Irdeto of Hoofddorp, Netherlands and Randburg, South Africa – 1995-1996

Irdeto, the leading edge technological development arm of a large pay-TV company was having problems with the implementation of one of first three installations in the world of a digital satellite distribution system for Pay TV. The system uses Digital Direct to Home Satellite distribution based on the then new European Digital Video Broadcasting standard (MPEG2 encoding and 40 bit multi-key encryption). The purchaser, Shinawatra Computers and Communications of Thailand, is a large, leading and innovative Thai company that spent more than US$100M on the project to complement its three C and Ku band satellites. The assignment involved Mike as the on-site project manager in Bangkok for about one year to successfully manage the local implementation. An essential requirement was to co-ordinate activities, working with and between two dynamic international companies who are in the forefront of their respective and very different fields.

Irdeto, at the completion of the initial implementation, still needed to establish internal priorities to allow it to deliver expected enhancement to meet customers' needs in a balanced way. Mike co-ordinated the market needs and the associated technical development work during a further six months in Irdeto's head office in Holland, leading to an agreed implementation plan.

Return to the case studies page