Author: Zuzanna Lenart

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Pebble migrates ON TV to new technology platform

Posted on | by Zuzanna Lenart

Epsom, Surrey, UK, 12 May 2025: Pebble, the leading automation, content management and integrated channel specialist, has completed a project to migrate ON TV, the major independent broadcaster in Egypt. The implementation and migration was managed by Cairo-based integrator Systems Design.

ON has used Pebble automation for many years. It has now grown to offer five channels, and the playout system has grown under the control of the original Pebble Neptune platform. To provide continuing resilience, flexibility and scalability, the broadcaster moved to the latest enterprise automation software from Pebble.

The challenge in the project was maintaining uninterrupted broadcasting, from the same server network and switchers, while the Pebble control level and the Pebble content management database were upgraded. Pebble and Egypt Systems Design developed a migration plan to commission and prove the software on the backup hardware, allowing the channels to be switched over one by one, with no interruptions or disturbances whatsoever.

Currently, ON broadcasts five channels, which are delivered from a fully redundant 5+5 configuration with main and backup servers, master control switchers and graphics engines. There is a single router providing switching, and pebble content management between all channels and storage, which during the transition the router had to be controlled by both the old and new automation platforms, adding to the complexity of the migration plan.

The nature of the ON channels means that there is a mixture of fully automated playout with live events on any of the channels. The broadcaster relies on the Pebble Auto Resume feature, which allows operators to skip out of the current on-air event to take a live feed, or a pre-programmed series of events, dropping back into the schedule either at the point where the operator opted out, or at the current time.

Live events are also recorded on the same server network, again under the control of the Pebble automation. While many events are pre-planned, the system also supports crash record from any operator console.

“We have grown as a broadcaster from a single channel to the major independent voice in television in Egypt,” said Ahmed Saber, Technical Director of ON TV. “From day one we have counted on Pebble’s rugged and reliable software to manage our workflows, and we had complete confidence in returning to them for the next phase of our growth. Not only does the new Pebble automation platform future-proof us for whatever challenges face us, the local engineering team, along with Systems Design, installed it and switched over with no interruptions – a real achievement.”

Samir Isbaih, Pebble VP of sales for the Middle East and APAC, said “I was the engineer who installed the original system all those years ago, and it is great to see the company grown to be one of the largest and most successful television networks in Egypt. I am delighted and proud to continue the relationship through this project and to install the next generation of automation, with Pebble MENA customers are guaranteed the high level of reliability and the exceptional support they expect and truly deserve.”

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Pebble Showcases Advanced Playout Solutions at CABSAT 2025

Posted on | by Zuzanna Lenart

Epsom, Surrey, UK, 1 May 2025: Pebble, the leading automation, content management and integrated channel specialist, will be showcasing its proven playout solutions at CABSAT 2025 (Dubai World Trade Centre, 13-15 May). With 25 years of expertise in the broadcast industry, Pebble continues to deliver mission-critical technologies that empower broadcasters across the Middle East and North Africa region..

“The MENA region represents a vital and growing market for Pebble, with its dynamic broadcast ecosystem and rapid technological advancement,” said Peter Mayhead, CEO of Pebble. “Our quarter-century of experience in developing robust, secure, and feature-rich automation systems positions us perfectly to meet the evolving needs of broadcasters throughout this important region.”

Pebble specialises in playout automation that scales effortlessly from single channel to large multi-service facilities. Automation 2.0, the company’s management software, provides seamless control over both modular playout architectures and the all-in-one Integrated Channel engine. With support for SDI, SMPTE ST2110, and NDI content flows, these solutions help broadcasters throughout the MENA region navigate complex industry transitions.

With broadcasters and service providers increasingly working across multiple sites, Pebble’s Remote platform offers web-based monitoring and control capabilities that are particularly beneficial in the MENA region. This solution provides secure channel management from within or outside traditional transmission facilities, addressing the specific operational needs of regional media organisations.

Pebble’s technology is trusted in a growing number of deployments across the region and beyond. In Saudi Arabia, Asharq News commissioning is under way for their 3+3+3 triple-redundant ST 2110 setup using Pebble’s Integrated Channel and Enterprise Automation, commissioned via partner Qvest Media. Also in KSA, Intigral (part of Saudi Telecom – STC) is implementing 8+8 playout channels with integrated ingest and content management. In Egypt, ONTV recently completed an upgrade to a 5-channel automation system with full redundancy, integrated via partner Systems Design, with the enhanced channels now on-air. In Jordan, a tightly aligned disaster recovery setup has been deployed for Al Mamlaka TV, ensuring continuity with the main playout system.

