Video tape presents well defined but often ignored day-to-day and long term challenges for content owners. Setting aside the issue of constant deterioration and potential loss of valuable content, locating, accessing and handling these assets every day is a real and ever repeating challenge. In addition, simple storage of these massive collections of video tapes occupies valuable real estate and is prone to damage as often only a single copy of this material exists because replication is time consuming and costly.

It is likely that much of this legacy content could be repurposed and possibly monetized if it were easily searchable and accessible, but doing so by conventional methods is enormously expensive in terms of both cost and labor. ROI calculations vary but it is clear that most content owners would not go through the trouble and costs associated with the storage and maintenance of these video tape collections unless they possessed some level of monetary, historic or cultural significance. All of these are clear motivations for addressing the preservation, location and access challenges presented by these pervasive video tape archives.

By effectively migrating these valuable video tape based assets to high quality digital files stored in a central repository, the preservation, access and repurposing challenges become trivial. The key barrier in the past was the human cost and efficiency of these large scale migration operations. Front Porch Digital offers an innovative family of solutions to address these traditional challenges for any size organization.

Our SAMMA family of versatile and cost-effective solutions enable efficient, high volume migration of video tape based assets and the ability to generate a multitude of file based formats in realtime during the migration process.. In addition, they also provide frame by frame content measurement and metadata collection so post migration triage can focus in on problematic items only rather than having to deal with each and every video tape in the library. With systems scaling from stand alone, single stream platforms to robotic systems capable of more than 1,000 hours of migration per week, our solutions are ready to address any scale challenge.

Adding to these migration solutions, our global market share leading DIVArchive Content Storage Management (CSM) system provides the foundation for an end-to-end migration, management and asset access solution serving your entire organization.

SAMMA Solo – A single channel semi-automated multi-standard migration system which makes the ingest process faster and more reliable than ever. Solo is able to support the simultaneous generation of a multitude of high and low resolution video/audio formats ranging from lossless JPEG2000 (J2K) and MXF wrapped MPEG2 though to frame accurate Windows Media low resolution proxies.

SAMMA Clean – An archival quality, precision video tape cleaning device which carefully inspects, cleans, conditions and winds videotape cassettes to achieve optimal playback for migration. With the ability to clean, process and prepare video tapes at approximately 20x faster than realtime, this step does not slow the overall process but guarantees the best possible migration outcome.

SAMMA Robot – An automated video tape based robotic system which can support up to seven simultaneous migration streams allowing the migration of up to 1,000 hours of content each and every week. The system is designed to operate around the clock in an unattended fashion and is also capable of generating a multitude of video/audio formats in realtime as migration progresses. Key metadata collection assists managers in determining the health and quality of migration operations and helps to focus in on damaged source video tapes which may require human intervention.

SAMMA J2K Player – PC based playback of industry standard JPEG2000 content via our own hardware based decoder which offers SDI output or on your monitor leveraging our innovative software based J2K codec.

Multi-channel videotape to digital file migration system, fully-automated.

The SAMMA Robot is the most efficient system for migrating videotaped recordings to digital files before they are lost forever to tape deterioration. The Robot delivers four distinct advantages:

Speed

One operator can produce multiple digital file recordings from 7 videotape recorders. For moderately sized jobs, the Robot can run overnight without an attendant. For bigger jobs, it can run 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

Customer convenience

No special skills are required to operate the Robot. Migration can be done on the customer’s site – videotapes do not have to be moved to another location. No special information technology, heating, ventilation or air conditioning is needed.

Quality and Consistent Results

The Robot detects and automatically corrects many common tape and video problems. The system produces SQL integration for library and asset management systems. For batch management, it produces XML reports on key metrics for every video frame. Available encodings include lossless or lossy MXF wrapped JPEG2000, MPEG-2, Quicktime, H.264 (MPEG-4), Flash, MPEG-1, Windows Media, Real Media, AVC and such server interfaces such as GVG Profile.

Cost and financing

The SAMMA Robot allows content owners to migrate video tapes to digital files at a much lower cost than manual methodology. The business case for digitization, preservation and repurposing of archival content is now financially feasible.

Samma Robot Workflow

Before the SAMMA Robot is installed, Front Porch Digital Professional Services Group inspects the user’s data systems. If appropriate, they will also import the user’s tape ID or barcode records to the SAMMA Robot’s SQL database.

