Ville de Paris

Delivery of the platform
The platform was enriched with content thanks to a combination of existing internal resources and new creations. For the occasion, the City of Paris Communications Department recruited an editorial coordinator, Mathias Deshours, to oversee the creation of articles aligned with the ambition of “Unveiling Paris” for journalists. Each article was associated with photo and video assets from City of Paris departments.
In addition to editorial content, the platform integrated a number of ancillary elements, such as practical information on how to get to Paris, how to get around, elected representatives, the services offered with accreditation, as well as an event management system and space reservation system for television studios and sets. The idea was to make the site a complete toolbox for the media, both in terms of access to services and to content, with a vast range of content to optimize media coverage and facilitate access for journalists from all over the world.

The different phases of the project, including the Olympic period
The Paris Media Centre's digital platform opened in mid-October 2023 with a first version limited to articles and assets. To access this platform, journalists had to register, a step supervised by the City of Paris press department to verify the media's legitimacy.

This initial registration phase was crucial to enable journalists to apply for accreditation and thus gain access to the physical center during the Olympic and Paralympic Games. In February 2024, the accreditation phase was launched, resulting in a significant increase in registrations on the platform. This marked a turning point in the project, signaling the imminence of the Games and the importance of the exclusive services made available by the City of Paris.

In mid-May 2024, the platform was enhanced with new assets, and above all, with the addition of the events program detailing the 400 events that would take place during the Games. On July 19, 2024, the physical center officially opened its doors. The digital platform then evolved into its final phase, integrating advanced functionalities such as autonomous press tours, an event and space reservation system (TV studios, radio, TV sets), as well as a page dedicated to practical services such as the concierge service, souvenir store, Orange E-SIMs, restaurants and museums.
The main challenge was to transfer the exclusive assets of the City of Paris' professional photographers to Frontify. Activo played a key role in advising the teams on the workflow and initiating the technical transfer, while adapting the metadata to the tool's standards. Journalists were unanimously impressed by the quality of the tool and the proposed content. Despite a tight deadline, thanks to the joint efforts of the City of Paris teams and the support of the service providers, the project was delivered on time, earning the admiration of users. They had never seen a media center so attractive, so complete, and with such high-performance digital services.

The platform after the Olympics
It was an intense period, but the qualitative preparation and workflows put in place beforehand meant that problems were managed in such a way that journalists' satisfaction was never impacted. Many journalists rated the physical center as the best ever. The digital platform also satisfied journalists thanks to its ease of use, with over 6.000 journalists benefiting from this tool. The City of Paris intends to make this all-in-one tool for journalists a permanent feature. The press office is currently working on adapting the tool for the local press.