Cisco Introduces Integrated Digital Media System for Business, Government and Education

September 26, 2006

By Terry Timm Moos, News@Cisco

With a new set of possibilities for digital communications in mind, Cisco Systems is introducing the fully integrated Cisco Digital Media System to business customers this week, laying the foundation for future applications and video communications.

"The new emerging technology of digital media systems opens up a whole new realm of possibilities for all kinds of organizations to easily connect customers, employees, partners, or students - anywhere, any time, and on any device," said Cisco's Thomas Wyatt, director and general manager, Digital Media Management. "This is exciting for Cisco because it is a whole new business, with new users and capabilities," he continued. "What makes this even more compelling is that it revolutionizes the way organizations will think about video."

The Cisco Digital Media System is a comprehensive solution that integrates the creation, management, and delivery of rich digital media for relevant, direct communications anywhere, any time. "This is, of course, fully integrated with our network technologies," noted Wyatt. The Cisco Digital Media System takes advantage of Cisco network infrastructure, security and support.

Integrated solution addresses industry changes

"Cisco Systems is meeting surging market demand for a rich digital media solution," explained Wyatt. "Customers have wanted to have this kind of technology, but historically, video has been complex and very tough to integrate. Video also has required highly technical staff to make it work. And frankly, if you are not able to do video in an elegant, high-quality way, it just doesn't succeed."

Now, Cisco has products that span the entire chain, including two software encoders for media creation, a Web-based media manager that can manage the encoders and media assets, schedule delivery and create playlists, and a Web-based video portal, which enables users to watch live and on-demand video, create customized playlists, and search for videos. "We've designed the user interface so people can conveniently and quickly browse, search, and view content interactively," Wyatt said.

"What makes the Cisco Digital Media System different is its simplicity," noted Wyatt. "It is easy to install, manage, and distribute."

Brunel University: Competition for students makes new technology essential

When you ask Simon Furber, Network Manager for Brunel University in west London, U.K., what he thinks of the Cisco Digital Media System, he says it is the right technology at the right time. "This is the scaleable, sizeable platform that we have needed," he said. "We are excited about the many possibilities of this technology."

Brunel University has an enrollment of about 13,000 students, with 2,800 faculty and staff, and has been upgrading its facilities to accommodate new technologies. The university offers a full range of coursework and research in fields such as engineering, law, and business, but officials want to differentiate the institution in additional ways. Explained Furber, "Today, we are competing for students. Students are using laptops, PDAs, wireless phones, and other devices, which means they want the latest in technology innovation - in fact, they expect it, so it is very important for us to respond to them. A rich media environment is part of that."

"The challenge, of course, is to deliver the latest innovations on a budget," Furber added.

Delivering rich media for richer learning

Brunel University is implementing the Cisco Digital Media System to deliver full-screen, full-motion, DVD-quality digital media content to users on the network anywhere, at any time. "We are positioning what's possible," Furber continued. "Our infrastructure is designed to scale for a video-enabled curriculum. This is the right kind of delivery mechanism for the university and fits into so many places," he said. "The advantage is in the simplicity, which gives us the ability to deliver content easily. For students, they will simply point, click, search, and play - it is a very nice interface."

With the Cisco Digital Media System, professors and university staff will be able to capture, store, record, and deliver digital media content, which will extend the resources of the university. Beyond the implementation of the Digital Media System, Brunel will introduce video conferencing into the lecture halls as well as enhance further collaboration with other institutions, developing more e-learning and interactive projects along the way.

Building on a foundation for success

"I learned about this Web-based solution last year at a Cisco Networkers conference," Furber said. "We made a strategic decision to build a foundation based on Cisco technology that is a fully integrated, end-to-end solution. And this solution fits in well with my rule that everything I buy should fit together."

The Cisco Digital Media System works with Brunel's implementation of the Cisco Service-Oriented Network Architecture (SONA). "Cisco makes it easy for me and my team to learn the technology," noted Furber. "We are in a busy environment with lots of pressure, so we are able to handle many administrative duties remotely," he continued. "Of course, we have more work to do, but it will be brilliant," added Furber. "This technology is here to stay."

Transforming the way businesses work

The emerging digital media technology is transforming how organizations will do business. said Cisco's Wyatt. "Organizations can use digital media to be more agile and competitive, as in the case of Brunel University," he said. "Every business is experiencing increasing pressure to do more with less, and if they can put this technology to work, they can do that while adding more compelling communications and a human approach to the business.

"Today, there are so many societal issues that are affected by communications," continued Wyatt. "The 'Millennia' generation is very visually oriented, so we can use digital media for information sharing and knowledge transfer from the Baby Boom generation, for example. With pandemics, terrorism, and other global threats, travel has been more difficult. But with digital media technology, you can still bring that human element to communications - no matter where you are.

"This is just the beginning," added Wyatt. "There are so many new markets to tap and new applications to deliver, with more portability and more delivery channels. The Internet is the biggest broadcast network in the world and we're just starting to get the digital media message out."

Terry Timm Moos is a freelance journalist located in Seattle, WA.