Transversal Wins Contract to Provide Self-service to Capita and BBC Audience Services Until 2019

One of the successes that contributed to Transversal’s contract being extended, is its technology that enables Capita to deliver BBC iPlayer support through advanced online FAQ service.

Cambridge, UK, 07 October 2009: Transversal has been working with Capita Business Services since March 2008, providing self-service technology to support the BBC’s Audience Services. The contract extension until 2019 is a huge vote of confidence for Transversal and its market-leading customer self-service solutions. It is also indicative of the solid foundation that has grown over the last fifteen months between Capita and Transversal.

“Capita Business Services has been running the BBC Audience Services Contract for BBC for 10 years now and we are pleased to secure another contract term,” said Jonathan Rush, Head of Business Development at Capita for BBC Audience Services. “The service runs 24/7 and we were seeking effective self-service capabilities that would free staff time and enable them to have a greater focus on value-added services. Transversal’s technology has been integral to helping us achieve this goal. Extending the contract with Transversal made perfect sense. Throughout the contract term, Capita will work with the BBC to find new applications for Transversal technology across the broad spectrum of audience communication.”

The BBC Audience Services contract includes the BBC iPlayer application, which uses an advanced ‘Help’ Web site service developed by Transversal. This allows users to get instant and accurate online answers to questions that can be asked using everyday language. The technology is also used for FAQ support for all BBC general queries. Since Transversal’s technology was deployed, millions of customers have used the iPlayer help service and 99.6 per cent of queries are now being answered automatically.

Capita’s contact centre agents have also benefited from an internal Ask a Question help service. Not only has this enabled them to provide fast answers to callers' questions, but it has also proved a valuable tool for staff training.

“Naturally, we are thrilled with Capita’s commitment until 2019 and it’s certainly a great accolade for the future of customer self-service. Every application is different and we recognize that the BBC had some unique requirements, not to mention the need for a large knowledgebase of answers,” said Davin Yap, CEO, Transversal. “Using our artificial intelligence technology this isn’t a problem, as the knowledgebase is kept up to date organically. Clearly it’s working well, so we’ll be using the same structure and hosting infrastructure into 2019 and hopefully beyond.”

Jonathan Rush concludes: “The BBC audiences want and expect new communications channels across the range of BBC services. They’re ready and willing to use self service technology and we are meeting that demand head-on.”