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Karl Petermichl, Office Management Technical Directorate #95 How much technology is coming in the future? "Digitization" as a metaphor
The general task of the "digital transformation" of a company requires the definition of concrete target images, work packages and parameters for practical implementation. For some, "digitization" means that established processes should primarily be completed faster and cheaper, while others expect completely new products and experiences. Some see it as a paradigm shift in organizational structure and corporate culture, while others want "cool new tools and gadgets" for their day-to-day work. In practice, " digitalization" is probably a mixture of all these elements, with the highest priority given to effectively experiencing value for our audience, in line with ORF's Strategy 2025. In this sense, ORF Technology is also aligning its internal change along these expectations, supporting ORF's digitization in multiple ways - making technology the key "enabler" of this transformation.

Specifics of the ORF transformation
For companies with physical product manufacturing as well as for media products that were previously only available on paper, the thrust of the digital transformation is absolutely clear: moving away from real business operations to web stores, away from the printing press to websites and apps, optimizing logistics and delivery channels, making customer satisfaction measurable via digital channels. But for ORF, whose products are already offered purely "electronically," where internal production is already completely digital, the distribution channels are largely already "digitized," and numerous measurement values and key figures are also recorded digitally - what does technology actually still have to do?

Transformation outward
There is a great amount to do and this is also documented by the high status of technology in those companies against which the ORF offerings have to measure themselves: Whether Netflix, Amazon, YouTube or Apple - these are essentially technology companies that set the standard in their respective core areas, and it is from there that our audience's expectations are fed, not only in terms of "content", but also in terms of functionalities, innovative strength and availability. These attributes can also be used to outline very well the outwardly visible task area of ORF technology for enabling the digital transformation: First, to provide the products at any time, on any device, in the best quality and with the highest reliability. Second, to functionally optimize the individual offerings in terms of fluidity, "user experience" and convenience. Thirdly, these tasks will never be completed; there is always a need for ongoing innovations and improvements, developments and adjustments.
As a concrete product, the modules of the "ORF-PLAYER" represent the visible results of the immediate future. The longer-term technical innovations in the consumer sector lie in the areas of ultra high definition, next generation audio, virtual and augmented reality, personalization, and interaction and participation.

Transformation inside 
The production of these experiences also requires far-reaching changes in internal processes and systems - production must be multimedia-based, faster and more efficient. Previously locally fixed and separately managed work steps must be able to take place decentrally and highly mobile on the one hand, but on the other hand, overview and control must not be lost in the sense of the expected diversity with simultaneous optimization of resources. In technical terms, this means making responsive databases and interdisciplinary tools available, rethinking media asset and content management systems, and making all previously location-bound applications and work tools highly mobile and accessible working from home. Not least as a result of the conversions in the course of the COVID measures, considerable technological achievements have already been made for this purpose - such as the large-scale transition from PCs to notebooks, the complete conversion of the telephone system to a Group-wide audio/video conference system, the provision of collaboration tools or the possibility of highly professional audio/video editing using smartphones and standard laptops. Completely new streaming circuits have been set up for interview circuits, and so-called "remote production" is increasingly being used for live events, where far fewer staff and equipment than before actually need to be on site.
For the implementation of the offers within the framework of the "ORF-PLAYER" project, it is necessary to connect existing broadcast technology systems with online systems, to program new functions in the front-end and back-end areas, and to realize the constantly increasing requirements for storage space, data links and network resources. Automated cameras, innovative studio concepts, new lighting designs and a multifunctional topic management portal are being implemented to implement the production methodology in the new newsroom.

Transformation of technology 
At the most fundamental level of this consideration, it is a question of what changes must be made within ORF technology itself, in the technologies, processes and organizational forms, in order to actually be able to provide the services and systems described. The most important terms for this are "IP networks", "cloud", "virtualization", ''architecture" and "agility", which also build on each other and are mutually dependent. Only by switching from previously digital but still proprietary signal paths and interfaces to open standards and IP networks can applications be brought into the cloud and thus used in a highly mobile way. Only through the virtualization of servers and containers can services be scaled in a tailored and efficient manner. Only through stringent architecture management can you keep track of which signal takes which route, which material is processed where, which resource is used how. Only through an agile approach can you react quickly enough to changes, fix problems and advance products iteratively. These changes in technology and processes are also changing corporate culture, increasing flexibility and empowering new types of collaborations with partner companies, educational institutions and startups. Technical innovations at this level can be expected in the areas of automation, the extensive use of "artificial intelligence," and domain-specific data models. One of the most important challenges here is also ensuring IT security - the more work steps are highly mobile, networked and handled via the cloud, the greater the potential for entry vectors for unauthorized electronic access. The "Content Management Center" project is seen as the concrete centerpiece of the transformation of the technical core processes. Not only will the still important functionalities such as broadcast playout and material ingest be implemented on the basis of the latest technologies, but all transcoding, switching and monitoring processes relevant to the ORF player and the newsroom will also be realized in an efficient manner.

Conclusion
As can be seen from the above, there is no ready-made patent remedy for the implementation of " digitalization", nor is there a single technical "tool" with which all tasks can be completed at once. Rather, it requires careful analysis, adaptive design and the consistent implementation of many individual tasks, steps and measures. Only by designing and solving a puzzle of technologies, projects and processes can ORF Technik transform its internal and external services in the strategically specified direction and thus achieve those effects that can ultimately be experienced in practice by our audience: useful, entertaining, challenging, interesting and high-quality digital content and services for the entire public - "public value" in a nutshell.