Beyond the region, Pebble is supporting Azam Media in Tanzania as it expands its playout system from 8 to 12 fully redundant channels.

With 25 years dedicated exclusively to playout and media workflows, Pebble has developed technology renowned for its resilience and reliability.

“CABSAT is an ideal opportunity for us to meet with broadcasters across the Middle East and North Africa, understand the challenges they’re facing, and demonstrate how our technology can help solve them,” said Mayhead. “As broadcasting continues to evolve in this region, we’re committed to delivering the dependable, flexible solutions media organisations need to stay competitive.”

Visit Pebble at CABSAT 2025 and discover more at www.pebble.tv.

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Meet us at BroadcastAsia 2025

Posted on | by Zuzanna Lenart

You’ll find us at Singapore Expo, Stand 5I1-9 – and we’d love to see you there!

Whether you’d like to reconnect, hear what’s new at Pebble, or explore how we could work together, feel free to book a meeting using the form below. We’ll get back to confirm a time.

Our team can’t wait to meet you in Singapore!

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Meet us at CABSAT 2025

Posted on | by Zuzanna Lenart

You’ll find us at Shk Saeed Hall 1, Stand S1-G21 – we’d love to see you there!

Whether you’d like to catch up, hear what’s new at Pebble, or explore how we could work together, feel free to book a meeting using the form below. We’ll get back to confirm a time.

Can’t wait to meet you in Dubai!

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Leading playout automation for 25 years

Posted on | by Zuzanna Lenart

In the ever-evolving broadcast industry, choosing the right playout automation provider is crucial. Sally Wallington, Pebble SVP of Sales, shares her expertise on what broadcasters must consider to ensure they select a system that truly fits their needs.

A quarter of a century ago, playout automation was already a well-established technology, but it looked very different from today’s sophisticated systems. Back then, automation was primarily about device control – dedicated real-time hardware sending commands over serial busses to a variety of devices, many of which had only limited functionality. 

Virtually all content was on tapes inside robot libraries, so the automation had to be constantly looking ahead to ensure the right tapes were loaded into the players and calculating pre-rolls. For economy, some broadcasters put multiple spots on each tape, which meant the automation had to compile breaks during the previous programme segment. It was all very exciting. 

One could argue that today’s playout automation – dealing with networked devices and servers which provide instant start to all the content required – is much simpler. But other challenges have arisen: where the turn of the century playout system would handle a single channel, now the expectation is for multiple variants of each service, to meet localisation needs and international legal variations. Individual operations have been replaced in many cases by playout centres handling hundreds of channels. 

Pebble’s founders had already been deeply involved in playout automation for years, shaping earlier generations of the technology. They knew what was really important for users, and when they started the business they established a set of principles for excellence. Those same guidelines continue to drive Pebble’s approach today, ensuring its solutions evolve to meet the demands of modern playout. 

Playout automation is mission-critical. If a broadcaster cannot deliver programmes it has no audience; if it cannot deliver commercials it has no revenue. Interruptions to programmes cause reputational damage; dropping commercial spots means no income. Together, they pose a serious risk to a broadcaster’s success. 

So in choosing an automation supplier, a broadcaster must first of all identify the vendor who understands the issues involved, can demonstrate proven solutions, and, perhaps most important, can develop long-term relationships to ensure that support will always be there, whatever the future challenges. 

What are the issues for playout systems? Most important is reliability. In the modern, software-centric environment five nines reliability – 99.999 per cent up time – is the absolute minimum expectation, and six nines should probably be the goal. 

That means stable software on redundant hardware and communications networks, with no single point of failure and large margins of excess processor power, network capacity and storage space. 

Second, agility. No two workflows are the same, and the playout vendor should not be dictating how a broadcaster works. The software should adapt readily to the best configuration for the application. Completely flexible and reliable interfaces, preferably based on open standards, should allow for connection to best of breed devices from any other vendor where required. Integrated channel platforms still need ready integration, to storage networks and to planning and monitoring systems. 

Third, the system should be supportive. Where operator interventions are required, they must be intuitive and logical. Above all, it should be impossible to do something wrong. Anyone in the broadcast industry will be familiar with disastrous mistakes in the playout suite, where the output has been switched at a critical moment. Your networks should never be subject to such dangers. 

Finally, it must be secure. Cyberthreats are the modern world’s nightmare, and any mission-critical technology must be hardened against challenges, with protections continually updated as the bad guys come up with fresh ideas. 

Pebble was founded in 2000 on the basis of delivering the most trusted, reliable and feature-rich playout technology. That remains true today.

This article was originally published in TVBEurope.

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