Application of the Reservation Scheduling System at the Tencent New Building Project

1. Project Background

As the Tencent Studio Center expanded and business volume increased, a standardized, process-driven, intelligent and automated solution was needed to handle daily operations and improve efficiency. Before the Reservation Scheduling System was deployed, the studio center faced the following issues:

1. Irregular reservation channels, difficult to manage

The original reservation process required Tencent employees to directly contact studio center staff to book a studio. There was no unified web platform for Tencent employees, and requirements could not be fully captured, causing inconvenience for subsequent studio scheduling and adding pressure on studio center staff. A unified reservation system was therefore needed to collect and consolidate requirements and pass the information to the control system for automated scheduling.

2. Complex parameter data entry, error-prone

During periods with many sporting events and complex operations, staff had to manually enter data one by one, book studios offline, and modify equipment parameters individually, even though these parameters are relatively fixed. An intelligent platform was needed to retrieve event information via APIs, automatically generate event data and reservations, and load pre-configured parameter templates for automated operation.

3. Inconsistent data, difficult to aggregate

In the past, different departments at the studio center used their own dedicated platforms, resulting in data discrepancies during inter-platform data exchange.

2. User Requirements

Users wanted an intelligent studio reservation platform that lets the system handle complex, error-prone tasks, making staff workflows simpler, standardized and concrete while saving effort. Due to limitations of the original reservation channels and data inconsistencies, users wanted an online reservation platform that integrates business flows, unifies terminology and eliminates platform differences, enabling fully online operations. Users also wanted the online system to provide clear reports and Data Analysis for review, optimization and transparent cost tracking.

3. Product Overview

The Tencent Studio Center Reservation Platform is primarily used by Tencent employees to book studios and schedule events. It includes control platform data exchange, project management, studio usage Data Analysis, automated reservation parameter preprocessing, access control, reputation scoring management, and reserved interfaces for commercialization.

Compared to the legacy reservation process, the Reservation System provides a visual reservation solution where reservation distribution and conflicts are clearly visible, avoiding unnecessary issues caused by booking conflicts. The system seamlessly integrates with the Tencent Studio Center's existing API interfaces, enabling automatic scheduling and partial auto-fill of parameters, eliminating item-by-item manual entry and reducing workload.

The system consolidates reservation, approval and parameter entry functions, eliminating data latency and inconsistency issues caused by cross-platform operations at the studio center. This makes business processes more streamlined and automated, facilitating management and post-event Data Analysis.

4. Product Features

(1) B/S architecture, enabling users to access the system anytime, anywhere.

(2) Comprehensive solution.

(3) Highly automated.

(4) Dynamic parameters and extensible information for flexible expansion.

(5) Microservice architecture for rapid adaptation to customized business processes.

(6) Multi-dimensional statistical reports and Data Analysis capabilities.

(7) Diverse notification methods.

(8) Multi-terminal support.

(9) Automatic retrieval of reservation orders and data, with real-time modification and rescheduling.

To address difficulties in data exchange between the sports department and the studio center, cumbersome cross-system data transfer processes, and significant data latency, the system provides automatic data retrieval and reservation order generation. The system periodically pulls reservation orders and post-broadcast statistics from the sports department, compares and updates matching data in the Reservation System, eliminating repetitive data entry and preventing broadcast incidents caused by data transmission delays and synchronization issues between departments.

(10) Modifiable reservation order extension information and task parameters.

The Reservation System abandons the traditional fixed-parameter design and innovatively uses freely editable extension information, with expired data preserved in a fixed state. This accommodates different parameter scenarios for various business needs and avoids system changes driven by evolving business requirements.

(11) Fully digitized end-to-end process.

The system covers the complete studio center business process: pre-event reservation, mid-stage task parameter entry and channel configuration, commercialization option settings, and post-event broadcast data statistics, data distribution and historical record retrieval. The entire process is digital, traceable and documented, providing technical and data support for collaboration among Tencent Studio Center departments and for year-end reporting.

5. Usage Overview

The project was initiated in late August 2017, with the first test version launched in late October. Based on user feedback, system features were continuously refined and improved. The system officially went into production by the end of 2017. Over two years, the system has been continuously optimized and expanded, becoming more stable, intelligent and comprehensive. It has become an indispensable business platform for daily operations and has earned strong user confidence and trust.

6. System Architecture

Transmission Platform Node Architecture

7. Product Feature Map

Transmission Platform Node Architecture

8. Core Reservation Process

Users submit reservation requests through the studio reservation or sports reservation portal. After approval by studio center management, a task order is generated. Studio center staff then fill in the relevant task parameters for the reservation order, and an API interface is provided for other systems to retrieve and distribute the data.

Transmission Platform Node Architecture

9. Product Functions

1. Reservation Scheduling

(1) Studio Reservation

Provides visual reservation operations. Users drag along the time track to identify studio and time slot, enabling quick studio booking.

Studio Reservation

(2) Sports Dedicated (Scheduling)

Sports Dedicated (Scheduling)

(3) Sports Dedicated (Overview)

Sports users modify additional parameters of reservation orders generated from the schedule on this page.

Sports Dedicated (Overview)

(4) Sports Dedicated (Commercialization)

Commercial activity scheduling list for sports program broadcasts.

Sports Dedicated (Commercialization)

(5) Reservation Order Approval

Approval operations with batch approval support.

Reservation Order Approval

(6) Operations Overview

Operations staff can fill in task parameters, channel attributes, and satellite parameter text on this page.

Operations Overview

(7) Operations Tasks

Operations staff can fill in satellite task parameters and generate task orders on this page.

Operations Tasks

(8) Operations Tasks (Channels)

This page is used to modify channel information of reservation orders.

Operations Tasks (Channels)

2. Operations Center Workbench

(1) Duty Log

On-duty staff record daily shift details for future reference or maintenance review. Records can be linked to director sign-off feedback.

Duty Log

(2) Duty Group View

This page displays upcoming duty group schedules, primarily showing on-duty personnel information, key content notifications, and daily report entry.

Duty Group View

3. User and Permission Management

(1) User and Permission Management

Supports modifying user roles and permissions, fuzzy search, quick navigation, and department-based permission filtering.

User and Permission Management

(2) Role Management

Manage role information: add, modify, or delete custom roles and assign role permissions.

Role Management

4. System Automation Rule Editor

(1) Fixed parameters, dynamic satellite parameter management, and rule binding.

Fixed parameters, dynamic satellite parameter management, and rule binding.

(2) Satellite Rule Binding

This page is used by system administrators to configure auto-fill and restriction rules. A key advantage is that rule parameters are not fixed but dynamically editable, offering high flexibility to accommodate most scenarios.

Satellite Rule Binding / Role Management

(3) Reservation Resource Management (Studios)

The studio management page allows managing studios, editing department access permissions, making studios public, viewing and editing studio equipment, managing studio equipment information, uploading studio images, and configuring conflict override rules for reservation orders.

Reservation Resource Management (Studios)

5. Multi-dimensional Data Analysis

The system provides diverse statistical reports across multiple dimensions, visually presenting system usage and utilization ratios within a defined period, facilitating review and analysis for the studio center.

Total broadcast volume by studio

Daily broadcast volume bar chart

Studio utilization rate

Event distribution diagram

Event category proportion chart