For the last 18 months, I've been working on great end user UI projects that have taken advantage of new technologies such as WPF, Vista Sidebar, ASP.Net Ajax etc. Now you may think this is strange, but I've wanted to apply these web 2 type experiences into something a little more traditional and create some run of the mill business value driven from a great user experience. I believe the BBC Showcase Application does just this.

Every year the BBC hosts an event in Brighton to showcase (hence the name) its programming content which is for sale to broadcasters all over the world. This year for the first time the BBC turned this into a Multi-Media extravaganza. In previous years, the BBC has taken a physical VHS and more recently a DVD library to Brighton and broadcasters have queued to check out the tapes/disks and watch the content in nearby booths set up with TV's and players. This year however, the BBC created a WPF based application to enable customers to peruse the vast catalogue for sale at a multimedia console connected directly to local and remotely stored programmes. This eliminated the need for time wasted queuing and also enabled the BBC to showcase full High Definition quality programmes for the first time at the Showcase event.

So, how does this improved user experience link to traditional Business Value?

The entire solution was enabled over a digital platform, far more information is able to be collected about each user over the course of their viewing habits. A data collection and recommendation engine was built using Excel Services, the resulting information was collected: length of viewing time; programmes viewed; feedback generated via post viewing questionnaire etc. This will enable the BBC to refine its recommendations both on screen and in other forms of communication throughout the year, they can also understand which clips generate purchases, additional information that the sales staff can use for follow up sales calls and they can also use the information to make the event even more compelling for future years.

A case study about this has been created and can be found here: http://www.microsoft.com/casestudies/casestudy.aspx?casestudyid=4000000254

Chris Bright