by John Wastcoat, SVP, Business Development and Marketing, Zixi
The adoption of IP technologies is enabling significant operational flexibility, agility, and reliable broadcast-quality distribution of live video content over the internet. Yet, how do media organizations efficiently manage the vast amounts of data required for video streaming while keeping costs under control? This is a common challenge among industry professionals. Many media companies focus solely on upfront expenses, often overlooking long-term operational and infrastructure costs. What if there was an approach that emphasizes a holistic view of Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), integrating various efficiencies that contribute to substantial savings and optimized performance?
Zixi’s Software-Defined Video Platform (SDVP), underpinned by the Zixi Protocol and the ZEN Master Control plane supports this IP migration, whether it’s satellite rationalization, OTT, direct-to-consumer models, 5G, or multicast to set-top boxes. The solution maintains high-quality, low-latency streams over IP networks and provides an opportunity for lowering total cost of ownership.
Optimized Streaming without Quality Degradation
An ideal solution is optimized for low-latency streaming, which is crucial for live broadcasts where delays can disrupt the viewing experience. This optimization ensures that content is delivered in real-time, without the lag that can detract from the live event. By leveraging advanced protocols and adaptive bitrate streaming, Zixi minimizes buffering and latency, providing a seamless viewing experience even under varying network conditions.
Zixi’s SDVP requires 7% of the compute resources compared to other solutions, encouraging sustainable workflows and cost savings. It also delivers a 14-fold increase in compute efficiency compared to less efficient open-source protocols. By using ARM processors instead of traditional Intel processors, Zixi’s SDVP can achieve an additional 50% savings in both operational costs and energy usage.
It also minimizes the need for excessive virtual machines, which reduces operational costs, including compute, engineering, operations, and energy expenses. This streamlines infrastructure and allows organizations to manage resources while lowering operational expenditures. The use of these types of technology can prepare media organizations for future demands and challenges, and support environmentally conscious workflows where reducing energy consumption and resource usage is a priority.
When using the ZIXI SDVP and protocol, the cost of transmitting video streams out of a network (egress costs) is reduced by an average of 50% due in part to the protocol’s compression and decompression processes which maintain the integrity and high quality of the video content.
Architectural Efficiency
Architectural design plays a crucial role in project economics – especially as media workflows transition to IP and the cloud. Zixi’s SDVP supports hybrid infrastructures, integrating on-premises, direct network connections, and cloud services. This architectural flexibility allows organizations to optimize egress rates and manage scalability with small incremental investments.
Resource Management
As the number of channels and affiliates grows, a control plane provides a centralized platform for managing many video streams from a few hundred to over 3,000. This type of scalability allows for quick deployment and on-the-fly adjustments, which supports an agile and modular infrastructure across an entire media organization. Zixi’s Master Control plane is designed to work with a wide range of systems and technologies, which helps to minimize the risks associated with deploying new systems and significantly shortens the time required to get new projects up and running.
Operational and Engineering Optimization
Traditional monitoring methods become impractical since they cannot handle the complexity and volume of the growing number of channels and streams. Zixi’s Intelligent Data Platform (IDP) and ZEN Master Control plane use multi-object correlation analysis (MOCA) for rapid incident and root cause analysis. This capability reduces the time and resources required for troubleshooting, allowing teams to focus more on content creation and audience engagement rather than operational issues.
Migrating to IP and the cloud for live video requires specialized skills, from production to distribution, with the expertise needed varying across workflows. Having a unified software-defined platform allows for synchronization of engineering disciplines and speeds up the resolution of problems and allows teams to manage operations on a global scale.
Low TCO and Operational Excellence Go Hand in Hand
The adoption of Zixi’s SDVP and protocol has set the industry benchmark for cost-effective, ultra-low latency live streaming. The platform’s bandwidth and compute efficiencies reduce the total cost of ownership (TCO) for organizations managing extensive video streaming operations. By harnessing Zixi’s advanced technology, companies can optimize their resources, cut costs, and deliver high-quality video content. This technological edge paves the way for growth, innovation, and superior video streaming experiences, proving that cost-effectiveness and operational excellence can coexist.
