Author: Zuzanna Lenart

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Pebble provides playout for SRF facility

Posted on | by Zuzanna Lenart

Epsom, Surrey, UK, 18 March 2025: Pebble, the leading automation, content management and integrated channel specialist, has completed the development and implementation of the playout functionality for Swiss national broadcaster, SRF. The project involved collaboration with multiple vendors to achieve seamless workflows in the all-IP environment. 

SRF has relocated to a purpose-built headquarters in Zurich. A key element of the project is to take advantage of next-generation workflows and operational practices by leveraging modern, standards-based technologies. The result is one of the largest media environments using interworking SMPTE ST 2110 equipment in Europe. 

Central to the new facility is secure and highly resilient playout of the three premium channels in German-speaking Switzerland: SRF 1, SRF zwei and SRF info. The multiple variants of these channels, to meet the needs of different delivery platforms, are managed and played out using Pebble Integrated Channel software devices, under the control of the proven Pebble Automation. 

Vital to the project was the integration of the playout system into the wider media and information flows across the IP networks. As content is required it is pulled from central storage servers into the Integrated Channel devices. To achieve this seamless integration, the whole environment using the NMOS protocol from AMWA as the interface. 

As well as pre-recorded content, the Pebble system also routinely delivers live content, accepted directly into the Integrated Channel software appliances. Drawing on information from the scheduling system and elsewhere, Pebble Automation adds live graphics as required, by controlling VizRT graphics, running as plug-ins. Audio processing includes channel management, Dolby E and loudness monitoring and control. 

“This has been a highly trustful collaboration between SRF and Pebble,” said Martin Sauter, Project Manager at SRF. “Pebble understood the challenges we faced and sought to work with us closely every step of the way to achieve the common goal of a successful ST 2110 playout centre that fulfils our needs.” 

Sally Wallington, SVP Sales at Pebble added “This has been a complex project, with not only requirements and workflows developing along the way, but the entire foundation of SMPTE ST 2110 and NMOS coalescing to give us the practical tools we need for seamless interworking. Thanks to the professionalism as well as the enthusiasm of the SRF engineering team, it was immensely satisfying for us. Everyone from Pebble who worked on it sees the new Zurich centre as a tremendous achievement and we are very proud to have played our part.” 

For more information, see www.pebble.tv

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Pebble celebrates 25 years of expertise in playout automation

Posted on | by Zuzanna Lenart

Epsom, Surrey, UK, 5 March 2025: Pebble, the leading automation, content management and integrated channel specialist, is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year and will be present at NAB Show (booth W2135, Las Vegas Convention Center, 6-9 April). This anniversary is even more meaningful as it aligns with television’s centenary, marking 100 years since John Logie Baird’s first demonstrations in 1925.

“The company’s founders recognised that playout is mission critical, so the automation system has to be feature rich, secure and reliable,” said Peter Mayhead, CEO of Pebble. “25 years on, we have developed a highly capable and flexible set of solutions, which we continue to implement with leading broadcasters worldwide.”

Pebble specialises in enterprise-wide playout automation, designed to scale effortlessly from a single channel to the largest multi-service facility. Automation 2.0, the next generation of its highly flexible and feature-rich management software, provides seamless control over both modular playout architectures and the all-in-one Integrated Channel engine. Seamlessly supporting SDI, SMPTE ST2110 and NDI content flows, these technologies help broadcasters navigate through industry transitions.

Recognising that, increasingly, broadcasters and service providers are looking to work across multiple sites and hybrid operations, Pebble also offers Remote. This web-based monitoring and control environment gives secure monitoring and management of channels from inside or outside the normal transmission facilities.

Specialising exclusively in playout and media workflows, Pebble’s 25 years of investment in innovation has resulted in powerful, flexible technology that adapts seamlessly to evolving broadcast needs. The solution is also highly resilient, and it’s widely regarded as the most reliable playout technology in the industry. High levels of security are built into the software, and Pebble has been awarded the Cyber Essentials Certificate of Assurance.

“For 25 years, Pebble has been at the forefront of playout automation, providing broadcasters with the resilient, adaptable, and innovative technology they need,” Mayhead said. “NAB has always been an important opportunity for us to discuss our solutions in detail with broadcasters. This year, as we celebrate this milestone, we want to showcase our continued leadership in playout automation and our commitment to innovation and product development. We look forward to engaging with the industry and strengthening these discussions.

