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Digital Asset Management Technology

Blockchain Storage Demystified: Transforming Media Production

Introduction

Blockchain technology is revolutionizing various industries, with media production being among the most promising beneficiaries. Blockchain storage, in particular, offers a novel approach to managing vast amounts of data securely and efficiently. This comprehensive guide explores how blockchain storage works, its benefits, challenges, and specific applications within the M&E industry. We will also look at current vendors, use cases, and future trends.

What is Blockchain Storage?

Blockchain storage refers to the use of blockchain technology to manage and store data across a decentralized network. Unlike traditional centralized storage systems where data is stored on a single server or a group of servers, blockchain storage distributes data across multiple nodes in a network. Each piece of data is encrypted, time-stamped, and linked to the previous and subsequent data entries, forming a secure chain.

How Does Blockchain Storage Work?
  1. Data Segmentation and Encryption:
    1. Data is divided into smaller segments.
    2. Each segment is encrypted for security.
  2. Distribution Across Nodes:
    1. Encrypted data segments are distributed across various nodes in the blockchain network.
    2. This ensures redundancy and availability even if some nodes fail.
  3. Consensus Mechanism:
    1. Nodes in the network use consensus mechanisms like Proof of Work (PoW) or Proof of Stake (PoS) to validate and agree on the data being stored.
    2. This process ensures that the data is accurate and tamper-proof.
  4. Immutable Ledger:
    1. Once data is validated, it is added to the blockchain, creating an immutable ledger.
    2. Any attempt to alter the data would require changing all subsequent blocks, making tampering virtually impossible.
Benefits of Blockchain Storage
  1. Enhanced Security:
    1. Data is encrypted and distributed, reducing the risk of hacks and data breaches.
    2. The decentralized nature makes it difficult for malicious actors to compromise the system.
  2. Transparency and Traceability:
    1. Every transaction and data entry is recorded on the blockchain, providing a transparent and traceable history.
    2. This is particularly useful for audit trails and regulatory compliance.
  3. Data Integrity and Immutability:
    1. Once data is added to the blockchain, it cannot be altered or deleted.
    2. This ensures the integrity and authenticity of the stored data.
  4. Decentralization:
    1. Eliminates the need for a central authority or intermediary.
    2. Users have more control over their data and how it is managed.
  5. Reduced Costs:
    1. By removing intermediaries and relying on peer-to-peer networks, blockchain storage can reduce costs associated with data management and storage.
Challenges and Limitations
  1. Scalability:
    1. Blockchain networks can face scalability issues as the size of the blockchain grows.
    2. Solutions like sharding and layer-2 protocols are being developed to address these challenges.
  2. Energy Consumption:
    1. Some consensus mechanisms, particularly Proof of Work, require significant computational power, leading to high energy consumption.
    2. More energy-efficient consensus mechanisms like Proof of Stake are being explored.
  3. Regulatory Uncertainty:
    1. The regulatory landscape for blockchain technology is still evolving.
    2. Organizations need to navigate varying regulations across different jurisdictions.
  4. Data Privacy:
    1. While blockchain ensures data integrity and security, privacy remains a concern.
    2. Solutions like zero-knowledge proofs and private blockchains are being developed to enhance data privacy.
Applications of Blockchain Storage in Media Production
  1. Enhanced Security and IP Protection:
    1. Blockchain storage can significantly improve the security of media assets, protecting intellectual property from piracy and unauthorized distribution.
    2. Smart contracts can automate and enforce licensing agreements, ensuring that creators are fairly compensated for their work.
  2. Improved Collaboration:
    1. Decentralized storage allows multiple stakeholders, such as producers, editors, and special effects teams, to access and work on the same files securely and efficiently.
    2. Blockchain can facilitate real-time collaboration across different geographical locations, streamlining the production process.
  3. Cost Efficiency:
    1. By reducing the need for intermediaries and enhancing data security, blockchain storage can lower operational costs in media production.
    2. Efficient data management and distribution can lead to cost savings in storage infrastructure and bandwidth usage.
  4. Transparency and Accountability:
    1. Blockchain’s transparent nature ensures a verifiable and traceable record of all data transactions and modifications.
    2. This accountability is crucial for compliance with industry regulations and maintaining the integrity of media content.
Case Studies
  1. Storj:
    1. Storj is a decentralized cloud storage platform that leverages blockchain technology.
    2. It allows users to rent out their unused storage space, creating a peer-to-peer network.
    3. Data is encrypted, segmented, and distributed across multiple nodes, ensuring security and redundancy.
  2.  Filecoin:
    1. Filecoin is a decentralized storage network that incentivizes users to provide storage space.
    2. Users can store and retrieve data in a secure and efficient manner.
    3. The network uses a combination of Proof of Replication and Proof of Space-Time to ensure data integrity and availability.
  3.  Siacoin:
    1. Siacoin offers decentralized cloud storage services.
    2. It uses smart contracts to manage storage agreements between users and hosts.
    3. Data is encrypted and distributed across multiple nodes, providing security and redundancy.
  4.  MovieCoin:
    1. MovieCoin is leveraging blockchain technology to transform film financing and distribution.
    2. By using blockchain for transparent and secure transactions, MovieCoin aims to streamline the production process and enhance revenue sharing among stakeholders.
  5.  Videocoin:
    1. Videocoin is a decentralized video encoding, storage, and distribution network.
    2. It utilizes blockchain technology to create a peer-to-peer network for media processing, reducing costs and improving efficiency.
Competing Technologies: What Are the Big Three Doing?

