Visual Data Corporation (Visual Data) has unveiled its new VIDA Content Operating System, a next-generation workflow system that radically changes traditional content workflows.

VIDA streamlines end-to-end media workflows and gives users complete control over their content in a secure, agile and central environment.

The Software as a Service (SaaS) model flexes to fit business needs, offering a unique, next-gen suite of features and capabilities including natural language-based clip searching and viewing, unlimited users, as-is library migration, direct distribution to more than 500 partners and a user-friendly “shopping cart” functionality to facilitate secure content purchases.  

John Trautman, CEO, Visual Data, said:

“VIDA was built to satisfy rapidly evolving production requirements and a growing adoption of cloud-based platforms. “These shifts, which have been in motion for years, were accelerated during the pandemic as our industry adopted new ways of working. Every aspect of VIDA is designed to support and enhance the way modern media professionals manage and migrate content, not only today but well into the future.” 

Foundation for innovation 

VIDA addresses the growing need for a centralized system that supports continually changing workflow requirements. With an intuitive library interface and AWS cloud back-end, users have access to as much storage as needed with the security and searchability required to capitalize on the growing worldwide media demand.   

Symon Roue, Managing Director of Visual Data, shared: 

“In today’s cloud-based, file-driven world of digital media supply chains, media and entertainment professionals need an entirely new set of tools to operate at maximum efficiency. VIDA gives content managers a secure, centralized and easy-to-use platform for optimizing and distributing valuable intellectual property. It’s the ultimate foundational technology for keeping pace and scaling with the industry.” 

VIDA’s vendor-agnostic system integrates seamlessly with content owners’ existing libraries and with its open API architecture, customers can work directly with any provider. This interoperability gives users greater control over content distribution and clearer visibility into their library assets, helping them optimize archives. The high degree of “self-serve” user functionality built into the system adds to the level of control and efficiency the solution delivers – changing the dynamic between content owners and their customers.  

Andrew Stevens, Head of Operations and Content, BBC Motion Gallery, shared:

“For the first time, we’re able to curate our digital assets in a way we have never been able to do before. We have the opportunity to proactively create collections in response to business intelligence and, based on that, present customers with content that we know is of interest to them, increasing the chance of converting leads into sales.” 

With VIDA, end-users can easily conduct accelerated searches, select desired clips, perform rights verifications and go through a check-out process to purchase and directly download content. For organizations like BBC, this streamlined process significantly improves ordering velocity, customer service and response times. 

Simplifying content management

VIDA was purposefully built to make every aspect of library catalog management – from sales to production to distribution – easier and more efficient. Content managers can migrate entire libraries “as is” regardless of varying formats or specifications.  

Users can perform deep searches across multiple archives, view and choose assets, build clip collections and create delivery-ready assets. VIDA performs many of the time-consuming, labor-intensive tasks required to keep library data clean and organized.   

Increased efficiency is driven by automated functions that include a “Series Manager” that pre-determines content orders based on delivery specs, a “Title Manager” feature that addresses accuracy in naming and cataloging conventions, and a “Library Guard” that helps avoid duplication and asset mis-management. 

VIDA combines the best of cloud technology, on-demand media services, predictive automation and industry expertise. The result is a unique and scalable content operating system media and entertainment professionals can rely on for future growth, while still addressing the agility and hands-on workflows required for today’s projects.