exploring cloud shift for media moving up the agenda Your business technologists. Powering progress

Transcription

1 exploring cloud shift for media moving up the agenda Your business technologists. Powering progress

2 We believe that the cloud is set to impact media companies massively. It affects the way in which content is delivered to the consumer. It affects the way broadcasters and publishers work with their wealth of specialist partners. It affects the way major media companies organize their internal resources and business processes. Cloud is already at the periphery in many of our business discussions with media clients. We think it s time to move it up the agenda to increase the pace of exploration. 2 Exploring cloud shift for media moving up the agenda

3 Celebrating Media Meltdown? The history of media is a history of technology and cultural shift. Innovation and heritage overlap - they always have: when Kodak closed their last Super-8 processing labs in 2006, video tape had been around for thirty years; and when video tape finally disappeared from most shop shelves, digital video had already been on the scene for ten. What is special about now, is the pace and range of change. Sometimes it feels that what used to happen in ten years can now happen in ten minutes. We are all aware of this as consumers just walk the length of any railway carriage and count how many people are glued to their private screens as they travel. Every media professional is aware of it too, as the ways you create, distribute, monetize and protect content are transformed. Strongly influenced by developments in digital technology, media is in meltdown. But looking at the vibrant and exuberant state of the media industry right now, this is something to celebrate. Cloud in context Atos business technologists are highly specialized in the processes and practices of the media sector. For us, the impact of cloud on media must be considered in the context of these wider changes and challenges. We all need to look at cloud in terms of this changing behavior: Boundaries blur - when telcos provide passthrough to online TV, for example, are they perceived as providers? When news streams are embedded contextually in every web screen, who is the owner and how do they protect the story? If consumers expect movies, games and books on demand irrespective of location or device how do you measure and monetize usage? Where user-generated content impacts the style and output of mainstream program making who takes responsibility for authentication and how? News has always been global but now the dynamic has changed how do we ensure that all contributors and collaborators can participate securely and effectively with maximum digital integration? We see three dominant cloud-related themes emerge in our discussions with broadcasting and publishing clients around the world: Non-linear programming constant multichannel availability means the thirst for content has never been greater. This demands more agile and adaptive means to both make and market content. The imperative of smart, agile and granular monetization it s not so much delivery which challenges, as profitable delivery. When content can go global in seconds, content owners can struggle to reap their reward or even to understand how their material is being used. Process reengineering and transformation - cloud promises agility for ingestion, contribution, play-out and post-production tasks. The question is how best to migrate to progressive cloud approaches. Justified Concern Does your hype alarm go off the moment somebody mentions cloud? Concerns about cloud amongst media experts are real and justified. Cloud and web are not synonymous any cloud proposition must be able to demonstrate both technical and commercial viability, usually with pay-peruse or utility payment models. Media production files are massive - they require high-performance processing and exceptional network bandwidth. Pure production environments cannot simply be lifted into cloud models. While the ease-of-access to assets and improved collaboration implicit in cloud are positives, the risk of losing control over those assets is not. Technical delivery is critical to reputation in media, and no media company can risk anything which compromises availability or quality of experience for their audience. In exploration sessions with Atos media and cloud experts, we ll examine these concerns openly and intelligently. We also make proof-of-concept a principle for all cloud initiatives: you cannot make decisions without hard evidence. Exploring cloud shift for media moving up the agenda 3

4 Proof and Practical Progress Atos is deeply involved in media and deeply involved in cloud. Not surprisingly, these two strategic focus areas are coming together with increasing frequency. We are at the point at which the imaginable now becomes the possible. We are not suggesting an overnight transformation to cloud-based service. We are suggesting that from now on, putting cloud in the mix will begin to reveal new value and opportunity for media companies. Atos and Media Atos and Cloud Our media consultancy skills come from within the industry. Our multidisciplinary teams fuse intelligence from TV directors and producers, broadcast engineers, newsroom specialists, radio engineers, publishing specialists as well as Web 2.0/ social media technologists. Since 2004, Atos has been the only global IT services company to provide full operational outsourcing to the media industry. We have been the chosen partner for the IT design and implementation of some of the world s most advanced media facilities. We design, implement and manage extensive digital asset libraries and monitor advanced optical networks. We are the IT Partner to the Olympic Games the world s greatest media event. Atos cloud expertise is rooted in over twenty years practical implementation of virtualization in the workplace and the datacenter. Our cloud consultants are expert not just in the choices of public, private and hybrid cloud architectures, but also in their regulatory implications. Over the last twelve months, Atos has launched two innovative cloud ventures: Canopy in partnership with EMC and VMware, and Yunano in partnership with Yonyou. As Europe s leading high-tech transaction services company, Atos Worldline is equipped to handle the volume and complexity of cloud commercial and mediation transactions. 4 Exploring cloud shift for media moving up the agenda

