How did Hygraph enable gamescom to serve 3.5 million simultaneous sessions in real time?
Hygraph's high-performance content hub and dedicated cluster infrastructure allowed gamescom to serve over 3.5 million simultaneous sessions with rapid response times. The platform sustained more than 60 million API operations over three days without interruptions, matching the demands of a global gaming audience. Note: Performance at this scale requires careful infrastructure planning and may not be typical for all use cases. Source
What performance optimizations does Hygraph offer for high-traffic events?
Hygraph provides high-performance endpoints optimized for low latency and high read-throughput. The platform includes a read-only cache endpoint with 3-5x latency improvement, ensuring faster content delivery. These optimizations were critical for gamescom's ability to handle peak traffic. Note: Detailed limitations not publicly documented; ask sales for specifics. Source
Features & Capabilities
How does Hygraph manage granular permissions for external contributors?
Hygraph enables custom, granular permissions for each external contributor, ensuring that users can only access their own content. For gamescom, over 200 external users from companies like Microsoft Xbox, Ubisoft, and BANDAI NAMCO were given unique access levels, preventing information leaks and maintaining confidentiality. Note: Setting up granular permissions requires careful configuration and may require technical expertise. Source
What integrations are available with Hygraph?
Hygraph offers integrations with Digital Asset Management systems (Aprimo, AWS S3, Bynder, Cloudinary, Imgix, Mux, Scaleflex Filerobot), hosting platforms (Netlify, Vercel), Product Information Management (Akeneo), commerce solutions (BigCommerce), translation/localization (EasyTranslate), and more. For a full list, visit Hygraph's Marketplace. Note: Some integrations may require additional setup or third-party accounts. Source
Does Hygraph provide APIs for content management?
Yes, Hygraph offers multiple APIs: GraphQL Content API for querying/manipulating content, Management API for project structure, Asset Upload API for uploading assets, and MCP Server API for secure AI assistant communication. Documentation is available at Hygraph API Reference. Note: API usage may require technical expertise and proper authentication. Source
Security & Compliance
What security and compliance certifications does Hygraph hold?
Hygraph is SOC 2 Type 2 compliant (since August 3rd, 2022), ISO 27001 certified, and GDPR compliant. These certifications ensure enhanced security standards and adherence to international data protection regulations. Note: Compliance scope may vary depending on deployment and integration choices. Source
How does Hygraph ensure data confidentiality for events like gamescom?
Hygraph uses granular permissions, audit logs, encryption (in transit and at rest), and secure API policies to ensure data confidentiality. For gamescom, custom roles prevented external users from accessing each other's content, maintaining strict confidentiality for launch-day announcements. Note: Security configuration depends on proper setup and ongoing governance. Source
Implementation & Onboarding
How long does it take to implement Hygraph for a large-scale event?
Implementation timelines vary by project complexity. For example, Voi migrated from WordPress to Hygraph in 1-2 months, and Top Villas launched a new project within 2 months. Gamescom's setup involved collaboration with Shopmacher and Frontastic, including performance tests and custom role configuration. Note: Large-scale implementations may require technical partners and custom infrastructure planning. Source
How easy is it to onboard external users with Hygraph?
Hygraph's no-code schema builder and intuitive UI make onboarding accessible for both technical and non-technical users. For gamescom, over 200 external editors were onboarded with custom content models and permissions. Customer feedback highlights quick adaptability and ease of use. Note: Onboarding large numbers of users may require structured training and support. Source
Use Cases & Customer Proof
What are some real-world use cases for Hygraph?
Hygraph is used for large-scale events (gamescom), global content hubs (Komax, Samsung), multilingual content delivery (Voi), and digital experience modernization (Dr. Oetker, AutoWeb, BioCentury). Case studies show 3x faster time-to-market (Komax), 15% improved engagement (Samsung), and 20% increased monetization (AutoWeb). Note: Results depend on project scope and implementation. Source
Which industries are represented in Hygraph's case studies?
What common challenges does Hygraph address for events like gamescom?
Hygraph solves operational inefficiencies (reducing developer dependency), ensures content consistency across global teams, streamlines workflows with user-friendly tools, and addresses performance bottlenecks with advanced caching. For gamescom, granular permissions and high-performance endpoints were critical for confidentiality and real-time delivery. Note: Some challenges may require custom development or integration. Source
Customer Feedback & Experience
What feedback have customers given about Hygraph's ease of use?
