Bridging the Latency Gap with Broadcast in a Streaming World
Even with advancements in delivery platforms, it's not uncommon for digital audiences to experience delays of tens of seconds or more compared to traditional broadcast of the same content.
As media companies in the Middle East and beyond navigate the transition from traditional broadcast to IP- and cloud-based operations, one challenge continues to stand out: latency. In the world of live production and streaming, timing is everything. Delay can create a disconnect between the content and the audience, affecting engagement, brand trust and ultimately monetisation. So whether it's sports, news or interactive programming, latency now plays a central role in determining the quality of experience for streaming viewers and the value of the content they're consuming.
Traditional television broadcast has long been the benchmark for low-latency performance. Over-the-air signals historically were near-instant, synchronised and predictable. Streaming delivery, on the other hand, is still catching up. Even with advancements in delivery platforms, it's not uncommon for digital audiences to experience delays of tens of seconds or more compared to traditional broadcast of the same content. These highly engaged audiences – who are increasingly viewing sports and other live content on mobile devices – expect real-time delivery, and significant delay is considered unacceptable.
So what's the hold-up in content delivery with streaming? Well, there isn't a single culprit – latency is a cumulative result of multiple workflow steps, including cloud-based operations. Transmitting content over long-distance networks introduces latency, as does processing at remote cloud servers, encoding and decoding processing, and the monitoring and feedback loop. All of these delays add up fast. For media companies, the challenge is to address these issues without sacrificing quality.
Fortunately, the media industry around the globe is making progress on multiple fronts when it comes to bridging the latency gap with traditional broadcast. Low-latency protocols like LL-HLS and CMAF are moving from theory to development, reducing sources of delay in the delivery systems. Meanwhile, JPEG XS is being integrated into live production environments to reduce latency in the contribution and production networks while maintaining origination quality.
JPEG XS stands apart from other codecs because it wasn't designed with the goal of maximising compression efficiency. Instead, its main objective is to retain the benefits associated with an uncompressed stream – visually lossless quality, super-low latency and low complexity. JPEG XS achieves visually lossless quality through modern intraframe encoding. In addition, it supports a constant bitrate and high dynamic range (HDR), and aligns well with SMPTE ST 2110 for IP network transmission. And while other codecs used in live production workflows can accumulate significant latency in the encoding and decoding stages, JPEG XS delivers extremely low latency – a handful of milliseconds for combined encoding and decoding.
Furthermore, despite the acceleration of cloud-based playout, media companies are realising that not all workloads belong in the cloud and not all latency is created equal. As a result, hybrid 'ground and cloud' architectures are gaining traction as a way to optimise performance. By running latency-sensitive processes at the edge or on-prem while leveraging the cloud for scale and elasticity, media companies can better balance speed and flexibility. This balance is essential in live environments where the ability to deliver real-time content is now a baseline expectation.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Broadcast Pro
24-05-2025
- Broadcast Pro
Advanced Media showcases RED Cine-Broadcast module featuring V-RAPTOR XL
The new Cine-Broadcast Module transforms RED's high-end cinema cameras into professional broadcast systems, offering flexibility for a range of live production needs. Advanced Media Trading (AMT) has showcased the Red Cine-Broadcast module, featuring the RED V-RAPTOR XL. This flagship model in the RED lineup of advanced cameras offers the most versatile and powerful cinema camera performance in the market. The RED Cine-Broadcast Module unlocks the flexibility and modularity to turn the most advanced cinema cameras into the most advanced broadcast cameras. It brings cinema quality to broadcast production and highlights groundbreaking imaging technology. RED's Cine-Broadcast module is designed to bring filmic, full-frame imagery to live broadcast workflows. It enables 8K live cinematic streaming and is compliant with SMPTE ST 2110 standards. It provides all functionalities such as colour pipeline for seamless camera shading and iris control with industry standard RCPs. The Red Cine-Broadcast module's most exciting characteristic is its 3x and 4x super slow-motion capabilities, which is suitable for high-end sport, concerts and live event production that require best-in-class image quality. It has been deployed in major sporting events by CBS Sports, NBC Sports Group and La Liga. Capable of doing up to 120FPS at 8K and with a full-frame-sized sensor, the module provides dynamic range, depth of fields and the well-known pleasing image that people are used to only in cinema. Jeff Goodman, Vice President of Product Management at Red Digital Cinema called the Red Cine-Broadcast solution 'a significant advancement in creative flexibility for the industry'. Goodman sad: 'It allows broadcasters to elevate the visual experience by introducing large-format, cinematic storytelling into the world of live content, without compromising on speed, reliability or standards compliance. It works seamlessly within traditional broadcast ecosystems, while adding a myriad of highly advanced IP-based solutions all within the same product.'
