Broadcast, OTT Can Benefit One Another, Comcast Executive Says

The broadcast and over-the-top industries, rivals for viewers, can benefit from each other, Comcast Wholesale Network Services Executive Director Steven Lacoff said in a blog post Tuesday. Content providers are more interested in converging their OTT and broadcast workflows, such as through unified video publishing and management workflow, Lacoff said: "These benefits are invaluable for an OTT brand, because viewers have been spoiled by the simplicity and quality of the broadcast experience." He said the rise of niche OTT providers "makes for a crowded and noisy marketplace," but broadcasters can learn from established OTT players when trying to set up their own direct-to-consumer OTT offerings.