By PETER GRIFFIN
One of the biggest media giants in the world has chosen an Auckland company to steer its online image.
Web developer Terabyte has won a contract from Rupert Murdoch's News Corp to design the website that will allow yachting fans to track the Team News Corp boat in
the upcoming Volvo Ocean Race.
The website went live late last week with a race preview, just as animation software house Virtual Spectator signed a multimillion-dollar revenue-sharing deal to provide internet coverage of the race.
Terabyte managing director David Crown said two still cameras and two video cameras mounted on News Corp's yacht would send back images for posting on the site.
The round-the-world race starts on September 23 at Southampton, England.
Mr Crown described the development of the site, which is based on a Vignette engine incorporating static HTML, flash and video and audio streaming, as one of the bigger contracts Terabyte has undertaken.
A virtual "club house" will keep users up-to-date with news from the team, including progress tracking graphics similar to the America's Cup coverage.
Computer animation also strips away layers of the boat for an insight into how it is constructed.
The website involved the world's first live use of Content Studio - web software management from Rational that unifies code and content, streamlining development.
Members of a web development team can share tools and plot their progress collectively so workflow and productivity are better managed.
Terabyte, which has produced websites and corporate intranets for clients including The Warehouse, Ericsson and Microsoft, is trying to reposition itself as the leading company "bringing brands online."
Mr Crown said the local industry was hampered by a predominance of "two-man bands in garages" and a lack of widely adopted standards.
"There is often no migration path for sites four years old.
"That's a failing of the industry. We need to be in the position where we can continuously upgrade the sites to a platform that's acceptable."
Links
Team News Corp
Rational
Volvo Ocean Race
Virtual Spectator