A tape-prep operator pulls a suitable batch of tapes from the library and performs the following steps:

• Visual and olfactory inspection for foreign objects or damage
• Visual confirmation of tape markings (it’s the right tape in the box)
• Notation of inspection results in Front Porch Digital software, to be included in SAMMA Robot’s XML report later
• Print and apply SAMMA-readable barcode label
• Load tapes into SAMMA robot cassette library, press START
• Stop SAMMA robot, open tape-access door and exchange tapes, removing tapes already migrated from numbered bins as indicated on SAMMA Robot workstation screen
• Start SAMMA Robot, return migrated tapes to library

The SAMMA Robot can hold up to 48 U-Matic, 60 Betacam or 60 VHS cassettes at one time. Database support is included in the SAMMA Robot’s first-year maintenance agreement.

Product Lifecycle Announcement: End of Life (EOL)

Front Porch Digital, Inc. and Front Porch Digital International, Inc. (“Front Porch Digital”) announce End of Life (EOL) dates for the linear tape-open (or “LTO”) format option for its SAMMA products. The last day to order product with this option was May 31, 2009. Customers with active service contracts will continue to receive support until the expiration of their respective contract, at which time support will be discontinued. Technical Support will continue to provide telephone troubleshooting and workaround assistance, but the resolution may be that the customer will need to utilize an alternative format. No Development/Engineering assistance will be available.

Migration Path: Front Porch Digital recommends that customers utilize alternative formats. If you have questions about this notice or other technical support issues and your company has a valid warranty and/or support and maintenance agreement, please contact our professional services support organization at support@incentrasolutions.com or (877) 667-8720.

Single channel videotape to digital file migration system, semi-automated

Packaged in a compact, turnkey, single-stream solution - the SAMMA Solo system makes it easy to convert even the largest videotape collections to digital files.

Overview

The SAMMA Solo solution is intuitive: simply connect a video tape machine, set your own preferred parameters in the migration software, insert a tape and press go.

SAMMA Solo watches over the entire operation automatically, monitoring the process and implementing your quality standards frame by frame. It converts videotape in real-time to as many as four simultaneous digital files including MXF wrapped JPEG2000, MPEG-2, Quicktime, H.264 (MPEG-4), FLASH, MPEG-1, AVC, Windows Media, and Real Media.

Front Porch Digital has created the industry's first MXF wrapped Motion JPEG 2000 real-time encoder that generates fully reversible compressed files. JPEG2000 provides uncompressed video quality at one-third the storage cost of uncompressed video - saving you money and keeping your options open.

SAMMA Solo software provides user configurable setups which precisely define a client's quality control requirements. SAMMA Eye™ measures six video and audio signal parameters during migration, replacing the often-less-than-perfect monitoring that would otherwise be performed by skilled operators who must continually "watch" the migration. Administrators determine the sensitivity thresholds that flag errors, and if those error levels continue beyond a user-defined duration, SAMMA Eye™ will automatically terminate a migration.

Multiple SAMMA Solo Systems Can Be Controlled By a Single Operator

Each SAMMA Solo is designed to be an independent system - but with scalable control architecture. For migrating larger libraries, up to sixteen SAMMA Solo systems can be simultaneously controlled by one operator using a centralized, easy-to-manage interface. Each migration generates a comprehensive easy-to-read set of graphs of important migration parameters, indexed to time code. Operators can quickly and easily jump directly to any migration error - and make an instant determination whether further is required. A complete set of migration metadata is available as an XML file that can be easily parsed to your requirements and exported to your migration database. These include: black level, dropout level, input loss level, RF threshold, audio threshold and servo lock threshold.

Product Lifecycle Announcement: End of Life (EOL)

Front Porch Digital, Inc. and Front Porch Digital International, Inc. ("Front Porch Digital") announce End of Life (EOL) dates for the internal linear tape-open (or “LTO”) format option for its SAMMA Solo product. The last day to order SAMMA Solo with an internal LTO drive option was May 31, 2009. Customers with active service contracts will continue to receive support until the expiration of their respective contract, at which time support will be discontinued. Technical Support will continue to provide telephone troubleshooting and workaround assistance, but the resolution may be that the customer will need to utilize an alternative format. No Development/Engineering assistance will be available.

Migration Path: Front Porch Digital recommends that customers utilize external storage such as available in our DIVArchive or DIVAdirector or DIVAworks products. If you have questions about this notice or other technical support issues and your company has a valid warranty and/or support and maintenance agreement, please contact our professional services support organization at support@fpdigital.com or (866) 200-7222.

