Digital Media Components & Products

Digital Asset Management


DAM, an acronym for Digital Asset Management, describes a process that creates a centralized repository for digital files containing non-textual content such as video recordings, still pictures, audio clips, and graphical images. DAM provides tools that allow the content (assets) held in those files to be archived, searched, and retrieved. The digital files are stored in asset repositories while associated metadata describing the content - including file locations, assigned IDs, durations, titles, descriptions, annotations, key words, and usage rights, along with low-resolution thumbnail images or proxy copies - are stored in asset databases. Digital Asset Management is also known as media asset management (MAM), digital asset warehousing, or simply content management.

As the industry evolves into technology driven businesses, an increasing number of companies are reaching a critical pain threshold in needing to control and manage their vast amounts of digital media assets. Technically speaking, a digital asset is any form of media that has been turned into a binary source. Digital assets, which say, for textile mills include everything from artwork, logos and photos to PowerPoint presentations, text documents and even e-mail, are proving to be valuable assets in terms of both productivity and company valuation. However, an asset is only an asset when you can find it, or you know that you have it in the first place. The statistics tell a convincing story. For many businesses large amounts of money are spent each year on file management activities which include searching, verification, organization, back-up and security. Creative professionals spend an average of 1 out of every 10 hours of their time on file management. Searches alone account for a full third of that time!  

• Research the meaning and uses of Digital Asset Management and describe what it is and how it is used in the Digital Media industry. Digital Asset Management also refers to some of the following areas.

• Collaborative software
• Content management
• Digital library
• Digital preservation
• Image retrieval
• Hierarchical Storage Management
• Preservation Metadata
• ResourceSpace - an open source DAM system
• Web Content Management System

•  A Digital Asset Management application is simply a tool for organizing digital media assets for storage and retrieval. Below is a chart that describe the process used by a Textile firm to capture and archive their digital media assets.

• (http://www.techexchange.com/thelibrary/DAM.html)

Below are some sites that would use DAM systems for organizing digital media assets for storage and retrieval.

• Film Australia Digital Learning
• National Library of Australia 
• Russell Brown Photoshop Site