CentralCast adopts Harmonic xos processor for public media channel delivery

Harmonic has announced that CentralCast, the centralized master control facility for U.S. public media, is using Harmonic’s XOS Advanced Media Processor to deliver video content to more than half of U.S. public media viewers.

CentralCast manages over 170 public media channels and has adopted the XOS media processor to improve video quality, reliability, and operational efficiency. The system supports a higher channel density compared to CentralCast’s previous encoding platform, which helps reduce operational costs while maintaining video quality.

Steve White, chief technology officer at CentralCast, said the partnership with Harmonic provides a scalable media processing foundation to meet the needs of member stations. The XOS media processor unifies media processing and distribution, delivering 176 transport streams.

The processor’s cloud-native software reduces equipment requirements, lowering power and cooling expenses. It also lowers per-channel bitrate, allowing stations to add services within the fixed ATSC bandwidth without compromising video quality.

Harmonic supports CentralCast’s audio needs by enabling automatic switching between embedded 5.1 and 2.0 audio sources, ensuring seamless audio for viewers.

Harmonic also provided professional services including system configuration and testing to accelerate deployment and improve operational efficiency for public media stations.

Gil Rudge, senior vice president of solutions and Americas sales at Harmonic, said the XOS media processor enables CentralCast to deliver more channels and services using less hardware, energy, and space, supporting a software-defined broadcast model.

Harmonic plans to showcase the XOS media processor at the 2026 NAB Show, April 19-22, in Las Vegas at stand W2831.