Case Study
This leading media organization owns and operates some of the most recognized brands in entertainment and health & fitness publishing. With a long history of pioneering new media categories, the company has continuously evolved to stay at the forefront of digital innovation. Their portfolio includes top-ranking print and digital publications with a strong presence in both newsstand circulation and online engagement.
Situation – The Need for a Modern Image Repository
As part of a strategic initiative to migrate IT systems and services to the cloud, the company sought to replace its internal image repository with a solution that could meet its high standards for accessibility, service, and scalability. It required a platform that could be accessed from multiple locations and by various teams, ensuring seamless collaboration across offices worldwide.
The company partnered with FADEL, to develop a custom solution. The primary requirements were straightforward:
- A fast, intuitive system capable of managing tens of millions of assets
- The ability to process 100,000+ images during high-demand events
- Secure storage for high-resolution files, accessible only when needed
- Integration with agency feeds and existing workflows
A Tailored SaaS Solution for Digital Asset Management
With over 25 years of experience in the publishing industry, the company’s Chief Information Officer oversaw the transition to a new system. The FADEL worked closely with the company’s IT Operations Director to deliver a custom SaaS solution based on its flagship image portal.
The migration process involved ingesting an archive of 5 million images and PDFs while setting up integrations with 50 photo agencies. The solution was designed to allow users to publish images directly to the company’s workflow system with a single action. In just weeks, the team delivered a fully customized platform that met all specifications.
Unlocking the Power of Visual Search and Image Discovery
Traditionally, digital asset management has relied on metadata and text-based search functions. However, the latest advancements in visual search technology have revolutionized how publishers manage content. The new platform integrates an image discovery algorithm that automatically identifies and matches images based on visual characteristics alone.
Each issue of the company’s publications is uploaded as a PDF, where the system extracts thousands of features to generate a unique visual fingerprint for each image. This enables:
- Automated identification of images used in print and digital publications
- Accurate tracking of licensing and rights usage
- Improved reconciliation of page costs without manual markups
The Impact – Streamlining Workflows and Enhancing Efficiency
The transition to the new system has been a resounding success. The company’s IT Operations Director noted, “Working with FADEL has been very rewarding. They understand our needs and are highly responsive when we require changes or customisation. The migration to the new system has been very positively received. The integration to our workflow is slick, and the ability to match images in PDFs through the overlay of image discovery is truly unique.”
The solution represents just the beginning of what’s possible. From pre-publication rights verification to monitoring content usage across multiple brands, visual search technology is unlocking new value for publishers every day.
By implementing a cutting-edge cloud-based repository with advanced image recognition, this media giant has strengthened its ability to manage content efficiently, ensuring a scalable and future-proof solution for years to come.