BitFire Earns Future Best of Show Award From TV Tech and NAB Show Product of the Year for Platform, Plus NAB Show Project of the Year With MLB Network
LAS VEGAS — April 17, 2025 — BitFire (bitfire.tv), a longtime leader in live video transport, today announced three major award wins at the 2025 NAB Show, April 5-9, in Las Vegas. The company’s BitFire Platform earned a Future Best of Show Award, presented by TV Tech, as well as a 2025 NAB Show Product of the year for BitFire Spark™ Production Environments, part of the BitFire Platform. For the innovative remote production of MLB Opening Day 2024 in Seoul, South Korea, undertaken in collaboration with MLB Network, BitFire also was named a winner in the acquisition category of the inaugural NAB Show Project of the Year Awards.
Evaluated by a panel of engineers and industry experts, Future’s Best of Show Awards are selected based on innovation, feature set, perceived value, and application in serving the industry. The NAB Show Project of the Year Awards honor the most ambitious and impactful projects completed in 2024, spotlighting excellence in broadcasting and entertainment through cutting-edge applications, workflows, and installations. The NAB Show Product of the Year Awards program recognizes some of the most significant and promising new products and technologies showcased by exhibitors at NAB Show.
BitFire Platform: Recognized for Innovation and Impact
Designed by broadcasters for broadcasters, the BitFire Platform is a fully integrated suite of cloud-based production tools and IP transmission technologies that streamline and elevate live production workflows. From a single web-based interface, users can design, deploy, and manage broadcast-grade productions with scalable tools for switching, audio mixing, replay, multiviewing, and more — all backed by BitFire’s proven IP transport and 24/7 network operations center. Key components of the platform include the BitFire Spark Production Environments, Inferno™ Command Center, FlightPath monitoring, FireBridge Connect for secure remote access, and BitFire Transport.
“The BitFire Platform eliminates traditional production barriers by offering an easy-to-deploy, customizable, and scalable live production solution,” said Jim Akimchuk, president and CEO at BitFire. “The BitFire platform and its Spark Production Environments receiving two awards at NAB Show is a fantastic validation of both the platform’s impact and the work our team has done to reimagine live production in the cloud.”
The Best of Show Award from TV Tech was granted based on the platform’s innovation, feature set, and value to broadcasters. The Spark Production Environment earned a 2025 NAB Show Product of the Year Award, which recognizes some of the most significant and promising new products and technologies showcased by exhibitors at NAB Show.
MLB Opening Day 2024: Large-Scale REMI at Global Scale
For MLB’s Opening Day broadcast from Seoul, MLB Network worked with BitFire to deliver a fully remote, multinetwork production that simultaneously served MLB Network, SportsNet LA (Dodgers TV), and San Diego Padres TV. The production used more than 28 live transmission paths — synchronized in real time — from Seoul to control rooms in Secaucus, New Jersey; San Diego; and Los Angeles. The deployment reduced on-site personnel needs while maintaining broadcast-grade quality, reliability, and flexibility.
BitFire’s ultra-low-latency IP transport, cloud multiviewers, FireBridge communications tools, and real-time diagnostics enabled seamless collaboration across continents. Transmission kits were prebuilt and tested before shipping, with BitFire engineers on site to handle integration and last-minute change requests from international rights holders. The solution included backup UDP streams and AES67 audio routing for precise customization across multiple regions.
“These awards highlight both the strength of our technology and the trust that leading networks like MLB place in BitFire to deliver critical live events at the highest level,” said Jim Akimchuk, president and CEO at BitFire. “We’re proud to be recognized not only for our platform innovation but also for the real-world results achieved by our customers using BitFire to reimagine what’s possible in live production.”
More information about BitFire is available at www.bitfire.tv.
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About BitFire
BitFire leads live, software-defined production and transmission with a glass-to-glass platform that enables scalable, high-quality content creation. Blending deep experience in traditional broadcasting with expertise in cutting-edge technology, BitFire modernizes broadcast workflows for networks and production companies of any size. With intuitive cloud-based control over fully integrated broadcast-grade systems, BitFire users can achieve professional results without limits with greater freedom, agility, and economy without the conventional constraints of geographic location, equipment availability, and unpredictable pricing. More information is available at www.bitfire.tv.
All trademarks appearing herein are the properties of their respective owners.
Link to Word Doc: www.wallstcom.com/BitFire/250417-BitFire-TV_Tech_and_NAB_Awards.docx
Image Link: www.wallstcom.com/BitFire/NAB_Project_of_the_Year_BitFire_MLB.jpg
Image Caption: Left to right – Steven Rittenberg, VP, Engineering, MLB Networks; Craig Robertson, Manager, Technical Operations, BitFire; Jason Hedgcock, Sr. Director, Technical Prod / Special Projects, MLB Networks; and Colin Bonzey, Director, Technical Operations, BitFire accepted the NAB Show Project of the Year award at the 2025 NAB Show.
Image Link: www.wallstcom.com/BitFire/NAB_Product_of_the_Year.jpg
Image Caption: BitFire accepts the NAB Show Product of the Year Award for BitFire Spark™ Production Environment. Photo includes Staz Modrzynski, Director, Media Engineering; Jim Akimchuk; President and CEO; Colin Bonzey, Director, Technical Operations at BitFire, and Eric Trabb, Senior VP and Chief Customer Success Officer at NAB.
Image Link: www.wallstcom.com/BitFire/TVTECH_Best_of_NAB_Award.jpg
Image Caption: The Future Best of Show Award, presented by TV Tech at the 2025 NAB Show was accepted for the BitFire Platform by (left to right) Padraig Sullivan, Lead Development Engineer; Staz Modrzynski, Director, Media Engineering; Jim Akimchuk, President and CEO/ Colin Bonzey, Director, Technical Operations; and Doug Mafffetone, Technical Manager Special Projects.
