By adopting a Liferay OEM partnership, Placecube successfully transitioned from a traditional consultancy to a scalable product-led business. This strategic pivot established a predictable and sustainable ARR model, underpinned by their "public services in a box" platform, which now serves over 1 million UK citizens.
The OEM Advantage - How Placecube Built New and Sustainable Revenue Streams
50%
Growth in ARR
90%+
Customer Retention
1M+
Active End Users
Outline
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Outline
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Key Takeaways
- Business transformation. Through a 15-year partnership with Liferay, Placecube evolved from a project-based consultancy into a scalable platform provider now serving over one million citizens across multiple local authorities. This transformation enabled the company to build a sustainable recurring revenue model, moving beyond the constraints of one-off projects.
- Integration and streamlined public services. Placecube’s platform unifies fragmented legacy systems that many local governments have relied on for decades. This integration delivers residents and businesses a seamless, secure, and frictionless experience for digital services, including paying local taxes, registering births, or managing waste collection—all accessible from a single portal on any device.
- Accelerating innovation and growth. Close collaboration with Liferay’s product and engineering teams not only sped up time-to-market but also enabled Placecube to implement accessibility improvements, leverage low-code/no-code capabilities, and adopt emerging technologies like AI. This partnership drives continuous innovation and enhances the citizen experience, positioning Placecube to expand internationally and outpace competitors.
Background
Placecube is a UK-based software development and data services company that specializes in delivering digital solutions for the public sector. Over a 15-year relationship with Liferay, Placecube has evolved from a technical partner implementing portals and DXP solutions to an OEM partner providing their own scalable, citizen-focused platform based on Liferay DXP. Placecube’s “public services in a box” offering enables local authorities to unify fragmented legacy systems, delivering secure, accessible, and convenient online services to residents and businesses. The platform has over one million registered users across twelve local authorities.
Challenges
Placecube recognized that the public sector was struggling with a fragmented landscape of decades-old legacy systems, which hindered the delivery of modern digital services. Local authorities faced a critical gap: they needed secure, authenticated environments for their communities, but lacked the necessary integration and scalability. To address this, Placecube utilized Liferay’s robust framework to build a solution that unifies disparate systems and enables the rapid deployment of flexible, citizen-centric services.
- Authenticated citizen experience. Local authorities needed a platform that could securely authenticate residents and businesses, ensuring sensitive data gets protected while still providing a frictionless user experience.
- Integration of legacy systems. Integrating isolated legacy systems with decades of data was critical to reducing complexity, avoiding duplication, and enabling residents to complete online transactions without technical interruptions.
- Flexibility and future-proofing. Placecube needed a solution that allowed rapid feature development, low-code/no-code customization, and continuous updates, ensuring the platform would remain relevant and adaptable to changing regulatory requirements.
- Focus on value, not infrastructure. Building foundational CMS functionality, workflows, and security from scratch would have diverted resources. Placecube sought a partner that would provide a strong base platform so the team could focus on high-value services and innovation.
- Collaborative product development. Placecube required a collaborative partner, not just a vendor. They needed a flexible platform where they could actively contribute to improvements in accessibility and workflow optimization, ensuring the solution matures alongside the evolving needs of the public sector.
Liferay’s commitment to openness, interoperability, and long-term digital sustainability complements Placeube’s mission to give customers choice and control over their digital futures. The Liferay team has been supportive as we collaboratively and consistently focus on delivering real-world outcomes. Our partnership continues to evolve as we explore new capabilities and markets. With Liferay, we’re not just delivering technology—we’re helping public organizations build connected, accessible digital places that improve lives.
Implementation
Placecube chose Liferay DXP as the foundation for their citizen experience platform because of Liferay’s open architecture, out-of-the-box capabilities, and strong support for integrations. Liferay provided essential functionalities such as authentication, content management, workflows, and role-based access control, allowing Placecube to focus on building high-value services rather than foundational infrastructure. The decision was also influenced by Liferay’s collaborative OEM model, which allowed Placecube to influence the product roadmap and co-develop features that benefit public-sector clients.
The implementation process was highly collaborative. Placecube integrated Liferay into their “public services in a box” platform, connecting multiple legacy systems to create a unified digital experience. Leveraging both full-code and low-code/no-code approaches, the team delivered services quickly while maintaining flexibility. Key features included secure account management, service portals for residents and businesses, and integrated workflow tools for tax payments, birth registrations, and waste collection requests. The team worked closely with Liferay’s product and engineering groups to ensure the platform met accessibility standards and regulatory requirements from the start.
The implementation process was highly collaborative. Placecube integrated Liferay into their “public services in a box” platform, connecting multiple legacy systems to create a unified digital experience. Leveraging both full-code and low-code/no-code approaches, the team delivered services quickly while maintaining flexibility. Key features included secure account management, service portals for residents and businesses, and integrated workflow tools for tax payments, birth registrations, and waste collection requests. The team worked closely with Liferay’s product and engineering groups to ensure the platform met accessibility standards and regulatory requirements from the start.
Results
The transition to a product-led model delivered rapid market validation, evidenced by a sharp increase in recurring revenue and user engagement. By streamlining core processes and refining the UX, Placecube has improved unit economics and customer lifetime value (LTV). This growth in platform adoption underscores the scalability of the new solution and its ability to secure long-term revenue and stable contracts.
- 50% ARR growth. The platform has helped achieve 50% growth in Annual Recurring Revenue in the first year of the new model.
- 1 million+ users. Placecube has successfully onboarded over 1 million active end users across twelve local authorities.
- 90%+ retention. The company has maintained a customer retention rate above 90% due to higher satisfaction and faster time-to-value.
- Predictable pipeline. Placecube has now established a more predictable sales pipeline with fewer delays in complex public sector deals.
Conclusion
Through their long-standing partnership with Liferay, Placecube has transformed the delivery of public services, creating a scalable, citizen-focused platform that unifies legacy systems, accelerates service delivery, and drives innovation. With plans for international expansion and continuous enhancement of features, Placecube is positioned to empower even more local authorities and residents to experience seamless, modern digital services.
By combining Liferay’s technology with Placecube’s sector expertise, Placecube has created a platform that puts citizens first. This partnership has turned complex legacy challenges into streamlined digital opportunities, making public services faster and more accessible. As Placecube expands internationally and introduces new features, their mission remains the same: empowering more communities to thrive through effortless digital connection.
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