Maintaining channels on air has become significantly more complex than in the past, when centralized infrastructure primarily faced risks like fire, floods, power outages, and equipment malfunctions. Today, broadcasters must contend with a multitude of additional threats, including cyberattacks, hacking attempts, damage to global infrastructure, and network disruptions, all of which can compromise service quality or even temporarily halt broadcasts.
“Added to that, we’re unfortunately living in a time of global uncertainty and political instability, which is heightening the risk of these kinds of threats,” a broadcast industry expert notes. Furthermore, broadcast operations have evolved into intricate ecosystems reliant on numerous systems, networks, and third-party services. This complexity introduces more potential vulnerabilities for malicious actors to exploit, increasing the number of failure points that broadcasters must safeguard against.
To effectively combat these diverse threats, broadcasters must prioritize resilience. This involves proactive measures and a comprehensive range of strategies, such as implementing robust security protocols including data encryption and multi-factor authentication, regularly performing multi-layered backups, and developing well-tested disaster recovery plans. Integrating cloud-based tools and services, inherently designed with resilience and redundancy, offers a viable solution.
Given the critical nature of broadcast operations, uninterrupted channel availability is paramount. The consequences of failure are significant. “Although it may have been forgiven in the past if a channel went off air temporarily, that’s no longer the case. Viewers, rights holders and advertisers alike expect continuous service with no interruptions,” the expert adds. Viewer tolerance for disruptions is exceptionally low. In a competitive media landscape, even minor delivery interruptions can frustrate viewers, leading them to switch to alternative services.
Beyond the potential loss of viewership and subsequent financial repercussions, service disruptions can also lead to lost advertising revenue and damage a broadcaster's reputation. This impacts both viewer perception and the perception of rights holders and partners, with significant consequences.
Traditionally, maintaining channel availability involved duplicating critical infrastructure at a separate location for backup purposes. This approach required significant investment in hardware, infrastructure, and ongoing maintenance. While effective, it was also costly and inflexible, hindering scalability when adding new channels or reaching new audiences.
Cloud-based infrastructure offers a more flexible and scalable alternative, eliminating capital expenditure while providing high levels of resilience and redundancy. The geographical redundancy of cloud services offers additional protection against localized disruptions. Moreover, on-demand access to cloud infrastructure ensures that backup systems do not incur unnecessary costs when not in use.
Some broadcasters are implementing regional backup strategies, allowing neighboring services to automatically step in and maintain continuity during disruptions. This approach has been adopted by broadcasters in the Baltic region. "enabling public broadcasters in the region to each air channels from other broadcaster’s playout platforms."
The interconnected nature of the modern world necessitates improved resilience and redundancy. “Broadcasters essentially need systems capable of adapting quickly in an unpredictable world,” the expert emphasizes. Cloud-based infrastructure, and in particular cloud-based playout, provides the flexibility, reliability, and resilience needed to maintain an on-air presence regardless of underlying challenges. Ultimately, this enables broadcasters to avoid disruptions, sustain stakeholder trust, and mitigate revenue loss, ensuring their continued presence in the industry.