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Two Accomplished Software Experts Join Quandary Peak Research

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LOS ANGELES, Feb. 29, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Two distinguished software experts, Rick Watts and Vikas Sharma, have joined Quandary Peak Research’s growing team. Watts and Sharma each bring extensive experience in software litigation to their new roles, further strengthening Quandary Peak’s capabilities and expertise in critical areas such as enterprise architectures, ERP systems, and software patents, among others.

“I’m exceptionally proud of the team we’ve built at Quandary Peak. Rick and Vikas will add to the incredible momentum we’ve had recently,” said George Edwards, Quandary Peak’s President & Principal Computer Scientist. “It’s not always easy to recruit the caliber of talent Quandary Peak is known for, but the past six months have been extraordinarily productive in enhancing our team.”

Rick Watts, Expert in Enterprise Software and IT Systems
Growing demand for enterprise IT systems expertise led Quandary Peak to recruit Rick Watts, an industry veteran with over 30 years of hands-on experience and leadership as a technology executive.

Watts’s impressive background encompasses software development, IT services, enterprise commercial software such as ERP and CRM, data management, security compliance (including NIST, COBIT, and ISO standards), architecture assessment, risk and compliance governance, and a variety of popular technology platforms for cloud infrastructure, networking, virtualization, and data warehousing. Before joining Quandary Peak, Watts held technology leadership positions in healthcare, higher education, and gaming.

At Quandary Peak, Watts’s practice will include providing expert witness testimony in civil litigation arising from large-scale software development projects and IT system failures. Large and complex IT projects sometimes result in litigation when they fail to achieve their original objectives or run significantly over budget. Such cases frequently require an expert with Watts’s comprehensive knowledge of enterprise architecture, software development processes, technical architecture design, project management, and system integration. 

“I’ve designed or deployed dozens of successful enterprise software systems over thirty years, so I know what should happen,” said Watts. “When litigation arises from complex enterprise projects, my job is to explain how the technology or the process went awry, to help my client prepare their arguments.”

Vikas Sharma, Expert in Software Patent Analysis
Since its founding, Quandary Peak Research has been known for excellence in software patent consulting. Adding Vikas Sharma as Director of Patent Services further strengthens Quandary Peak’s team of outstanding software patent experts.

For over fifteen years, Sharma has been leading teams examining gigabytes of source code, performing software and firmware reverse engineering, writing expert reports for patent validity and non-infringement, and providing technical support during depositions and trials. Sharma’s work has contributed to multimillion-dollar settlements, creating positive outcomes for clients. Sharma also brings over a decade of experience analyzing large patent portfolios and helping clients monetize their patents through licensing and selling patent assets.

Sharma’s arrival coincides with Quandary Peak’s expanding presence in Texas. Sharma now leads the office in Austin, Texas, placing him in a hub for patent litigation. Sharma will play a leading role in Quandary Peak’s plans to aggressively grow its team of software patent experts and code reviewers in Austin.

“Quandary Peak works on many interesting and unique projects across the technology industry. I feel fortunate that my engineering background and knowledge of smartphones, wireless networking, Internet applications, and software and firmware reverse engineering has prepared me for this role,” said Sharma.

About Quandary Peak Research
Quandary Peak Research is a nationwide consulting firm that provides expert analysis of complex technology to companies, law firms, and investors. Quandary Peak’s clients utilize their computer and software expertise in various types of civil litigation, including patent infringement, copyright infringement, trade secret misappropriation, and breach-of-contract cases. In addition to providing expert witness testimony, software experts at Quandary Peak perform source code analysis, technical due diligence, software quality audits, and forensic investigations.

For media inquiries, please contact:
Jeremiah Deasey
Manager of Digital Marketing, Media, and Brand
jeremiah@quandarypeak.com

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SOURCE Quandary Peak Research

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Quickplay Launches Live Operations, Bringing AI-Enriched Orchestration and Operational Control to Live Broadcast Channels

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Operators can now control distributed stations, enforce standards network-wide, transform newscasts into social and vertical content, correct station errors in real-time all via a single console

AMSTERDAM , Sept. 3, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Quickplay, the Content to Value Operating System for media and entertainment, today announced Live Operations, a cloud-native, centralized management control plane for managing live broadcast and OTT channels. With it, operators can now manage scheduling, signal control, ad decisioning, clip production, and monitoring and observability from one console. AI is distributed across entire live broadcast workflows, enabling newsrooms to apply intelligence in completely new ways including across editorial. Quickplay will publicly debut Live Operations at IBC 2026, Hall 5.G86.

