EZDRM and Ceeblue have come together to deliver a transformative real-time solution designed to provide secure, sub-second live streaming to the booming sports live-streaming marketplace. Ceeblue, a leader in real-time streaming technologies, has successfully integrated EZDRM’s comprehensive Digital Rights Management as a Service (DRMaaS) solutions— including Widevine, FairPlay, and PlayReady—into its innovative WebRTS framework.
Understanding the Latency Problem in Sports Streaming
Historically, live-event and sports streaming services have grappled with latency issues that negatively impact the overall viewing experience. High-profile events, notably the Super Bowl, have consistently faced significant delays—typically more than 30 seconds—between live action and viewers’ screens. Such delays often lead to frustration among fans, particularly as real-time social media updates or mobile notifications inadvertently spoil major moments. This ongoing challenge underscores the urgent need for practical and effective real-time streaming solutions.
Introducing WebRTS: A Practical Solution for Latency
Ceeblue’s multiprotocol transcoding and real-time delivery platform now supports WebRTS, a new framework developed by Ceeblue to address these concerns head-on by providing end-to-end latency consistently below a second, and below 500ms within the same region. Unlike other ultra-low latency or real-time streaming methods, video using WebRTS can be delivered using traditional CDNs and is compatible with standard, robust DRM mechanisms across the full range of consumer devices. WebRTS also boasts advanced network congestion control, allowing it to overcome adverse bandwidth scenarios. WebRTS is efficient and reduces both bandwidth use as well as origin overhead. These features provide broadcasters with significant operational savings, simplified infrastructure management, and greater reliability during high-traffic events.
Danny Burns, Founder and CTO of Ceeblue, emphasizes the practical nature of this collaboration: “Ceeblue is delighted to be partnering with EZDRM. Together, we have developed a truly accessible path to scalable, sub-second streaming that’s actually secure. Our goal is to provide broadcasters with the ability to deliver content instantly, meeting and surpassing viewer expectations without incurring prohibitive costs.”
Strengthening Content Security with EZDRM
Security is a foundational element in broadcasting premium live sports events, as it creates the framework for creation and enforcement of the business model supporting the streaming service. EZDRM’s DRMaaS integration with WebRTS significantly enhances the security landscape by ensuring seamless compatibility with the trusted DRM technologies favored by the streaming rights holders and supported by specialist hardware within modern consumer devices.. This comprehensive DRM solution offers broadcasters robust protection across the full range of modern devices and platforms, ensuring secure, reliable delivery of premium sports content at scale.
David Eisenbacher, Co-Founder and CEO of EZDRM, highlights the importance of this integrated solution: “Integrating EZDRM’s advanced DRMaaS solutions with Ceeblue’s WebRTS provides broadcasters with a secure, efficient, and highly scalable solution. Our collaboration delivers precisely the practical tools broadcasters need to confidently and securely stream their valuable sports content to a growing base of enthusiastic consumers.”
Practical Advantages for Broadcasters
The collaboration between EZDRM and Ceeblue offers broadcasters numerous actionable advantages. WebRTS’s inherently CDN-friendly design facilitates easy integration into existing Content Delivery Networks (CDNs), significantly reducing both setup complexity and ongoing operational costs.
Moreover, WebRTS does not impose royalties, removing financial barriers associated with adopting other sub-second streaming technologies. As a result, broadcasters of all sizes can efficiently adopt this powerful real-time solution, positioning them to better meet the evolving demands of their audiences.
Practical Advantages for Developers
For developers, WebRTS’s transport protocol- and codec-agnostic architecture provides exceptional flexibility, easing the integration into existing workflows and significantly streamlining development processes. This approach helps technical teams quickly adapt their streaming solutions to various infrastructure demands and technological scenarios, accelerating deployment and operational efficiency without compromising quality or performance.
Enhanced Viewer Experiences
Ultimately, the collaboration between EZDRM and Ceeblue prioritizes delivering an enhanced viewing experience. Audiences benefit immediately from drastically reduced latency, which translates into significantly higher QoE and more interactive and immersive viewing sessions. Real-time content delivery eliminates delays, buffering, and spoilers, dramatically improving audience satisfaction, retention, and engagement, crucial metrics for broadcasters seeking to cultivate viewer loyalty and increase revenue streams.
Live Demonstrations of WebRTS with DRM
For those interested in experiencing the capabilities of WebRTS firsthand, EZDRM and Ceeblue will showcase live demonstrations of their integrated DRM-enabled sub-second streaming solution at the upcoming NAB Show Las Vegas. Demos will take place at the EZDRM booth (W2466) during the following scheduled sessions:
- Sunday, April 6th: 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM
- Monday, April 7th: 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM
These live demos offer industry professionals an opportunity to witness the practical advantages and operational simplicity of the EZDRM and Ceeblue partnership.
Future Outlook
The collaboration between EZDRM and Ceeblue signals a practical and meaningful advancement in sports streaming. It addresses crucial pain points—latency, scalability, security, and cost-efficiency—in a unified solution designed specifically for the practical needs of sports broadcasters. As streaming continues to evolve, this integrated approach provides a robust foundation for broadcasters to remain competitive, responsive, and secure in a rapidly changing digital landscape.
For further details on how this collaboration can specifically benefit your OTT broadcasting initiatives, schedule a meeting with Ceeblue or EZDRM at NAB Show 2025, or contact us at [email protected] or [email protected].
