Hyperscale cloud solutions play a valuable role in scenarios that require massive elasticity. But not all workloads are so volatile and using hyperscale cloud in isolation leads to unnecessary cost and unpredictable performance.
For this reason, the most efficient streaming architectures often take a hybrid approach, combining the strengths of both bare metal and hyperscale cloud.
The benefits of a hybrid streaming infrastructure
A hybrid model is all about aligning your infrastructure with the performance and cost profile of each workload you’re dealing with. Bare metal and hyperscale cloud aren’t necessarily opposing options but two solutions with different strengths.
A hybrid approach avoids this false choice by combining compute types strategically. Stable, always-on workloads can run on infrastructure built for consistency, ensuring performance and cost remain steady rather than fluctuating with hyperscaler pricing dynamics. Meanwhile, variable or experimental workloads don’t suffer – you can continue to spin up hyperscale cloud instances for spikes or short-term projects without permanently raising baseline costs.
Hybrid infrastructure checklist
If you’re thinking about going hybrid with your streaming stack, consider the following practical steps:
Audit latency hotspots across ingest, processing, and delivery paths
Identify always-on workloads that would benefit from migration to bare metal
Map traffic patterns to determine when and where you need public cloud elasticity
Evaluate bare metal providers based on global footprint, network architecture, support, and provisioning speed
The table below demonstrates what an effective streaming workload split might look like.
| Use bare metal for... |
Use hyperscale cloud for... |
| Persistent, performance-heavy encoding |
Burst capacity during high-traffic spikes |
| Packaging pipelines |
Overflow for sudden regional surges |
| 24/7 playout |
On-demand testing and development |
| VOD delivery |
Short-lived workflows |
| Monitoring and QC |
|
| Transcoding pipelines |
Smart infrastructure choices are a competitive advantage
Optimizing streaming performance requires more than new player tech or smarter CDNs. The real gains come from rebuilding the foundation. That means choosing streaming hosting solutions that minimize latency, maximize throughput, and reduce churn at global scale.
Bare metal gives streaming providers the control, predictability, and performance they need to meet rising viewer expectations. And when paired with hyperscale cloud in a thoughtful hybrid model, it creates an architecture built for both consistency and agility.
As competition intensifies, infrastructure is one of the most strategic levers for streaming platforms and how to improve streaming viewership long-term.
