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Metadata – or the ability to tag information digitally within a data stream – has emerged as a vital tool for broadcasters looking to best manage and leverage archived programming content.

For broadcasters, the transition to digital broadcasting isn't a simple case of investing in new technology - it requires the implementation of new processes that apply to the commissioning, scheduling, production, reporting and archiving of content.

This has resulted in significantly altered workflow, and - thanks to the features offered by desktop editing systems - a redefining of some job descriptions.

With this is mind, the term ‘asset' has taken on a new meaning as well, observes Steve Jupe, head of data DMI (digital media initiative) at the BBC in London. ‘Essence' and ‘metadata' are no longer separate entities, as they were in the analogue environment.

Jupe refers to this coexistence as an ‘enabler,' but admits that it adds to the complexity associated with asset management.

"It is an enabler in the sense that metadata can be added throughout the asset lifecycle and not be lost or need to be re-keyed across business support systems," he explains, adding that the creation of metadata becomes more automated, and can be used to not only drive workflow, but promote a better level of accuracy and consistency throughout the facility.

Jupe notes that the flexibility of the digital environment allows assets to benefit from a ‘snowball effect': metadata can be accumulated over the asset's entire lifecycle, rather than just at the end.

"This accumulation alters not only the volume of metadata which can be captured but also ensures data is captured at the point of creation - first hand from the expert - rather than re-translated at a later date," he says.

"Now you have all kinds of metadata being passed back and forth through the system - not only beginning with the original traffic schedule, but also the automation schedule, which then talks to servers and archive systems to make sure that the servers have the right content that's been pulled from the archive," explains Lewis Zager, a broadcast technology consultant based in Arlington, Virginia.

There are also record lists that tell the systems what to record for future air - and it's the metadata that ‘talks' to the servers to determine whether a programme sits on a hard drive or the server, and when it should be moved.

Because the digital environment supports multiple platforms, the separation of assets by media type or delivery mechanism isn't applicable.

"Assets are created and managed purely as content (that is) available and applicable to multiple delivery platforms or for easier editorial manipulation," Jupe says.

There are two sides to every story, however, and all of the new features that digital asset management offers are accompanied by their own set of challenges.

Jupe recounts that the BBC underwent a far-reaching cultural change that emphasised more locally controlled data creation, greater accountability and a widespread governance and support mechanism.

"Support processes for managing assets all change - media asset management becomes an essential element of all BBC business processes," he explains. "This role drives a wholesale reworking of all archive processes and puts the digital archive firmly at the heart of the digital BBC."

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