Working with a brand like this is both a privilege and a responsibility. Its digital presence is not merely a communication channel but a business-critical infrastructure: news sites, mobile applications, VOD platforms, live voting solutions, and advertising systems together form an ecosystem that serves hundreds of thousands of users daily — and, at peak moments, even several million.

When Virgo won the tender in 2019 to redesign rtl.hu, it was clear from the very beginning that this would not be a classic redesign project. The task was to transform a live, business-critical system used on a daily basis, on tight deadlines and within an existing infrastructure. Although the brief primarily focused on design and frontend renewal, Virgo already approached the project as a brownfield development. The solutions had to fit into the existing system while remaining scalable and maintainable in the long term.

Project Goal: Creating a Hybrid News Platform

During the first project, the goal was to redesign rtl.hu, a platform built around a video-first mindset. In the second project, we were tasked with renewing the site’s functionality as well — basically, Virgo was asked to create a full-scale news site.

Virgo’s task extended far beyond refreshing the visual appearance. The team was responsible for designing the entire UX/UI concept as well as delivering both frontend and backend development, ensuring optimal performance across web and mobile platforms alike.

Challenges: Complexity and Live Environment

The greatest challenge was the integration of various content types. The platform had to simultaneously accommodate live TV broadcasts, show-videos and text-based news, while ensuring a unified and coherent user experience. We needed to develop UX solutions that supported the editorial team’s new operating model and ensured stable performance even under heavy traffic.

All of this took place during a period when, prior to the rebranding, the site had to remain recognizable and usable with temporary visual elements in place, while the forward-looking concept had already been defined.

Research and Planning: The Foundations of Joint Thinking

Virgo began the work with UX research to uncover editorial, business, and user needs. In-depth interviews were conducted with leaders from various areas of RTL to understand the future model of content creation, monetization expectations, and operational challenges.

Mapping user journeys helped reveal how visitors navigate the site, what types of content they consume, and where it makes sense to encourage further content consumption. The homepage, the article pages, and the show pages went through multiple iterations, with continuous alignment with the RTL team to harmonize business, editorial, and technological considerations.

Design and Visual System

The visual concept was built on a long-term, sustainable, and extensible design system. The work started with mood boards and the definition of visual directions, resulting in a UI direction that paved the way for the rebranding, while temporary visual elements ensured recognizability during the transition period.

The design system provided a unified approach to colors, typography, grids, and components, laying the foundation for future platform expansions and adaptation to other digital surfaces.

Technology: Performance and Scalability

Virgo built a modern, Vue.js 3–based single-page application with server-side rendering to ensure SEO and performance. Dynamic content was delivered via REST APIs, and the system was integrated with external authentication and push notification solutions. The development approach was cross-platform, enabling web and mobile applications to be developed in parallel in a cost-efficient manner.

A Deepening Partnership

Following the successful launch, the collaboration quickly expanded. More and more tenders followed, now affecting not only the website but the entire digital presence: reimagining design systems, developing the news portal, mobile applications, VOD-related solutions, and campaign sites.

In the meantime, a completely custom homepage editor was created behind rtl.hu, integrated directly into the existing CMS. This tool allowed editors a high degree of freedom in shaping the homepage, while the technical framework ensured consistency and stability.

The collaboration did not operate on a project-by-project basis but through continuous support. New needs, new content and business goals emerged, to which Virgo responded quickly and as a partner. During this period, Virgo’s role went far beyond classic development tasks. The team maintained a constant presence: supporting, maintaining, and thinking together with RTL’s digital team about new requirements, business objectives, and content directions.

Live Shows: The Real Test of the System

One of the biggest challenges of the collaboration was the digital voting systems connected to live shows. Voting for X-Factor and other entertainment programmes generated traffic spikes that are difficult to prepare for using traditional planning methods. As a result, the mobile application and voting system associated with X-Factor was not only a development challenge but also an operational one.

