Chapter 9: Envisioning and Planning

In this chapter, we introduce the scenario we will be exploring throughout part III by starting from the beginning of the process. We will explore the problem or opportunity that became the catalyst for the scenario. After describing the scenario, we will explore ways to plan the system that we will develop and implement.

Developing the Vision

The fictitious business Contoso Movies Online was started to take advantage of the opportunities that have emerged with the growth of the Internet and broadband communications. The founders of the company saw the potential of renting movies online. Users can come to the site, find the movies they want to view, pay a rental fee, and then download or stream movies to their computers. By being able to download or stream movies off the Internet, end users can enjoy instant access to their favorites. No longer do they have to drive to video stores and wait in long lines. In addition, the site can go beyond what a video store offers by acting as a movie resource for users, providing movie information and enabling users to preview clips and trailers before they rent. The site could even encourage the development of a community by offering chat rooms and other ways for users to exchange ideas and opinions.

After the founder put together her team of business partners and consultants, they met to decide on the vision for the enterprise. They needed a vision statement that would unite all activity around a central theme. This statement would then drive all internal activities from the purchase of stationery to site design to how they dealt with the film studios. They decided their vision would be “To provide a one-stop Internet portal for the rental of movies online, distribution of fan-related movie information, and exchange of ideas.” The site must be engaging, useful, and provide a high-quality user experience. The goal of the site would be to become the primary location for everything related to movies.

Initially, the company founders focused on how to protect the movie properties they would rent. A studio would not be interested in allowing their movies to be rented online if they could easily be copied and pirated. The founders looked at a number of options, and then settled on a DRM solution using Windows Media Rights Manager. Movies could be encrypted with Windows Media Rights Manager, and then only users who pay the fee and receive the license could view the file.

After the mode of copyright protection was decided, Contoso’s catalog of titles began to grow. The business team grew and development of the site began. E-commerce solutions and systems were added to the components behind the site, a hosting service was locked in, and the founders began to look for ways in which they could enhance the site.

In this part, we will not go into all the details of e-commerce and site design. Instead, we will focus on the following four primary areas of the site that involve the use of Windows Media:

• Movie trailers. Before end users commit to renting, they can view movie trailers for free.

• Movie info channel. There is one information channel for each of 10 film categories. End users can tune in to an info channel and view trailers and related movie information, such as interviews and special stories.

• Live events channel. About once a month, the site presents a live movie-related event. End users can tune in and view the entire event without commercial interruptions. Events include events such as movie premieres and Hollywood parties.

• Movie rentals. End users can view full-length features by streaming or downloading them.

Figure 9.1 provides a graphical view of how systems will be interconnected to provide the framework with which the content for the four areas can be created and distributed.

Figure 9.1: The Contoso Movies Online network topology.

Videocassette recorders (VCRs) will be connected to a production workstation. Video, such as movies and publicity videos, will be captured on the workstation, and then sent over a broadband connection to the Internet hosting service. Web design elements, including the server-side playlists, will also be sent to the hosting service over the same connection. A remote encoding computer will be used to stream events for the live channel to the host via frame relay, a broadband Internet connection such DSL, or some other means. A laptop encoder can be used to save space and reduce setup time on location.

The hosting service will then distribute the content to its edge servers located around the world. Edge servers are a key component of the service’s content delivery network (CDN). CDNs are advanced distribution systems that employ a decentralized network design, using edge servers to, in effect, move the content closer to the edge of the network where the end user is. CDN concepts will be described in chapter 12.

Contoso Movies Online will contract with an e-commerce service to handle customer transactions, and with a license provider to issue DRM licenses. After an end user successfully pays for a movie, the license provider generates and sends a license that is unique to the end user’s computer. With a valid license installed on the client, the end user can view the movie.

In the remaining chapters of this part, we will design, deploy, and implement each of the four primary areas of the site. However, we will first expand our vision. Then we will analyze each of the areas in order to understand daily workflow.