Cloud and GenAI transformations in media: How to make the change work

The media industry is currently experiencing a fundamental technological change. The rise in streaming platforms, data-driven decisions, hyper-personalized content and pressure to continually innovate are placing new demands on IT infrastructures. Today, media companies need to provide real-time content, react quickly to events and maintain user trust and security.

Our Germany media experts Marcus Böhme, CGI Vice President Consulting Delivery and Ralf Richter, CGI Director Consulting Expert for Cloud Solution Architect and Microsoft MVP, discuss how cloud technologies and GenAI can help media companies not just survive this industry-wide transformation but thrive.

Cloud: From data center to strategic platform

Cloud technology evolved from simple infrastructure solutions to central components of corporate strategy over the last ten years.

“In the past, many companies viewed the cloud as just another data center,” said Böhme. “Today, we start cloud projects with clear strategic goals and include questions of organization, role changes and automation right from the start.”

The media industry is recognizing the potential benefits. Whether providing on-demand content, cloud-based production workflows or globally scalable delivery networks, the cloud enables greater speed, flexibility and scalability. Furthermore, modern architectures are increasingly relying on hybrid and multi-cloud solutions.

GenAI: Innovation with responsibility

While cloud lays the foundation, GenAI is opening up entirely new possibilities in content creation, distribution and audience analytics, but success requires more than experimentation.

“According to Gartner, around 85% (via VentureBeat) of all AI projects fail, many of them as early as the proof-of-concept stage,” noted Richter. “This often comes down to unclear objectives, poor data quality, or lack of integration.”

Successful GenAI projects in media companies are characterized by well-thought-out strategies, responsible use guidelines and transparency. The German public broadcasters, ARD and ZDF, for example, have established principles for dealing with AI, including the ethical use of AI, transparency and the demand for measurable results to promote trust in this technology.

CGI Cloud Control Tower: Governance for complex IT environments

A clearly structured governance model is essential for successfully using both cloud technology and GenAI. With CGI Cloud Control Tower (in German), we developed a framework that is specially tailored for complex IT environments such as media companies.

What is the CGI Cloud Control Tower? Think of it like an airport:

• Runways represent the underlying cloud infrastructure (e.g. Azure, AWS, private cloud)
• Aircrafts represent virtual machines, containers, microservices and AI applications
• The tower provides an overview, coordination and security

Similarly, in the cloud, regular deployments, scaling and changes are clearly summarized by our CGI Cloud Control Tower and instantly checked for optimization potential. Much like airport controls, it performs a vital role in safety and coordination, ensuring compliance with your organization’s standards and regulations. Just as air traffic controllers oversee operational control, our cloud control team efficiently manages and coordinates your organizational services.

Key features of the CGI Cloud Control Tower:

• Data and security monitoring and analytics
• Automation and infrastructure-as-code
• Financial operations (FinOps) and cost control
• Security and compliance, including AI-supported event correlation
• Service catalogs for standardized and individual requirements

This setup enables media organizations to respond to unexpected events, such as live streaming surges or managing sensitive content quickly and effectively.

Empowering people because technology alone is not enough

Despite all the technological possibilities, both Böhme and Richter stress that transformation starts with people. New roles such as DevOps Engineers or Prompt Engineers are only part of the development. It is just as important to take talent along on the journey, offer further training and build trust in new technologies.

“Cloud and AI must not only be implemented but also embraced. When teams are empowered and aligned, innovation and security can go hand in hand,” emphasizes Richter.

Using cloud and GenAI strategically

Cloud and GenAI are here to stay. Media companies that use these technologies strategically benefit from more efficient processes, new opportunities for personalization and improved time-to-market. With the CGI Cloud Control Tower, we offer a tried-and-tested model to leverage this potential in a secure and controlled manner.

As a trusted partner to the media industry, we help companies unlock greater innovation, optimize efficiency and secure digital sovereignty.