When Meta wanted to maximise engagement across mobile-first audiences during Meta Connect 2026, they challenged Gravity Media‘s Creative and Managed Services team to do more than simply reformat an existing broadcast feed.

The objective was clear: create a dedicated vertical viewing experience that felt native to social platforms while maintaining the quality, reliability and production standards expected from one of the world’s most significant technology events.

Working to a demanding timeline, Gravity Media delivered a fully synchronised 9:16 live broadcast workflow that transformed the traditional event coverage into a bespoke vertical-first experience for digital audiences.

The Challenge

Live event productions have traditionally been designed for landscape viewing. However, audience behaviours continue to evolve, with growing numbers consuming live content on mobile devices through portrait-oriented social platforms.

Creating a premium vertical experience required considerably more than cropping an existing programme feed. The project demanded a dedicated workflow capable of adapting a large-scale live broadcast into a platform-native format while maintaining visual quality, graphics integrity and audio synchronisation throughout the transmission chain.

The Solution

Gravity Media’s Creative and Managed Services team in the UK and USA collaborated to engineer a specialist vertical broadcast workflow designed specifically for live digital distribution.

The incoming 16:9 programme feed was processed and transformed into a full-resolution 1080 × 1920 portrait output, optimised for vertical viewing. Dedicated graphics were created and integrated specifically for the new format, ensuring the audience experience was purpose-built rather than repurposed.

At the same time, the team implemented precise audio synchronisation workflows to ensure seamless alignment between programme sound and picture throughout the signal conversion process.

The result was a fully managed, broadcast quality vertical feed that complemented the main production while delivering a distinct experience tailored to mobile audiences.

Innovation Beyond Social Clipping

What made this project unique was the level of technical sophistication behind the execution.

Rather than producing edited social content after the event, Gravity Media delivered a live, broadcast-grade vertical programme feed in real time.

The workflow required specialist signal processing, graphics integration, advanced image management and synchronised audio delivery, allowing audiences to experience the event natively within vertical platforms without compromising production quality.

The project showcased how traditional broadcast infrastructure can be adapted to meet the demands of modern content consumption, creating new opportunities for audience engagement and event reach.

The Outcome

The dedicated vertical feed delivered stronger performance than traditional landscape coverage across key audience metrics, including live views, engagement and impressions.

The results reinforced the growing importance of designing content specifically for the platforms where audiences consume it, demonstrating how a purpose-built vertical experience can expand reach and drive deeper engagement during live events.

Beyond the performance metrics, the project demonstrated Gravity Media’s ability to combine creative thinking, technical expertise and operational excellence to deliver complex, high-profile projects at scale and under pressure.

Looking Forward

As live event audiences increasingly migrate toward mobile-first viewing experiences, platform-native production workflows are becoming an essential part of the content ecosystem.

Meta Connect 2026 demonstrated how the combination of broadcast engineering, creative innovation and digital-first thinking can unlock new opportunities for audience engagement without sacrificing production standards.

For Gravity Media, the project represents another example of how our team continue to bridge the gap between traditional broadcasting and the future of live digital content.

Want to learn more about how Gravity Media’s Creative team delivers innovative content experiences for global brands and live events? Visit our website to explore more projects and success stories.