Certain technologies, innovations, and concerns will dominate the streaming industry this year, like every year.

But which ones? That’s a matter of opinion.

So we asked three engineers at Unified Streaming for theirs.

Here’s the question we put to them. In 2026, which three trends in video streaming will you be thinking about, and why?

TL;DR

Three forces shape the key video streaming trends for 2026. There’s efficiency and cost control (hybrid streaming architectures that combine cloud, on-prem, and edge computing). Then there’s trusted media (content authenticity and provenance becoming operational requirements, with C2PA embedded across the streaming workflow). And there’s AI-driven personalization and localization (dynamic content assembly, tailored metadata/promotions, and experiences that blur linear, FAST, and on-demand OTT). 

For broadcasters, streaming platforms, and media tech teams worldwide, these themes will define 2026, our team at Unified Streaming believes. So let’s dive deeper.

Pepijn Tijhuis, Streaming Jester 4 New Business

1. Efficiency

With more content, there will be more competition, and more choices. With more competition and choices, efficiency will be crucial. And so there will be even less broadcast, less multicast, and more streaming. As far as cloud services go, I think we’ll see a return to hardware. Companies will rely less on cloud services, and bring workflows back under their control. Ad insertion will get interesting. I think ad insertion has gone full circle. By that I mean we’ve gone from client-side ad insertion to server-side ad insertion. Then we went server-guided. But the next step is native. If you’re personalizing the stream anyway, why not do ads from the source? That requires edge compute.

2. Authenticity 

AI is here, and it will push beyond the hype cycle and keep getting bigger. With the rise of AI, end users will want to know if what they’re seeing is true, or false, aka altered. That brings up C2PA. Content truth puts the onus on broadcasters. They need to take control of their content.

3. Cloud vs. on-prem 

The generalists are consolidating, like Harmonic and Mediakind. Niche specialists are niching. I mean, they’re expanding their expertise in their specialty. We can count Unified Streaming as one of these niche specialists. Then we’ve got companies such as Amazon and Akamai still making platforms, but they’re abandoning the streaming workflow business. And there’s less dependence on the big American corporations. 

Mohamad Raad, Standardization Representative

1. Trusted media 

As more and more content is AI-generated, and as more of it is being used for nefarious purposes, 2026 will continue to be a year where having trusted content is a major topic. I think there has been enough specification work done to allow for implementations to be available. I expect that we will see a number of these implementations in different forms by the third quarter of this year.

2. Localization 

This is a very important topic in my opinion. Streaming services that can mix and match media assets to create content that is more suitable for a local audience will be very useful. AI has already been integrated into production workflows to allow for the production of “localized” content. Combining assets “on the fly” into programs, so that different market demographics get more tailored content, will be a trending streaming topic this year.

3. Convergence of linear and streamed content 

Broadcast is being actively abandoned by, well, broadcasters. We’re in a transition to an era where broadcasting will take a backseat to streaming. So, having solutions that can combine broadcasting and streaming delivery will be useful during this phase as the broadcasting component is gradually reduced. The focus will be on content rather than “channels,” per se.

Valentijn Siebrands, Streaming Solutions Manager

1. Authenticity, provenance, and trust in media (C2PA and beyond) 

In 2026, trust becomes a first-order requirement for streaming platforms. With generative AI, deepfakes, and synthetic media now trivial to produce, audiences, regulators, and platforms can no longer rely on brand reputation alone to establish authenticity.

In 2026 content provenance will be embedded in streaming workflows, from capture (Sony cameras), all the way through packaging and distribution.

Machine-verifiable authenticity signals consumed not just by end-users, but by platforms, advertisers, and regulators. We need to work on a standard here.

Then we’ll get operational adoption, where authenticity metadata is treated like DRM or subtitles. It won’t be optional, but expected. First steps will be taken toward integration with consumer-facing products and services, e.g., C2PA logos in player, STBs (set-top boxes), etc.

Here’s why the trend will go like this. Authenticity is shifting from being policy-based, to becoming technical and operational. The real challenge isn’t the spec anymore. We did that last year, and it’s making provenance scale globally. The spec is surviving transcoding and packaging, and integrating cleanly into existing OTT pipelines.

2. AI-driven personalization beating recommendation-based 

Personalization is no longer about choosing the next title. It's about shaping the entire viewing experience dynamically, maybe even the story line.

What’s this trend look like in 2026? We’ll see AI-generated metadata, thumbnails, promos, and most of all ad pods tailored per audience or context.

In terms of dynamic localization, expect dubbing, subtitling, and even editorial framing adapted per market. MPU could do it. We just need to R&D a bit more.

And we’ll get context-aware delivery, in which particulars like device, time, location, and viewing mode influence how content is presented, and even the narrative, maybe. It depends on the integration with other AI systems.

By the way,  Unified MPU and Unified Virtual Channel could help here. MPU can encode on-the-fly, and Unified Virtual Channel can do dynamic, aka personalized playlists. Combined with an AI system, it can tailor the channel or content to a personalized experience. So you could be shown different commercials than other people, which are more relevant to you. The content could be shortened. It could be modified and appeal more to your age group or demographic, your location, or personal preferences. Another case could be using AI to localize content on-the-fly, replacing a voice with another, speaking another language, etc.

As AI-generated content increases, platforms must balance personalization with editorial control, rights compliance, and authenticity. Coupling this AI personalization trend tightly to the first trend I mentioned, authenticity, provenance, and trust in media (C2PA and beyond), is the thing we should be, and will be focusing on.

3. Distributed, edge-first streaming architectures 

Centralized pipelines can’t keep up with the demands of scale, latency, cost, and personalization. Quietly but fundamentally changing, that’s what streaming architectures are doing. 

As BBC R&D said during the European Broadcasting Union Production Technology Seminar (EBU PTS 2025), the interfaces between publisher and consumer are going to be AI-driven selection systems. We’ve already seen the first steps, with Google’s AI summaries. In some cases traffic to news websites is down by 80% or more.

What will this trend look like in 2026? Packaging, ad insertion, personalization, and even provenance validation at the edge. So, MPU-like workflows.

We’ll also see network-aware delivery, dynamically optimizing paths across CDNs, ISPs, and cloud regions. And we’ll witness resilience by design, reducing blast radius during live events or breaking news.

Edge-first isn’t about hype. It’s about making complex streaming systems operationally sane, while meeting ever-tighter performance and cost constraints. It might even be a monetization engine, and an alternative to SGAI (server-guided ad insertion), which is going to be another topic this year.

Crystal ball gets put away

There you have it. A lot of the same themes get echoed. (You can’t fault these three for not being on the same page. After all, they do work closely with one another.)

What’s your take? Do you agree with the trends our team lists in this blog? Disagree? Or do you agree to disagree? We’re always up for a chat. 

So if you’d like to talk, even argue civilly, about what’s popping up on the streaming tech horizon, please reach out at sales@unified-streaming.com.