Broadcast Workflow DeskOTT, FAST, and linear television often carry the same programs, but they do not operate as interchangeable distribution paths. Reusing a linear workflow without examining the downstream differences creates avoidable problems in timing, metadata, advertising, and reporting.
Linear television: the clock is the product
Linear workflows are built around a fixed service day. Programs and breaks must land at defined times, the traffic log must reconcile, and master control must have every event needed to execute the schedule. Affiliate commitments, local avails, network cues, ratings, and compliance requirements are tied closely to the clock.
FAST: linear presentation with digital dependencies
A FAST channel looks linear to the viewer, but its business and delivery chain are heavily digital. It may use a scheduled stream, yet monetization can depend on server-side ad insertion, cue messages, platform rules, and partner-specific metadata. The same channel may need different feeds, slates, ad policies, or content restrictions across platforms and territories.
This creates a hybrid operating model: traditional scheduling discipline combined with digital packaging, distribution, and measurement.
OTT: the viewer may control the clock
OTT is a broad delivery category. On-demand experiences depend less on a single daily playlist and more on asset readiness, entitlement, publishing windows, artwork, captions, content hierarchy, and device playback. Live OTT retains many linear pressures, but it adds app, stream, authentication, and concurrency considerations.
Linear asks, “What airs at 8:00?” FAST also asks, “How will that stream be monetized and described on each platform?” On-demand OTT asks, “Can the viewer find, access, and play the correct asset when they choose?”
Do not force one workflow to pretend it is three
A shared content source can be valuable, but each outlet needs explicit rules for IDs, rights, versions, captions, ad behavior, metadata, effective dates, and failure handling. The goal is not to duplicate work. It is to separate what is truly common from what must be distribution-specific.
When organizations make those differences visible, they can automate with confidence. When they hide them inside manual workarounds, every new platform increases operational risk.