A key media trend to emerge in recent times is the growth of the software-driven broadcaster. For both the production and distribution of content, the role of software and applications is becoming more critical, presenting EBU Members and other broadcasters with many challenges and opportunities.

In response to this trend, on 18-19 November the EBU will hold its first ever conference for developers. EBU DevCon 2013 will bring leading experts to Geneva for two days of presentations, discussions and hands-on workshops on software engineering for media. Among the companies featured on the programme are Adobe, Eventbrite and Mozilla Firefox, along with EBU Members including BBC and others. Networking opportunities will also be a key attraction, with the chance to discuss common problems with others from across Europe.

The three Ds

The event will address three main themes representing the major elements of software-based projects: Development, Deployment and Data. Eventbrite's Nathan Yergler will explore development culture in both a presentation and a workshop, where the popular web framework Django will be the focus.

Best practices for deployment will be addressed by Mozilla's Laura Thompson, who will talk about creating an effective DevOps culture taking Firefox as a case study. This theme will be addressed in more depth in a workshop on the second day where Gary Honeycutt will provide a beginners' guide to using Puppet for deployment.

The topic of data will be covered by BBC's Sean O'Halpin, who leads a new EBU project looking at cross-platform authentication, and by Michael Vogiatzis (Social Artisan), who will talk about processing Big Data in real time using Storm.

Launch of EBU.io

The first EBU DevCon also coincides with the launch of the new EBU.io platform, which is designed to serve as a centre of gravity for software development in the wider EBU community. Already launched in a beta phase, it will host experimental services and proofs-of-concept, while also providing information about open source software in use at EBU Members and an incubator for new ideas.

For its users, EBU.io offers an experimental environment with a uniform user experience; a common framework to simplify integration; and a single stack of common services such as automated builds, analytics and monitoring.

EBU DevCon 2013 will be an ideal opportunity for attendees to try out the new features and explore the possibilities of a software-driven media future.