Premium TV - Desktop news alerts
The brief
Premium TV manages and hosts 50 plus websites for a number of English and Scottish football league clubs. They hit on the idea of a desktop application that supporters could use to get team news, even when they weren't visiting their team's website. After discussions between Turtlez and Premium TV, it was decided that Turtlez would develop a desktop news alert (DNA) client application that would operate in three modes: a tickertape display; a hidden mode with pop-up alerts; and a small window that summarised stories. The DNA would also receive and display video clips.
The challenge
By far the biggest challenge facing the development of this project was the need for over 50 different versions, each one branded with the colours and crest of the team it was targeted at. This was solved by producing a single version of the application for download, but that version could go on to customise itself by downloading all the graphical and textual resources required once it was installed. Consequently, a Coventry City DNA and a West Ham DNA would, to all intents and purposes, be the same program, but would appear entirely different on the user’s computer. This strategy also allowed for the possibility of changing the appearance of the DNA, should it need to reflect a change in the club’s website. Since the resources were stored centrally in one location, managing such a change would be a straightforward task.
Development and roll out
Having made the design decisions above, Turtlez produced a prototype application in only four weeks. This included an embedded media player for video clips, and the skinning facility described above. The initial build was then rolled out to two premiership clubs. This was a success, so versions for all of the remaining teams were produced. Within six weeks these builds were made and rolled out , and many teams continue to use the service today.
Conclusion
For a low cost per club, and in a timescale well under three months, Turtlez produced a desktop news alert service uniquely branded to almost every club in the football league. This service continues to add value to subscribers to the football clubs’ premium web services.
