Now the dust has settled, and we’ve had time to reflect, IBC 2025 once again proved
itself to be the meeting place for the broadcast and media technology community.
For Veset, the event was not only an opportunity to showcase our latest
developments in cloud playout and disaster recovery, but also to listen closely to the
conversations happening across the industry. From evolving transport protocols to
the realities of cloud adoption, a number of themes stood out clearly this year.
As a company with a strong foundation in the cloud we’ve always seen its potential
and at this year’s IBC there were strong signs that it’s no longer a technology of the
future, but one that is firmly in the present. Recent high-profile live sports broadcasts
run entirely in the cloud have cemented it as a trusted and proven approach. For
many broadcasters, the question is no longer whether cloud works, but how best to
use it. What we heard at IBC was that cloud is increasingly being adopted in hybrid
deployments – combining on-prem hardware and cloud software solutions – and that
the industry is moving away from simply virtualizing legacy systems. Instead, the real
innovation lies in building cloud-native applications from the ground up using
microservices and modular architectures.
Throughout the show, the Veset team spoke with clients, partners, and industry
peers. Several recurring themes emerged:
Broadcasters are increasingly weighing up the shift from Zixi to SRT as they look for
more cost-effective and reliable distribution methods. This isn’t just about replacing
one protocol with another, instead it reflects a broader desire for open standards,
flexibility, and interoperability. As Martins Magone, CTO, pointed out during his
Content Everywhere panel, the move to IP-first infrastructures is reshaping the way
broadcasters think about workflows: “The industry is finally recognising that simply
taking existing hardware-based technology and trying to move it to the cloud doesn’t
work. Cloud-native applications must be built from the ground up, and microservices
are the foundation for that. This is where the real scalability and flexibility come
from.”
Conversations at IBC highlighted the growing confidence broadcasters have in the
cloud not just as a playout option, but as a strategic disaster recovery (DR) tool.
Clients are increasingly focused on how quickly they can spin up and shut down
channels in response to business needs. As COO Lelde Ardava explained: “The
conversations we had weren’t about convincing people that cloud works – that
debate is over. Instead, it was about practicalities: how fast can we deploy, how
flexible can the workflows be, and how can we help them respond quickly to
business needs. Disaster recovery was a particularly strong theme, with clients
asking about activation times and strategies. It’s clear that cloud isn’t just about cost
anymore, it’s about resilience and adaptability.”
After dominating discussions in 2024, AI was less of a headline this year. Instead of
asking about AI features, broadcasters and content owners were looking for proven,
workflow-focused applications where AI could demonstrably add value. This reflects
a wider industry shift toward practical implementation rather than experimentation.
As Gatis Gailis, CEO and Founder, noted in his IABM TV interview: “What struck me
this year was how customers are taking ownership of cloud’s flexibility. They are no
longer asking if cloud is viable, they’re asking how they can make the most of it
specific to their needs. It’s a sign of real maturity in the market.” That same maturity
is now shaping conversations around AI that are now less about the hype and more
about viable solutions.
Efficiency in creating, launching, and managing FAST channels was another hot
topic. With competition intensifying and margins under pressure, broadcasters are
looking for tools that allow them to experiment, monetise, and adapt quickly without
heavy infrastructure costs. Veset’s cloud-native approach resonates strongly here,
enabling broadcasters to test new channel ideas and deploy them rapidly. As Gatis
emphasised: “The ability for content creators, media companies, or even start-ups to
launch a channel quickly without investing in hardware is transformational. Elasticity
is also a big driver. You can scale up when needed, scale down when you don’t, and
only pay for what you use.”
Live programming continues to demand advanced capabilities, from overlays and
graphics to live-to-file switching. Broadcasters at IBC were clear, they want these
integrations to be seamless, intuitive and reliable. The cloud’s elasticity is a powerful
enabler here, allowing teams to scale resources up during live events and scale back
down when demand drops. This ties directly to Veset’s mission to empower users
with autonomy and simplicity in their workflows.
From music festivals to major sporting events, broadcasters are increasingly
exploring short-term playout models. Pop-up and event-specific channels lasting just
days or weeks require flexibility, speed and cost efficiency. As Lelde observed: “It’s
not about convincing people anymore. It’s about how we help them respond quickly
to business needs.” This agility is critical for monetising short-lived opportunities and
meeting the evolving demands of viewers.
IBC 2025 showed us that cloud playout has moved from being a disruptor to an
enabler – a mature, proven technology that underpins innovation across the
broadcast chain. The industry is now thinking less about hype and more about realworld
use cases: short-term event playouts, disaster recovery, FAST channels, and
hybrid deployments. For Veset, this is exactly where we want to be – helping
broadcasters and content creators make the most of cloud’s elasticity, speed, and
resilience.
