Harmonic Overhauls its Sports Streaming Tech to Fight Lag and Boost Revenue

Harmonic is rolling out a major update for its VOS360 SaaS platform, aiming to solve some of live streaming's biggest headaches by delivering sub-five-second latency, new in-stream ad formats, and stronger anti-piracy tools.

• The five-second rule: The update’s main draw is a claimed sub-five-second latency, achieved through a geo-redundant architecture designed to keep streams stable. Gil Rudge, Harmonic's senior vice president of solutions, says the goal is to "redefine the playbook for next-gen fan experiences."
• More views, more revenue: To make streams more engaging, the platform is adding interactive multiview and an AI tool for creating real-time highlight clips. For monetization, new "double-box" and "dynamic L-bar" ad formats can be triggered by in-game events, while forensic watermarking and geo-blocking are being added to combat piracy.
• Brazil's big test: The move builds on Harmonic's existing deployments, including its work with Brazil's largest streaming platform, Globoplay. A director at Globoplay's parent company, Globo, noted that streaming over 300 matches required a partner capable of delivering "true broadcast-grade performance at scale."

As sports broadcasters fight to keep eyeballs, Harmonic is betting that a smoother, more interactive, and better-protected viewing experience is the key to competing with traditional TV. Looking ahead, Harmonic plans to showcase the new streaming solution at the IBC2025 conference in September.