Ideal for broadcasters and streaming operators running live-linear and FAST channels, news organizations managing distributed stations without full-time on-site engineering staff, sports rights holders with regional blackout requirements, and multi-channel operators running multiple simultaneous channels, Live Operations provides operational control at scale. At a time when broadcasters spend approximately 75% of their time on technical workflows, this capability unchains them from those responsibilities so they can focus on delivering the high-quality live programming viewers depend on.

Most operators manage live across a stack of tools that don’t share signals: scheduling in one system, signal control in another, ad break management in yet another, with clipping handled as a separate post-production workflow entirely. When something breaks, teams find out late and must work across multiple systems to fix it.

“Many broadcasters today use AI to do smart things in metadata, in packaging, in ad decisioning, each creating individual value, yet completely disconnected from the others. With live programming, the time needed to connect these dots is time operators simply don’t have. Viewers will have moved on, as will the revenue,” said Paul Pastor, Co-Founder and Chief Business Officer, Quickplay. “AI at a single step creates value. But AI orchestrated across every step, across an entire broadcast network, creates compounding value. At IBC, we’re showcasing the power of this live AI workflow and highlighting the success Television New Zealand (TVNZ) and Gray Media are seeing with it.”

What Live Operations Does

Live Operations is the operator-facing control plane inside the Content to Value Operating System. From a single console, operators control:

Scheduler and EPG Management: Enables operators to manage metadata, and build and manage all content from one, centralized location including live events, VOD assets, slates, and replays. Unscheduled gaps and schedules conflicts are flagged and corrected before going live.Live Channel & Signal Control: Gives users control over what’s on air at each moment including input switching, slate insertion, fallback triggering, stream acquisition, and channel start and stop operations, all from a single dashboard.Ad Break and SCTE-35 Management: Enables users to automate ad break timing through SCTE-35 cues. Users can also view real-time metadata to improve ad decisioning, a revenue protection feature for ad-supported channels.Live Disruption and Fallback: Delivers automated and manual fallback protection for signal loss and unexpected disruptions. When the live input drops below configured health thresholds, the platform automatically routes output to a pre-configured looped VOD fallback asset without operator intervention. Fallback at any time can proactively be triggered at any time, and is local to the Quickplay platform, never dependent on an external signal source.Live-to-VOD and Clip Factory: Transforms each newscast into a catalog of distributable content automatically. AI analyzes live event recordings and packages it into a series of branded short clips, complete with new metadata, ready for verticalization and syndication, removing the burden of responsibility from producers and reporters. Monitoring & Observability: Ensures real-time visibility into every layer of the live delivery chain via a unified dashboard.

“Live has no margin for error,” said Juan Martin, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer, Quickplay. “Live Operations challenges today’s status quo by eliminating the need for disconnected systems so that if something breaks down during a live broadcast, teams are notified and a fix is in process in real-time. No dead air, no missed SCTE cues, no failed signals. This is AI doing what it should do, backed by the assurance of a Content to Value Operating System purpose-built to support transformation.”

Live Operations is a part of Quickplay’s Content to Value Operating System which connects every step of digital media production and monetization into one smart system, built on five engines: Stream, Enrich, Activate, Engage, and Maximize. Live Operations lives within Stream, which delivers broadcast-grade, scalable streams for live, VOD, catch-up, and virtual channels. As a part of the larger system, Live Operations is inherently connected to other engines, bringing the value of true orchestration to the entire workflow of a broadcast network.

Quickplay will showcase Live Operations at IBC 2026 in Hall 5.G86. Schedule your meeting here.

About Quickplay

Quickplay is the Content to Value Operating System for media and entertainment, connecting every stage of the content lifecycle, from creation to monetization. By applying intelligence where it drives measurable impact, Quickplay enables broadcasters, sports operators, streamers, and creators to turn their catalogs into revenue. Quickplay powers 2.5 billion streaming minutes per month, with 5 billion ad impressions served and 99.999% streaming uptime.

Quickplay was founded by four innovators with deep media and entertainment technology experience from AT&T, McKinsey and Company, The Walt Disney Company, and Warner Bros. Discovery. Headquartered in Toronto, the company has offices in Los Angeles, San Diego, Chennai, and throughout Europe. For more information, visit quickplay.com.

Breakaway Communications for Quickplay
QuickplayPR@breakawaycom.com
+19087054596

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SOURCE Quickplay

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L.A. Works Brings Angelenos Together for Week of Service Marking 25th Anniversary of September 11

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LOS ANGELES, Sept. 3, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — This month, L.A. Works will bring Angelenos together for a week of hands-on service opportunities marking the 25th anniversary of September 11, 2001, supported by the 2026 9/11 Day Grant Program, administered by the nonprofit 9/11 Day in collaboration with AmeriCorps.

