Benjamin Garverick, senior architect, Zixi, suggests anyone looking to enter the media tech industry should ask lot of questions, watch a lot of videos, and read a lot of articles.
Talk us through an average day in your role
I have the privilege to be a wearer of many hats so my days are never the same. One day I’ll spend my time reading an SCTE standard to make sure our products are in line with the industry, the next day I can be writing automation scripts to help customers, another day I’ll work on new features for our Zixi as a Service offering, and on yet another day I could be debating the economics of a new pricing model with internal folks. This range is what makes this job so much fun and I didn’t even list everything!
How did you get started in the media industry?
I went to school for media communications and while in school I took the time to freelance for local sporting events and with a friend’s production company. Part of the work I did for the production company was helping set up a YouTube live stream, because of this, I was hired as an intern at NBCUniversal where I helped on the live streaming team. I was on that team for a few months, moved to a couple of other teams as part of a rotation programme, then was eventually hired back onto that team where I stayed for a couple more years.
What training did you have before entering the industry?
I had no training for my current or previous roles before entering the industry. My university taught me about the post production side while the freelance work taught me about live production. Those two sides are all about creating or editing content, while my current role is all about moving content over the internet. I would say a majority of what I do today I obtained while on the job. I’ve asked a lot of questions, watched a lot of videos, and read a lot of articles to make sure I’m prepared for where I’m at today.
Why do you enjoy working in the industry?
I like that while TV and radio are two mediums that have been around for decades, they’re still here and still evolving. This industry does its best to push the limits on what technology is available and ensure viewers get the latest and greatest. While my role is small compared to the vastness of the industry as a whole throughout the world, having even the smallest part in it is exciting! I’m able to work with some great brands to make sure their content is reaching as many folks as possible. Some of those brands are doing really amazing work that helps society in so many ways and I get to help with that! Also while this industry is large from a reach and market size perspective, from a human perspective, it’s relatively small. I’m not sure there’s another industry out there that makes it so easy to build a network or a network that is so wide.
What piece of advice would you offer someone looking to explore a role similar to yours?
You should be able to go with the flow, be well-rounded in both networking technology and traditional TV workflows, understand the larger industry economics, and have a general curiosity about media and broadcasting. The work I do is fun and always changing so coming into it from only one side (i.e. traditional TV workflows) will limit you and what you can do. Accept that this industry is ever evolving and to stay on top of everything that’s changing will absolutely take some effort, but it will be worth it!
Read up on the technology of streaming for the contribution and distribution side. Look at MPEG Transport Stream, HLS and Dash, SCTE 35, SCTE 224, Python, and APIs. Read up on the history of TV and radio. There are any number of blogs and publications out there that offer white papers and features on new tech. Be open to learning new things and be okay with moving fast.
