Serbian Broadcaster Boosts Efficiency and Reach with Huawei's HCI Technology

Digital Transformation in Public Broadcasting

Radio Television of Serbia (RTS), the national public broadcaster of Serbia, faced several complex challenges in a rapidly changing media landscape. A central task was to optimize production and broadcasting processes while reducing costs. RTS aimed to enhance platform openness and favor a multi-vendor approach to maintain flexibility and future-proofing, thereby strengthening independence in diverse technology environments and promoting technological autonomy.

At the same time, RTS aimed to launch new services, reach a younger audience, and expand its market reach. The broadcaster wanted to offer interactive, convergent, and cross-platform content and increase its presence on digital platforms such as websites, social media, and streaming services. This was crucial to go beyond the traditional broadcast model, reach global online audiences, and appeal to both a broader domestic audience and the Serbian viewers abroad.

Huawei's Tailored ICT Infrastructure for RTS

After intensive workshops and demonstrations, Huawei successfully conducted a "Try and Buy" Proof of Concept (POC) for RTS. The proposed solution, Huawei's FusionCube, a Hyperconverged Infrastructure (HCI) Solution, impressed RTS's technical team with its comprehensive features for modern data centers, including network, server, storage solutions, and complete end-to-end virtualization. The user-friendly system allows RTS to use data center resources more quickly and productively for both production purposes and testing and development of internal services.

In collaboration with RTS's technical team and Huawei’s partner Coming, Huawei designed an All-Flash FusionCube HCI solution starting with four nodes in a single-cluster solution for one location, complemented by the Huawei DCS Solution to support compute virtualization. The successful migration of existing VM machines from the previous third-party HCI solution was carried out using Huawei MigrationDirector. Additionally, RTS implemented the Huawei OceanProtect X3000 storage with integrated backup software as a local backup solution for the virtual machines of the new HCI platform.

Increased Efficiency and New Possibilities in Media Production

The implementation of the Huawei FusionCube HCI solution brought RTS significant improvements in various areas. For viewers, this means faster and more reliable access to live and on-demand content via TV, web, and mobile devices. The solution enables low-latency streaming for live news, sports, and events, as well as faster loading of content on RTS's online platforms and VOD services. The broadcaster particularly benefits from the system's scalable performance during peak times.

Internally, RTS benefits from improved editorial and production efficiency. The integrated computing and storage capabilities enable faster editing and rendering of high-resolution video content. The centralized management of newsrooms, video editing bays, and broadcast automation tools leads to higher quality and more diverse programming. At the same time, the solution supports RTS in efficiently managing digital archives and media assets, facilitating access to valuable historical and cultural archives – a core task of public broadcasting.

The improved security and compliance support ensures the protection of personal data and secure public communication. Last but not least, the FusionCube solution allows RTS greater agility in launching new services, strengthening the broadcaster's position in the rapidly changing media landscape.

About Radio Television of Serbia (RTS)

Radio Television of Serbia (RTS) is the national public broadcaster of Serbia with three TV channels and four radio stations. With a long history and tradition in the country's media landscape, RTS offers a wide range of television and radio programs as well as digital content for the Serbian population. As a leading media company, RTS focuses on innovation and quality to fulfill its educational and entertainment mandate. RTS is headquartered in Belgrade and operates 24 regional offices throughout Serbia as well as eight offices with foreign correspondents.

For more information, visit: https://www.rts.rs/sr/index.html

About Coming

The company COMING – Computer Engineering d.o.o. was founded in 1991 with the aim of creating, developing, implementing, selling and providing IT system support services, in order to meet the needs and demands of clients and the market. COMING today has 120+ employees in three offices located in Belgrade, Niš and Novi Sad.

For more information, visit: https://coming.rs/