Traditional cloud storage solutions offered by industry giants like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure are significant competitors to blockchain storage. These services provide highly scalable and efficient storage without the complexities of blockchain technology.

However, the big three are not resting on their laurels. They are actively exploring and integrating advanced technologies to enhance their offerings:

  1. Hybrid Storage Solutions:
    1. AWS, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure are developing hybrid storage solutions that combine traditional cloud storage with blockchain elements. These hybrid solutions aim to leverage the best of both worlds— the scalability and efficiency of cloud storage with the security and transparency of blockchain.
  2. Distributed File Systems:
    1. Technologies like the InterPlanetary File System (IPFS) offer decentralized file storage that competes with blockchain by providing a peer-to-peer method of storing and sharing hypermedia in a distributed file system. While not blockchain-based, IPFS shares the decentralized ethos and provides an alternative to traditional cloud storage.
  3. New Data Storage Innovations:
    1. Continuous innovation in data storage technologies is another factor. For example, advances in quantum storage and next-generation data compression techniques are being researched and developed by the big three, offering potential future alternatives to both traditional and blockchain storage.

The Big Three’s Response to Blockchain Storage:

  • Amazon Web Services (AWS): AWS is exploring blockchain through its managed blockchain services, which allow users to set up and manage scalable blockchain networks using popular open-source frameworks. AWS also offers storage services that integrate with blockchain for enhanced security and transparency.
  • Google Cloud: Google Cloud is investing in blockchain through its blockchain-as-a-service (BaaS) offerings, partnering with leading blockchain companies to provide secure and scalable blockchain solutions. Google Cloud’s hybrid solutions enable integration with existing cloud services, enhancing data management capabilities.
  • Microsoft Azure: Microsoft Azure is actively promoting its Azure Blockchain Service, which helps businesses build and manage blockchain networks. Azure’s focus is on creating enterprise-grade blockchain solutions that integrate seamlessly with its cloud infrastructure, providing robust and scalable storage options.

In summary, while traditional cloud storage remains a strong competitor to blockchain storage, the big three—AWS, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure—are not only maintaining their current offerings but also innovating and integrating blockchain technologies into their services. This proactive approach ensures they stay competitive in the evolving landscape of data storage solutions.

Future Trends in Blockchain Storage for Media Production
  1. Advanced Cryptographic Techniques:
    1. Development of zero-knowledge proofs and homomorphic encryption to enhance data privacy without compromising security.
    2. These techniques can make blockchain storage more suitable for handling sensitive media content.
  2. Interoperability:
    1. Efforts to enhance interoperability between different blockchain networks and traditional storage systems.
    2. This will enable seamless data sharing and collaboration across various platforms and technologies.
  3. AI and Machine Learning Integration:
    1. Combining blockchain with AI and machine learning to automate and optimize data management processes.
    2. AI can help in efficient data segmentation, encryption, and distribution across the blockchain network.
  4. Regulatory Developments:
    1. As blockchain technology matures, regulatory frameworks will evolve to address the specific needs of blockchain storage.
    2. Clear regulations will provide guidance and certainty for media companies looking to adopt blockchain solutions.
Conclusion

Blockchain storage holds significant promise for managing the large data sets used in M&E. Its security, transparency, and immutability can revolutionize how media assets are stored and managed. While challenges like scalability and regulatory uncertainty need to be addressed, ongoing innovations and advancements are paving the way for a more robust and sustainable future for blockchain storage. As the technology evolves, it is poised to become an integral part of media production, enhancing security, efficiency, and collaboration.

Expanded FAQs
  1. Can blockchain storage handle petabytes of data for media production?
    1. While current blockchain networks face scalability challenges, innovative solutions like layer-2 protocols and sharding are being developed to handle large data sets efficiently. For instance, sharding can break down a blockchain into smaller, more manageable pieces, while layer-2 protocols can handle transactions off the main chain to reduce congestion and improve speed. These advancements suggest that blockchain storage could eventually handle petabytes of data effectively, though widespread adoption in media production is still on the horizon.
  2. How far away are we from seeing its use in production as the norm? Is it inevitable?
    1. The use of blockchain storage in media production as the norm is still a few years away. While pilot projects and small-scale implementations are underway, widespread adoption will depend on overcoming scalability, energy consumption, and regulatory challenges. However, the benefits of enhanced security, transparency, and cost efficiency make it likely that blockchain storage will become more prevalent in the future. As technology evolves and matures, it seems inevitable that blockchain will play a significant role in data storage solutions.
  3. What are the benefits of blockchain storage for media production?
    1. The benefits of blockchain storage for media production include enhanced security through encryption and decentralization, transparency and traceability of data transactions, data integrity and immutability, decentralization reducing reliance on central authorities, and cost efficiency by eliminating intermediaries. These advantages can significantly improve the management and protection of media assets, streamline production processes, and reduce operational costs.
  4. What challenges does blockchain storage face in handling large data sets?
    1. The main challenges include scalability, network congestion, storage efficiency, and regulatory uncertainty. Scalability is crucial as the blockchain network grows in size, potentially leading to slower transaction speeds and higher costs. Network congestion can further exacerbate these issues. Ensuring efficient storage and retrieval of large data sets is another technical hurdle. Additionally, navigating the evolving regulatory landscape and ensuring compliance with data protection laws are significant challenges.
  5. What is the future of blockchain storage in the M&E industry?
    1. The future of blockchain storage in the media and entertainment industry includes advanced cryptographic techniques for enhanced data privacy, improved interoperability between blockchain networks and traditional storage systems, integration with AI and machine learning for optimized data management, and evolving regulatory frameworks to provide clearer guidelines. These trends suggest a growing adoption of blockchain storage, driven by its potential to enhance security, efficiency, and collaboration in media production.
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Technology

