Streaming Blog: Industry News, Trends & Tips

Individual Viewer Tracking Analytics

Written by Anthony Romero in Product Updates on 1 July 2019

Need deeper analytics to analyze how your video content is being consumed? Want to validate that individual viewers completed mandatory training?

IBM Enterprise Video Streaming offers individual viewer tracking analytics. These allow organizations to drill down and see not just who accessed certain videos, but how much they watched and look at overall viewing history as well. This feature has been enhanced as well, for increased scalability in the dashboard and the ability to utilize APIs to take this functionality into other applications.

This feature was demoed in our Getting Started with Enterprise Video Management webinar.

FOX Sports & IBM Team Up to Transform Production of the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup France™

Written by Kristen Lauria in AI Video Technology on 24 June 2019

Alex Morgan/Sam Kerr Player Data Comparison on Player Spotlight Built with IBM Watson. © IBM 2019

The eighth edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup™ is well underway, with teams from 12 countries battling it out for the championship title. While millions of soccer fans stay tuned to the excitement in France, IBM is teaming up with FOX Sports to help transform production of the event by infusing AI analysis and streaming into its coverage of The Beautiful Game.

Single Sign-On (SSO) Authentication for Online Video

Written by Anthony Romero in Tips & Tutorials on 10 May 2019

Looking for Single Sign-On (SSO) authentication for online video in order to support your corporate communications strategy?

According to Wainhouse Research, who surveyed over 1,500 executives, 46% see corporate directory integration as a priority influence in choosing a streaming platform. Using SSO authentication as part of your corporate communications strategy offers a way for users to login through familiar credentials. In addition, it can also offer some value ads from both the user and management experience. This article talks about the advantages of SSO for corporate communications and the strategy around tying this to a video portal. This also includes how Watson AI can enhance this experience, leveraging processes to help put the right video in front of authenticated employees.

HTML5 Based Video Player: Removing Flash

Written by Anthony Romero in Product Updates on 30 April 2019

IBM Watson Media has updated the player available through the IBM video streaming solutions. This includes enhancements to the UI and improved consistencies in the experience across devices. It also encompasses the removal of Flash as a fallback option.

Some of these features, while not technically new, haven’t been widely available. The best example are the stats for the stream, which can show details like the CDN being used. This helps convey the normally behind the scenes power of the multi-CDN technology that IBM’s video streaming services utilize, which is detailed in this Scaling Video Delivery to Reach Massive Audiences white paper.

Video is Data

Written by Anthony Romero in Tips & Tutorials on 25 April 2019

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.

IBM Watson Media Powers Live Streaming of the Masters Tournament

Written by David Mowrey in Customer Stories on 5 April 2019

When executed at the highest level, golf appears beautifully simple. The greatest competitors in the sport swing a club with seemingly effortless grace, sending the ball on a perfect flight between towering pines and rolling along manicured greens toward a flag flapping in the Georgia breeze.

In these moments, we don’t see the countless hours of practice. We don’t see the history of injuries, exhaustion or frustration. Yet although we can’t see it, all that time and effort was necessary to create this seamless moment, tirelessly earned and presented as a gift to patrons of the sport.

These glimpses of simple perfection are why millions will watch the Masters Tournament this April. Delivering these moments in a seamless viewing experience to patrons around the world requires the right infrastructure—a solution architected using both technological innovation and human expertise.

AI-generated Highlights Tell the Story of the Masters

Written by David Mowrey in AI Video Technology on 5 April 2019

The pursuit of excellence is as captivating as it is timeless. That’s why millions of people will turn their eyes to Augusta, Georgia, from April 11 – 14, as a field of elite competitors vie for one of golf’s most prestigious accolades – the Green Jacket awarded to the Masters 2019 champion.

For more than 20 years, IBM and Augusta National Golf Club have worked together to invite patrons around the world onto the sport’s most hallowed ground through innovative digital experiences. This partnership is rooted in each organization’s shared desire to preserve and expand golf’s most unique experience through advanced technology. From developing the event’s first website and mobile application to creating AI-generated highlights and analysis, IBM has used industry-leading solutions to present the pristine timelessness that is the Masters Tournament to millions of viewers around the world.

Enterprise Video Delivery Infrastructure: Security Considerations

Written by Anthony Romero in Product Updates on 28 March 2019

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

Written by Anthony Romero in Company News on 25 February 2019

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

Written by Anthony Romero in Tips & Tutorials on 20 February 2019

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.

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