Content owners
Turn a video library into a 24/7 FAST channel without building a broadcast operation.
Cloud Playout Software to Run 24/7 TV and FAST Channels
Manage your library, schedule live and pre-recorded content, and broadcast one feed to every destination: your own site with ads built in, FAST platforms like Samsung TV Plus with ad markers, and cable headends. From a one-off event to a 24/7 FAST network.
One dedicated server per channel. Nothing is shared with anyone else.
- Schedule live and pre-recorded
- Ads baked in or SCTE-35 markers
- EPG and XMLTV
- CEA-608/708 captions
- SRT output
- Active-Active redundancy
What Is Cloud Playout Software?
Cloud playout software turns video files and live feeds into a continuous, scheduled TV channel that runs on servers instead of broadcast hardware.
It plays your content on a timeline, adds graphics and ad markers, and broadcasts the finished linear channel over IP to FAST platforms, cable headends and streaming apps. No master control room, no racks, no playout hardware to maintain.
With 5centsCDN, each channel runs on its own dedicated server, with its own storage and control panel.
Broadcasters and cable channels
Launch a linear channel, or a cloud backup for an existing one, with no master control room.
Event and pop-up channels
Run a channel for a few days, then export the records and shut the server down.
How Cloud Playout Works: From Video Library to Live Channel
Go from a folder of files to a channel on air in five stages, all from one control panel.
- 1
Manage
Upload your files. Each one is checked, loudness-corrected and captioned as it arrives.
- 2
Schedule
Place files and live feeds on one timeline, and edit it while it is on air.
- 3
Brand & Monetize
Add your logo and graphics, and plan your ad breaks.
- 4
Deliver
Broadcast one feed and a matching EPG to every destination, each with its own ad setup.
- 5
Monitor
Watch every destination on air, and change the schedule, graphics, feeds and destinations on the fly.
Manage Your Library, Schedule Live and Pre‑Recorded, and Brand Your Channel
Upload anything. Every file is checked before it airs.
Upload large files from your browser and let the platform do the checking.
- Resumable uploads pick up after a pause, a lost connection or a browser restart.
- Full-decode QC catches corrupt data, black, freeze and silence. Loudness is corrected to your target, and files are transcoded only when they need to be.
- Captions are generated automatically, translated or uploaded, then embedded as CEA-608/708.
One linear timeline for files and live.
Drag programs onto a calendar or rundown. A live RTMP or SRT feed takes over when it arrives and hands back to the schedule when it ends.
- Edit while on air. Changes land at a safe point, with no glitch.
- Gaps and overlaps are flagged and filled. A fallback loop and your slate keep the channel on air.
- Weekly templates, loops and CSV import, with time zones and daylight saving handled for you.
Your branding on every frame.
Add your logo, lower thirds, tickers and clocks from templates, and schedule them like any other item.
- Template gallery with a form editor, or upload your own HTML templates.
- Data-driven tickers and text from an RSS or JSON feed. News-style graphics work the same way.
- Animated slate with a countdown fills gaps and breaks.
Broadcast One Channel to Your Website, FAST Platforms and Cable
Your channel is produced once. Each destination then picks how ads are handled, so the same programming earns on your own platform and still follows every FAST platform's rules.
Video library filesLive feeds RTMP · SRT
Your channel, produced onceSchedule · graphics · captions · ad breaks · monitored live
Your website and apps
5centsCDN delivery
- Ads Baked in
- Paid spots from your own campaigns play inside the channel, so every viewer sees them.
- What it receives
- The channel through 5centsCDN delivery, with captions and ad markers kept in the stream.
FAST platforms
Samsung TV Plus, Roku, Pluto TV
- Ads Markers only
- The platform sells and inserts its own ads in your breaks.
- What it receives
- A clean feed with SCTE-35 ad markers. Breaks carry a branded countdown slate or your promos until the platform fills them.
Cable headends
SRT-capable receiver or gateway
- Ads Your choice
- Bake ads in for a headend that inserts nothing, or send markers for local ad insertion.
