CTS selected by AccuWeather for managed channel origination

Comcast Technology Solutions Selected by AccuWeather for Managed Channel Origination

DENVER — Comcast Technology Solutions (CTS) today announced that AccuWeather® has selected CTS’ Managed Channel Origination (MCO) service to create, manage, and distribute linear TV, on-demand and OTT video channels to audiences across North America.

CTS’ Managed Channel Origination delivers a fully managed 24×7 service aimed at improving operational efficiency, reducing capital expenses, and future-proofing customers’ ability to monetize world-class viewing experiences at scale. Managed Channel Origination provides media companies and broadcasters with a platform for unified video workflow from content acquisition through delivery.

The AccuWeather Network and AccuWeather NOW®, with AccuWeather’s trademark Superior Accuracy™ forecasts, provide viewers the latest in breaking weather and videos; stories illuminating the potential impact of forecasted weather on sports, health, travel and other everyday activities; engaging social weather content from popular platforms; and long-form storytelling of major weather events and environmental wonders around the world. For over 60 years, AccuWeather has refined the art and science of weather prediction to help save lives, protect property, and help people make the best weather-impacted decisions.

“AccuWeather is synonymous with providing timely, accurate, and enlightening weather information that impacts the lives of millions of viewers,” said Bart Spriester, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Streaming, Broadcast, & Advertising for Comcast Technology Solutions. “We’re very proud that they have entrusted our Managed Channel Origination service to economically streamline their ability to reach and monetize audiences at scale. Our commitment with MCO is to help companies reduce capital costs and improve operational efficiency through a unique combination of capabilities that only Comcast Technology Solutions can bring to bear.”

“At AccuWeather, our ability to inform viewers instantly and continuously relies on having the right back-end infrastructure in place, which is why we turned to Comcast Technology Solutions,” said Helen Swenson, Chief Content Officer for AccuWeather. “We chose CTS because they are a trusted leader in managed channel origination, with a long-standing legacy of delivering exceptional quality and reliability. By centralizing our efforts with CTS, we can reach our various linear TV and OTT distributors in a unified way. Their cutting-edge facilities and advanced capabilities enable us to streamline operations, automate tasks, and free up valuable resources—so that we can devote more energy to creating and monetizing our content at scale.”

For decades, Comcast Technology Solutions has been an established market leader providing Managed Channel Origination for hundreds of channels from its facilities in the U.S. to serve North American audiences. Last year, the company extended its MCO capabilities to EMEA by leveraging Sky’s master control video and metadata platforms coupled with Comcast Technology Solutions’ portfolio of product solutions.

Managed Channel Origination provides media companies with a unified workflow, from content acquisition through delivery, with 24×7 service level agreements (SLAs). It provides the capabilities needed to acquire, prepare, create, package, and deliver linear TV and OTT channels. Content is acquired either as live video or file-based acquisition via satellite, fiber, or secure IP. Channels are then prepared with Comcast Technology Solutions’ rendering operations, cloud-based content supply chain implementation, media asset management, and traffic and metadata services. Next, channels are created with capabilities such as channel automation playout (e.g., SCTE triggers, advanced graphics, closed captioning, and more), master control, and VideoAI™. From there, channels are prepared with the necessary encoding, encryption, and authorization policies, then delivered via satellite uplink, fiber, secure internet, or CDNs for MVPDs, vMVPDs, and OTT to any screen. Managed Channel Origination’s redundant and diverse IP routing infrastructure provides a secure global playout solution to accelerate delivery.

Managed Channel Origination is part of Comcast Technology Solutions’ comprehensive Live Linear Suite, and can also be coupled and integrated with additional services from Comcast Technology Solutions’ broad portfolio, including Cloud TV Suite, AdFusion, and more.