TV Tech: What do you anticipate will be the most significant technology trends at the 2025 NAB Show?
Ken Frommert: AI continues to be the topic that permeates many areas of the broadcast landscape with technologies that are designed to elevate storytelling, improve workflow efficiency and unlock new opportunities for generating revenue. ENCO has been on the leading edge of the movement that has made AI a valuable and increasingly prevalent tool set for TV and radio broadcasters everywhere and we will be showcasing that once again at this year’s show. From leveraging AI and machine learning within our live captioning and translation products to using generative AI for creating dynamic localized and personalized content, ENCO is demonstrating how these innovations can transform audience engagement, enhance accessibility and streamline content delivery in real-time broadcasting environments. I look forward to seeing how others are utilizing AI and how their innovations are pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in content creation, distribution, and audience interaction across the broadcast industry.
TVT: What will be your most important product news?
KF: The television side of our business will be represented through our captioning, translation and virtual production systems. We will once again present our Qimera virtual production stage on our booth, which can be found in the West Hall at W1743. There is no question that our enCaption and enTranslate brands will bring the biggest news this year. On the enCaption side, we will introduce dynamic speaker identification capabilities powered through a new AI voice fingerprinting feature. It’s a truly novel function applied to the captioning workflow as a single-stream audio mix that dynamically inserts the name of the speaker as each is identified. These speaker identifications also pass through to translations, powered through our enTranslate solution.
Last year, we introduced the ability to produce Spanish translations on-prem. This year, we will showcase enTranslate’s ability to now translate dozens of languages live either on-prem or in the cloud. We will also introduce enTranslate Mobile, which provides a mobile-friendly alternative to erecting large translation screens for live group events while giving audiences a way to follow along on their personal devices in their language of choice.
At NAB, our enCaption systems will provide accurate, real-time captions on stage-adjacent displays for the fourth straight year. These will happen on five NAB stages across the South and West Halls. For the first time, ENCO will also offer real-time translations directly to mobile devices through its enTranslate Mobile platform. Attendees can simply scan the displayed QR codes to access a mobile site, where they can select from languages including English, Spanish, French, Korean, Mandarin, Portuguese and German. As panels and presentations unfold, users can follow along with live translations right from their mobile devices for a more accessible and inclusive experience.
TVT: How is your new product different from what’s available on the market?
KF: What sets us apart is our ongoing cycle of innovation. While AI has long been a core part of our enCaption platform, ENCO, along with our partners at Benztown and Compass Media Networks, pushed the boundaries even further last year by introducing generative AI into radio advertising. The result was SPECai, a transformative solution that helps radio broadcasters create and sell ads more efficiently. Now live at over 1,000 stations, SPECai exemplifies how ENCO uses forward-thinking technology to deliver real value while redefining what’s possible. That same innovative mindset drives our captioning and translation tools, where features like dynamic speaker identification and on-premise translations set us apart in the market.
TVT: What is it about the NAB Show that brings you back every year?
KF: At the heart of it all is the opportunity to connect with our customers and partners. NAB provides the perfect setting for meaningful, face-to-face conversations where we can truly listen, understand their priorities, and align our solutions with their evolving needs. More often than not, we already have tools that can help move their vision forward. But what’s even more exciting is how these discussions often ignite fresh ideas — ideas that lead to the next wave of innovation for our customers. A walk around the show floor reveals these moments unfolding everywhere, and it’s something we look forward to every year.