SDI – The Backbone of Broadcast

Welcome to Our “Future of Broadcast Infrastructure Technology” Series

Dive into the heart of innovation with us as we embark on a journey through the evolving world of broadcast infrastructure technology. This series is a window into the dynamic shifts shaping the industry’s future, whether you’re a seasoned professional or a curious enthusiast.

A Journey Through Time: The Evolution of Broadcast Technology

Imagine a world where the magic of broadcasting was a novel marvel — that’s where our story begins. Giulio Marconi’s pioneering radio broadcast in 1895 set the stage for a revolution in communication. Fast forward from the fuzzy black-and-white imagery to today’s ultra-sharp high-definition videos. The milestones have been nothing short of extraordinary. Remember the times of meticulously cutting analog sync cables? Contrast that with today’s systems, which are nearing a self-timing brilliance. The leap from analog to digital has been a game-changer, enhancing the quality and reach of broadcast content. Now, as we edge closer to IP-based systems and other emerging tech, we’re witnessing the dawn of a new era. But where does this leave the trusty SDI?

Demystifying Serial Digital Interface (SDI)

For years, SDI has been the backbone of broadcast facilities around the globe. But let’s break it down: What is SDI, really? Birthed by the SMPTE 259M standard in 1989, SDI is the reliable workhorse for transmitting pristine digital video via coaxial cable, ensuring integrity, latency-free, and lossless delivery. Evolving over the decades, SDI now supports 4K workflows, thanks to SMPTE ST 2082, managing 12Gbps signals and 2160p resolution at 60FPS. Yet, the real question is whether SDI can keep pace with the industry’s insatiable appetite for growth and innovation.

SDI: The Past, Present, and Future in Broadcasting

SDI’s legacy of reliability and quality is undisputed. Its simplicity has made high-quality broadcasting an achievable standard. However, the relentless march of progress doesn’t play favorites, and SDI has little room to evolve beyond its current capabilities without significant technological breakthroughs. While transitioning to IP-based or cloud-based workflows becomes increasingly common, SDI’s relevance remains strong. But with scalability as its Achilles’ heel, SDI’s future is a hot topic of debate. Considering the economics of cabling, from coaxial to CAT6A to fiber, we’re at a crossroads where cost and technology intersect, guiding us to what’s next.

On the Horizon: What’s Coming Next

This conversation is just the beginning. In the next installments, we’ll delve into the promise of IP-based systems like ST 2110, the transformative role of NDI in live production, and the groundbreaking potential of technologies like 4K/8K, HDR, and cloud workflows.

We’ve only started peeling back the layers of the broadcasting world’s future. Join us as we navigate through the technologies, carving out the path forward, their implications for the industry, and what these changes could mean for you. Look out for our next installment in April and engage with us. Your insights, inquiries, and perspectives are the pulse of this exploration.

Join the Dialogue

Your voice is integral to our series. Share your thoughts, spark a discussion, or simply ask questions. We’re here to delve into the future together. Follow our journey, contribute to the narrative, and let’s decode the complexities of broadcast infrastructure technology as one.

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Sports Broadcast Learnings from 2020 Inform the Future. And it’s Grand.

Monday Morning Quarterback Sports Video Survey – The Future Looks Bright 

They say hindsight is 2020. As I reflect on the past year and our world of sports, I won’t soon forget the cancellation of games, the job/family/community bubbles we created, and of course how we watched sports. As fans, we generally only think about the play on the fields or courts. We should also remember all of the men and women at the venues who tell the stories, with amazing graphics and videos, that get us excited. What happened to them during the pandemic?  

I had a lot of questions. Like, how did they navigate these new waters we all found ourselves in? And, what do future post-pandemic environments look like, to thrive in their job? So, I called friends in the team and venue space to discuss what they learned from the challenges of working through COVID 2020 shutdowns and working in a bubble. 

