SVT wins EBU Technology & Innovation Award for Neo production platform
June 19, 2026 12.23 Europe/London By Julian Clover


Swedish public broadcaster SVT has won the EBU Technology & Innovation Award 2026 for Neo, its software-defined live production platform that was used extensively during the 2026 Winter Olympics.

The award was presented at the EBU Technology & Innovation Summit in Barcelona, where the European Broadcasting Union recognised Neo as a landmark achievement in the transition towards software-based broadcast production. CBC/Radio-Canada and France Télévisions were named runners-up.

Neo replaces traditional broadcast hardware with a platform built entirely on standard IT infrastructure, combining IP transport, cloud-native technologies and modular production services. During the Winter Olympics, the system delivered more than 800 hours of coverage and over 150 sports productions across 10 simultaneous production environments and OTT channels.

Michael Eberhard, CTO of SWR/ARD and outgoing Chair of the EBU Technical Committee, said: “SVT’s Neo platform is an outstanding demonstration of what a full commitment to software-defined production can achieve. Delivering the Winter Olympics on standard IT infrastructure, at this scale and with this reliability, is a great result. It sets a benchmark for the industry and offers a practical model for any public broadcaster.”

Dennis Buhr, Head of Production Technology & Workflows at SVT and project lead for Neo, said the platform demonstrated how software-based production had moved beyond experimentation into mainstream operations.

“This award is a recognition of what can happen when talented people work together across disciplines with a shared vision,” said Buhr. “At SVT, innovation is not a project; it is part of how we build the production future of public service.”

The EBU said Neo was notable not only for its technical architecture but also for its operational design, giving production teams interfaces and workflows that bridge traditional broadcast operations with modern software environments.

Among the runners-up, CBC/Radio-Canada was recognised for its Dynamic Streaming tool, which enabled a single operator to manage Olympic streaming feeds with commentary, graphics and advertising insertion via a web interface. France Télévisions was honoured for Alix, its open-source, multi-cloud platform designed to support future media and AI workflows on a Kubernetes-based infrastructure.

The EBU also presented its Young Technology Talent Award to Delphine Roussel-Galle, an AI engineer at France Télévisions. Since joining the broadcaster in 2024, she has led a number of AI and data-driven projects aimed at improving newsroom and editorial workflows.

Antonio Arcidiacono, Director of Technology & Innovation at the EBU, said the awards highlighted how public service broadcasters are increasingly embracing software, cloud and open architectures.

“SVT’s Neo platform proves that the most demanding live production in the world can also run on standard IT. That matters for every EBU Member facing the same choices, and it speaks directly to our shared goals of resilience and technological sovereignty.”