Having paid a ‘five figure sum' the broadcasting arm of Northern & Shell will now be connected straight into Level 3's vast internet backbone, bypassing the need for a third party hosting or streaming provider.
Level 3 operates a worldwide network that connects media companies with the ‘last-mile' providers that deliver broadband to homes and businesses.
Explaining his reasons for securing the deal, Portland TV director of technology Jon Anthony said: “We can now manage not only all of our own requirements but those of our clients too.”
Anthony admitted that if the company was to pay for the equivalent bandwidth, which is charged by the gigabyte, it would cost 10 times the amount he paid for connectivity to Level 3 via Adapt.
He said “An aphorism about internet streaming would be that the more successful you are the more money you lose.
“Paying for bandwidth has traditionally been akin to buying bottled water. By striking a deal to connect directly to the backbone we have a “tap” for our water and no longer need to buy it by the bottle.”
Portland TV is the broadcasting arm of Northern & Shell. It owns twenty-five channels across satellite and cable and produces around 120 adverts a year, alongside music videos and multi-camera event coverage. It has two fully-equipped studios, fourteen edit and audio suites and two in house production teams. Portland TV is based in the heart of the Docklands.
Adapt is a Virtual Network Operator (VNO), a middle man, that works between networks and media companies. Adapt does not provide services based on its own fixed assets. Instead it uses the assets of multiple carriers and will advise on the most suitable network and technology partners.
Level 3 operates one of the largest communications and Internet backbones in the world. It owns and maintains over 48,000 intercity route miles and offers network space for Internet Protocol (IP) services, broadband transport, and modem and voice services. Level 3 also provides enterprise telecommunications services.
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