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Pixit Media Survey Reveals Content Archives are Becoming Strategic Assets for Media & Entertainment

  //media-entertainment.news-articles.net/content/ .. ng-strategic-assets-for-media-entertainment.html
  Published in Media and Entertainment on Sunday, December 28th 2025 at 12:09 GMT by Forbes

The Rising Tide of Content Archives: A New Era for Media & Entertainment, According to Pixit Media Survey

The media and entertainment landscape is drowning – not in viewers, but in content. A recent survey by Pixit Media, as reported by Tom Coughlin on Forbes, paints a stark picture: organizations are grappling with an exploding volume of digital assets, leading to significant challenges and opportunities related to content archiving and preservation. The survey, conducted among media & entertainment professionals across various roles (from archive managers to CTOs), highlights evolving strategies, technological adoption, and the growing recognition that effective archival isn't just about compliance; it’s a vital engine for revenue generation and innovation.

The Scale of the Problem: A Content Avalanche

The core issue is simple – more content is being created than ever before. This stems from multiple factors including the rise of streaming services, increased production of original content (film, TV, short-form video), the proliferation of user-generated content, and the need to maintain extensive libraries for legacy assets. The survey revealed that 78% of respondents believe their organization's digital asset volume is increasing rapidly – a trend expected to continue accelerating in the coming years. This isn’t just about finished products; it includes raw footage, editing files, metadata, marketing materials, and everything in between.

The sheer scale presents significant logistical hurdles. Many organizations are struggling with disorganized archives, fragmented systems, and difficulty locating specific assets when needed. This "content chaos" leads to wasted time searching for material, duplicated efforts, and missed opportunities. As Coughlin points out, the cost of inefficient archiving can quickly escalate into millions of dollars annually – a figure that resonates deeply with budget-conscious media companies.

Beyond Compliance: Archiving as an Asset

Historically, content archives were primarily viewed as a necessary evil – a way to comply with legal and regulatory requirements (like copyright retention) or simply to tick off a box for corporate governance. However, the Pixit Media survey reveals a significant shift in perception. A majority of respondents now recognize that a well-managed archive can be a strategic asset, unlocking new revenue streams and fueling creative innovation.

This recognition is driving a renewed focus on active archiving – moving away from simply storing content "out of sight, out of mind." Instead, organizations are exploring ways to leverage their archives for:

• Content Repurposing: Extracting clips and segments from older productions to create new short-form videos for social media platforms. This is particularly valuable in the age of TikTok and Instagram Reels where quick, engaging content is king.
• Licensing & Rights Management: Identifying and monetizing unused rights associated with archived materials. This can include licensing footage to other companies or re-releasing older titles on new platforms.
• Training & Education: Utilizing archival footage for internal training purposes or creating educational resources.
• AI-Powered Content Discovery: The survey highlights the growing interest in leveraging AI and machine learning to automatically tag, categorize, and search archived content. This dramatically reduces the time spent manually searching and allows users to discover hidden gems within the archive.

Technological Trends Shaping Archiving Strategies

The survey also sheds light on the technologies driving changes in how media companies approach archiving:

• Cloud-Based Storage: 82% of respondents are using or considering cloud storage for their archives, citing scalability, cost-effectiveness, and accessibility as key benefits. While concerns around security and data sovereignty remain, the advantages often outweigh the risks.
• Metadata Management: The importance of robust metadata (data about data) is paramount. Consistent and accurate metadata allows users to easily find and understand archived content. The survey showed a strong desire for automated metadata generation and enrichment tools.
• AI & Machine Learning: As mentioned earlier, AI is transforming content discovery by enabling automatic tagging, transcription, and even facial recognition within archival footage. This reduces manual labor significantly.
• Object Storage: Increasingly popular over traditional file-based systems, object storage offers greater flexibility and scalability for managing large volumes of unstructured data like video files.
• Preservation Formats & Migration: The survey touched upon the crucial need to migrate content to new formats as technology evolves. Formats become obsolete, and ensuring long-term accessibility requires proactive preservation efforts.

Challenges Remain: Skills Gap and Budget Constraints

Despite the growing recognition of the value of archiving, challenges persist. A significant skills gap exists within the media & entertainment industry – a shortage of professionals with expertise in digital asset management, metadata creation, and archival technologies. Furthermore, budget constraints often limit investment in modernizing archive infrastructure and implementing new solutions. Many organizations are still operating on legacy systems that struggle to handle the current volume of content.

Looking Ahead: The Future of Content Archives

The Pixit Media survey underscores a fundamental shift in how media & entertainment companies view their content archives. They're moving beyond simple compliance to embracing archiving as a strategic asset, driving revenue and innovation. The future will likely see increased adoption of cloud-based solutions, AI-powered tools, and automated workflows. Organizations that prioritize investing in robust archive strategies and skilled personnel will be best positioned to unlock the full potential of their content libraries – ensuring both preservation for posterity and new opportunities for growth. Failing to do so risks being buried under a mountain of unmanageable digital assets.

I hope this article accurately summarizes the Forbes piece! Let me know if you would like any modifications or further elaboration on specific points.