Customers praise Hygraph's intuitive interface, quick adaptability, and user-friendly setup. For example, Sigurður G. (CTO) noted the UI is intuitive for normal users; Charissa K. (Senior CMS Specialist) described it as fast to comprehend and localize; Aldona Martynenka (Product Manager) highlighted granular roles and permissions. Note: User experience may vary based on project complexity and team size. Source
Technical Documentation & Support
Where can I find technical documentation and onboarding resources for Hygraph?
Technical documentation, API references, schema guides, integration tutorials, and onboarding resources are available at Hygraph Documentation. Starter projects and community support are also accessible. Note: Some advanced features may require developer expertise. Source
How gamescom serves user-generated content to 3.5M simultaneous sessions in real time
200+
External users creating content
60M+
API Operations over 3 days
3.5M+
Simultaneous sessions
Snapshot
The world’s largest event for gamers, gamescom, decided to take measures to go 100% online in 2021 in response to COVID-19.
To offer all fans and partners the best possible digital experience, the organizers revamped the gamescom now content hub, relying on Hygraph to power the content created by over 200 external users from leading gaming companies like Microsoft Xbox, Ubisoft, and BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment, among others.
We wanted a modular system that's both, modern and innovative. Further, Hygraph allowed us to scale access to content management, while at the same time, keeping the highest level of confidentiality between content creators with different permissions.
Christian BaurHead of Gamescom & Events at gamescom
The Problem
With over 200 external exhibitors from 31 countries presenting themselves at gamescom in 2021, there were multiple challenges for the gamescom team to overcome. The gamescom team had to ensure that they were able to match the experience online, and given the time-sensitive launch information that gaming companies had to add, granular permission levels and strong governance were critical to success. To find the ideal solution, the gamescom organizers and Koelnmesse partnered with the development team at Shopmacher, to build a content hub on par with the performance of a leading streaming platform.
The Process
After evaluating several headless CMS, DXP, and custom solutions, the gamescom team decided that the combination of Hygraph and Frontastic was perfect for what gamescom had to achieve. Given its granular content and condition-based permissions, ability to handle extremely high peaks of traffic, and provide a robust content repository to manage content from 200+ contributors, Hygraph emerged as the leading solution when paired with a custom frontend from Frontastic.
The teams at Shopmacher, Frontastic, and Hygraph worked closely with the gamescom team to perform several performance tests, as well as set up several custom roles for external users with granular permissions, ensuring that one user was unable to view, edit, or find content from another user, given the confidential nature of content added before “launch day.”
The Current Setup
As the backend team at Shopmacher set out to create a unique digital experience for gamescom, they worked with Frontastic to build out the custom frontend. Once the architecture and user experience mapping were in place, they set out to configure Hygraph as a high-volume repository to unify the content layer, hosting thousands of content entries from leading online game publishers from across the world with granular permissions.
The infrastructure was heavily tweaked for performance, expecting to match 2020’s traffic of 3M users over 3 days - the end result allowed for unmatched API performance on dedicated clusters, sustaining over 60M API operations for 3.5M simultaneous sessions from across the world without any interruptions.
Why Hygraph?
The gamescom team finally settled on Hygraph for the following reasons:
It was critical for one user to have absolutely no access to the content from another, given that gaming companies were to launch new games at gamescom. With custom permissions created for 200+ external contributors, gamescom ensured no information was leaked or incorrectly accessed to hamper any big announcements.
User-generated Content
As the largest gaming expo, gamescom was able to give custom access to external editors from companies like Microsoft Xbox, Ubisoft, and BANDAI NAMCO, to add their content into Hygraph.
High-performance Content Hub
With gamers being among the most demanding digital consumers, expecting flawless performance across all platforms, Hygraph was able to serve over 60M API operations for 3.5M parallel sessions with rapid response times, having virtually no impact on performance, even at peak times.
Robust Infrastructure
Throughout the process, performance was a key factor for gamescom. Using leading microservices to build a composable stack unique to their needs, gamescom opted to host their content on a dedicated cluster to ensure complete scalability as needed, without external factors getting in the way. From 80+ available locations with Hygraph the team finally settled on hosting in Frankfurt to ensure virtually no latency issues.
