Case Study - Experimental Marketing

BBC Worldwide Showcase

BBC Worldwide commissioned F1 Consultancy to design and implement a suitable IT infrastructure for the UK’s leading international television event – BBC Worldwide’s Showcase. BBC Worldwide had decided to switch to a 100% digital, on demand video service, and required a seamless transition to this new service giving instant feedback on programming viewed by potential buyers.

Background

BBC Worldwide aims to create, acquire, develop and exploit media content and brands around the world. F1 Consultancy Limited were tasked with providing the expertise and IT infrastructure required to deploy a Storage Area Network capable of supporting 2TB of BBC programming (over 1,000 hours of television input) streamed seamlessly to 550 Digibooths (HP PCs). BBC Showcase is the world’s largest trade show of its kind hosted by a single distributor.

The Challenges

  • Current viewing methods were considered antiquated and relied on the use of DVD
  • The BBC needed to easily access BBCWorldwide titles from a central source
  • The BBC wanted to recreate the viewing experience available to anyone using BBC iPlayer

Objectives

The challenge was to design a Storage Area Network (SAN) capable of supporting over 1000 hours of programming – all of which could be viewed simultaneously from all 550 Digibooths available to potential programme buyers. In addition, the project required that the 550 PCs for the Digibooths would need to be suitably configured, deployed and supported throughout Showcase 2008. F1 Consultancy was also tasked with monitoring the network integrity during the event and with the provision of an overview of BBC Worldwide’s application to any BBC Worldwide guests on request.

The Solution

We developed an integrated strategy to align the physical deliverables of the project, i.e. SAN, the 550 Digibooths, ongoing project support, and the overall customer experience. Long-term goals were identified for the IT infrastructure, and milestones were established to drive the implementation timeline forward. Events, by their very nature, often result in a shortage of time. Therefore, pre-planning and pre-staging were used strategically by F1 Consultancy to ensure a smooth and timely delivery process throughout the whole of Showcase.

How We Helped

  • Quick Turn Around Times
  • Replacing DVD model with 550 Digibooths
  • Tailored Storage Area Network to support 1000 hours of programming
  • State-of-the-Art Video on Demand Service
  • Improved overall efficiency and user experience