The Media Odyssey – Episode Summary

Episode: WTF IS A MEDIA CTO TODAY?
Hosts: Evan Shapiro & Marion Ranchet
Guests: Simon Farnsworth (CTO, ITV), Ade (Adi) Gramberg (CIO, former CTO, SVT)
Date: September 25, 2025
Location: Live at IBC, Amsterdam

Episode Overview

This episode digs into the evolving definition, responsibilities, and industry influence of Chief Technology Officers (CTOs) in today’s public broadcasting. In a candid, often humorous conversation, Evan and Marion are joined by Simon Farnsworth and Adi Gramberg, who share what it really takes to lead technological transformation in broadcasting—moving from legacy mindsets and hardware to audience-first, digital-native, data-driven media. The group unpacks the pressures and paradoxes of keeping content relevant and accessible across an explosion of platforms, rethinking professional standards, and embracing change management in an industry famous for tradition.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Redefining the Role of the CTO

• Chief Transformation/Translation Officer:

  • Simon suggests that CTO should really mean “Chief Translation Officer” or “Chief Transformation Officer,” focusing on translating tech for leadership and driving transformation in business and operating models.
  • Quote:

    “…It should be Chief Translation Officer… Translating technology to your peers and management board… And then probably also Chief Transformation Officer, because what we're trying to do is drive transformation…”
    — Simon Farnsworth [00:49]

• Operational Invisibility:

  • Adi discusses the CTO’s burden of keeping content flowing 24/7 for the audience:

    “The news should go out always to the audience at any time, at any second… we can't get down.”
    — Ade Gramberg [01:37]

2. Audience Fragmentation, Distribution & Collaboration

• Competing with the ‘Death Stars’:

  • The real competition is no longer between legacy broadcasters, but rather massive global tech platforms (Google, YouTube, TikTok, Netflix).
  • Quote:

    “The competition's coming from the death stars… the trillion dollar companies.”
    — Simon Farnsworth [03:17]

• Collaboration Over Competition:

  • Hope for greater collaboration among European public broadcasters in both content creation and distribution platforms (example: ‘Freely’ in the UK).

• IBC as Input, Not Output:

  • Adi points out that IBC is still “vendor-centric” and needs disruption to focus on real industry problems rather than proprietary solutions.

    “We need to collaborate much, much more than we have done before.”
    — Ade Gramberg [04:45]

3. From ‘Doing Digital’ to ‘Being Digital’

• Fundamental Mindset Shift:

  • “Doing digital” means retrofitting old processes, while “being digital” is about fundamentally redesigning operations and culture for digital realities.
  • Standout Quote:

    “We want to move from doing digital to being digital. And that's a totally different mindset.”
    — Simon Farnsworth [05:24 & 05:54]

• Friction & Resistance:

  • Legacy organizations struggle to move beyond treating their owned platforms as the center of the universe, forgetting that audiences now set the rules.

  • “We still think that we as a company and platform are the star of the universe, while… the content… should be the star.”
    — Ade Gramberg [08:33]

4. Walled Gardens, Platform Proliferation, & Content as North Star

• Failing with Too Many Platforms:

  • Over 5,000 OTT TV platforms globally, not counting social media—complicates discovery, distribution, and focus.

  • “It needs to be the content…”
    — Ade Gramberg [10:31]

• Production Standards vs. Audience Experience:

  • The industry invests in gold-standard hardware (e.g., broadcast cameras) but users are happy with smartphone video quality.
  • Notable Sequence:

    “[Brandishes smartphone] This is not any TV standards at all, but it can do whatever vendor in here… can do.”
    — Ade Gramberg [11:31]

5. Experimentation, Data, and Monetizing New Platforms

• Testing New Models:

  • ITV’s experimentation with content on YouTube, Disney, and developing ad packages that integrate YouTube, showing largely additive, not cannibalistic effects on main platforms.
  • Quote:

    “Your YouTube revenue is growing exponentially… it's all additive.”
    — Simon Farnsworth [15:44]

• Ad Platform Innovation:

  • ITV’s “Planet V” platform allows small businesses to buy targeted ads across ITVX and YouTube, using data partnerships with retailers (Tesco, Walmart) to predict outcomes at point of sale.
  • “We're able to keep the majority of the money rather than pay [Google].” — Simon Farnsworth [17:59]

• Creator Economy Lessons:

  • Adi: Industry should emulate the lean, creative, audience-focused workflows of YouTube/social creators.

