Earlier this month, Microsoft acquired software company Movere to streamline its customers" journey to its cloud platform. Today, the tech giant has announced a five-year partnership with the Walt Disney Studios, aiming to develop new ways to create content workflows on Azure.
The collaboration will see Microsoft become an innovation partner in the Disney Studios StudioLAB. The aforementioned is a technology hub that was unveiled in July, with the aim to advance storytelling through next-gen tech. As an innovation partner, Microsoft will specifically be focusing on designing cloud-based solutions for production and post-production processes.
Kate Johnson, President of Microsoft U.S., detailed the motivations behind this team-up, noting:
"The cloud has reached a tipping point for the media industry, and it’s not surprising that The Walt Disney Studios, which has its heritage based on a passion for innovation and technology, is at the forefront of this transformation. The combination of Azure’s hyperscale capacity, global distribution, and industry-leading storage and networking capabilities with Disney’s strong history of industry leadership unlocks new opportunity in the media and entertainment space and will power new ways to drive content and creativity at scale. With Azure as the platform cloud for content, we’re excited to work with the team at StudioLAB to continue to drive innovation across Disney’s broad portfolio of studios."
Meanwhile, Jamie Voris, CTO, The Walt Disney Studios, had this to say about the development of "scene-to-screen" content workflows on the cloud:
"By moving many of our production and postproduction workflows to the cloud, we’re optimistic that we can create content more quickly and efficiently around the world. Through this innovation partnership with Microsoft, we’re able to streamline many of our processes so our talented filmmakers can focus on what they do best."
Microsoft has also highlighted its recent work with Disney and media technology provider Avid, explaining how many current and essential media workflows powered by Azure are already in production. The tech giant believes that these will help provide the base for upcoming innovative content creation and management solutions both firms have planned.