Sports Teams During Covid-19

Overall what I learned from these discussions is that most teams were not ready for any kind of work from home scenario. A handful of teams had been working with a Media Asset Management system, but not necessarily in the cloud, and certainly not as a remote solution. Others had nothing prepared for a work from home (WFH) scenario and relied completely on their IT departments. Unfortunately, most of these IT departments were also not suited to sustain a WFH media production environment. Needless to say, most of us were caught off guard by the rapid changes that were needed to adapt to our new “normal”. 

So, how did these teams continue to deliver? A lot of creative thinking, intelligent workarounds, and perhaps some unapproved, but socially distanced hard drive exchanges. Many decided to use Teamview or remote desktop because they were already on those systems. Others went distinctly old school and used the public internet to exchange files through dropbox, Google Drive, or One Drive. Not efficient…but cheap. Hey, it was an emergency. 

I spoke to a few teams who luckily had both centralized storage and a MAM system that they turned into their own private “cloud” systems which allowed them to continue working effectively at home. They could access their systems through either a VPN or RGS login that allowed them to have full access to their entire catalog of assets, NLE, storage, and music. By utilizing their private cloud they didn’t have to worry about ingress or egress fee charges via a public cloud partner.  

Fan Engagement More Important Than Ever

Even though sports wasn’t happening, teams did have to keep their social media, marketing, and community engagement going. The fans, man! But with no one in the office, it made it much more difficult for those without a MAM system in place to find the assets they needed to get that fan base the fix they needed.  It was even worse for those who did not have a centralized storage system in place. Their only option was to SLACK their co-workers with questions of “who has the blah, blah, blah shot?” I don’t wish that pain on anyone.  

The overwhelming feedback I heard from the teams I spoke with was how much their IT departments were essential to them getting their work done. Something I’m sure IT has been trying to tell them for years. Whether it was to access the corporate network remotely, set up the Teamviewer credentials, or simply troubleshoot connectivity issues, the media department and IT teams found themselves collaborating in new ways throughout 2020.  

When I questioned how working from home affects the creative process, the overwhelming response was -“it sucked”!  There was no more walking next door to ask someone to take a quick look at a timeline for instant feedback, or bouncing ideas off each other in a weekly creative session. The in-person camaraderie they had with their colleagues had been snatched away, and programs like Teams, Zoom, or Google Hangouts became the norm. More than a few found the process less than productive and missed the interaction of in-person meetings. Incredibly, this didn’t stop these creatives from turning out unbelievable pieces of content that normally would be showing in stadiums or arenas on massive video boards and now had to be focused on their Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter accounts. Big shout out to team storytellers. 

The Future…

So, what does a Post Pandemic workflow look like for some of our favorite sports teams moving forward? To be honest, the plan is different for each team as has always been the case. Some are planning to bring everyone from the team’s facilities back, in person, to work as soon as possible. Others are going to implement a more flexible environment where WFH still exists, allowing for more work-life balance.   

How were these teams impacted financially due to COVID? Budgets are always tough in sports media production and 2020 brought some new challenges to the table. I asked each team how they handled budgeting during the pandemic. Every single one said that their upper management was amazing and asked what they needed to help get the job done. Keep in mind, no one knew how long this would last so no team completely overhauled their environments. Many pushed off upgrades or planned projects due to state and local restrictions of allowing anyone into the facilities. Most expect to make do with current systems through the upcoming 2021 seasons in hopes that 2022 may bring new technology solutions. 

All agreed that not only have they learned a lot personally, but they also learned a lot professionally. 95% of the teams I spoke to are now looking at a longer-term solution for a better remote working environment, either through a managed service via their IT department or an outside vendor who can take on the day-to-day support of such systems, allowing them to focus on being creative and telling us the story. And we do love the story, don’t we?

None of us can wait for our favorite sport to start playing again. The folks who make sure us FANS enjoy our time at their venues cannot wait either. So the next time you go to a game and watch one of those funny videos or amazing player intros, remember the people behind the production. They figured out creative ways for us to stay engaged with our teams and our communities. They helped us forget, just for a few minutes, that we were all stuck at home during the darkest days of 2020, and allowed us to have a bit of good ole sports entertainment.

 

About the Author:

Doug Price is an award-winning video editor and sales professional. He has spent over 25+ years in the media industry with a focus on sports creative content and media departments. Doug has worked directly with sports teams, leagues, venues, and broadcasters across North America to help develop media production efficiency through technology solutions for the past 10 years. 

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Introducing the Women of CHESA

We are in a new year with new challenges and new aspirations. After closing out 2020, I think we are all in search of a bit of inspiration. I feel incredibly lucky that this inspiration came in the form of two incredible individuals who also happen to be my colleagues.

I’m proud to introduce Marina Blandino and Ashley Williams. Ashley and Marina are the co-founders of Women of CHESA – a community of women empowering women in the media and entertainment (M&E) industry.

Marina has been with CHESA for over 5 years and is our Director of Support Services and Customer Success. She’s also CHESA’s first Director woman of color. Ashley has been with us nearly 2 years and is one of our amazing Project Managers.

What’s interesting is they’ve only met in person briefly and for the most part, their jobs don’t intersect often. So, how did this spark of creativity lead us to where we are currently?