6. AI, Automation, and Cloud Production Value Chain

• Using AI for Beyond-Human-Scale Content:

  • ITV used AI to pre-screen 1,000 Love Island contestants—led to a bigger, better casting pool.
  • Quote:

    “We used AI this year to just shoot all those screeners. So instead of doing 500, we did 1,000... UK version, 7% increase on air.”
    — Simon Farnsworth [20:09]

• From Broadcast Standards to Viewer Standards:

  • Push to abandon rigid production formats (like 4K uncompressed) in favor of whatever meets consumer need, whether TV or smartphone.

• Event Example:

  • SVT switched coverage of a major ski event (Vossaloppet) from broadcast-grade helicopter cameras to drones using 5G; audience saw no drop in quality, huge cost and carbon footprint savings.
  • Quote:

    “…We did it with drones over 5G. Everything. The audience loved it. They couldn't see any difference… the price was very low compared to last year.”
    — Ade Gramberg [29:54]

7. Change Management & Industry Mindsets

• The Challenge is People, Not Tech:

  • The technology is ready—what lags is broadcaster/industry mindset.
  • Marion:

    “…the tech is here and they can do anything, but mindsets are shifting much slower.”
    [32:23]

• COVID-19 as Forcing Function:

  • Remote production, previously dismissed for major events, became standard overnight due to the pandemic.

• Changing the Meaning of ‘Broadcast’:

  • The word “broadcasting” should expand to include natively digital formats and creators—“super broadcasting” across platforms.

8. Lightning Round: Biggest Changes Needed

• Adi Gramberg:

  • Dump broadcast standards for viewer-driven ones:

    “Remove the broadcast standard into a consumer viewer standard and make production there.”
    [36:58]

• Simon Farnsworth:

  • Mindset is everything:

    “It's one word: mindset… If we don't [change it], it's going to be hugely problematic.”
    [38:47]

• On Tech & Jobs:

  • Disruption, if done right, means hiring more creatives and expanding content, not eliminating jobs.

  • “…the content will get a rocket ship for growth… growth is job stability, it's job creation…"
    — Simon Farnsworth [39:41]

Notable Quotes

• “From doing digital to being digital.”
  — Simon Farnsworth [05:54]

• “We are obsessed with building new platforms…but we forget the content is the North Star.”
  — Ade Gramberg [11:27]

• “Your YouTube revenue is growing exponentially year on year… it's all additive.”
  — Simon Farnsworth [15:44]

• “We're not in a dying business… the business overall is exploding. But we are maybe thinking in the wrong way.”
  — Ade Gramberg [40:54]

• “There are no safe jobs in broadcasting anymore. There are no safe jobs in media… If you can take a risk and speak truth to power… at least maybe you can try to change the mindset.”
  — Evan Shapiro [42:25]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [00:49] – What does a CTO really do? (Chief Translation/Transformation Officer)
• [02:12] – Scaling to meet audience fragmentation
• [05:24] – From ‘doing digital’ to ‘being digital’
• [07:50] – The resistance to targeting younger audiences
• [10:31] – The futility of platform proliferation; content must lead
• [15:41] – ITV’s data from distributing on YouTube: it’s all “additive”
• [17:09] – Small/medium businesses buying TV ads via self-serve; data partnerships
• [20:09] – AI in casting for Love Island: increasing creative output
• [29:54] – SVT’s 5G drone production: cost, carbon, quality savings
• [32:23] – Mindset is the #1 barrier to transformation
• [36:58] – If you could change one thing… (Standards & Mindset)
• [39:41] – Disruption as a “rocket ship” for creative growth and jobs

Episode Tone & Memorable Moments

• Candid, funny, and energetic: Frequent banter about hair, “Viking” looks, and the realities of media events.
• Bluntness and honesty: Both guests and hosts are open about industry flaws and internal frustrations.
• Marion continually references her European vantage point and creators’ mindset.
• Concludes with a call to redefine ‘broadcasting’ and to be brave enough to speak truth to power for real, sustainable change.

Takeaways for Listeners

• Technical change means nothing without cultural and organizational change.
• The future belongs to producers who embrace collaboration, data, new platforms, and a relentless focus on audience needs.
• “Broadcasting” must evolve to mean what audiences actually do.
• Those driving transformation must be brave, persistent, and people-focused—real change is less about tech, more about mindsets.