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 NEWSVictoria's Secret for Webcasts is IP multicasting By Bob Trott August 16, 1999 12:01 am PT VICTORIA'S SECRET proved to be too sexy for its own Web site.
But the event's seductiveness surpassed expectations, taking Victoria's Secret into uncharted territory when it tried to run thousands upon thousands of concurrent video streams. "We had aggressive goals for what we wanted to attain, and we blew far past those goals," says Jon Ricker, president of Columbus, Ohio-based Limited Technology Services, the IT arm of Intimate Brands, Victoria's Secret's parent company. All told, some 1.5 million people logged on to www.victoriassecret.com to see Tyra Banks and friends on the catwalk during the 21-minute fashion show, which was run by Broadcast.com. However, many viewers were disappointed in what they saw, and not because of the models. On standard systems, ogling the supermodels was a frustrating experience; the video was jerky, and the audio cut in and out. At least 5 percent of those trying to access the show couldn't do so. The problems occurred in spite of extensive planning. For example, the IT shop supported 28.8Kbps modems and a small video window instead of 56Kbps speeds and full-screen pictures because "for the 10,000 people that would have gotten [the 56Kbps version], it'd have been superb, but we didn't want 10,000 to get it. We wanted 2 million to get it," Ricker says. Also, the IT officials monitored the site closely in the hours before the event. They had planned to run the preshow on Broadcast.com's auxiliary servers and switch to the main servers when the fashion show started, thereby giving them more time to prepare the main servers. However, the audience grew so quickly that they scrapped that plan and used the big server farm for both the preshow hoopla and the main show. Additionally, as late as an hour before the broadcast, the IT team installed more servers and load-balancing software in Broadcast.com and with its ISPs. But as vigilant as the preparation was, demand outstripped capacity. The experience has taught Victoria's Secret some lessons that it plans to apply for the next online fashion show, scheduled for February, 2000. Primarily, it will make sure the ISPs are prepared to handle the high volumes. "What really broke was what was on the fringe, the ISPs," said Tim Plzak of Limited's IT department. The ISPs couldn't handle demand, because each viewer watching the show required a continuous connection with constant data flowing over it, and ISPs were oversubscribed, he says. Additionally, Victoria's Secret will rely on improvements in streaming technologies -- particularly in IP multicasting -- to offer a smoother viewing experience. During an IP multicast, a single stream of digital video, audio, or data goes to multiple destinations without flooding all network connections. It replaces broadcasts, which go to all end-stations on a network, including ones that didn't request it, and unicasts, in which an individual stream of information is sent for each requesting user. "We're working with leaders in this area to enable us to solve this issue," Plzak says. They have the full support and best wishes of Tyra Banks fans everywhere. SPONSORED WHITE PAPERS 
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