The Beginning:

As fellow women at CHESA (Chesapeake Systems), Ashley and Marina were seeking a way to connect with each other and with other women in the tech space, while in lock-down. This resulted in submitting requests to attend a virtual conference for women in technology. CHESA’s CEO, Jason Paquin, encouraged them to invite all female employees to attend, regardless of their role (sales, engineering, accounting, etc.). Nearly all said yes.

Ashley and Marina quickly realized they could do more. They realized they wanted to do more. And, their teammates wanted more.

With management’s full support, the Women of CHESA was born.

They started by launching monthly brunches with all their female coworkers. No work talk allowed – this was a time to just connect with each other. We started to share some of our personal likes and dislikes, our success stories and even some of the struggles we encounter. This was a way for all of us to come together and create those crucial supportive relationships that being remote was making more challenging.

CHESA has hired two women during COVID. Women of CHESA was a way for them to quickly feel welcome and create allies while never meeting in person. The group was already bearing fruit.

This is a journey that we are going on together. And it’s so exciting because we are creating something so positive. A reason why I took my promotion is because I want to make sure I’m on that leadership team making those changes. I have a voice to say we need more women.

Marina Blandino, Co-Founder, Women of CHESA

Currently, Women of CHESA have all female members but a lot of male allies.

Big Picture Goals:

    • Target college campuses and help drive awareness of the various careers available in the M&E industry. This will ideally create opportunities to hire a more diverse work pool.
    • Partner with other industry organizations that are working towards similar goals. Eventually they want to launch their own mentoring program, but for now plan to support Rise’s North America mentoring program this year.
    • Create a paid internship program to bring more women into our industry and give them the chance to see what a career in M&E could look like.
    • Create a scholarship program to target women before entering university or deciding on a major.

2020 proved that we can be productive while remote. Ideally, we still have face to face time but, for the moments in between, Women of CHESA will continue to find ways to connect with each other and maintain that crucial support system.

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IT for the Creative Professional – Is NVMe Right for You Right Now?

At CHESA, we like to say that our passion for the bleeding edge of technology helps to keep our clients on the cutting edge. That motto fuels the primary purpose of our work – to help you use technology to your advantage. Sometimes that means you need the latest and greatest products in the marketplace. Just as often, you don’t.

A current trend that we’re starting to see become part of the architecture for possible shared storage solutions is NVMe (Non-Volatile Memory Express). NVMe is a new storage protocol designed to provide direct data transfer between central processing units and SSDs using a computer’s PCIe (Peripheral Component Interconnect Express) bus. It offers an alternative to SATA (Serial Advanced Technology Attachment) and SAS (Serial Attached SCSI) protocols and was designed to address the bottlenecks inherent in these previous technologies, unlocking the full potential of solid-state media. Its benefits include higher input/output operations per second (IOPs), gobsmacking throughput, and greatly reduced latency. The specifications for these drives report them to be roughly 20 times faster than traditional spinning HDDs (Hard Disk Drives) are today.

Naturally, people are talking about NVMe, especially after IBC 2019 where Quantum and Western Digital, to name just two, showed off their solutions. It’s the hot new thing. But do you really need it?

If your media creation environment needs extremely low latency and fast access to large amounts of data, then NVMe should certainly be considered. A couple of examples would be if you’re working in a collaborative environment with multiple streams of uncompressed or lightly compressed 8K or 4K video in use per workstation, or if you are orchestrating an event with a large number of concurrent ingest or playout feeds, such as an eSports competition.

Additionally, VFX houses with large numbers of real-time or non-real time renders might profit from every conceivable advantage to make shots available as fast as possible. There are some non-video workflows that also need extremely low latency and extremely fast performance as well. If I were trying to master global finances via high-frequency trading, build the perfect human via genomic research, or profit from understanding the human condition via real-time big data analytics, you bet I’d want to build a fire breathing NVMe monster.

In our corner of the industry, unsurprisingly, we are seeing organizations dealing with large amounts of data as quickly as possible interested in NVMe, such as big media conglomerates ingesting a lot of high-resolution media and networks acquiring shows at the highest resolution so they can future-proof content. These organizations may still be delivering primarily in HD but they are archiving 4K files for a time in the future when viewers may expect higher resolution as a matter of course.

Furthermore, Quantum, whose F-Series NVMe storage arrays received two industry awards during the IBC 2019 show, may be considered at the forefront of NVMe. Their F-Series storage, designed specifically for high-end video workflows, uses 24 NVMe drives per chassis and provides users with 25 gigabytes of aggregate bandwidth to work from simultaneously.

But outside this super high-end usage, most of our customers really don’t need a shared storage NVMe solution yet.

Most production and post environments currently don’t require extremely low latency or high IOPs because video playback is about large streams of sequential data. They’re ingesting and working with video on large, centralized, shared storage volumes that are using dozens if not hundreds of hard disk drives, which allows them to retain petabytes of information with great performance. Currently, that’s still the best bang for the buck, and the best solution for most use cases right now because compared to a petabyte of HDDs, a petabyte of NVMe is exponentially more expensive.