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6 We have already begun to experiment and explore many practical cloud applications in media. But we are not presenting this activity as a series of media cloud offerings. Rather than that, look at them as pointers to areas in which our media clients are already showing interest and which we hope will interest and inspire you. Media Asset Management Every media asset you own should be able to contribute value. It cannot do that if it is gathering dust on a shelf. We are mindful that heavy-duty production files cannot be flipped around the cloud like feathers. But we do understand that if we help our media clients establish effective Enterprise Data Architectures, and if we exploit the full-potential of meta-tagging, then cloud begins to take shape as a viable vehicle in the Media Asset Management mix. Resource Scheduling Media companies have always relied on extensive networks of freelancers and specialist sub-contractors. Resource scheduling is not just about people, of course it s about kit too. With the impact of globalization and the thirst for 24/7 content, resource scheduling cannot be managed with a phone and a spreadsheet. Nor can it be bound by media company infrastructures and firewalls. Atos is asking how cloud-based approaches can make a difference empowering the extended team, however widely distributed, and creating a framework for sustainable, agile and cost-effective planning. Second Screen Applications Second screen applications are set to be an important part of the bridge between TV and social networking. We are at the very start of the second screen revolution, but as with all current technical media innovation, once momentum begins to build, expect rapid change. Atos media and cloud specialists are already showing how active participation on one device can be synchronized to steer action on another. Working closely with specialist technology partners, Atos is already showing results in our Business Technology Innovation Centers. This is taking interactive TV into unexplored territory for the audience and into entirely new revenue streams for the media companies. With Atos Worldline, we re ready to manage mediation and payment. Development and Test Whenever a media company or a specialist media software house is considering cloud applications, what is going to live in the cloud needs to be developed and tested in the cloud. With Development and Test for Media, Atos will offer broadcast-specific, self-service development environments for all media application types. We will build a cloud catalogue which gives distributed development teams secure access to specialist toolsets from a virtual desktop. Pay-per-use resources mean zero capex and rapid startup. Security is ensured through hosting in ISO27001 certified Atos datacenters, through which clients can move smoothly from development to production at controlled and predictable cost. Cloud Collaboration Environments When media companies need to operate fluidly in both global and local environments, people need to be able to collaborate with trust and efficiency. Simply sending files around the world is neither secure nor sustainable. Cloud collaboration environments may hold the key. By granting certified contributors access to secure collaboration environments, extended media teams are able to do more than simply send content. Participants can support each other more effectively, asking questions and fine tuning local requests. This approach also invites integration with production workflows and with immediate ingestion of content into sophisticated asset management libraries. Cloud Production for Radio Our media and cloud teams are busy in radio too. As a medium, radio is more culturally advanced than most when it comes to inviting participation and collaboration from experts, opinion leaders and indeed from the audience itself. Couple digital replay with the ability to tag both entire broadcasts and individual features, and the cloud becomes a natural vehicle through which to use and re-use radio assets in multiple combinations. So once again more listeners, more contexts for use, and more revenue opportunities. Connected TV Our media teams are already active on live connected TV projects, taking advantage of the latest developments in HbbTV. The focus here is very much on enhancing the audience experience with a wide and innovative range of interaction options. It s a virtuous circle: the greater the involvement, the bigger the audience and ultimately, the more opportunities to generate spin-off revenue. As connected TV takes off, cloud delivery becomes the clear choice for interactive and gaming functions. Not Forgetting Foundation IT In addition to our media-specific cloud initiatives, Atos also has a solid focus on cloud in foundation IT. While seeking to exploit the latest innovations in content creation, distribution and monetization, every media company is also looking for ways to increase business efficiency and to reduce the cost of operations. In both of these areas, the Atos focus on cloud in foundation IT will pay dividends. As Europe s number one vendor-independent IT service company and the number six worldwide - we are driving the provision of core cloud services. This expertise is built on two core capabilities: Depth of understanding in foundation IT - with globally coordinated delivery capabilities in application management, workplace services, business infrastructure, networking and unified communication and collaboration. Access to the resources of Atos Worldline Europe s leading high-tech transaction services company essential for managing complex, pay-per-use contracts Wherever we are talking about workplace management and support, about smart mobility or about the rationalization of anarchic ERP implementations we should ensure that cloud is on the agenda. 6 Exploring cloud shift for media moving up the agenda

7 An invitation We would like to make a simple three point proposal to all our media clients: 1. Let s make cloud part of every media business discussion when specific projects are being examined, we will explore cloudbased approaches as a means to deliver additional value. 2. Let s take time to explore cloud potential beyond the boundaries of ongoing or scheduled activity sharing ideas and experiences freely, including Atos learnings from other industry sectors. 3. Let s identify specific opportunities for shared experiment and practical proof-of-concept learning from action rather than focusing on theory. This simple three-point proposal applies both to the sector-specific activity of broadcast and publishing companies and to the foundation IT which is common to all businesses. Our discussions will be all about discovery. Atos cloud and integration specialists are not seeking to promote a single approach. We are equally comfortable in private, public and hybrid cloud environments, and are naturally developing skills as cloud brokers too, as our partnerships with media specialist gain focus on cloud. We are going to buddy up here. We would like to invite you to sit down at the same table with our media and cloud business technologists looking to the future and anticipating opportunity. But perhaps most importantly, we want you to challenge us to deliver proofs-ofconcept that deliver hard evidence. exploring cloud shift for media moving up the agenda Exploring cloud shift for media moving up the agenda 7

8 About Atos Atos is an international information technology services company with annual 2011 pro forma revenue of EUR 8.5 billion and 74,000 employees in 48 countries. Serving a global client base, it delivers hi-tech transactional services, consulting and technology services, systems integration and managed services. With its deep technology expertise and industry knowledge, it works with clients across the following market sectors: Manufacturing, Retail, Services; Public, Health & Transport; Financial Services; Telecoms, Media & Technology; Energy & Utilities. Atos is focused on business technology that powers progress and helps organizations to create their firm of the future. It is the Worldwide Information Technology Partner for the Olympic and Paralympic Games and is quoted on the Paris Eurolist Market. Atos operates under the brands Atos, Atos Consulting & Technology Services, Atos Worldline and Atos Worldgrid. For more information: Please contact [email protected] or visit atos.net atos.net Atos, the Atos logo, Atos Consulting & Technology Services, Atos Worldline, Atos Sphere, Atos Cloud, Atos Healthcare (in the UK) and Atos Worldgrid are registered trademarks of Atos SA. June Atos.