4 days ago
Navigating the future of broadcast technology in the Middle East
From SMPTE ST 2110 and hybrid cloud deployments to AI-enhanced workflows, MENA broadcasters are transforming production and delivery models while contending with unique regional challenges in a rapidly evolving media landscape.
As the lines between on-demand and linear broadcasting blur, content creation and delivery have become more complex than ever. From live sports to rolling news and premium entertainment, broadcasters are under pressure to move faster, do more with less and meet shifting viewer expectations across platforms. Reliable, scalable workflows powered by new technologies have reshaped how content is produced and distributed, driving innovation in everything from cloud migration to AI-powered automation.
This backdrop set the stage for a high-level tech roundtable organised by BroadcastPro ME in partnership with Ross Video, where regional CTOs and industry leaders shared how their organisations are adapting and what the future might look like.
The speakers at the roundtable were:
Abdulaziz AlEissaee, Senior Specialist for AI at Abu Dhabi Media
Amill Lone, CEO of Saudi Sports Company
Aus Al Zubaidi, CISO, Director of IT and Media at MBC Group
Brad Eliot, CTO at International Media Investments
Hisham Sahrij, CTO at 1001 TV
Omar Alzoubi, Head of Engineering Systems at Dubai Media
Peter Van Dam, Chief Broadcasting Officer at the Saudi Pro League
Shabbir Hussain, CTO at CNBC Arabia
The discussion was moderated by Ross Video CEO David Ross and Deepraj Sandhar, Senior Sales Manager for the Middle East, Gulf, Pakistan and Africa.
David Ross highlighted Ross Video's dual role as a live video production company and content creator. He noted the pressure on CTOs from declining revenues and the 'war for eyeballs', and emphasised the focus on efficiently creating high-quality content amid tightening budgets rather than on subscription video on demand (SVOD) or ad-supported video on demand (AVOD) platforms. He also briefly highlighted Ross Video's 33 years of consecutive growth and operational scale both globally and in the Middle East, as well as the 19 acquisitions the company has made in the last 14 years.
SMPTE ST 2110 and the IP transition
The conversation shifted to SMPTE ST 2110 as broadcasters shared how they are adapting operational models in a cloud-connected, IP-driven environment.
Brad Eliot, CTO at IMI, the parent company of Sky News Arabia, acknowledged the challenges faced by traditional broadcast engineers in adapting to new technologies, while affirming the reliability of SMPTE ST 2110: 'Transitioning to 2110 presents a steep learning curve for legacy engineering teams, and the workflows are not initially as intuitive as traditional systems. That said, the technology is solid and we are making good progress with its adoption and use.'
Eliot also highlighted the diverse technical landscape across the MENA region, noting the wide disparity in infrastructure and viewer expectations. 'In markets like Egypt much of the audience still relies on SDI-based viewing, while elsewhere we're seeing increasing demand for OTT, real-time streaming and on-demand content. The real challenge lies in how we manage production and distribution to meet these varied needs while maintaining cost efficiency and audience satisfaction.'
Peter Van Dam, Chief Broadcasting Officer at the Saudi Pro League, questioned the need to move away from the 'magical standard' of SDI. 'While SMPTE 2110 is reliable and efficient, running it in an IT-driven environment means starting with the switch architecture. At large scale, hardware-based routing quickly becomes unsustainable, so software-defined approaches are essential. For many broadcasters in the Middle East, the format doesn't matter. Here it is more about the social aspect of watching a game together with others.'
The right network design depends on operational priorities. Each deployment needs to balance flexibility, performance, lifecycle cost and maintainability.
'To understand broadcast infrastructure today, we have to stay grounded,' said MBC Group's Aus Al Zubaidi, CISO, Director of IT and Media. 'No matter who the vendor is, vulnerabilities are a given. Patching, hardening and maintaining resilience under continuous change is now part of the operational baseline.'
Omar Alzoubi, Head of Engineering Systems at Dubai Media, pointed out that many professionals tread with caution with the transition to IP: 'Vendors continue to invest in 12G-SDI and established standards.' But he added that one of IP's key advantages is its flexible, signal-agnostic network ports that can support multiple formats depending on configuration and bandwidth. 'This flexibility allows broadcasters to dynamically route signals and efficiently scale their infrastructure as needs grow.'
He also pointed out that while IP performs well in single-vendor environments, interoperability remains a challenge in the multi-vendor set-ups typical of many broadcast facilities. 'The move from SDI to IP is not just about replacing cables; it's a fundamental shift in technology, workflow, mindset and skillset,' he said, adding that IP adoption is progressing steadily, driven by maturing standards and improved compatibility. He cautioned, however, that it requires careful planning, especially in hybrid environments.
Shabbir Hussain, CTO, CNBC Arabia, agreed. 'While nothing has changed operationally, engineering remains complex. The biggest challenge today is finding the right talent who understand both broadcast and IT, and how we train them.'
While SMPTE 2110 remains a widely adopted standard, David Ross explored alternatives like direct memory access (DMA)-based video at the roundtable. He explained that with DMA one device can write directly into another's memory space, allowing the receiving computer to focus entirely on video manipulation rather than spending resources on sending and receiving packets. He noted that this approach eliminates the need for frame buffers, unlike SMPTE 2110, where everything requires a frame sync. In contrast to SDI, which flows naturally, 2110 involves more processing overhead – something DMA helps reduce significantly.
