Sky Sports relies upon Irdeto Multiscreen to efficiently manage its ...

CASE STUDY
THE CHALLENGES
• Inefficient workflows and
complex processes for
delivering sports content and
metadata to multiple devices
and distribution platforms
• The need to provide a userfriendly
content publishing
solution for journalists
• Risk of not meeting
commitments to media outlets
around time-sensitive content
THE SOLUTION
• Creation of a central, userfriendly
‘media hub’ from which
all parties, including journalists,
can manage, process and
publish content to multiple
platforms and devices
• Rationalized and efficient
content and metadata
workflows, saving time and cost
• Assurance that commitments
to media outlets are being met
by delivering the right content,
at the right time to the right
devices
THE BENEFITS
• Improved user experience and
consistently high-quality output
through standardized content
management
• Increased opportunities to
monetize content and reduce
total cost of ownership
• Ability to drive viewership, and
ratings, via engaging second
screen experiences
Sky Sports relies upon Irdeto Multiscreen
to efficiently manage its live and on-demand
content across multiple distribution networks
and devices
Launched in 1991, Sky Sports has changed the face of sport in the UK over
the last 20 years, having a major impact on how it is covered on TV, pioneering
interactivity with Sky Sports Active.
Sky Sports Active recently upgraded their video production capability, and Irdeto
Content Management, is at the heart of the new system. The advanced video
content management and workflow system went live with the launch of the Sky
Sports F1 HD services in March 2011.
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Last modification: 04-06-2013 / 04:38 PM GMT+01:00

THE CLIENT
Sky entertains and excites more than
10 million homes through the most
comprehensive multichannel, multiplatform
pay television service in the UK
and Ireland. Sky Sports keeps raising
the bar in sports broadcasting, delivering
content to a growing number of online and
mobile devices.
IRDETO’S ROLE
In 2011, Sky Sports moved into their state-of-the-art £233m Sky Studios production
facility in west London with the mission that original content can be filmed, edited and
transmitted within a single facility. The Studios are arranged over five levels, with each
the size of a football pitch.
Following a thorough analysis of the products and services available, Sky Sports
selected Irdeto Multiscreen as the most advanced open, flexible and scalable video
content management platform to efficiently manage and rapidly deliver its sports content
online and to multiple mobile devices.
Irdeto Content Management
Dashboard
User Interface
www.irdeto.com
video
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IRDETO
CONTENT MANAGEMENT
- Ingest video
- Add metadata
- Transcode video
- Publish to multiple platform
“We aim to be the ultimate sports
news service for our customers,
and provide them with the latest
sports news and in-depth coverage,
wherever they happen to be.”
Andy Cairns
Executive Editor, Sky Sports News
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IRdeTo conTenT MAnAGeMenT: AdvAnced vIdeo
CONTENT & WORKFLOW MANAGEMENT
PUBLISH WITH JUST one cLIcK
The Irdeto Content Management user interface is ideally suited for
journalists working in a high-pressure, time-critical environment.
Content metadata is entered into custom-designed forms with
drop-down options and free-text fields. clips are prepared and
sent for distribution with a single click.
Dashboard User Interface Use By Journalists
PRodUcT FeATUReS
The Irdeto Content Management solution enables operators to
package and manage content easily for online distribution. The
end-to-end solution can be deployed alongside an established
operation with easy integration into existing components.
BeneFITS/ReSULTS
At Sky Sports, Irdeto Content Management ingests video clips
created by video journalists using the EVS non-linear editing
solution. The clips have metadata added via a dashboard user
interface, and are then transcoded to the formats required for
distribution to multiple online and mobile devices.
ON-DEMAND VIDEO
Sky Sports aim to be the ultimate sports news service for their
customers, and thanks to Irdeto Content Management they can
provide viewers with the latest sports news and in-depth video
coverage, wherever they happen to be. Each news story features
on-demand video, and can be accessed on a range of devices
including iPad, mobile phone, Pc and television.
Irdeto content Management is integrated with a range of filebased
transcoding solutions, including those from Harmonic,
Telestream and Digital Rapids. The solution at Sky Sports uses
Harmonic ProMedia carbon transcoding software to convert
video into the wide range of formats required.
PRoceSS cLIPS QUIcKLY
In the world of sports, time is of the essence. Clips must
be processed and made available to viewers as quickly as
possible. efficient automated workflows are crucial, with manual
intervention only where necessary for editorial input or approval.
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©2013 Irdeto, All Rights Reserved.
With a wide portfolio of mobile rights, Sky Sports relies on Irdeto
Content Management to support fast delivery of clips to mobile
platforms, including Sky’s 24-7 Football service, which sends
customers video clips of goals on their mobile phones within
minutes of a goal being scored in a live match. “Irdeto plays a
significant role in helping the Sky Sports Mobile and Broadband
production teams deliver content faster,” comments Jeremy
Worthington, Sky Sports Active.
TIME TO MARKET
The flexibility of Irdeto content Management allows new workflows
to be quickly configured so content can be rapidly distributed to
new platforms. This allows Sky Sports to continue innovating and
delivering compelling content to a growing range of devices.
conSISTencY oF oUTPUT
The automated workflows within content Management ensure
that each clip is prepared to consistent standards and that high
quality output is guaranteed through file based Qc and automated
error handling.
EASY INTEGRATION
Easy integration with existing components was essential for Sky
Sports. Content Management’s plug-in architecture allows it to
fit in with the other components in the production environment,
from content sources, through transcoders, to content distribution
systems.
SECOND SCREEN
The Sky Sports for iPad app contains a brand new F1 companion
experience that allows fans to get closer to the action that ever
before. It means that, alongside live coverage, Sky customers
are able to access a range of video clips through their iPad at
the same time as they watch the action unfold on their main TV
screen.
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