- What it receives
- Constant-bitrate SRT with set program identifiers and CALM-compliant loudness.
3 of 3 destinations on air. Switch any destination on or off at any time, each with its own output settings, encryption and health monitoring.
Ad Insertion and Monetization
Plan breaks once and let every destination fill them its own way: your campaigns on your own platform, the platform's ads on FAST.
Campaigns
Guaranteed spots, sponsorships, share of voice and house ads.
SCTE-35 ad markers
FAST-ready, with pre-roll and exact break durations for server-side ad insertion.
Exact fill
Every break packed to the frame, with rules that keep competing advertisers apart.
24-hour ad plan
Preview which spot airs when, before it does.
Proof of play
A certificate per campaign, with frame-accurate start and end times.
EPG and XMLTV Generated From Your Schedule
FAST platforms and apps need an electronic program guide that matches what is on air. Your EPG comes from the same timeline that plays out, so the guide never drifts from the channel.
- Built from the timeline. Runs 8 days ahead and 1 day back, and refreshes automatically when you edit the schedule.
- XMLTV and platform formats. XMLTV at a stable HTTPS address, plus formats prepared for Roku and Amazon, fitted to the guide blocks platforms expect.
- Metadata check. Ratings, genre, descriptions, caption flags and artwork are checked before the guide goes out, with a warning as a platform's lock window approaches.
- Break-aware times. Start times account for ad breaks, so listings match what viewers see.
- Now and next. A now-and-next feed and schedule widget for your website and apps.
Monitor and Control Your Channel Live
Cloud playout does not stop at delivery. Once the channel is on air, you monitor it from the control panel and change it while it plays, with no restart.
On airMatchday Highlights
NextLIVE · City vs United · 19:30
Destinations3 / 3 healthy
Schedule left7d 14h
AlertsSlack · Email · Teams
Monitor
- Channel dashboard. See what is on air and next, a live preview of the output, the health of every destination and how much schedule is left.
- Alerts and as-run logs. Email, Slack or Teams alerts on black, frozen or silent output, a lost live feed or a destination that disconnects. Every item and spot that aired is logged.
Change on the Fly
- Edit the schedule while it airs. Changes land at a safe point, with no glitch and no restart.
- Change graphics overlays live. Show, hide or edit your logo, lower thirds and tickers. They appear on the next clean frame.
- Take control. Take a live feed, drop to the slate, skip an item or insert a break now.
- Switch destinations. Turn any destination on or off at any time.
Stay on Air
- Active-Active across two data centres. Both servers play the same timeline and the media server follows the healthy feed, without disturbing viewers.
- Keeps airing offline. Each server stores at least 8 hours of upcoming content, so it plays on if the control panel or network is unreachable. A missing file at air time is replaced by a slate of the same length.
Run It With Your Team
- Roles and folders. Owners, schedulers and contributors, with contributors limited to the folders you assign. Every action is logged.
- API and webhooks. Control the channel from your own systems and get notified of breaks, live feeds, failures and gaps.
Who Uses Cloud Playout
FAST channel operators
Turn a video library into a branded 24/7 FAST channel with an EPG, live cut-ins and ad breaks the platform can fill.
News channels
Run a cloud news channel with tickers, lower thirds and breaking-news graphics, trim clips in the panel and take live feeds as stories break.
Sports channels
Mix live matches with replays and highlights, run sponsor spots, and take a live feed the moment a match starts.
Cable and broadcast channels
Launch a linear channel, or a cloud backup, and deliver it to the headend over constant-bitrate SRT with captions and local-insertion markers.
Event and pop-up channels
Run a channel for a festival or launch on a short-term server, then export the play records and shut it down.
Content owners and OTT services
Add a linear channel to your own app or site, mixing live and on-demand on one timeline.
Have some questions
before getting started?
Get started
Launch Your Channel on the Cloud
Tell us where your content lives and where the channel needs to go. We will size a dedicated server and take you through setup.
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