Focuses on Improving Streaming Video Quality,
Personalization and Cost;
Also Unveils CMCD Enhancements and New
Computing Partners for Media Workflows
LAS
VEGAS, April 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Akamai
Technologies (NASDAQ: AKAM), the cloud company that powers and
protects life online, today introduced new cloud computing
capabilities for streaming video at the 2023 NAB Show. The
capabilities are designed to help OTT operators deliver higher
quality and more personalized video experiences to viewers. They
can also help operators realize lower, more predictable operational
costs and improve efforts to monetize content. Additionally, Akamai
announced enhancements to its support of the Common Media Client
Data (CMCD) specification and highlighted the latest members of its
Qualified Computing Partner program.
Cloud power, scale
OTT services today operate the
types of complex applications and demanding workloads that Akamai
cloud computing services are ideally suited to handle. Built on
Akamai Connected Cloud, the massively distributed edge and cloud
platform for cloud computing, content delivery and security,
developers can use Akamai cloud computing services to build, run
and secure applications and workloads that are best suited to where
and how their viewers connect. For viewers, that means low-latency,
high-performing experiences; for OTT operators, it means global
scalability with lower-cost and predictable pricing.
"Whether you're building the app or paying the invoices from
cloud providers, Akamai cloud computing services are uniquely
capable to help cover the gamut of development, cost control, and
viewer experience," said Jon
Alexander, Vice President, Product Management, Akamai.
"We're giving OTT operators a host of powerful new cloud computing
functions, scaling them across our global platform, and backing
them with Akamai content delivery and security services."
In addition, Akamai is adding new use cases to its EdgeWorkers
serverless computing capabilities that address needs around content
personalization, rights management and security for streaming
video. The use cases support DASH and HLS streaming protocols:
- Manifest and Playlist Manipulation: Decrease storage
requirements and costs for operators while providing improved
viewing experiences for end users by using EdgeWorkers to
dynamically personalize manifest file elements such as bitrate
ordering, resolution filtering and subtitles at the edge, closer to
viewers.
- Program Replacement: Deploy faster, more flexible
pre-delivery content stitching for both live and on-demand video.
Operators can insert content pre-, mid- and post-roll into video
streams based on criteria such as geolocation and time of day to
satisfy requirements such as rights restrictions or local
ratings.
- Watermarking: Better track and mitigate live and
on-demand video piracy with A/B content watermarking that is
compliant with the new DASH Industry Forum (DASH-IF) specification
support for any watermarking technique, encoder and CDN.
Performance improvements, more insight
To help OTT
operators improve the viewing experience and obtain additional
visibility into video performance, Akamai is enhancing its support
for the CMCD specification. Created by the Consumer Technology
Association (CTA), the specification enables device-based media
players to send playback information to Akamai and other CDNs.
Akamai is using CMCD to intelligently pre-fetch content, which can
improve video start-up time and reduce buffering.
With CMCD support, OTT operators can also benefit from more
consistent, reliable metrics on viewer quality of experience. The
CDN receives meaningful client-side data and affords the
low-latency, high-volume processing power to generate logs
that can be delivered to third-party analytics tools for reporting
and analysis.
Partner workflow solutions
Akamai is also highlighting
the members of its Qualified Computing Partner program that provide
solution-based services for media workflows. The services are
interoperable with Akamai Connected Cloud and are available through
partners that have completed a thorough qualification process.
- Ateme: Ateme provides video compression and delivery
solutions helping tier-one content providers, service providers and
streaming platforms to boost their viewership and engagement.
- Capella Systems: Capella Systems offers software-based
VOD transcoding, live encoding and packaging solutions that can be
installed on premise, in the cloud, or as a hybrid solution.
- HarperDB: HarperDB's distributed application platform
simplifies development and data management at scale, reducing
complexity and latency, and improving the economics of modern
computing.
- Hydrolix: Hydrolix can power observability for Akamai
customers with built-in dashboards and allows for real-time data
ingestion at any scale, lightning-fast query performance, extensive
data retention at a fraction of the cost of other services and
platforms.
- LiveKit: LiveKit is an open-source developer stack
designed for real-time video and audio communication, making it
easy to build applications for interactive live streaming,
conferencing, collaboration or robotics — backed by the reliability
and scalability of the Akamai Connected Cloud.
- LiveSwitch: LiveSwitch provides critical video
infrastructure that powers the most engaging and interactive
real-time communications and entertainment experiences on the
web.
- Macrometa: The Macrometa Global Data Network enables new
dynamic, real-time services, such as intent-based content search,
tailored recommendations, and impactful cohort mapping for Direct
Ad Insertions (DAI) and Server Side Ad Inclusion (SSAI).
- Scalstrm: The Scalstrm media platform offers the ability
to pick and match features including continuous live recordings,
real time ad-insertion/replacement, content repackaging and
adaptations into different streams for different device types.
- Unified Streaming: Unified Streaming, which provides
solutions for complex streaming challenges, is collaborating with
Akamai to help allow for quicker deployment of virtual channels,
including FAST channels, among many other solutions.
About Akamai
Akamai powers and protects life online.
Leading companies worldwide choose Akamai to build, deliver, and
secure their digital experiences — helping billions of people live,
work, and play every day. Akamai Connected Cloud, a massively
distributed edge and cloud platform, puts apps and experiences
closer to users and keeps threats farther away. Learn more about
Akamai's cloud computing, security, and content delivery solutions
at akamai.com and akamai.com/blog, or follow Akamai Technologies on
Twitter and LinkedIn.
Contacts:
Chris
Nicholson
Akamai Media Relations
+1.508.517.3703
cnichols@akamai.com
Tom Barth
Akamai Investor Relations
+1.617.274.7130
tbarth@akamai.com
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SOURCE Akamai Technologies, Inc.