Sky News Arabia accelerates remote collaborative cloud workflows with Blackbird

Posted: 23/09/2020

News reporting is under threat globally, not just from the growing risk to journalists in conflict zones but from the constant battle to maximise ever depleting resources amid competition from social channels. It’s a fight that all broadcast news operations around the world are having to face but one that technology can help solve.

Sky News Arabia operates one of the most progressive newsrooms in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). The free-to-air TV 24-hour Arabic news channel launched in 2012 and delivers analysis of both regional and international news to more than 50 million households in MENA.

It is a joint venture between UK-based Sky Group and Abu Dhabi Media Investment Corporation. Headquartered in Abu Dhabi’s twofour54 media zone, Sky News Arabia runs a network of bureaux across MENA, along with offices in London and Washington, DC. It also shares access to Sky News’ wider international bureaux network and delivers content across digital and audio platforms.

Needing to drive major video production efficiencies across a number of key workflows, Sky News Arabia selected Blackbird. The move is consistent with the newscaster’s strategy of being the most authoritative voice for breaking news in MENA.

“Blackbird empowers our multi-site production teams to work collaboratively in the cloud with a rich suite of video editing and publishing tools. The adoption of this platform supports our drive to continuously use technology and innovation to enhance our screens and digital platforms.”

Suresh Kumar, Director of Technology, Sky News Arabia

Specifically, Sky News Arabia’s multi-site production teams in Abu Dhabi, UAE and other locations are using Blackbird to collaboratively and remotely edit and publish digital news content live to platforms including YouTube for its 1.25 million subscribers to view.

Production staff utilise Blackbird’s market-leading suite of professional video editing tools such as multi video and audio tracks, graphic effects, colour correction, transitions and voice over to enrich content. Editorial approval is a key feature of the workflow, ensuring content quality and accuracy. Blackbird is also used by Sky News Arabia to repurpose the network’s output through the editing and publishing of file-based video content.

The power and sophistication of the Blackbird editing suite combined with the simple and elegant scalability of its architecture means Sky News Arabia has a world class solution that can also be expanded quickly and cost effectively when required.