Microsoft focuses on digital transformation in SA sport

Microsoft South Africa today announced two new partnerships with the South African Rugby and Team Dimension Data to help drive digital transformation in both sports through cloud and Office 365.

The announcement follows the launch of Microsoft’s two new enterprise-grade cloud data centre regions in South Africa, one in Cape Town and the other in Johannesburg, earlier this month.

“Being the new Cloud Partner for SA Rugby and Team Dimension Data allows these sports organisations to use technology to connect with fans, improve their services, establish new revenue streams, and more,” says Asif Valley, National Technology Officer at Microsoft.

Digitally transforming Africa’s top cycling team

Digital transformation is redefining the sports industry with major trends in mobile, IoT, the cloud, big data, and social shaping how sport is played, coached, watched and experienced.

The partnership with Dimension Data cycling will see Office365 being used by Team Dimension Data as the collaboration platform across all roles in the team which is central to managing the team both locally and abroad through its highly mobile team.

“As an organisation that races around 280 days in a calendar year on six continents and employs nearly 80 riders and staff scattered around the world, Office365 is the perfect platform with which to manage our truly global team,”  says Douglas Ryder, Team Principle at Team Dimension Data.

Building a fan-centric platform for rugby fanatics

SA Rugby is digitally transforming its business to create value for its fans and partners over the long term, with a game-changing strategy to become a trusted, fan-centric organisation.

It has identified key partners to share the journey and deliver a world-class solution for South African rugby fans with a fan engagement solution to replace its current web site.

The new site will provide a comprehensive set of digital marketing tools, a holistic view of customer needs, and machine learning-generated insights—all culminating in a growing and aggregated database of fans with whom it can engage seamlessly through a suite of compelling digital tools, enriching their experience of the game and creating commercial value for SA Rugby and its partners

SA Rugby will partner with Accenture and rely on Azure IAAS, WebApps, WebLogic, Azure Service Bus, Dynamics CRM and an ISV solution Sitecore to develop its new platform.

Jurie Roux, Chief Executive Officer of SA Rugby believes, “The partnership with Microsoft will create an opportunity for us to develop innovative solutions to do things that weren’t possible previously.

Embracing the importance of technology in sport

The partnerships form a strategic part of Microsoft’s goal of being a global leader in sports technology, empowering organisations to do more by accelerating the value imagined and realised from their digital experience.

Says Valley: “Microsoft is committed to our country and the power of sport to change the world. Sport has the power to unite people in a way that little else does and by working together we can unlock opportunities where sport, business, experience and technology intersect.”

With the announcement of its datacentres at the start of March Microsoft became the first global provider to deliver cloud services from datacentres on the continent. The company has announced 54 cloud regions worldwide, which is more than any other global provider.

Azure is the first of Microsoft’s intelligent cloud services to be delivered from the new datacentres in South Africa. Office 365, Microsoft’s cloud-based productivity solution, is anticipated to be available by the third quarter of calendar year 2019, and Dynamics 365, the next generation of intelligent business applications, anticipated in the fourth quarter

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