SRT Trailblazers: How Al Jazeera, Avid, Haivision, Microsoft and Net Insight are Unlocking the Potential of SRT in the Cloud
At the 2019 NAB Show in Las Vegas, video experts from pioneering organizations Al Jazeera, Avid, Haivision, Microsoft and Net Insight came together for a panel discussion exploring how they’re leveraging cloud-based SRT services in the Microsoft Azure ecosystem to create innovative solutions that solve complex problems. Here’s our round up of the key highlights that emerged from the session which included compelling real world use cases of SRT in the cloud as well as an early glimpse into the future of media routing in the cloud.
SRT Trailblazers
What was clear from the panel was that the powerful combination of SRT and Azure is already proving to be instrumental in enabling the digital transformation of video workflows for both broadcast and enterprise applications. Here are just some of the ways SRT trailblazers are reaping the benefits.
Interoperability Made Easy
Net Insight has just released a cloud-based live media transport solution for professional media workflows such as primary and affiliate distribution. Traditionally, IP transport has been about point-to-point connections but Net Insight is now using cloud technology to scale to multiple endpoints instead of using satellites. Alex Sandström, Strategic Product Manager, outlines why SRT makes perfect sense for professional media transport and explains that one of the many reasons Net Insight selected SRT was because of its large following and open ecosystem. With multiple vendors implementing and endorsing SRT, interoperability is much easier.
Greater Flexibility and Efficiencies Across Workflows
Microsoft is using SRT in Azure to support its global event workflows – from top tier keynotes to breakout content. Microsoft has been leveraging SRT as part of their digital transformation initiative, Project OneStream, which is aimed at improving video quality at Microsoft events to broadcast level standards, creating efficiencies by moving on-premise workflows to the cloud, and replacing expensive fiber and satellite connections with robust IP video solutions. Jeff Tyler, Digital Media Experience Lead at Microsoft highlights the fact that SRT is now a very important tool in their toolbox, and details how the combination of SRT and Azure is helping to solve challenges around consolidating multiple workflows, dealing with remote events, providing audiences with unique viewing experiences and accelerating production so it takes a fraction of the time they were accustomed to. All in all, the solution is proving to be more efficient, cost effective and is providing a better user experience.
A Robust and Fast Solution for Complex Situations
As one of the largest news organizations in the world, Al Jazeera hangs its hat on delivering breaking news fast to its viewers, a mission made more challenging given today’s competition from social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. To respond to changing viewer demand and behavior, Al Jazeera created a pioneering Newsroom in the Cloud project, focused on improving the speed at which they reached their viewers and reducing both the cost and complexity of transporting video. Traditional networks such as satellite and MPLS were proving complicated to manage, with too many technical problems as well as being costly. Chief Broadcast Architect, Miljenko Logozar explains how leveraging both SRT and Microsoft as part of their project is helping Al Jazeera to simplify and streamline their workflows and speed up the process of reporting breaking news from the field to the public.
Agility and Speed
Long known for its creative editorial solutions, Avid is now focused on helping creators around the globe connect and collaborate. With its MediaCentral platform made for media applications, Avid is changing the way we work with creative platforms. Shaleindra Mathur, VP Architecture, explains how he envisions the newly announced SRTHub playing a significant role in their solutions moving forward, especially for fast turnaround workflows for news production.
SRT Hub from Haivision
Finally, Haivision EVP, Mahmoud J. Al-Daccak, gives a high level overview of SRT Hub, a new service offering secure, reliable media routing in the cloud which was the subject of much excitement and attention at this year’s NAB Show. Capable of handling a range of live and file-based workflows, SRT Hub was created for broadcasters to address a variety of challenges, from covering unpredictable events and building manual routes, to getting content to the cloud and integrating production tools.
Built on microservices architecture with intelligent routing, SRT Hub minimizes the manual set-up required to navigate the cloud and leverages the global reach of the Microsoft Azure backbone for low latency contribution from anywhere.
