Keeping Content Close - Wherever it's Stored

Keeping Content Close - Wherever it's Stored

The move to the cloud continues to gather pace across the media industry. The pandemic has forced organisations to make radical changes to the way their teams work. But as with the adoption of any next-gen technology, users adopting cloud-based workflows for media storage and management, don't all experience the same benefits.

While many cloud-based solutions bring the promise of immediacy and ease of use, sometimes this can come at the cost of security. Fluctuating pricing structures are also a key concern. Companies can unfortunately find themselves locked into restrictive meta-data agreements or struggling to manage spiralling storage costs. There is a hugely complex landscape of solutions and services to choose from. Some of these will enable organisations to move into a more flexible future but some can end up being even more restrictive than the old workflows.

With this in mind, we've outlined the important considerations for keeping content close without sacrificing security. As well as the exciting implications of discoverable and actionable media content.

Accessibility is Everything The idea of the cloud as a limitless, intangible entity often does users a disservice. The reality is that all cloud storage is anchored to physical storage, even if it spans multiple locations. Therefore, rather than thinking about moving content to an amorphous cloud, organisations should think about accessing it remotely through cloud solutions. The content itself can actually be stored in any combination of cloud, on-premise, or hybrid environments as long as it is accessible to the end-user.

In fact, due to Covid many organisations are already storing content in multiple locations both on-premise and in the cloud. However, the two big questions are; can users access their media wherever it's located, and is the root storage secure?

It's my Metadata, or is it? As our professional lives and workflows become increasingly global (but still virtual) content needs to be easily located and shared. Metadata is a key ingredient in the recipe for this new wave of content creation. Typing in a few keywords, results in a selection of footage that would have taken hours of painstaking searching if using a legacy format.

But as with any valuable asset, there are situations where this data can be leveraged against the organisation storing its media. Rather than metadata staying connected to the media asset throughout its content lifecycle, users can find themselves locked into restrictive agreements, or losing key information as content is moved around. In order to make the most of metadata it should be user-friendly, portable and future-proof. Not only can metadata make content extremely searchable, it can also connect files with each other. Rather than sitting in silos, your media assets relate to each other and your library can start working as a whole. As any creative knows, finding the right footage is half the battle.

How Secure is my Media? There have been a worrying number of high-profile content security breaches in the news lately. Unfortunately, some organisations are discovering the ubiquity of ransomware, the hard way. Of course, securely accessing a protected media archive is a high priority for media organisations - sadly, not all security protocols are created equal.

Companies need to look for solutions that provide a high standard of Digital Content Governance and hacker prevention protocols to protect assets. Solutions should offer the ability to clearly identify and distinguish between user groups. As well as check the asset usage, by logging all interactions within audit trails. The industry needs accessibility, but content should obviously only be accessible to the right users, in the right way.

A Collaborative Future There is no doubt we are moving into a completely new era of working processes and with that shift industry expectations are growing. Due to the complexity of video workflows, as well as the scale and volume of media archives, solutions had to evolve to match the needs of the industry. The technology is certainly there now, and it is enabling media companies to work seamlessly from anywhere.

Review and collaboration workflows, mean that users can connect over content regardless of where they are based. Balancing the necessities of secure media libraries with the fast-paced demands of the industry. By giving media professionals a complete view of their content, we can streamline the creative process and help teams adapt to the changes ahead.

To find out more about securely accessing and sharing content from anywhere, download our MatrixStore and iconik Solution Brief here.

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