Scalability, stability, and the legal environment (studio, notary, live production) all came into play at the same time. Virgo’s team was present at RTL’s headquarters during live broadcasts, working closely with operations and production teams. The first live vote that ran stably was a major milestone: confirmation that the architecture, operations, and collaboration all performed well in a live environment.

Design and Development in a Shared System

The RTL-project was a defining milestone for Virgo from an internal perspective as well. This was where the operating model truly matured — one in which design and development are not sequential steps but parts of a single, shared thinking process.

We were literally sitting next to each other: while designing, we were already thinking about how it would be developed — and vice versa.

Component-based design, shared prototyping, and immediate technical feedback made it possible for planned solutions to take development, maintenance, and scalability considerations into account from the very moment they were created.

This confidence defined the project from start to finish and later became one of Virgo’s core strengths in other collaborations as well.

Partnership in Everyday Work

Over the years, the relationship gradually evolved from a client–vendor setup into a genuine partnership. New projects, shared decisions, and mutual trust all reinforced this transformation. Trust was built step by step, but at a certain point it became clear:

Changes in scope, tight deadlines, and the need to align the interests of many stakeholders at RTL did not become sources of conflict, but shared challenges. The challenges did not disappear, they became manageable through open communication, joint decision-making, and sometimes even informal conversations. The focus was always on maintaining balance between business goals, content, and user experience.

Impact on Virgo’s operations

The RTL-project became more than just a key reference for Virgo. It served as a milestone for the company’s evolution. It reinforced the strategic role of design and the integrated operation of design and development, helping Virgo position itself not merely as a development shop, but as a provider of complex digital solutions. The methodologies developed during this collaboration — especially the close cooperation between design and development — have continued to shape the company’s operations ever since. As the team put it: they grew not only professionally but also became more adaptable on a personal level.

Summary

The shared story of Virgo and RTL clearly demonstrates how a successful tender can evolve into a long-term digital partnership. This collaboration is not the story of a closed project, but that of a continuously evolving digital ecosystem that simultaneously shapes the operations of a nationwide media brand and the professional identity of a digital agency. The story highlights that digital success is not only about technology, but also about trust, shared thinking, and adapting together to challenges.

Project Goals

Dorsum approached us with the goal of renewing the visual appearance of the Hungarian State Treasury’s online distribution channels – Webkincstár and Mobilkincstár – and redesigning certain user interfaces to improve the customer experience.

One of the most important objectives in the system renewal was to make the products more appealing to younger generations, while ensuring that the current users would not experience any discomfort in their use. Additionally, a fundamental requirement was to ensure that the updated interfaces would reach as many users as possible, so we paid special attention to complying with accessibility guidelines.

It was crucial that the visual renewal enhance the user experience with modern UI solutions, particularly for mobile applications (iOS, Android).

Challenges

One of the biggest challenges was designing an interface that meets the needs of different user groups. The younger generation requires intuitive and modern solutions, while older users value a familiar structure and simplicity of use. Additionally, the digital interfaces had to comply with accessibility regulations.

Design Process

During the project, we applied various UX and UI design methods to understand the needs of the client and the users.

1. Research & Analysis

• Stakeholder Interviews
  Conducted with Magyar Államkincstár to understand their business goals and challenges.
• Usability Testing
  Focused on different age groups to identify pain points in the current system.
• User Journey Mapping
  Mapped user interactions to design smoother workflows.

2. Design and Prototyping

Optimized Core Functions: Key processes such as registration, transaction handling, and portfolio management were streamlined to improve the user experience.

3. Design System Creation

A consistent design system was developed, based on Magyar Államkincstár’s visual guidelines, integrating modern UI elements.

Results and Outcomes

• Consistent UX Across Devices
  A responsive design approach ensured a seamless experience across desktop, mobile, and tablet devices.
• Improved Accessibility
  Adhering to accessibility standards made the platform usable by a broader audience.
• Enhanced User Interface
  Modernized, user-friendly design that meets the needs of both younger and older generations.
• Efficient Transaction Handling
  Streamlined workflows for improved usability and faster transaction processes.

