Broadcast Standards – Cloud Compute Infrastructure – Part 3
Broadcasting famously relies on rigid standards, but cloud computing has developed more around open source and de-facto protocols than it has around ratified standards.
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This series of articles describes the established protocols and practices that define cloud compute resources, as well as how they relate to broadcast-specific workflows. Part 3 has been a long time in the making.
Our first collection of cloud compute articles in May 2025 explored the concept of cloud computing, the microservices that run in this model, and some of the practical implications of deploying them within a broadcast production infrastructure. Part 2 explored the role of DevOps, microservice pipelines, storage architecture, queue management, and GUIs.
Part 3 explores the Dynamic Media Facility (DMF) and the Media eXchange Layer (MXL), a foundation layer in the DMF reference architecture specification and designed to enable interoperability between different software-based broadcast systems and equipment. While still early in its development, this collaborative and open source development aims to exchange essence and control data at the server level in microservices based architecture.
It also deals with the deployment of Cloud Management Platforms to unify and control infrastructures, the benefits of open-source vs. proprietary approaches, and the architectural differences between major platforms like CloudStack and OpenStack.
Essential reading for system designers and broadcast engineers seeking to deploy cloud compute-based resources, part 3 of Broadcast Standards – Cloud Compute Infrastructure is well worth the wait.
‘Broadcast Standards – Cloud Compute’ is published in three parts – details of all 3 Parts can be found HERE.
About Part 3.
Part 3 is a free PDF download which contains three original articles:
Article 1 - Introducing EBU-DMF
The EBU Dynamic Media Facility standard enables more efficient and better performing cloud-based broadcasting infrastructure to be created.
Article 2 - Introducing The MXL Layer
The Media eXchange Layer, or MXL, is the foundation layer in the DMF reference architecture.
Article 3 - The IT Software Stack
Deploying cloud service architectures is a significant job; how can Cloud Management Platforms help and what do they do?
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