GMV was commissioned to develop a strategy for the management and exploitation of the RSC’s archive of still and moving images…
Identified barriers to the commercial exploitation of intellectual property
From communications to marketing, from the film unit to the archivists at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust we built up a detailed picture of the RSC’s rich and valuable holdings of still and moving images and barriers to the effective exploitation of these key intellectual property assets.
Developed new ways of working
We created the business case for the exploitation of images and a vision for change; designed the role of and helped recruit an Image Manager serving as a single point of contact for the use of images across the RSC and actively supported the new ways of working needed to make this, and new systems, work.
“The information standards created by GMV meant some of the hardest work was already done before I started. You made my life so much easier!” Michelle Morton, Image Manager
Co-created information standards and rights frameworks
Collaborating with stakeholders across the RSC, we created common informational standards that everyone could use to describe and retrieve images. We also created a rights framework which created clarity across the organisation on the rights position of the most important assets.
Managed procurement of a new digital asset management system
Live cinema screenings of Richard II meant that a digital asset management system became an urgent priority. We scoped requirements and evaluated potential products and suppliers. The RSC were then able to buy and install a system for less than £6,000 from a supplier who provides excellent support.
The result? From an initial remit of five internal users and suggested lifespan of two years, their digital asset management system has now (nearly three years later) grown to over 170,000 new assets and around 700 active users, including a growing database of external media outlets. People have changed how they work with images. There are unexpected benefits of the system, too: it is being used to manage contracts and the RSC’s costume hire business.
The RSC will soon use their digital asset management system to launch a public image library, increasing access and enabling a new revenue stream.
In short, GMV has delivered new systems, standards and ways of working that allowed the RSC to bring its intellectual property into the world of digital – and will make it a key commercial asset.
“GMV brought a valuable understanding of commercial, legal, technological and organisational change which helped senior management across the RSC identify new opportunities, streamline business processes and better manage and exploit our intellectual property.” Liz Thompson, Director of Communications
