved version of Ai-Media's flagship captioning solution, leverages the power of AI to deliver results rivalling human captions, at a fraction of the cost.

Doing Interactive Streaming the Right Way: Ultra-Low Latency Streaming at Scale With HESP

In recent years, the High Efficiency Streaming Protocol, commonly known as HESP, has significantly enhanced the cost-effectiveness and performance of large-scale ultra-low latency streaming.

Streaming Media 2023 Trendsetters: Introducing LTN Wave

IP is revolutionizing the media industry, delivering unprecedented innovation, flexibility, and scalability. To reap the full benefits of IP transport, scale their content reach, and drive new monetization opportunities, media organizations need an IP solution that delivers high-reliability, scale, and low latency.

Streaming Media 2023 Trendsetters: LEXI 3.0 - The Future of Automatic Captioning

Experience LEXI 3.0 - the world's most advanced and accurate automatic captioning solution.

Streaming Media 2023 Trendsetters: WisePlay - Playout

NAB SHOW PRODUCT of the YEAR 2023 WINNER WisePlay Playout is designed to meet the demanding needs of FAST and TV broadcasters.

The Producer's View

Producing for FAST? Take it Slow

FAST programming needs space for the commercials. Unless you intentionally craft that space into your show, it just slices into your content randomly, ruining the mood of narrative content and frustrating viewers just as the show was getting to the "good part." Watching YouTube content on a Roku device is like this now. The random "pop" to commercials in the middle of a scene is very annoying.

Class Act

Follow-the-Presenter Tools for DIY Instructional Videos

Until fairly recently, if a teacher wanted to produce a DIY instructional video untethered to a fixed point in front of a camera, they'd need to remotely control either a pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) head or a multicamera switcher. With the arrival of competent and inexpensive facial recognition software, several consumer videoconferencing cameras now offer automatic framing to allow teachers or other presenters to move around a scene to better engage with viewers and interact with props and visual aids.