Head of 5 Streaming Technology
London, GB, NW1 8TT
Is this the role for you?
It was announced in August that Channel 5 and its free streaming service, My5, will relaunch in 2025 under a unified parent brand of 5 across linear, streaming and digital platforms – giving its audience easy access to its award-winning range of programming and content, wherever and whenever they want it. As part of the relaunch as 5, the free streaming service will feature a significantly expanded content offer to complement Channel 5’s acclaimed UK drama originals and unscripted programming. For the first time, the streaming service will include a new range of specially curated FAST channels. There will also be personalisation, and enhanced data-led advertising opportunities. This long term, strategic decision by Channel 5 follows successive years of industry leading growth across both Channel 5’s linear channels and My5. Over the first half of 2024, My5 grew its viewing by +40%, more than any of the other public service streaming services.
Channel 5 need an experienced streaming professional to join its Product Technology & Operations leadership team. This role is an exciting opportunity to work in a fast paced, commercially driven product technology team, alongside a number of other technology specialists and supplier partners.
Applicants should be passionate about the practical application of technology in streaming, with a professional or personal interest in online video delivery and streaming products in particular.
You'll likely have a background in software development or a closely related technical field with experience in system design, but are looking for a role with a broader remit where you can employ your skills across the entire technology estate.
Working within the product and technology team, you’ll be responsible for working on the design and development of the core systems responsible for delivering Channel 5’s content to its audiences across a growing range of digital platforms and devices.
What Will You Be Doing?
⦁ Hire colleagues as required, and manage on a day to day basis
⦁ Lead, mentor and inspire a team of technology professionals, fostering a culture of excellence, collaboration, and continuous learning
⦁ Support solutions managers in the delivery of platform solutions.
⦁ Be an authority who can guide and develop the team, and enable them to take on increasingly challenging exercises.
⦁ Act as an authority consultant to broader team
⦁Lead relationships with our internal partners including our internal video product team, and act as SME for those products within Channel 5
Partners:
⦁ Act as primary relationship manager with our infrastructure development partners
⦁ Through formal and informal selection processes, perform evaluation of developers, service suppliers and product vendors based on both the suitability of their technical solutions and consideration of the cost of implementation and support with a comparison of rent, buy or build approaches.
⦁ Develop architectural direction for our tech estate, and translate into developable steps to be delivered by development partners and tech solutions manager
⦁ Perform technical vendor management across a range of incumbent technology service providers, including developers, content processing providers, hosting and network suppliers.
⦁ With the support of your team, oversee the development of technology solutions for Channel 5, guiding the specification of user stories and test cases, and be assuring user acceptance. Also act as technical product owner for internal infrastructure services
⦁ Specify integration points between vendors’ solutions, existing Channel 5 platforms and other dependent third parties e.g. syndication partners.
⦁ Work closely with distribution partners Amazon, Google, Samsung, EveryoneTV, etc. to ensure technological advancements on My5 are consistent with partner platforms
Streaming Infrastructure:
⦁ Develop and implement a comprehensive technology strategy that aligns with the company’s objectives and supports it growth
⦁ Work with operational teams to ensure products are designed to be supported operationally, helping to define support processes and the handover from development/integration to operational readiness.
⦁ Support the establishment and management of appropriate non-production environments liaising with the Tech Ops teams
⦁ Point of contact for the architecture of VoD delivery systems, providing technical consultancy to internal teams and external suppliers through documentation and workshops and where necessary help with hands-on investigation and solve operational problems and incidents.
⦁ Pay attention to industry trends, new products and technical developments and advise on their impact and benefit to Channel 5.
⦁ Gather and analyse business requirements in liaison with internal and external colleagues to design, deliver and iterate best fit online video solutions that are in line with Channel 5’s product roadmap and longer term technology strategy.
What are we looking for?
⦁ Computer Science, Software Engineering or very similar technical subject qualification
⦁ Self-motivated and highly organised, able to work well within a team, be flexible and handle time effectively against competing pressures.
⦁ Commercially focused, with an awareness of the impact of technology decisions on business priorities.
⦁ Must have led teams in the technology solutions space.
⦁ Strong oral and written communication skills. Able to influence and communicate at all levels within the company, with external customers, and third party suppliers.
⦁ Experience of software development, particularly based on web/internet technologies with use of APIs and service-orientated architectures (SOA) highly desirable.
⦁ Experience of agile application development processes including definition of stories and acceptance criteria.
⦁ Deep knowledge of VOD workflows and OTT delivery, including video encoding/transcoding, streaming protocols and DRM/content security schemes.
⦁ Understanding of the principles of origin hosting, the use of content distribution networks and other distribution/caching techniques, with hands on experience with an open-source stack (LAMP or similar) and knowledge and experience of cloud based systems essential.
⦁ Experience with multi-device/multi-platform services and vendors (e.g. web/ mobile/set-top box/ television)
⦁ Extensive knowledge of the streaming sector, its evolving technologies, partners, pitfalls and benefits.
Does the job description match your profile and interests? Please let us know by applying, and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
Channel 5 is an award-winning public service broadcaster and the UK's third latest commercial TV station, reaching 3 in 4 of the UK viewing public each month. The channel has a diverse schedule of original programmes across genres including issue-led documentaries, popular factual, accessible history, stunning natural history, inclusive entertainment and reality, top level sport, high quality scripted programming, headline-grabbing current affairs and critically acclaimed children's and news programming. Channel 5 is a unit of Paramount Global.
Paramount is an equal opportunity employer (EOE) including disability/vet.
At Paramount, the spirit of inclusion feeds into everything that we do, on-screen and off. From the programming and movies we create to employee benefits/programs and social impact outreach initiatives, we believe that opportunity, access, resources and rewards should be available to and for the benefit of all. Paramount is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ethnicity, ancestry, religion, creed, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship status, marital status, disability, gender identity, gender expression, and Veteran status.
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