That’s not to say that NVMe doesn’t have its place in your workflow today — it’s just a matter of the scale of adoption. People are moving towards solid-state technology wherever it is affordable to do so. For example, I wouldn’t buy a new workstation or laptop without one. On a smaller scale where NVMe’s reliability and performance truly shine, it can make all the difference in the world to a freelancer or editor working remotely from internal or direct-attached storage. In fact, desktop workstations and laptops equipped with NVMe storage outperform some of the SAN volumes we built for customers five years ago and certainly weigh hundreds of pounds less.

Additionally, a hybrid approach to shared storage — where some storage vendors provide a layer of NVMe cache on top of traditional HDDs — could be commonplace in the near future. This solution could provide the best of both worlds with the speed of NVMe drives and the capacity and price of HDDs, so long as the software controlling the data flows between the drives works transparently and seamlessly.

In conclusion, we believe that customers at the top end – like studios, networks, and VFX houses – will use large NVMe shared storage volumes first. Additionally, the single, independent editor can make NVMe the cornerstone of their business by buying a machine equipped with a 1-4TB NVMe drive or attaching this storage to their machine via Thunderbolt 3. This option is cost-effective and offers 10 times the speed and performance of previous configurations.

Mid-tier media entities that comprise the majority of content producers and asset owners, who are currently working with compressed 4K or mezzanine HD video, might still consider the greater capacity and average performance provided by HDD storage solutions versus a smaller capacity NVMe storage solution with weapons-grade performance, as a better fiscal choice. You don’t need a supercar if a nice SUV will get the job done.

NVMe is in their future, too, as the industry inevitably moves to 4K, 8K, HDR, and whatever other astounding and immersive new technologies are waiting in the wings ready to blow our collective minds. Right now, the decision to explore NVMe really boils down to IOPs and latency.

CHESA is ready to help if you are considering NVMe. As your creative IT resource, we know time is money. Let us help you find the right solution for your business.

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Working From Home – A Cautionary Tale

A little over a year ago, I moved from my long-time home in the DC Metro area to Durham, North Carolina. This move was made possible largely by CHESA’s pre-existing geographically diverse client base, where most day-to-day work is done remotely. Going from working in a ‘half-and-half’ remote/on-site work style to an ‘almost entirely’ remote work style (with occasional on-site travel) has involved numerous adjustments – which I thankfully had the opportunity to make while not under threat from a global pandemic. Additionally, as a person who is now able to live alone, I definitely have an easier time of this than others. That said, I think my experience might still be helpful – even if only as reassurance. Or perhaps a cautionary tale.

The first thing I did was to set aside an area for work; the second bedroom in my apartment was perfect for this. Even if all you have is a “work desk,” I think it’s valuable to set aside an area that denotes “I’m in work mode now.” This left me without a desk for my personal computer setup, and its temporary location is an ergonomic nightmare. So I’m about to mess up this idea by replacing it with a huge L-shaped motorized standing desk. On the one hand, this will encourage me to alternate between sitting and standing throughout the day, which is hugely aspirational and makes me feel very much a part of the zeitgeist. On the other hand, the division between personal and work will now be “which side of the desk I’m facing”. Jury is still out on the efficacy of this plan—I’ll report back once I’ve gathered more data.

It’s also important to take breaks to walk around, eat, and get fresh air. I’m terrible at this, often getting absorbed in projects for hours and only realizing I’m hungry once I have a headache. And with pollen season in full swing, the uniform and undisturbed dusting on my balcony leaves little doubt about how often I step out to breathe in that fresh, North Carolina air. Don’t be like me—set a timer for breaks, an alarm for meals, or perhaps rig up an elaborate Rube Goldberg machine with a pointed stick or cattle prod if that’s what it takes.

A lot of folks have asserted that showering and getting dressed “for work” every morning is a good routine to maintain despite not attending the office. Anyone who claims they actually do this everyday is either a liar or an alien wearing a human suit and should not be trusted. Treat yourself to some comfy micro-modal lounge pants, soft cotton T-shirts, and fleece-lined hoodies. In these dark times, we need comfort wherever we can find it. And you’re worth it. (Do try to shower every so often, though, especially if you live with other people—they’re also, presumably, worth it.)

If you have children who are now home 24/7—and especially if you’re trying to juggle them and work on your own—good luck! Do whatever it takes to keep them and yourself alive. Remember, only God can judge you.

In summary, this hungry, isolated, pajama-clad computer gremlin looks forward to answering your support ticket in the near future. Rest assured, I’ll work on it longer than I should, and I’ll be extremely comfortable while doing so—whether I’m standing or sitting. And in all seriousness, best of luck out there, stay safe, and let’s get through this mess together.

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Business as Usual: More Important Than Ever, Even If It Takes Extra Planning

Coffee – check! Power cable plugged in – check! Favorite home-office chair – check!

Remote access to media – check???

While COVID-19 is testing the flexibility and preparedness of media teams around the world, enabling and empowering the remote employee has been a core tenet of production and media-IT pros for years. Media & Entertainment (M&E) has proudly stayed ahead of the curve for enabling field production partners, freelancers, and relocated employees to continue meeting critical deadlines. However, even the most tenured media-IT professionals are asking themselves, “Did we architect a system that will meet the demand?”

