Press - Digital Asset Management

Total Digital Process From Assignment to Archive

Quincy, MA, June 6, 2006 - The Star-Tribune in Minneapolis has chosen the Merlin Digital Asset Management System to create a total digital imaging workflow at the newspaper. The system will combine assignment management, digital photo outtake management, picture desk and digital archive into one integrated workflow. The phased installation is scheduled to begin this summer.

The selection was the result of a comprehensive product and vendor evaluation process begun by the Star-Tribune last year. The new Merlin system will be integrated with the newspaper's editorial and production systems from Digital Technology International (DTI), and will replace a photo system from Associated Press (AP). The paper is part of the McClatchy Company and one of the top 20 papers in the US.

The new Merlin Trax assignment management module will allow anyone in the newsroom or bureaus to make assignment requests, complete assignment information, and search and retrieve images for production - either live or archive - in seconds. Trax is also used to manage staff workloads, work in process and deadlines.

As photos and graphics are completed and uploaded into the system, they are linked to the assignment and workflow status is automatically updated. Even after publication, assignment history, contacts, directions, usage rights, publication data, technical data and outtakes remain linked to the content as long as it is kept in the system.

Merlin will serve as the Star-Tribune's picture desk, taking live feeds from the wire services as well as input of locally scanned and digital images from the newspaper's photo staff. Photos in the system are automatically routed for production and long-term archival storage. Merlin's Webmaster software will make images in available to anyone with a web browser on the Star-Tribune's intranet.

Scrounger digital photo outtake management system will be used to ingest and manage all the photographers' outtakes and link them to the assignments and published photos in Merlin. It means any authorized user can see alternative images from the original shoot with just a few clicks, and know the rights usage associated with the image.

MerlinOne will convert and import the Star-Tribune's legacy images from the current AP Preserver system. The existing digital archive content will seamlessly become part of the new Merlin archive when installation is completed.

About MerlinOne - MerlinOne, Inc. is a leading provider of digital asset management systems and electronic document discovery platforms. E-Sheets® is the foremost electronic tearsheets service. The Merlin picture desk management solution has over 140 major installations at corporations like The New York Times, The Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, USA Today, Harvard University, Pfizer, Habitat for Humanity and The White House. MerlinOne technology helps companies manage photos, text, graphics, PDFs, multimedia and e-discovery material.

Press Contact
David Farrell
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