PC based realtime playback of lossless or lossy MXF wrapped J2K content

The SAMMA J2K Player is an affordable PC based Motion JPEG2000 content viewing solution from Front Porch Digital. We offer a hardware based decoder solution with SDI output (including embedded audio) the professional review of content as well as an innovative software only J2K codec solution for playback on standard computer monitors. SAMMA J2K Player offers a unified interface regardless of whether the hardware, software or both decoders are included on the host computer. Allowing users direct access to these preservation quality assets is a key step in empowering the migration to file based content and away from legacy video tape archives. Key Product Features

• Realtime PC based playback of preservation quality MXF wrapped Motion JPEG2000 content
• Lossless and lossy J2K decompression support
• Support for PAL/NTSC content
• Full support for frame accurate timecode display
• Hardware or software based decoder option
  • Hardware: Our PCI solution offers realtime playback via an SDI output with embedded four-channel audio (requires user supplied PC and SDI monitor)
  • Software: Our software decoder offers a low cost option to the hardware solution and allows users to view high quality content directly on their computer monitor

Motion JPEG 2000 Features

• Completely and mathematically lossless and reversible compression
• Unique feature allows for creation of scalable derivative files with no transcoding required. Scale by size, by resolution or by region of interest.
• No interframe compression as every frame is a keyframe which is important for editing
• Metadata support for embedded XML including MPEG-7 binary
• MJPEG2000 is a well-published and open standard supported by the SAMMA family of products

Product Lifecycle Announcement: End of Life (EOL)

Front Porch Digital, Inc. and Front Porch Digital International, Inc. ("Front Porch Digital") announce End of Life (EOL) dates for the linear tape-open (or “LTO”) format option for its SAMMA products. The last day to order product with this option was May 31, 2009. Customers with active service contracts will continue to receive support until the expiration of their respective contract, at which time support will be discontinued. Technical Support will continue to provide telephone troubleshooting and workaround assistance, but the resolution may be that the customer will need to utilize an alternative format. No Development/Engineering assistance will be available.

Migration Path: Front Porch Digital recommends that customers utilize alternative formats. If you have questions about this notice or other technical support issues and your company has a valid warranty and/or support and maintenance agreement, please contact our professional services support organization at support@incentrasolutions.com or (877) 667-8720.

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I need to migrate content to JPEG2000

Archive Quality Videotape Inspector and Cleaner with Metadata

Next generation videotape cleaner that not only cleans valuable master tapes quickly, but also reports tape conditions as metadata.

Key Product Features

• Delicate, thorough cleaning of master tapes; 1/10th VTR playback tension
• Two optical sensors to detect damage; one for tape width and one for reflectivity
• Evaluation software graphically reports tape condition and cleanliness
• Each tape’s cleaning status reported in XML format
• Programmable Auto-mode for standalone, one button operation.
• Available for U-matic, Betacam and VHS cassette families

SAMMA Clean™ is a system for conditioning, inspecting and winding videotape cassette tapes.

The purpose of SAMMA Clean™ is to recondition various formats of tape in order to extend the life of the tape, reduce the number of defects due to dirt deposit, and recognize physical defects in the tape. The extent that certain physical defects of the tape can be reconditioned and/or removed depends on the severity of the defects. SAMMA Clean™ is also a tool to help identify potential problems that may occur in a recorder such as poor tape packing and tension control.

In a single cycle (forward and reverse) SAMMA Clean™ optically inspects and cleans the tape with the assistance of two types of optical sensors. One sensor measures the width of the tape with maximum precision- a long-term change in width means that a fold, stretching or major damage exists. The other sensor measures the light reflected from the tape- a change in the quantity of light reflected means that surface damage exists.

SAMMA Clean™ is configured to allow ease of operation. Push button controls are located on the control panel located on the front of the unit. Additional functions as well as post-test examination features require the use of a remote computer for signal interface with the cleaner.

Three types of archive quality cleaners for two different video cassette formats are available: U-matic (SCL/U) and Betacam (SCL/B) and VHS (SCL/V) The U-Matic cleaner (SCL/U) is designed to handle both small and large U-Matic tapes which comply with the ANSI/SMTPE 22M-1997 Standard.

Product Lifecycle Announcement: End of Life (EOL)

Front Porch Digital, Inc. and Front Porch Digital International, Inc. (“Front Porch Digital”) announce End of Life (EOL) dates for the linear tape-open (or “LTO”) format option for its SAMMA products. The last day to order product with this option was May 31, 2009. Customers with active service contracts will continue to receive support until the expiration of their respective contract, at which time support will be discontinued. Technical Support will continue to provide telephone troubleshooting and workaround assistance, but the resolution may be that the customer will need to utilize an alternative format. No Development/Engineering assistance will be available.

Migration Path: Front Porch Digital recommends that customers utilize alternative formats. If you have questions about this notice or other technical support issues and your company has a valid warranty and/or support and maintenance agreement, please contact our professional services support organization at support@incentrasolutions.com or (877) 667-8720.