Appear integrates its live contribution X-Platform with BitFire’s transport network and cloud production, giving broadcasters and streamers a fast, more reliable way to deliver live video.
BitFire, a software-defined live production and IP transmission developer, is forming a strategic partnership with Appear, high-capacity, sustainable systems specialist for media processing and live content delivery. The collaboration integrates Appear’s high-density live contribution X-Platform with BitFire’s global transport network and cloud production ecosystem. The result gives broadcasters, sports leagues and streaming platforms a faster, more flexible, more reliable way to deliver live video from venue to viewer.
X Platform is a hardware media processing and gateway platform – modular, high-capacity, ultra-dense and capable of achieving very low latency with scalability. Instead of running software in large server farms, Appear’s approach is to build high-speed networking, video processing and hardware-accelerated SRT directly into the X Platform’s 1RU chassis.
Appear’s compression functions and transport endpoints can now be paired with BitFire Engines, enabling direct ingest into BitFire’s Transport Network. Users can set up low-latency contribution and distribution of high-quality video, and grant access to BitFire’s virtual production tools – including its Cloud Switcher, Cloud Replay and FireBridge remote talent interface – to support remote control, monitoring and distribution from anywhere.
The BitFire Platform is comprehensive. Most important is the IP Video Transmission network, a global-scale, distributed transport network with points of presence in every major region and its own resilient BitFire Transport Protocol, BFTx. It consists of private, secure connections with real-time intelligent routing and multi-hop recovery methods to enhance resilience while maintaining low-latency transmission.
The Spark Production Environment tools are customisable, flexible and scalable, built natively in the cloud for broadcast. As well as the switcher and replay systems, teams have a multiviewer, audio mixer and full matrix intercom in the cloud for remote production workflows.
The FireBridge software control panels and interfaces are designed so that these cloud tools look, feel and operate like physical broadcast equipment. Finally, Inferno centralised management includes transmission routing, cloud resource customisation and access to real time transmission statistics from the network.
“This partnership merges edge encoding with professional IP transport and scalable cloud production,” said Jim Akimchuk, President and CEO at BitFire. “By combining Appear’s efficient encoding with BitFire’s flexible infrastructure, we’re removing traditional geographic and hardware constraints for all live content producers.”
The combined Appear and BitFire solution is designed for high-demand environments such as live sports and entertainment broadcasts, where near-instant transport and very high quality are critical. Appear’s X Platform solutions, recognised for high-density encoding and decoding workflows, deliver high-quality feeds directly to the BitFire IP transport network and cloud production platform, supporting rapid deployment of cloud, REMI and hybrid productions.
“Partnering with BitFire allows us to better serve the evolving needs of broadcasters and cloud operators by directly connecting our products with a competitive, experienced IP transport and cloud production provider,” said Andy Rayner, CTO at Appear. “Whether for global sporting events or full-time distribution, we’re collectively raising the bar for efficiency and quality in live production.”
The integrated solution is currently being evaluated by major sports and entertainment clients in North America and Europe, with full-scale deployments expected to begin in early 2026. Both companies will show the combined workflow at upcoming industry events, focusing on its scalability, cost-effectiveness and reliability. www.appear.net