Building hybrid cloud strategies
The discussion then moved to cloud strategies. Trying to manage workloads on specific clouds whenever possible and adopting that as a standard infrastructural code makes it easier when moving massive workloads on cloud, the panel agreed. However, they noted that regional and operational constraints still demand a selective, well-planned approach.
'We adopted a cloud-first mindset several years ago, but we've remained strategic and selective in execution,' clarified Al Zubaidi. 'Not every workload belongs in the cloud. Many make more sense to keep on-premises due to reliability, cost predictability or operational integration. Our linear broadcasting stack, for example, remains largely on-site. It's stable, fully amortised and well understood by our teams. When we need agility or burst capacity, we expand into cloud environments. A diversified hybrid strategy gives us control, flexibility, and avoids overreliance on any single platform.'
Amill Lone, CEO of Saudi Sports Company, remarked that it 'can't go fully on cloud in Saudi Arabia … we must maintain a regional presence, and most of our deployments are developed in close collaboration to support this. We are leveraging technology, though some fine-tuning is still needed, especially in live football, where speed is critical and where there are strong opportunities for monetisation.'
How AI is reshaping content creation and revenue models
As businesses manage complex streaming workflows, automation, powered by AI, is playing a growing role in streamlining processes. In news production, the goal is to move information efficiently from reporters to the control room and ultimately to on-air broadcast. AI systems assist by making real-time decisions on whether to include an over-the-shoulder graphic, what templates or visuals to apply, and how to format content for different platforms.
But there is also an ongoing discussion in newsrooms about balancing authentic journalism with the increasing use of generative AI. 'Fake news detection is a major focus for us,' said Eliot. 'A significant portion of our editorial workflow is dedicated to verifying the authenticity of incoming reports. Using AI to create visual assets from conflict zones where we can't safely send crews is one thing; applying it to core journalistic storytelling, however, is another.'
Abdulaziz AlEissaee, Senior Specialist, AI, Corporate IT at Abu Dhabi Media (ADM), said the network has implemented several AI use cases, including a smart editor tool that generates articles from trusted sources. 'You could, for example, select an article about an event in Germany and integrate it with coverage of a local event. We've also created our own avatars that can quickly turn an article into a video, making it appear as though a real person is speaking on social media.'
He added that ADM has strict policies in place to ensure transparency with regard to how it uses AI. He further noted that ADM showcased a similar proof-of-concept (POC) at Gitex last year but pointed out that 'the lack of data sets is an area that needs improvement'.
Hussain pointed out that CNBC Arabia is using AI 'for live Arabic transcription for the US stock closing every day … being a financial channel, getting the precise terminology is vital. We've trained the AI to make it context-oriented and built a specialised finance glossary, which is about 85% complete.' He pointed out challenges such as converting feeds from English to Arabic and transcoding from Avid to mp4, which AI upgrades are helping to accelerate.
Dubai Media has also conducted several POC projects including voice-to-text services aimed at enhancing metadata for archiving, with some systems demonstrating high accuracy even in early machine learning stages, added Omar Alzoubi.
David Ross pointed out here that Ross Video worked with Fox News during the US election on an AI feature that synchronised election graphics with live speech. 'For election updates, the channel had an announcer showing different states and countries, some with the same names. Traditionally, it was very difficult for a person in the control room to keep up. We built an AI system and tied that with augmented reality to create all the states. As the announcer spoke, it went through a speech-to-text processor and then back to control graphics in real time. The data came from conventional election data sources, and it ran more naturally than any election graphics had ever done before.'
Most of these transformations have primarily been evident in sports broadcasting, commented Van Dam. 'We work with a company called Sports Life. They collect a large amount of player data for injury prevention. We are trying to see how we can extract that data to create graphics and give that additional experience to the fan. If I look at Formula One with all the data-how fast they go, which gear they are in – that's the entertainment part, and this is where data becomes crucial role.'
OTT platforms provide further AI implementation opportunities, especially in content writing systems, added 1001 TV's Sahrij. 'We have explored many AI engines and systems, most recently commentator dubs for LaLiga in Spanish. We had an Arabic commentator, but the 30-40 second delay on the live stream was a deal-breaker. However, we're using technology VOD, not for live.'
He also noted the use of AI for personalisation. 'We cannot have something as close as Netflix or YouTube, but we are using the same model – testing engines such as server-side ad insertion (SSAI) that TikTok uses.'
Van Dam and Lone lauded AI's ability to transfer analytical data to graphics and repackage content to create highlights or banners, as well as integrate them into scheduling systems. They remarked that this has enormous monetisation potential.
The road ahead
As regional broadcasters navigate fast-moving viewer demands and technological shifts, one theme echoed across the roundtable: innovation must be strategic, scalable and grounded in local realities. From hybrid cloud deployments and IP transitions to AI-enhanced storytelling and monetisation, MENA media leaders are not just adapting, they are helping define the future of broadcasting. The road ahead is complex, but with continued collaboration, experimentation and a clear focus on audience experience, the region looks well-positioned to lead the next wave of media transformation.
