BSkyB operates in an increasingly crowded market. Many customers now have multiple options for TV delivery from digital broadcast services, cable and satellite. They are also consuming media in different ways on new devices
Some audiences are moving away from traditional pushed media such as TV and radio towards more interactive forms including electronic games and user generated content channels.
BSkyB has developed a range of set top boxes and associated remote controls, that enable much of the user functionality of the company’s pay-TV-services, as well as handling channel decryption, subscriber identification and, in some cases, recording functionality.
Design process evolution
BSkyB’s set top boxes are produced by multiple manufacturers and originally the design of the boxes was left entirely to the manufacturers’ discretion. Around three years ago, however, there was a change of attitude among BSkyB’s senior management, who recognised that the set top box was a highly visible element of the company’s presence in the customer’s home and could benefit from a consistent brand identity. BSkyB organised a competitive pitch, evaluated ideas from three agencies and eventually selected Frog Design to develop the design of its new set top box range. To do this, BSkyB recognised it would need design management capability, so it recruited Ed Snodgrass, who has a background of product design at an electronics specialist, to lead the project.
Organisational position and influence
Snodgrass operates in what was BSkyB’s Strategic Product Development department, which is responsible for the development of all aspects of the company’s set top box offerings, including hardware and software.
A change of focus created the Product Design team as its own area, centralising all design tasks into a dedicated, forward looking team. The team sits alongside the Product Development teams within the Strategic Product Development group at Sky, ensuring a close working relationship.
The company also has an R&D department, which focuses on future orientated developments such as new cabling solutions or new ways of getting satellite signals into the home, and a customer technology department, which manages the engineering standards of its delivery mechanisms. The design team has a close relationship with both departments, ensuring that new generations of set top box are evolving with the capability to handle the latest functionality.
Status
Today British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB) operates the UK’s largest multi-channel television platform. In 2007, the company had a group revenue of £4,551 million and an operating profit of £815 million. (Source: 2007 Annual Report). The company has more than 8.5 million subscribers.