HITS

More than 300 people were on hand July 25 at the inaugural Microsoft Media & Entertainment Day event in New York City, attending four tracks of programming catering to representatives of the media and entertainment (M&E) community.

The presentations — covering content protection, video in the cloud, artificial intelligence and machine learning, and metadata’s place in the content lifecycle — are now available online. And for those who couldn’t attend, here’s a recap of the Media & Entertainment Services Alliance’s (MESA) exclusive coverage of the event:

Content Protection Summit: East:

• Experts from all corners of the M&E industry shared how studios, TV networks and other content owners must continue to evolve in their efforts to combat piracy, cybercrime and other security challenges.

• Harrie Tholen, managing director of Kudelski-owned content protection company NexGuard, made note of how today’s golden age of content is also tied to record-setting content piracy.

• Michael Smith, professor of IT and marketing for Carnegie Mellon University’s H. John Heinz III College, set the record straight on whether or not piracy impacts not only box office revenue, but also every post-theatrical business in Hollywood.

Metadata Madness: East:

• Experts from Viacom, CNBC and other media outlets shared how they’re leveraging metadata to better connect with consumers today.

• Metadata plays an important role in the lifecycle of media and entertainment content, but companies continue to face challenges in being able to use it properly and access it when needed, speakers from Ooyala and other M&E stakeholders said.

• Nascent blockchain technology is already having a huge impact on several industries, including M&E, according to several experts.

AI, Machine Learning and Bots:

• A new linear pay TV service announced at the event, from content provider ZoneTV, promises to make use of artificial intelligence (AI) in a unique way, one that could serve as a template to help operators overcome the challenges impacting the pay TV industry today.

• Bot applications have quickly become a goldmine for consumer data, according to a panel of experts at the event.

• Martin Wahl, ‎principal program manager for Azure Media Services, sees a combination of artificial intelligence and cloud technologies opening up completely new revenue avenues for media and entertainment companies.

• Microsoft Azure’s new Custom Decision Service (CDS) cloud-based, contextual decision-making application program interface (API) has garnered all the right attention, according to Markus Cozowicz, Microsoft senior research software development engineer.

Video in the Microsoft Cloud:

• Artificial intelligence, including machine learning and video analysis technologies, will have a “surprising” and “exponential impact” on the businesses of Avid Technology and its clients, according to Craig Dwyer, senior director of Avid’s Global Center of Excellence.

• Transitioning to the cloud and increased collaboration are among the keys for media and entertainment companies to solve security and other challenges they’re increasingly facing, according to executives at Microsoft, software company Autodesk and visual effects company Jellyfish Pictures.