Project Goal

Yettel Hungary approached Virgo with the task of a comprehensive rebranding of its digital platforms including both web interfaces and the mobile application to align with its new brand identity. The assignment was distinguished by the fact that, at the outset of the project, both the new name and the visual direction were strictly confidential, and the rebranding itself was known only to a very select group of people.

The objective of the project went far beyond a simple visual makeover. The task was to ensure that Yettel’s entire digital presence would be ready for the moment of the rebranding in a way that it is functionally stable, visually consistent, and commercially secure. It was essential that users entering the new Yettel-interfaces experienced no disruption either in access to services or in the usual user journeys and processes.

Virgo supported the implementation end to end, providing Product Design, UX/UI design, front-end and back-end development, as well as continuous technical consultancy. The aim was to establish a scalable digital foundation that would not only enable the rebranding but also support Yettel’s business and product development goals in the long term.

There are projects that make history in the life of a company. The Telenor–Yettel rebranding was clearly one of them. It was not only a complete visual identity change, it all took place within a complex digital ecosystem that had been operating for years, across web and mobile applications, serving millions of users, with no margin for error.

The Foundations of a Successful Collaboration

The collaboration between Virgo and Yettel (formerly Telenor) did not begin with the rebranding itself, but much earlier, in 2017. The rebranding was already part of a long-term partnership. From the very beginning, our collaboration had been based on the approach that business goals and user experience should not come at each other’s expense, but rather reinforce one another.

Our collaboration began with the renewal of Telenor’s web interface. This had been attempted by another team previously, but without success. It is no coincidence that in-house the project was named Phoenix, as it was an initiative reborn after a previous failure, this time built on more conscious planning and stronger methodological foundations.

One of the greatest challenges was the tight deadline combined with the sheer scale of the system. Development took place in a brownfield environment, requiring integration with existing systems that had been in operation for years, while living with the consequences of previous technological and business decisions. All of this had to be achieved in a way that ensured the possibility of future expansion and development.

In the initial phase, the focus was deliberately not on innovation or impressive new features. The primary objective was the stable migration of business-critical core elements into the new system, including:

• product lists and product pages,

• browsing and selection flows,

• ordering and payment processes,

• and SIM card activation, one of the most sensitive operational points for a telecommunications company.

In these functions, there was no room for compromise: any error would have had immediate business and user-facing consequences. Stability and reliability therefore took priority throughout the entire project.

Throughout the project, we had to face not only technological but also methodological challenges. The “user stories” recorded in Telenor’s own Jira system were not, in fact, classic user stories, but rather complete user journeys and process descriptions. This caused significant difficulties during the handover process, as the client wished to validate delivery based on these items, while development tasks were structured differently, broken down into much smaller units.

This caused a major headache for both sides for a long time. Eventually, however, a mapping logic was established that built a bridge between the two approaches, making the system testable, deliverable, and meaningful from a business perspective. This kind of flexibility and shared learning ultimately added far more value to the project than a strictly “textbook” Scrum process could have.

The work was not limited only to visible front-end changes. In parallel, the technical foundations were modernized too, meaning PHP and database version upgrades as well as infrastructure and operating system enhancements.

This technical modernization went deep and often delivered results that were not immediately visible, yet it was one of the project’s greatest challenges. In a system of this scale, “working on the engine” is always risky, but unavoidable. The goal was that users would not notice any of it. These invisible yet critical interventions ensured stable and sustainable operation.

“This was an all-encompassing effort, where you couldn’t just fix only one segment of the system.” Due to the complexity of the challenge, the team often compared themselves to pop-culture heroes — Jedi, MacGyver, or Chuck Norris — and for good reason.