L.A. Works joins a nationwide movement to transform the anniversary of 9/11 into America’s Day of Doing Good, reclaiming the day as an annual moment of national reflection, unity, and action. With more than 100 million Americans now having little or no personal memory of September 11, 2001, local service projects ensure future generations remember not only the tragic events of that day, but also the extraordinary compassion, courage, selflessness, and spirit of unity that emerged in its aftermath.

Through projects supporting first responders and Eaton Fire survivors, L.A. Works is giving Angelenos a tangible way to honor those who were lost and those who responded to the tragedy while fostering a stronger sense of connection and shared responsibility across our communities.

The week’s flagship events include:

September 9: Beautification at the Frank Hotchkin Memorial Training Center for emergency service heroes with fire engine restoration, painting and plantingSeptember 13: Fire mitigation at Barnsdall Art Park by clearing high risk invasive plants and disposing of brush

“September 11 was a terrible day of loss, and twenty-five years later, we have an opportunity to honor those who were lost and put in harm’s way by choosing service,” said Deborah Brutchey, Executive Director of L.A. Works. “When people come together to care for their neighbors, we strengthen the connections that hold us in community. That’s something we can choose to carry forward.”

Learn more at www.laworks.com.

ABOUT L.A. WORKS
Since 1991, L.A. Works has united Angelenos and inspired action for a more equitable LA. As the only nonprofit in Los Angeles that mobilizes tens of thousands of volunteers each year across a wide range of interconnected issues, L.A. Works organizes and recruits volunteers to directly impact vulnerable communities while strengthening the fabric of civil society. In 2025, L.A. Works volunteers gave more than 175,000 hours of service, which represents $7,024,500 in added capacity for nonprofits across Los Angeles County. More at www.laworks.com.

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AI Transformation Firm SoftSnow Named an OpenAI Select Partner

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SoftSnow, an AI transformation partner that helps mid-market organizations build AI-first operating models, today announced that it has been named an OpenAI Select Partner within the OpenAI Partner Network.

CHICAGO, Sept. 3, 2026 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — SoftSnow, an AI transformation partner that helps mid-market organizations build AI-first operating models, today announced that it has been named an OpenAI Select Partner within the OpenAI Partner Network.

“Being named an OpenAI Select Partner reflects the way SoftSnow already works with clients: bringing OpenAI’s frontier models to organizations and building them around how each team already works,” said Reid Valfer, Co-Founder and Co-CEO, SoftSnow.

The OpenAI Partner Network is a global program for partners to build, sell, and deliver AI solutions with OpenAI. It brings together partners with deep industry expertise, delivery capabilities, and customer relationships while equipping them with resources, enablement, and support to help enterprises adopt OpenAI frontier models and products and turn them into measurable impact.

As an OpenAI Select Partner, SoftSnow will continue working with OpenAI to help organizations build, deploy, and scale AI solutions responsibly and effectively. This work will help organizations get more useful work from every token and stronger performance per dollar with GPT‑5.6, while using ChatGPT Work to turn ambitious goals into finished work. By integrating strategic planning, precise technical execution, and structured change management, SoftSnow transforms AI from concept into a tangible catalyst for measurable growth and lasting cultural change.

SoftSnow supports organizations across financial services, professional services, real estate, construction, marketing, and manufacturing as an embedded operator, building AI agents and workflows around how each team works and guiding adoption from there. Its work includes automating supplier pricing and estimating workflows for a construction products distributor and delivering agents for a marketing and advertising agency to speed up new-business responses, among other engagements.

Looking ahead, SoftSnow plans to expand its OpenAI-related offerings, invest in talent and enablement, and scale customer deployments, helping customers translate AI ambition into business outcomes.

Learn more about the OpenAI Partner Network: https://openai.com/business/partners/

About SoftSnow

SoftSnow is an AI transformation partner that helps mid-market organizations build AI-first operating models. Working as embedded operators, the SoftSnow team maps where AI creates the most value through its AI Opportunity Matrix™, then builds the role-specific agents and workflows that turn those priorities into daily work. The team also guides the change management and training that make adoption last. SoftSnow is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Learn more at https://www.softsnow.ai.

Media Contact

Gabriela Belli, SOFTSNOW LLC, 1 (312)848-8570, info@softsnow.ai, https://softsnow.ai/

View original content:https://www.prweb.com/releases/ai-transformation-firm-softsnow-named-an-openai-select-partner-302867396.html

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