Big news in the budding camera-to-cloud space as industry mainstays Sony Electronics and Teradek have announced a new integration withSony's Ci Media Cloud platform and Teradek’s Serv 4K and Prism Flex encoders. This will provide cine and broadcast productions with enhanced flexibility in their camera-to-cloud workflows.
This is awesome to hear as camera-to-cloud capabilities and workflows have been quickly changing the landscape for productions big and small—however, while there have been many headlines, there still aren’t too many reliable options for those working in both the broadcast and traditional cine filmmaking space.
All that is set to change with this new Sony and Teradek integration, which is set to truly unlock the best camera-to-cloud capabilities of Teradek systems like the Prism Flex and the Serv 4K alongside Sony’s Ci media-centric cloud environment.
Media Asset ManagementCredit: Sony
Seamless Integration into a Connected Ecosystem
Using this integration, filmmakers and broadcasters will be able to upload footage to Sony's Ci platform directly from their favorite Teradek encoders linked to any camera used on set, in-studio, or from any remote locations.
This is exciting for film and video professionals as it finally allows their on-set and remote teams to be able to effortlessly review, edit, and deliver proxy files in a matter of minutes—rather than several days (or weeks) later. This new, blazing-fast file transfer will streamline content acquisition workflows instantly while still delivering all the frame-accurate files for editing, color grading, annotating, etc., that you’d come to expect from any Ci or Teradek systems.
And because all of this will be in the cloud, you won’t have to worry about creating unnecessary duplicate workflows across multiple systems, instead allowing the process to come directly to the content in front of you. With custom transcoding support, Ci can automatically reformat incoming footage to edit-ready formats without any manual intervention—enabling editors to get to work faster. Plus, Ci offers unlimited users for team and enterprise plans, so you can loop in any internal or external partners to review and work with your footage together without worrying about increased costs—all while maintaining secure boundaries.
A Big Step for Both Sony and Teradek
This is indeed big news specifically for Sony and its ambitious Ci Media Cloud, which has perhaps found its most ideal partner with Teradek’s Serv 4K and Prism Flex systems, which can simply and directly upload to the folder of your choice to Ci with nothing but a unique 8-digit code. It is the simplest and most customizable camera-to-cloud solution in the industry.
“Sony and Teradek are industry standards in the content creation and production space. Leveraging our combined strengths, this integration will enable a reliable and effortless workflow that allows content creators to work with the tools they love and stay focused on their vision with full confidence in the underlying technology.”
— David Rosen, Vice President of Cloud Applications and Solutions, Sony Electronics
As the industry is rapidly shifting more toward remote accessibility and connectivity, it's really going to be innovations like these from forward-thinking brands that can truly bridge the gap between disconnected teams from all across the globe.
“The future is cloud-based production. We are positioning ourselves to accelerate the market towards collaborative remote production.”
— Derek Nickell, Product Manager for Teradek Live Production
The Serv 4K, in particular, is worth checking out for anyone interested in camera-to-cloud streaming and on-set encoding, as it allows local iPad client monitoring and includes a Gold/V-mount solution for all of your camera-back setups. (The Prism Flex offers livestreaming and point-to-point decoding as well.)
“Teradek has become the leader in on-set encoding and cloud streaming. We are excited to enable these same cloud workflows and integrations for Sony’s established user base.”
— Colin McDonald, Product Manager for Teradek Cine
All exciting stuff for film and video professionals who often operate with multiple teams and spread out across different sets and locations. As your projects grow more vast and complicated, these camera-to-cloud solutions will help you keep things coordinated and localized.
What Does This Mean for Filmmakers?
Coming back to the real question here—what does this all mean for filmmakers and broadcast professionals? In the immediate future, this is big news for the growing camera-to-cloud market. Sony and Teradek are two of the biggest—and best—brands in this space and have independently provided great solutions for remote filmmaking.
However, with this new partnership, we should see some of the best solutions currently on the market and, indeed, even greater collaborations and innovations in the future.
Some of the key highlights from this new partnership include:
- Seamless Integration – Sony’s Ci cloud integration will unlock camera-to-cloud workflows for broadcasters and filmmakers using Teradek Prism Flex and Teradek Serv 4K.
- Accurate Metadata – Timecode and file name sunk proxies or high-quality 4K HDR OCF recordings.
- Real-time Editing – Teams can upload 4K HDR files automatically and edit frame-accurate proxies immediately without waiting for dailies.
- Collaborative Workflows – Complete the full media lifecycle: from studio-to-cloud or set-to-cloud for post-production, collaboration, and review, to catalog management and archiving.
- Connected Ecosystem – Teradek is establishing itself as the onramp to the cloud – integrating siloed workflows by providing visibility throughout the entire imaging pipeline.
This new integration is currently on track to be available here in Fall 2022.
