Digital asset management (DAM) software is a staple feature for so many modern organisations. But where did it come from, and how has it changed over time? Keep reading as we provide a brief summary of DAM history.
The history of DAM systems starts with the advent of digital assets themselves. Computers gained traction for business use throughout the 1980s, meaning that by the 90s, digital files began to stack up.
Eventually, it became clear that a basic siloed system wasn’t capable of properly organising such high volumes of digital assets. Or at least it wouldn’t allow users to retrieve those assets when needed.
It wasn’t long before the first DAM systems were developed to deal with the issue of storing and archiving digital files. The software itself was installed to on-premises servers, allowing companies to create a more sustainable structure to store their assets digitally.
For some time, they were seen as a specialist solution for creative companies – such as publishers, printers and media organisations – who needed to store numerous photos and videos.
The next major change to the DAM landscape came through the advent of cloud computing. It’s one thing having your server space properly structured for asset storage and retrieval, but it’s another issue entirely having enough space for those assets.
With digital working around for more than two decades, companies were beginning to reach the limits of their on-premises servers. From 2007 onwards, cloud servers became the go-to solution for organisations who wanted to increase storage space without having to invest in additional servers of their own.
DAM followed suit, utilising remote servers so users could pair the benefits of DAM functionality with those of cloud storage.
While DAM may have begun as a specialist solution, the past decade has seen a shift in how digital assets are used by companies in almost every sector. The rise of social media, ecommerce and internet use more broadly has seen more and more organisations investing in their online presence and visuals.
Digital presence has become a must for all businesses – and content marketing has become critical to digital success. The result? Even the most traditional or technophobic companies are building up vast pools of digital assets. DAM is a one-stop shop to help them utilise and reuse those assets to get the most out of their time and money investment.
At iBase, our DAM solutions have been under continuous development since 1993, keeping up with technological advances and even shaping the way digital asset management has progressed.
Today, we provide an innovative DAM system to organisations in a wide range of sectors. If you would like to talk more about our software and how it can help you, please contact our team for a free one-to-one demonstration.