Whether you’ve been planning for such an eventuality or employee demand has increased remote access requests, the end result will look roughly the same. But, what does a well-designed media environment that can handle heavy demand look like? Setting aside the nuances of each unique environment, here is our checklist for the foundational elements to support your remote team members:

WAN: an obvious starting point, its importance cannot be overstated.

VPN: enhanced security, remote control, increased performance, reduced cost.

Remote Desktop Software: often goes hand in hand with a VPN and is vital to empowering employees to complete their specific tasks on time.

Media Asset Management (MAM) System: centralized, extensible, browser-based access, and fast. This is where the rubber meets the road for most teams. Users gain immediate access to the data they need in the resolutions they require. Many MAM systems enable workflows that include transcoding and access to new resolution options as well. This is the editor-turns-superhero utility belt (username and password required.)

From here, with thoughtful attention to the design of your workflows, the machine should be humming along nicely. It’ll be easy to forget that what you’ve architected will fundamentally change the way your media teams operate moving forward and this can be a scary proposition to embrace. As the possibility of a fully remote team becomes a demand, what are the attendant benefits? There are headline answers: improved productivity, time and expense saving, and now, safety. What is the benefit for the media production environment?

When consumer demand for content spikes, as it surely will in the coming weeks, or deadlines simply cannot be moved, the team is ready and equipped to deliver regardless of any limitation and lack of access to their office environment.

Production team leads can easily delegate or reassign projects to team members that can meet the deadline, regardless of location.

File size becomes a non-issue. MAM systems enable access and manipulation of your media by way of smaller, friendlier proxy files. Simply said: close proximity to the SAN or NAS is no longer a requirement.

Speed, efficiency, and adaptability. These are real business benefits; benefits that can be tied directly back to monetization and consumer satisfaction.

Putting these pieces in place can take many thoughtful discussions, and should. Working from home is a practice in trust. Trust works best when it’s supported, encouraged, and allowed to operate as designed. Learning from your user base will give you direction for what enables the team to be most productive – and Chesapeake Systems can help you with the rest.

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E-book: Practical Security Tips

Don’t become the next security breach headline. “Practical Security Tips” will show you how to stay safe.

In this e-book, Chesapeake Systems’ security expert, Terry Melton, takes you through key steps for keeping your systems, accounts, and digital assets secure.

Some of the most effective protections are the least exotic and most easily implemented options out there. Have you crossed these off your security checklist?

This e-book outlines:
• Basic security – what questions should you be asking?
• Authentication management
• Encryption
• Access and protection policies
• Antivirus and anti-malware protection
• Patching schedules
• Backup fundamentals

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Planning Ahead for 2020: Digital Content Challenges for Post Production

Devising digital media workflow solutions with the future in mind is what we do here at Chesapeake Systems – diving deep into the latest products and technologies and thinking about their implications for the road ahead. Now that we are halfway through 2019, business planning for 2020 will be in full swing soon for many in post-production and that means planning for the continuing increase in digital content.

A recent study by Cisco predicts an unprecedented 82% of all Internet traffic will be video media by 2020. Furthermore, as more streaming services are launched – Disney+, Apple TV+, and more – it’s clear that content will continue to be produced at record levels. Even more pressing for networks, news outlets and political influencers is the coverage of the 2020 Presidential race that promises to be unprecedented in its scope and detail, including leveraging video content by any and all means possible.

What does this mean for post-production facilities, departments or in-house post teams? Running out of space will happen faster. Accurately assessing the bandwidth you will need is vital to the process of planning for the future. It’s important to have a clear understanding of your provider’s bandwidth offerings in both upload and download speeds. Having the ability to bring media back quickly has become a key factor in the technical post-production equation. Many providers tout high download speeds, but upload speeds have to be equivalent so that creatives and engineers working behind the scenes have the ability to move and deliver assets in a timely manner.

Along with the significant increase in both quantity and resolution of media being created comes the constant challenge of media management. Questions like whether storage should be cloud-based, on-premises, or both; how team members will locate files; and accessing render locations, have motivated some of the leading solutions providers in post to integrate media asset management, once not considered a significant part of the post deliverable equation. For example, Adobe has beefed up its platform, with the expectation that MAM will now be core to every workflow.

Another trend we are seeing is the investment in the editing process. Platforms like Blackmagic’s DaVinci Resolve are adding more tools beyond color grading, shifting things like simple VFX work onto the editor’s list of responsibilities. Tracking all the revisions being made by the director, studio, VFX artists and editors must become intuitive to the MAM process, or version control will not only disrupt the workflow but frustrate the people collaborating on a project, who are typically working from locations around the world. For example, in the political realm, a controlled and streamlined environment is key to enjoying all the benefits of a quick response to news events. Getting clicks wins the news cycle race and that translates to viewers and dollars. But you can’t be first without understanding the analytics – how are your videos performing? The impact of content on people – and integrating that analytical response into the workflow and MAM, alongside fast upload/download speeds – is essential for translating success into profit margins … and ultimately having your voice rise above competitors.