Broadcast Pro
23-05-2025
- Broadcast Pro
Bridging the Latency Gap with Broadcast in a Streaming World
Even with advancements in delivery platforms, it's not uncommon for digital audiences to experience delays of tens of seconds or more compared to traditional broadcast of the same content. As media companies in the Middle East and beyond navigate the transition from traditional broadcast to IP- and cloud-based operations, one challenge continues to stand out: latency. In the world of live production and streaming, timing is everything. Delay can create a disconnect between the content and the audience, affecting engagement, brand trust and ultimately monetisation. So whether it's sports, news or interactive programming, latency now plays a central role in determining the quality of experience for streaming viewers and the value of the content they're consuming. Traditional television broadcast has long been the benchmark for low-latency performance. Over-the-air signals historically were near-instant, synchronised and predictable. Streaming delivery, on the other hand, is still catching up. Even with advancements in delivery platforms, it's not uncommon for digital audiences to experience delays of tens of seconds or more compared to traditional broadcast of the same content. These highly engaged audiences – who are increasingly viewing sports and other live content on mobile devices – expect real-time delivery, and significant delay is considered unacceptable. So what's the hold-up in content delivery with streaming? Well, there isn't a single culprit – latency is a cumulative result of multiple workflow steps, including cloud-based operations. Transmitting content over long-distance networks introduces latency, as does processing at remote cloud servers, encoding and decoding processing, and the monitoring and feedback loop. All of these delays add up fast. For media companies, the challenge is to address these issues without sacrificing quality. Fortunately, the media industry around the globe is making progress on multiple fronts when it comes to bridging the latency gap with traditional broadcast. Low-latency protocols like LL-HLS and CMAF are moving from theory to development, reducing sources of delay in the delivery systems. Meanwhile, JPEG XS is being integrated into live production environments to reduce latency in the contribution and production networks while maintaining origination quality. JPEG XS stands apart from other codecs because it wasn't designed with the goal of maximising compression efficiency. Instead, its main objective is to retain the benefits associated with an uncompressed stream – visually lossless quality, super-low latency and low complexity. JPEG XS achieves visually lossless quality through modern intraframe encoding. In addition, it supports a constant bitrate and high dynamic range (HDR), and aligns well with SMPTE ST 2110 for IP network transmission. And while other codecs used in live production workflows can accumulate significant latency in the encoding and decoding stages, JPEG XS delivers extremely low latency – a handful of milliseconds for combined encoding and decoding. Furthermore, despite the acceleration of cloud-based playout, media companies are realising that not all workloads belong in the cloud and not all latency is created equal. As a result, hybrid 'ground and cloud' architectures are gaining traction as a way to optimise performance. By running latency-sensitive processes at the edge or on-prem while leveraging the cloud for scale and elasticity, media companies can better balance speed and flexibility. This balance is essential in live environments where the ability to deliver real-time content is now a baseline expectation.
Broadcast Pro
05-05-2025
- Broadcast Pro
Pebble: 25 years of playout excellence
Over the past 25 years, the journey has been defined by collaborations with top broadcasters, a dynamic most clearly seen in the MENA region. In 2000, Pebble was founded with a clear purpose: to build the most dependable and capable automation solutions for broadcasters. Twenty-five years later, that vision remains firmly in place, refined, evolved and shaped by the transformation of media technology, audience expectations, and the increasing complexity of broadcast operations across the globe. From the early days of robotic tape libraries and fiddly D-connectors to the software-defined, multi-channel, cloud-ready systems of today, playout has undergone a revolution. Pebble has lived that journey, not just witnessing the changes but driving them quietly, consistently, and with a singular focus on automation excellence. Evolution with Purpose At the turn of the millennium, automation systems were fundamentally about machine control: getting the right tape in the right VTR at the right time. Today, they manage hundreds of channels simultaneously, deliver content to multiple platforms, adapt dynamically to localisation requirements, and handle complex graphics, metadata and audio workflows. Pebble's strength has always been in anticipating change. We understood early that broadcasters needed not only scalable systems, but ones that are agile, secure, and able to support hybrid deployment models. That foresight is embedded in our flagship technologies: Pebble Automation, Integrated Channel, and Pebble Remote, which now underpin some of the most sophisticated playout environments in the world. Trusted Across the MENA Region Our journey over the last quarter-century has been shaped by partnerships with leading broadcasters, and nowhere is that more evident than in the MENA region. Pebble systems power a diverse set of operations, from high-profile public broadcasters to innovative media hubs pushing technical boundaries. In Saudi Arabia, for example, Asharq Media will shortly start deploying a 3+3+3 SMPTE ST 2110 channel configuration using Pebble's Integrated Channel and Automation platforms, enabling seamless redundancy for critical news delivery replicating their 3+3+3 2110 setup in the UAE that went on air five years ago and was one of the first 2110 NMOS-driven playout setups in the world. Also, in KSA, Intigral's 8+8 channel expansion for Saudi Telecom brings together playout, ingest, and content management in one unified Pebble environment, simplifying workflows and futureproofing operations. In Jordan, Al Mamlaka TV leverages Pebble's technology for a tightly synchronised disaster recovery system, while Tanzania's Azam Media has scaled up to 12 fully redundant channels, supporting their rapid growth. These projects reflect the diversity and demands of today's broadcast landscape. They also speak to why broadcasters in over 70 countries place their trust in Pebble. Technology that Adapts Modern computing can do almost anything. But not every solution is fit for the unique challenges of live broadcasting, especially in a world where viewers expect flawless delivery across multiple screens and platforms. That's why our systems are built with resilience, agility, and security at their core. Pebble Automation delivers five-nines uptime as standard. Integrated Channel allows customers to deploy playout wherever it makes most sense: on-premises, in the cloud, or both. And Pebble Remote provides secure, web-based control and monitoring, supporting remote operations that became vital during the pandemic and remain essential today. We don't dictate how broadcasters work. Instead, we provide tools that adapt to evolving workflows, that simplify operations, and that make it easy to do the right thing, even under pressure. Looking Forward Broadcasting has never stood still. As streaming platforms move into live and sports content, they are discovering just how hard live playout really is. Meanwhile, traditional broadcasters face their own pressures: rising costs, fragmented audiences, and the urgent need to modernise operations without disrupting on-air output. Pebble is focused on helping them meet those challenges without compromise. Our approach combines proven technology with an openness to new ideas and continuous investment in our solutions. The question broadcasters face today is not just about technology. It's about viability. How do they deliver high-quality content, with all the customisation and flexibility today's audiences demand, in a way that is sustainable, both financially and operationally? Pebble's answer is clear. With 25 years of experience, we've developed tools that deliver feature-rich playout, unmatched reliability, and trusted service. And as our customers in MENA and around the world have shown, the future belongs to those who choose solutions built to adapt.
