When Globecast UK chose to enhance its leading global connectivity services by adding playout in 2007, not having a legacy playout system or traditional processes enabled it to take a fresh look and move quickly. Simplified playout was the key benefit from new back end tapeless workflow and other key achievements like electronic file delivery.

The Challenge

When it comes to running a playout facility, the almost impossible task of being all things to all men is a often a prerequisite.

Many broadcasters and content owners no longer just want their playout service provider to accept feeds and tapes, provide presentation options, insert adverts and pump out a channel.

As they globalise and diversify their platforms, they also want to be able to repurpose their content for multiple international markets and new media services.

Anything is possible though, as GlobeCast, a France Telecom company, has discovered. When its international customers needed multimedia services and the company wanted to expand capacity, it acted early.

The Solution

GlobeCast opened its first playout centre at its Gray's Inn Road Facility in February 2007, providing fully managed playout complimenting its existing channel distribution and global connectivity services.

The combination of playout and delivery services under one roof has proven an attractive and cost effective solution for many broadcasters and the demand lead GlobeCast to double its capacity in 2008.

Rather than simply add more channels GlobeCast wanted to become almost completely tapeless and migrate to the latest versions of Pharos Playtime and Mediator automation with the aims of enabling more advanced functionality, streamlined operations and reduced costs.

To come up with a solution GlobeCast worked with Pharos. "What GlobeCast was searching for was a more efficient back-end process," explains Pharos marketing director Russell Grute. "Expanding or complicating the playout system was not the right solution. We had already arrived at the same conclusion. Many customers considering new service provider architectures were asking for more tightly integrated content workflow and playout automation."

To achieve this, as part of a six-month project that started in May 2008, the existing Omneon transmission servers and HP Storage system were given extra capacity while more functionality and tighter integration was planned between the Mediator and Playtime systems.

"We looked at the whole future content publishing process for each channel," continues Grute, "from library to ingest, through to approval and playout. There can be a lot more technical complexity than is initially apparent. There are often many more organisations involved too; it's rarely all done in-house. GlobeCast and its clients often use external post, graphics and subtitling talent. Workflow can be accelerated and content interchange can be secured by providing browse and the appropriate metadata directly to third-party contractors".

Move on to 2009 where on top of the completed creation of a new, larger and dedicated playout suite GlobeCast and Pharos have set out on further improvements, including integration of GlobeCast Content Exchange. "Content Exchange allows our customers to securely and simply deliver their content and removes the associated hassle of tapes or FTP. Content Exchange makes the process as simple as sending an e-mail and can seamlessly resume transfers should they be interrupted," explains GlobeCast's Contenent Management Operations Manager Simon McFadyen.

When it comes to running a playout facility, the almost impossible task of being all things to all men is a prerequisite. Many broadcasters and content owners no longer just want their playout service provider to ingest content provide presentation options, insert adverts and deliver the channel. As they globalise, and diversify their platforms, they also want to be able to repurpose their content for multiple international markets and new media services.

Flexibility is the key, as GlobeCast, has discovered. "Service providers need to be able to adapt with flexible systems and services to innovate and evolve with our customers," says GlobeCast Playout Manager Simon McFadyen. "The relationships we have with vendors like Pharos are more critical than ever".

"The workflow and playout for some thematic channels can now be highly automated while other channels that require more intervention can also be managed using the same system," continues Grute. "Further back in the workflow Mediator can also be used to prepare content for new media platforms such as VoD and mobile."

For customers like Showtime Arabia, Dolphin and the Poker Channel, the benefits will be speed and cost-savings.

"It's about delivering what each client wants cost effectively," continues McFadyen, "Many of our clients are used to the speed and agility of our computer based world, they have seen the massive improvements made in production and editing and they now demand the same agility for playout. Embracing IT based solutions while retaining traditional broadcast mentalities for quality and reliability are critical in giving our customers what they need at the right price. There is no doubt that IT Tools enable us to do things much more quickly and more reliably"

Increased speed pays off financially too. "Because we have a centralised approach and we encourage clients to make use of shared resources, it makes us more efficient," he says. "And, by following a few simple rules, customers can also benefit."

why Pharos?

For GlobeCast the London facility has been a real success. In fact, it has worked so well that the same platform has been rolled out at GlobeCast's latest playout and content management centre in Singapore. Both systems are connected to GlobeCasts global fibre network allowing acquisition of content and delivery of channels anywhere in the world.

For GlobeCast, being all things to all men is far from impossible