Rebranding – When Even the Name Could Not Be Spoken

In 2022, Telenor underwent a complete brand and visual identity transition. The project was subject to extreme confidentiality: separate NDAs, isolated communication channels, and code names (YETI (from Yettel), Voldemort (He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named), Rembrandt (because of rebranding)) were part of everyday work.

Based on the global brand guidelines, Virgo’s design team created the localized visual implementation for the Hungarian market across both web and mobile applications. Due to tight deadlines, there was no room for functional changes at this stage — the focus was on precise, consistent, and flawless execution of the new visual identity.

Design Process

1. Delivery Strategy and Team Setup

At the outset of the design and implementation process establishing a well-thought-out delivery strategy played a key role. Dedicated experts from both Virgo and Yettel were involved with clearly defined responsibilities and decision-making mechanisms.

The jointly developed roadmap milestones did not only structure the project timeline but also ensured that parallel design and development tasks remained synchronized. This coordination was essential given the tight deadlines and the high level of business risk.

2. UX and UI Design

• UX Optimization
  As nearly every page had to be rebuilt, the team had the opportunity to rethink and refine existing user journeys. Beyond the visual renewal, strong emphasis was placed on usability, clarity, and conversion support.

  New pages and components were created to support Yettel’s new tariff structure and service portfolio, while remaining aligned with established user behaviors.

• UI Design
  All pages and components had to be designed in accordance with Yettel’s new digital brand guidelines. Work on the web and mobile application interfaces progressed in parallel, ensuring visual and functional consistency across platforms right from the design phase.
• Design System
  Throughout the project, the design system functioned not as a static document but as a living tool. It was continuously expanded with new components, while existing elements were updated to ensure long-term scalability and maintainability.
• Handoff
  Special focus was placed on the handoff process between design and development. Regular internal meetings were held with the development team, where the reasoning behind design decisions and potential edge cases were thoroughly discussed. Detailed developer documentation supported consistent implementation and significantly reduced the risk of misunderstandings.
• Go-Live
  The go-live was “boring”, which was one of the project’s greatest successes. There was no panic, no late-night bug fixing, and no firefighting. Some of the most frequently asked questions were: “Was that it? Are we already done?” For a business-critical system where even a single error could result in large-scale user impact, an incident-free launch meant the best possible outcome.Behind the scenes were months of precise planning, development, and testing, resulting in a transition that users barely noticed. Yettel’s website and mobile application launched on time, with full functionality and a unified visual identity.

  On the day of the rebranding everyone was feverishly checking everything: code, databases, interfaces. One question hung in the air: Are we absolutely sure there isn’t a forgotten “Telenor” word or logo left anywhere?

  One of the first checkpoints was Google. The top result: Wikipedia, still displaying the old logo. Rapid phone calls, quick reactions – and the switch was completed on one of the world’s most well-known online encyclopedias as well.

Results and Key Takeaways

As a result of the project:

• Yettel’s digital platforms were placed on stable, modern foundations, 
• users received a consistent experience across web and mobile platforms, 
• several solutions from the Hungarian implementation were later adopted internationally.

One of the most important characteristics of the Yettel–Virgo relationship was equality. This was not a classic client–vendor relationship, but a true partnership. Yettel underwent a lot of changes, and Virgo did its best to act as a stable, reliable anchor within a highly dynamic environment.

This approach proved successful: the Hungarian implementation included multiple solutions that were later adopted by other countries. This is not only a professional recognition but a clear validation that the team is able to create value at an international level. 

Perhaps the project’s greatest achievement is that it has been proved that Virgo is capable of working on the digital presence of a global brand, delivering high quality on time, and without compromises. The web and mobile platforms operate reliably, the rebranding was executed seamlessly, and users received a cohesive, modern experience.

The takeaway is clear: truly large-scale projects are not only about technology or design. They are about trust, communication, flexibility, and the ability of a team to think together with the client — even when the project’s name itself cannot yet be spoken.