Veset was born 15 years ago from a vision: that the future of linear TV needed to adapt to changing consumption habits. Our founders knew that delivering flexible and cost-effective channels meant the industry needed to move away from racks of hardware, something that felt unrealistic to many, back in 2011. What they couldn’t have predicted is just what that journey would look like 15 years later.
To celebrate Veset’s 15th year in business, we sat down with current CEO and Co-Founder Gatis Gailis to reminisce on the story behind the company, his memories, how the industry itself has changed and a little crystal ball gazing on what Veset will look like at 30.
Veset was created in 2011 by businessman and former Prime Minister of Latvia, Māris Gailis, together with his business partner Jānis Vaišļa. The pair were keen to help the Latvian broadcast market thrive and felt that a good way to enable that would be delivering software-based MAM and playout solutions. At the time, most broadcasters relied on expensive, rigid hardware systems, so by providing a more flexible, software-driven alternative, it would help companies better compete in what was already becoming a crowded marketplace.
Soon after, Gatis Gailis, Jānis Irbe, and Jānis Krampāns joined the company. With the expanded team and broader ambitions, Veset quickly pivoted away from being a local solutions provider and towards cloud playout for the global market, which has defined the company ever since.
There have been several defining moments in Veset’s history. One of the earliest and most important was the decision in 2011 to focus on cloud playout at a time when there were practically no such solutions on the market and broadcasting was still overwhelmingly hardware based.
In 2012, Veset onboarded its first cloud playout client, TV21, which began broadcasting directly from AWS. This was a major validation of the idea and a proof that cloud playout was not just theoretical, but production ready.
Another milestone came in 2014 with Veset’s first capital raise and the arrival of CEO Igor Krol, which marked a new phase of growth and professionalisation.
In 2019, Veset launched its Linux-based playout, further strengthening its technology stack and long-term scalability.
The arrival of PLAY, Inc. first as a client and strategic partner, and later the acquisition of Veset by PLAY, Inc. in 2023, was a major turning point positioning Veset as part of a larger global ecosystem and opening the door to new markets and opportunities.
One recurring theme among long-standing team members is how experimental everything felt in the early days. We were building solutions that didn’t yet have a clear market category, explaining cloud playout to clients who had never considered it before, and learning by doing.
There is also a strong sense of pride in having stayed focused on engineering quality and reliability, even as the company grew and the market became more crowded. For many of the team here from the beginning, Veset feels less like a startup they once joined and more like something they helped shape from the ground up.
Looking ahead, Veset will increasingly act as a global delivery arm for a broader portfolio of PLAY, Inc. products. Cloud playout will remain a core offering, but it will be complemented by OTT, VOD, and other cloud-native media solutions.
At 30, Veset is likely to be less about a single product and more about an ecosystem that can help broadcasters and content owners operate fully in the cloud, adapt quickly to new formats, and reach audiences wherever they are.
Veset maybe 15 years young, but its story is still being written. In modern day, 15 years is celebrated with watches representing time shared. During the past 15 years Veset has shared its journey with those within the company and influenced the industry around it. As this month marks a moment in time so too will the next 15 years as cloud usage continues to dominate and AI becomes ever more influential. Mindful that Father Time never stops, Veset should have many more milestones to look back on in 2041.
