A Media & Entertainment company aimed to expand its content offering by transforming its VoD catalog into a digital linear channel. Rather than investing in full re-encoding pipelines or live production infrastructure, the goal was to repurpose existing on-demand assets into a continuous, scheduled, lean-back viewing experience that mimics a traditional TV channel. This effort was positioned as a Proof of Concept (PoC) to validate a new approach for scaling FAST-like channels with minimal operational overhead.
The primary challenge was to deliver a seamless linear signal using only VoD content—assets that were not originally designed to play continuously or in sequence.
This required stitching together different files while maintaining visual and audio continuity, stable playback quality, and precise synchronization.
The client needed to ensure this experience would be stable across devices without re-encoding the full library. They also required a solution that could scale and adapt without increasing manual editorial or monitoring tasks.
Our team approached the project with an end-to-end mindset, focusing on automation, playback resilience, and scalability. Key efforts included:
- Creating a dynamic scheduling logic to align VoD assets in a continuous timeline.
- Implementing DASH multiperiod to solve the stitching complexity between assets while preserving playback consistency.
- Handling content gaps by dynamically sourcing replacements across distributed storage locations.
- Adjusting manifest-level parameters to optimize for device-specific playback performance, including buffer configuration, ensuring these changes would not impact overall Quality of Experience (QoE).
- Ensuring synchronization through predefined playback events to control transitions precisely.
The PoC successfully demonstrated the technical feasibility of building a live-like experience using only VoD assets, without the need for re-encoding or live operations. The solution handled asset transitions smoothly, maintained consistent video quality, and introduced minimal latency. While not yet in production, this approach validated a new path for monetizing existing content through automated linear channels.
The client expressed high satisfaction with the concept and its execution, acknowledging the potential to replace parts of their existing live pipeline with this more efficient model. As a result, the PoC opened doors for future FAST channel deployments using the same strategy, showcasing Qualabs' ability to execute complex, video-centric projects with both technical depth and product understanding.
Esto deberia ser una tabla comparativa
BEFORE
Manual scheduling
Risk of playback issues
Limited use of VoD catalog
High cost for live channels
AFTER (PoC)
Automated scheduling
Smooth transitions via DASH multiperiod
Scalable content reuse
No re-encoding required
Esto deberia ser una tabla comparativa
BEFORE
Manual scheduling
Risk of playback issues
Limited use of VoD catalog
High cost for live channels
AFTER (PoC)
Automated scheduling
Smooth transitions via DASH multiperiod
Scalable content reuse
No re-encoding required
