Playback

Recorded live at NAB 2025, this episode explores the findings of the latest industry study on Streaming Analytics in the Age of AI, led by Mrugesh Desai (VP North America) and Professor Serguei Netessine (The Wharton School).

Guest speakers David Guinan (Major League Table Tennis), Kirby Grines (Founder & CEO at The Streaming Wars), and Jesús Herrero Valverde (Co-founder at Jump AI Technologies) share their real-world experienc...

Pernilla Wraneus and Sadie Groom take the stage in this special episode celebrating Women’s History Month. The conversation highlights the importance of mentorship, inclusive leadership, and industry-wide efforts to create equal opportunities for women in media and technology.

They discuss Sadie’s career journey in the media tech space (1:15), the inspiration behind Rise (9:18), what companies can do to support women into leader...

In this episode, Neil van Zyl talks to Chris McNair, Head of New Business & Strategy at Accedo, and Paddy Buckley, Business Development Director at Accedo, about how publishers can no longer wait with implementing a video-first strategy, taking cues from broadcasters and the wider media and entertainment industry. The discussion centers around themes such as the importance of owning the entire customer journey, how long-form vi...

In this conversation, the guests Tommy Flanagan and Mrugesh Desai cover key themes such as the focus on profitability, innovative monetization strategies, the impact of AI and personalization, lessons from Netflix's success, device expansion strategies, and the ongoing fragmentation in the TV OS landscape. 

The dialogue also explores the rise of multi-view support, insights from CES, the shift towards managed services, and the i...

Will Pickett and François Polarczyk discuss the multifaceted aspects of sustainability in the streaming business, emphasizing the importance of assessing the impacts of companies on society as well as the environment. 

They explore the complexities of emissions reporting (3:00), the DIMPACT initiative aimed at reducing emissions in digital media (6:04), and the ECOFLOW project focusing on energy consumption in the streaming supply c...

In the latest episode, Neil Van Zyl had the honour of hosting Kirby Grines, founder of 43Twenty and The Streaming Wars, and Mrugesh Desai, Accedo's VP of North America, to discuss the evolving landscape of the streaming and OTT industry. They explore the importance of user experience (5:20), the challenges media companies face in adapting to new technologies (11:44), and the need for collaboration over competition (18:03). The ...

The conversation with Chris McCarthy, Industry Solutions Lead, New Relic, and Steven Kopec, Head of Service Management, Accedo, sheds light on the vital role of observability and metrics, the proactive nature of observability tools in resolving platform issues, and touch on key trends such as generative AI and the integration of diverse data sources.

To learn more about how to tackle observability challenges, download this ebook.

In an insightful conversation with Vishal Parikh, CPO, LiveLike, the episode discusses how interactivity can help retain users(2:00), increase revenue opportunities, and capture valuable user data. Vishal highlights how sports and entertainment brands leverage engagement and interactivity (7:00) and how LiveLike's platform, with its unique features, enables audience engagement and gamification with loyalty and rewards programs ...

In Episode 12, our host, Neil van Zyl and guest Eric Tang, CTO and founder of LivePeer, discuss the high-performance and cost-effective video streaming platform and the benefits of blockchain and decentralization in the video ecosystem (1:47). They also explore the potential for alternative revenue streams for creators and the concept of digital scarcity (2:55). Tang also highlights the use of blockchain technology for content auth...

In the latest episode, our host Neil is joined by Siva Natarajan, SVP, Amagi, to explore the dynamic world of FAST. Tune in on your favorite podcast platforms as they dive into the rise of original content in FAST (6:06) and examine how big media brands are making strategic moves into this space.

Siva also shares why Single IP Channels have succeeded (9:50), and invaluable advice for content owners looking to enter the FAST market (...

In part 2 of our UX series, continuing our conversation with Nikki Perugini, our host, Neil van Zyl, delves into the trends and predictions in UX Design that we foresee in the upcoming period.

Tune in to the episode to gain thought-provoking insights on Content Discovery and how to end the pain point for users (1:30), how interactive video is growing (8:12), and what are Super Apps and why is it popular in Asia? (14:30).

Music b...

In episode 10, part 1, of Playback, Nikki Perugini and Sonia Lafontaine, explore what UX in OTT entails and how it goes beyond aesthetics- functional design, intuitive navigation, and accessibility across devices (1:06).

They also share insights about the advantages of user research (5:16), the considerations for designing a high-quality UX (11:58), the common design pitfalls (20:20), and the role that automation plays for UX desig...

In this episode, we explore the critical aspects of OTT that have changed, improved, or remained constant over the last decade. From the rise of Roku as a dominant force in the streaming device market (3:11) to the emergence of ad-supported streaming models (5:30), the OTT space has seen substantial shifts. 

The conversation also delves into how user expectations and their viewing experience have led to high-end UX enhancements (7:...

Dive into the near future of the OTT and the streaming industry with our latest podcast episode, straight from CES 2024. Our host, Neil van Zyl, and our guests, Mrugesh Desai, Ashley Desatnik, and Pritesh Modi, dissect the trends and innovations unveiled at the event (3:59), the changes in consumer behavior, and the essential strategies OTT providers need to adopt for both immediate and long-term success (8:29).

They also share the...

Episode 7 of Playback is a conversation with industry expert, Michael Chan, focused on considerations and tactics for delivering a best-in-class OTT application. 

Our co-hosts, Stanley Auger and Neil van Zyl, discuss what the discovery phase entails (4:35), the challenges with project timelines and how to manage it (11:30), the importance of QA automation (28:59), and how to determine the scope and evolution of a streaming service ...

Whether you are a sports fan or just in the world of sports in any capacity, our latest episode is a must listen.

With digital sports delivery gaining traction in a myriad of ways, our co-hosts, sat down with industry expert Michael Shewchenko, VP of Digital Operations, Anthem Sports & Entertainment, to discuss how sports OTT has the potential to reach an increasing number of fans and bring them back to the stadiums through eng...

Today, we release a special episode of our podcast -  Playback! Our co-hosts sat down with the founders of Accedo, Michael Lantz, CEO, and Fredrik Andersson, VP of Products, to learn about Accedo's genesis story (2:20), the challenges they faced (11:08), and the guiding principles we've employed to continue our 20-year journey in the video streaming industry (6:12). 

They also reveal how many IBCs they’ve attended over the years (i...

In the latest episode of Playback, our co-hosts discuss Apple's Vision Pro and how the headset has reignited the XR industry with our expert guests - Lucy Nguyen, Business Development Director, Accedo, and José Somolinos, Solutions Strategist & XR Lead, Accedo. The discussion delves into Apple's foray into spatial computing, how Apple Vision Pro creates immersive experiences for the mass market, and the headset's impact on med...