Harmonic secures Swiss playout win amid projected 2026 revenue surge

This deployment validates the market shift from specialized hardware to software-defined, AI-optimized playout stacks that lower the total cost of ownership. For the broader ecosystem, it highlights how AI-powered encoding is moving from experimental use to a standard requirement for managing the bandwidth-intensive transition to UHD and multi-network delivery. While the Canal Alpha win reinforces Harmonic's software traction, investor focus remains on whether these media-side gains can offset high customer concentration in the company’s core broadband segment. Watch for the completion of Harmonic’s strategic $145 million sale of its video business to MediaKind, expected by mid-2026, to signal its final pivot toward purely virtualized infrastructure.

The Canal Alpha expansion follows a period of fundamental reorganization for Harmonic. In December 2025, the company reached a definitive agreement to sell its video business to MediaKind for $145 million, per Fierce Network reporting. This divestiture, projected to close in the second quarter of 2026, aims to transform Harmonic into a pure-play broadband leader focused on its cOS virtualized platform. Despite this pending sale, the company continues to demonstrate commercial momentum in video processing, as seen with the deployment of its AI-powered EyeQ technology.

Harmonic reported record financial results earlier in the cycle. During its Q4 2025 earnings call in February 2026, the company posted consolidated sales of $157 million, exceeding analyst estimates of $141 million, according to Light Reading. This growth was largely driven by a 52% sequential increase in broadband revenue, which has been anchored by massive deployments with Tier-1 operators like Comcast and Charter. However, the reliance on a small number of major customers remains a persistent risk factor highlighted in its research narratives.

Technologically, the shift toward software-defined playout is accelerating across Europe. The XOS Advanced Media Processor used by Canal Alpha incorporates EyeQ content-aware encoding, which Harmonic first introduced over eight years ago to mimic human visual perception. By focusing bits where the eye is most sensitive, the technology consistently delivers up to 50% bandwidth reduction for AVC and HEVC streams. As broadcasters move toward 24/7 UHD delivery, these efficiencies are becoming essential for maintaining margins against rising CDN and energy costs.