LAS VEGAS—At the 2022 NAB Show, April 24-27, Imagine Communications will introduce Imagine Aviator, a new cloud-native platform that allows broadcasters, MVPD and digital-first providers to plan, make and monetize premium-quality linear and OTT content from a single, unified platform.
Imagine says the new platform―designed to enable media companies to extract the maximum revenue potential from their assets—was designed for an ever-evolving future, and offers flexible subscription and SaaS purchase options that suit new business models along with an agile, cloud-based design that allows media companies to continue to deliver and monetize content no matter how consumer viewing habits change.
“We understand the challenges and complexities that premium brands have in today’s fluid media landscape,” says Rob Malcolm, chief product officer at Imagine Communications. “With Aviator, we are bringing together our experience and intellectual property in a unique, cloud-native platform that maximizes monetization of content across broadcast and OTT platforms today ― and readies media companies to adapt and thrive no matter what the future holds.”
Aviator combines the critical capabilities of scheduling, rights management, channel origination, live events, VOD, ad sales, ad placement, ad serving, campaign management, and more into a single cloud platform. It creates a converged solution that delivers linear programming and video-on-demand content with ads and triggers for local and dynamic ad insertion, making it easier for media companies to successfully monetize broadcast, OTT, FAST, pop-up and VOD content. Providing fully automated operation of thematic channels, the new platform also guarantees high audio and video quality on all outlets and supports the demands of premium services.
Running in the public cloud, Aviator requires only a web browser and internet connection to securely access and operate all aspects of the platform, allowing operators to access anywhere an internet connection is available. It can run either in a media company’s own cloud account, or in Imagine’s SaaS environment, where it is monitored, managed and maintained by Imagine, allowing customers to reap the benefits of operational efficiency, while maintaining control of all creative aspects of their content.
At launch, Aviator will include all the capabilities required to solve the complex needs of delivering premium-quality, sophisticated linear channels with unified origination—originating broadcast and OTT linear streams from a single playlist supporting ad insertion. Its ability to integrate content acquisition from live streams, file sources such as video clips, audio and captions makes Aviator the perfect tool for delivering live sports, news, and scheduled and unscheduled live events workflows, the company said.
“We will continue to add functionality on an aggressive roadmap schedule,” Malcolm adds. “Later this year, we will expand the Aviator platform’s monetization capabilities to allow media companies to sell their own ad inventory rather than limiting them to only plugging in a demand-side platform to fill available inventory. This will enable media companies to maximize their yield, which in turn allows them to afford more premium content rights.”
At the heart of Aviator is Imagine’s “audience-first” ad placement engine, which will allow media companies to sell inventory by audience, by context, or by spot―regardless of the platform or delivery mechanism. New functionality will enable media companies to maximize revenue by targeting commercials to audiences accurately; delivering CPM/CPI-style metrics across all platforms, including broadcast; and monetizing scenarios that are difficult to plan in advance, such as extra time in sporting events and breaking news programming.
Malcolm continues, “As consumers find more ways to watch, the efficiencies of cloud play an important role, making it easier for media companies to address broadening advertising opportunities and create highly impactful and dynamic channels with genuine appeal to viewers. Some aspects of the TV landscape remain uncertain, but making content available on all screens in a way that allows our customers to achieve their full revenue potential requires convergence of content planning, origination and monetization. And that is exactly what Aviator makes possible.”
Imagine will demo Aviator at its NAB Show booth, C2122
