Everything in Streaming Has Its Price
04 Oct 2023
This column isn't meant to be a downer, especially because the overall economy seems to be plugging along. But it is meant to ask those of you in the industry to share anecdotes and stories about the pain points you're facing. We know that everything in streaming has its price, but you are in a better position to help us fully understand what that price entails.
Evidence That Survives Time
09 Aug 2023
From war crimes to war crime tribunals and war commemorations, how do we guarantee that content is available to play?
Do Our Technology Advances Slow Down Justice?
19 Dec 2022
Far from content being scarce, the integration of streaming into professional- and citizen-based news-gathering has generated such a monumental level of potential war-crime footage that every day sees an additional 10-100 documented cases of crimes against humanity. And this increased footage brings with it both greater accountability and a significantly higher backlog of cases that need to be tried.
Transitions
12 Aug 2022
Tim Siglin reflects on his 25-year-long career as a writer, instructor, and consultant in the streaming industry along with his professional partnership with Eric Schumacher-Rasmussen.
Of Subscriptions and Submarines
17 Jun 2022
What do Lewis Carroll, OTT subscriptions, and submarine power cables have in common? Read on!
We're All Video Distributors Now
22 Mar 2022
One of the unheralded shifts spurred on by the COVID pandemic has been an increase in the number and types of organizations that are creating and distributing their own video content.
Will OTT Consolidation Hamper Innovation?
02 Dec 2021
The past 18 months have seen no shortage of mergers and acquisitions, and it has me wondering if all this consolidation will lead toward innovation. My gut says no, and plenty of industry pundits agree, but it could bring improvements to the customer experience.
Collecting 'Junk' for Better Streaming
07 Sep 2021
Got junk? The Help Me Stream Research Foundation can take your tech castoffs and use them to research better streaming practices, repurposing it into efficient and inexpensive solutions that can run on intermittent power—dovetailing with the efforts of another new organization, Greening of Streaming.
Why Is Watching Sports on OTT Harder Than Watching on TV?
16 Jun 2021
Streaming is supposed to provide a better experience than television. So why is watching the Euro 2020 on the ESPN app such a poor experience?
From Zoom Fatigue to Serendipity
01 Mar 2021
It's March. Again. And we're still all on Zoom. It's been a lifeline, but it'll never replace in-person meetings and conferences.
A Look Back at Streaming Video's 2020
08 Dec 2020
From the rise of Zoom to the fall of MPEG, 2020 has been a year of surprises.
Is the Pandemic the Death Knell for the Multiplex?
07 Oct 2020
In a world dominated by streaming, cinemas still offer the optimal viewing experience for movies. OTT will never replace that.
Launching Rockets
04 Sep 2020
Live streaming brought the launch of Endeavour into our living rooms, and inspired our imaginations to quest for what lies beyond
Shouldering Our Responsibility to Educate the Streaming Market
04 Jun 2020
As companies and individuals pivot online in the "new normal," it's up to us in the streaming industry to put education ahead of profit
Back to the Future
21 Feb 2020
A look at streaming media's past can give us guidance on our journey toward where we're heading next
The Math Behind the Magic
23 Jan 2020
Whether we're talking about content delivery, player performance, live events, or even DRM, it's important to understand the algorithms that make streaming video tick.
Netflix's Stock Price Tumbles as Higher Prices Lead to Churn
28 Oct 2019
Why did Netflix's stock fall in Q2? Because the OTT leader's price increase lead to service cancellations. That's a warning to all SVODs: If it can happen to Netflix, it can happen to any service.
Engineering Women: IBC Plays Host to a Powerful Force for Change
20 Sep 2019
Women in Streaming Media has announced a mentoring program to encourage and empower talented women in the industry.
Two Quick-Fix Solutions That Became Long-Term Problems
10 Sep 2019
When will the industry jettison HTTP-segment-based streaming and buffer-based playback, both of which hold us back? How about right now, our columnist proposes.
For Thought-Provoking Video, Forget About Slick Production Values
09 Jul 2019
In a previous age, videoconferencing was bright, sterile, and unpleasant. It lacked the multi-sensory input that makes face-to-face meetings valuable.