Synamedia acquires Quortex to add just-in-time live video streaming and accelerate its SaaS offerings

Synamedia, the world’s largest independent video software provider, today announced it has acquired Quortex, the privately-held provider of a leading cloud video delivery platform optimized for just-in-time processing of live video streaming.

With this acquisition, Synamedia will enhance its cloud Video Network capabilities, complementing its VIVID Workflow as-a-Service (WaaS) with a set of innovative solutions for OTT content processing, disaster recovery, long tail content processing for large service providers, and live events.

Using a patented, industry-first, pay-as-you-stream model, Quortex’s just-in-time technology provides exactly the resources required at any given time. If no-one is watching a channel, it simply frees up those resources. This methodology provides time to market and considerable cost advantages over existing cloud approaches, while ensuring that every deployed resource has a purpose. For example, for long tail content Quortex’s technology reduces cloud costs up to 67%.

Quortex’s multi-tenant SaaS technology builds video streams on-the-fly, based on the end users’ requirements and matched to viewers’ locations, devices and time zones. It adapts to unpredictable network, infrastructure and audiences, and automatically scales cloud resources up and down, leveraging spot instances that take advantage of spare cloud capacity at a fraction of the typical cost, while maintaining quality of experience. The service is designed for any live streaming provider including telcos, cable operators, direct-to-consumer (D2C) players, and broadcasters.

As a founding member of Greening of Streaming, and as energy costs spiral and organizations commit to cutting CO2 emissions, Quortex is well positioned to play an important role in sustainability strategies.

Julien Signes, EVP and General Manager of Video Network at Synamedia, said, “By pioneering just-in-time video streaming processing and delivery, Quortex has broken new ground with live services that dynamically spring to life when processing a user request. This radical change in the economics of cloud processing will accelerate the migration of live video services to the cloud. We see enormous potential as we expand Quortex’s reach globally – for the fast-growing D2C live streaming market as well as our traditional service provider customer base who want to reduce infrastructure costs and meet their CO2 reduction commitments.”

Ben Keen, independent analyst and advisor, commented, “True innovation often derives from a dismantling of legacy approaches to a problem and Quortex has brought some timely fresh thinking to video streaming technology. Reversing the traditional ‘push’ architecture, the Quortex team has come up with a potentially more efficient scalable ‘pull’ process that uses bandwidth only when it is required. The addition of this true SaaS proposition to the portfolio should allow Synamedia to offer live streaming services to a far broader range of increasingly cost-sensitive and environmentally-aware customers.”

Marc Baillavoine, CEO and Founder of Quortex, said, “With our breakthrough just-in-time approach, we have turned the live streaming model on its head, ditching the need to wastefully provision streaming resources just-in-case. We believe that with Synamedia’s global reach and complementary product lines, we can accelerate our mission to transform the agility and cost of streaming and slash its carbon footprint.”

Quortex was founded in Rennes, France, in 2018 by a team of video industry experts with more than 100 patents. Customers include beIN Group Media, M6 and Red Bee Media. The company’s employees in France and the UK will be joining Synamedia. Quortex has been supported since its inception by Elaia, Go Capital, Unexo and business angels. Its technology will be part of Synamedia’s Video Network portfolio, and the company will continue to operate under its own brand while taking advantage of Synamedia’s customer base, financial strength and global presence. BCS Bureau