South African public service broadcaster’s large-scale project utilizes CGI’s full dira solution suite across all 19 radio stations
Bochum, Germany, July 1, 2024 - CGI (TSX: GIB.A) (NYSE: GIB), one of the largest IT and business consulting companies in the world — and the leading newsroom and radio solutions provider in Europe, announces the successful completion of upgrading all the South African Broadcasting Corporation’s (SABC) 19 radio stations to the full dira! solutions suite. Multiple workflow components of the SABC radio network broadcasts are now controlled by dira! software, leading to increased reliability, efficiency, and revenue protection.
“The dira Solution Suite has demonstrated extreme reliability throughout its different rollout phases, and we are very pleased with its performance so far,” said Nada Wotshela, Group Executive of SABC Radio. “The digital transition with dira has been transformative to our country-wide network of radio stations. It has led to a better quality on-air product across all the 19 stations, while its adaptive commercial playout technology has eliminated human error in ad placements on our commercial radio stations and has helped us to achieve a 80% reduction in penalties from our commercial partners. It has also proven to be adaptable to our more complicated public service stations with more diverse programming formats.”
“We have worked very closely with SABC which has enabled this successful rollout to all its radio stations across the country and has established a real partnership with our client,” says Michael Thielen, Vice-President, Radio Solutions, CGI.
The dira solution suite installed at each of the SABC stations ensures continuity across the organization and encompasses the entire production workflow required for media management in radio journalism. It provides a unified working environment across all stations that extends from broadcast production and the exchange of material and programs, through broadcast scheduling, to on-air playout, post-production and archiving.
The SABC has a broad portfolio of radio stations across South Africa, which cover all 11 official languages and feature both public service and commercial offerings. Each station has its own requirements and the dira! solution suite can adapt to these specific needs, as well as enable exchange of information and material between radio stations. For example, through the dira! Multisite module a station in Cape Town can easily access content from a station in Johannesburg 1400km away. Additionally, through dira Scotty, editors can contribute material to the stations using iOS or Android applications or via a web browser, ensuring maximum flexibility throughout the production chain.
“Digital transformation is vital for the future of radio and will ensure that SABC can not only maintain the vital services that SABC offers to the many South African communities, but that they can continue to thrive and evolve in the future,” concludes Thielen.
Learn more about CGI's dira solution suite.
Press contact:
Alexandra Maier
Director, Global Marketing & Communications – Media Solutions
alexandra.maier@cgi.com +49.176.15544157
