Digital Asset Management Market to Exceed $1B in 2013

(Business News & Technology News, 4 Sep 2008)

Sparked by the ongoing explosion of audio, video, photos, and text being generated or converted in digital formats, the global market for digital asset management (DAM) solutions—software intended to capture, organize, store and distribute an organization¡¯s digital content—is expected to pass the $1 billion mark in 2013.

According to ABI Research industry analyst Zippy Aima, there are a number of forces acting to drive this market to great heights, but DAM also has some significant challenges to overcome.

"Large quantities of digital media content require collaboration across all personnel and departments, from creation to delivery," says Aima. "DAM systems' ability to enable integration is driving demand."

Until recently, the different operations concerned with rich media content were siloed and isolated. DAM solutions available today can integrate with existing third-party applications and systems, such as ERP and enterprise content management (ECM) applications.

Another factor motivating organizations to implement DAM is the bottom line: such solutions improve operational efficiency and demonstrate a clear ROI. Falling storage costs and ever-increasing bandwidth also mean that digital assets can be moved around with ease, and this capability too demands powerful management tools.

All that notwithstanding, there are still issues to be resolved. First among these is a lingering confusion about the very definition of digital asset management. "There is still a lack of clarity around defining the system," cautions Aima. "DAM systems are often confused with ECMs. Currently, DAM is considered to be a subset of ECM."

Other obstacles to DAM adoption include high price—the average cost of a DAM system is in the range of $100,000 to $150,000—and a lack of interest on the part of C-level executives.

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