The On Air 2026 global broadcast served as a real-world testing ground for the Media eXchange Layer (MXL) and Time-Addressable Data Store (TADS) standards. AWS, Appear, and Norsk collaborated to manage multi-channel live production and metadata logging using these cloud-native technologies.
The successful deployment of these standards marks a shift from proof-of-concept to scalable, cloud-native production workflows. By replacing traditional SRT handovers with MXL, broadcasters can achieve lower latency and reduced processing costs in multi-channel environments. This move signals a broader industry transition toward interoperable, time-based metadata and media exchange frameworks that move beyond proprietary silos. As AWS and BBC R&D continue to refine these protocols, the ecosystem moves closer to a pluggable architecture where AI-driven transcription and search can be integrated directly into the live logging stream. Watch for the adoption of TADS by other cloud providers to see if it becomes the definitive standard for time-based metadata.
The On Air 2026 global broadcast successfully implemented MXL and TADS standards to manage multi-channel live production. By replacing traditional SRT handovers with MXL, the deployment achieved lower latency and reduced processing costs. This shift demonstrates a move toward scalable, cloud-native workflows that utilize interoperable, time-based metadata for live media exchange.
MXL (Media eXchange Layer) is a standard used to replace traditional SRT handovers for lower latency. TADS (Time-Addressable Data Store) is an AWS-implemented standard used to manage time-based metadata generated by live content loggers.
Appear used its X5 and VX platforms to encode camera signals as MXL, which allowed for low-latency handovers to the cloud-based gallery switcher provided by Norsk.
MXL replaces traditional SRT handovers, which reduces the processing overhead required for cloud-based production and helps broadcasters achieve lower latency in multi-channel environments.
AWS implemented the TADS standard to manage time-based metadata and utilized the AWS MediaConnect Router to dynamically route 25 live university feeds across the AWS backbone without extra hops.
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