When SiriusXM sought to bring a richer, deeper fan experience to its digital platforms, they partnered with UIC Digital to introduce an end to end live and on-demand video workflow with a primary focus on The Howard Stern Show. This case study delves into the highlights and challenges of this transformative project.

SiriusXM, a prominent American radio broadcaster, offers a diverse range of radio shows and sports coverage online and via satellite. The Howard Stern Show, in particular, has been a flagship program exclusively streaming on SiriusXM since 2006. Known for its candid interviews, celebrity guests, humour, and thought-provoking discussions, the show has garnered millions of devoted fans and significantly boosted SiriusXM’s listenership.

Immersing enhancement to the show

SiriusXM partnered with UIC Digital to introduce live video streaming and video-on-demand (VOD) features into its web, iOS, and Android apps. Initially implemented for The Howard Stern Show, the goal was to deepen the connection with listeners and encourage real-time engagement. This move resulted in an enriched user experience that elevated The Howard Stern Show to new heights.

With live video streaming, fans could watch and interact with the show in real-time, offering an immersive experience that brought them closer to the action. VOD addressed the common request from fans to access previous episodes, making content easily accessible and boosting user satisfaction and retention.

Keeping it neat and tidy

UIC Digital adopted a structured approach to meet the high standards of SiriusXM’s precision and performance. The project involved integrating various components under a well-defined architecture, organised for modularity and future scalability. Native code was employed for each platform, with Swift for iOS, Java/Kotlin for Android, and modern web technologies for the web app. A C++ layer facilitated seamless and quick communication between the app and backend components.

The primary challenge was to minimise the live feed delay to achieve real-time synchronisation between audio and video streams while keeping internal processing delays low to mitigate latency. The user interface allowed users to switch between video and audio effortlessly, with Howard Stern having the ability to transition segments of the show from audio to video by pressing a big red button in the studio.

Success in real-time

The result was a highly engaging multimedia show that allowed fans to consume content in real-time, offering flexibility and convenience. Kelly Flynn, SiriusXM’s SVP of Video Programming, expressed enthusiasm about delivering video content across the platform, enhancing the overall SiriusXM experience:

“We are thrilled to deliver video from a broad array of our incredible talk, sports, music, comedy, and speciality programming. Nowhere is there more depth and breadth of content than across the SiriusXM universe, and video is the perfect complement to the amazing radio moments that happen here every day.”

This successful partnership between SiriusXM and UIC Digital has undoubtedly elevated the entertainment experience for subscribers and expanded the possibilities for multimedia content delivery in the future.