What we do

Building bridges

Efficient organisations work holistically, sharing information where necessary and avoiding repetition of tasks where possible. Traditionally, this has not been the case in the world of TV production, where tape-based technology – allowing only one event to happen at a time – has led to cumbersome and linear work practices.

The transition to digital, even with the implementation of a MAM system, hasn’t always eased this situation. While the initial integration of existing equipment is normally a part of the implementation process, what happens when products such as video servers or editing suites are upgraded, or even changed entirely?

Until now broadcasters have depended on highly customised integrations based on point-to-point interfaces which are rigid and difficult to change. Tedial takes a different approach by providing a middle layer able to integrate the third-party systems and technologies of a typical heterogeneous broadcast facility – present and future. The implementation of an enterprise service bus means that changing one component does not affect other integrated systems. With expertise from both the IT and the broadcast world, we are able to provide cutting edge IT solutions with a solid understanding of the day-to-day problems facing broadcasters.

Implementing digital technology, whether MAM or our business process management software, Ficus, is always a complex process and big decisions have to be taken along the way. One of the most worrying decisions can be what to do with legacy databases. Will it be possible to transfer existing information to the new database, or will it be lost?

Tedial uses object-relational database management technology, which allows the creation of dedicated database models for special events or areas of your organisation such as sports, production, news, etc. This also means that data from legacy databases can easily be migrated, even in cases when the original system vendor or organisation is unwilling or unable to help. In addition to securing easy transfer of legacy databases, our technology allows users and/or production areas to  create metadata fields relevant to their own unique requirements – for a special event like the National Elections, for example – rather than being restricted by the generic fields imposed by ‘one size fits all’ database.