ZOO Digital’s latest licensing deal opens up new to-trade business area

Media Software specialist ZOO Digital (AIM: ZOO) told investors that it has licensed its highly successful Media Adaptation Tool (MAT) to HudsonYards, the creative pre-media division of privately-held visual communication and marketing services company The CAPS Group. ZOO said that the deal marks a new and unexpected area of business.

"We've generally experienced resistance from within the trade, as our tools generate efficiencies that reduce the amount of chargeable work needed in most situations. However, we are increasingly receiving interest from businesses that are accepting that change is inevitable”, Zoo Digital chief executive Stuart Green commented.

The company noted that currently its software is generally sold directly to external content providers.

HudsonYards has a broad client-base consisting of major international brands, advertising agencies, corporate clients and entertainment studios – including Saatchi & Saatchi, Kraft General Foods, Calvin Klein, Christian Dior, Hallmark, National Geographic, Time Inc, BBC and Miramax.

“HudsonYards is a significant player in the pre-media market, with an exciting new proposition and expanded facilities in Los Angeles. We're excited to be working with them”, Green added.

"The marketplace ... is currently undergoing a revolution. We know that several of our entertainment and packaging clients are seeking faster time-to-market as well as cost management”, HudsonYards Studio City SVP Robert Godwin commented.

“They will benefit from the integration of MAT into the pre-media workflow. We look forward to using the latest technology and being at the forefront of developing new ideas and best practices for these processes".

According to ZOO, its MAT software suite can automate thousands of resizing and localization tasks, which are usually involved in bringing a major-media release through global distribution. Notably, the company stated that “MAT can version virtually any media created with the Adobe Creative Suite.”

By utilising a master file, ZOO’s software can translate and version it for multiple markets, automatically. “Our production artists map each element of the master document into the MAT database, including art, graphics and text. Then MAT automatically resizes the art and places the text according to specifications for each market.”

Through a broad variety of applications, ZOO provides outsourcing to manage and distribute digital media internationally, additionally the company said its software can also be used to enhance its clients existing in-house operations.

Primarily, ZOO licenses its proprietary software to adapt third-party media into different formats and languages. The company specialises in a number of key areas, including Blu-ray and DVD disc authoring, digital media translation and production and printed marketing materials.

ZOO undertakes a two-pronged approach to its business, with two distinct business lines. It licenses-out its software, primarily charged with a SaaS (Software as a Service) style per-use structure. Separately, the company has its own production facility, utilising the same propriety software from which it provides a full-service creative and production service.

“This mixed offering enables us to generate recurring revenues from most clients which increase as our software products become established components of their internal systems and workflows”, ZOO said.