Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1436481
After the challenges of 2020, the resilience of the media industry has been on full display this past year. In 2021 we saw the industry's spirit of innovation fuel the creation of not only a huge amount of content but also incredible produc- tions that pushed the boundaries of innovation as highlighted elsewhere in this very magazine. As we look to 2022 while there is still some uncertainty as the pandemic continues to introduce challenges, I believe that there is a bright future of innovation ahead fueled by the rapid adoption of groundbreaking technologies that enable us all to push the envelope of what's possible. Here are some of the trends I foresee in the coming year: 1. INTERACTIVE COLLABORATIVE ENVIRONMENTS, AND VIRTUAL PRODUCTION WILL BE A BIG FOCUS IN 2022 Demand for high quality content is higher than ever and constantly increasing. At the same time, content creation and collaboration in the traditional sense has been hampered by geopolitical and risk-reduction limitations brought on by the pandemic – limiting the ability to gather to collaborate in-person both on-set and on-site. I believe this will continue to drive the adoption of highly interactive environments using more augmented and immersive technologies and virtual production methodologies. This will allow creators to accelerate creative decision making and empower creatives to continue working col- laboratively regardless of location. This will also drive the need for powerful infrastructure solutions at the edge that integrate seamlessly with collaborative and virtual production technologies. 2. MANAGING AND MOVING DATA IS A PRIORITY As content creation workflows become more distributed and pipelines continue to grow up, especially with USD (Universal Scene Description) adoption helping to add some standardization, there will be an increased need for scalable data architectures that seamlessly move data using path, policy or list-based transfers, ensuring that the right data is in the right place at the right time. Global name- spaces will also become more desirable due to the dynamic nature of workflows, talent and work. The critical elements to consider when planning for these workflow changes are a versioning system, tag and maintain metadata, queuing and priority management, events system, and depen- dency tracking. With these factored into any strategy, you will deliver superior collaboration outcomes across any creation or distribu- tion pipeline. 3. A CONTINUED SHIFT TO OPEX MODELS Uncertainty introduces risk into any undertaking. This is especially true when budgets and timelines are tight. With uncertainty from the pandemic still making it difficult to forecast long-term utilization, I anticipate an accelerated shift from traditional CAPEX to OPEX models as a method to reduce the risk of overcapitalization. This will come in the form of public, hybrid and multi-cloud models as well as cloud-like on-premises solutions that offer management offload and pay-as-you-go such as Dell Technologies APEX. One key consid- eration when planning your OPEX strategy is to understand how it will affect creative collaboration, particularly the sustained cost of public cloud. 4. A RENEWED FOCUS ON CYBERSECURITY Often overlooked in the face of tight deadlines and budgets, I believe that there will be a renewed focus on cybersecurity, especially in the wake of the high-profile ransomware attacks in 2021. This will be a vital con- sideration as threat landscapes expand beyond the datacenter and bad actors continue to evolve. Investing in secure foundational technologies is the first step in planning ahead for potential, if not inevitable attacks. For example, Dell Technologies reference architectures and initiatives are constantly evolving to meet the industries best practice approaches to security and resiliency as laid out in the industry's most common cyber frameworks, including those published by the MPA and CDSA. However, secure core technologies are only one step towards securing your work- flows and will ultimately involve a combination of technologies, policies, processes and shifts in employee behavior. Despite the challenges and uncertainty facing the industry, I am confident that we will continue to evolve for the better as our continued pursuit of quality, efficiency, speed, and value drives consistent, rapid innovation into 2022 and beyond. LOOKING AHEAD – KEY INFRASTRUCTURE TRENDS IN 2022 By Alex Timbs, Business Development Manager, Media and Entertainment, Dell Technologies SPONSORED CONTENT Stay up to date on the latest from the Dell Technologies Media & Entertainment team at dell.to/media.