Barcelona, 25 November 2003 - Visual Century, a technology company based in Barcelona, has released the new 2.0 version of its rich media asset management software ViA2 Platform. Among other new features, ViA2 Platform version 2.0 provides content-based searches of images and video keyframes using advanced shape, color and texture recognition tools as opposed to traditional textual metadata such as descriptors or keywords.

Content-based image retrieval features, an innovation in the rich media asset management field, allow the user to load images into the system and search the database for images or video keyframes similar in shape, color and texture. ViA2 Platform offers the possibility to complement content-based searches with traditional textual metadata tools (keywords, descriptions and descriptors) or filters (by date, status, type of document, etc). Equally advanced features of prior versions include asynchronous video analysis, much faster than video reproduction, which can analyze a 50 minute MPEG1 file in just 10 minutes.

With its new version, ViA2 Platform reaffirms its position as one of the most technologically advanced rich media asset management solutions for the simple and effective organization of audiovisual archives, digital signage networks and video-on-demand, among other applications. ViA2 Platform is distributed worldwide by Software AG and will be available from December 2003.

About Visual Century

Visual Century is a technology company created in 2001 by a group of entrepreneurs with audiovisual and multimedia research backgrounds. Visual Century develops software products to index, analyze, store and access digital video, audio and images in asset management applications that include archiving, production, retrieval, browsing and navigation of rich media content. The Visual Century team is made up of highly qualified professionals that the quality, technology and innovation objectives of the company, and includes a fully dedicated research division. Visual Century products stand out because of their innovative vision of rich media content, and they are designed to facilitate the use, management and exploitation of video, audio and image content.