Adapting at speed: media sector resetting after disruption

The saying we’re all familiar with is “necessity is the mother of invention”, but we could just as easily say that, for many ground-breaking developments, “disruption” is another name for that “mother”.

In the decade before the pandemic, business “disruption” was primarily seen as a good thing. In the digital age, industry “disruptors” have largely been positioned as technological innovators driving positive change by challenging industry norms with new business models that cut inefficiencies and offered previously unforeseen flexibility. AdTech, FinTech, MarTech, and PropTech firms and, in our market, over-the-top streaming, have all been cast in this light.

As we have seen all too recently, tragic events can be devastating to society, but amid catastrophe, good can also emerge from negative disruption. Even the terrible events of the Coronavirus crisis have helped provide a template for how government can respond to pandemics and advanced the science of RNA vaccines.

In the working world, the pandemic has certainly disrupted established ways of doing things, ushering in an unparalleled level of remote and hybrid working – enabling many people to find a new work-life balance, more personal flexibility, less commuting and often, perhaps surprisingly, higher productivity. Indeed, in business, we have now been reminded that negative disruption can drive positive, if sometimes painful, transformation that benefits the company, the marketplace, or even society when we come out the other end of it.

As we prepare for the first face-to-face NAB Show since 2019, many of us feel like the media and entertainment (M&E) sector is finally coming out at the other end of the health crisis. Now, as we look to the future of M&E, we can see that the pandemic has been a disruptor that has forced organisations to adapt at a speed many first thought impossible. Out of necessity, media productions worldwide had to pivot to largescale remote working. The logistics of running studios, working with on-screen talent, and even creating show formats were rapidly reworked to accommodate social distancing, fewer crew allowed onsite, and travel restrictions.

Innovators turned to new content when core live programming like team sports and other competitive events went off the air due to venue closures and suspension of play. Esports events such as virtual NASCAR races, NBA 2K tournaments – both featuring actual NBA players and NASCAR drivers behind the gaming consoles – were hurriedly put on air and received surprisingly strong audiences considering the circumstances. At the same time, established gaming events such as EA SPORTS? FIFA 21 and Apex Legends were produced in fully distributed remote environments for the first time.

We had conversations with customers who were keen to explore new technologies and ways of working that might otherwise have taken years to progress – instead, their adoption was accelerated as many were deployed in a matter of weeks. Many of these were focused on cloud-based tools and went from proof of concept to fully deployed workflows as fast as we could design them and spin up capacity on a cloud platform.

And, of course, there were challenges to deal with. With travel restrictions and shortages of skilled staff, many teams worked longer days – and unfortunately, often nights – to get platforms up and running. And we must also acknowledge the teams at GV and our customers that went above and beyond to keep content on screen – around the world – that continued to educate and entertain while juggling family, travel and health challenges.

With content producers intent on finding ways to keep going, it is fair to say that the collective learning we gained over the last 18 months has accelerated the development and use of many cloud-based production platforms – not to mention uptake of our cloud-native GV AMPP (Agile Media Processing Platform), which was already under development. The difference between knowing what is technically possible and actually being able to deliver a cloud-based broadcast workflow that is indistinguishable from the traditional studio setup is a great feeling at a personal and professional level.

Now, as NAB approaches, there is a lot of sentiment that things are or should be heading back to normal. But I would argue that the disruption of the last two years has shifted what normal looks like. It’s not just from a technical or operational perspective – but also a consumer viewpoint. Audiences have become accustomed to the look of feel of content produced under the shadow of COVID.

Behind the scenes, meetings over zoom, as well as cloud-based production workflows, are now normal. Having talent via webcam and freelancers working in different locations and even time zones from the production base are increasingly normalised. Producers have learned that often it is better to get the right guest interview or commentator, no matter where they are, rather than one that will only just do, simply because they live near the studio. They now see that’s what viewers want.

What’s more, the fear of the unknown has been lessened by first facing it and then understanding what can and does work. Moving forward, there is a real sense that many across the media and entertainment sector will emerge in a better position than they went into it because of the knowledge, the efficiency and the agility they picked up during the pandemic.

The last point to consider is preparedness. It may not be a sexy word, but it is something broadcasters know is essential. They have traditionally built high levels of resiliency and fallback positioning into everything they do. It is rare these days to see a black screen due to a technical outage. Looking forward, we now have a template for how we can pivot to deal with the worst-case scenario – and the tools in place to adapt rapidly if needed.

We must always honour and respect the tragedy of the pandemic. And like previous disruptions, both positive and negative, we need to learn from it as individuals and as an industry and look towards a better future. The reality is the new technologies and approaches media companies adopted in the face of adversity have now been tried and tested and, for most, there is no going back – and that’s incredibly exciting.