LAS VEGAS — Skyline Communications, the force behind the DataMiner XOPS platform, and Lawo, a leader in broadcast technology, jointly unveiled a groundbreaking technology demonstration at NAB 2025, held in Las Vegas, NV. The demo showcased a collaborative solution designed to address the burgeoning need for dynamic resource management within modern media facilities. As the broadcast industry increasingly embraces software-defined workflows, the ability to efficiently allocate and manage resources is becoming paramount.

the initiative aligns perfectly with the “Dynamic Media Facility” concept, gaining traction within the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and various broadcasting entities across north America. This movement champions the transition towards hardware-autonomous processing applications, provisioned dynamically to optimize the utilization of available computing power. This is especially relevant in the U.S. market, where media companies are constantly seeking ways to streamline operations and reduce costs, mirroring efforts like those seen with cloud adoption across various sectors.

For U.S. broadcasters, this translates to increased agility. imagine a scenario where a local news station needs to quickly spin up additional resources for election night coverage. With a dynamic resource management system, they could allocate processing power and licenses on-demand, avoiding the need to invest in expensive, underutilized hardware. This approach is akin to how Amazon Web Services (AWS) allows companies to scale their computing resources up or down as needed, paying only for what they use.

Automated Planning and Resource Provisioning

The joint demonstration centered around an automated planning and resource provision tool specifically designed for managing the lifecycle of Lawo Home Apps. Thomas Gunkel, Market Director Broadcast at Skyline Communications, emphasized the potential of the collaboration, stating, Even though we are still at the beginning, we are convinced that our cooperation paves the way for a highly automated and efficient management of dynamic resources. Dataminer will not only start, stop and automate the configuration of home apps, but also keep an eye on the available home credit to ensure that planned home apps always have sufficient license credit for future missions.

This system aims to streamline operations by automating the allocation of resources, including processing power and licenses. This automation is crucial for broadcasters looking to optimize their workflows and reduce the operational overhead associated with managing complex media environments.Imagine a scenario where a sports network needs to quickly provision resources for a live broadcast. This system would automate the process, ensuring that all necessary resources are available on time and without manual intervention. in the context of the U.S. market, where skilled broadcast engineers are in high demand (and frequently enough short supply), automation offers a compelling value proposition.

Addressing the Challenges of Dynamic Media Environments

Axel Kern, Senior Director of Cloud and infrastructure Solutions at Lawo, highlighted the transformative potential of software-based signal processing, stating, With the advent of software-based signal processing for live productions, media companies are given the opportunity to change their production environments dynamically.In order to exploit the full potential of a dynamic media surroundings, an orchestration layer is required that fully automates the provision of processing applications, licenses, CPU and network capacities.

Kern’s statement underscores the necessity for a robust orchestration layer to manage the complexities of dynamic media environments. This orchestration layer acts as a central control point, automating the provisioning of processing applications, licenses, CPU, and network capacities. This is particularly relevant for U.S. media companies that are increasingly relying on cloud-based solutions and virtualized infrastructure.

Seamless Operation Across Infrastructure layers

The NAB presentation leveraged Skyline’s MediaOps solution to monitor processing resource utilization and application requests across all infrastructure layers. This ensures seamless, collision-free operation through an intuitive user interface. By tracking resource consumption and proactively managing potential conflicts, the system helps broadcasters avoid costly downtime and maintain optimal performance.

to further illustrate the capabilities,consider a scenario where a major broadcast network is preparing for its Super Bowl broadcast.The network needs to ensure that all resources, including encoders, transcoders, and distribution channels, are available and properly configured. The Skyline MediaOps solution can monitor resource usage in real-time, identify potential bottlenecks, and automatically allocate additional resources as needed. This level of automation and visibility is critical for ensuring a flawless broadcast experience.

Preventing Resource Conflicts