Media organisation and military charity BFBS (British Forces Broadcasting Service) has selected Synamedia as its strategic technology partner to deliver its next-generation global digital platform, following a highly competitive international tender process.
The announcement comes shortly after the Ministry of Defence renewed BFBS’ contract for a further ten years, reaffirming its role as a trusted and secure global military broadcaster supporting the UK Armed Forces wherever they serve. As a longstanding and essential provider of media services to defence audiences worldwide, BFBS continues to play a central role in keeping personnel informed, entertained and connected across some of the most complex and challenging operating environments. Together these milestones mark the beginning of the most significant technological transformation in more than eight decades of BFBS’ history.
Following detailed technical evaluation and industry consultation, with support from digital transformation experts Spicy Mango, Synamedia’s appointment concludes a rigorous process to help shape the future of secure media delivery for the UK armed forces and their families worldwide.
Synamedia’s deep knowledge across streaming platforms, broadcast technology, and secure content distribution will enable BFBS to modernise its technology foundations. Their remit will be to build and evolve the organisation’s new media ecosystem, under the working title of “The Hub”.
The programme will launch in phases, with a modern digital service comparable with leading OTT platforms. It will also consolidate BFBS services into a single and secure streamlined experience, introduce new content formats beyond traditional broadcasting and deliver personalised and secure access across multiple devices.
Ben Chapman, CEO of BFBS, said: “This is a defining moment in the evolution of BFBS. Following a highly competitive global process, we are delighted to be partnering with Synamedia to bring our vision of our digital media platform to life. Our goal has always been to ensure the UK armed forces and their families can access trusted media experiences wherever they are, be that on ships, bases, or in remote locations worldwide. This partnership gives us scale and the technological function to deliver on that promise, representing an innovative change in how we offer content in a personalised and secure way.”
Paul Segre, CEO of Synamedia, added: “With the digital transformation of its content platform, BFBS has a bold vision and an innovative roadmap to make it a reality. Our cloud-native end-to-end technologies, streaming and content delivery capabilities, security expertise and professional services team are ideally suited to complex transformation projects just like this. We will enable BFBS to focus its investment where it has the greatest impact, including delivering a distinctive, high-quality user experience wherever they might be.”
Spicy Mango CTO Chris Wood added: “The nature of the project and the complexities involved made this a difficult process – but an easy decision – and we’re thrilled that Synamedia and FX Digital will be helping to transform how the UK’s armed forces consume and enjoy content on a global scale. We’re all incredibly excited to be on this journey with BFBS.”
