The Digital Production Partnership (DPP) has released a report outlining how broadcasters, producers and suppliers might gain by committing to IP-based production.

The Business Benefits of IP Production report, which was commissioned by Ooyala, defines what IP production is, the impact of IP and the business benefits of using IP. The results are based on extensive research with companies across the supply chain.

Dpp mark harrison

Mark Harrison

“Gradually, the industry is moving towards video flowing form the lens of the camera to the audience, wholly through IP,” said Ooyala Director of Media Logistics Professional Services Emily Hopson.

DPP Managing Director and author of the report Mark Harrison added: “Our industry loves the idea of innovation but we sometimes struggle to articulate whether, when and how it makes business sense.

”This has been particularly the case with IP production. This report helps companies understand when, where and how to place their bets.”

Harrison said the research highlights the industry is at a turning point.

The Business Benefits of IP Production: three key conclusions

  • Online revolution

”Online content is revolutionising the media industry, so perhaps it is no surprise to find the production activities that supply to that market are the ones that offer greatest business benefits. Indeed, as we observed in the report, new businesses are being created by the opportunities offered by online.

”IP purists might complain that this is not what we really mean by ‘IP production’. But that’s technology semantics: the fact is that the three production activities that score very highly on business benefit all exhibit those core IP characteristics of scalability, flexibility and service-based working. As any business change expert will report, it is the changes to business practices brought by technology that mater – not the technology itself.”

  • Heavy lifting requires heavy investment

”Large scale outside broadcasts are in many respects the ultimate form of media generation. The combination of scale, profile, technical complexity and live coverage makes this production activity a visceral challenge. The rewards can be huge – but so can the costs.”

  • Early-mover advantage

”Production activities that directly deliver to OTT platforms already often make beneficial business propositions. But if one is looking to steal early-mover advantage it is the next group of activities that require attention: media management, cloud playout and post production. A company Board would do well to pay attention to any well-written business case relating to these areas.”

Hopson added: “It’s about keeping pace with the digital revolution and modernising production processes. Adopting IP-systems builds towards greater workflow efficiencies, personalised distribution, and, ultimately, higher ROI for every video.”

The report concludes that “there are fundamental characteristics of an IP-based workflow that make it intrinsically beneficial: it provides scalability and flexibility, and is supportive of cloud based and service based operating models.”

Read the full report here.