Broadcasters weigh hybrid solutions amid mounting cloud costs and legacy infrastructure challenges

By Dak Dillon January 17, 2025

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As broadcasters face pressure to modernize operations and cut costs, the industry’s much-touted migration to cloud infrastructure reveals a more complex reality than optimistic predictions suggest.

Industry professionals highlight ongoing costs, security and integration issues, resulting in many broadcasters choosing hybrid solutions over complete cloud migrations.

“Cloud storage is a stubbornly expensive proposition, especially as camera technology evolves and file sizes keep growing, and much of the world still wants the security of on-premise solutions that have already been bought and paid for,” said Thorsten Sauer, CEO of Pixel Power.

The financial equation remains a factor in cloud adoption decisions. Without events like elections or the Olympics driving advertising revenue in 2025, broadcasters must carefully evaluate the true cost of ownership while weighing the benefits of the cloud.

“With tight budgets likely to be the biggest challenge to adopting new technologies in 2025, broadcasters will navigate the challenge by doing the math to determine whether it’s more cost-effective to run their operations on-prem or in the cloud,” said Steve Reynolds, CEO of Imagine Communications.

“If you’re deploying a disaster recovery solution or operating FAST channels that are never going to touch an antenna, it’s probably cheaper to do it in the cloud, but if you’re running 24/7/365 workflows or have significant investments in studios, HVAC systems and backup generators, on-prem solutions may make better economic sense,” added Reynolds.

Legacy infrastructure continues to pose integration challenges for broadcasters attempting a cloud migration.

“Broadcasters face significant challenges in adopting new technologies due to their reliance on outdated infrastructure and legacy systems, which complicate integration with modern cloud-based workflows and AI-driven tools,” said Dan Goman, CEO of Ateliere Creative Technologies. “The costs associated with technology updates, staff training, and hardware upgrades can be prohibitive, especially for smaller organizations competing against well-funded rivals.”

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Security concerns also factor heavily into cloud migration decisions.

Andy Rayner, CTO of Appear, noted that broadcasters “face challenges around integrating new technologies with legacy systems, ensuring interoperability, and maintaining robust cybersecurity in increasingly IP-based workflows.”

The reality emerging across the industry points toward hybrid approaches that balance the benefits of cloud flexibility with the security and cost advantages of on-premise infrastructure.

“Commercial models from technology suppliers should align with the need to operate across different infrastructures,” said Neil Maycock, CCO of Pebble. “For some companies, CapEx may suit their requirements and corporate budgeting, especially in cases with predictable usage patterns. However, operations requiring flexible broadcast patterns can benefit from OpEx, which better aligns costs with revenues.”

This hybrid model appears particularly suited to sports and live event broadcasting, where peak demand varies significantly.

“I see 2025 as a rebalancing of OpEx and CapEx as I believe organizations have been able to better evaluate the variability of cloud OpEx cost against capital cost for their operations,” said Philip Grossman, VP of business development and solutions architecture at DigitalGlue. “We will see things move towards more private-based cloud operations where cost can be more predictable and balance OpEx and CapEx investments. Public cloud offerings will assume more of a burst or expansion role.”

The trend toward hybrid infrastructure reflects broader industry uncertainties about sustainable business models in a media landscape that seems to change with each new monetization path. 

“Cost pressures and uncertainty in the media industry’s evolving monetization models — ranging from subscription-based OTT services to ad-supported platforms — are creating significant challenges,” said Anupama Anantharaman, VP of product management at Interra Systems. “With no clear consensus on the most sustainable path to profitability, broadcasters face difficulties in forecasting ROI for new investments.”

For broadcasters evaluating cloud migration strategies, experts emphasize the importance of regular cost-benefit analysis rather than one-time decisions.

“A one-and-done calculation won’t cut it in a rapidly changing industry, so broadcasters may need to regularly revisit the TCO math to determine whether on-prem, cloud, or a hybrid of both will best meet their unique needs and budgets,” Reynolds noted.

As the industry looks for new ways to operate, the push toward cloud infrastructure appears likely to proceed at a measured pace, driven more by practical considerations than technological possibilities.

The emerging consensus suggests successful cloud adoption strategies will focus on specific use cases where cloud benefits clearly outweigh costs, while maintaining hybrid infrastructure that leverages existing investments in on-premise systems.

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