New Zealand's public media organization chooses Dalet’s story-centric news solution to transform its editorial operations on the cusp of its centennial celebration.
Paris, France – October 17, 2024 – Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced that RNZ has partnered with Dalet to transform its editorial systems into a story-centric news production, just as the broadcaster enters its 100th year of operations. RNZ provides trusted and independent news and current affairs and a range of diverse programs and podcasts, on-air and online. The new system will free RNZ’s staff to spend more time on what matters most – delivering impactful narratives to audiences.
“RNZ’s upcoming centenary marks not just a celebration of our past, but a bold stride into the future,” said Mark Bullen, RNZ’s Chief Technology Officer. “This investment underscores our commitment to digital transformation, leveraging modern technologies to streamline operations and enhance our capacity to deliver timely news and information.”
Key to RNZ’s tech transformation is Dalet Pyramid, a news solution that enhances resource sharing and story collaboration for chaos-free operations that are open and auditable. The integrated solution will modernize content production and delivery with a story-centric approach. The replacement newsroom management solution includes planning, story editing and approvals, wire feeds, contact management, publishing, rundown management and archiving. In addition, the updated audio editing and management solution will let RNZ staff capture, edit and publish audio anytime and anywhere. The tech upgrade represents an investment of NZ$4.5M for the implementation and first five years of operation.
“One of the systems we’ve been relying on dates back to 1999,” remarked RNZ Chief News Officer Mark Stevens. “To put that into perspective, in 1999 Nokia 3210 topped phone sales and Google had just hired its first employee. Our dedicated RNZ kaimahi (staff) have worked wonders with these outdated tools, finding creative solutions wherever possible. However, we owe it to our storytellers to provide them with state-of-the-art technology so they can concentrate on delivering quality content to our audiences.”
Dalet was chosen to deliver the new system after a rigorous six-month tender process with almost 200 specific requirements, including RNZ’s role as a lifeline utility needing a hybrid cloud and on-premise solution. This ensures that RNZ can remain on air to deliver news broadcasts during any civil defense emergencies.
“We are thrilled to collaborate with RNZ to revolutionize their editorial workflows, enhancing both efficiency and flexibility,” said Ren Middleton, VP of Sales APAC at Dalet. “Dalet is the leader in sophisticated, automated, AI-enabled media workflows. This partnership aligns perfectly with our mission to empower storytellers to deliver compelling narratives to diverse audiences.”
Dalet works with many of the world’s top public media organizations including France Télévisions, the BBC and Australia’s SBS. The company’s ethos of empowering storytelling matched RNZ’s aims for the new system. RNZ will transition to the new system in 2025. Dalet is now working with the broadcaster on a comprehensive staff training program.
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Notes: Press Release - Dalet Digital Media Systems - Paris, France – October 17, 2024