Meet Pebble at NAB Show, booth W2135, and find more information at www.pebble.tv

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The challenges of live sport playout

Posted on | by Zuzanna Lenart

Live sports remain the most powerful way to attract and retain large audiences, as viewers want to experience the action in real-time. However, delivering live content comes with unique operational challenges – there’s only one chance to get it right…

Sports production has evolved significantly. While traditional outside broadcast trucks once handled everything on-site, today’s workflows involve multiple camera feeds, remote production, and collaborative environments. Broadcasters and major streaming platforms alike face increasing complexity in managing live content, especially as streaming services build their live capabilities from scratch.

One key challenge is ensuring seamless coverage while managing vast amounts of incoming content. This includes highlights editing, studio analysis, and commercial scheduling – all of which must be executed in real-time. Advertising in live sports is particularly tricky, as commercial breaks must align with unpredictable gameplay. Automation helps track commercial placements, but manual control is still required to avoid cutting away from critical moments.

A robust playout infrastructure is essential to handle these demands. It must integrate seamlessly with production tools, ensure reliable commercial insertion, support multi-language feeds, and maintain high levels of redundancy. Given the immense value of live sports content, broadcasters need a flexible, secure, and highly resilient playout system to deliver a flawless viewing experience.

This article was originally written by Sally Wallington, SVP of Sales at Pebble, and published in TVBEurope. Read the full article for deeper insights into the challenges and solutions in live sports playout.

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Meet us at NAB 2025

Posted on | by Zuzanna Lenart

This year, you’ll find us at West Hall, Booth W2135 – we’d love to see you there!

Whether you want to explore new opportunities, chat about our latest developments, or just catch up, you can book a meeting with us using the form below. We’ll get back to you to confirm a time.

Looking forward to meeting you!








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Pebble announces support for NVIDIA Holoscan for Media to drive flexible, cost-effective and sustainable media architectures

Posted on | by Zuzanna Lenart

Epsom, Surrey, UK, 11 September 2024: Pebble, the leading automation, content management and integrated channel specialist, will showcase support for NVIDIA Holoscan for Media with its PRIMA platform at IBC2024 (stand 8.C58, RAI Amsterdam, 13 – 16 September). The PRIMA platform works seamlessly with Holoscan for Media, and teams from both companies will be on hand at IBC to discuss the potential of the integrated technologies.

PRIMA – the Platform for Real-time Integrated Media Applications – supports a range of applications that help address the real needs of modern media and broadcast organisations. Its underlying Kubernetes and Linux architecture makes for simple implementation on standard hardware on-premises, in the cloud or as a multi-site hybrid deployment. PRIMA is built for flexible deployment, security, ready scalability and centralised management.

NVIDIA Holoscan for Media is a software-defined, AI-enabled platform that allows live video pipelines to run on the same infrastructure as AI. This open-source platform is built on industry-wide standards and APIs, including SMPTE ST 2110, AMWA NMOS, RIST, SRT and NDI.

The PRIMA platform with Holoscan for Media helps address the challenges of developing integrated environments as the industry moves towards software-centric technology and IP connectivity. Together, the technologies offer potential for large-scale, sophisticated and integrated systems built around open standards and seamless interworking.

Pebble, in collaboration with NVIDIA, will support a set of applications around playout, workflow, and IP management and control. PRIMA applications add to Pebble’s range of market-leading playout solutions, and developing them within the open Holoscan for Media environment provides great scope for implementation and continuing evolution.

“The promise of IP-connected, software-defined media architectures is around extremely efficient workflows, high levels of automation, and ready scalability through the cloud,” said Daniel Robinson, head of product at Pebble. “By integrating PRIMA with Holoscan for Media, we can now deliver those highly efficient, high-performance media environments on shared compute platforms, helping drive down costs and achieve greater sustainability.”

Guillaume Polaillon, product line manager for live media solutions at NVIDIA, added, “Working with Pebble, we can provide repurposable, and scalable systems for companies with live media pipelines to help them meet their creative and operational demands, while reducing infrastructure footprint.”

At IBC2024, Pebble will demonstrate how PRIMA with Holoscan for Media can help deliver advanced solutions. To learn more, visit Stand 8.C58.

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