Framing the Future A motion in favour of digital switchover for audiovisual services

How we at UCA organise our off-air recording at the moment, Where we might like to be in the future The problems we have encountered so far A number of ways we might get round these problems The options that we are left with… The key areas:

What we do…

Selection by: Course requirements Requests from teaching staff and students Published TV guides Team member experience Off-air at UCA Farnham

VHS Superseded by DVD. Extensive archive of VHS cassettes. Hard Drives (3) Superior option due to quality of output. Storage potential. Flexibility. DVDs Recordings on Hard Drives dubbed onto DVD. Off-air at UCA Farnham

Where we want to be…

Harmonisation/Consistency Our 5 campuses house a variety of media. Digital Age helps us forge a path towards harmonisation. More Economical Reduces need for copies. Ease of Migration Should be easier as DVD is already a ‘digital format’. Provision of Usage statistics Potential to run service through the LMS. Advantages of Digitisation?

Problems encountered so far…

The 3 Cs Cost Compatibility Complexity

The 3 Cs - Cost Cost Financial Securing funds for a one stop shop, video streaming/archiving solution could be a challenge? Time Need for backward/forward compatibility.

The 3 Cs - Compatibility Compatibility – Storage of files Secure server required to store media player or QuickTime files. Need for relevant technical expertise to index those files. Although not the case for every institution.

The 3 Cs - Complexity Complexity Legal (Easily resolved?) Need permission for onward delivery of formally broadcast content for external use.

Technical complexities  Need for speedy transition to digital format.  Need to restrict sign in to campus only provision using  computer IP addresses.  How to achieve onward delivery to our users. The 3 Cs - Complexity

Cross-departmental reliance.  Need for ICT to form backbone of project and continue to maintain system once setup. The 3 Cs - Complexity

Security in place to avoid duplication.  Recommend streaming content.  Piracy implications remain. The 3 Cs - Complexity

How we might get round our problems…

Legal - ERA+ Subscription enables extension of delivery beyond campus computers. How we might get round our problems

Technical Single sign on enables more efficient authentication. Placing UK only based restriction.  How to restrict access to UK only.  Achieved via IP ranges or search filters. Software Options  Awareness of file size and quality to achieve effective speed of delivery and server memory capacity. Thwarting Unauthorised Reproduction  Making files available via ‘Adobe Flash’.

The 3 Candidates

UCA Home Grown One Stop Shop Sharing BOB

Home Grown Potential system that is tailored to meet your precise needs? Sharing BOB BUFVC building central repository service so ERA+ licence holders may obtain online content in return for annual subscription. Effective alternative to One-Stop-Shop system? One-Stop-Shop Fully-integrated moving image management system (e.g. Planet eStream = live streaming, archive and Video-On-Demand with optional off-air recording and live lecture modules). Less reliance on ICT than ‘Home Grown’ option. The 3 Candidates

Summary

Current Situation at our LLC Extensive VHS archive and Hard Drive recordings. Where we want to be Digital delivery offers simultaneous availability of individual items. Problems The 3 Cs (including legal and technical issues). Ways to get round these problems ERA+, introduction of IP access restrictions, Software selection. The 3 candidates… Using 3 Cs may help inform candidate decision. Summary

John F. Kennedy: “There are costs and risks to a program of action, but they are far less than the long- range risks and costs of comfortable inaction.”

Martin Luther King: “You don’t have to see the whole staircase – just take the first step.”

Framing the future with a digital switch-over is only just beginning...

Thank you for listening. Any Questions?