
BBC abandons £100m digital project - scholia
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-22651126
======
jumblesale
As someone involved in Information and Archives where this project was based,
it serves as both a cautionary tale on outsourcing and a good example of when
to recognise a sunk cost. This has been rumbling on for years ever since
Siemens received the contract without competition due to an outstanding deal.
The technology surrounding what they were trying to achieve has changed
massively in that time frame but doesn't excuse them from delivering nothing
of value. These projects have since come back in-house where the BBC has a
history of delivering excellent technical products.

The new Director General, Tony Hall, has had to recognise this project as a
failure and put it on the books. No doubt the conservative press are going to
tear him apart for it but he's made a tough decision that had to be made.
Continuing to pour money into the project would have left an even greater mess
for somebody to take a bullet for later on.

There's a thorough analysis here:
[http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/aboutthebbc/posts/The-BBC-
announc...](http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/aboutthebbc/posts/The-BBC-announces-
the-closure-of-the-Digital-Media-Initiative-DMI)

~~~
cjg
In the article it says that the £98m was the amount spent during the period
2010 to 2012. It also says that the project was taken over by an in-house BBC
team in 2010 (having started in 2008).

Sounds like that cost can't be blamed on Siemens - it was the in-house team's
shift.

~~~
simonh
It depends on why it was taken in house. If it's because Siemens were making a
mess of it, then it sounds like the BBC should have canned the whole thing in
2010.

The BBC have been held hostage by Siemens for a long time due to a very
restrictive support contract that basically froze their technical
infrastructure in aspic for years[1].

[1][http://old.iamseb.com/seb/2007/12/perl-on-rails-why-the-
bbc-...](http://old.iamseb.com/seb/2007/12/perl-on-rails-why-the-bbc-fails-at-
the-internet/)

------
fmdud
I find it telling of the integrity of the BBC that they'd post that on their
own website. I like it.

~~~
NKCSS
You have a valid point there, but still; how could you let it go that far?
They say basically that the money is gone and they have nothing to show for
afterwards... Does this mean they spent the bulk of that 98m on consultancy
fees???

~~~
jrwoodruff
It's funny how the more money that gets spent, the less willing anyone is to
pull the plug. I would venture to guess they probably had to dig out of a hole
created by the contractors originally hired for the job, then got stuck trying
to catch up with the state of the art.

Kudos to the guy willing to step up and say enough already, but yea... I would
love to know more details.

~~~
tragomaskhalos
Indeed. See the behaviour notes in <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunk_cost>

------
Osmium
It's a shame that no amount of money can buy good management. I'm a huge fan
of the BBC, and very glad they're prepared to invest in R&D, but clearly this
was not managed well.

------
loudandskittish
So...can anyone who has worked on CMS projects explain how the costs for such
things could run up to $150 million?

I honestly want to understand.

~~~
hackinthebochs
Yes, how do I get in on this gravy train.

