21815 - SCTE Broadband Feb2023 COMPLETE v3

30 Vol. 45 No. 1 - February 2023 Issue The SCTE ® values the relationship it has with its Corporate Members; relationships that in some cases go back decades. It’s been a long couple of years being unable to visit our members face to face and see their facilities in person, so it was a delight to visit Simen Frostad and his team at Bridge Technologies at their offices in Oslo in January. Interview Bridge Technologies are quite a special organisation. Tucked into a hillside in the north of Oslo, Norway, over three floors the company houses software and hardware engineers, operations, sales and marketing divisions in an old electricity generator, next to a deafening torrent of water pouring down from the mountains. Looking out from the boardroom you could be mistaken for being at sea, such is the proximity and the noise. Bridge are best known for their advances in monitoring and analysis systems in the field of quality assurance and content delivery over IP, but their reach extends into production, broadcast, cable, satellite, terrestrial, OTT and telecoms applications. Their partnerships with key industry stakeholders extend back decades, their patented hardware widespread in the market, and with their unique approach to developing and marketing new products and services, Bridge are justifiably proud of their reputation, heritage and achievements. Broadband Journal were delighted to spend a few days getting to know them better. Wemet the whole teamwhile there and Simen, Timand Damien made sure we were personally introduced to everyone. They are colleagues but obviously good friends too, and Simen has has gone to significant lengths to ensure everyone has a close working relationship. Their achingly cool set up in Oslo reflects this, with a kitchen and a long refectory table in the spotlit basement, next to the recording studio and green room and bar which they use for their YouTube broadcasts. These are presented by their tongue-in-cheek fictional character Henrik Fjord, ambassador for Bridge Technologies and Norway more widely, played ably by Head of Marketing Tim Langridge, always in national dress, and were something that they relied on a lot during lockdown and still produce regularly now. At 12pm every day all 26 employees put down their tools and meet for a delicious, healthy and home-cooked meal By Melissa Cogavin, Managing Editor, SCTE with Simen Frostad, Bridge Technologies from the industry