Harnessing the Cloud in Hybrid Environments

As an industry, we’ve moved past the days of proving that the cloud works, with many broadcasters today using the cloud to originate channels. But now that the hype surrounding the cloud has worn off, the focus has shifted to operationalizing it.

When speaking with our customers, it’s become clear that many of them are hoping to leverage a hybrid mix of on-prem and cloud resources, where the cloud is used for specific short-term tasks, such as business continuity (recovery) or planned maintenance coverage. For example, in a hybrid arrangement, broadcasters would replicate their current playout channels to the cloud during on-prem maintenance, and then revert them back to on-prem once maintenance is complete.

Others have an eye on increasing viewership and monetization by creating pop-up channels for major sporting events. In the case of the Olympics, for example, this would allow broadcasters to dedicate their limited full-time, on-prem channels to the most-watched events, while utilizing the cloud to pop up additional channels for online distribution of events that draw a more focused audience.

Addressing Operational Challenges

While the pay-by-use model of the cloud brings some economic advantages to broadcasters, operating a hybrid mixed environment also has some challenges. For one, the types of content that drive viewers to pop up channels are sometimes those that have the most operational considerations, such as live news and sports. This dramatically increases workflow complexity and the need for coordination.

And while replicating the playlist and content for a channel to the cloud is complicated enough, managing the peripheral tasks that ensure the channel functions correctly and efficiently — such as integrating it into the broadcaster’s routing system and ensuring proper uplink and downlink connections back to the plant — is far more complicated. Automating these complexities is key to implementing a hybrid environment where the cloud is used for specific tasks and leveraging its flexibility to support broader workflows.

To use these hybrid/mixed environments effectively, broadcasters need a cohesive, automated system with a single, consistent user interface. At Imagine Communications, we call this “channel orchestration.” A channel orchestration solution is the operations layer that operators interact with to create pop-up and backup channels and manage the relationships of channels to migrate or mirror services — turning tasks that were previously manual engineering investments into quick repeatable operations actions.

For example, without a channel orchestration solution, creating a redundant playout environment is a time-consuming and expensive process — building separate, static chains that are exact replicas of each other and configuring all the content and automation workflows. With an automated orchestration tool, the process of adding channels and creating redundancy relationships is much faster, more cost effective, and flexible enough to meet broadcasters’ evolving needs as they experiment with new content and new channels. With just a few clicks, operators can create a second channel and link it to the original; the channel becomes a backup that mirrors the original’s lists. And with a unified management interface for both cloud and on-prem sites, it no longer matters where those channels are. They can be housed in locations across the country from each other or hosted, providing robust backup solutions without the rigid configuration of traditional setups.

The ability to quickly spin-up new channel playout engines and group them into channels on the fly transforms the process from a lengthy engineering task that takes months of planning into an operational task that takes minutes — allowing operators to make game-day decisions on how they want to utilize the cloud. Furthermore, this flexibility enables broadcasters to optimize their use of ground and cloud resources based on economic considerations rather than technical limitations, making their engineering infrastructure a solution to financial challenges rather than a cost driver.

Looking Forward

Integrating channel orchestration with automation enables additional models that further enhance broadcaster’s capabilities, such as dynamic regional splits that come and go throughout the day. This integration allows broadcasters to operate a single master playlist during off-peak hours, while deploying multiple playlists during primetime to maximize ad revenue through regional splits.

Managing these transitions involves channel orchestration activating the playout engines and handling the downstream switching and distribution logic, while automation manages the linking and synchronization of playlists. Broadcasters can scale resources according to advertising demand, using on-prem equipment as a base and bursting into cloud during peak times. This strategy ensures cost-effective use of cloud resources, driven by advertising revenue.

In Conclusion

As broadcasters continue to navigate the complexities of hybrid on-prem and cloud environments, the integration of channel orchestration and automation capabilities will be critical. These technologies not only streamline operations and reduce costs, but also provide the agility needed to respond swiftly to changing circumstances and market demands. Embracing them will enable broadcasters to fully leverage the cloud's potential, driving operational efficiency and increasing revenues.