All posts by Anthony Romero

Video is Data

Video is Data

Video is an engaging medium. While it can be associated with entertainment, its use for training, executive town halls and other forms of corporate communications can’t be understated. However, it’s easy to overlook how valuable video content is longterm. Part of this is attributed to difficulties in utilizing larger archives. This is something that was brought to light by Wainhouse Research in the report Unlocking the Hidden Value of Business Video. Of the 1,801 executives surveyed as part of that report, an alarming 79% noted that: “One frustration of using on-demand video is not being able to quickly find the piece of information I am looking for when I need it.” As a result, traditionally people have approached video differently than they do a written report, which is seen as already searchable.

…but they don’t have to. Video can contain a rich depth of data and be searched against to discover this information. This article talks about approaching content libraries with the video is data mindset, traditional challenges in this methodology and technological advances that overcome them.


Enterprise Video Delivery Infrastructure: Security Considerations

Enterprise Video Delivery Infrastructure: Security Considerations

Looking for security consideration strategies related to enterprise video delivery? Curious at how to approach user roles inside an organization around managing video delivery?

Technology exists that can effectively scale video delivery from a global perspective through CDNs. In addition, solutions exist that can be deployed on location to reduce the network footprint of video content, mitigating strain that might be placed on the WAN (wide area network) from consumption. However, this technology, which includes monitoring and other capabilities, requires some form of management. With security being paramount for internal video content and maintaining network integrating, a question arises from how to approach access for this.

This article will cover a few best practices for managing security across an enterprise video delivery infrastructure. It also details some of the recent updates to the IBM ECDN (Enterprise Content Delivery Network) solution. This includes important updates to how users interface with the portal, in particular the addition of user roles.


IBM Cloud Video is IBM Watson Media

IBM Cloud Video is IBM Watson Media

In an effort to provide all IBM video products and services under a single brand, as of 2019, all solutions formerly marketed under the name IBM Cloud Video are now part of the IBM Watson Media product family.

As a result, IBM’s video streaming services now fall directly under the IBM Watson Media umbrella, joining other already available solutions including IBM Watson Captioning, IBM Watson Video Enrichment and more.


Closed Captioning vs Subtitles

Closed Captioning vs Subtitles

Curious on adding text to your video content? Unsure on if you should do closed captions or subtitles, or even what the differences are between them? This article discusses what are subtitles and compares closed captioning vs subtitles to assist you on which to go with and why.

If you are curious on technology around automating closed caption generation, register for this How to Add Closed Captions Powered by IBM Watson webinar.


Advanced Imaging Society: Leadership Award 2018

Advanced Imaging Society: Leadership Award 2018

With 2018 behind us, one final accolade for the year was sent IBM Watson Media’s way. This was the Advanced Imaging Society: Leadership Award 2018. Read on to learn more about the award and the Advanced Imaging Society, including their mission.


Closed Captioning Best Practices for State Governments

Closed Captioning Best Practices for State Governments

State governments have a lot of opportunities around video content, and are taking advantage of it. Meetings, from committees to interim task force debriefings, can be streamed to expand reach and participation from communities on a broader level. However, when presenting this content, the question of accessibility comes into play, and with it the inclusion of closed captions.

Late in 2016, the U.S. Department of Justice was looking to revise the Americans with Disabilities Act Title II regulations. A possible outcome was to establish requirements for making services, programs or activities offered by state and local governments to the public via the Web accessible. The reason for this belief was that the 2010 update stated: “The Department intends to engage in additional rulemaking in the near future addressing accessibility in these areas and others, including next generation 9–1–1 and accessibility of Web sites operated by covered public entities and public accommodations.” However, this was not reflected in the 2016 update, putting an indeterminate timetable on captions possibly being required in the future. However, some states have already adopted regulations on their own requiring captions for online video on state web sites.

For those paving the path toward captioning now, before a requirement goes into law, this article presents closed captioning best practices for state governments. This entails formatting and judgement decisions, along with ways to scale the actual creation of captions as well for both live and on-demand content.

If you would like to learn more on this topic be sure to download this white paper on AI Closed Captioning Services for Local and State Governments as well.


Enterprise Video Use Cases and Case Studies

Enterprise Video Use Cases and Case Studies

Out of 1,512 corporate executives, 81% describe online video as an effective tool for communicating work-related information. That’s an undeniable movement toward video within the enterprise… but what are they using it for? What manner is video being deployed that executives are seeing value in?

This article spotlights prominent enterprise video use cases to explore inside your own company. It also highlights major case studies for several of them for further inspiration.

If a downloadable version, focusing just on use cases, is preferred, download Using Video for Internal Corporate Communications, Training & Compliance white paper.


Multi-CDN Enhanced by Software Defined Delivery

Multi-CDN Enhanced by Software Defined Delivery

Interested in attracting huge audiences with your video content, be it a sports game or a large scale enterprise town hall? Worried about how a delivery infrastructure might handle it?

The live streaming market has continued to mature. We’ve come a long way from 1995 when RealNetworks streamed the first baseball game or when Seattle’s Paramount Theater placed the first symphony online. As that market has matured, the desire for improved performance has increased in tandem. One method of achieving that is moving beyond a single point of end viewer distribution. Rather than rely on a single network or CDN (content delivery network), organizations can achieve mass scale through utilizing a multi-CDN approach.

This article addresses the benefits of utilizing multiple CDNs for video delivery, use cases and discusses an enhanced software defined approach for improved delivery. If you want a deeper dive on this topic, download this Scaling Video Delivery to Reach Massive Audiences white paper.


6 Tips to Shoot Better Enterprise Video with Your Phone

6 Tips to Shoot Better Enterprise Video with Your Phone

As smartphones have advanced, more and more people are reaching for their phones to record and share video content — even in the business world. From capturing some trade show footage to an impromptu interview with a product expert, there can be a variety of use cases that might prompt something to be captured from a smartphone for enterprise use.

But is it possible to create quality videos using just your iPhone or Android device? We’ll cover some tips to help you shoot better enterprise video with your phone. As a result, this will set up you or others in your company to be better prepared to capture something that looks high quality right from your phone. If you are planning to use your phone to do a live broadcast, also be sure to download our 5 Pro Tips for Live Video Production datasheet as a guide.

  1. Location
  2. Light it up
  3. Frame it up
  4. Adjust the exposure
  5. Make it sound good
  6. Remember, content is still king


Streaming Media Readers’ Choice Awards 2018 Winner

Streaming Media Readers' Choice Awards 2018 Winner

Winners for the Streaming Media Readers’ Choice Awards 2018 have been announced. As selected by users, the awards represent the exemplary services and products in the industry, from platforms to hardware offerings. This year, IBM took home four awards at the ceremony in the following categories:

– Closed Captioning Solution
– End-to-End Workflow Solution
– Enterprise Video Platform
– Media & Entertainment Video Platform

We’d like to thank all of our users for their continued support. For more information on the awards, including our history at them, please read on.