Author: Tanya Rai

Finding solutions for customers is more than just selling them the best technology

The transition to IP-based technologies is a task that is impossible to do – or do well – without collaboration. Should we throw out all our SDI gear and start from scratch? Should we use cloud only for deep storage, or fold it into every part of our workflow? These are decisions which have to be made with a great deal of care.

For any technology provider helping companies to make these decisions, the power of collaboration with the customer should not be under-estimated. In fact, it’s essential. At Pebble, we’re known for automation, playout and content management technologies, but alongside the tech is a wealth of experience that helps our customers build their futures.

Being a good collaborator means knowing how to communicate what’s right for the customer when they may have another route in mind. We are a trusted partner because customers know we will tell them the honest truths they need to hear. Some need to invest in an infrastructure that will have to work at top efficiency for at least five years. But as they move forward, they will need to juggle capex and opex expenditures and navigate IP integrations, as services and opportunities emerge. Giving each customer bespoke consultations – not only about what they need now, but what changes they should prepare for in the years to come – can save a lot of grief later on.

The use of cloud environments can complement an on-prem system with improvements in resilience, scalability, longevity and the flexibility to mix and match upfront capital spend with opex costs. This becomes particularly valuable when you have a need to launch temporary or seasonal channels, such as sporting events or you are providing a service to other customers and you want to align the platform costs to revenue being generated.

Cloud technology is becoming more and more integrated into workflows, with some ready to trailblaze into a bright, all-cloud future, while others – understandably – approach the cloud with great caution. As always, the truth is nuanced and case-specific. We listen carefully to customer requirements, and are expertly supporting them to adopt a hybrid approach – ultimately meeting their business goals.

There are so many permutations of how to adopt cloud – content processing, playout, disaster recovery – and any one of these might be a real gain for a company’s bottom line. But we understand that issues of control and security, plus a host of other unknowns, may concern organisations with a traditional broadcast infrastructure. To support diverse scenarios, Pebble provides solutions – designed, installed and adapted to each deployment type, with expert insight on how to move forward. We want customers to have the flexibility of cloud, with the confidence of on-prem.

Read the article in full HERE.

Full page article from our CEO, Peter Mayhead, featured in The IABM’s Q3 Journal

Not so long ago, it was thought that linear TV was increasingly a relic of a bygone era. Viewing patterns were changing across demographics worldwide as more and more people switched towards streaming services. However, increasingly it is looking like the reports of its demise have been premature. There are a huge number of individual surveys that give an equally huge number of differing results, but the meta-trends of it all suggest a couple of things. First, the pandemic boosted streaming figures dramatically, even artificially, and second that the coming recession is making consumers rethink their choices when it comes to streaming services.

The result is that linear TV is not dead. In fact, if anything, it is having a bit of a renaissance.

The recently published Ofcom Media Nations 2022 report created massive headlines with its report that younger adults watch 7x less broadcast TV than those aged 65+ and that viewing across all broadcast content — that is linear channels, recordings, and on-demand — had fallen by 9% compared to 2020 and 4% compared to 2019. “The long-term trend of decline in overall viewing of broadcasters’ content, seen over the past decade, has resumed,” it stated.

There is undoubtedly a demographic fissure between different cohorts, though what is unknown is whether the ‘new’ consumption behavior of the younger generation (defined here as 16-34) evolves as they in turn grow older. Lifestyle changes caused primarily by starting families and establishing their own households tend to suggest that viewing time tends to coalesce around the large living room television once more as people age, and linear TV and its offshoots are very much a part of that experience, but there are unknowns. We lived with the model of linear TV for 60 years; Netflix has been streaming video for only 15.

The UK market is arguably the most technologically sophisticated television market in the world and is nothing if not volatile. The Ofcom report was generated from surveys that concluded in December 2021, whereas newer research from consumer research platform Attest, estimates that the number of people watching terrestrial TV is trending up by 2.6% to reach 78.6%. Not only that, but people are watching live TV for longer, with a 1.4% increase in 4-hour-plus viewing sessions.

So what is going on here and why are we so confident that linear TV is very much a part of the future? A look at Netflix is a good place to start.

Read the article on pages 116 and 117 in full HERE.

Weybridge, Surrey, UK – 31 August 2022: Pebble, the leading automation, content management, and integrated channel specialist, is delighted to confirm its presence at IBC2022 in Amsterdam. Pebble will be exhibiting between the 9th and 12th of September in Hall 8, Stand B75.

With playout automation solutions controlling over 1,500 channels in more than 70 countries, the company will demonstrate its suite of solutions including Pebble Automation, Integrated Channel and Pebble Remote.

Pebble Automation is an enterprise-level solution delivering robust functionality at a scale that suits any operation, with the ability to flex and adapt as the customer’s channel count and workflows change. A powerful centralised ingest, content management and multi-channel system, it controls mission-critical operations at scores of broadcasters and service providers around the world and is scalable from one to hundreds of channels. Visitors to the show will see how Pebble are supporting the transition to IP, combining on-premises playout with channels running in the public cloud, all using the same control interface.

Pebble’s software defined, scalable, Integrated Channel solution with uniquely flexible channel pipeline design offers audio, video and graphics functionality in a compact, cost-effective format to meet the needs for ingest, channel branding and frame-accurate multi-channel playout requirements.

Pebble Remote, a tool for web-based monitoring and control in the cloud as well as on-premises, provides 24/7 secure remote access to mission-critical control of playlists, as well as consolidating control access across several playout sites. Designed to support systems that comprise of multiple channels, Pebble Remote has helped many broadcasters easily navigate the challenges of working beyond the normal boundaries of a playout facility.

Pebble is also looking forward to showcasing its latest award-winning solution, Pebble Control, for the first time at a major industry show in Europe. A self-contained, scalable, and easy to configure IP connection management tool, Pebble Control is designed to make IP connectivity as simple as SDI. It leverages open standards to interface with NMOS-enabled devices from multiple vendors and enables broadcasters to make the leap to an all-IP facility without the need to deploy a bespoke enterprise solution.

A freemium version – Pebble Control Free – was launched earlier this year, providing entry level access where users can download the software via a self-service portal. Pebble Control Free enables the broadcast and media community to try out the functionality, and upskill their teams whilst they contemplate their first steps into IP.

Alison Pavitt, Director of Sales and Marketing at Pebble, says,“We are looking forward to reconnecting with the industry once again at IBC 2022 and showcasing the result of the company’s continued investment in R&D efforts, particularly with our hybrid cloud playout solutions and IP connectivity. Releasing Pebble Control Free is our way of giving back to the broadcast community, whether they’re an end user or vendor. It fills an important gap in the technology stack, effectively democratising the transition to IP.”

Pebble CTO, Miroslav Jeras adds, “Broadcasters are navigating their way through their IP transition, and finding the right partner like Pebble is critical to business success as they take this next step. We have no doubt that one of the hot topics at IBC will be around how to successfully make the leap from SDI to IP, and we’re looking forward to sharing our insights and expertise at the show.”

To meet with Pebble at IBC and chat about playout on the ground or in the cloud (or a mixture of both) or to discuss solutions for IP connection management, please visit: https://www.pebble.tv/news/meet-us-at-ibc-2022/

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