Furthermore, once 5G is implemented, editing in the cloud will become even more prevalent, and interest in physical drives will phase out except for those worried about security. Collaborators on a project won’t care whether the footage they are working on is cloud-based or not – as long as it can upload and download quickly, creatives will be happy; however, the fact that 5G will be easily accessible to the masses makes it a security concern. If people can access things quicker, security teams subsequently have less time to react. Two minutes is an eternity if there is a breach. Implementing a solution without thorough attention to the proper permissions, copyrights and licensing to thwart security risks is a recipe for disaster.

We are also experiencing growth in the prevalence and popularity of collaborative workflows and the platforms that cater to them. The evolving capabilities for creative teams to interact with the many members of the post team in real-time is impacting the pace of finishing in the post-production process. Here at Chesapeake, we are currently solving ways to implement an instantaneous, collaborative process into highly flexible and functional workflows, which should be on everyone’s hotlist.

Advancements in Internet technology should also be taken into consideration when planning for 2020. IP-based approaches, as well as rapid enhancements in disk storage technology, have positively affected the performance levels of NAS devices. The speed and agility of NAS setups, which at one time were only available with a SAN, means that media-rich color correction can now be done on a NAS, opening up new doors for how post teams can operate. While this path will be a viable new option for some, post and IT teams need to understand the ideal environment for this type of move. Hurdles in security or scalability can be serious complications in making this transition successful.

In summary, there is a multitude of moving parts to consider as you evaluate your media workflow management needs for 2020 and beyond. We are thinking ahead, and the experts here at Chesapeake Systems are poised to make this evolution the most successful one you can imagine.

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Cloud Storage for M&E: Don’t Let the Buzz Sting You

Considering the changes to the business in media and entertainment, and the technologies associated with managing their digital media supply chain, it’s not surprising to see many of our clients wanting to take a fresh look at their video storage workflows based off the value of assets to an organization.

When the 2011 tsunami in Japan put videotape in short supply, companies were forced to put their media in a digital format on high-performance digital storage platforms, which, in turn, led to substantial investments in production storage. With the advent of new technologies and the cloud, there is now serious attention focused on ways to mitigate the need for expensive, unnecessary hardware and find more efficient and less costly ways of managing video.

Clearly, the market is full of storage options that promise to be everything to everyone but these promises do not take into account the value of content to your company. For example, content that’s in use or that needs to be instantly accessible by your teams can be kept on high availability production storage; however, one-off media that’s ready for long-term archiving can be migrated to less expensive storage platforms.

While you may be aware of the different storage technologies available, and are probably finding business reasons to use them, it can be tough to understand and stay abreast of the value proposition that each technology offers your business. It’s tempting to want a one-size-fits-all solution – after all, that’s what production storage has been for all these years.

However, using a single storage technology to serve multiple workflows is, to put it simply, no longer best practices.

Here is where our conversation starts – by talking about what your company does and how you do it. Do you create and push content on a daily basis? Does content need to be instantly accessible? If so, keeping media on production storage might be the best solution. Or does your content consist mainly of one-offs or programs to which you have limited rights? If that’s the case, you’ll want to move it to a secondary tier of storage – you don’t need to invest in the kind of easy access production storage offers.

Which solutions are right for you? You’ve probably heard about object storage, SATA and SAS drives, Flash and the cloud. It’s easy to gravitate to the latest buzzword or the industry’s “next big thing,” but that may not be what you really need.

Cloud vendors, in particular, have done a very good job of marketing themselves. Its appeal is understandable. Storage requires significant resources: You need a data center, the power to run and cool it, and IT and broadcast engineers to keep the system up and running. If you work in New York, Los Angeles or London, real estate is at a premium. The idea of having storage off-site, in the cloud, is awfully inviting to corporate officers looking to cut costs.

The cloud is also advertised as costing less than a penny per gigabyte to store media but if you need to push and pull content from the cloud frequently, the cloud gets very expensive, very quickly. Many suffer from sticker shock over the cost of recalling large bit-rate video files from the cloud, and for that reason it is still not truly considered a viable active storage tier.

On the other hand, for situations like disaster recovery, cloud storage is often ideal. When disaster strikes your headquarters, you’ll be grateful for the geographical distance between your primary site and your data center.

Middleware may also be a key part of your solution. Typically, part of an overall media asset management solution, middleware can help you utilize different technologies within your ecosystem. You simply set certain policies, and middleware acts like a traffic cop to trigger different storage workflows based on your data policies. For example, if content is not manipulated in six months on production storage, it’s tiered off automatically to nearline disk storage, tape or the cloud. If content needs to be recalled for production, it’s pulled back into object storage or a less expensive pool of storage behind the production server.

As storage options grow, the question of what’s best for your media-centric business or workflow can seem overwhelming. It’s Chesapeake’s goal to help you discover the technologies that best fit your workflows and how to utilize them as part of your daily operations, as well as in response to your short- and long-term storage needs. We’re here to navigate the maze on the market. Let us help you choose the options that meet your business goals.