BBC Sport invites bids for storage system in £1m tender

Integrated storage solution needed for BBC's sport production library

The BBC has issued a tender of up to £1m for the provision of an integrated storage solution for its sport production library.

The organisation said that it is looking for a single provider to support its requirement, but that it would explore the option to extend the management layer of any solution to other services at the BBC.

"Archive is at the heart of everything BBC Sport does and the solution needs to support the broad range of content producers and expert librarian staff in a future where BBC Sport works with other broadcasters, content production companies, outside broadcast providers and other BBC departments both onsite in Salford and globally," the tender published in the Official Journal of the European Union states.

"Sports broadcasting has always been innovative and that is what BBC Sport requires from the new archive. The goal is to improve the quality of output by utilising content across all platform operations.

"The storage solution will offer a cost effective scalable model to meet the demands of a rights-based sports broadcaster where access to content is of a cyclical and fast turn-around nature," it adds.

The broadcaster said that the successful provider should provide a solution that:

• Addresses a changing technology landscape while minimising the cost of change to the BBC;
• Is compatible with existing BBC IT systems;
• Provides safe and secure access to BBC Sport's video and audio content; and,
• Delivers close integration with the BBC's asset management system and its workflows.

The BBC also wants the migration of legacy content held on various storage blocks including linear-tape-open (LTO) technology, to be available as an optional service if required.

The four-year contract is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA) and is valued between £500,000 and £1m.

The contract can be extended twice at the BBC's discretion, by up to 12 months on each occasion.

Earlier this week, the BBC issued a tender of up to £144m for newsroom computer system software.