Signiant Helps Discovery Communications With Worldwide Distribution Of Digital Files In Real Time

Signiant, the leading developer of content distribution management solutions, has announced that Discovery Communications, a nonfiction media company with 100-plus worldwide networks including Discovery Channel, TLC and Animal Planet, has chosen its Content Distribution Management software (CDM) to orchestrate collaboration between its origination and post-production facilities and to accelerate and manager file transfer workflow worldwide.
Discovery implemented Signiant's CDM to facilitate a more efficient and cost effective post production process for popular existing series and upcoming premiere programming, including Jockeys (Animal Planet), Treasure Quest (Discovery Channel) and Count Down to the Crown (TLC).
As Discovery moves more toward file-based workflows, a reliable management and distribution system capable of high throughput has become imperative. The Signiant deployment was broken down into two areas: one was to support heavy asset transfer of SD and HD content and the other to support Discovery's low res proxy solution referred to as the DMC (Digital Media Centre).
Signiant's CDM integrates with Discovery's extensive library to make its assets viewable worldwide across the entire company and to outside partners. This massive deployment for the DMC supports eight thousand users, with an estimated 250 of them on the site concurrently uploading and downloading files at any given time.
The DMC stores digital assets (eg: videos, stills etc.) related to Discovery productions, enabling users to search for and retrieve digital assets, while collaborating on productions and repurposing content.
Through open APIs, Discovery Integrated Signiant with its current media management solution to simplify various workflow processes. By doing so, the solution streamlines the management, acceleration, automation and security of digital assets that need to be transferred to Discovery's various distribution facilities based in Sterling, VA, Miami, Fl, London and Singapore.
Bart Palmer, SVP - Media Engineering, Discovery Communications, said: "We had an extensive proof of concept review of several vendors to find a solution that could take full advantage of available bandwidth and deal with the specifications appropriately.
"Signiant not only integrated seamlessly with our existing technologies, but they also had all the right relationships with key channel partners and common tool sets that we use to manage a lot of our workflows. They know the media industry and what it needs."
To move low resolution assets Discovery previously used an in-house file transfer solution that was similar to Signiant's offering. However, the company ultimately deferred to Signiant's domain expertise in WAN software, automation of workflow and bandwidth throttling, enabling a more efficient process to transfer both SD and HD assets. Discovery estimates that it has seen a 700 to 800 per cent improvement in file transfer rate over 1GB LAN since implementing Signiant.
Tony Lapolito, Signiant's Vice President of Marketing and Product Management, said: "The growing adoption of digital media allows companies like Discovery to move premium programming content around the globe at unprecedented speed enabling them to film, edit, produce and distribute their digital media in significantly shortened cycles.
"As Discovery experienced, Signiant's solutions are deployed rapidly and enalbe reduced production costs, more efficient use of resources and delivery of their award-winning programming to the right place at the right time anywhere in the world."
Further information is available at: www.signiant.com.
(KMcA/JM)