MTC Digital Theatre

Melbourne Theatre Company is the oldest professional theatre company in Australia. They were one of the first clients using our Tessitura-integrated BlocksOffice ecommerce path, and we fully redesigned their site in 2018. In 2020, when COVID-19 accelerated their plans for a streaming service, they came to us.

Core requirements included:

• Customer accounts, transactions and payments stored in Tessitura
• Immediate access to media after purchase
• Embeddable in the existing website or branded to match
• Restricted viewing periods (e.g. 48-hour rentals)
• Geoblocking capability for licensing requirements
• Direct video access links for certain patrons

The implementation included a new video page within MTC’s Silverstripe CMS allowing users to view details, purchase, and watch directly through the website.

Users received a 48-hour viewing window, communicated via pop-up. Content was geo-restricted to Australia using Geo Targetly integration.

Every time a patron attempts to watch, the system checks their order history to validate purchase access. Watch history is stored in Tessitura to control the 48-hour viewing restriction. JWPlayer functionality enabled casting to smart devices.

The first MTC Digital Theatre video was Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Classes, available for on-demand rental during a limited season.