Asset Management

Managing and Storing Public Radio Programs and Information in the ContentDepot^®

The ContentDepot asset management system stores all information about public radio programs available from the PRSS. It provides a centralized location for program metadata. Examples of metadata include title, artist, program length, timings and cues, and format. The actual audio itself is referred to as the "essence."

In the ContentDepot, the program audio (essence) may reside in multiple locations, including:

1. various producer/program distributor's storage systems
2. the ContentDepot asset management system

It is the asset management system that accumulates, tracks, and manages information about those programs—regardless of where the essence is stored. Think of it as the catalog system in a library. The catalog helps you select and immediately find your book—even if it resides in another branch of the library—without requiring you to rummage through all the shelves.

How will asset management work in the future?
In preparation for program delivery, producers input episode-related information (metadata) directly into the ContentDepot via a web interface. This information is captured and stored in the ContentDepot asset management system. Once the program has been defined, its information can be located via search tools and the audio can be previewed, if a sample file has been provided.

When the episode audio file is ready for submission into the system, it is either streamed live from the source or transmitted as a file. The ContentDepot asset management system will track the audio stream or file and where it is stored—whether in a remote asset management system (on a program distributor's system) or at the ContentDepot.

At stations, delivered audio files will reside in local storage. Once content is stored, it is available for use by station automation.

What are the benefits of ContentDepot asset management?

• All information concerning programs (metadata) and associated materials can be searched and viewed from a centralized location.
• Content maintained in the ContentDepot can be shared with any other system that references the same data, eliminating redundancy in effort and storage and ensuring consistent information across the entire public radio system.
• The asset management system makes possible content exchanges of programming and elements between peer groups (e.g., collaborations and other networks of interest).
• The ContentDepot provides a unified interface to all available public radio programs, thereby simplifying station-side receive, capture, and playout of programs off the system.
• The integration of ContentDepot asset management with the IP over satellite transmission infrastructure creates a public radio-wide network for search and retrieval of program information.