MediaKind launches Aquila Streaming solution on Google Cloud Platform to power delivery of personalized media experiences

  • MediaKind’s Aquila Streaming is a ‘one-stop-shop’ solution that enables operators to launch OTT services rapidly, without compromising on the end quality to the consumer.
  • Deployment follows announcement of Google Cloud as an inaugural partner of the MediaKind Universe Alliance, which was launched in September 2019.
  • MediaKind customers gain wider access to Google Cloud Platform ecosystem, with the ability to manage and operate live convergent OTT and broadcast headends more easily.

FRISCO, TEXAS – April 16, 2020 – MediaKind, a global media technology leader, today announced that it has extended its partnership with Google Cloud to enable its end-to-end Aquila Streaming solution to be offered as-a-service on the Google Cloud Platform. The launch enables MediaKind customers to leverage Google Cloud’s extensive ecosystem of solutions and assets in order to globally deploy media processing capabilities and optimize the distribution of their OTT services. Aquila Streaming provides significant video bandwidth savings, low end-to-end low latency and large storage reduction, offering support for all qualities of live video service up to UHD, with the ability to deliver broadcast-quality level, premium experiences across all networks.

MediaKind’s cloud-native Aquila Streaming solution can be deployed on bare metal, private cloud, or in any cloud service provider. Through the integration into the Google Cloud ecosystem, it now also provides access to a broader range of media applications and workloads through the cloud, in areas such as containerization, AI, machine learning and the growing network of Android TV and Google Ad Insertion solutions, whilst offering a fully managed solution. MediaKind customers will now be able to scale quicker, rapidly spin channels up with ease and respond to multi-format requirements without compromise on delay.

MediaKind’s disaster recovery in Google Cloud also removes the need for a second headend system; the combination of Aquila Streaming and Google Cloud enables local headend services and applications to be backed up and can be restarted rapidly when required. MediaKind plans to further extend its Aquila Streaming solution capabilities later this summer, offering self-provisioning availability by leveraging the Google Cloud Platform Marketplace.

Angel Ruiz, CEO, MediaKind, says: “As consumer demand for live streamed content reaches an all-time high, service providers must find ever more creative methods to deliver quicker and more affordable OTT services at scale. By launching Aquila Streaming on Google Cloud Platform, our customers will benefit from a highly flexible service that adapts seamlessly to their existing infrastructure or digital transformation program, whether purpose built as an on-premise or cloud native solution, hybrid cloud or part of an end-to-end as-a-service offering. Through deeper integration of our product portfolio on Google Cloud Platform, we can offer the necessary tools to create and deliver the best immersive media experiences on any device, with faster time to market, greater cost-efficiency and more flexible cost structures.”

Aquila Streaming is a convergent, cloud-based OTT headend solution that enables content to be received, transcoded, packaged, encrypted and delivered. The flexibility of Aquila Streaming provides operators with a ‘one-stop shop’ solution to quickly launch OTT services without compromising on the end quality to the consumer. Based on MediaKind’s cloud-native architecture, Aquila Streaming allows content aggregators, content providers and operators to deploy, manage and operate OTT and converged broadcast headends.

Last year Google Cloud was announced as an inaugural partner in the MediaKind Universe Alliance. The MediaKind Universe Alliance is an innovative technology partnership program which gives content providers, service providers and operators access to complete solutions that combine technologies and services from MediaKind with leading partners in cloud and other offerings. The MediaKind – Google Cloud partnership allows MediaKind customers to access Google Cloud’s portfolio of solutions and services and tap into a highly advanced combination of end-to-end TV analytics and machine learning capabilities.