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Free ad-supported streaming televi-
sion (FAST) and AVOD continue to grow,
ofering viewers content in exchange for
watching advertisements. These models
has gained traction as media companies
seek to exploit existing content libraries
while reaching new audiences.
“Monetization will remain central to
the NAB conversation, particularly with
the accelerated adoption of free ad-sup-
ported streaming television,” said An-
upama Anantharaman, vice president of
product management at Interra Systems.
“Broadcasters are prioritizing solutions
that balance ad relevance with seamless
viewer retention, moving beyond basic
insertion tactics to contextual alignment.”
Adtech, such as dynamic ad insertion
technology, has become crucial in this en-
vironment, enabling personalized adver-
tising across platforms while maintaining
viewer engagement.
“Dynamic ad insertion is a hot topic this
year. According to Bitmovin’s latest Vid-
eo Developer Report, ad insertion is the
number one biggest challenge faced by
video developers today,” said Paul Davies,
head of marketing at Yospace. “With an in-
crease in streaming viewership alongside
this increase in advertising deployments,
the need to maximize revenues using DAI
has never been greater.”
Industry leaders also noted a signifi-
cant shift in how advertising inventory is
valued, with renewed emphasis on con-
text and content quality.
“We’ve seen the pendulum swing to-
ward an impression-based model, where
every ad placement was treated as inter-
changeable, leading to a race to the low-
est price,” Reynolds explained. “But now,
the industry is shifting back, recognizing
the importance of advertising in context
and the value of premium programming.
Advertisers and content owners are re-
discovering that where an ad appears
matters — not just who sees it.”
The migration of premier live events
from traditional linear broadcasting to
streaming platforms is accelerating this
conversation around content distribution
and monetization.
“Once the crown jewel of linear
broadcast networks, sports and other
big events are quickly moving into the
streaming realm,” said Dave Dembows-
ki, senior vice president of global sales
at Operative. “Just because streaming is
digital doesn’t mean media companies
are going to automate ad sales on their
top content – they’re adopting tried and
true up-front fixed ad sales models, but
they still want the benefits of dynamic ad
delivery and reporting.”
Remote production technologies con-
tinue to reshape content creation, en-
abling more efcient resource allocation
and expanded coverage capabilities.
The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated an
emerging shift, and what began as a ne-
cessity has evolved into a strategic ad-
vantage for many organizations.
“Remote and cloud-based produc-
tion and distribution are redefining live
event coverage,” said Rob Szabó-Rowe,
global head of engineering and product
management at Tata Communications.
“Traditional on-site production models
are giving way to of-site centralized and
distributed workflows, allowing content
owners and rightsholders to boost ef-
ciency, cutting down on travel for talent
and crews and the shipping of equipment.
These approaches not only cut costs but
also enable production teams to cover
multiple events in the same day without
increasing resources.”
The industry is largely embracing a
hybrid approach that strategically lever-
ages both cloud and on-premises infra-
structure to optimize performance and
cost-efectiveness.
“For 24/7/365 operations, maintaining
an on-prem infrastructure is often more
cost-efective than running continuous
cloud-based workflows,” Reynolds noted.
“The industry’s focus has now shifted to
a hybrid approach, leveraging the cloud
where it makes sense — live events and
geographically distributed redundancy to
name a few — while maintaining on-prem
infrastructure for cost efciency.”
These remote workflows create new
challenges around security and asset
management. As broadcasters shift to-
ward cloud-based workflows, cybersecu-
rity is more important than ever, continu-
ing to move engineering into the realm of
IT.
“Cybersecurity will be a major talking
point, especially as broadcasters contin-
ue shifting and experimenting with soft-
ware-based and cloud-driven production
workflows,” said Simon Hawkings, direc-
tor of sales strategy and business accel-
eration at Ross Video. “Security vulnera-
bilities in media systems have already led
Continued from previous page
to several major hacks, and there’s a grow-
ing need for secure-by-design solutions.”