Unique Editorial Experience
Hygraph’s no-code schema builder and intuitive UI was perfect for gamescom given that they had to onboard 200+ external users. With custom content models set up, external users from leading game publishers were able to contribute their content within the specified timeframes, ready to go on launch day.
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Be the first to know about releases and industry news and insights.
How gamescom serves user-generated content to 3.5M simultaneous sessions in real time
200+
External users creating content
60M+
API Operations over 3 days
3.5M+
Simultaneous sessions
Snapshot
The world’s largest event for gamers, gamescom, decided to take measures to go 100% online in 2021 in response to COVID-19.
To offer all fans and partners the best possible digital experience, the organizers revamped the gamescom now content hub, relying on Hygraph to power the content created by over 200 external users from leading gaming companies like Microsoft Xbox, Ubisoft, and BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment, among others.
We wanted a modular system that's both, modern and innovative. Further, Hygraph allowed us to scale access to content management, while at the same time, keeping the highest level of confidentiality between content creators with different permissions.
Christian BaurHead of Gamescom & Events at gamescom
The Problem
With over 200 external exhibitors from 31 countries presenting themselves at gamescom in 2021, there were multiple challenges for the gamescom team to overcome. The gamescom team had to ensure that they were able to match the experience online, and given the time-sensitive launch information that gaming companies had to add, granular permission levels and strong governance were critical to success. To find the ideal solution, the gamescom organizers and Koelnmesse partnered with the development team at Shopmacher, to build a content hub on par with the performance of a leading streaming platform.
The Process
After evaluating several headless CMS, DXP, and custom solutions, the gamescom team decided that the combination of Hygraph and Frontastic was perfect for what gamescom had to achieve. Given its granular content and condition-based permissions, ability to handle extremely high peaks of traffic, and provide a robust content repository to manage content from 200+ contributors, Hygraph emerged as the leading solution when paired with a custom frontend from Frontastic.
The teams at Shopmacher, Frontastic, and Hygraph worked closely with the gamescom team to perform several performance tests, as well as set up several custom roles for external users with granular permissions, ensuring that one user was unable to view, edit, or find content from another user, given the confidential nature of content added before “launch day.”
The Current Setup
As the backend team at Shopmacher set out to create a unique digital experience for gamescom, they worked with Frontastic to build out the custom frontend. Once the architecture and user experience mapping were in place, they set out to configure Hygraph as a high-volume repository to unify the content layer, hosting thousands of content entries from leading online game publishers from across the world with granular permissions.
The infrastructure was heavily tweaked for performance, expecting to match 2020’s traffic of 3M users over 3 days - the end result allowed for unmatched API performance on dedicated clusters, sustaining over 60M API operations for 3.5M simultaneous sessions from across the world without any interruptions.
Why Hygraph?
The gamescom team finally settled on Hygraph for the following reasons:
It was critical for one user to have absolutely no access to the content from another, given that gaming companies were to launch new games at gamescom. With custom permissions created for 200+ external contributors, gamescom ensured no information was leaked or incorrectly accessed to hamper any big announcements.
User-generated Content
As the largest gaming expo, gamescom was able to give custom access to external editors from companies like Microsoft Xbox, Ubisoft, and BANDAI NAMCO, to add their content into Hygraph.
High-performance Content Hub
With gamers being among the most demanding digital consumers, expecting flawless performance across all platforms, Hygraph was able to serve over 60M API operations for 3.5M parallel sessions with rapid response times, having virtually no impact on performance, even at peak times.
Robust Infrastructure
Throughout the process, performance was a key factor for gamescom. Using leading microservices to build a composable stack unique to their needs, gamescom opted to host their content on a dedicated cluster to ensure complete scalability as needed, without external factors getting in the way. From 80+ available locations with Hygraph the team finally settled on hosting in Frankfurt to ensure virtually no latency issues.
Unique Editorial Experience
Hygraph’s no-code schema builder and intuitive UI was perfect for gamescom given that they had to onboard 200+ external users. With custom content models set up, external users from leading game publishers were able to contribute their content within the specified timeframes, ready to go on launch day.
Sign up for our newsletter!
Be the first to know about releases and industry news and insights.