The complexity of modern security re-
quirements is driving many broadcasters
toward partnerships with specialized pro-
viders who can manage these challenges.
“Technology on its own doesn’t solve the
challenge of operational complexity,” said
Venugopal Iyengar, chief operating ofcer
of digital at Planetcast. “Many broadcast-
ers are looking to service providers that
ofer not just software, but fully managed,
end-to-end solutions.”
Artificial intelligence has moved be-
yond hype to deliver tangible applications
throughout the media ecosystem. Industry
leaders are focusing on practical AI imple-
mentations that solve real-world challeng-
es while improving efciency and enhanc-
ing viewer experiences.
“AI has long been a buzzword and while
it continues to be one now, I expect we’ll
see a shift toward more concrete and com-
plete AI applications,” said Julien Signes,
executive vice president of video network
at Synamedia. “I anticipate video service
providers will look for more tangible ben-
efits and new ways to leverage AI to better
improve efciencies across the video dis-
tribution and delivery ecosystem.”
Media asset management is a major ben-
eficiary of AI implementation, with new ca-
pabilities transforming how organizations
interact with their content libraries.
“We believe AI-driven video discovery
will be at the forefront of the conversations
on media production efciency and work-
flow at the 2025 NAB Show,” said Frederic
Petipont, CTO and co-founder of Moments
Lab. “Many of Moments Lab’s clients often
share their frustration and struggles with
complex DAM and MAM systems, which
limit their ability to quickly locate and use
content. By using AI video indexing, media
professionals can leverage natural lan-
guage queries to search vast video librar-
ies seamlessly.”
The evolution of content consumption
patterns continues to shape strategic de-
cisions across media and entertainment.
The explosive growth of short-form con-
tent, particularly among younger audienc-
es, represents both a challenge and oppor-
tunity for traditional broadcasters.
“OTT consumption is trending heavily
towards short-form content across all de-
mographics, but with Gen Z in particular
redefining new viewing habits,” said Paul
Pastor, co-founder and chief business of-
cer at Quickplay. “This change in viewing
behavior requires a strategic reimagining
of audience engagement.”
Recent research by GenZ Insights in
collaboration with Quickplay and Toluna
underscores this change, noting that Gen
Z viewers spend over three hours dai-
ly on short-form platforms compared to
just one hour on streaming and broadcast
combined.
“Today, platforms like TikTok and You-
Tube capture a growing share of eyeballs
across audiences but that doesn’t have to
be the case – with a well-thought out strat-
egy for Shorts, streamers and broadcast-
ers can not only compete, but they can win
the battle for viewers,” Pastor added.
Technical innovation continues to en-
able these expanding content formats and
distribution methods, with compression
technology and format evolution driving
significant change across media work-
flows.
“Growing adoption of JPEG XS for
high-quality,
low-latency
transmission
is perfect for remote production of live
sports,” said Szabó-Rowe. “JPEG XS
enables the transport of SMPTE 2110
streams, which supports the production of
and delivery of higher-resolution video to
meet consumer demand for 4K and HDR
content.”
The transition to IP-based workflows re-
mains a cornerstone of modern broadcast
infrastructure, representing a fundamen-
tal shift from traditional SDI-based sys-
tems to packet-based networks that ofer
greater flexibility, scalability, and interop-
erability.
“It’s certainly going to be another big
year for SMPTE 2110, especially as more
of the IP video workflow pieces come to-
gether,” said Abe Abt, senior product con-
sultant at AJA Video Systems. “IP video in
general will be a huge topic, as it simplifies
processes and makes infrastructure more
scalable.”
As the NAB Show approaches, these
interrelated trends in monetization, pro-
duction technology, security, artificial in-
telligence and content formats will shape
conversations among broadcasters, tech-
nology vendors and content creators nav-
igating an increasingly complex media
landscape. The industry’s focus on balanc-
ing innovation with practicality reflects the
fundamental challenges and opportunities
facing media companies today in an envi-
ronment of rapid technological and con-
sumer behavior change.
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